In college, I took many a class that asked (and rarely) answered the question of how media truly affects society. It’s no secret that in today’s media-saturated world, people are engulfed in their Blackberries, MacBooks and iPhones. While this is all well and good now, what happens when these technologies are replaced by newer, hipper pieces of technology? Nick Gentry, a UK-based artist, has spent his life asking the same questions. Though, instead of leaving things open-ended, he’s taking the technologies of yore (namely floppy discs) and creating beautiful pieces of art with them. Remember when people had rolodexes filled with floppy discs-each of which held specific (and often times important) pieces of information)? Where have they all gone? More importantly, is there a use for them anymore? Here’s what Gentry has to say about it:
Each floppy disk used in the paintings has a history and story of its own. It represents the increasing pace of the modern life cycle, where objects are created, used and disposed of quicker than ever. To challenge this notion, as these personal artefacts of life are cast aside, the obsolete are now given new life and a renewed purpose by using them as a medium for art.
In the same fashion that people have made CD players out of old turntables and iPod cases out of classic GameBoys, Gentry has a knack for adding beauty to pieces of plastic and metal that people might otherwise have completely forgotten about. Check out some of his artwork below, or at one of his shows, should you ever get the chance.
(Check out my other posts at The Record Crate.)
love the Gentry Sonata piece….sold out… and your topics.