Paul Allen Bernstein & Christopher Abrams at FPAC Gallery

Paul Allen Bernstein 

The Boston Cyberarts Festival deserves a lot more airtime than this slacker Examiner has been devoting lately. Billed as “the first and largest collaboration of artists working in new technologies in all media in North America,” the festival boasts some 85 events and spans April 24th through May 10th, 2009 in locales such as the Museum of Science, the Boston Public Library, and, of course, the great expanse of cyberspace.

I was already able to check out “The Lab,” an exhibition at the FPAC Gallery of work by Christopher Abrams and Paul Allen Bernstein that is part of the festival. One of the more exciting features of the art world today is the vast room for exploration in the intersection of art and technology. Abrams and Bernstein make this journey and exploration of new artist tools one that is both whimsical and serious in “The Lab,” and provide a great lead-in to the larger conversation of the festival as whole.  

Armed with this new palette of technology, Bernstein has incorporated music in the creation of some of his works, as well as CGI and new media, and to great effect. Probably my favorites here are the animated CGI pieces that are choreographed to music. Is this sculpture? Dance? Interactive art? All of the Above? Regardless, the interplay between dueling visual images—the color, line, and shapes—all combined with sound had me wondering—what will this look like on a 48” screen? A 60” screen? Even larger? And I look forward to these vivid dramas being expanded and infiltrating greater and greater spaces.

One of the interesting features of “The Lab,” and other parts of the Boston Cyberarts Festival, is the notion that much of the artwork included here is an organism in and of itself—a living thing that morphs and changes as time progresses. In “The Lab,” the artists promise that as you return to the space, you will see how things have evolved. This is well represented by Christopher Abrams’ large Rube Goldberg-like machine gradually sketching upon an enormous moving canvas on one of the gallery walls. It is clear that there is a nod to the American rite of passage—the Science Fair—in all of these works, and both Bernstein and Abrams do well to capture the sense of joy at exploring new artistic mediums and in presenting the results.

There is an artist’s talk scheduled for Thursday, April 30th at 7 pm at the FPAC Gallery as well.

The FPAC Gallery is located at 300 Summer Street in Boston.

For more info: Check out the website for the Boston Cyberarts Festival, which includes venues, listings and times. Also, check out the FPAC Gallery website. And, as always, you can find me on 617Midway.Blogspot.com.