Generative Art Timeline · Chapter 5: Artist-Programmer Era (1970s)

1978

Arbitrary Fragments by Barbara Latham

Artwork · Women Artists

A still from Barbara Latham's Arbitrary Fragments, used by the Video Data Bank as the poster frame for its preview clip of the tape.
A still from Barbara Latham's Arbitrary Fragments, used by the Video Data Bank as the poster frame for its preview clip of the tape. Barbara Latham, Arbitrary Fragments, 1978. Courtesy Video Data Bank, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

This pioneering work of video art saw Latham commenting on the inherently fragmented nature of video. The work features extensively manipulated and processed visuals showcasing this fragmentation.

Latham explores the blending perceptions of herself and her creations, highlighting the interconnected nature of video, storytelling and identity formation, where fact and fiction intertwine to shape one’s identity.

Latham’s creation is a video persona that is something distinct from her true self. The piece anticipates the growing tension between video art and identity, which contemporary artists like Maya Man explore.

Text by Peter Bauman. Generative Art Timeline, Le Random.

Sources

People

Barbara Latham, Maya Man

Movements

video art

Filed under

Ideas
authenticity, avatars, fragmentation, identity, storytelling, video art
Technologies
video
People
Barbara Latham, Maya Man
Works
Arbitrary Fragments

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