Post-internet Queer Art is an online movement that challenges traditional notions of artistic creation, reception, and identity. It emerged in response to the increasing dominance of digital technologies in modern society and the resulting disruption of established cultural hierarchies. Post-internet artists create works that challenge normative assumptions about gender, sexuality, race, and power dynamics. By blurring the boundaries between public and private spheres, they explore how technology has transformed intimate interactions between people. In this essay, I will explain what post-internet queer art is, its destabilizing effects on authorship, aesthetics, and audience engagement, and the philosophical and ethical implications of its practice.
The term "post-internet" was coined by artist and curator Michael Connor to describe art that engages with digital culture and networked communication. Post-internet art is characterized by its interest in the internet as both a medium and subject matter. It explores the ways in which technology mediates social relationships, perceptions of reality, and political discourse. Post-internet artists often appropriate existing images and texts from the web, recontextualize them, and transform them into new forms of expression. This approach allows for a wide range of creative possibilities beyond conventional media, such as painting or sculpture.
Queer art is a form of art that subverts dominant norms of sexuality, gender, and power relations. It questions binary categories such as male/female, straight/gay, and cis/trans. Queer artists challenge traditional notions of beauty, desire, and representation. They use their work to explore the intersectionality of identity, creating new identities and spaces outside of heteronormativity. Post-internet queer art merges these two approaches, using digital technologies to create works that challenge established norms of authorship, aesthetics, and audience engagement.
Post-Internet Queer Art has three main characteristics: 1) it challenges the notion of authorship; 2) it subverts aesthetic conventions; and 3) it disrupts conventional modes of audience engagement. Firstly, post-internet queer art destabilizes authorship by blurring the line between artist and viewer. This can be seen in projects like "The Glitch Mob" (2015), where anonymous artists created a database of glitches, mutations, and errors that viewers could manipulate and remix into their own artworks. Secondly, post-internet queer art undermines conventional aesthetics by incorporating found images, textures, sounds, and videos from the internet.
Artist Petra Cortright's work combines clips from YouTube with distorted colors, shapes, and patterns.
Post-internet queer art defies traditional methods of audience engagement by inviting participation and collaboration. In projects like "Tumblr" (2014), users were encouraged to share photos, videos, and stories related to gender identity and sexuality.
This approach to art raises philosophical questions about identity, ownership, and representation. It challenges our understanding of what constitutes an artist or a work of art. Post-internet queer art also raises ethical questions about privacy, consent, and surveillance. When artists appropriate existing media, they must consider how this affects individuals' privacy and agency.
Some online platforms have strict policies regarding copyright infringement and intellectual property rights. These issues are not always straightforward but require careful consideration when creating post-internet queer art.
How does post-internet queer art destabilize conventional ideas of authorship, aesthetics, and audience engagement, and what philosophical and ethical questions emerge from its practice?
Post-internet queer art has become a significant movement in contemporary art that destabilizes conventional ideas of authorship, aesthetics, and audience engagement through digital media platforms such as Instagram and Tumblr. This movement challenges traditional notions of authorship by blurring the boundaries between artist and viewer, inviting viewers into an intimate experience with the work itself.