We look at hundreds of online images every day, on top of all those nestling within apps on our mobile devices. But it’s rare that we pause to reflect on art originating from the internet, as we would something on display in a museum or gallery.
When Electric Objects started to think about this fact, they realised there was actually more art on the internet than in every art gallery and museum around the world put together. And so they questioned; why aren’t digital images curated or displayed in the manner every image is designed to be? The answer is that; for the most part, our screens are too small to enjoy digital images and attached to devices that offer a plethora of instantaneous distractions. But why, they wondered, wasn’t anything being done to counteract this? Why weren’t people crying out for bigger and better platforms to view online art on?
It turns out they were, and so Electric Objects’ initial questions turned into ideas, then designs and finally a prototype. With this, the company turned to Kickstarter to gauge interest and to see whether they could raise the funds needed to build a device wholly dedicated to displaying digital art. Within 30 days on Kickstarter, thousands of backers had pledged a whopping $800,000 to be among the first to experience Electric Objects’ proposed platform in their homes.
Adam Ferris Art Club
That prototype eventually became EO1; a powerful but minimalist computer with a 23-inch IPS display that offers 1920x1080 HD resolution. Backed by multiple graphics accelerators, 2GB of flash memory, wifi and Bluetooth connectivity it contains everything you need to display large, beautiful images and even animations on the wall in your home.
Images are uploaded, swapped and managed using an app on the user’s mobile device. And because the EO1 was designed purely as a display platform - not to be interactable with in any way - the art is situated front and centre on the screen, free from distraction.
"Art is coming into our lives and into our homes, at a scale that we have never before seen."
Electric Objects’ co-founder, Jake Levine, believes there’ll be a dramatic change in the way we discover, share, enjoy and pay for art in our homes over the coming years: “Art is coming into our lives and into our homes, at a scale that we have never before seen. No longer will it remain trapped inside the white walls of galleries, auction houses, and museums. The Internet offers up a completely new way to provide access to the next generation of great art.” He and his team are currently busy, partnering with museums and libraries, with the aim of making their digital collections as well as scans of classic works easily available through the Electronic Objects app.
Sandra Gramm Art Club
They’re also building Art Club; an ecosystem of digital artists who come together with the common aim of creating artwork in a digital medium. Levine was initially surprised with the response he got from artists, saying; “One of the happiest surprises we’ve had, has been the degree to which the digital artist community has stepped up to embrace our mission of bringing digital art into every home.” Current participants include Bjork and Ai Weiwei.
The EO1 will make people slow down and engage with digital art like never before. At Creativepool we could not be bigger fans, we can’t wait to get the EO1 up in our office and all our Focal Point images on the wall!
