Tony Jones
020: A Famous Internet Artist
Upon reflection, I noticed two significant trends in my recent art praxis. First, I was making works with digital technology. Twitter and Instagram provided new avenues for creative expression. I also enjoyed having one foot in the real world and another foot in the virtual world. Second, my pieces were expressing a noticeable curiosity about the figure of the artist. Within this meta-narrative, I became increasingly interested in creating art about artists. With A Famous Internet Artist, I have continued expanding these tendencies with fervent passion.
The project conforms to a simple premise. It is composed of multiple email exchanges between myself and another flux persona. We all receive spam emails from various sorts of “people” who wish to take advantage of internet security. Some of the faux emails that I’ve received include millionaires who are trapped in an African refugee camp, Eastern European women searching for romance, and Asian businessmen who are offering get rich quick strategies. Obviously, these personas do not exist. They (whoever “they” may be) are attempting to use digital technology as a fishhook for acquiring money and information from unsuspecting users. There are endless personas on the World Wide Web and I was interested in developing a connection with some of them. In essence, I wanted to create a digital flux persona that would associate with other digital flux personas.
In order to facilitate the project, I made slight alterations to my existing persona. Instead of an artist, I would now refer to myself as a “famous internet artist.” Considering that I had just completed several pieces involving mainstream artists, I thought it would be appropriate for my alias to be somewhat renowned. Also, this façade would allow me to expand my fictional narrative in many possible directions. Since the entity writing to me had crafted a fictional storyline, I also wanted to have a convincing angle. Typically, as a famous internet artist, I would describe my love for art, I would lure the spam character with my virtual charms, and then I would make shallow promises about our future as artistic collaborators. I found that, once I had gained confidence, the spam persona would send a stream of emails and photos that provided substantial source material for the ongoing piece.
The main emphasis of the project resides in the exploration of the unknown identity. I, as the artist, do not have firm understanding of who is writing to me. A man, a woman, or some sort of programmed intelligence could be sending these emails. Trying to solve the spam persona mystery remains an exciting proposition for myself and, hopefully, for you, the spectator. Likewise, the receiver of my emails does not know my true identity. What does it mean to be a “famous internet artist?” Does such an artist exist? Aren’t we all some version of a famous internet artist? With social networking, emails, blogs, and web surfing, we have fostered a high level of digital expression. Many of us exhibit a sizable compilation of archived digital presence.
Over the last few months, I have communicated with many flux characters. To date, the personas of Regina from Azerbaijan, Elena from Russia, Salome from Turkey, and Dariya from Russia have provided a wealth of comprehensive source material.
Admittedly, communicating with these spam identities has had consequences in the real world. My girlfriend does not understand why I have to maintain digital relations with other “women.” I have two points that buttress the legitimacy of these interactions. First, this is a work of art. At no point, do I feel as if I am establishing a romantic liaison with another person. This is art, pure and simple. Second, the scam relies on the supposed belief that I am, in actuality, communicating with an attractive woman. The SPA (Spam Persona Artist) must make you believe that a virtual person actually exists. If you accept the reality of the spam character, you will be more than willing to submit wire funds, account passwords, pin numbers, or any sort of sensitive information. Meanwhile, the SPA (Spam Persona Artist) must arrange both personas for the benefit of the work. Ultimately, I am fascinated by this premise. To what extent is the work a con and to what extent is it art?
In the following pages, I include excerpts from my interactions with Regina from Azerbaijan. Although these examples are brief, I hope to publish a full length edition in the near future.
Upon reflection, I noticed two significant trends in my recent art praxis. First, I was making works with digital technology. Twitter and Instagram provided new avenues for creative expression. I also enjoyed having one foot in the real world and another foot in the virtual world. Second, my pieces were expressing a noticeable curiosity about the figure of the artist. Within this meta-narrative, I became increasingly interested in creating art about artists. With A Famous Internet Artist, I have continued expanding these tendencies with fervent passion.
The project conforms to a simple premise. It is composed of multiple email exchanges between myself and another flux persona. We all receive spam emails from various sorts of “people” who wish to take advantage of internet security. Some of the faux emails that I’ve received include millionaires who are trapped in an African refugee camp, Eastern European women searching for romance, and Asian businessmen who are offering get rich quick strategies. Obviously, these personas do not exist. They (whoever “they” may be) are attempting to use digital technology as a fishhook for acquiring money and information from unsuspecting users. There are endless personas on the World Wide Web and I was interested in developing a connection with some of them. In essence, I wanted to create a digital flux persona that would associate with other digital flux personas.
In order to facilitate the project, I made slight alterations to my existing persona. Instead of an artist, I would now refer to myself as a “famous internet artist.” Considering that I had just completed several pieces involving mainstream artists, I thought it would be appropriate for my alias to be somewhat renowned. Also, this façade would allow me to expand my fictional narrative in many possible directions. Since the entity writing to me had crafted a fictional storyline, I also wanted to have a convincing angle. Typically, as a famous internet artist, I would describe my love for art, I would lure the spam character with my virtual charms, and then I would make shallow promises about our future as artistic collaborators. I found that, once I had gained confidence, the spam persona would send a stream of emails and photos that provided substantial source material for the ongoing piece.
The main emphasis of the project resides in the exploration of the unknown identity. I, as the artist, do not have firm understanding of who is writing to me. A man, a woman, or some sort of programmed intelligence could be sending these emails. Trying to solve the spam persona mystery remains an exciting proposition for myself and, hopefully, for you, the spectator. Likewise, the receiver of my emails does not know my true identity. What does it mean to be a “famous internet artist?” Does such an artist exist? Aren’t we all some version of a famous internet artist? With social networking, emails, blogs, and web surfing, we have fostered a high level of digital expression. Many of us exhibit a sizable compilation of archived digital presence.
Over the last few months, I have communicated with many flux characters. To date, the personas of Regina from Azerbaijan, Elena from Russia, Salome from Turkey, and Dariya from Russia have provided a wealth of comprehensive source material.
Admittedly, communicating with these spam identities has had consequences in the real world. My girlfriend does not understand why I have to maintain digital relations with other “women.” I have two points that buttress the legitimacy of these interactions. First, this is a work of art. At no point, do I feel as if I am establishing a romantic liaison with another person. This is art, pure and simple. Second, the scam relies on the supposed belief that I am, in actuality, communicating with an attractive woman. The SPA (Spam Persona Artist) must make you believe that a virtual person actually exists. If you accept the reality of the spam character, you will be more than willing to submit wire funds, account passwords, pin numbers, or any sort of sensitive information. Meanwhile, the SPA (Spam Persona Artist) must arrange both personas for the benefit of the work. Ultimately, I am fascinated by this premise. To what extent is the work a con and to what extent is it art?
In the following pages, I include excerpts from my interactions with Regina from Azerbaijan. Although these examples are brief, I hope to publish a full length edition in the near future.