Cory Arcangel,
Photoshop CS: 110 by 72 inches, 300 DPI, RGB, square pixels, default gradient “Yellow, Violet, Red, Teal”, mousedown y=16450 x=10750, mouse up y=18850 x=20600, 2009. Chromogenic print, 109 7/16 × 71 1/2 in. (278 × 181.6 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase with funds from Marcia Dunn and Jonathan Sobel, The Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, Fern Kaye and Lenard B. Tessler, and Diane and Tom Tuft
2010.21 © Cory Arcangel. Courtesy of artist and Team Gallery, New York
Cory Arcangel created this dazzling digital print on his computer using Photoshop, a program that lets users alter images. Standing nine feet tall, this work is composed of four brilliant colors—yellow, violet, red, and teal—bursting out from the center point and fading seamlessly into one another. This fade effect is called a gradient. To make the image, Arcangel chose one of Photoshop’s own gradient patterns and produced the design with a click of his mouse, creating an instant
abstract artwork.
The title, Photoshop CS: 110 by 72 inches, 300 DPI, RGB, square pixels, default gradient “Yellow, Violet, Red, Teal”, mousedown y=16450 x=10750, mouse up y=18850 x=20600, reveals exactly how Arcangel made the work. Because the artist includes information such as the type of gradient he used and the points where he clicked his mouse, anyone can follow the instructions in the title to copy this design! Even though he used a simple process to create the image on his computer, the artist printed it with the most high-quality photographic technology available. However, Arcangel realizes that this type of printing will soon be out-of-date, replaced by newer printing techniques.
