Pro Tools with Cory Arcangel
Oct 5, 2011
Families learn how to make Photoshop Gradient Demonstrations, 2011. Photograph by Desi Gonzalez
Brooklyn-based artist Cory Arcangel explores the intersection of technology, Internet culture, and art. His work ranges from drawings and photographs to sculpture and video. On September 10, 2011, families engaged with the artist and his exhibition, Cory Arcangel: Pro Tools, through gallery activities, art projects, and digital technology.
Museum educators led activities that took both digital and analog approaches to Arcangel’s recent work. Upon entering one gallery, kids marveled at the large, high-quality prints that comprise his Photoshop Gradient Demonstration series, and were even more surprised when they found out how they were made. Using the image processing software Photoshop, the artist selected stock color gradients and randomly clicked across the computer screen. The titles of the resulting brilliantly-colored images function almost like instructions for how Arcangel made each photograph, listing the document size, type of gradient, and coordinate points of the mouse clicks. Families used laptop computers and Photoshop to follow these instructions and replicate Arcangel’s gradients. Afterwards, families tried their hand at making gradients with more traditional art materials—paper and colored pencil.
Families create their own color by mixing red, blue, yellow, white, and black paint, 2011. Photograph by Stina Puotinen
In another gallery, families were equally surprised to discover that a painted blue wall was actually a work on view in the exhibition. In 2007, Hip-Hop artist Jay-Z collaborated with car manufacturer GMC to create a special-edition color for a line of high-end SUVs. For Pro Tools, Arcangel reproduced the Jay-Z Blue paint to cover a gallery wall. In the Sculpture Court, families were invited to create their own custom paint colors. Kids and adults squeezed and swirled paint into miniature paint cans to generate a rainbow of assorted colors and give them creative names. One group produced a variety of sky-inspired hues, from Midnight Blue to Sunset Orange and Lavender Dawn.
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Inspired by Jay-Z Blue, kids mix their own paint colors, 2011. Photograph by Stina Puotinen
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Inspired by Jay-Z Blue, kids mix their own paint colors, 2011. Photograph by Desi Gonzalez
Arcangel joined in the fun—virtually!—when kids chatted with the artist during a live Skype session, asking everything from “What kind of pets do you have?” to “When did you realize video games could be art?” Arcangel was excited to hear that we made a paint color especially for him—called Y-ROC orange! To learn more about Arcangel and his work, check out For Kids, the Whitney’s new web pages designed especially for eight to twelve-year-olds.
Kids ask the artist questions about his work during Live Chat with Cory Arcangel, 2011. Photograph by Desi Gonzalez
Learn more about Family Program at the Whitney here.
Join us for the upcoming Desert Island Comic Zine Party on October 15, recommended for families with kids ages 8 to 14. No registration necessary!
By Desi Gonzalez, Education Assistant