New York City, Feb 6 - March 5, 2017
"Commercial Break" presents a unique new intervention into video advertising by showcasing 23 artists (including ArtPlay artist Brian Bress) on huge LED advertising screens across all five boroughs of New York City.
Organized by the Public Art Fund, "Commercial Break" is an interesting use of the ubiquitous public screen to present pertinent political and social statements. Commercials used to be a "break" from creative programming but in our current age the balance has often flipped and the art can be regarded as a break from commercials... or is it just another form of commercial, itself?
As the Public Art Fund state:
"Our world is increasingly shaped by the display of visual information. Digital advertising has been seamlessly integrated into both public and private spheres, while modes of communication, from social media to the smartphone, have changed the way we think about our virtual and physical worlds. Commercial Break, a citywide exhibition, presents 23 artists who have created platform-specific interruptions within the advertising cycles of some of New York City’s most highly visible and technically advanced digital screens."
FEATURED ARTISTS & SITES:
Times Square: Cory Arcangel, Korakrit Arunanondchai, Brian Bress, Sue de Beer, Mary Reid Kelley and Patrick Kelley, Heather Phillipson, and Martine Syms
Barclays Center’s Oculus: Meriem Bennani, Kate Cooper, Cécile B. Evans, GCC, Agnieszka Polska, Tabor Robak, and Jacolby Satterwhite
Westfield World Trade Center: Hayal Pozanti
LinkNYC’s Link kiosks: Lucas Blalock, Antoine Catala and Gabriel Kahan, Awol Erizku, Ed Fornieles, David Horvitz, Britta Thie, and Hannah Whitaker
PublicArtFund.org: Casey Jane Ellison
M.B.
Brian Bress, Public Art Fund