Recently we had a rather spirited discussion in the forum about whether digital graphics could be classified as art. Of course, most us graphics fanatics agreed that it does, but many expressed frustration with the challenge of convincing others of the value of digital art. Well, we may be turning a corner now that Woodson Art Museum in Wisconsin is formally recognizing this high-tech art form in a new exhibition titled "Electric Paint: The Computer as 21st Century Canvas."

Featuring 60 works from 22 artists in a dozen countries, Electric Paint challenges traditional methods of making art while it celebrates the ubiquitous 21st century tool – the computer. In a nutshell, Woodson Art Museum curator of exhibitions Andrew McGivern has selected artworks from around the world that reveal how technology has changed the creation and dissemination of artworks in this age of the World Wide Web.

The free exhibition runs from Saturday, April 15 through June 18 at Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, at the corner of Franklin and 12th streets in Wausau, Wisconsin. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Sample artwork from the exhibition can be seen on the museum Web site.

I especially enjoyed this comment from the Wausau Daily Herald article about the exhibit:

Art purists might be turned off by pieces that come from a soulless machine, but that might be a short-sighted view of the new genre. Instead of using oil paints, watercolors or pencils to portray the images in the artists' minds, the computer artist uses Photoshop, Corel Paint Shop and digital drawing devices. In the end, it's just another way to communicate a vision and a feeling -- a way to transfer an image from thought and mind to paper.

If you're able to visit the exhibition, I hope you'll come back and tell us what you thought about it in the comments.

On this site:
• Computer Graphics and Digital Art as a Career or Hobby

_{[via PhotoshopNews]
Image Credit: © Copyright Gerhard Katterbauer 2006}