Some more on Appropriators

I came across this group, found them interesting and their purpose was stated well.

                        




  THE DROPLIFT PROJECT
                         --------------------
                 thirty masterworks of audio collage,
             media appropriation, and other illegal tricks

                for those who can _HEAR_ the difference

-------------------------------------------------------------
chances are,
if you bought this disc in a store,

it wasn't there because the store owner put it there.
Once we had these CD's printed,  we went into 
record stores in  selected locations the  world over,
leaving copies in the bins for you to find. We used
this "droplift" technique in order to protest the
current state of copyright law in this country.

Why?  Because our art is composed  largely of
uncleared samples.  Each artist on  this CD 
is involved in  a relationship with  media
appropriation,  found sound, and the art of collage.

For the  last hundred years,  artists have recognized
 the  wide possibilities afforded by taking elements
of the world around you  --  newspaper clippings,
photos, magazines, and even manufactured objects
--  and recombining them to form works that are
exciting,  new,  and often comment on who we are
and what the times we live in are like.  The
artists on this CD do the same thing with
sound.

We cut the TV,  radio, tapes,  recordings we've
made,  music we've creatively altered and purloined,
samples we've  found and hidden again,  and even
eachother,  to  weave  our  own  sonic  tapestries
 that describe  our lives  and our times.

Unfortunately,  the  prejudices of others and the
 big business of music make what we do  rather
difficult to  get out there.  Rather limp  and 
bullheaded interpretations  of  copyright  law
 and  irrational  fears  cause  the music
industry  --  and its world of lawyers  -- 
to ignore and threaten us.

All of which gets in the way of our work,
and your enjoyment.

The artists  on this disc  want you to hear
what we've made.  We don't think there's
anything illegal  about it,  so we did what
we could  to get it into your hands. Open
your ears and let us inside for a moment,
you'll see.


The Droplift Project is an art-response to
the current relation of artists and lawmakers
to the techniques of appropriation, collage,
and sampling in music. It has been designed
to play on your Compact Disc Audio Equipment
without modification. Your ears, attention-span,
 and brain may require slight adjustments for
maximum enjoyment of this Quality Product.

lifted from http://www.droplift.org/linernotes.txt

Also, some examples

http://blog.myspace.com/nationalcynical

Local Examples of Media and Performance

So far we have only talked about widely known examples of the incorporations of media in performance. Last year, I saw a show at the Fringe Festival that utilized video, (live and recorded) and sound effects from a computer. I thought it was interesting that instead of hiding the production booth as most theaters do, they put it in direct view of the audience. I think that this is a sign that the merge between performance and media is welcomed. I also found that watching the performers set up and rearrange their media devices, mostly a small camera that could clip to anywhere on the main characters body, was as interesting as when it was in place. They created an environment that seemed very organic while being almost entirely artificial. The image from the camera, which was placed on the main character, was projected on a screen behind all of the action on stage, giving the audience two simutaneous however very different views.

IM GRANT kiosk

Arriving at a Port-of-Entry, the traveler proceeds to an IM Grant inspection line. There, the person inserts a card issued to them at enrollment to an IM Grant kiosk, similar to an automated bank teller machine. Each inspection kiosk is unmanned. Responding to messages on the kiosk's touch-screen display, the traveler is prompted to enter their IM Grant number and to place their hand in a hand geometry reader. Screen prompts are used to achieve correct alignment of the hand with the hand reader. The kiosk software automatically compares the live scan of the traveler's hand geometry biometric to the image captured at enrollment. Once the image is verified the IM Grant cardholder will be given suggestions about where to party, eat and drink, and make friends in their new place. For example if an immigrant were to first arrive at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station they would proceed to the closest kiosk and then they would be given addresses and information about other immigrants in the city similar to them. This would allow for an exploration of the city through hand prints.

it's been a long time...

i'm interested in looking at less "artistic" and more practical manifestations of media in performance. not really a complaint, but with more time i would have liked to extend/divert the discussion towards more conventional examples. what does that mean though? who knows.