Question/Answer - Claudia Zapata's Essay (Week 2)

Question: How effective are digital interfaces in making artwork more accessible to wide audiences? Does artwork that is shared via social media and digital avenues only cater to younger generations?

The internet and supporting technology is a fairly recent invention, and I would argue that those most well-versed in technological literacy are younger generations like myself, who grew up with schools that had mandatory computer classes. The recent influx of digital art and social media that helps disseminate art of all media leaves me to question, how effective are digital interfaces in making artwork more accessible to wider audiences? More importantly, is art that is created and shared exclusively via the internet exclude older generations who might not be as technologically savvy? How revolutionary are digital artworks if they are not accessible to those that either do not have access to computer and social media outlets, or are not well versed in using these resources?

  Claudia Zapata’s essay highlighted the ways in which various Chicanx artists have utilized emerging digital technologies to not only create art, but also disseminate and circulate art within their communities. Zapata highlights the recent digital revolution that took place in the 1980s - roughly only 40 years ago. She also notes that what characterized Chicano graphics or Chicano art is the two-dimensional works on paper that were easily disseminated (Zapata, 130). Zapata argues that digital software such as Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator has not led to the demise of Chicanx two dimensional works, but rather provided an additional outlet which allows artists to experiment and create artworks that can be easily shared through digital avenues such as social media or email. In her section titled “Web 2.0” Zapata argues that the emergence of Web 2.0, or the interactive web-based experience, created an electronic pipeline that allowed artists to share their pieces with a wide audience via the internet (Zapata, 138). However, what fails to be highlighted is exactly who these digital works are becoming more accessible to. While digital media might be more accessible to me as a twenty-three year old college student, I could not say the same for my seventy-seven year old grandmother. This makes me wonder about how truly accessible digital artworks are, and who they are accessible to. I would be interested in learning more about the effectiveness of digital vs. print artworks and the communities that each is more accessible to.