As I was reading the text I noticed mention of a lot of interactive or game related works.  These artists appealed to me especially because I spend most of my free time playing video games.  The first artist I picked was Cory Arcangel.  The reading mentions his work Super Mario Clouds, which is a Super Mario cartridge for NES modified to only show the clouds. 

The work I chose was I Shot Andy Warhol.  It is similar to Super Mario Clouds in that it is a modified NES game.  The goal of the original game is to shoot gangsters and not friendlies.  The friendlies in the original game are children, police men, etc.  In Cory Arcangel’s version, you are supposed to shoot Andy Warhol, and the friendlies are Colonel Sanders, Flavor Flav, and the Pope.

   

 I find this work to be ironic in the fact that Cory Arcangel has turned another very well regarded artist into the antagonist and people of debatable likeability into the friendlies.  I interpret this as attempt at social commentary about who people admire vs. who deserves their admiration.  You can download the playable version of the game from his website at “http://www.coryarcangel.com/things-i-made/ishotandywarhol/4/”.

The second work I chose is Replay by Jennifer and Kevin McCoy.  This was an interactive installation of a projection screen and bleachers.  The audience sat in the bleachers and the screen showed replays of various sporting achievements.  The interactivity comes in because the speed of the replays relate to the amount of cheering from the audience.

 

I found this work interesting more because of the psychological response of the audience. (At least how I imagine it, as I was unable to find any footage.)  Did the people cheer unabashedly, or did they feel awkward cheering at a projection rather than an actual event.  Did everyone cheer simultaneously, or was there more of a bandwagon effect?  You can find info about Jennifer and Kevin McCoy at “http://www.mccoyspace.com/”.