Supervisor, Niels Niessen
MA Comparative Cultural Analysis Thesis
13/06/2017
Structurality within and outside the <body>
INTRODUCTION 3
CHAPTER 1| WITHIN THE <BODY> AS FRAME | OBJECT ANALYSIS 9
1.1 24HOURBODY.NET 9
1.2 BODYOF WORKS 15
1.3 WITHINTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: THE VISUAL ASPECT 17
1.4 WITHINTHE <BODY> ASFRAME: THE TEXTUAL ASPECT 24
1.5 BEYONDTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: SIMULACRUM, STRUCTURE ANDTHE PARERGON 27
CHAPTER 2| BEYOND THE <BODY> AS FRAME | CONFIGURATIONS 34
2.1 BEYONDTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: <HEAD> FUNCTIONAS PARERGON 34
2.2 BEYONDTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: COINTEMPORARYAS STRUCTURAL ELEMENT 38
2.3 BEYONDTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: BLOCKCHAIN CONFIGURATIONS 40
2.4 BEYONDTHE <BODY> AS FRAME: BLOCKCHAIN CONFIGURATIONS AS RHIZOME 45
CHAPTER 3| THE <BODY> AS ARCHIVE | SYSTEM OF FORMATIONS 52
3.1 THE <BODY> AS ARCHIVE 52
3.2 THE <BODY> AS ARCHIVE: BLOCKCHAIN AS LEDGER / ARCHIVE 56
3.3 THE <BODY> AS ARCHIVE: 24HOURBODY.NET AND DISCURSIVE RELATIONS 61
‘We are still flooded with images. The images that capitalism has of itself - a series of never-ceasing electric pulses travelling at light speed across the globe, perhaps - and the images we have of our relation to it. … It matters a lot how we understand who we are - as an isolated body, as part of a collective body, as a depressed subject, as a worker, a carer - and it matters how we conceive of ourselves in relation to broader abstraction that we have no individual control over.
Nina Power, Necro-Capitalism and Counter Images.
Introduction
We live in interesting times if we consider the relation Nina Power makes salient in this epigraph. The relation between ourselves and broader
abstractions that we have no individual control over becomes tangible within new technological possibilities to disseminate information, especially through visual content and images. The images that we encounter, whether these reside in the public sphere or in a digital environment, often tie into monetary systems one way or another. However, monetary systems in traditional sense are not the only structural processes at play. New ways to merge monetary systems and technological possibilities are continuously created. One of the most impactful technologies in this regard is the Blockchain, which was
popularized by the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer version of electronic cash which is encrypted through a system that requires verification through digital signatures (Nakamoto, web). Bitcoin’s founder Satoshi
Nakamoto introduced the use of blockchain configurations to deal with
problems of double spending in October 2008. Nakamoto’s suggestion of using the blockchain in order to solve these problems has proved to be highly
successful. The phenomenon of cryptocurrency, as abstraction that we have no individual control over, has gained immense popularity since that time. The implementations of this particular technology are widespread. So it goes for digital art, which seems to reside in the middle of the paradigm between the subject-body, visual representation and abstract (technological and monetary) systems. It would be interesting to investigate implications that the Blockchain technology holds for digital art.
The general concept of the Blockchain is not difficult to grasp initially; a message is sent to several places (nodes) which collect and reconfigure this message into an encrypted block. After the encrypted block is formed, the nodes send this block to all the other nodes. At this point each node can verify and build upon the information coming from the different nodes. All the
previous information is stored and remains accessible, while forming a
continuous chain of blocks. This configuration relies on verification, rather than the normative model that is based upon trust in institutionalized banks and economical systems. However, the blockchain configuration is a highly complex technology. The dissemination of the information, which is encrypted by an auto-generated code throughout a decentralized network, takes a lot of
processing power. The way the nodes and blocks relate to each other creates a vast network of possible connections, forming a virtually limitless network.
But why is the Blockchain technology interesting for curatorial practices and digital art? The concepts of value, verification of authorship and copyright are important issues in the art world, especially in the digital era where works
can easily be reproduced. The possibilities of cryptocurrency, and especially its underlying Blockchain configuration, make up for a paradigm shift that not only simplifies the relation between value and authorship in regards to a monetary system, it also makes salient a disjuncture between the human and the digital in contemporary culture. As Nina Power mentions in the epigraph; it matters how we conceive ourselves in relations to phenomena like this. In speaking about a disjuncture we can mark the uncomfortable relation between more traditional ideas of art and digital art, which ultimately functions differently in relation to contemporary culture due to its characteristics of assembly and remix elements. Due to the complexity, or rather, obscurity of digital products (e.g., generics elements and the ‘original’; unclear relations to what is actually the materiality of digital means; mass-production and distribution through copying; the ability to copy, re-use and appropriate digitally produced elements on a large scale) it is difficult to place digital works inside the traditional field of art. Moreover, the relation between the corporeal and these new possibilities for art is already complex. Thus, the relation with the public, or masses, changes when engaging the mechanical reproduction of art, as Walter Benjamin already proposed in The work of Art in the Age of Mechanical
Reproduction (1969) almost fifty years ago (Benjamin 14). If mechanical
reproductive elements already hamstring the relation between men and art, imagine what an even more complex configuration like blockchain technology holds as proposition in this regard. The mechanical and digital are not quite the same, but there is a similar transitory motion at play; a form of subject-object position. I speak about interfaces, material structures and objects that we interact with.
In this light the (art) object of analysis becomes the centrality of
engagement: it is the vessel through which this new configuration between the masses and art is conveyed. Or as Marshall McLuhan proposes in The Medium
is the Message (1964); ‘‘the medium is the message’ because it is the medium
that shapes and controls the scale and form of human association and action.’ (McLuhan 2). Both Benjamin’s and McLuhan texts create a foundation to build upon in engaging with objects, technological configurations and the relation towards their recipients. To reiterate; ‘For the ‘message’ of any medium or technology is the change of scale or pace or pattern that it introduces into human affairs’ (McLuhan 1).
It is thus needed to formulate an object of analysis; 24hourbody.net. This artwork is made by Joey Villemont and is curated by the online platform
Cointemporary.com. Both the artwork and the platform are configured in
blockchain configurations. The object enables exploration of tensions
concerning the paradigm between object, technology and the recipient. One of the aims of this thesis is to show how 24hourbody.net as an object performs abstract processes attributed to blockchain configurations. The content that is considered to part of the object’s ‘body of work’ postpones meaning through a consecutive shift between visual, textual and temporal elements. In general; 24hourbody.net is in its structural and enunciative configuration a performance of not only Derrida’s concept of différance, but also holds elements of Gilles Deleuze’s and Felix Guattari conceptualization of rhizomatic network
structures. These two main concepts set up the initial theoretical framework. The third chapter attributes archival and discursive formations (conceptualized by Michel Foucault in The Archaeology of Knowledge) to the object. To be
these three post-structuralist theoretical concepts in dialogue with blockchain attributes through effects that are propelled by the workings and the functions residing within and outside the digital artwork as object.
The title 24hourbody.net suggest the importance of the ‘body’. The use of ‘body’ has a double meaning since the artwork is predominantly a website that subsists by programming syntaxes. One of these syntaxes is the function of <body>…</body>1. This <body> function enables the translation between
programming and the representation of the actual website — it quite literally frames 24hourbody.net. At the same time the <body> function emphasizes a structural component that is not directly part of the work. The division between what is considered to be part of the work and what is outside of the work is an important element for the structure of this thesis. The first part of the thesis engages with elements that are considered to be ‘within the <body> as frame’. The second part engages with what is ‘beyond the <body> as frame’. The last segment reconfigures the <body> function as an archive.
The first chapter Within the <body> as frame: Object Analysis questions the arbitrary character and the postponement of meaning in the visual and textual elements within the object. To formulate a research question; ‘What is the relation between the seemingly arbitrary character of the art work and its structure?’. Also, the chapter provides a formulation on the structurality of structure.
The second chapter Beyond the <body> as frame: Configurations moves deeper into the structure of the artwork. 24hourbody.net, as digital artwork, subsists by digital processes that are hidden in the background of the work. These processes and dynamics are part of the artwork, but they do not reside
‘within the <body> as frame’. The chapter starts with the role of the curatorial platform Cointemprory.com. From there on out the chapter mobilizes attributes of the blockchain in relation to 24hourbody.net. This chapter answers the
question; What is the role of the hidden processes such as the blockchain
configuration in this object and how does it influence the way we approach this particular digital artwork?
The third chapter covers 24hourbody.net and its blockchain configuration (a structural element that has been unearthed in the second chapter) in
relation to the archive and discursive formations. The artwork draws possible combination from a digital archive, bridging the representational elements with the structural element. As question we can formulate; ‘What relations can be uncovered between dynamics that are at play within and beyond (outside) the object in relation to discursive and archival theories?’
In sum, over the course of these three chapters this thesis argues that 24hourbody.net performs three post-structuralist theoretical concepts in dialogue with blockchain attributes through effects that are propelled by the workings and the functions residing within and outside the digital artwork as object.
Chapter 1
|
Within the <body> as Frame
| Object
Analysis
The first chapter ‘within the <body> as frame’ investigates
24hourbody.net as object. It is an interesting object because of its digital attributes and the underlying blockchain configuration. The aesthetic effects and modes of interpretation are different from an installation, painting or framed picture. The digital aspect of the object brings out inherent tensions in regards to approaching the object as artwork. 24hourbody.net comes across as a mundane and generic artwork. The focal point of the first chapter is this tension between genericness and art. To formulate a preliminary question for this chapter; ‘What is the relation between the genericness of the object’s content and its structure?
This chapter formulates an answer to question by considering the total ‘body’ of the work on two levels in chapter 1.1 and 1.2. Then it proceeds with a consideration of the signifying structure that is at play within this ‘body of work’ by looking at the visual and textual elements in the object (chapter 1.3 and chapter 1.4). The elements that are unearthed in these section make up for the shift of focus point, we move from visual and textual analysis towards analysis of structural components.
1.1 24hourbody.net
The object of analysis is Joey Villemont’s digital artwork (in website form) named 24hourbody.net, which has been online 2016. The online curatorial platform Cointemporary stores and distributes the artwork. 24hourbody.net consists of twelve parts that each cost 0,3 Bitcoin (BTC). The artwork as
website is a combinational display of a centered clock, a background image and an inspirational text quote that rotates around the clock that (Image 1). The assemblies or combinations are randomly generated and change every two
hours. The background image and the text change independently.
(Image 1, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
The initial encounter with 24hourbody.net is a strange one as the website only shows three elements. The predominant background image that covers the whole page, the generic inspirational quotes and the digital clock provide for what resembles a plain screensaver. The website as such seems to hold no real function apart from showing the time. The background image is in sharp contrast with the windows of the browser, which only changes slightly
whenever enabling a full screen mode. The first full window screenshot I took shows a bare male chest joined by the words ‘Live with your time’ (Image 2).
The image represents a male body — something that sits quite uneasy with the citation, at a first glance there seems to be no direct relation between these two elements. In general sense, ‘Live with your time’ marks a relation between the partial representation of the toned body, however mundane and rather unsubstantial it seems. The first questions arise: ‘Why are these elements assembled?’ and ‘Is there some kind of underlying conceptualization at work?’ Answering these questions might yield some sort of formulated and coherent
answer, but it would be one that is as plain as the subject of the image. The image comes across as mundane and rather unsubstantial.
(Image 2, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
The image comes across as a stock photo that circulates the internet for a range of different uses. The text holds a similar effect; the aphorism ‘Live with your time’ almost seems to be taken from the most generic website for
lack of possible impact by the background image even more. Both the text and the background image undermine each other, while they seem to hold no other relation between the two. The background image and the text both pose a sense of randomness and mundanity. These characteristics seem to be inherent attributes to the object. 24hourbody.net carries these attributes throughout the different combinations; after every two hours the combination of both background image and text changes.
The second encounter with the object is approximately two and a half hours later (Image 3). The screenshot shows a fragment of a pizza joined by the text ‘Sometimes it’s better not to talk’. There is no logical relation relation between the text and the close up image of a pizza. The combination of these
mundane elements seems random and resists a coherent formation of meaning. The second rendition of this object
(Image 3, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
shows the same simplistic relation between the text and the image. We now have two combinations (image 2 and 3) to cross-reference. Cross-referencing image 2 and 3 might enable some sort of interpretation when these two
background images and two texts are taken into consideration. It does not take long to realize that there is not a consistent relation between these four
elements. They do not have a coherence, even if they are interchangeably juxtaposed.
The third screenshot of 24hourbody.net shows another different
combination between background image and text (image 4). The background image shows a male person holding a phone with his finger touching the
screen. The text reads; ‘Anything is possible.’
(Image 4, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
Again, the elements are too plain to form some sort of interpretation that is meaningful. However, it is with this encounter that I notice the lack of
interpunction. The lack of interpunction and the movement of the text around the centered clock have a particular effect. Not only does the text move in a circular motion, the performance of reading is circular as well. The circular effect is persistent, not only for the motion of text; it also migrates to new combinations between background image and text. This ever-constituent element is emphasized by the presence of the clock that shows linearity in time, but it also makes the same round in the same place. The random and mundane character now converses with a notion of temporality. In short;
throughout these three different examples of combination of image and text we find that the same persistent elements of arbitrariness, interchangeability and temporality become salient.
I could continue with providing examples that show how the background images and the texts are loosely connected within their assemblage and to other combinations (at this point I have made a couple dozen screenshots of possible combinations and are all similar in their randomness). It is much more interesting to move deeper into the reason as to why the object provides for such coherence. I am not proposing coherence in image, but coherence to arbitrary and mundane contingencies between the image and text in a given combination. This endeavor steers towards an understanding of the underlying structure and how it functions in order to produce these effects.
The object is best described as a set of possible combinations; it is a bricolage, an assembly; a field of supplements. These assemblies are not only singular encounters by looking at a particular combination, as the examples show, but they rather reside in relation to every other possible combination (see image 5). The title of the work, 24hourbody.net, foreshadows a particular important element of the work; namely, the concept of the body. The concept
of the body holds an important proposition regarding the framing of the object as website. In general, website configurations make use of the coding syntax <body>. This specific semantic coding-function translates programming code to what actually can be seen (in its representational form) on a website.
Everything that is placed within the <body> can be considered as the totality of the configuration. In other words; 24hourbody.net consists of a set of
possible combinations that through the function of the <body>, make up for a body of works.
(Image 5, Assembly of screenshots by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
1.2 Body of Works
The idea to consolidate the function of the <body> as a part of the
with generic digital images. The function of the <body> sets up a frame;
everything represented via the website resides within this frame. But, how does one engage with images that are literally replaceable (and do so every two hours), instead of a singular frame that shows one assembly of text and image? The background images only gain significance in relation to other possible combinations. They perform a conceptualization of multiplicity and by doing so they force a fragmentation as effect.
The aspect of the <body> function also enables a consideration of the temporality in the artwork. The temporal element is initially the clock that is consistently shown within the object. It is the only element that keeps it form every two hours. In addition, the object also has a time slot of two hours after which the background image and the text change. The recurring change of combination is a coded script enlisted within the <body> function. Without going too deep into computational semantics and programming, we can state that the <body> function thus not only generate the possible combinations, it also performs their representation that is configured in a specific temporal sequence. By doing so it emphasizes the momentous context of the artwork. The <body> function is thus more than just a frame for representation, it is a structural inner part of the artwork as total.
The randomly generated sequence of combinations through time resonates with the concepts of arbitrariness and interchangeability. The spectator needs to see multiple combinations through time in order to
somewhat understand the object’s impact and effects. Interestingly, this also becomes salient in relation to the title of the work (24hourbody.net) and a fragment from the work’s description; ‘Inspired by our internal biological lock it sets a new time, a corporeal time, more in sync with our creative life that many
of us live online.’ (Cointemporary, web). Mentioning the relation between time and the corporeal (spectator) brings forth a dynamic that works two ways.
Firstly, the object indeed demands a certain type of creativity from the spectator. The sequence that changes through time and the bricolage
‘character’ of the object steer towards a logic of narrative. It almost demands an associative gaze asking the question: ‘What is the narrative that connects these background images, the clock and the text?', especially after seeing more and more combinations. However, and this becomes increasingly important; this narrative mode of engaging with the object is resisted due to the unintelligible interplay of semiotic chains. The object thus is not only fragmentary in its initial encounter and by changes of combinations through time, it is also fragmentary because there is a lack of coherent narrative.
Secondly, and this builds forth on the first point, the object steers towards a post-structuralist textual reading through the attributes of
arbitrariness and interchangeability. Predominantly, these attributes converse with Jacques Derrida concept of différance. And although the focal point stems from a textual perspective, it does provide for engaging the object as an
interconnected fabric. The object as interconnected fabric places an emphasis on the interconnectivity on a structural level, rather than merely an associative visual one. In sum; the body of work as totality of possible combinations that are represented as website; the <body> as function, and the corporeal
intervention by the spectator all simultaneously relate and engage with the object as fabric on a structural level. This conclusion steers towards a deeper look into the processes that occur within the object.
1.3 Within the <body> as Frame: The Visual Aspect
Before I further the thesis with a consideration on the visual aspect of the object it is necessary to pinpoint the initial point of view in theoretical sense. Writing about a body of work suggests a visual and relational theoretical framework, which can be different gazes. Following Iris Rogoff’s link between visual culture and intertextuality she explains in Studying Visual Culture, I propose to use the next excerpt as grounding point for this section;
Thus visual culture opens up an entire world of intertextuality in which images, sounds and spatial delineations are read on to and through one another, lending ever-accruing layers of meanings and of subjective responses to each
encounter…. In a sense we have produced a field of vision version of Derrida’s concepts of différance and its achievement has had a twofold effect both on the structures of meaning and interpretation and on the epistemic and institutional frameworks that attempt to organize them. (Rogoff 14-5)
The combination between visual culture as intertextual, in which specially images are lined up with the Derridian concept of différance, and the structure of meaning and interpretation is important for the section as it progresses.
During the course of writing this thesis I still find previously unseen background images. Some of these background images show similarities, but thematically they are not all connected. The images are too dispersive, even when they do touch similar themes.
By using Google Images to research if these images circulate the Internet I discovered that they are indeed used for different goals. Immediately, this discovery problematizes the artwork’s relation with ideas of ownership,
of the dispersive use of one of these images (Image 6). The juxtaposition shows the same image of a person holding a phone, but it is used in two different ways, namely the use in the artwork and the use for a book cover.
(Image 6, Assembly of screenshots by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey. Right image adopted from Google Images, showing the book Popular Representation of Development, ed. David Lewis and Michael Woolcock)
Close reading a singular image becomes problematic when the images that are used in the artwork are digital reproductions. Although the images (most of them are photographs) function as indexical record of a disparate range of events, they do not quite function as such in 24hourbody.net (Hawker 549). The generic nature and free floating character of the image steers towards a need for contextualization with the other elements of the work, rather than a
singular encounter with embedded concepts such as narrative, focal points or intrinsic juxtapositions. The dispersive aspect of the image makes it nearly impossible to find the photographer or even the original source from where it is uploaded. The lack of origin in the visual aspect shows a contemporary posture in regards to post-structuralist theory; the object does not hold a proposition to be ‘an original’ and thus the focus shifts towards the working of the object in its
totality. The visual images merely perform the idea of a metonymic cascading signifying structure.
The focus on the visual aspect within the object can by further crystallized by mobilizing a specific image that performs a concept derived from the object.
The example I propose shows a background image of a digital representation of a vascular system through which red blood cells flow (Image 7).
(Image 7, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
The representation of the vascular system presents the possibility to
conceptualize the interconnectedness within the <body>. This example binds the function of <body>, the title of the work and the corporeal (relayed
through a metonymical representation of the bodily system) with the body works (totality of possible background image in the <body> function of the website). The first concept this image performs is the idea of a partial
representation of the corporeal. The image shows red blood cells that flow through a vascular system that associatively and metonymically connects with the title of work. However, the image is randomly taken from open source internet. The association is thus a chance encounter, rather than an intentional conceptualization or representation of this relation — it is an arbitrary relation and in its ontological sense depended on the spectator. It must be stated that this (metonymic) representation of the corporeal is not the only background image that draws and relates to a specific discourse (at this point, and for simplicity sake, let’s say the medicinal discourse). The interesting part of this image is the partial representation of an interconnected system, which cannot be seen beforehand, but only after dissecting elements of the ‘body’. It steers towards a metonymic understanding that the underlining system is important in the working of the object, especially in considering that initial visual
elements shown by this image are rather limited.
Another concept that derives from this example is the notion of
migratory aesthetics, mobilized by Jill Bennett (Bennett 109). In providing her
point of view on migratory aesthetics she mentions three distinctive elements that resonate strongly with the example. The first element is that migratory aesthetic is something that is realized as an event (Bennett 115). The
realization of the event works in two ways. The first way is already touched upon — due to the object’s temporal character the spectator can not engage with the object in a singular encounter. The second is that even upon looking at one specific moment (for example the two hours in which the example is seen as combination) is already a process of interpretation. Engaging with visual aesthetics already holds a temporal and structural deferral in interpretative modi. The second element Bennett proposes is migratory aesthetics as a
collective enunciation (Bennett 115). Even one specific example of the object
functions as a collective enunciation within the exhibition. It forms a bricolage, a multiplicity of visual voices — broken by contextual temporality and
interchangeability. The multiplicity of visual voices is present in a singular encounter (different spectators interpret different things when looking at the same image). However, the idea of a collective enunciation increasingly
extends further when considering more combinations. The different background combinations are connected, but not directly in intertextual modus that
enables narrative interpretation in visuality. They do, however, converge in relation to the exhibitional space that is the body of works (<body> function). The third and last element is an uneasy one; ‘Meaning emerges from aesthetic or formal resonance operating across art works and in the interplay with the politics of the moment.’ (Bennett 115). The first two elements that we just covered are listed, but the interplay with momentous politics is supplemental. On the one hand, 24hourbody.net is not directly tied into politics on its visual level. The images are too generic. On the other hand, marking politics as a field to which aesthetics and visuals can relate, shows a centrifugal movement external to the object. In other words; the object enables to go beyond its initial visual discourse and ties into other fields. The reason why I forgo this
distinction between politics and discourse is because of the unstable concept of ‘meaning’ that Bennett proposes, stems from aesthetics or formal resonance in relation to interplays moving outside the work. Even within a partial example taken from 24hourbody.net there is room for interpretative relation with other fields of discursivity. This contextual event inherently resonates outwards via an interplay of several spheres. The concepts mobilized with the example of the object all point towards a multiplicity of relation within the <body>. I
propose to look at another example; an example that is less defined than the vascular system in relation to the body (Image 8).
(Image 8, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
The background image depicts a galaxy of which the center is aligned with the center of the clock. The generic character is still present, even though the relation works different as apposed to the previous example. The background image of the galaxy is generic in the sense that it could be replaced by any other image of the galaxy. And although we would realize that it is a different image, the lack of possible interpretation remains and is precisely how this interchangeability functions in the object. In other words; the subject of the image holds no significance, because it is interchangeable.
We can progress through the same theoretical framework as was done with the example of the vascular image. Firstly, the image with the vascular system had a tie with the corporeal as metonymical representation, while this
image lacks that relation completely. Secondly, by using the gaze of migratory aesthetics we find that this image displaces relations that represent galaxies: there are no clear ties directly coming from this image, but we do know that their relations can be discursive and possibly political. These tensions and displacements that make up for the object’s unintelligible attributes function through the dispersion of seemingly connected threads. 24hourbody.net is a collective enunciation, yet it is a fragmented one. There are inherent relations, but they aren’t consistent in form of visuality. The relations are rather structural and work throughout the total arrangement of possible combinations.
I argue that 24hourbody.net's visual effect is like an explosion of signifying chains that endlessly defers and is only halted in the contextual engagement with the spectator within a given time slot. This explosion of signifying chains does two things; firstly, it contests possible meaning and understanding of the object. The actual interpretation in a closed hermeneutic circle is impossible because the relations are widespread and unintelligible. Secondly, the lack of inherent or fixed meaning shows that the visual aspect in this object is an amalgamation of different semiotic threads. The visual aspect in 24hourbody.net functions as a multiplicity of relations that can be explored to extent because these relations work within the body. However, they fail to engage with each other. This lack of direct engagement causes a shift of focus — the focal point moves towards how these background images engage with each other on a structural level. Especially on the level of interchangeability and arbitrariness that cause for the object’s generic character.
This new focal point of structurality steers this thesis deeper in post-structuralist frameworks on discourse analysis. In The Idea of Discourse in
overview of specific post-structuralist elements that this thesis is in dialogue with;
The discursive analysis is based on the assumption that every human thought, perception or activity depends on the structuration of the field of signification which precedes the immediacy of the facts. (Rasiński 7)
The human perception of 24hourbody.net subsists by a structure of signification, which not only formats the object as a fabric of signifying
structure (both textual as visual), but also draws in discursivity. The following section (1.4) will continue on the signifying structures by focusing on the textual aspect.
1.4 Within the <body> as frame: The Textual Aspect
The working of the <body> as frame enables to engage the textual aspect in a similar way as the visual aspect. The text is essentially also part of the body. The relation between the inherent visual and textual components of the object is on a structural level. This means that there is no narrative
between these two elements. To specify this relation, it is important to take a look at another example from the object. The background images in the following juxtaposition (Image 9) is the same, but the text is different. The left screenshot shows the text;
‘Fun comes with other people’. The right screenshot of the same image shows the text; ‘Figure out the methodology before making a decision’.
(Image 9, Screenshots by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
Placing these two combinations next to each other conjures a weird position. At first glance I am trying to find differences in the background image, while I know they are the same. At the same time the text is different, but in both combinations I see that there is no meaningful link with the image. Both sentences are aphorisms concerning general mundane utterances. Between these sentences there are no direct intertextual relations and the topics are different. The only position of resemblance might occur in the spectator’s role of agreeing or disagreeing with these statements. In any case, we speak of displacement regarding the text in this object.
The random element in the juxtaposition and the unrelated combination of text and image call for a stop in interpretation, or rather; it postpones
interpretation. In other words; it is impossible to contextualize the specific textual component in relation to the rest of the object. Rather, the inherent relation with the background images problematizes any possible
contextualization, because meaning is displaced and postponed. Reading the object already combines the two through interrelation within a supplemented
assembly; images and text
supplement each other; circularly and simultaneously, without providing a coherent meaning.
The object performs the reading of the text as a circular motion in another way.
Although this cannot be seen in the representation of the object as screenshot, within the object the text rotates around the clock. Interestingly, the unclosed sentence (there is no punctuation) and the circular form present a motion of self-referentiality, a suggestive mode of reading which is circular. As is
mentioned in the previous paragraph, it shows both a stop of interpretation (it is the same text for two hours, with the same background) and at the same time it performs some modus of literal movement, which oscillates with the idea of deferral. Deferral is one of Jacques Derrida’s key ideas and stems from the concept Différance, which is the coincidental meaning of the French verb
différer: to differ (in space) and to defer (to put off in time, to postpone
presence) (Bass, Translator’s Introduction, 1997). This process of deferral comes into play in reading the same sentence over and over again - marking each time as a possible new event, with new possible relations and
contextualization outside of the relations with the background image. The object becomes a visual and textual fabric, holding a multiplicity of relations, rather than a multiplicity of meaning.
The textual aspect as fabric in this object works two ways that are inherently intertwined. There is the literal presence of the text, and the textuality as the structural fabric of the object - something that is uncovered from engaging with the visual aspect. The focus shifts to the fabric of the object – its semiotic structure – by adding the layer of this textual aspect to the visual aspect. Jacques Derrida provides a clear understanding of this structure;
Nevertheless, up to the event which I wish to mark out and define, structure — or rather the structurality of structure — although it has always been at work, has always been neutralized or reduced, and this by a process of giving it a center or referring it to a point of presence, a fixed origin. The function of this center was
not only to orient, balance, and organize the structure — one cannot in fact conceive of an unorganized structure — but above all to make sure that the organizing principle of the structure would limit what we might call the play of structure (Derrida, Structure, Sign and Play in the Discourse of Human Sciences, 278).
This excerpt proposes a predefined notion of a center, which does not uphold because the play of the structure resists a fixed entity. This goes for the visual fabric of the work, but also for the text that accompanies the background image. It is evident that the literal structure of the text is fixed, or, rather is organized (self-referential within the time slot of two hours). This organization remains the same throughout each combinational bricolage or assembly. However, the very working and thus the structurality of the structure is
randomly citing text. And even when looking closer to what the text represents, we find that there is - much like the excerpt shows - the organizing principle of the structure that limits the play of the object. In short; the text in the image limits interpretation, not because the text is unreadable, but precisely because the citations are randomly generated through the (literal) structure of the object. The text in the image holds neither a fixed center, nor a direct relation to the background image (and if it is so, it is coincidental).
The visual aspect and the text bring out similar relations as they both continuously engage and disrupt each other. The background images hold no relations with the text and vice versa. The focal point shifts towards an idea of how these elements function and move, rather than what they bring in
combination. It becomes a play, not only of semiotic chains, but also of structure itself. To engage with the level of structure it is needed to move beyond the frame, beyond the <body> and see how the fabric itself functions.
1.5 Beyond the <body> as Frame: Simulacrum, Structure and the
Parergon
The dynamics that move beyond the frame of the <body> become increasingly important as they provide for a deeper understanding of the object. The dynamic between the text and the image is hidden in the
supplemental relation between these two elements. The hidden dynamic of the supplemental resonates with the concept of simulation. As Jean Baudrillard states in Simulacra and Simulations (1988); simulation is about feigning what one hasn’t (Baudrillard, 167). Bringing Baudrillard’s notion of simulation into the dialogue of semiotic theory adds an interesting layer; on the one hand simulation specifies a particular effect that the object holds, which is the
feigning of something that isn’t there. I propose that this ‘something’ is a fixed center or meaning. On the other hand, it enables another particular entry; namely dissimulation; or the feigning not to have what one has. This refers to the structurality of the structure, in which the dialogue between the excerpt of Derrida and Baudrillard become salient. For 24hourbody.net this dissimulation of structurality of structure is thus the totality of combinations, which is
confined (or rather limited, to stay close to the excerpt by Derrida) to the <body>. In other words; the visual and textual elements in the object hide the object’s lack of center as well as the lack of meaning by simulating an unreal relation to the other elements in the object. The working of the <body> as structurality of the structure for the object thus hides the fact that there is no ‘useful’ meaning. Instead, it proliferates the notion that the object holds an arbitrary text and image as semiotic interplay. However, we find a
displacement towards the structurality of structure, which lies not in the
textuality, but in the structure of coding that enables the representation of both the background images and text. While the images and text act like random generated content, it is not so. There is a literal structure to the object; an archive from which the visual and textual are drawn and generated, which is translated through coding language — the <body> thus limits and forms the play of the structure for the object.
Something interesting happens when looking at the translation through coding syntaxes. These coding syntaxes that form the structure enable the dynamics that reside in the object. The <body> and its coding syntaxes
function thus as an ‘architectural’ structure for the object. The dynamic of this simulation is hidden — one cannot see the entirety of the backend of the
website and object — but it does hold a strong resonance with another excerpt by Derrida, which covers the structure and touches upon visibility;
Structure is first the structure of an organic or artificial work, the internal unity of an assemblage, a construction; a work is governed by a unifying principle, the architecture that is built and made visible in a location. (Derrida, Force and Signification, 15)
This excerpt exemplifies and conjoins several earlier stated ideas. Firstly, it proposes a structurality as the internal unity of an assemblage, a construction -and in the object’s case; the object itself. Secondly, it states that this object is governed by a unifying principle, which for this object is the translation of coding to the generation of the text that is within the object. Lastly, and this point rejoins the dialogue with Baudrillard’s notion of semiotic entities as simulacra, the architecture that is built (constructed by coding and
programming syntaxes) and made visible in a location provides for a distinction between what can be seen on the website (result of the website’s code) and how precisely that code is invisible. Especially, the play with visibility in a location resonates strongly with the concept of dissimulation, something that is inherently hidden - but seems visible (Baudrillard, 167). In short, the text in 24hourbody.net is part of the assembly of the totality of the work, however the governing unifying principle works the same for the visual background image and the text; both are drawn from archives in which those assembly-parts are stored through the translation of coding as structure, as part of hidden
processes. This is why approaching the text and the visual in a methodological consideration are so closely related. Both elements are empty interplays of initial semiotic structures, but within the structurality of the structure they function the same, marking a ‘set’ arbitrariness and randomness. This process is initially hidden due to the simulative character provided by digital
constructiveness.
The following example (image 10) shows a pair of eyes, which is the only thing that is represented. The text reads ‘Figure out the methodology before making a decision’ does not relate to the eyes in anyway. However, due to the aforementioned empty interplay of signs, they do form a connection on a structural level. The processes that cause this relation are hidden, while only the result of how they conjoin in representational form through structure is visible.
(Image 10, Screenshot by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork 24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
There are elements within the object, which are invisible at first sight. The example shows something else than the link between what is considered a structural dynamic and what we see. Clearly, the background image and the text are part of the work, but now we know that that the combination merely foreshadows a structural aspect that is hidden. This juxtaposition departs from the space between the object as representation and the object that is subsisted by a unifying structural governance. Simply put, it raises the issue on what is part of the (<body> of the) work and what is not. The body of work and its structurality are both represented through the <body> construction. It blurs the initial idea that the object consists of images, text and the clock. However, we now can move towards a different level concerning placement and context, as we can read in K. Malcom Richards explanation of the Derrida’s parergon
(Richards 34). The parergon, in short, is whenever a work of art is provided with a supplement (signature, label, description). This supplement is not directly part of the work, but at the same it does subsist it. Something that is placed
outside an object can contextualize it.
The dynamic of the parergon becomes increasingly important for (art) objects that aren’t quite as traditional works such as paintings or pictures. 24hourbody.net holds a strange and intricate relation to its materiality and its ontological consistency. Instead of a direct engagement between materiality, concept and representation, we find another layer of importance; the
translation by coding. Translation through coding adds a layer that, much like a label, subsists the artwork, while not directly being visible in the work. It can be regarded as something that is already part of the work, yet it is outside it. Like the parergon, the coding of element moves directly both in- and outside the work through the digital function of the <body>. The parergon is closely related to the concept of migratory aesthetics in the sense that they both relate to the in- and outside of the work. Richards cites Derrida on this particular dynamic; ‘Neither inside the work nor outside work, the parergon follows a logic of ‘both/and/neither/nor’ that complicates the ‘either/or’ logic of Western metaphysics’ (Richards 32). The concept of the parergon emphasizes the context and the relation between the in- and outside of the object.
The working of the structural <body> function as parergon for
24hourbody.net is as much part of the work as the visual and textual elements. The dynamic of the parergon shows how the structurality of the structure is an important aspect for 24hourbody.net. The structurality of structure is the
architectural coding structure (as translation between coding and
that are at play within the visual and textual element. Let us go back to the question that is posed for this chapter; ’What is the relation between the seemingly arbitrary character of the art work and its structure?’
24hourbody.net does not have a fixed center due to the postponing dynamics of empty signifying chains by the visual and textual elements that are
represented in the object. Or at least this center is hidden through simulation dynamics. The focal point shifts towards how displacements occurs by looking at dynamics that happen within the <body> as frame. This is mostly due to the working of the <body> function that as architectural structure performs the displacement of the representational elements. The <body> function as
element that is not visible on a representational level does subsist the artwork, creating a parergonal relation. 24hourbody.net's lack of center is thus
constructed by the presence of structural dynamics. The coding of the website is such a structural dynamic on one level that becomes more tangible. The second level is the structure of signifying, which subsists by the structure of the code. 24hourbody.net thus performs the concept of structurality of structure in this regard. It shows that there is a continuous back and forth between the postponement of meaning through representation and the emphasis on the structure of the sequential performance of interchangeability.
To formulate an answer to the question ‘What is the relation between the genericness of the object’s content and its structure?’, we have unearthed several important elements from engaging with the object. Firstly,
24hourbody.net is an assembly. It is a combination of several different elements that are combined and transposed through time. The different combinations and its elements are conjoined within the function of the <body>. The visual
and textual elements within the <body> are generic and interchangeable. On the one side they are empty signifying chains and thus bear no real meaning. On the other side these signifying chains can be considered as a structural element and in doing so the focal point shifts to the object’s structure. The content of the <body> holds no inherent meaning because the signifying structure displaces the possibility to interpretation. At the time this displacing of interpretation emphasizes the lack of a center within the object. In order to further exploration of this object we need to formulate different strategies. The strategy that I suggest is the shift of focus towards the structurality of the object. It is possible to formulate an answer; ‘The relation between the
genericness of the object’s content and its structure is based on the lack of a ‘meaningful’ center. Instead, the content displaces meaning and this
(structural) process becomes the focus of the object’. We start to see how the object performs signifying dynamics, rather than merely representing through visual and textual elements. In this regard I talk about the structurality of the structure.
Chapter two continues to build on the focal point of structure by implementing a different inherent component of the artwork, which is the blockchain configuration. The <body> function for the website calls to different aspects that are stored on and distributed through blockchain configurations. However, there are more structural elements to consider that do not reside
within the <body> as frame. Chapter two thus considers relations that move beyond the <body> as frame.
Chapter 2
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Beyond the <body> as frame
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Configu-rations
In the first chapter we found that the object performs signifying dynamics.
The visual and textual content in 24hourbody.net hides the lack of a center
within the <body> and by doing so it displaces meaning and thus the focal
point of the object towards its structure. But, are there more elements that are hidden as structural elements? Chapter two emphasizes this entry with the question; ‘What is the role of the hidden processes such as the blockchain configuration and how does it influence the way we approach this particular digital artwork?’ The second chapter moves through three specific elements to situate structural dynamics and processes. The first element is covered in the sections 2.1 and 2.2. These sections cover the <head> function and go more in depth of the working of the parergon in relation to the working of the curatorial platform Cointemporary. Cointemporary, as will become salient, is not quite part of the object, but at the same time there is no object without this platform. The second element moves into the specifics of the blockchain configuration as a highly important attribute for structure of 24hourbody.net. The last element covers the concept of rhizomatic network structures in relation to blockchain configurations. At this point the thesis makes clear that there is a multiplicity of relations working within and beyond the object. The nature of these relations is rhizomatic.
2.1 Beyond the <body> as Frame: <head> Function as Parergon
Chapter one already covered dynamics that relate to the parergon. The working of the <body> function has made this salient. However, within the coding structure of 24hourbody.net as website there is another programming syntax that is important. The <body> function predominantly covers the elements that reside within the representational object. The <head> function as programming syntax draws in elements beyond the representational object (Image 11). In a direct comparison with the <body> function the <head>
function is even more close to parergonal dynamics. The following example shows the ‘inspect website’ function. The <head> function holds quite some information as can be seen in this example:
(Image 11, Screenshot of the inspected code of 24hourbody.net by the author of this thesis, adopted from the digital artwork
24hourbody.net, Cointemporary, 2016. Villemont, Joey)
Firstly, the highlighted string of code in the image is the <title> function within the <head> (marked as pink in the image). The time and the name of the object are listed here. Secondly, the <meta> function is normally invisible
when looking at a website, but at the same time it shows important information and holds a certain significance. This element tells other systems that this information needs to accompany the website in order to function properly. The third and most important element for this thesis is the use of the <meta
name=“description” content=“…”>. This syntax is literally the digital label, much like a description we normally encounter next to an artwork. The content of this syntax states: ‘Displaying time, generic images and inspirational quotes, 24hourBody aims at connecting our body with our creative spirit. Inspired by our biological clock it sets a new time, synchronized with your creative life.’. This is quite literally the description given by the artist Joey Villemont on the curatorial platform Cointemporary. There is something interesting that occurs when considering this element as a parergonal dynamic. To reiterate (from chapter 1); In making a distinction between the work and the parergon, in which the parergon is neither part of the work, nor completely outside of it, Derrida shows that this interrelation constructs a context, rather than a fixed frame (Richards 34). This context is ever expandable, never exhaustive and never finished (Richards 34). The first chapter of this thesis already suggested this idea of expandability through out the concepts of randomness and
arbitrariness and their multiplicity of relations through semiotic interplays. The implementation of the parergon builds on this idea, remaining its connection with 24hourbody.net as object, but it also enables to illuminate different aspects.
The <head> function is similar to a label as parergonal space. To make salient what this space is; it is a space that rests any simple ordering by the opposition of the inside and outside (Richards 38). It is thus something that is within the object, or rather a ‘behind’ or structural element, yet at the same
time it resides next to the object. For the artwork of this analysis it is almost as if one could turn around the representational display and see how the fabric is wired on the back end. The same goes for the naming or autographing of the artist (and programmer, both names are listed in a similar function as the <head>, but not quite inside as can be seen in the screenshot). It is a play between what is visible; the normative mode of looking at the website, and what is invisible; the coding and structural functions of both the <body> and the <head>. In a way this resembles the concept of simulations, yet it lacks a clear visual image as layered representation in which this can be rooted.
The parergon (<head> function and the name of author) enables to look at different aspects of work. Especially the notion of value, authenticity and verification are important for further inquiry. Richards explains how Derrida configures this paradigm; ‘The signature exists outside the work, yet the
identity of the work often depends on the signature, as does its material value (Richards 43). The idea of material value is of course interesting in this object. It has already been established that the actual background images (if
considered as material) hold no actual value, because they are free to use stock pictures as is suggested by the range of different uses that is possible to find on the internet.
What is added then is the over-arching conceptualization of the artist Joey Villemont. But due to the dispersive and unstable character of
24hourbody.net it is hard to pinpoint the exact measurements of valuable supplements, whether this is structural (coding, programming) or material (visual, textual). I propose that by implementing the parergon as concept a broader gaze can be formulated - shifting the focal point from value from within the object towards a value that holds place for the object in relation to it
exhibitional space, not only with the <head> function, but also the curatorial platform Cointemporary.
The reason why this is an important move to make is twofold. On the one hand, Cointemporary resides within the parergonal space. The artwork is stored and linked through this platform. It is definitely not part of the inner working of the work, yet it is part of the object on a different level, which as is already mentioned. The object subsists by the curatorial platform. The most important workings of this relationship can be see in the way Cointemporary stores their exposed artworks; the works are stored in a file on a blockchain configuration (Cointemporary, Web). This piece of context given by the platform holds a rather large proposition - especially in looking at the concepts of the
authenticity, value and verification of the work. In the next section the importance and relevance of the platform in relation to the object will be explained further.
2.2 Beyond the <body> as Frame: Cointemporary as Structural
Ele-ment
Cointemporary is simultaneously part of the object 24hourbody.net and outside of it. It is part of the object because of its subsisting role: Contemporary provides the ground on which the object stands. At the same time this position is hidden, because it is a digital non-central process. Through the
conceptualization of the structurality of structure we find that there are important parallels to unearth. Much like the intertextual connection seen in the image listed with the book cover showing the same image as one of the background images of the object, Cointemporary shows a similar relation. On
their website they show an exhibitional preview part of the artwork through screenshots for representational means. Only now it is known that the file is stored on a specific entry on the blockchain, enabled by the platform; not only in representation form the platform subsists the artwork, also on a specific structural level the intertwinement is rigid and ever-present.
Cointemporary is a rather particular curatorial platform. Joining in on the novelty of blockchain configured platforms they bypass some problematic aspects in art trading, such as issues on value, verification and
(pre-)ownership. Their proposition is as follows; A temporary online exhibition of art for bitcoin (Cointemporary, web). Furthermore, it is important to single out their use of this blockchain configured modus operandi;
Cointemporary exhibits digital artworks (including editions) by international contemporary artists, which can be purchased for Bitcoin. Each artwork is a digital file that is protected through a cryptographic certificate of authenticity by using Ascribe to form a unique entry on the Blockchain. This method is like a secure, transparent ledger that tracks the chain of ownership and verifies the title of digital property through its individual address. (Cointemporary, Web)
The excerpt states that every artwork is a digital file that is protected through a cryptographic certificate of authenticity. For 24hourbody.net this means that the website functions as a representational medium and as object at the same time. The <body> function provides scripts that retrieve the content from the storage space. In a way the object speaks to the encrypted storage space in order to retrieve information (they do this through means of Ascribe, which enables this entry). The object is simultaneously a message in providing a representation by visual and textual elements through programming syntax, as
well as the medium through which they are mediated. As McLuhan states; ‘the medium is the message’ (McLuhan 2).
It is a representational medium because of the <body> function that states which elements to ‘speak’ to on this encrypted storage space (through means of Ascribe, which enables this entry). At the same time the
representational ‘medium is the message’; it is the artwork in itself (McLuhan 2). The idea of what the materiality of 24hourbody.net is shifts; at first glance the object seems to hold the images as inherent materiality of the object. However, due to the cascading place of representation, storage and coding - this premise changes to the idea of a digital file in a transparent digital ledger.
The platform is thus part of the object on a structural level on the one hand, yet on the other it also ties in the configuration of a blockchain. This blockchain is an interesting novelty, something that as a structure or
configuration resides in the background for crypto currencies as new monetary phenomenon, but at the same time it also enables 24hourbody.net; it is a part of it, much like the paper is part of a book. If in this metonymical comparison textuality (or visuality) subsists by a kind of material component, whether this is digital (the website, blockchain configurations) or analog, it becomes a necessity to look at this aspect with a closer, more precise look. Especially, because this is a hidden process. This idea of partial obscuration resonates with the idea of simulation, although it is not on the representational level, but on the structural one - there seems to be a connection between these concepts.
The exploration of the visual, textual and structural elements in the object 24hourbody.net has unearthed the relation with its curatorial platform Contemporary and its inclination towards the novel digital technology called the blockchain. Although it is not completely new and was popularized by Satoshi Nakamoto in October 2008, it has gained more popularity as the
monetary phenomena of crypto currencies gained more attention. Although the connection between these crypto currencies and the blockchain as
configuration is predominant focused on monetary systems, the implications and implementations for this type of configuration are not inherently restricted to a monetary context. On the one hand it makes certain processes (valuation, ownership and transparency) easier for platforms (like Cointemporary) by enabling safer transactions. On the other hand, and in concordance with structurality of structure, this specific type of network configuration holds strong resonances with Deleuzian network theories - especially the idea of the rhizomatic network structure. This section will explore this blockchain
configuration with the some of the concepts derived from the object analysis, as well as other relations that have been made salient throughout this thesis so far.
In order to progress in the conceptualization and creation of a metaphoric use for — or rather metonymic use for— blockchain configurations in relation to network theory, the question ‘What is a blockchain?’ needs to be answered. Blockchains can be best described as a decentralized digital ledger that is protected by encryption. Instead of storing information on one place, it is stored on a multiplicity of systems (nodes) simultaneously, making up for a decentralized network. To access this dispersive decentralized information, all systems need to agree on providing the information on query. Instead of a
system of trust as is in place with traditional monetary banking systems, the configuration for blockchain works on verification. This juxtaposition between an older system based on trust and a novel system based on verification holds important implications — and is one of the main reasons the blockchain
configuration has gained popularity as alternative, improved system for
trading, verification and archival works. This thesis will get back to this specific juxtaposition in a later stadium, but for now we will dive into a deeper and more specific explanation of what a blockchain configuration is, — and why it has merit to explore this rather abstract and unconventional entry in relation to the object 24hourbody.net.
I propose to start with a white paper named Blockchain Technology;
Beyond Bitcoin by Saturdja Centre for Entrepreneurship & Technology2 to
pinpoint specificities regarding the concept of the blockchain (Crosby et al.). This white paper explains the workings of blockchain technology and gives a comprehensible and intelligible overview of what a blockchain can be used for. For explanatory motives I will stay close to the example they provide, which uses bitcoin (due to its easy to approach example). Let us start with the basic steps3 for a monetary transaction:
1. A wants to send money to B
2. The transaction is represented online as a block 3. The block is broadcast to every party in the network 4. Those in the network approve the transaction is valid
2 Saturdja Centre for Entrepreneurship & Technology is part of Berkeley Engineering Program; The Article Blockchain Technology; Beyond Bitcoin is written by Michael Crosby, Nachiappan, Pradhan Pattanayak, Sanjeev Verma and Vignesh Kalyanaraman.
5. The block then can be added to the chain, which provides an indelible and transparent record of transactions
6. The money moves from A to B.
This is the basic model when it comes down to monetary transactions. To make these steps directly workable for 24hourbody.net it is possible to state that the set value of 0,3BTC for the artwork is paid through these steps. There is a monetary aspect inherent to the relation between the work and the curatorial platform, meaning that the platform does not only function as an exhibitional space.
The way Cointemporary implements this method enables the sharing of the artwork as file as well. They do this through a third party called Ascribe. In consideration of approaching the configuration it does not matter whether these services are setup by Cointemporary or provided by a third party; the structural working of the configuration remains the same (it does not change the place and structure of the aspects this thesis converses to). It is not only the transactional information that goes through this process; although it is impossible to actually see what is listed within the blockchain configuration without a specific key — it is safe to say that at least the transactions between Cointemporary, the buyer of the work and the money that goes back to the artist are listed within these block. This much is clear. However, Cointemporary proposes that the artwork itself is encrypted, which means that the totality of available information that is stored within the file contains the <body> and <head> functions and their content. So all content enlisted within the <body> function of 24hourbody.net is stored as a file on a blockchain entry, which is consolidated and verified with and by the information that is enlisted in the
