Reconstructing Wikipedia: Smith Corona, archival inkjet print 30" x 23", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Pop Art, archival inkjet print 43" x 34", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Landscape, archival inkjet print 27" x 48", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Bar Code, archival inkjet print 24" x 60", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Artificial Intelligence, archival inkjet print 26" x 44", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Comic Strip, archival inkjet print 20" x 60", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Ascii Code, archival inkjet print 24" x 32", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Beethoven, archival inkjet print 26" x 20", 2011
Reconstructing Wikipedia: Neon, archival inkjet print 20" x 60", 2011
STATEMENT
My artistic practice reflects my lifelong interest in words, language, and the sounds of speech. The images here extend the exploration of language in visual art that began in the 20th century with the text experiments of Duchamp, Kosuth, and Holtzer, among others. This new series of inkjet prints, called “Reconstructing Wikipedia,” offers the viewer unique insight into the human ability to reconstruct meaning from fragmentary and obscured sources.
The text in each piece comes from a Wikipedia article of the same name. A computer program, which I wrote, deconstructs the original text, randomly scattering words, obscuring some, highlighting others, and whimsically assigning color.
The result is a semi-readable embodiment of the Wikipedia article. In a process analogous to the way that each of us learns our first language from fragmented and ambiguous speech, the viewer of these pieces must rebuild linguistic structure (in effect, recreating language) in order to discover meaning.
Shirley Steele
http://www.steelestudio.com
shirleysteele01@gmail.com
SOLO SHOWS:
| 2017 | Cloud Storage: Memes & Graphemes, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY |
| 2014 | Hand and Machine, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY |
| 2013 | Interface, Burrison Gallery, Univ. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia |
| 2012 | Reconstructing Wikipedia, Institute for Research in Cognitive Science (IRCS), Univ. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia |
| 2011 | Exposures, Ceres Gallery, New York City, NY |
| 2008 | Symbiosis, Burrison Gallery, Univ. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia |
| 2006 | The Figurative, Kelley Writer’s House, Univ. of Pennsylvania (2-person show) |
| 1998 | Recent Work, Floral Heights Gallery, Wichita Falls, TX |
GROUP SHOWS:
| 2018 | Dulce Bytes, Kerr Arts and Cultural Center, Kerrville, TX |
| 2017 | Intersecting Perspectives, SciArt Center, New York, NY online: SciArt Center, (lower left portal, #13 down) |
| 2016 | Ceres Gallery Summer Show, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY |
| 2015 | Miami Mix, Projects Gallery, Miami, FL Digital animation projected on fog screen, Fog Screen Event, 6th St., Austin, TX |
| 2014 | Projects Gallery, Aqua Fine Art Fair at Art Basel Miami, Miami, FL Ceres Summer Salon, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY Electric Fields-Madrid, #programalaplaza, animation on the digital façade at MediaLab Prado, Madrid 30th Anniversary Exhibition, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY |
| 2013 | Projects Gallery, Aqua Fine Art Fair, Miami, FL TwelveXTwelve, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia Sight Specific, Ceres Gallery, New York, NY Projects Gallery, Houston Fine Art Fair, Houston, TX Art in the Air, digital animation in the PECO Crown Lights at the top of the 27-story Philadelphia Electric Co. building, Philadelphia |
| 2012 | Multiples, juried show, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Alumni Gallery, Philadelphia Fresh Impressions, Projects Gallery, Philadelphia, PA |
| 2011 | Square Foot, Art Basil Miami, Projects Gallery Miami, Miami, FL Philadelphia/Tri-State Artists’ Equity Select Curated Show, MLUC, Devon, PA Philadelphia/Tri-State Artists’ Equity Members Juried Show, Wayne Arts Center, Wayne, PA |
| 2010 | Pennsylvania Academy Alumni Juried Show, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Alumni Gallery (Inaugural Exhibition), Philadelphia Indoor VPAP exhibition, Esther M. Klein Gallery, Science Center, Philadelphia The Virtual Public Art Project Virtual Public Art Project (VPAP) exhibition, part of DesignPhiladelphia, Independence Mall, Philadelphia http://breadboardphilly.org/programs/virtual-public-art-project/vpap-artists-fall-2010/shirley-steele Art in the Air, digital animation in the PECO Crown Lights at the top of the 27-story Philadelphia Electric Co. building. See animation: Shirley Steele Youtube Channel |
| 2009 | Snap to Grid, Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, Los Angeles |
| 2008 | Double Exposure: On-Line/On-Wall, Honorable Mention, Museum of Computer Art (MOCA), Brooklyn, New York Yesterday and Today: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Alumni Invitational Exhibition at Sande Webster Gallery, Philadelphia Museum of Computer Art (MOCA), On-Line Guest Gallery at MOCA Virtual Museum |
| 2007 | Snap to Grid, Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, Los Angeles |
| 2003 | The Studio Group, Kelley Writer’s House, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia |
| 2002 | The Studio Romberg, Philadelphia |
PUBLICATIONS:
| 2013 | Cover image, Mathematics Magazine, Vol. 86, No. 5, December 2013 |
| 2012 | Cover image, Mathematics Magazine, Vol. 85, No. 5, December 2012. |
| 2011 | Wichita Falls Art and Literature Review, Volume V, pp. 12-17. |
| 2008 | Exhibition Publication: Double Exposure: On-Line/On-Wall, Museum of Computer Art (MOCA), Brooklyn, NY. |
COMMISSIONS:
| Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia | |
| Department of Neurosurgery, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
COLLECTIONS:
| Department of Mathematics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia | |
| Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia | |
| Institute for Research in Cognitive Science (IRCS), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia | |
| Kemp Center for the Arts, Wichita Falls, Texas | |
| Numerous private collections in the United States and Europe | |
| Department of Neurosurgery, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX |
ART EDUCATION:
| 1994-1998 | Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia (4-year certificate; major in painting, minor in printmaking) |
| 1986-1990 | Art Students’ League, New York, NY |
SCIENTIFIC EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:
| 1987-1994 | Natural Language Processing Group, Unisys Corporation, Paoli, PA |
| 1985-1987 | Acoustics Research, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ |
| 1980-1985 | Speech Research Group, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX |
| 1985 | Ph.D., Brain and Language, University of Texas at Dallas |
TEACHING:
| 2016-2017 | Lecturer in creative coding, Center for Arts & Entertainment Technologies, Univ. of Texas (Austin) |