Electric Objects is a digital art platform c0-founded by Zoë Salditch and Jake Levine that brings together internet and art in order to afford the same time and space to digital art as we already do to paintings and photography. They aim to place the most modern technologies available into the service of our most ancient spaces for creative expression: the walls of our homes.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do. Hi, I’m Zoë and I’m the Founding Curator at Electric Objects. Everyday, we commission artists to make new art for EO1, our digital art display. We publish new collections every week in Art Club and share interviews with the artists. I spend most of time thinking about what happens when art intersects with design, technology, and engineering. I’m excited to be part of a team that’s building technology that will give anyone the opportunity to take digital art out of the galleries and into your home. You can learn more about Electric Objects and EO1 here!
Top 3 favorite or most visited websites and why? rhizome, muchbetterthanthis, idlescreenings. These are some of my favorite go-to examples whenever I talk about art on the internet. Rhizome is the leading born-digital art institution — it’s a great place to see internet art, read thoughtful essays on new art and artists, and they hold amazing events (often at the New Museum) to expand your mind. muchbetterthanthis.com is a art website by Rafaël Rozendaal that I’ve always adored. Idlescreenings is a curatorial project that takes advantage of your computer screen when it’s not in use (always thought this was an interesting exploration of the screen saver as a site for artistic expression).
How has living in New York affected your work?
New York City is definitely not chill. And while we should all strive to have chill in our lives, New York City’s intensity and energy makes it almost impossible to be laid back for long. People here have a hustle that I’ve never experienced anywhere else and it inspires me to do more, and do better every day.
What kinds of things are influencing your work right now? Today’s Art Deco/Memphis design revival, my feminist science fiction book club, and DIY electronics kits (like littlebits and Technology Will Save Us All)
Favorite pizza topping? I literally love everything that can be put on top of a pizza.
How did your interest in your work begin? I got online for the first time in 1996 and became obsessed with talking to strangers through my computer ever since. Meanwhile, I was always interested in art, either making my own things (photography and printmaking primarily) or being moved by museum exhibitions, galleries, my friends’ art, and of course music. Now, as a bonafide adult, I’ve managed to combine my affinity to talk to strangers online and my love of art through my career — I’m extremely lucky and thankful for it everyday.
What do you want a viewer to walk away with after experiencing your work? We want viewers to walk away thinking: “This is the future of art”.
What’s your absolute favorite place in the world to be? My favorite place in the world is sitting on the dock of my family’s lake house in central Texas as the sun is going down.
What are you really excited about right now? I’m most excited to reach our 100th collection in Art Club! Should happen by the end of March. It’s an incredible milestone for us.
What do you collect? I collect show papers, zines, art dvds, prints, nail polish, house plants and lots of digital cruft on all my hard drives.
