The piece that I enjoyed the most in this section was Tony
Oursler’s piece The influence Machine.
Ironically, what I like the most about the piece is the
visual, the face in the tree is relevant because there are many historical
accounts where people believe that they see apparitions and figures in things
such as smoke, toast, really anything. Some people give real weight to this
kind of imagery, so this piece is a good handle on that idea. It was done in
2000, which is ironic because in 2001 when 9/11 occurred, many videos were
posted showing concrete “proof” of the devil’s face in the smoke and
explosions.
Perhaps this piece helped popularize seeing faces and such
in strange things to help people see those things on 9/11.
I think it is also ironic that the piece says the materials
were smoke machines, video, and a sound system. It doesn't mention the tree
itself at all. Understandably, there was a lot more to the piece than just the
tree, but the tree grounded the sounds to the piece and gave the work a place.
It’s the same as an installation pretending that the
building and location wasn't important. It bothers me that the tree isn't
mentioned as a material, but the piece itself is very cool. It’s very
aesthetically pleasing.
-Thomas
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