Stefan Karrer | Cool Clouds That Look like They Should Be Spelling Something, but They Don't | 2016 23.02. – 02.06.2019 | Fotomuseum Winterthur

SITUATION #165

Cool Clouds That Look like They Should Be Spelling Something, but They Don't, screenshot, video, 8:30 min., 2016 © Stefan Karrer
Stefan Karrer, Cool Clouds That Look like They Should Be Spelling Something, but They Don't, 2016, SITUATION #165, SITUATIONS/Photo Text Data, installation view at Fotomuseum Winterthur, 2019 © Philipp Ottendörfer
Stefan Karrer, Cool Clouds That Look like They Should Be Spelling Something, but They Don't, 2016, SITUATION #165, SITUATIONS/Photo Text Data, installation view at Fotomuseum Winterthur, 2019 © Philipp Ottendörfer

The work Cool Clouds That Look like They Should Be Spelling Something, but They Don’t by Swiss artist Stefan Karrer is based on an online search for images that were tagged “cloud”, “wave” or “rock”, in combination with adjectives such as “cool”, “crazy” or “lonely”. In a seemingly endless loop, the collection of images and texts are clicked through as the captions are read aloud by a monotonous, computer-generated female voice. Karrer’s desktop video demonstrates the pitfalls of online research, the often associative connections between image and text, as well as the highly subjective notion of how we organise our digital content. Furthermore, the piece ironically highlights the emergence of online phenomena that become detached from reality, as well as the digital dialogue with its unique mode of expression. For the viewers, the question arises as to whether clouds can really be “cool” or “crazy” – and if so, by what criteria?

More by Stefan Karrer: stefankarrer.ch