John Maeda's "MySpace"

The juxtaposition of environment, space, and everyday technological devices in John Maeda’s “MySpace” at the Riflemaker was thought provoking. Walking through the exhibit from one piece to the next, the viewer is able to piece together the story of Maeda’s life. The advancements of technology and their role in Maeda’s life are seen in each piece as Maeda tells his story through these devices. Interestingly enough, the devices which are created to simplify our life are technological progressions in themselves; more complex and stemming from devices preceding them. Maeda’s desire for simplicity is creatively seen in two pieces: “Tea for Two” and “For More Than Vegetarians.” In both pieces, Maeda designed a computer program that digitally pulverized and produced an image of their respective subjects, sugar and 60 cans of Campbell soup. His return to the bare essence of these subjects mirrors society’s desire for a simpler, more relaxing lifestyle that still enables an individual to maximize their daily tasks. That is the basic reason these technological advancements are designed.

Maeda’s brilliance is also exhibited in his utilization of Apple ipods in the piece “Marriage.” In “Marriage” Maeda has framed two ipods connected together. Simply enough, one can see how that represents marriage as the joining of two people. But, if you watch the images that play across the screens, you can see that the sequence of images follow one another, but they are never exactly the same. If the image on ipod 1 was lines coming down the screen, the image shows up on ipod 2 as maybe blurred lines coming down the screen in a similar pattern. Similarly, this is how a conversation between a husband and wife can be visualized as a pattern. While they listen to one another and may be able to repeat something, it’s never interpreted the exact same way. Seeing the way Maeda has created his own live environment to reflect his thoughts, desires, and history redefines the connotation of MySpace and brings it to a whole new level.