YouTube Scenes and the Public Re-seen: Natalie Bookchin and the Digital Public

Abstract

ABSTRACTFrom the 1990s onwards there has been an increased and growing interest among artists in making participatory and collaborative work. Recent films and video installations by the North American artist Natalie Bookchin can be counted within this field of interest. Bookchin's works draw on the video diary or video log (vlog) format now so ubiquitous on the Internet in participatory forums such as YouTube and Vimeo. In these forms of user-generated, web- based television, individuals share personal content with a frequently anonymous public. Bookchin's works appropriate these formats for the specific purpose of examining the effects of such technologies, and the possibilities of their use, on the lived experiences of vloggers and in the broader digital economy. This article discerns a particular concern within Bookchin's work: the notion of “the public” as it is made possible by user-generated media. This may seem like a peculiar idea given these platforms’ significant co-option by commerce, while the “public sphere” has been all but subsumed by private interests. Nevertheless, through a close analysis of recent works, this article argues that Bookchin's practice uniquely locates the public's possibilities in user-generated digital and social media. Central to this discussion is the artist's distinctive evocation of the public in her art in economic and political terms.