Mediating Private Matters

Statistics have shown that the majority of violent acts against people are committed not by random strangers such as serial killers, but by people whom the victims consider acquaintances, friends and family. Often, such violence occurs in the private realm of domestic settings, where it is all but invisible as a widespread and international condition that disproportionately affects women. Perhaps it is fitting then, that an art exhibition would take on the subject of domestic violence using technologies that are more and more becoming part of domestic life: personal computers and the Internet. "Violencia sin Cuerpos" ("Violence without Bodies"), a web-based exhibition of artworks organized by Spanish writer and curator Remedios Zafra, explores sites where this ubiquitous violence against women and digital communication technologies collide. Featuring several online works by artists, such as subRosa, Sony Rapoport, Young-Hae Chang Heavy Industries, and Tina La Porta, just to name a few, "Violence without Bodies" is one component of "Cárcel de Amor" ("Prison of Love: Cultural stories on Gender Violence"), a show of video and film currently traveling in Spain. - Ryan Griffis