Jim Brown reviewed Doggerel Life by Ulysses Jenkins
"Stories of a Los Angeles Griot"
This autobiography of video artist Ulysses Jenkins is an interesting look both into his career and the LA art scene at a moment when video and telecommunications were coming onto the scene. Jenkins shows how that technology opened up new avenues for expression but did not really change the core dynamics of that art scene.
I read this book as part of my research into Electronic Cafe, a telecommunications art project that extended from the 1980s into the 2000s. Jenkins was part of the first iteration of that project, the first version of Electronic Cafe which served to network neighborhoods around LA during the 1984 Olympic Games. Each neighborhood had a cafe equipped with Slow Scan TV, a Bulletin Board System, an electronic writing pad, and more. Jenkins was an arist-in-residence at one of the sites (Gumbo House) where he helped people in the neighborhood with both technical issues and …
This autobiography of video artist Ulysses Jenkins is an interesting look both into his career and the LA art scene at a moment when video and telecommunications were coming onto the scene. Jenkins shows how that technology opened up new avenues for expression but did not really change the core dynamics of that art scene.
I read this book as part of my research into Electronic Cafe, a telecommunications art project that extended from the 1980s into the 2000s. Jenkins was part of the first iteration of that project, the first version of Electronic Cafe which served to network neighborhoods around LA during the 1984 Olympic Games. Each neighborhood had a cafe equipped with Slow Scan TV, a Bulletin Board System, an electronic writing pad, and more. Jenkins was an arist-in-residence at one of the sites (Gumbo House) where he helped people in the neighborhood with both technical issues and by prompting ideas for creative projects and communication with other neighborhoods.
His career is really interesting, given his experience both with creating art across media and with organizing art collectives and labs around LA.