THE DISPARATE worlds of art and science come together in Kathy High's videos and installations. The New York media artist is at the forefront of an emerging trend of exploring scientific topics that was once the domain of white-coated lab technicians.
Now, avant-garde video-makers such as High are bringing a different kind of culture to science experiments and stirring up more than just beakers. Her works have examined such issues as the US health system, medical experimentation, animal testing and bio-genetics.
Now in Hong Kong as artist-in-residence at the Art School, High is hosting a series of workshops and discussions. She's also erected an installation with fellow-American Melissa Dyne at Para/Site called Big Tools/Small Tools.
'There's a camera obscura and a wall is put up with a lens on it,' High says. 'An image from the outside is projected in and within the image is a small LCD monitor showing further detail of that outside image. Melissa and I had wanted to do this for a while. It creates a funny meditative state because the room is dark and your eyes have to adjust to see it.'
This is a work with emphasis on form and technique, unlike most of High's creations, which lean towards politics. An artist since the early 1980s, High has delved into photography and installation. But video is her medium of choice now.
Her works have been shown at the New York Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum of Art and the Inside Out Gay and Lesbian Festival in Toronto, among others.