Crying man 4

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This research, a collaboration with Sydney interactivity researcher Kate Richards, addresses the issue of emotion in Western culture. Jones proposes the question: is it possible to create images of men crying openly such that this act becomes socially viable? By extension the work is also directly asking if art has a social function. This research also challenges some well-used ideas about the purpose and veracity of interactivity, immersiveness and site specificity which are all used extensively to justify international research in new media art works. In 'Crying Man 4', the numbers of men crying on large 'floating' screens is multiplied by the interaction between the screens. Interactivity is not technological but constituted through the viewer's decision to attend closely to one screen or move between them. Immersiveness here occurs through scale, hyper-reality of the images, darkness and sound volume. This research formed a reminder of the central importance of immersiveness by these filmic means at a time when media convergence is shrinking the image size. This issue arose strongly from earlier research that appeared as 'Crying Man 1 '(2003).The work received an Australia Council Development Grant and a 4 week residency from Artspace in Sydney (where it was exhibited) in recognition of its cultural importance. It was reviewed by Angeloro, Dominique: Lights, Camera, Onions SMH Feb18-24, 2005 and discussed in Artspace Projects 2005 catalogue/book, (ed) Reuben Keehan. In 2005 this provided the basis for an invited solo presentation at the National Gallery of Australia: Viola by Night 2 and a Keynote Address On the Use of the Colour Black at the Film and Memorialisation Conference, in Schwaebisch Hall, Germany in 2006.