My man, Kutiman

I have no idea how late to the game I am with this, and don’t care, but the below video showed up in my inbox (thanks to my favorite email listhost) and predictably sparked a vigorous debate as to whether it constituted a feat of artistic genius—which it is—or not.

Naturally, the work is entirely composed of other people’s creations, content and performances; it manipulates their likenesses, sounds and expressions; it is purely a remix of video and sound. Many argued it was definitely not genius because the author, Kutiman, simply rearranged tangible creations, kind of like a community organizer does nothing I suppose. They claimed had Kutiman created this piece, live, directing each of the composition’s components in tandem, he would be merit such praise. Others argued that like an architect, the process, and its subsequent reliance on others to create a product, manifested genius.

That music/art is derivative is given, assumed, reality. Whether copyright holders are willing to come to grips with it or not, they’re not original. They’ve copied, mimicked, and emulated (consciously or subconsciously) at least someone, at some point, along the line. But how one interprets the various inputs of one’s life, and how this synthesis translates into a tangible expression, is entirely unique—as demonstrated below, albeit more explicitly.

Ultimately I think Kutiman is just a brilliant example of how content has shifted from commodity to utility in our generation. (It has for me anyways.) Think if you experienced the transition from candle light to electricity, or handwriting to printing. Similarly, a once laborious task has now become practically ubiquitous and easily accessible to anyone, not just those with a wax and wick or scribe. At least this is the impact the internet is having/had on me. In my mind Kutiman is a genius composer.


Link to all videos here.