Artist and computer scientist Jonathan Harris makes online art that captures the world's expression -- and gives us a glimpse of the soul of the Internet.
Why you should listen
Brooklyn-based artist Jonathan Harris' work celebrates the world's diversity even as it illustrates the universal concerns of its occupants. His computer programs scour the Internet for unfiltered content, which his beautiful interfaces then organize to create coherence from the chaos.
His projects are both intensely personal (the "We Feel Fine" project, made with Sep Kanvar, which scans the world's blogs to collect snapshots of the writers' feelings) and entirely global (the new "Universe," which turns current events into constellations of words). But their effect is the same -- to show off a world that resonates with shared emotions, concerns, problems, triumphs and troubles.
What others say
Jonathan Harris [is] a New York artist and storyteller working primarily on the Internet. His work involves the exploration and understanding of humans, on a global scale, through the artifacts they leave behind on the Web.
Jonathan Harris’ TED Talks
More news and ideas from Jonathan Harris
Culture
How a TED collaboration is helping residents of Pine Ridge Indian Reservation tell their own story
July 19, 2012
Photographer Aaron Huey set out seven years ago to capture images of poverty in America. The mission brought him to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, where 90% of the residents live below the poverty line and life expectancy for men is just 47 years, largely because of violence. As Huey says in his […]
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“Balloons of Bhutan”: Bringing Gross National Happiness from the Himalayas
November 1, 2011
In his latest project, “Balloons of Bhutan,” artist, computer scientist and storyteller Jonathan Harris explores how the Kingdom of Bhutan measures quality of life — not through Gross National Product, but through Gross National Happiness. In 2007 Harris spent two weeks talking to 117 people — students, farmers, road workers, monks, even a firewood seller, […]
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Collecting stories: Jonathan Harris on TED.com
July 24, 2008
At the EG conference in December 2007, artist Jonathan Harris discusses his latest projects, which involve collecting stories: his own, strangers’, and stories collected from the Internet, including his amazing “We Feel Fine.”(Recorded December 2007 in Los Angeles, California. Duration: 20:29.) Watch Jonathan Harris’s 2007 talk on TED.com, where you can download it, rate […]
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