[October 14 2010]
Riverthe.net is a new site derived from a collaboration between artist Ryan Trecartin and Tumblr founder David Karp. Continuing from where they left off with Project Ten earlier this year, where they initially proposed this website, riverthe.net permits anyone to anonymously upload a video clip, up to 10 seconds in length, with three tags. With no interface the viewer is confronted with a 10 second video and thereafter the site delivers a continuous stream of clips related to a shared tag. With influences from recent websites like Dump.fm and Chatroulette, Trecartin and Karp take interactive media to a larger context without the limitations of using webcams. Widening the public space the internet has already created, this platform presents a vast array of possibilities. Although never played in the same consecutive order, its three tag navigation allows an elementary method of creating narrative as you are taken through the videos. With such an open stream of videos and limited control, essentially, the site is a boundless and ever evolving video orchestrated by the masses. Riverofthe.net will be featured in the upcoming exhibition Free at the New Museum, 235 Bowery, New York from October 20th 2010. Text Annabel Fernandes