Why GPS Art is important for New Media
Navigating the intersection of technology, creativity, and location-based data
How do you describe an artwork that exists in virtual form but is created by traveling in the physical world? The use of free and open GPS technology has revolutionized the way we travel and think about maps. It has also opened up a new generation of artist who draw using their data.
At first glance it may be tempting to suggest that GPS art is simply digital art but while its form can only be appreciated on a computer it must be created in the real world. GPS art doesn't fit the definition of an installation or performance art since its result cannot be appreciated in person without the use of a computer to visualize the data.
DISCLAIMER: As part of the discussion on new media art, this article was written with the help of chatGPT an AI text engine. To see the original raw and unedited output click here.
At its core, GPS art is about creating an image that is tied to specific physical location and route with spatial data from GPS satellites is used to “draw” an image following the route taken by the artist. If you consider it the only thing you are really doing is generating data in the form of longitudes and latitudes and this data makes up the “points” or “lines” in your image.
GPS artists have to use a device capable of recording GPS data which these days usually means a smartphone. By using GPS coordinates to mark the location of an installation, artists can create interactive artworks that only exist in specific places, and which can be accessed and experienced by anyone with a GPS-enabled device. This creates a sense of connection between the artwork and its surroundings, and means that others can walk the same route effectively “tracing” the artwork.
With GPS art anyone can follow the same rout and effectively “trace” the artwork and make it their own
The artwork can range from simple to complex, depending on the resources and technical skills available to the artist. It will also depend on the fidelity desired you can make small artworks by walking around your own backyard while a popular hobby is walking circles in cities such as the cover photo of this article. While GPS art started with people walking in cycling it has now expanded to all sorts of transportation from cars, boats, and even drones.
It’s important to note that the artwork is not the finished image per-se which can be summed up as a route, but the journey and the collection of data used to create the final image. The reason this is important is that if you draw a path on the computer you haven’t made a GPS artwork but merely a blueprint or a path to follow.
BUT WHY? Why not just fake it? Does it have to be “real”?
Some people have tried to “fake” GPS art but are quickly found out and there is often people asking for proof by posting a screenshot from a GPS app itself. One famous case is of a Swedish art student who made an advertisement short film for DHL claiming to have drawn the largest self-portrait by sending a GPS device through the mail.
It’s a nice piece of cinema but it is a work of fiction that attempts to pass of as truth. While the video is an entertaining watch the value goes down because it lacks the veritas or the truth that gives the GPS art weight. In fact the artist later added a disclaimer at the bottom of his video that it wasn’t real.
The artwork that really got me into the question of why GPS art matters is the world record setting GPS artwork by Tokyo resident Yasushi “Yassan” Takahashi. Yassan traveled all over the Japanese Islands to craft a message for his girlfriend watch the short video below to see what he wrote:
His story has become an inspiration for people worldwide and since then he runs a website called GPSart.info that shares paths for people in different cities with various categories from animals, people, and of course city circles.
Now you might think why did he go through all that effort and why didn’t he just draw on a map on his computer. It certainly would have been cheaper and quicker but it misses the point of GPS art entirely.
Just take a look at comments on the previous video:
At it’s heart GPS art is not about the destination but the journey. The beauty comes not from the result but the journey that someone had to take to make it. For a long time GPS art has been a solitary activity but with running apps like STRAVA and Google Earth offering more social features GPS art is being created and shared collectively.
This democratization of art has led to new forms of collaboration and community building, as viewers are invited to participate in the creation and interpretation of the artwork.It’s not just about technology and location — GPS art also has a deeper cultural and social significance. By using GPS data as a medium, artists can explore and comment on issues related to surveillance, privacy, and control.
As a medium GPS art has the potential to challenge traditional notions of ownership and authority. Because is tied to a specific location, it can be seen as a form of public art, open to all and not owned by any individual or institution.
In the future I expect to see GPS art transcend into the metaverse where people will have to physically move their bodies to travel across virtual worlds. I am also expecting as we reach the Moon and Mars some people are going to make GPS art that is out of this world.
For me, this journey studying the importance and history of GPS art has inspired me to create my own in the future perhaps using Baybayin?
This article is part of a six-part series on New Media artworks, theories, techniques, and technology.
