sewood2008

Do artists today need to know the language of technology in order to communicate their ideas effectively?"

I would say that technology, in the sense that you are referring to it, is a tool, rather than a language. For me, the language of art is in the concepts, form and symbols it uses, whereas the tool is the medium used.

Of course, art can be just about anything. Technology can, and often is, incorporated into art.

think of Da Vinci's drawings. They are both technology and art.

As a tool, technology is no different to the paints and pigments that artists used in the renaissance period. We can go back even further, right back to the beginning of art, to the cave paintings in Lascaux, France 30000BC. Even then, those who made the paintings need a technique to do them with. They need to understand how to get pigments, and how to use them. they also need skill, drawing skill.

In the Renaissance period, great artists like Michelangelo and Da Vinci used to have students working for them. The student had to learn to learn how to mix pigments, make brushes and stretch canvas and so on. In return, he got to see how the master worked. The paints, brushes and cnavas are all technology, and great artists didn't want to be bothered with that, but they needed it. So the student master system worked well. The students had to invest a lot of time in the beginning in working with pigments, which may involve crushing materials, grinding, mixing and so on, often for many years.

The renaissance period is also interesting because another kind of technology was being investigated, and that was application of geometry, in the form of perspective. A successful renaissance artist not only had to be able to prepare materials, but were also required to have technical knowledge of geometric construction and perspective. That special knowledge, which is independent of talent, can also considered to be technology.

My point is that technology has always been around, and yes, it has always been necessary to know how to use it to produce art. Perhaps the simplest form of it is understanding pencils and paper, for no artist ever became a great artist without this simple drawing skill.

Very interesting site on many items including PLAGIARISM
in the RENAISSANCE