An exploration of Life Art
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In Fragments is an exploration of Life Art
Created by Jonathan Jennings Harris
    Person
    An artist and technologist known for his work with data visualization, storytelling, and ritual

    Jonathan Jennings Harris was born on August 27, 1979 in Burlington, Vermont — and spent his childhood summers at High Acres Farm.

    Jonathan and his sister, Amanda, in childhood

    He attended Episcopal School and St. Bernard’s School in New York City, then Deerfield Academy in western Massachusetts, and then studied computer science at Princeton University and interactive art at Benetton’s Fabrica.

    • First day of school at St. Bernard’s — 1987
    • In Italy at Fabrica — 2004

    After keeping physical sketchbooks for many years, he was robbed at gunpoint in 2003, prompting a shift in focus to the evolving early Internet.

    Pages from Jonathan’s sketchbooks — 1999–2003

    He was among the early pioneers in the field of “data visualization” through projects such as WordCount (2003), 10x10 (2004), and We Feel Fine (2006).

    Stills from We Feel Fine — 2006

    In 2007, he began to explore algorithmic approaches to storytelling that straddled the physical and digital worlds — inventing precise rule sets for himself to follow.

    • During The Whale Hunt — 2007
    • During Balloons of Bhutan — 2011

    These projects, such as The Whale Hunt (2007), Balloons of Bhutan (2011), and I Love Your Work (2013) were among the first “interactive documentaries,” and helped to establish that burgeoning field.

    • With stills from The Whale Hunt — 2007
    • Glimpses of I Love Your Work — 2013

    In 2009, starting on his thirtieth birthday, Jonathan began a simple practice of taking a photo and writing a short story each day, and posting them online each night before going to sleep. He continued this ritual for 440 days, calling the resulting project, Today — as described in this short film by Scott Thrift.

    Images from Today — 2009–2010

    Today evolved into Cowbird — a free (and ad-free) online storytelling community that attracted nearly 15,000 authors from around 150 countries, who shared almost 100,000 stories using the platform beginning in 2011.

    “Cowbird: A Life Story” — composed of 227 individual Cowbird stories — 2014

    In 2017, with the rise of screen addiction and attention economies, Jonathan decided to close Cowbird to new contributions, while keeping its stories online as an historical archive. Further responding to the effects of widespread Internet use on society, he created Network Effect in 2015 with Gregor Hochmuth.

    • Network Effect — 2015
    • Network Effect at Tribeca Film Festival — 2016

    In early 2016, after years of living in New York City, Jonathan returned to his family’s ancestral land in Shelburne, Vermont — where his mother died the very day he moved home, after a long illness.

    • March 5, 2016

    Since then, he’s been exploring what he calls “Life Art” — using the creative application of ritual to shape his experience of life at High Acres Farm.

    In Fragments (2021) is his first new work in six years — to learn about its origins, please see his essay, Working with Life.

    • Stills from In Fragments — 2015–2021

    More information is available on his website — with updates via his newsletter.

    You can contact him at .

    • 1
      The Joyous, Lake
      2015
    • 2
      Linestone
      2015
    • 3
      Urim and Thummim
      2015
    • 4
      Not a Single Point
      2015
    • 5
      Process of Elimination
      2015
    • 6
      Individuation
      2016
    • 7
      Equidistant
      2015
    • 8
      Scarecrow
      2015
    • 9
      Space Suit
      2016
    • 10
      Make Me a Vessel
      2016
    • 11
      Apprenticeship
      2016
    • 12
      Phase Change
      2016
    • 13
      Use a Hammer
      2015
    • 14
      Hall of Mirrors
      2015
    • 15
      Give Up the Ghost
      2016
    • 16
      Paper Weight
      2021
    • 17
      Hexagram
      2021
    • 18
      A Witness to Life
      2017
    • 19
      See Glass
      2021
    • 20
      Electric Webb
      2021
    • 21
      In Fragments
      2016
    • 22
      Seed the Future
      2021
    • 23
      Working with Life
      2021
    • Bacon
      In 1 ritual
    • Birch Bark
      In 3 rituals
    • Black Frames
      In 1 ritual
    • Black Paint
      In 1 ritual
    • Blue Blade
      In 1 ritual
    • Blue Boots
      In 4 rituals
    • Blue Clothes
      In 4 rituals
    • Blue Felt
      In 1 ritual
    • Blue Jeans
      In 3 rituals
    • Blue Pliers
      In 2 rituals
    • Blue Rope
      In 2 rituals
    • Blue Scissors
      In 2 rituals
    • Blue Sieves
      In 2 rituals
    • Blue Sponge
      In 2 rituals
    • Bow And Arrow
      In 1 ritual
    • Brass Clamp
      In 1 ritual
    • Camera Kit 1
      In 21 rituals
    • Camera Kit 2
      In 2 rituals
    • Camera Kit 3
      In 3 rituals
    • Ceramic Tea Set
      In 1 ritual
    • Clay Cob
      In 2 rituals
    • Clear Marbles
      In 3 rituals
    • Copper Point
      In 1 ritual
    • Copper Shavings
      In 1 ritual
    • Copper Sheet
      In 1 ritual
    • Copper Wire
      In 1 ritual
    • Crucible
      In 1 ritual
    • Earth Room Earth
      In 1 ritual
    • Effigy
      In 1 ritual
    • Epoxy
      In 1 ritual
    • Family Letter
      In 1 ritual
    • Fire Brick
      In 1 ritual
    • Fire Wood
      In 1 ritual
    • Fired Mirror
      In 3 rituals
    • Furnace Door
      In 1 ritual
    • Glass Batch
      In 1 ritual
    • Glass Candles
      In 2 rituals
    • Glass Case
      In 1 ritual
    • Glass Cup
      In 4 rituals
    • Glass Mirror
      In 1 ritual
    • Glass Sheets
      In 22 rituals
    • Glass Stand
      In 22 rituals
    • Glass Tape
      In 1 ritual
    • Gold Candelabras
      In 1 ritual
    • Granite Mortar
      In 1 ritual
    • Gray Clothes
      In 1 ritual
    • Halogen Light
      In 3 rituals
    • I Ching
      In 2 rituals
    • Iphone
      In 1 ritual
    • Iron Pot
      In 1 ritual
    • Iron Trivets
      In 1 ritual
    • Limestone
      In 2 rituals
    • Linestones
      In 8 rituals
    • Liquor Solution
      In 1 ritual
    • Masonic Bible
      In 1 ritual
    • Mould And Deckle
      In 1 ritual
    • Paper Kites
      In 1 ritual
    • Paper Pulp
      In 1 ritual
    • Paper Quotes
      In 8 rituals
    • Potash
      In 2 rituals
    • Quikcrete
      In 1 ritual
    • Red Bag
      In 1 ritual
    • Red Coat
      In 2 rituals
    • Red Dye
      In 1 ritual
    • Red Level
      In 1 ritual
    • Red Rope
      In 1 ritual
    • Red Stove
      In 2 rituals
    • Red Thread
      In 3 rituals
    • Resin
      In 1 ritual
    • Silica
      In 4 rituals
    • Silica Bottles
      In 1 ritual
    • Silver Dish
      In 1 ritual
    • Steel Bolts
      In 1 ritual
    • Steel Knife
      In 1 ritual
    • Toy Soldier
      In 1 ritual
    • Toy Soldiers
      In 1 ritual
    • White Clothes
      In 14 rituals
    • White Gloves
      In 3 rituals
    • White Paint Pen
      In 22 rituals
    • White Strainer
      In 1 ritual
    • Wood Clamps
      In 1 ritual
    • Wood Mirror
      In 1 ritual
    • Wood Stick
      In 1 ritual
    • Yellow Gloves
      In 2 rituals
    Next
    • Ethan Bond-Watts
      An artist proficient with glass and many other materials
    In Fragments is an exploration of Life Art.
    • FAQ
    • Genealogy
    • Images
    • Music
    • Credits
    • Contact
    In Fragments is an exploration of Life Art
    Created by Jonathan Jennings Harris