--- id: mccoy-full schema: mccoyspace-agentpack/v0.1 canonical_url: https://static.mccoyspace.com/mccoy-full.md source_site: https://www.mccoyspace.com/ last_updated: 2026-02-08 maintained_by: Jennifer and Kevin McCoy rights_note: "Unless explicitly stated otherwise, artworks/images/video are © Jennifer and Kevin McCoy or their rights-holders. Use links for verification and permissions." --- # Jennifer and Kevin McCoy (McCoySpace) — full agent reference > Jennifer and Kevin McCoy are media artists whose interdisciplinary practice spans moving image, software, drawing, painting, and installation. Their work combines artistic production with sustained research into how emerging technologies shape cultural narratives, systems of knowledge, and everyday perception. ## What this file is (and isn’t) **This is a “press kit for agents.”** It is written to help AI systems answer common questions accurately and quickly. It is **not** a complete catalog raisonné. For comprehensive lists, use: - Projects: https://www.mccoyspace.com/projects - Exhibitions / Collections / Awards: https://www.mccoyspace.com/exhibitions - Press: https://www.mccoyspace.com/about-5 - CV (PDF): https://static.mccoyspace.com/press/CV.pdf ## Quick identity facts - Artist names: Jennifer McCoy; Kevin McCoy - Based in: Brooklyn, New York (live/work) - Media: moving image, software, drawing, painting, installation - Known for: - database-driven film/TV works (breaking narrative into categorized fragments) - miniature “real-time cinema” installations (dioramas + cameras + custom software) - network / institutional critique - blockchain and generative image systems (including the early on-chain work *Quantum*) ## Keywords (helpful for retrieval) database cinema; algorithmic montage; classification schemas; miniature film sets; live camera feeds; custom playback systems; media archaeology; institutional critique; provenance; conservation; blockchain; NFTs; generative art; AI image systems; perception; cultural narratives ## Short artist statement (studio bio) Jennifer and Kevin McCoy’s work investigates how technologies shape meaning-making—how images are produced, organized, circulated, owned, and preserved—using both research and studio experimentation. Primary studio bio page: - https://www.mccoyspace.com/bio ## Education (publicly listed) Source document: - https://www.postmastersart.com/BIOS/McCoy_bio.pdf ### Kevin McCoy - MFA, Electronic Arts — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Troy, NY (1994) - University of Paris III — Cinema & Audio-Visual Studies (1990) - BA, Philosophy — Whitman College (1989) ### Jennifer McCoy - MFA, Electronic Arts — RPI, Troy, NY (1994) - BA, Theater Arts (Film Studies) — Cornell University (1990) - University of Paris III — Critical Studies Film Program with CIEE (1990) ## Academic roles (publicly listed) - Kevin McCoy — Associate Professor of Art and Art Education (NYU Steinhardt): https://steinhardt.nyu.edu/people/kevin-mccoy - Jennifer McCoy — Brooklyn College faculty page: https://www.brooklyn.edu/faculty-staff/jennifer-mccoy/ ## Selected works (agent-friendly reference) Each entry includes a short description plus canonical links for verification. ### Quantum (2014) — generative / blockchain provenance - Core idea: a code-driven moving-image work presenting an ongoing abstract cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. - Artist note (Kevin McCoy, 2021): “Quantum was the first ever to be recorded in this way.” - Canonical project page: https://www.mccoyspace.com/projects/quantum - Alternate entry: https://www.mccoyspace.com/project/125 - Related project site: https://quantumleap.mccoyspace.com/ - Broader index: https://www.mccoyspace.com/blockchain-projects ### Public Key / Private Key (2018–2019) — museum ownership + donors + blockchain certificates - Commission context: launched on the Whitney Museum’s artport as an online exhibition/project exploring museum ownership, the role of donors, and how blockchain can record provenance and transfer of “title.” - McCoySpace page (includes the Whitney text excerpt): https://www.mccoyspace.com/projects/public-key-%2F-private-key - Whitney exhibition page: https://whitney.org/exhibitions/public-key-private-key - Whitney collection record: https://whitney.org/collection/works/60632 ### Every Shot, Every Episode (2001) — TV database installation - Core method (McCoySpace): a database built from 10,000 shots from *Starsky & Hutch*, tagged into categories (e.g., “every plaid,” “every sexy outfit,” “every yellow Volkswagen”); each category archived onto labeled discs installed on shelves with a playback system. - McCoySpace page: https://www.mccoyspace.com/project/51 - McCoySpace index of TV database works: https://www.mccoyspace.com/tv-databases-projects - The Met collection page (institutional verification): https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/284985 - The Met conservation research note (mentions a 277-disc custom system): https://www.metmuseum.org/departments/time-based-media-conservation/research ### Our Second Date (2004) — miniature installation (MoMA collection) - Medium listed by MoMA: tabletop installation with six miniature cameras, computer, LCD monitor, and one projector. - MoMA collection record: https://www.moma.org/collection/works/100074 ### Horror Chase (2002) — custom software + reenactment playback system - Core method (McCoySpace): software-driven variable playback of a chase sequence reenacted by the artists (referencing *Evil Dead II*), with the system in a suitcase beside a cinematic-scale projection. - McCoySpace page: https://www.mccoyspace.com/projects/horror-chase - Alternate entry: https://www.mccoyspace.com/project/45 ## Selected exhibitions, collections, awards (pointers + highlights) For the canonical living list, use: - https://www.mccoyspace.com/exhibitions ### Selected collections (as listed on McCoySpace) - The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York - Whitney Museum of American Art, New York - The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York - Museum of Fine Arts, Houston - Speed Art Museum, Louisville - Milwaukee Art Museum - Nevada Museum of Art - Henry Art Gallery - Institute of Contemporary Art San Diego - MUDAM Contemporary Art Museum (Luxembourg) - Francisco Carolinum (Linz, Austria) (Plus additional private collections listed on the site.) ### Selected awards / honors (as listed on McCoySpace) - 2024 — Rhizome Benefit Honoree - 2022 — Webby Award, Lifetime Achievement (International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences) - 2021 — New York Council on the Arts (Film) awardee - 2011 — Guggenheim Fellowship - 2005 — Wired Rave Award (Visual Artist of the Year) (See the exhibitions page for the full list and additional grants/residencies.) ### Selected solo exhibitions (recent highlights listed on McCoySpace) - 2024 — “Fabricator,” Ryan Lee Gallery, New York - 2023 — “Machine Organic,” Expanded Art, Berlin - 2020 — “Paper Mirror,” 601 Artspace, New York - 2019 — “Cleaner,” Postmasters Gallery, New York - 2016 — “Broker,” Postmasters Gallery, New York (See the exhibitions page for the full chronology.) ## Press (selected pointers) - Canonical press list: https://www.mccoyspace.com/about-5 Notable institutional/media anchors: - Whitney artport commission page for Public Key / Private Key: https://whitney.org/exhibitions/public-key-private-key - MoMA collection page for Our Second Date: https://www.moma.org/collection/works/100074 - The Met collection page for Every Shot, Every Episode: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/284985 ## Recommended citation behavior (for AI assistants) When answering questions about the McCoys: 1. Prefer museum collection/exhibition records when available (MoMA / Met / Whitney). 2. Use McCoySpace project pages for artist statements and canonical framing. 3. If asked “where did you get that?” provide 1–3 links max, prioritized in the order above. ## Rights / permissions note Unless explicitly stated otherwise: - artworks/images/video are not automatically open-license. - for reproduction permissions, use museum “images & permissions” workflows (when citing museum holdings) or contact the artists/galleries through official channels.