Jonathan Jennings Harris (Aug. 27, 1979) is an American artist and technologist known for his work with data, story, ritual, and wisdom.
He attended St. Bernard’s School in New York City, then studied painting and drawing at Deerfield Academy, computer science at Princeton University, interaction design at Fabrica, and shamanism with The Power Path.
His work with data visualization (2002–2015) helped to establish that burgeoning field by rejoicing in the beauty of the newly social Internet — through pioneering digital projects like We Feel Fine, Wordcount, 10x10, Yahoo Time Capsule, I Want You To Want Me, and Network Effect. Projects from this series have been widely exhibited around the world, including at TED, Ars Electronica, Le Centre Pompidou, The World Economic Forum, and The Museum of Modern Art in New York.
His work with interactive storytelling (2007–2018) combined the digital and physical worlds through ritualistic approaches to data collection in real-life situations. These hybrid experiments included The Whale Hunt, I Love Your Work, Balloons of Bhutan, and Today, a daily photo practice he continued for 440 days. Today evolved into Cowbird, a storytelling platform open to all that ended up amassing 100,000 stories from 25,000 authors in 200 countries — until the epidemic of Internet addiction led to its closure. He explored these dynamics in the essays World Building in a Crazy World, Modern Medicine, Data Will Help Us, and Navigating Stuckness. Projects from this series have been featured at numerous international film festivals including Sundance, Tribeca, and IDFA, where he was the 2017 Guest of Honor.
His work with magical ritual (2015–2022) was centered at High Acres Farm, his ancestral home in Shelburne, Vermont. He spent seven years working to transform old family patterns there, practicing what he came to call Life Art through a series of 21 rituals and matching films — ultimately released in 2022 as the alchemical opus In Fragments. The spiritual origins of this work are outlined in the essays Powers of Ten and Working with Life.
His current practice of wisdom work (2024–) happens through Sunlight — a publishing studio making illuminated offerings for all ages.
He lives between Santa Fe, New Mexico and Shelburne, Vermont, where he continues to serve as a steward of High Acres Farm and Notitia Sanctuary.
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Photo by Nicola Pianalto at Fabrica
