Flowchart

Final Project idea

I have two different ideas for this project, and it is possible that they could be combined.

1. I'm considering taping one or multiple nude bodies. It will either be a close-up study of different body parts so that they are almost unrecognizable, or start close and zoom out to reveal an activity. The activities would be mundane, situations where a person would not normally be nude.

2. I really think that industrial, man-made things are beautiful in their own way. They often have wonderful lines and shapes. I could have many scenes of different things such as pipes, tractors, cranes.

The way to combine the two would be to have a split screen, or multiple frames on the screen. The man-made items would compare to the human body. For example, pipes and veins, tractors and legs, cranes and arms.

Artistic Mediation

Artists can create illusions. So can the government. They each work in different ways, but the artist is able to use this ability as a response to political issues. The political system is not always aware of the response or satire, yet millions of others can view it. In this way, artists can put their two cents into the picture and even effect the news media. For example, artistic protests held at the Republican National Convention create a hubbub, attracting news hounds. Artistic mediation is a way to promote discussion and questions; it shows that people should not just accept what is going on in the world without speaking up.
The creation of the Experimental Party with an avatar running for President was a great way for artists to alter political thinking. If enough people look at the website or research it, they will gain new ideas concerning the Presidential race. Obviously a virtual character cannot actually run for President, but he can represent and vocalize issues that need to be heard.
Artistic mediation does not change the government or stop corruption, but it does enable a larger number of people to question and think differently. Art captures attention. It is meant for an audience. And the audience is meant to analyze it. Through art, one can get an audience to feel a certain way and to think a certain way, therefore effecting change in some way, and in many cases in a political manner.

Ralph Nader Advertisements

This is the first version I created, but the words go by too quickly and there is too much information.

This version has less words and photos, which makes the information easier to absorb.

Political Ad Candidate: Representing the Underdog

So I figured the majority of people will be supporting Hillary, Obama, or McCain at this point. I'm going to support Nader...at least in terms of this political ad. I'm not doing this to be different, but simply because I still have no idea who to vote for (I'm Pennsylvania, so I have a couple weeks). Ralph Nader is the perfect candidate to make an advertisement for, probably because no one else is going to make a serious one about him. If you look closely at some of his issues though, they really are for giving more freedom to the American people. He continuously brings up the point of having fair ballots and open debates. Americans should have the option to see and hear the third party candidates views on public national television. Even if these debates were in addition to the regular front-runner ones, and even if the candidates had no chance of winning, it would still create a greater force behind trying to get the two-party candidates to address the ignored issues.

A slogan to represent Nader's stance on open debates could be:
"It's not too late, Nader for open debates"
This is subject to change, but it shows how time is of the essence. Nader didn't announce his candidacy until very late in the race, because there was no chance of him being part of the debates or winning. But even as a late announcer, he should still be able to debate some of the candidates if he is on the ticket. Another debate would probably help the last few undecided voters figure out who they want to be the next President.

Midterm Asst. 2: Unscripting the Political Process

Unscripted means impromptu. In politics, everything is scripted: speeches are written and revised, actions are planned to gain a certain response, and everything seems fake. When artists attempt to “unscript the political process”, they are creating this break in the script of politics. Through performances, websites, charts, studies, programs, and more, artists attack and satirize political figures and issues in a way that makes it difficult for the politicians to respond in the usual predetermined manner. They can take the power out of the hands of those who seem to be in control, at least temporarily. Sometimes the best method for doing this is to take on the role of those you oppose, and pretend to be supportive.

The Yes Men are one such group that poses as high-up figures from various organizations and creates look-alike websites with a slightly different message (i.e. the real: www.wto.org and the fake www.gatt.org). By taking the most extreme views of the WTO, the Yes Men attempt to make a sarcastic blow at the organization. Sometimes people realize, and sometimes they don’t, which sends an even stronger message about society and what is accepted politically.

Natalie Jeremijenko has a different way to unscript the political process. Through her Environmental Health Clinic at NYU, she gives “patients” treatment by sharing plans of action. While it is still a satirical approach by pretending to be a real health clinic, this is not to make fun of politicians or organizations, but to give regular people ideas to take action against environmental problems. Jeremijenko is unscripting the political process by going around it all together and putting the issue right into the hands of the citizens.

Midterm Asst. 1: YouTube as an Opportunity and Innovative Video Art

I am not a huge fan of YouTube. That does not mean I do not utilize it. Even for someone like me, who finds the majority of the videos to be unfunny and of poor quality, YouTube is useful. Users take time to cut up every scene of a movie, post popular commercials, and simply spout their opinions. YouTube makes it so that anybody can be a video artist, a filmmaker, or a TV director. Anyone with the Internet is able to find a video on almost any topic and viewers have even more choices than with a premium cable TV. Video artists who have not yet made a name for themselves can start off on this website and gain a following. It no longer always has to be about who you know. YouTube viewers also have the opportunity to immediately respond with comments and possibly forge an interactive relationship between artist and audience.

The way that YouTube videos with a high volume of viewers become almost cult classics, allows for regular people to get their voices heard on various issues. YouTube itself, due to the broad number of viewers, has created a channel called YouChoose ’08. This adds an entirely new level, including videos from the actual campaigns and nominees as well as from consituents. In this sense, video art could very well be affecting choices made in the 2008 election and on various other issues.

The interesting thing about video art in terms of display, is that it can be in more than one place at a time. Many pieces can even be broadcast on the Internet and YouTube as long as they are simply videos without extra screens or objects involved. Rodney Graham’s piece Rheinmetall/Victoria 8 uses such objects to send an additional message. I wouldn’t even call this work a video, it is like photography with moving images, and the photography is beautifully composed. Graham’s piece is different because it is shown using a Victoria 8 projector, and the projector is half of the artwork creating a video art installation piece. He is showing the dying out forms of media by filming one (the typewriter) as it is slowly immersed in white powder and facing it off with the other (the projector). The two work together to send a message about old media being replaced by the new.

Soundscape

Here it is, but it definitely is missing low frequencies and is a bit distorted.

Who's perspective matters: the artist's or the audience's?

According to John Cage, the audience can be the artist, or at least a large contributor to the artwork. He says that art "conforms to no rules. Not even its own" (93). I agree that there are no rules and anything can be argued to be a piece of artwork. The question that arises is: who decides the role played in the creation of that piece? John Cage can say that the noises the audience makes can be part of the performance. Yet, if the audience denies that they are artists or performers, was there any art in the first place? I believe there is no right or wrong to this question. If an artist (John Cage) has a pianist play...well, nothing...and thinks he has created art, then he has. If someone drops a cup of juice on the ground and another person sees a beautiful design and calls it art...it is. Any person interacting with the so-called artwork that finds it to be a creative piece can name it so, no matter which side of the canvas, stage, or screen they are on. And if someone says something is not art, then in their own mind it is not; however, as long as one person acknowledges it as being a creative composition, then it cannot be denied. If it exists for one, it exists.

Situational Tour: The Good Old Days.

Pulling Up. Stopped. Vast emptiness.
Searching for fragments of my past.
I miss naivety.
Decades later, much is the same.
But not that slide. Where is my slide?

Signs excluding us.
The grown-ups.
Is that me? Am I trespassing?
This was once all mine.
Here, where we played wall-ball.
That's MY wall, MY sign.

I can name all 50 states in alphabetical order.
Used to jump on Alaska.
Wish it was that easy. To hop from one place to the next.
I'm stuck.
Bouncing between two homes, going nowhere.

Still looking up. Haven't grown much.
It was so hard to use this basket.
To be part of the game.
THEN to score a point.
At least I control my own success now, not the 6th graders.

The rainbow.
'Cause that's what it looks like.
Here before my time, and now after.
The only play thing of MINE that is left.
Plain, cold metal. Blisters. Bruises.
The way it's s'posed to be.
Just up now, and down later.

Now it's only up. Or "success" is lost.

This is new.
Sure, it's pretty, but it's too easy.
Plastic, steps, smooth surfaces.
Where is the BIG slide? Where Tyler broke his arm.
Kids sure have it easy these days.

Time stops.
I jumped. I was so high.
I was flying.
OW!
My hand, blood.
Great. Another trip to the nurse.
Swings are the best.
I got hurt a lot. But nothing bothered ME.
Easy. Multiplication, snack time, kickball.
Not anymore. Research, running, wasted nights.
I'd rather play kickball.

Tweeeet.
Line up kids. Take roll. You must be here.
What happens if I'm not?
Nothing.
Now, don't need to be here. But if not: Failure.
Funny how that works.

Ding!
The worst sound ever.
Recess is over.
Move on kids, it's another grade's turn to play.
I want to play. I don't want to leave.
Let me play.

The trailers.
My home for four years.
Freeze your tail off if you have to pee.
Bring a buddy. Outside is dangerous.
I think outside is beautiful.
Inside. Chaos.
Josh threw a chair. Ryan puked. We had a meeting about David.
"Be nice kids." No way!
He called me a name. I called HIM a weirdo.
It's true.
Later, I found out he had issues at home.
I should learn to keep my mouth shut.
I still hate the kid.

Some things never change.

I have to get out. I don't belong in this empty school.
There should be smiles and basketballs and Berenstein Bear books.
Driving by in my car.
Damn, people that drive are ginormous, I used to think.
The baseball field. The blue sky.
Can't remember much.
All I think about in this space is my job.
It's only a few yards away from this field.
We used to sing there. Walk over. Make the old people happy.
Did it 'cause they made me.
Now I serve them liver and onions.
I drive. I do it for the money. I do it because I like it.
I guess I'm still making their day.

I zoom by faster.
I want to go back.
SO bad.
They don't want me.
I know I can't anyway.
I used to get hurt so much. Cuts, scrapes, pencil wounds.
That doesn't happen anymore.
It's a different pain.
My mind is cluttered.
It's not even about the recess or easy classes.
I just want to swing for a while to clear my head.

What determines a total multimedia experience?

According to F.T. Marinetti, film is an encompassing art form. John Cage believed that a total artistic experience involves the audience to a large extent. I don't believe that to have an all-encompassing effect on a human mind that every single sense must be triggered and all art forms need be involved. Obviously the more types of media involved, the more a piece of work will effect different aspects of the brain. But more is not always better. I believe that even without technology a great multimedia experience can be obtained, like the old days where they had live music and theater instead of audio tracks and computer graphics. Sometimes just two forms of media can have a much stronger effect on the viewer than all of them. It is through different combinations of mediums that artists will tap into new ideas and evoke different emotions from the audience.

Rolling Hills Elementary School

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This is my elementary school. I absolutely loved it there...the best days of my life by far. It was definitely a place where authority ruled. Bigger kids rule the little kids, teachers rule all the kids, and the administration is an authority on all. Nowadays, with all the crazy people running around elementary schools have no choice but to be secure. Even if I go in, as a young woman to visit an old teacher, they stop me at the front desk and accost me. There are signs everywhere saying not to trespass. This elementary school has a definite ritual to it as well. In the morning you line up behind the number on the blacktop that your class has been assigned to. Roll is taken there. There are bells and scheduled lunch and recess times for the different grades; every day becomes routine. And the ideology they preached there, of following the golden rule and acting kindly to others was constant. There was a lot of stuff going on back then that I didn't notice. I was just there to play on the swings and learn the multiplication tables.

Does the birth of a new medium translate into an ultimate death for another?

With the creation of the cassette tape, vinyl records and their players slowly died as a popular product. The same thing happened to tapes with the birth of CDs, VHS with the invention of the DVD, and eventually the DVD may disappear and movies will be purchased only on a computer. The computer is a medium that enables almost anything to be accomplished: from sending mail and reading books to listening to music, watching movies, and even talking live to others. Yet, I still do not believe that with the progression of the Internet and personal computers that books, snail mail, telephones, or even old records will disappear completely. The fact that the computer does so much almost makes you want to get away from it to send an actual letter or curl up in a chair and read a book. Alan Kay thought 36 years ago that the computer would replace books, and it has not even come close. Old products have a way of coming back and certain mediums will never disappear. While the computer can do almost everything necessary to survive in the modern day, I think people will prevent the computer from replacing all other products.

Can we compare the computer to a paintbrush?

With so many programs now that have tools to create and edit works of art, it cannot be denied that the computer is a medium for artwork. Yet many of the programs have templates, filters, and other such things created by other artists that we use to enhance our own artwork. In that sense, I do not believe that a computer is a true, simplistic medium of art with only the one artist's creativity in mind. Instead, the computer is a medium that encourages sharing of ideas and expansion of a simple piece of artwork into a more complex one that has the opportunity to affect the senses in a different way.

ARTIST'S PERSPECTIVE: MULTIMEDIA SPRING 2008