Jean

he/him

[jeanmcrawford]

[jeanmcrawford]

Art Project #4: Performance Art

to peel

I took inspiration heavily from the verb list and I wanted to create a performance around peeling. There are several metaphorical and symbolic meanings with peeling. It can mean shedding the old and bringing the new. Revealing the best or worst that lies underneath. Removing something in a careful way as to not damage what is inside. I simply thought it would be visually intriguing, peeling something that replicates my skin off my face. I felt pain peeling this off, either due to my hairs being ripped off or my eyes stinging from tension. For my performance, all I wanted was to peel.

[jeanmcrawford]

Experiment #4: Richard Serra's Verb List

Verb List:

To heal

To envy

To squeeze

Of realization

To stomp

To smoke

To organize

To panic

To crack

To sweat

To smear

To stop

To swear

To lay

To close

To care

To peel

To fence

To frolic

To ascend

To close:

To crack:

To squeeze:

[jeanmcrawford]

Reading and Response #4

After reading Roselee Goldberg's "Performance: A Hidden History", I have a better understanding of the significance of performance art in the art world and in society as a whole. Performance lies on the verge of many disciplines that help to encapsulate the history of performance while still being unique in its conceptualization. Theatre, film, music, dance, painting, and sculpting can be found within the scope of performance since it is to the discretion of the artist regarding mediums and media. Performance also surrounds the political climate at the time, using performance as a way to critique politics, protest, and reach a large number of viewers. As seen throughout World War 1 and 2, performance was significant for the public and later emerged as a medium itself. Performance is viewed as radical and disruptive in the eyes of critics and continues to challenge the determination of 'value' onto works of art. The environment performance art takes place in differs from that of a museum, especially considering the art showcased is made by those who are dead, revealing that disconnect between the viewer and artist that performance achieves. The reading dives into the history of performance and how it's been used throughout political and societal hardships, and how it manifests differently between futurists, constructivists, dadaists, and surrealists. One thing in the reading that stood out to me most was interpreting performance as animating the conceptual ideas in art that are usually translated through 2D art.

"The Other History of Intercultural Performance" by Coco Fusco made me think about Sarah Baartman due to the reading discussing displaying cultural identities in the West and Europe and because I have learned about her in my gender studies classes. Sarah Baartman was displayed basically fully naked for people to fetishize, torment, ridicule, and desire over. This was because of her natural body shape that differed from those of stereotypical white women, and it further upheld notions regarding race that inscribed people of color as primitive, hypersexual, and sexually aggressive. This connects to the reading because it discussed performing artists and cultural identities. The reading showcased several instances where someone from a different culture was put on display against their will by Western and European people, upholding colonization efforts of establishing white bodies and Eurocentrism as the norm. Human caging should not be considered a form of performance art because there is a separation between the artist (the one who took someone form another culture) and the art (showcasing the body for the public). It was interesting to see how the public viewed the humans on display, regarding it as a work of performance art. Race was constructed through these 'performances' because it displayed an 'other' while affirming the normalization of whiteness, the eugenics era also contributed along similar lines. Power relations can be overlooked when it comes to art, like a white photographer traveling and taking photos of Indigenous people, and in turn exploiting them if not asked for permission. It is important to see the historical underlines in art to make sure power relations are evident and understood, and that art can be made not at the expense of others.

[jeanmcrawford]

Art Project #3: The Supercut Video

and they tell you, things will get better

Trigger warning: Needles

While chronically being online is a habit I adopted in my lifetime, it has made me aware of things I never knew before and has taken a toll on my mental health more than I thought it would. Mindlessly scrolling has now turned to frantically avoiding the mess, chaos, hate, injustice, and sadness that has overtaken my social media. I feel a disconnect, sitting in my room as I consume the pain from those in my own community. I used to think that now, in 2023, would be the best time for someone to be LGBTQ+, but in reality, it is the scariest time. How can I go about my normal day knowing that there are people in my community in other states having their rights stripped from them? How can I be okay knowing that this country is so flawed in so many ways to the point where it seems impossible to fix? How can I have hope when I know what is going on and all I am hearing is that things will get better?

[jeanmcrawford]

Experiment #3: The Music Video Mash-Up

This is the video I created for the PAW Xtra Large.

[jeanmcrawford]

Reading and Response #3

While reading "Projection: Vanishing and Becoming," it was interesting because I find myself also being influenced by my world art history class. I understood the beginning of art through those painted hands on cave walls in the Paleolithic era, but I never thought to perceive that as projection. These art works on caves are physical projections of the hand through the blowing of pigment. It is because of these hands that we can even fathom the beginning of art, and begin to understand the purpose of art. The reading points out that art has always been an attempt to cheat death or to outlive the physical deterioration of our bodies, to be memorialized in history. As a means to achieve this, projection is present throughout archeology and imbedded into our psychological functions. We project our emotions, project our bodies, project our conceivable reality, all to construct our conception of the world and the humans who inhabit it. The reading displays three senses of projection: mythical, archeological, and psychological. All three can manifest themselves in different ways whether it being through art, emotions, illusions, etc. It is intriguing to consider the projections that occurred throughout history, as seen through mythological stories or in the day-by-day experiences of those in the past. I think that we have to always be thinking or perceiving the world as a movie in order to ignite creation to reflect that conception.

The reading by Lea Collet displayed several works of video art that gave me a broader idea about the world of art through the means of digital or cinematic media. I do think that video is a cheap and easy way to create art, especially now due to our inescapable exposure to technology. I believe there is something video art can capture that 2D struggles to replicate. Capturing human emotion, the diversity of bodies and individuals, expressions, body language, and dialogue can be easily harbored by video art. In the case with Danielle Dean who captures the interpellation of thoughts, feelings, and social relations produced by power structures in society by using video art to deconstruct the news and politics in media. Dean is able to critique the inscription of gender, race, and class onto objects through her art. Something particularly amazing about video art is that the body can represent so much more because of its use in a performative way. Performance art is expressive and intimate, and if recorded through video, it can be solidified in history by spanning time and space. As technology continues to grow, we will at the same time see a continuous growth and evolution of video art.

This is a work of animation by vewn on YouTube and it has been one of my favorites for a long time. I love how they can capture a whole thought out story in 3 minutes, and the animation style is very unique.

This is the music video for the song It's All So Incredibly Loud by Glass Animals. I love how the song gradually gets louder while the visuals gradually lead up to the climax of him jumping into the pool.

This performance by Olivier de Sagazan asks the question "Who is behind our face?" He slathers on paint, clay, and other materials to morph his face into something that is quite morbid and terrifying.

This film includes all of the songs and music videos from Melanie Martinez's K-12 album. The music videos occur in between scenes of acting and plot developing. Melanie acts in it herself and directed it herself.

This is a short film that I watched as a kid about a person who comes to terms with being a trans man and having to accept that themselves as well as struggle for his family to accept it. I should've known sooner why I was so obsessed with this film as a kid.

[jeanmcrawford]

Art Project #2: Gif Series

I wanted to juxtapose the colorful makeup I was applying by making everything black and white. Black and white can convey several emotions and at the same time none at all. During this process, I applied makeup without any thought, I frantically applied eyeliner, lipstick, and foundation while at the same time making a mess around my sink and on my clothes. I struggle with appearance and expectations of appearance projected onto me. Everyday I try to look my best, and for the right reasons too. I try to look good to make myself feel good and not for the approval of others. If that is the case, then why do I still feel the way I do at the end of the day? Why do I still end up caring what others think of me or how they perceive me? It was a fun process making these gifs because so much can be said and gathered from a short clip, and it was interesting to see the way my story manifested itself through these gifs. We tell ourselves that tomorrow will be a new day. Tomorrow will be better. I cannot wait for tomorrow. Tomorrow has to be better than it was today. Is that something we think to mask our fear or insecurity that maybe everyday will be the same? That tomorrow could possibly be just as bad as today was? The frantic, chaotic, unique qualities of each day gets washed with the sameness and consistency that makes up our lives.

[jeanmcrawford]

Experiment #2: Making Mini-Cinema

[jeanmcrawford]

Reading and Response #2

The thing about internet art is that it will be forever changing and evolving due to the continuous advancing of technology. From "Web Work: A History of Internet Art", it discussed the term 'net.art' as an accident more than a direct coinage of the vast ways art can manifest itself online. "Agents of Change: The internet. Net Art and How the World Wide Web has Created a New Medium" talks about that very concept regarding the definition or parameters of net.art, highlighting the difficulty of defining because the spectrum of the internet is so wide. I like how this article listed six features of net.art as identified by Baumgartel: connectivity, global reach, multimediality, immateriality, interactivity, and equality. I think these features describe net.art in a way that encapsulates the complexity of the internet and the controversies on what is considered art. In "The Digital Canvas: The Odd and Fascinating History of Internet Art", adds on to this because net.art is unbounded by galleries, museums, and exhibitions, meaning that everyone who has access to the internet has access to net.art.

I also think that internet art has different expectations compared to other forms of art making like traditional painting or drawing. Things on the internet can be trashy and can be 'low quality' simply because it is on the internet. GIFs do not have to be the best quality because the message can still be communicated. In "How GIF Trash Became Internet Culture Glue", it emphasizes this because GIFs and GIF culture does not exist within a limited single space, but rather communicate and evolve with technology and media. For instance, in "A Brief History of Animated GIF Art, Part One", GIFs are not always made with artistic intent and platforms like MySpace in 2003 harbored GIFs that exchanged messages, relatability, politics, and memes. All of these articles attempt to fathom and define internet art and GIFs, and learning about the history of these things is necessary when understanding the future of them. I use GIFs in text messages to capture everything I am trying to communicate, and it was interesting to learn about the artistic implications and applications of GIFs.

This GIF is simply hilarious. It is funny taking an icon like Walter White, who has nothing to do really with trans rights, and connecting it to exactly that.

I reference Drag Race memes and quotes all of the time. It has incorporated itself in my every day vocabulary.

I love GIFs that capture amazing moments in animes and shows. Just one clip of this anime entices people to watch the whole thing.

This GIF is from the youtube series DHMIS (Don't Hug Me I'm Scared) and it is a take on media targeted towards children and how it can be corrupted. I do this dance move all the time.

I like the idea of taking a still painting that has so much nuance regarding the meaning, and giving it more emotion, character, and personality through animation.

I appreciate and take part of the art form of makeup, and I love how this GIF captures the transformation and expression that makeup creates.

The beauty, grace, and pure artistry of a cat eating corn.

One of my favorite things is Kermit memes, especially the low quality ones that make it significantly more funny.

Any internet art interpretations of Gorillaz is very interesting and cool because Gorillaz is an animated internet based band.

Vanelope was surprisingly one of the first things I thought of when reading about glitches. The fact that her character was discarded and not given value because she glitched almost perfectly reflects the standards of art and the controversy of the quality of art especially surrounding glitches.

[jeanmcrawford]

Art Project #1: Disappearing Acts

To represent my interpretation of disappearance, I wanted to capture the several times a day I experienced disappearing. Whether it be succumbing more into the depths of my self destruction or finding myself physically fading within spaces I am occupying. I carried my camera around with me everywhere I went and during everything I did on a day that I would have classified as typical. I took some photos in the moment from my perspective to show exactly what I was seeing during these moments, but I also set up specific shots to attempt an orchestration of what is going on internally. My motivation was to pinpoint moments of disappearance in my life and then try to understand why and how I am experiencing it. My process might go against the concept due to me not showing a gradual disappearance over time. Time is understood through the process because I took these photos periodically throughout the day, but the process also shows how disappearance can come and go. These photos can be internalized differently based on everyone’s personal experiences with mental health or even the repetitive flow of everyday life. Where do we escape too? Does disappearing take on different forms? Why do we disappear?

[jeanmcrawford]

Art Experiment #1: The Drift

I wanted this experiment to capture time in multiple ways. I wanted to show the actual progression of the walk and experience of the park, but I also wanted to connect it to the timeline of our lives. The park represents the multiple stages in our lives as we start out as kids on swings and playgrounds, and then as we get older we migrate to the playground tables and benches, and then we grow out of it all, exploring the world on our own.

[jeanmcrawford]

In Defense of the Poor Image

This article by Hito Steryl discusses the poor image, which can be understood as images ranked and valued according to its resolution based on standards of image quality in society. Film, images, and lens-based media have been obscured by neoliberal restructuring, capitalism, commercialism, and materialization. The article also highlights the circulation of poor images online, which creates social networks that have shared histories, beliefs, and understandings. The main point of the article is to understand the position poor images hold in relation to industries, social structures, and the art world. It points out how poor images call out conformism and exploitation while exposing the importance of focus or resolution in films or photography. This article shows how life is reflected through the discarding of poor images, and if at all images should be given value through societal expectations of quality.

From this reading, I gathered the complexity of what happens when images or art enters the public domain. I never grasped the meaning behind discarded or poor images even in regards to my own art. I see how we live in a world that values quality, which creates pressure to conform and publicize work that is considered to be high resolution/quality. This will help me in my art process to value every photo and every step of the process, and to not discard something that is deemed 'not to standard' because it still is art that I created that can represent several aspects of myself. I think the whole article was interesting, especially since it critiques an element of art that is not usually discussed. I want to know more about the influence of gender expectations, the nation state, and other structural factors of society on the imposed value on images. I wonder if there can even be a way to publicize art without it being assimilated into controlling factors of society that uphold conformity and capitalism?

This is Chris Marker's virtual home on Second Life. I like this image because it looks like something created for a video game, and how it critiques the privatization of art through its widespread availability. I can see how expectations of quality deem this image poor because of low resolution or it being out of focus, but I think that in of itself critiques this system of ranking images. I like the setting that is created, along with the details that appear to just be thrown together.

This is jpeg rl104 by Thomas Ruff. This is a prime example of valuing images based on resolution and focus. The article discusses the way poor images are spread quickly and compressed, and this image shows the dematerialization of art and critiques the fetish value of visibility and high resolution. If this image was higher in quality it would probably be rewarded for capturing an impactful moment, but since it is not in focus it is not given the same treatment.

This is another piece by Chris Marker that caught my attention. I love how visually stunning this piece is and how it achieves capturing a different reality. Again, this feels very similar to video game art and rendering, and I feel like art from video games gets undermined or underrepresented in the art world.

This whole article debates the system of which photography and film are ranked or valued in society. The ranking of images reflects the ranking of class society, and the parameters that define perfection or quality are influenced by societal structures that turn art into a commodity. This article dissects whether or not art should be valued this way or not, and if not then what other way should art be valued.

[jeanmcrawford]

Reading and Response #1

The chapter "Time and Motion" by Terry Barrett defines, describes, and deconstructs the way time and motion are applied in art. Time is incorporated in several aspects of art, being actual or implied time, the time it takes for the viewer to see and comprehend art, and the time frame in which the piece is to exist. The application of motion in art can range from actual motion seen through performance art to implied motion via gestural lines in a two-dimensional piece, and movement can also imply the way the viewer's eye moves throughout the piece. The chapter analyzes artworks to show the multiplicity of meanings and emotions that are impacted due to the artistic choices made regarding time and motion. Films utilize time and chronology to construct a narrative and photographs can capture a moment in time while also implying motion. There are many other ways time and motion are used in art, and it makes me think that the main focus of the chapter is to emphasize time and motion as essential factors in art, and that the meaning of an artwork can change due to how time and motion are applied.

I roughly knew about recorded time and motion prior to this chapter, but I did not know how it can be manipulated in a way that impacts the meaning or the way it is perceived. For example, blurring images to create an illusion of motion, slowing down or speeding up certain elements of videos, or overall editing post production. This takeaway from the chapter helped me understand a deeper connection between time, motion, and art. I know now the ways I can manipulate time and motion in my art to convey specific meanings and achieve greater impacts. One thing I found interesting but couldn't visualize is the storyboarding of films, animations, narrative, etc. Storyboarding is a sequence of images representing the shots for a scene. So is storyboarding like a sketch book for films?

This piece is "Ice Pyramids in the Arctic Circle" by Andy Goldsworthy and the way it was described in the chapter was very impactful. The captured moment suggests that these pyramids are fragile, and over the duration of the piece the sculpture cannot be seen in its original form due to it melting or changing with the environment. The stronger forces of nature created the existence of this piece and determined the end, which reflects life. I like how the duration of the piece depended on nature and external changes throughout time, it makes the piece feel established yet temporary.

This piece, "Untitled 1998" by Gregory Crewdson is a fabrication of reality through sets, props, and lighting. The photographs mimics real time through the construction of the image and the manipulation of time and movement. I did not realize how much we trust photographs to be factual and that photographs produce realism, even though they can be manipulated as well. It was described that this form of photography questions our trust in the credibility of photographs, which is very interesting to consider.

"Arch of Hysteria" by Louise Bourgeois implies motion through the pose of the sculpture, and the naked male figure in this pose represents extreme distress and sexual vulnerability. It exposes the normalization of women's bodies being used to portray distress, hysteria, and sexual vulnerability by challenging the upheld image of men in society. This piece critiques gender in a way that is visually effective and to destabilize the viewer's notions of gender.

Regarding photographs, there are theories and debates on what gives a photograph value. Photographs are associated with realism due to their general acceptance as a credible source, but it is known that photographs can be manipulated to create different realities. This 'truth value' to photographs is debated over. Also, value is assigned to photographs based on quality or resolution. The parameters that define poor images is influenced by the capitalization of art, the commercialization of cinema, and the strive for mass consumption. These theories try to understand the societal factors that determine the value of photographs, and if there should be any value imposed onto photos.

[jeanmcrawford]

Ai Weiwei Never Sorry

I believe there is a significant relationship between art and activism. The film "Ai Weiwei Never Sorry" highlighted moments of Ai Weiwei's art activism through his documentaries, photographs, performances, exhibits, and social media presence. It showcased the importance of communication in all forms of media and the power of exposure. Ai Weiwei challenged the secrecy and facade of Chinese authorities by exposing corruption, injustice, and violence through documenting his and other's experiences with these institutions. The film told Ai Weiwei's story up until 2011, it gave insight on his projects like the sunflower seeds, releasing and re-releasing the names of the student victims from the earthquake, and the performance video "Fuck you, motherland." It also showed the risk and weight of Ai Weiwei's work through his detaining by Beijing government officials. This film stressed that if it needs to be said, it should be. What I learned about the international art world from this film is that art can transcend borders and act as a global form of communication. Art is tied to historical understandings and politics, and internationally art is a way to communicate experiences, injustices, and the truth. My belief is that art has always and will continue to be something that challenges oppressive institutions while constructing the progression of society. Similar to how Ai Weiwei's art was for the betterment of his country and the people in it, for progress not an apology. Ai Weiwei is able to communicate this with several forms of media that can be consumed by all. 3D sculptures made of wood, backpacks, or ceramics, short films and documentaries, photography and photos posted to Twitter, and through live performance art. This film showed me the power and potential of 4D art, and I take inspiration from Ai Weiwei in respect to my connection of art and gender, women, and sexuality studies.