Maddy Landrey

[mglandrey]

In this weeks lecture we discussed chapter 5 from the textbook. One of the major topics from this week that we talked about was Afghan girl and the affects that the image had on the world. This image fell into so many categories that we talked about in class and I was very intrigued to keep learning more. Afghan girl is a famous image by journalist Steve McCurry and was first published in Nat Geographic. We talked about how this image portrayed how “suffering is aestheticized” and was used for functions like stock photography, police lineup, identity cards, etc. We then discussed the 3 feminist takes on Sherman which were objectification and the male gaze under patriarchy, parody of female stereotypes in Hollywood films, and the male gaze both reinforced and destabilized. These all focus on “interaction between the male gaze” and masquerade (p.80). There are two aspects of female spectator ship that we discussed which were Sherman as a spectator of films and spectators who view Sherman’s work. Looking back in this weeks lecture, I am amazed at the impact the image of Afghan girl left on the world and how it continues to be shared and taught about all over!

*image from google

[mglandrey]

This weeks content discussed Globalization and how it is present in our lives. We started with going over time-space compression which is how acceleration of economic activities shrinks spacing and temporal distance. Diaspora is an ethnic community that exist in a state of being dispersed outside its country of origin. We then talked about the world image viewing the whole world (1972) and how it became an icon of the peace movement. This informed the growth of cyber culture and satellite technology transformed ways of seeing the world. It found it interesting that the world sees the news and things at different times. For instance, in class we talked about how 9/11 was viewed at different times across the world and everyone now has a different memory of what time of day they saw it. Sometimes we can forget that we do not all see things at the same time. Like New Years, the ball drops in NYC eastern time but others west still have to wait. This creates a unique relay of looking! Moving on, we discussed the difference between global television and film. Television is a transitional circulation where a series does not broadcast but is remade for different national and region context. For example, Americas got talent is a show played all over the world, but in other countries they will call it “Britain’s got Talent” or what ever country they are viewing it in. Most programs format originates in wealthy western countries and will adapt to the local cultures. Film will appear nationally but depends on global finance and marketing. In conclusion, I enjoyed the content from this weeks lecture and learning more about where tv and film originated from and how it alters around the world!

[mglandrey]

This weeks lecture focused on chapter 9: Scientific Looking, and I must say that this was an interesting chapter! I enjoyed diving into something new this week and learning about the different imaging technologies and how they have advanced over the years. One of the first topics we discussed in the introduction was the Boeing man which was one of the earliest computer renderings of dimensional human figures. This was made for tech social purposes, specifically to represent cockpits in airplanes. One of the topics I found interesting was the anatomical and surgical theater. We focused on da Vinci’s Vitruvius man which was one of the earliest drawings of a human as a universal signifier of nature in the universe. This slide caught my eye as I have seen this photo many times not only in school but also as art work. This piece was made for technical and artistic purposes and continues to be an iconic photo through out the world. Another topic I found interesting was the anatomy theaters that were used to educate and entertain people while they dissected and performed surgical procedures in criminals bodies. There was a fascination with the dead bodies as an association of morbidity with crime. We then talked about an image of a skinless pregnant woman laying in a strange pose. This is found at the Body Worlds Exhibit and has caused new ethical issues to raise such as “where do the bodies come from??”. One of the final topics that caught my attention during the lecture was the bodily interiors and biomedical personhood. This is various imaging systems that can provide interior views that support biomedical personhood such as X-rays, PET scans, and sonograms. After this weeks discussion, I know such more more about the different ways the human body is perceived and discovered. Even though it was an odd topic, I found it very interesting and crazy how some of these things are done!

*image from google

[mglandrey]

This week we discussed chapter 8- Still Life with Rhetoric by Gries. Specifically, we focused on the Obama Hope commodification and marketing. The iconic Obama Hope graphic was a remix to an original photo owned by AP. This quick edit blew up and soon had around 300 thousand printed and given away by the end of 2008 with a lawsuit that followed. There was no single cause for the rampant commodification, but some people really thought it was a smart campaign choice. The original picture said “progress” but was altered to “HOPE” per campaign. With this we discussed the attribution theory which is considered to be a smart campaign strategy. This was buying and donating money towards the campaign that then leads to you likely to vote. Some would say that this method was not economically motivated. There were also alternate hypothesis such as black bodies which were historical practices that started with slave trade which led to erasing human qualities. Then fetishization which was a circulation of reproduction such as people thinking that Obama would save the world and be some hero with magical qualities. My personal ah-ha moment during the lecture happened when we talked about “Obama zombie” which referred to the brainwashed people that actually believed he could save the world. Moving on from the hypothesis, we touched on the Obama construction that raised $25,000 for the Oregon food bank using the Hope campaign. Following, we discussed political art and satire and the common tropes such as the versions of Obama Hope with “failed policies” in place of HOPE on the graphic. Overall, I enjoyed this weeks lecture and getting to dive deeper into the Obama campaign that is so commonly known around America.

*image from google

[mglandrey]

This week we discussed chapter 8, Postmodernism: irony, parody, and pastiche. We focused on what the difference between modernity and postmodernity is then talked about post modernism designs. Modernity focuses on industrialization and modern capitalism, scientific and technological progress, and human rights and liberalism. On the other hand, postmodernity focuses on globalization, dangers of science and technology, surveillance and social control, and the crisis of faith in modern ideas. Separating these concepts and looking into their differences helped me better understand the two and their meaning. With those ideas comes skepticism, which we discussed about objective truth and grand narratives. Instead, postmodernism believes in relativism and fragmentation. Post modernism designs reject universal truth in favor of truth of loved experiences. It focuses on simulation and “non-places”. We now see postmodernism as a design choice in homes and many other places and an eclectic and colorful style typically with art used from the late 1970s. An example we talked about in class was the Chippendales cabinets that had a very specific design then which was used in building structures then later on used in the actual chippendales dancers logo. This “design” was transformed and used in several different things over time with perfectly describes post modernism design. I enjoyed learning about this during the lecture as the example really helped me understand what postmodernism design is and how it reflected in the real world. Following that, we discussed postmodern critique which is basically a contradiction of post modernism. Some examples from class include: organic/ mechanical, universal/ particular, good/ evil, original/ copy, and many more. Overall, I really enjoyed this weeks lecture and have a much better understanding of postmodernity. Going into this weeks P2P activity, I am excited to use the knowledge I have gained from this lecture to create a fun parody!

[mglandrey]

For this weeks P2P activity, I used my favorite show, Greys Anatomy as my remix. One of my favorite parts about this show is when the characters would “dance it out” when they had major issues or exciting events happen. I decided to mash together several scenes of the group “dancing it out” to the popular song, “I wanna dance with somebody” by Whitney Houston. My inspiration was the video we watched in class on Monday, but wanted to make it my own! I thought this was the perfect song and parody to do on this amazing show!

**clips are from YouTube, music is from tik tok**

[mglandrey]

For this weeks P2P activity, focusing on culture jamming, I created this parody graphic of amazons logo. Many people including myself are victims of amazons scams, whether it is their prices, the quality, or the item itself. While I do love Amazon, and will still continue to purchase from there, it is very frustrating to receive an item that is nothing like how it was on the app/ site. This graphic I made showing “SCAMazon” is my “protest” to this company as it emphasizes the word scam.

[mglandrey]

This week in class we discussed the topic of media. Media in everyday life, mass media, media practice, etc. I really enjoyed learning about the deeper meaning behind media and how it is present almost everywhere! One topic we discussed in class on Monday was media convergence. This is the coming together of previously separate media forms and industries through computing and digital technologies. I found this topic so interesting as we got into a class discussion about how cars have developed over the years with GPS, Bluetooth, etc. It is crazy to think of all the things around us that are constantly upgrading and developing. Like smartphones, which started as something we were only able to call and text off of, we can now use as navigation, music, streaming, and so much more. I found this topic to be very interesting and have seen so many examples of it just this week! Another topic we discussed was mass media. This is a form of communication reaching large audiences quickly. A great example of this is the news. It is on every single day with the latest stories and updates. This reaches a huge audience within a very short time. For this weeks p2p we are discussing examples of green, pink, and rainbow washing, which are terms I have never heard of until we talked about it in class. I am very glad I am now aware that many companies and brands actually do this to people, but also shocked when doing my research to see many of my favorite one’s involved. With a lot of content this week, I learned so much more about media and the expansion of it. I found this weeks content very interesting and enjoyed the discussions we had in class about media as well!

[mglandrey]

P2P #8

For this weeks P2P, I have chosen an image that represents image propaganda and irony. This war poster was made to represent the financial struggle the US faced during war and how we needed to call for help during this time. It is in a sense "ironic" because the image shows the Statue of Liberty making the call instead of an actual person, like the president. There is also representation where Lady liberty and representing the United States as a whole. Images like this one were created for several reasons. Many created them to influence others or persuade them a certain way. Others made them out of frustration or other emotional reasons. Some are factual and some are rumors but they were a key way to communicate during political times and are still created to this day.

[mglandrey]

This week we discussed the topic of visual technologies, reproduction, and the copy. Over the years, we have seen technology substantially develop in ways we may have never thought was possible. We can think back to a time not even too long ago, where half of the technological advances we have today were not even remotely in the picture. With each technological advancement, the way humans perceive little things to life itself, has also developed dramatically. Starting from photography in the late 1930s to the development of social media in the early 2000s, we have consistently changed the way we view the world through these technologies. To pin point one of the technologies developed somewhere in between those two, television has become one of the worlds most popular advancements. Many of us can agree that TV has changed the we think, perceive, and feel about certain things. Same thing with social media. There are countless apps that have been created over the years where we can share, post, and comment on peoples every day lives. It keeps us in touch and gives us the ability to see things that are happening all over the world. In conclusion, the world would be a much different place with out these technological advances and we can thank many of these technologies for the way we look at life every day!

Image found on google.

[mglandrey]

For this weeks P2P on naturalistic enthymeme, I chose to manually “put” something in the photograph that may change the visual argument and allow the viewers of the image to “fill in the blank”. As you can see the back door of my apartment was left open. This may cause viewers to ask a few questions like.. “did one of the roommates go outside and leave it open?” “were they just opening it for fresh air?” “Did someone break in?” And so forth. This image can be viewed in so many ways creating an “argument” as to how it is perceived. This simple image leaves space for the audience to create their own idea of why the door may have been open and assume weather or not this image is real or fake.

[mglandrey]

My meme not only discusses the High vs. Low Culture, but can also include the topic we discussed about Kitsch. This meme can represent the high vs. low culture because some people who are considered “high class” would not think twice about going to a thrift store to buy old, second hand clothing. On the other hand, people in the “lower class” probably find themselves shopping at thrift stores over the malls more often. Under the high vs. low culture umbrella, people find second hand objects or clothing to have a more meaningful value and this can be known as someone’s kitsch.