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Studio Statement

Meta- Reflection

25.10.12

The above quote is a fairly fitting one to describe the sentiment of this review . Though inherent connotation of laziness insults my ego to some degree. My BCT experience for 2012 has indeed embraced the journey motif.

I began the year ecstatic at having found a place in the tertiary system in which I fit. I poignantly remember the fact that James introduced the programme with an excerpt of a TED talk by Sir Ken Robinson. An enthused "Hallelujah! " is still my response to this occurence.

However, complexity /complacency / mediocrity /perfectionism are rather persistent plagues of the psyche and I believe I and my practice have fallen victim to these and of course their most troublesome off spring (Time management , commitment ,frustration, analysis,burn out and action) rather persistently through the course of this year.

To be honest I think i completely underestimated the magnitude of what it takes to become a "Creative Practitioner" . Conceptually the prospect excited me and through-out the year I have grown rather fond of the title its inherent ambiguity. Yet the practical has been an entirely different situation.

Commitment and time management have been my challenges here.

The BCT offers an amazing opportunity to take responsibility for and to authenticate ones own learning. You don't do it , You are it. Conceptually I was enthralled , Practically I was not. In all honesty I have never applied much commitment to my academic pursuits yet I have always achieved highly. Imagine the petulant child in me's disgust at the reality of BCT life. Its great being challenged to commit to an authentic learning opportunity ,but the practical reality of commitment to creative practice is far beyond what I envisioned .

I quite enjoyed the discreet nature and subtlety with which both James and Kim pointed out that I was a gifted bull shitter during my final presentation last semester . Similarly Maggies comments on my 'Who am I' video were suitably satirically amusing.

Concurrently I was also inspired by James's challenge to me :"Just imagine if you can align your technical knowledge/skills with your conceptual depth !". In a Barney-esque type manner the image ,the holy grail of the professional creative practitioner, glimmered before me in all its glory.

This image though ,I must admit it seems a mirage at times, still glimmers before me. Perhaps brighter now than ever with another semester's mileage under my belt. But the petulant child in me is a procrastinator of admirable prowess , abominably lazy and frankly rather pissed off. Thankfully, James continues to chase it with a stick .

Somewhere in my mind I like to categorize studying and therefore BCT along with highly thrilling tasks such as extracting the mold from the shower drain. This doesn't at all reflect my true opinion/true nature of the program me but alas . . . I am not sure where this negative attitude towards formalized education stems from . However, let me assure you it is not an easy psychosis to overcome.

Second Semester has been a time of growth and experimentation for me. It hit me a mere few days ago that I have been resolving ALL year to indulge in a healthier relationship with time management and commitment . ALL year. I am shocked. I like to think I am productive.

That said I have made some significant advances in my practice and learning. Two examples which I am proud of and have found to greatly enhance my practice are :

- Keeping an authentic working visual diary

- Changing my relationship with the studio space

In terms of keeping an authentic visual diary, I was greatly inspired by Kim's use of the medium and have always longed to produce journal embedded with doodling prowess. I also appreciated the need for an authentic journaling process in terms of cohesion in final project outcomes.

The journal was a key example of overcoming my mental barriers to education. I have been challenging myself to synthesize my idea of my self as a creative practitioner with my idea of myself as a whole. This helped me to break down the barrier between my creative practice and BCT practice. My new journalling habits challenged me to traverse the divide between all the art supplies and project ideas I have sitting on the back burner in carefully squirreled away journals ,dubbed either to precious or too personal for inclusion in everyday life/BCT practice. This has allowed me to achieve seamless journalling process . A process which I am really enjoying and finding exceedingly helpful in my practice. Just today when other class mates were scurrying around aiming to fabricate an "authentic"journal process , I was sitting pretty with my rather abundant scribings and scribblings. Better yet, I realized that I had not even been aware I was putting significant effort into my journal all along. It is now a part of my practice/process. Where I go my journal goes.

As another facet of synthesizing my idea of my self as a creative practitioner with my idea of myself as a whole. I realized I needed to change my relationship with our studio space. Yes it is VERY collaborative , YES it is small and NO, I do not like being privy to discussions detailing the toilet habits of certain individuals. But there comes a time to simply get over it and commit to making a space work for you. Admittedly I have found the studio space incredibly taxing all year ,so this was no mean feat. I find myself exhausted by the lack of permanence ,noise pollution,social schematics and the general state of distraction that absorbs our studio habit. Viva 2013!However authentic creative practice demands studio engagement , so for the Sound project I challenged myself to engage with the space.

I set up a booth ,taking a lead from Beau and the 2nd/3rd years . Personalising/claiming a space was a greatly generative and empowering . It greatly aided me in collage production and sound explorations.

To conclude, it is truly an honor to be engaged in an authentic learning process.

I pray that I remain mindful of this both now and in the future.

I commit to developing myself further as a creative practitioner.

Thank you

Sarah Loggie

25 . 10 .12

#Studio Statement #Meta-Reflection

Project 3 Uncanny

Reflective Statement

Terra-tology

Sitting here at 12:46 am and in dire need of some match sticks with which to propagate my eyelids, I am attempting to gaze through the fog of my uncanny infiltrated consciousness and achieve some vaguely cohesive meta-reflective coherence.

I have very much been enthused by the Uncanny Brief throughout its duration.

The combination of group roles, the relationship between the film and exhibition components and the heavy emphasis on making within this project provided for a valuable and enticing learning scape.

Personally my practice benefitted from a greater degree of commitment on my part. As well as the opportunity to work within a role ,as modeling artist, which facilitated my fascination with thinking through making and desire for/ use of play as a key element of creative process.

In-terms of commitment I have been lucky enough that my parents have kindly subsidized my living costs for these final few weeks of uni. Alleviating the extra stress and time pressure of part time work has done wonders for my mental well-being and accordingly my studio practice /work habits. Also I challenged myself ,albeit after ample prompting from James and my Mother, ( It is rather amusing/terrifying how these two individuals roles in my life seem to overlap at points.) to really give my all to this brief .It was my intention to do my best and to invest 100% effort in my commitment to the creative process. I feel I have made a positive indent in my somewhat tumultuous relationship with the the areas of commitment and time management . The act of giving myself/making more time for my BCT commitments has been enlightening in terms of furthering my practical understanding of the level of commitment required. I am proud of my efforts to improve my commitment in this brief and am equally grateful for the enhanced learning opportunities I have experienced as a result of greater input.

With regard to group work, our team was a great one. An inspired trio of 3 practitioners well equipped for achieving success in our individual areas whole working as a cohesive unit. The cohesive and authentic use of process we achieved has been a very fulfilling experience. We all commented on the seamless nature with which we got things done and were able to reflect on just how much we had learned during the course of the year . We were also surprised to note as to just how many times we had already ended up working together during the course of the year. We amazed ourselves with the degree to which we were able to commit to use of and faith in an organic process based approach.

All outputs have been generated throughly in process and in accordance with our typically strong conceptual base.

I enjoyed our team dynamic thoroughly , working with Siyu ,who is a gifted mechanical thinker with commitment to the process driven approach, and Conal ,who operates from a similar level of conceptual depth to myself, is satisfying .

Finally in analyzing our project outcome, I am very proud of the way we resolved our conceptual aims while achieving cohesive film ,creature and exhibition elements. The fact that we were all confident in our particular roles facilitated a relatively stress-free cohesion/development of elements involved. Our particular challenges stemmed from our desire to fulfill the brief requirements in a fairly avant grade'/ abstract manner. As well as from our tendency to push the tensions in the brief to a point of confusion. The timing structure of the brief was also challenging in terms of collaborative process as we all needed to work concurrently when in some situations it felt more natural to work in a consecutive manner.

Overall I feel we managed the challenges posed efficiently and achieved a conceptually rich process driven outcome . I am proud of the degree of conceptual cohesion and professionalism we achieved.

#reflective #uncanny valley #Project 3

Project 3 Uncanny

Conceptual Statement

Terra-tology / Un-D.T.

In exploring the uncanny valley and associated tensions between belief /disbelief our animatronic creature has encapsulated the two over-arching concepts of Terra-tology and Un -D.T. .

The sense of ambiguity and juxtaposition inherent in the linguistic structure of the terms serve our project well . We have remained committed to our initial fascinations with hybridity,juxtaposition, dissociation,fragmentation and a sense of the perverse or macabre.

Terra- tology is a term we devised when seeking to name our final product.

Terra-tology is in essence word play, with the concepts of terra,a latin source word for Earth ,and Teratology ,which regards the study of abnormalities of physiological development.

I feel this term encompasses the conceptual identity of our project successfully. This project has been highly process led with the final form existing as a collage of experimental drawing techniques. These experimental drawing techniques were conducted within the realm of tissue mimicry ,with special regard to elements of internal organs/life processes. A sense of exposition adorns the work.

The term Un-DT or Undifferentiated tissue has been also been key to the progression of our work .the term Un-DT or Undifferentiated tissue has been key to the progression of our work .Un-DT is a concept coined by american novelist William S Burroughs in his novel, Naked Lunch. Burroughs describes this as a condition whereby the body and it’s flesh liquefies and transforms into a new form.

Un-DT is a concept coined by american novelist William S Burroughs in his novel Naked Lunch. A concept which has been visually explored by Australian artist Ian Haig in his work Something (2011). Both Haig and Burroughs have been integral influences to this work.

References :

Ian Haig. (n.d.). Ian Haig. Retrieved October 24, 2012, from http://www.ianhaig.net/index.php?section=project&name=install&num=2&pic=6

Teratology - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (n.d.).Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Retrieved October 24, 2012, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/teratology

#Conceptual Statement #Project 3

Back Story

There is an ocean between us. A regular current, separated by gasps and sighs; the shallow lap of a thoughtless breath. Thoughts seem to ebb and flow; cough up the flotsam and jetsam, yellow and viscous. Ceaseless, regular. This is life. Well oiled machines until a burst, a snap, a tear in the fabric; at the seams. And then what?

Everything is turned inside out. What was once quite human is now on its way to something else. The passage of meaty hubris - life goes on, innards spewing forth, a victorious declaration of organic treachery. And what of the interior? The landscape below which threads and pulses; implacable, unhurried, apropos nothing.

Here, the reminder of what was festering inside, beneath the boredom, the panic; the pace of the day. Beautiful and horrific. This is where the soul is kept, rising in mutiny against rigour; the incessant thump, a ripe pustule fit to burst, before finally drying and flaking.

It was the inside of the mind, winding up. A fountain of blood that has at last ceased to flow. A waxy coating, plastic life. The consistency seems about right for death. Living to satiety, while time allows. But it’s always keeping track, losing stamina and patience until the music fades and the skin greys.

A medium of perception, undulating beneath waves of experience and memory, swirling with each breath until the last. Blood-heavy from the richness of breath, flesh kibbles at the touch. Every body has a light that consumes and flickers.

#backstory #Uncanny #project 3

Plot Summary

The moments that follow. The fall and decay, faltering breath, the fragility of a moment written on the body. The response this triggers, framed over the motion of a single intake and exhalation.

Falling

Waxy contours descend; collapse into exhalation. Music presents; winds down. A mechorganic break; failing chronology, languid in sound and form. Slow. Laboured on the out. Expelled with finality. The burden released in quick succession.

Traversing

Topography. Recreating spaces; cavities; bodies; stretches; channels; shelves. Flexing, stretching. Loose skin, overhanging. Tissuescaping. Traversing a relationship. Scrutinise the landscape of the body; our understanding of the tangible and inherent curiosity. Both lovely and grotesque. Tenderly repulsed.

The uncanny emerges. Associations with motion and form, emulating action and growth. Oozing, foaming, flaking, moist. Wet, heavy, glazed, sliding. Decipher the properties of sensation. Wrinkled, crusting, weeping.

Rising

Familiarity. Gentle recognition. The sense of responsiveness. An understanding of the tangible and our material experiences through the partial-life; questions the wholeness of the body, its processes, its functions-

…

The condition revealed through compositional emphasis. Textures, tessellation, density of colour. On the margins of subjectivity, the image has a life of its own. The body; its motion; its makeup.

Deconstructed identity, no sense of totality, leading to the process of active viewing. Traversing this landscape on the border of life and decay; a sense of passage. The lens, more caress than scalpel.

#plot summary #uncanny #project 3

Project 3 Uncanny

Sausage Diaries

Our concept was then pushed further when Conal suggested an alternative to the Sausage idea. As he mentioned on his blog the BCT project structure at time heavily relies on a solid plan B. I was grateful for the back up plan / contingent strategic direction in light of the dilemmas we were having around conceptualizing the issue of precedent. I found that it was a useful exercise to see our concepts envisioned in a different form. I was grateful that Conal was prepared to brainstorm divergent concepts even though we were initially rather set on the sausage idea. I have noticed I am rather quick to find a them concept I enjoy and push it through the process hoops to resolution. This experience enlightened me to the fact that perhaps it is possible to incorporate more variety in my thinking process at this stage of production.

The alternative idea we investigated was that of the emaciated teddy bear. Conal had come up with this concept after being inspired by the following logo and conceptualizing the way on which we dissociate pleasantries with the sometimes harsh realities of life.

It seems our central concept is tied to juxtaposition ,a sense of innocence perverted and the process of dissociation/fracturing of societal norms.

After discussing our two concepts as a group we caught up with Pritika to gain an outside perspective on our process. I find Pritika to be a really valuable member of the teaching staff , her communication skills and the fact that she is still studying herself enables her to facilitate important shifts in our process led thinking.

In this instance Pritika empowered us to make a decision about the direction our concept would take . She pointed out that she felt the bear may be close to the domain of campaigning for aid in the 3rd world as well as highlighting the fact that a Teddy Bear as a character incorporates a multiplicity of potential readings for an audience .

She also helped us to overcome the precedent debacle as she suggested that Banksy's works added a conceptual depth to the work. While also providing a frame of reference from which to work.She also pointed out that our brief demanded rather a different context to the work of Banksy.

Her viewing of the Sausage idea as a very conceptually current work and interest in its ability to achieve aspects of the uncanny valley through use of a simple form.ultimately empowered us to see that the sausage idea was indeed worth pursuing .

At this point it is our intent to create :

An animatronic sausage which deals with the Uncanny Valley through means of exploring concepts regarding juxtaposition ,a sense of innocence perverted and the process of dissociation/fracturing of societal norms.

It is our intention to develop aspects such as a backstory for this character and to collate contextual research in the form of a Prezi Presentation to pitch to Maggie on Friday.The contextual tensions in the brief are also something I feel will be beneficial to think through with Maggie. The tension between the film and exhibition elements is becoming rather significant.

#Sausage #Uncanny #documentation #Project 3 #statement of intent

Character Profile

Shallow now

Crackle in the chest

With each breath

Hills rise and fall,

Salt and iron,

On the tongue

My own chest

Still ragged,

Long claws rake

The stillness

Tightens, greys,

Falls

The quiver, the tingle

It catches in the throat

And expands along its path

My breath branches

Along a chain of mountains, jagged

Graceful and unhurried, meanders

Pools in the belly

Pulse

It travels through me

Each thought alights

And takes hold of the mind

Wrinkles devour

The old rush

Conscious of my anchor

Every square inch

Rushes over

Fills me up

Breathe in joy;

Sorrow;

Memory;

Each moment

I remember catching my breath,

And how I spoke of the cold without saying a word

The same breath, over and over

Corrosive, wearing

Rank and bitter

Dark flakes

Crust on the lips

Terribly aware,

Of each breath

A deep cavity

Opens

And collapses

Tension and rhythm

Sixteen or so at rest

Lower near death

Ascending and descending

An ocean to drink from

The current

Surges upwards to meet

The medium,

The highest bliss

Push it out,

Till there’s nothing left

一吸

一呼

掙扎著撲抓

震顫的觸角

視覺的衝擊

蠕動著對生命的探索

對新生的渴望

#character profile #Uncanny

Character Sketches

#documentation #uncanny

Notational Story Board

We decided to do our final story board in a similar style to the notational scores we did during the sound project

#story board

http://pinterest.com/sarahloggie/uncanny-valley/

http://www.ianhaig.net/index.php?section=project&name=install&num=2&pic=6

Ian Haig an Australian artist provided a useful model.

Project 3

Uncanny

Grinding on up

Our next developments situated around the idea of a meat grinder type appliance. Involving a meat tentacle like animatronic. We wanted to keep our conceptual themes consistent yet there were some discrepancies as to which was the most effect form to act as a vessel to convey our concepts. key words such as Amorphous and Repetition began to appear frequently in our notes. At this point we were getting increasingly abstracted in terms of our thoughts on character as a concept.

#documentation #Project 3 #Uncanny

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