#reading response 2

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Time Based Media "Dream Video".m4v

[oneyscribbles-blog]

Reading and Response 2

Chapter 6

Time and motion are critical pieces to any piece that involves video or performance art. Different mediums require different methods to create compelling artwork that will be enjoyed by the viewer. I really enjoyed the example of Laurie Anderson and her ice skates. It makes me wonder just how much research she did to find out how fast or slow the ice would melt beneath her feet. As well as plan out how many songs and at which tempo to play them. It seems that she was fully engrossed within her work and made it something that was important to her. This idea of a realtime art piece is fascinating but even more so is when you look closely at “timelapse” methods of capturing art. For instance in the piece mentioned in the book “Fashionably Late For The Relationship”, the performer takes seven hours to drink a glass of wine. But the real people around her moved at normal speed. Quicken the pace of the footage and she moves in real-time while everyone around her is a blur. Time and motion, when executed correctly and in direct correlation to artwork can go hand in hand with creating something fascinating. 

Vanishing and Becoming

Vanishing and Becoming is an interesting recounting of the history of projection. Admittedly it was hard to understand in places, but that could be related to the late hour in which I decided to read it. Going back to even the first cave paintings the author describes how even before the invention of drawing, the art of projection was already present. Our ancestors probably danced around the fire and saw their shadows dancing accordingly, after which they decided to mark their walls recounting the events that took place. The Buddha story was quite interesting. It suggests that even though the Buddha was too bright to see with the naked eye, this light could be negated by a simple reflected surface. Projection art was not limited to just art galleries though. Technically television and films are different forms of projection art that have been admired by the general public for decades. I enjoyed seeing the differences between the first artists and modern visual arts as projection techniques improved and evolved. The author alludes to a time where we may all be under surveillance, and this is food for thought because currently whether we like it or not we are all in fact under surveillance in one form or another. Maybe not to the extent that is mentioned, but nonetheless true. 

[digitalstudiospring19]

A dystopian performance for drones

“a dumb drone is even more dangerous than a smart drone.”

This reading really intrigued me. I think instead of being an article about human’s control over technology, to me it more communicated human’s fear of technology. I think we are all have a sort of weary excitement over technology’s possibilities. I, personally, am super excited about all new technological advancements. But in the back of my mind theres always a cautious feeling of fear over what the total potentials of technology are. 

I think this drone demonstration speaks to human’s silent desire to feel like they are still controlling the technology, like drones, instead of feeling like they are controlling us. Being able to laugh about a drone being “dumb” is oddly comforting.

[digitalstudiospring19]

I found Morehshin Allahyari’s work to be extremely interesting, as I would never have thought to use 3D modeling to express feminist thoughts. The concept of “Re-Figuring” was something that I had not heard of before. In She Who Sees the Unknown, Allahyari reimagines the past and uses queerness and monstrosity to show the role of gender in mythology. The 3D Additivist Cookbook and Manifesto allow for collaboration and prompt people to think about how we can change the world if we don’t change ourselves. Allahyari places a strong emphasis on storytelling, and through a lot of her works, she addresses the power hierarchy in society and strives to jar the reader and provoke thought.

[digitalstudiospring19]

The poem, All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace, from Robert Brautigan, gives light on a reality, that is actually approaching closer and closer. This reality involves the merging of nature, with technology. In the photo I have included in this post, one will actually see a palm tree, that is, instead, a router. I have seen these devices come to fruition, in my hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. As the borders grow thinner between natural, and man-made, questions about the preservation of aesthetics of nature must be coming up. I personally believe that nature must be preserved, not just to maintain its aesthetics, but to protect it. Nature does so much for us, and it is important we are able to do the same in return.

[studioart100spring19]

Rebecca Belmore – KWE

​Rebecca Belmore’s KWE explores a variety of intriguing mediums to produce and present her art in interesting forms. Belmore attempts to deconstruct the rigid barriers between art and colonization. She uses the term KWE for her art, which means ‘woman’ in the indigenous language of Anishinaabe and also correlates to respect. Belmore performs her art to symbolize the cultural effects of colonization on indigenous tribes throughout the course of history. Within all the mediums she uses, Belmore produces one single piece, which can have multiple meanings and interpretations to intrigue the viewer. Belmore uses mediums and human positions that are potentially physically and mentally painful to enhance and recreate the suffering that indigenous people felt during colonization and continue to experience in our capitalistic society. In the piece Mixed Blessing (2011), Belmore depicts an indigenous women sitting on the floor bent over in an uncomfortable position surrounded by a thick entanglement of dark hair. In many indigenous cultures, hair has spiritual connotations associated with it. This sculpture intrigues me because it demonstrated the pain indigenous people felt and it’s also is relatable to the cultural traditions that they were stripped of.

Through Belmore’s art she is able to portray the injustices that indigenous tribes have been confronted with in Canada. Belmore is currently an Anishinaabe multi-disciplinary and lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, which is why the art she creates is personally relevant and important to her. Indigenous tribes in Canada have been culturally and politically exiled since the beginning of colonization, so through her art she’s attempting to destigmatize and resolve the apparent discrimination indigenous people are subject to. Through her art she is able to display resistance and portray a powerful image to show that she will not back down or comply to unfair victimization.

​From a viewer’s standpoint, I think that Belmore’s art is inspiring and intrigues me to learn more about the situation. Throughout her complex works she is telling a different story to convey the various events that have occurred and have hindered the lives of indigenous people. I am intrigued with her piece Artist (2014), it depicts a person dresse in orange construction clothing with an X on the back, standing in front of a large wall covered with an orange tarp. The construction cothing suggests how indigenous people must conform to the norms of society. The orange tarp and orange outfit suggest that indigenous people are forced to merge with the rest of society, transform to fit colonial culture and leave their traditions in the past. Overall, Belmore has created numerous thought provoking pieces that attempt to resist the forces of colonization and shed light on the injustices native people continue to face. She creates her art to initiate productive reactions and start conversations to eliminate discrimination against indigenous people.

[studioart100spring19]

Maya Lin- The Sixth Extinction

archiving peoples memories of past environmental conditions for future generations

environmental loses and the Earth's maladies, which are diseases or ailments. Something I hadn't thought about before is that there are no customs to commemorate extinctions of species, presumably because they are not frequently documented or payed attention to in popular media. This is exactly what Lin hopes to remedy in her work by using the mediums of "historic evidence, scientific facts and personal memories presented as sculptures, books and interactive websites" that "utilize sound, text and image" which are all accessible not just in art museums and science institutions but as an application for laptops and portable media. Her 2010 Times Square Video Installation from her annual What is Missing Project work aims to both educates and strike fear and a sense of urgency in the public as the images projected show species in their current distressing situations. One video shows a humpback whale and her baby swimming in circles because theyre unable to hear and see. The video is described as being filmed up close so that the viewer experiences what these sea animals do each day. The notion of "we dont know what was missing if we have forgotten what was there" is echoed here as while this is such a largely important part of sea life, I did not know this type of noise pollution existed and threatened sea creatures existence. Lin uses aesthetic video techniques like this to get her point across. Lin hopes that her work will ask guiding questions of her audience so that it is known that we can take steps not to learn to commemorate but to perhaps not have to. 

[digitalstudiospring19]

Revolution OS

Even before watching the documentary, I heard of terms like operating system, open source, copyleft, Linux and things like that but by watching this documentary, I was able to clarify those terms and think about it. Ideas that Richard Stallman has was interesting. It was a bit different from what I used to learn and think about. For example, he said that the password is not for the security but for administrators to control and dominate. All his actions' ultimate purpose was to make society a better place and it can be seen a little bit idealistic. The first thing that I think of distributing software for free is similar to Bill Gate's letter that was mentioned in the documentary. If people distribute software for free, they will not be motivated enough to make really good software and even though they were motivated with subversive playful cleverness, they will lack time because they have to other work to make their living. However, at the same time, Linus not regretting about releasing the software free even while watching Linux making a significant amount of money which he is not the core of its profit structure made me see some possibility of free software. At near the end of the documentary, Stallman just mentioned that people can make profits with free software but he did not mention specific ways or examples. It would have been better if there were more detailed explanations with it. In that sense, the open source movement was more appealed than the free software movement. It would be unrealistic to have all the software for free. To see how the business structure that is all about making money is related to open source that the concept is not really about making money was interesting. The name 'open source' itself was also made to make it more buyable to venture capitalists. Maybe it is a natural process for any kind of concept to find its place in a market to survive in the modern capitalist society.