Cinema Verite

I recently completed my cinema verite project. For this particular project I went to Winco Foods and took many shots of isles, getting close ups on food, and also rearranging a few items in the store. I wanted to create something unusual or out of the ordinary keeping the changes subtle but it made the mood of the video different by doing so. There were no people or moving objects in the film which also creates a different mood of isolation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DspAw9DPp7o

New Media in Art Chapters Intro-1

Intro

 A piece that interested me was on page 16 of Marcel Duchamp's "Nude Descending a Staircase". I remember this image being shown in my 6th grade art class except the image was in a goldish, bronze filter. This piece shown movement and chaos all of which make this piece beautiful and I would like to attempt creating something like this which represents motion. Another piece that I've seen before is Robert Rauschenberg's "Bed" on page 23. This piece was shown in my Fine Arts 101 class in Pullman and it was also displayed in color whereas the one in this textbook is in black and white. The colors are so beautiful and compare from the top piece to the bottom even though the patterns are from two completely different worlds.

Chapter 1

I really enjoyed Nam June Paik's "Conerto for TV, Cello and Videotape" on page 49. This is because the tv's are displaying hte same image everywhere. Also because the big image is a robot or human like figure made out of technology, specifically tv's. I like the idea of bringing in technology and art together which is why I am so passionate about being in DTC. This piece definitelly has a lot to look at whether it be symmetry or chaos, there is also order.

Unmasked: Call for Art Exhibition

Yesterday I got an email inviting WSU students and staff to a public art exhibit here on campus and also being encouraged to submit works of art of any medium that would fall into the category of socio-political structures. I immediately felt the need to participate in this event and started brainstorming what pieces of art I had or can create for the exhibit. I finally came up with three ideas that would represent domestic violence. I decided to choose this topic because it is a hidden danger that many can't see, it can ruin a person's life mentally, and it can be difficult to escape. I feel as if the topic isn't exposed enough and I'd like to show it with my artwork. I have always enjoyed drawing and have been for as long as I can remember. Since I have been busy with school, this is a great opportunity to draw because it has been a while since I've done so. I will post the completed works on here as soon as I'm done.

The Photograph as Contemporary Art Chapters 7-8

Revived and Remade

I enjoyed this chapter because I feel like the photos had a lot of style to them. There are different types of cultures being presented from all over the world and I think it's interesting to see how photographers show their idea of beauty and how they differ from different photographers and different era's as well. I really enjoyed Joachim Schmid's No. 460, Rio de Janeiro on p. 212. The subject is lying on the floor with little clothing on, possibly posing. The photograph was actually found by Joachim either lost or thrown away on the streets, the photograph is cut up into four pieces. The personal life of this woman and whoever originally took the photo is unknown but we can assume the subject being deleted from someones life.

Physical and Material

This chapter focuses on actual objects however they give a digital or unrealistic feel to them. I like how creative these photo's are. It feels as if the objects or subjects are a piece of art and they're painted on the canvas. I like how some of these photo's did use Photoshop or some sort of photo editor to make their photo's look unrealistic. It adds something new to the book and I personally enjoyed it because it goes back to the technology aspect of things and ties into what we are doing now which is using Photoshop in the three photos we took to create a composite.

The Photograph as Contemporary Art Chapters 5-6

Intimate Life

This section is very personal and its essential photo's of a persons private life. These photo's aren't shown in a family photo-book or at a social gathering. These photo's for the most part are story-telling and the viewer can make various assumptions or ideas because the subjects have expressions and the way the subjects are positioned as well as the background elements all play a role in what is happening or could be happening. All of these photo's feel as if it had taken a part of someones life and displayed it to the entire world. The photo's are like I said very personal and I wonder where these people are at now, what they're going through, and get to know their lives. However all we can see is a photo of a single moment in the subject's life.

Moments in History

This chapter talks about photographs that were a part of history. History can mean anything in the past but these photos are a reflection of something that happened in the past whether it is a time of war or Thai and Eastern European fruit pickers working in northern Sweden. These photo's aren't too focused on the subject but rather the place in time things were happening.

The Photograph as Contemporary Art Chapters 3-4

Deadpan

What I first noticed about chapter three is that these photographs are large in scale and very serious. The landscapes and industrial sites were not exactly the ones on a calendar or wallpaper. These images weren't depressing either, they were just kind of there at a large scale. In a sense these images are very powerful and have a lot of emotion to them, they just aren't seen or meant to be seen.

Something and Nothing

As the title puts it, these are everyday objects that are in reality something and part of our lives, however they may be so small to us humans that they are often times overlooked. The photographs of the everyday objects seem almost as if they will come to life. It's as if the objects have personalities. The Globe by Bolande on p. 122 is a globe "looking" out the window, the sunshine hitting it perfectly as if it is enjoying a nice Tuesday sunset evening. The globe almost looks as if it is going to pull out an arm and enjoy a hot cup of coffee. Jeff Wall's Diagonal Composition no.3 shows a very dirty mop next to a dirty mop bucket. The way the mop's position is placed is unique. It is as if the mop is tired and restless maybe even depressed like something from a Swifter commercial. I find it interesting how us humans can take images like these and relate it to something else, or to even bring more meaning to everyday objects that we don't hold much importance for until they are gone.

The Photograph as Contemporary Art Chapters 1-2

If This is Art

Overall this section was enjoyable to read because it shows a form of art that many are not familiar with. In fact, the entire chapter can refer back to Stieglitz photo taken of Duchamp's urinal fountain. Duchamp claimed that "art could be anything the artist designated it to be" (p.22). With that being said, many of these photographs can confuse us or make us wonder what exactly is going on. However, I think that is the main point. These photographs are there to create different ideas in our head, to make us wonder, to show either a reality or illusion.

Once Upon a Time

This chapter focuses on telling a story. This type of photography is more structured. Everything makes somewhat of sense in the images and there is no absurdities. You can tell the photographers took time to compose these images and had a specific idea that they wanted to aim for. There is a sense of balance in these photos. Most photos are of everyday life such as a Chevron gas station but the fact there aren't any cars or that there aren't any people make it clean. Not to mention the Chevron gas station is at a certain angle that gives it a whole feeling (p. 72). Anyone could take these images and tell many stories from it, that is the true uniqueness of these photos.

Switched Majors (CptS to DTC)

Ever since I graduated high school I was set out to be a computer programmer and work for Microsoft. I am currently a sophomore here at WSU and I came to realize that programming is not for me at all. I managed to pass all the computer science courses I took and  I even enjoyed creating games at the Pullman campus but what I enjoy more is being hands on, creating, brainstorming, and visually learning. I'm a visual learner and it can be quite hard for me to understand certain concepts or ideas when coding. I craved my drawing pad, I wanted to paint and I wanted to create something for the world to see. I wanted to make art. Throughout my high school career I was well-known to have a passion for art and everyone lectured me to seriously consider something that would match my personality. After taking a few fine art courses I was ready to leave my computer science major for a DTC major. Currently I am taking FA 332, FA 333, and DTC 355. So far, it is much more enjoyable to me and there is no stress. I can feel it and can tell myself that I am actually doing something that genuinely makes me happy. I have heard many stories of people who go on their whole life studying something that isn't right for them either because they "think" they're studying the right subject, their forced to by their own parents, or because it is a path that will guarantee a wealthy job in the long run. Whatever the case may be, sometimes its not about the money, sometimes we can't always let someone control us, sometimes we have to know our own weaknesses. As much as I felt unintelligent for not feeling this passion for computer science, I commend the ones that do. All in all I learned what I truly wanted and that it's okay to not be good at something. We are only human and we should aim towards happiness.

Just watched the movie "Jobs"

I recently watched the film Jobs, it is based on the life of Steve Jobs. The focus was on the events Jobs went through and how he came to be famous. The actual work Steve Jobs completed wasn't really shown, just assumed. In fact, the film did not show much of how hard Jobs worked, the character portrayed, even quoted by one of his businessmen, was that he was a child in a candy shop who dreams quite wildly. Steve Jobs, as shown in the movie, was a man who did not take the time to know what others wanted, extremely demanding in everything he wanted and could not take no for an answer, and overall unfriendly towards people.

Now, with that being said, the same parts of the film that I did not like, are the same reasons why I enjoyed the film. Job's personality was not what I expected but it was the reality that made it all clear to me. No one is perfect, decisions need to be made, and when it comes to business you simply cannot please everyone and have to make sacrifices. It is just how the world works especially in business. I once heard that "The people want justice but the people in business want only profit". In the beginning of the film, Jobs is cool and calm, enjoying time in India, he is a hippy. The personality dramatically changes after he comes up with the idea of Apple. It is kind of funny because the dynamics of the first Apple was not even designed by Jobs. Jobs wanted to make money, he is more interested in what the people want and has others do the work of creating what needs to be done. I'm sure Steve Jobs has more knowledge than most people on computer hardware and software but from what was displayed in the film, he was more of the leader who told people what to do so that he could rise above.

Jobs had tons of money and nice cars. But he was not at peace. The man was so caught up in Apple that he made it his entire life, it was only until he was replaced from the CEO position that he finally met his own daughter he refused to see, and to finally come back to the realities of his life. For a while I strongly disliked the portrayal of Steve Jobs because he was so caught up and that the money he was making didn't even mean anything.We are only human and when something comes along that we really want and have a passion for, we may go crazy. Jobs was a happy man who got a little crazy but eventually found his ground.