Reading Response #6: The Art of the Selfie Take 2

The reading by Sylvia Martin reiterated an idea that we discussed in the beginning of the semester: that video art is the most dependent upon modern technology discoveries than any other art form.  Painting, drawing, sculpting, and even dance can certainly change over time, but at a much slower pace than the current morphing of video art.  Since its popularization in the 1970s we have seen video art transform from public protest political propoganda to survalence surealism.  There have been many diversions to other forms of videos such as tv advertisements, soap operas, self made you tubes and movies.  However, now more than ever, video art and just plain videos are becoming one in the same.
   
If video art is known for its frequent transendence with technology, then is it possible that ALL forms of videos can be art?  As seen from that Coke commercial Jorges showed us, there were certainly elements of early video art in their advertizement.  Similarly, websites like Vines and Snapchat features 10 second videos in which people film whatever inspires them whenever they want.  Are these types of videos not a casual form of art?  The Moving Art Fair in London had an art exhibit based on this concept of the selfie in which 22 six second Vine videos were exhibited together in a piece called "Shortest Video Art Ever Sold".  Below is a link to an article written about this and other artists' insight as to whether this is self obsession or artistic self expression.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/10/17/the-national-selfie-portrait-gallery-at-london-s-moving-image-art-fair.html

After spending almost a full semester immersed in video art, I am inclined to think that these are ALL forms of art work.  After all, if video art is moving where technology goes, then the lastest app has the potential to become the newest form of art.  

Fine Cut Critique Response

Response to Andrea's Questions:

1     1) Does the sound work well with all of my clips?

             I think the sound works very well with all of your clips.  Although most of your shots are of still objects, the sound creates the attmosphere to imagine what that scene would look like if it were active...especially the bike one!

2    2) Is there any distracting visual noise that I should get rid of?

             I think you should change the lengths of your clips to be relatively uniform. You spend a lot of time on some rather unexciting stares, but then cut quickly out of clips that are much more asthetically intruiging.  I think there would be less distraction if you made them all a uniform length.  

      3) Did I make the transition from day to night work well or is it still distracting?

            I thought you did a GREAT job switching between night and day.  There was no point at which I thought a night scene and day scene didn't go well together.  GREAT JOB!!

      Response to Haley's Questions:

      

       1) Did you enjoy the subject’s gaze from subject-subject to subject-audience? Did you feel more connected to the video from this detail?

             Yes!  One of my favorite parts of the video is when the man looks at the camera.  It made me feel guilty for watching him and as if I had been caught.  Very well done.

             2)  Did you enjoy the breathing as a tool for rhythm, pace, humanization, and voyeurism.

              I think breathing can be a very useful tool in your final piece, but it needs to be played with to have the intended effect.  Right now if feels like the viewer is in one of those gas masks or has just come back from running a marathon because it is so loud.  I think you could get the voyeurism effect if you made the breath quiter.  I do really like that the breathing stops when he looks at the camera...as if the person knows he has been caught.  

        3)  Did you enjoy the left and right thirds as much as the middle? Did they aid in creating a space? 

               Yes, I thought all three screens complimented each other well.  The main focus is still on the middle piece, but that will always be the case because there are people in that one.  I think the two side pieces do a good job of complimenting the middle without overpower it or getting lost... like classy book ends.  :) 

Videos Like Mine

For this week we are suppose to post videos that relate to our final video.  My final video is a comparison of the symbiotic relationship between nature and science.  The goal of my video is to show how beautiful both science and nature are and how similar they can be, despite the fact that most people associate science with "out of this world" ideas that are far removed from nature.  The video posted below is one Dawn actually suggest I look at before I started this final project and now that I have finished my own, I enjoy this video even more.  I think there is a darker feel to this video that I have intended in my own...especially with the rotting lizard being eatten by ants.   However, the comparison between nature and science, or at least between our idea of nature and the reality of natural processes is prevelant.

Here is the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7iCd4X77AU

Vimeo Curiosities

Seeing as we will have to upload our own final videos onto Vimeo I decided to peruse some of the videos already on the site.  Betwixt a variety of selfies and music video renditions, there were a few select pieces of video art that caught my attention.

Below is the link to the first video I found interesting: "Morphogenesis" by Michael Matos.  It is completely animations and sends a message of technology information overload in the midst of evolution.  Although vastly different from my own final video, I couldn't help but make the comparison between the commentary on scientific aspects in both. Although just a cartoon that often moves so fast it is hard to take it all in, this video effectively comments on the natural and man made destruction that has taken place throughout history, from man made guns, to bacterial protozoan diseases, to the big bang theory wiping out dinosaurs, to man made guns, and eventually foreshadowing the destructive role technology will play in humans' own demise.

Here is the link:
http://vimeo.com/79014618

The second video work worth posting about is "Temporarily Out of the Picture" by Margreet Kramer.  I was attracted to this video because of its split screen.  Although I plan on only having 2 screens in my final piece while this video has three, it gave me some things to think about in terms of composition.  There are times that the same image repeats on all three screens, or just 2 out of the three and there are times when all three screens are different.  I thought the artist's choice of what to show on each screen was interesting, although I am not in love with his video as a whole.

Here is the url:
http://vimeo.com/78981912

A look through Haley Bowen's Blog

So this week I took a look at what some of my fellow classmates have been doing on their blogs.  I chose to primarily look at Haley's because I really enjoy her work that I have seen in class so far.  It is radically different from anything that I have ever produced and has a dream like quality of innocence that I quite enjoy.  Most of my artwork has a darker edge with a harsh message, but Haley's videos, as well as the videos she is inspired by, are all emotionally calm, peaceful, and happy. She does a great job of evoking a feeling of serenity with beautiful imagery that is neither cutesy nor fantasy-like.  One found video that she got inspiration from i quite enjoyed.  It was the passing of time as portrayed by a dandelion.  It showed the flower grow and eventually whither away, letting the wind blow its seeds off into a future of immeasurable opportunity. Accompanied by some nice light hearted music, the piece was enjoyable to watch while still getting you to think about how time passes and what one does with the time they are given.  I like the idea that videos do not have to be painful to watch or depict uncomfortable/grotesque images in order to send a message.

Originality

     Last week we spent a large amount of time discussing the fact that narration plays a large part in how video artists create their work and how audiences view it.  Even before movies became a popular form of entertainment, humans have had a natural tendency to put things in sequential order.  Now that movies ARE a large part of modern society, humans are not only looking for cause and effect, but are expecting a plot and purpose to all videos they view.  This is in serious contrast to many video artists who attempt to break this story telling barrier by remaking famous movies' scenes or creating videos that have absolutely no story plot.
     However, I am skeptical about the idea that artists can completely remove narration from their work.  After all, they make their videos to express emotions, which are often times best portrayed in a story.  If the story telling aspect of videos can never completely be removed from either the artist making them or the viewer watching them, then is there such a thing as originality?  No matter what movie one watches, there are only a handful of plots emotions, and related expressions to help the viewer interpret these things.  I believe that video art is no different.  All artists only use a handful of devises to get the audience to experience their video in the intended way.

Blog Post # 9

The video art piece by Diego Agulló and Agata Siniarska entitled Tuning Love used a lot of repetition and stopping of time to influence the mood of the piece.  The title explains a lot about this video of a man and women essentially tuning their love for one another and their life together.  The piece is stressful with lots of frustration and anxiety.  The man and women both repeat their actions and their words several times throughout the video in order to get the point across that tuning their love has become a horribly stressful activity.   The link to this video is provided below.  

http://video.videoart.net/vlog/?p=3025

I really like this work because it showed me how different techniques can be used to convey a specific mood and emotion.  Although I do not foresee using continuous repetition in my final piece, it is interesting to think about how that would change message of the piece.  

Reading Response #4

"The Never Ending Process to Communicate" is how Gary Hill defines video art.  This explanation really hit home with me.  I have often wondered, as I'm sure many others have as well, what the point of video art is?  Many of these so-called artistic expressions seem to have no point to them at all.  They tell no story, teach no moral, and sometimes fail to evoke even a strong emotion from the viewer.  What is the point?  For me, this one phrase from Gary Hill answered this mystery.  The point of video art is to attempt to communicate with the rest of humanity in a way that words or pictures can not.  People everywhere, especially artists, often struggle with the idea of identity.  For a world so filled with images of ourselves, we are often unable to define who we are.  What makes me ME and not YOU?  I think video art is a way to explore individual identity and how our original identity cooperates or conflicts with others' identities.  Smith and Steward provide a great example of defining their identity as one entity in a relationship and the frustration, anxiety, and struggle to identify themselves separately from one another.  Maybe that is why their videos are often so unbearable to watch.  They cause themselves and each other physical harm, even preventing one another from breathing, in the efforts to define themselves without the other.

Halloween Horror

With Halloween right around the corner, I thought that this video by Gabrielle Zimmermann was appropriate.  It primarily features the eyes of porcelain dolls.  The artist has manipulated both the color of the dolls themselves as well as the quality and color of the video to make these dolls seem as if they have a life of their own, but a life that is not quite functional, as if they are zombies come to life.  This is very fitting with the title of the piece which in French is "Reves Obscurs: Aux Pays des Poupees".  In English, this translates to "Obscure Dreams: In the Countries of Dolls".  Although I am seriously creeped out by the video the way it is, I do not support the artist's choice of music, which is a strange techno type of elevator music.  I think alternative sounds such as children's voices or babies crying would have evoked more emotion from the piece for me personally.  Here is the link to the video.

http://vimeo.com/77281047

The Art of the Selfie

In class we have frequently discussed what is art and what is not in today's media-filled society.  Our world is constantly being filled with images from advertisements to art to memories.  We have become obsessed with images of ourselves, and through creations of twitter, facebook, snapchat, and a multitude of other media, have been able to perfect the art of the selfie picture.

The Moving Art Fair in London had an art exhibit based on this concept of the selfie in which 22 six second Vine videos were exhibited together in a piece called "Shortest Video Art Ever Sold".  Below is a link to an article written about this and other artists' insight as to whether this is self obsession or artistic self expression.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/10/17/the-national-selfie-portrait-gallery-at-london-s-moving-image-art-fair.html

Blog Post #6: Further Inspiration for my Final Project

For our final project we are given a LOT of acceptable range with practically no restrictions.  I find this type of work harder than completing structured assignments because there are so many possible options.  After debating on my final assignment topic for a week I have come up with several themes all having to do with nature and science.  As a scientist, I am surrounded by technologies designed to manipulate nature on a regular basis.  I take some of these for granted, and others I probably don't even notice are there because they are so engrained in my life.  For my final project I would like to include video of both my lab and nature so either show their symbiosis or their conflict, or maybe both.

I got this idea from the work discussed last week by Amy Youngs with the fishbowl full of crickets.  Below is a link to another one of her art installations in which technology, humans, and nature must work together for the success of the piece...literally.

http://hypernatural.com/


Amy Youngs does a lot of work connecting human and natural interaction.  Below is a link to another one of her video installation works depicting a pet carrier/cage on top of which is a tv covered in animal fur depicting animals fighting.  This entire work has a very violent theme and shows how nature and humans are often at conflict, with man trying to put nature in a cage.

http://hypernatural.com/whylook.html

Blog Post # 5: Ideas for my final project

Since I already have a clear direction for my second video art assignment, I am using this blog post to explore ideas for my future final project.  Below are some images taken from art videos that i found especially intriguing.


This is from an exhibition by Tat Marina called "Finding Face".  Particularly ironic in this scene since everything but the face is visible, I particularly like the tricks the artist plays on the audience.  The scene appears to be underwater, but the subject is wearing jeans and something about the image makes it seems as though the subject isn't really in water up to his neck, but instead that the photographer is manipulating the audience in some way.



This image taken from one of David Hall's galleries is also slightly confusing, but in a completely different mood.  The twilight zone impression given off by the neon lights coming from behind a mysterious door leave much up to the viewer's imagination.  The circle in the middle of the door is also curious. I couldn't find a high enough resolution image in order to tell what that circle is depicting, but this may add even more mystery to the piece.


This installation by Amy Youngs is by far my favorite.  It includes a fish bowl filled with artificial plastic decorations and live crickets.  A microphone at the top of the fish bowl amplifies the crickets' sound and the video projection of grass at the back of the fish bowl makes that set up seem almost four demential.  I love this piece because it is such a creative way to make a clear commentary on the state of nature in our current society.  Here she has used ALL man made objects to represent a "fake" sense of nature to which she has subjected these poor crickets.  Although we would not think of this twice if this fish bowl was filled with water, a mini castle, and some fish, taken out of the standard fishbowl context, the viewer is faced with the reality of how idiotic humans can be to place nature in a bowl...literally.  Although this would be out of the range of acceptable final projects since it is an installation and not an actual video, I will not be able to use it for my final project, but I do like the idea of using nature and man for my final video project.

The Importance of Sound

I have been looking at a lot of the video artists on the UBU website and have been intrigued and surprised by many.  One of the cleverest videos that I came across was titled "Getting In" by Shelly Silver that she made in 1989.  Here is the link to the 2 minutes and 50 second video if you would like to watch it.

http://www.ubu.com/film/silver_getting.html

Her use of sound in this piece transforms the entire video into a completely different meaning, which is something that I would like my second project to be able to do.  At first, her silent images of building doors seems like a simple montage of "getting in" to the building, or maybe even "getting in" to society if a larger meaning were derived.  However, intermittent sound begins to pop up at every door shown and it quickly becomes clear that what the viewer is listening to is the love making sounds of multiple people orgasming.  This gives the video and its title a completely different meaning than it originally portrayed!  Now, the video seems like an invasion of privacy, spying into people's private homes and listening to what they do behind closed doors.

I love how her use of sound was able to transform her video entirely and I would like to be able to do that in my final project if possible.  Keeping in mind that silence is a sound in and of itself, I will look to incorporate both sound and silence in my two pieces to create completely separate emotions from the viewer.

Reading Response # 3

A significant portion of the reading this week focused on “Feminist Actionism” as coined by Valie EXPORT.  It was discussed how, throughout history, women have been suppressed by men in every industry, including art.  “The history of woman is the history of man, for man has determined the image of woman for men and women” (EXPORT in Video Art by Michael Rush, 94).  EXPORT is just one of many examples of women artists who have gone to the extreme in order to get the world to notice her.  She was driven by the need to interrupt this male dominated society and prove that her worth as an artist was equal to, if not greater, than that of any male artist.  However, instead of condemning society for putting women under the rug for so long, should we be thanking it?  Without that male social suppression, I’d be willing to bet that a majority of these phenomenal women artists would not have felt the need to express themselves so strongly, and thus would have never had a reason to create art in the first place!  Some of the greatest ideas, inventions, and endeavors have been undertaken to challenge a social norm.  With nothing to challenge, their work would have no purpose for existing.  

In looking forward to our future art assignment, I noticed that it is suppose to evoke an emotion from the view.  After my last art assignment #1 had an eerie disposition, I think I want to strive to make the viewer feel uncomfortable in my next piece.  I want them to feel so uncomfortable that it will be a struggle for them to watch the video until the end, and yet they won't be able to take their eyes away from the screen: hypnotized by the uncomfortableness.  Below are some images taken from video art that made me personally feel uncomfortable and I may include their ideas in my final video.  

I particularly like this image from the video artist Jonathan Jones because I find a close up of the human eye rather disturbing.  The lack of any visible eye lashes also makes this eye seem awkwardly naked. 

This image also by Jonathan Jones is from one of his exhibits.  Besides the scary looking white eye-less face in the back left corner, the giant foot up close and to the right makes this whole exhibit very uncomfortable.  Unsure of the exact theme of this artwork, I find all of these randomly placed objects very uncomfortable and yet, I can't stop staring at the perfectly textured foot in the foreground.  

This third video art image from Jonathan Jones is more towards the feeling of ridiculous randomeness rather than uncomfortable awkwardness.  The smiling man on the right paired with the odd expression of the cartoon on the left and the cut out of the dinosaur in the background provokes no other emotion other than wonderment and confusion.  This is the type of artwork that I want to try to prevent myself from slipping into.  There is a fine line between uncomfortable and ridiculous.  

Thoughts on Assignment #1

In thinking about the subject matter of my first assignment piece, I am inspired by this work from Amy that I posted about last week.  It is an image of herself behind a metallic screen.  The colors in the photo is light reflecting off of the metal.  I really liked the duel relationship between man and nature in this piece.  The rainbow of colors look very natural despite having been made from an inorganic material and the repetitive circles look organic and processed at the same time.



For my Assignment 1 I would like to do a compilation of videos involving man's relationship with nature.  Perhaps how nature is shaped and changed by man.  As a science major, I am constantly manipulating nature for my own benefits in the laboratory, sometimes taking for granted all that I can do with the natural resources at my disposal.  

The following link is to a video of a sand art performance that I found to be VERY inspirational!  It portrays how caught up humanity is in their daily life and the monotonous work they are required to do rather than appreciating living to its fullest extent by appreciating nature.  I am not yet sure in which way my assignment #1 will represent the connection between nature and man, but I know that I would like that link to be the main theme connecting my four pieces.  

Here is the link to the sand art performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEgSoTCgvgA

Reading Response 2

        Video “art” is made for many reasons by all types of people with a wide variety of backgrounds ranging from philosophical to political to personal.  The second half of chapter one in Video Art by Michael Rush gives a compilation of many different notable video artists who have a multitude of reasons for making their art.  I think we can all agree that the intent of the artist in making a piece heavily influences how that piece is perceived, whether or not the artist’s intent is successfully portrayed. It is stated in Chapter 2 that the artists who saw video as an extension of their own artistic practices are the ones who really expanded the meaning of videos into the respectable art form it is today. 

        This brings me to the following question: does the reason for making art, specifically video art, chance the importance of the artwork?  For example, is art made with a political message intended for the masses more important than art made for personal reasons intimate to the maker but not shared by the public?  Depending on one’s answer to this question, the meaning of video art can change dramatically.  Videos are used worldwide for many purposes other than art, such as for advertising entertainment, or memories. If the maker of these works intended their pieces to be art and their videos were installed in a museum, would their worth deteriorate or expand to become something more than just their subject matter?   

Blog #1

In perusing through the Rollins College Lens-Based Media Forum website, I came across a few photographs that I particularly liked by Amy Elkins,

I particularly like this one by Amy because at first glance it just seems like an ordinary letter, but upon closer inspection the word "deceased" is nonchalantly written in the middle of the envelope, giving the previously cheery photograph an unexpectedly ominous feel.  

Again, by Amy, this family portrait is very tense despite the subject matter of a mother with her two daughters.  The cool colors used and the less-than-impressed expressions on each of their faces gives this piece an off-putting feeling that makes the viewer (well me at least) uncomfortable.  

Ok, this is the last thing by Amy Elkins, but I couldn't resist.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyzkzDjbOIY&feature=player_embedded&noredirect=1 

This URL is a youtube video of her montage of sky videos which she has taken from multiple, stationary positions and then sped up time so that the view gets to see the vast changes in light that take place throughout the day.  I find her work here fascinating. I already have an inclination to be drawn to nature and I really appreciate the different colors she was able to obtain from just filming the sky.  However, I personally would have chosen less disruptive music to go along with that piece.  

Ok this one by Melanie Flood I had to include just because it looks like a 1970s cocaine party gone wrong.  Clearly a sculpture of sorts with probably photo manipulation, Melanie has done an excellent job of making this otherwise cheery scene with bright colors and confetti, seem like a disturbed plane wreck...quite literally.  Although it is my least favorite part of the pice due to its lack of texture, I am interested to know how she included the rainbow into her final work of art.  

Last one for today, this photograph is also by Melanie Flood.  According to an interview with her by Blake Andrews, it is a self portrait of her behind a metallic screen.  This is quite possibly my favorite image discussed so far.  Even after she tells us what this is a picture of, it remains completely abstract.  I love the compilation of colors created by the metallic screen as well.  It gives off an essence of nature with its floral colors despite the fact that it is made completely from non-natural material.  

Response to "Video Art" Pages 1-38

         Michael Rush describes television as the breakthrough invention on the road to video art.  The ability to spread news around the technologically modern world was a chance revolutionists, politicians, and artist alike couldn’t resist.  Rush goes so far as to say that the invention of the television paired with the big anti-war riots and feminist revolution in the 1960s is the entire reason video art became a success as a modern art form in today’s society.  However, I would like to know if the political scene of the 1960s had not been so media-filled, would video art still have made it into the hearts of so many artists to date? 

            Rush also points out that one of the main reasons video became so popular with the common person so quickly was that it provided immediate gratification to be able to see one’s self on the tape instantly after shooting.  However, not all artists viewed this attention to the self in videos as a good thing.  American critic Rosalind Krauss thought that this type of video was merely an exploitation of an artist ‘s ego rather than an actual new art form.  She proposed a question, which I would like to now propose to all of you: “Does photographing the self constitute pathological narcissism?”  And even if it does constitute narcissism, does this prevent video art from actually being art? Where should the line be drawn between home videos and self-obsessed video “art”?  

Testing, 1, 2, 3, testing...

Testing, 1, 2, 3, testing...  Dawn can you hear me now?  As a first-time blogger, I just wanted to make sure that I did this correctly.  Let me know if you can read it.