Marclay/Tinguely and BYOB

Marclay/Tinguely Sculpture

For this sculpture I decided I wanted to have gear-like motion. I used a drill and a hole saw as my primary source of power, which then turned a foam disk where the record sat. I wanted there to be more moving parts, but I struggled a bit with this, and couldn't manage more. I did want to make it somewhat aesthetically pleasing though, so I hid the drill in a box, and made the entire thing book themed. Although it is a bit unfinished, a few things I would improve on this piece would be the stability of the record platform, and the design of the speaker cone.

This is my spliced record, which is comprised mainly of Jimmy Smith's album, Stay Loose, and a tiny sample of Traffic. For this project I didn't want to simply cut straight edges, but this proved to be more difficult than I though. I couldn't use a laser cutter because the fumes from the heat were toxic, and so I resorted to using a hole saw. Unfortunately the gap it left in the vinyl was rather wide, but I managed to form a glue-bridge of sorts. Although I was very happy with the way the record consistently repeated a couple parts, I wish I would have used a larger hole saw size, so that I could have heard more of the Traffic record.

BYOB Clip

This is a screenshot of the clip I used for my part in the BYOB. It is a clip from Tim and Eric's Awesome Show, Great Job, Chrimbus Special. I chose this clip because of its pseudo-Christmas special theme, which would blend in well with the other videos. Little did most people know that this special was a Christmas special parody of the most extreme kind. One of two people recognized it, which made it even more worth while, since they knew just what this clip hinted at.

Live Stream

For my live stream I chose to simulate a swimming race. I made a small clip using close ups of water to use as a backdrop from when I "swam." I timed it so that the water would only come up when I dove in, and would stop when I finished the race. One aspect I would have adjusted was the brightness of the video being projected. It was too bright, and washed out some of the detail of the water, and me at the very end.

Video Triptych

For my video triptych I chose a water theme. I chose to do very extreme and high definition closeups of the water, so that I could capture the detail of the waves, and the light playing of the surface of the water. I slowed down a lot of these shots to make them more surreal, thinking that they looked even mesmerizing at that speed. The middle piece was definitely the anchor for the other two videos, acting also as a point of reference. The two side videos started at different times, mostly because I wanted to accentuate the fact that their audio was played to the side they were on. Eventually they mirrored each other, and then they were identical at another point. I wanted to create an illusion that made the viewer think that they were just watching the same world mirrored, but then be thrown off by the sudden parallel.

Sound Clips

Audio Tour - WM Keck Museum

http://www.unr.edu/art/digital_media/tour/unr/005_Kostecki.mp3 <-- Link to mp3 of audio tour. - For this project I chose to do a tour of the WM Keck Mineral Museum on the UNR campus. Making an audio tour for a mineral museum was a unique challenge because of the objective nature of a scientific museum. Even though I think the museum is rather interesting, I wanted to give a sense of intrigue and maybe a bit of pizzazz to this space, and make it "smooth" and "cool." A film noir theme seemed to fit just right. There was enough material to use as clues of sort, but at the same time, I encountered the problem of being overwhelmed by the sheer amount of stuff the museum has. I ended up cutting and re-recording many parts so that they would fit into a neat little tour. When it comes to the actual story of the tour, I did not intent for there to be a clear plot. I wanted it to be open ended, leaving enough to the imagination of the listeners, but I also did not want to take away from the exhibits themselves.

Youtube Mixer

Final Presentation

http://prezi.com/zj56v7pva1z1/present/?auth_key=eawsgyf&follow=oklhqklejdih

Altered Reality

This is the final rendition of my altered reality project. It is a shot from outside my apartment, of the view that lies behind it. I chose this particular shot because I enjoyed how the two buildings framed the background scenery, almost like an alleyway opening up to a vast landscape of mountains and trees. I rendered the buildings and the center-most tree, as well as the fence. 

Altered Reality Proposal

This picture shows the area just outside of my apartment. I'm choosing this shot because of the contrast between the buildings and the backdrop, and how they frame the view behind them. I plan on making models of the buildings, and I'm debating on wether to model the fence too. I like the idea of "digitalizing" the man-made elements in this shot. The shadow is also something I might consider altering also. 

3D Modeling

For this model I was trying to focus on being anatomically correct, as I used a front and side picture of my own face to use as a guide. Some aspect worked better than others, but I personally prefer the profile angle, and the front view, since those were what I had the best idea of and thus are the angles that most closely resemble me. Although in the end it does not entirely have my likeness, the basic human shape still reads, and is recognizable.

New Aesthetic Selection

http://youtu.be/8Mrj8sOq2Fo

I found this video before watching "The New Aesthetic," and enjoyed it very much, but I wasn't entirely sure why. It was visually pleasing, being very colorful, and crisp, and fun, but it was only after watching "The New Aesthetic" did this particular video make sense to why it appealed to me as much as it did. It's integration of the eye of the machine into our lives. It also frightened me in the sense that it portrays in a literal way just how much the tempo of our lives are affected.

Youtube Sampler

s a m p l e r . s e s s i o n

Video Art Questions

Here are my questions for this week's reading:

Question #1: Just as television consumed viewers, so does the internet, to a new extreme. When browsing, the average time a person spends looking at a single page, link, news article, etc., is about 3 seconds before they move on. What problems might a video artist come across on the internet, that they might not have to deal with on television?

Question #2: With the privatization of big name TV channels (i.e. TLC), how important are publicly owned stations to video artists (or any artist in general)? 

Come To Life

This short stop-motion animation embodies what the original triptych set out to be; an adventure. The character movement was meant to be quirky and lighthearted (for the most part). As the adventure progresses, more and more of the world exposes itself, revealing minute details that would otherwise be overlooked in the grand scheme of things. I like to think of this as the balance between action, and peaceful details. There is room for both to be appreciated!

Food For Thought (Walter Benjamin Questions)

After reading Walter Benjamin's essay about art, mechanical reproductions, etc. here are the questions I came up with.

Question #1: Walter Benjamin states in his work that reproductions lack authority. Is there any instance when a reproduction could or does have authority, in any context? Can a reproduction become its own unique and original piece of art, or otherwise?

Question #2: we are currently existing in a technological revolution. With the advent or mass sharing, information is constantly available at our fingertips, literally. Benjamin states that, "The conventional is uncritically enjoyed, and the new is criticized with aversion." What might be (or is) and example of this we could be experiencing in this, the Age of Technology?

Oh, The Clutter

Statement: This triptych is titled, "The Hunt". All images were found via Google, and were then cut and pasted together using Adobe Photoshop CS6. 

This piece depicts a bit of a story, an adventure being had. Two familiar pals soaring all over, after their prey, and meeting many things along the way. This piece signifies the love of excitement, and a healthy imagination, Calvin and Hobbes being the clear inspiration. The way the two perceive things is what makes them so extraordinary, as it is with just about anything. This is then commentary that, in life, it is important to allow ourselves to diversify the way we look at things, since if we don't, we run the risk of getting bored, or worse, apathetic.

And They're Off!

Hello again,

Here's my visual bio, as it were. I've never had any real, formal training in any art, except maybe creative writing, but thanks to my artistic family, I have not been alienated from artistic creativity. I like to think that I am more fluent using a computer than traditional mediums, yet I am most intimidated by digital art, because there is so much room for precision, that I tend to give up on things halfway through, unfortunately! Since I only do art as a hobby, I tend to only finish things when they are for other people, but that is also what I like to do best! Drawing, photographing or otherwise seems more fulfilling when I do it for someone else.

Here are some samples of stuff I've done in the past:

Photography:

Graphic Design:

Digital Painting:

Traditional Art:

Niche Humor:

Well, thanks for reading!

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