For my piece I am imagining soft pastel-like colors in the background with more vivid hues upfront. I may work with the seasons, although I think that is a little contrived. I’m not sure about a plot or a ‘point’ yet.  I’m considering making a piece for my grandmother, centered around her farm, or how I think of it. I don’t want to use people (mostly because I can’t really draw/form them very well) but I am thinking about using an animal as my main character.

Honestly, I need to spend more time figuring out the plot, but I want to start working with the materials I chose to see how much I can realistically accomplish in the time frame.  I will provide updates as I come by them.

While I don’t think that this video is really very deep or inspiring, I loved how it was accomplished.  Moving over great span on time, it was cool that the artist used the same woman for so many different looks.  It really showed how style is transformative and that women could have looked the same throughout the centuries, but how we view them is different. I liked how the use of wigs and outfits moved on their own, it gave the sense that time was passing over her and she had little control of the trends.  I would suggest to the artist to use better stabilization and consistency because the woman moves around a lot which is pretty distracting.  The music could be less literal, but I think that because the video is pretty slow having another dimension of thought is good.

The next piece I chose was Bass Robots by Marco Tassone.  I really like how the color and the graphic elements work in this video. I like the blinking effect because it makes the video seem less static and more robotic, yet imperfect.  Although I think the music and motion may be a bit too much, I do think that it lends itself well to the robotic feeling and that everything is too much that people aren’t really living. I like how the graphics build up at the beginning and trail out at the end, it bookmarks the video well so that the middle is the most dynamic portion.  I would suggest to the artist to play more with what he has covering the talent’s faces. I think putting the bag like thing on them sort of makes them look like prisoners of war or something, which I don’t it really what he is going for.  I would maybe use a more robot like, metallic feeling mask.

The last video I chose was Liquid Jail by Matías Montarcé.  I love how this piece is so serene, yet it moves. My favorite shot is of the person standing at the top left and how the liquid moves the image subtly.  I think that the sound is especially effective in this piece because it isn’t too literal, it really adds to the video and evokes emotion but without music.  The color is also very effective, the desaturation works as an advantage because it adds to the forgotten, old sense of the video.  The only part I’m not sure works is the shot near the end that is of some metal structure. I think it really detracts from the unity of the piece and takes away from the overall feeling.  I would suggest just removing this scene in it’s entirety.

I think I got an overall positive feedback from the class.  I got several comments about how the audio really enhanced the quality of the video and the seamless breaks allowed for an immersion into the video. In addition, the class liked my use of lighting and how it evoked emotions even without text or explanation.  I would agree with both these comments and would add that I really liked the color composition of the piece as a whole.  Filming at night really gave me the advantage and challenge of working with definite light sources.  When showing the video to others, they were impressed with my use of filters on the ending lighter shots. When I explain to them how it was created, they are shocked at how I arrived at that effect through my methods.

Among the constructive criticism I received was some minor color corrections to the ending shot which the class believed would allow for greater consistency.  I did end up making these changes and being more pleased with my overall result.  Additionally, I received comments that the piece was like a horror film, or had frightening imagery.  This was definitely not my original intent, but I agree that it has tones of that.  I think this is because I was working really hard to capture some kind of deep emotional feeling and may have used too literal of sound effects in combination with video.  I think the second half of the video, however, really tones down the horror movie feeling to a more conceptual, artistic level.

If I got the chance to go back and re-do portions of the video I think I would focus more on getting really clean and precise shots in order to increase the cinematic and beautiful qualities.

Another video that I thought was really effective was Lauren Stellato’s piece using appropriated commercial imagery.  I think that since this idea has been done a lot it is difficult at times to do it well. I thought that Lauren really succeeded.  I loved how she used the movement to transition between the videos so that they looked like they went together, rather than putting in some motion and some static which halts the video. I loved that she used the audio from some videos with the video from others and even mixed them to give contradictory messages.  I think that even though she used many different types and eras of video it came through with a cohesive feel and message about commercialization.

Video art is extending beyond just documentations or capture and into the realm of animation, virtual reality, installation, and film elements.

Animation and virtual reality allow the artist to create worlds that don’t exist. This heightens the visual experience for the viewer because it is something that they can’t see elsewhere; it requires more of their thoughts to process it.

Installation allows the artist to connect with the viewer and give them a unique but regulated experience.  It takes the dimensions of the piece one step deeper and draws in the viewer, rather than allowing them to walk through uneffected.

Film is making a bigger splash in video art these days, many artists are no longer looking to solely recreate and document the world, but rather looking to enhance the visuals and make it look more like big budget production.  This is reflected in both the recording mechanisms used and the way they are edited and displayed.

• What kinds of issues are artists exploring in this “ extended video art medium”?

Virtual Separation: Artists have explored visual relationships between people through the use of video.  Manglano-Ovalle explored the separation between two people in very close vicinity to one another.  It defines class distinction and how attention plays a role in the separation between these two.

Using multiple screens also allows for representing different parts of a whole, such as in Aitken’s electric earth.  This piece explores life lived in the shadows through close up shots displayed on multiple screens. It gives the viewer a 360 like approach to someone’s life full of different things they might not ever see or think about.

• State some differences between video art at its inception in the 1960s and video art today.

Video art is becoming more cinematic and with that brings a disregard fort he unique characteristics of video.  In the 60s and 70s video art was used to capture immediacy in a relatively cheap way as opposed to film, which was expensive and didn’t capture the same essence of life that video did.  Now that this phase is passing and film like qualities are becoming more easily accessible for artists, the way that we think of ‘video art’ is looking a lot more like cinema.

• Why are some video artists motivated to work with appropriated films?  Or what issues does appropriated film enable artists to explore?

Some video artists are working with appropriated footage to create their art.  This gives a different dimension because the artist is challenged to take something that the viewer knows and recognizes and either make some critique of it, or make it looks like nothing like the original.

• What is Installation Art?

Installation Art is where artists use many methods to create an environment for the viewer to enter into in a literal sense.  It creates physical participation on the part of the viewer, rather than the passive response that is sometimes required by other works.  Installations can be multiple rooms or require the participants to do some sort of action, but either way it forces them to connect with the piece.  This is effective because it keeps people from merely walking by and glancing at the painting and walking on, it takes them in and makes them think about it, or at least participate.

• What is the meaning of Marshall McLuhan’s famous phrase “ The medium is the message?”

The medium is the message deals with the way that something is displayed gives it more or less meaning.  This relates to video art because it can take on different effects or draw the viewer in more based on what steps are taken in creating the video.  Film feels different to the viewer than video does; it is more pulled together and gives a cinematic feel whereas video feels more documentative in nature.  This changes how the viewer perceives the piece, something that is film may come off as fiction, whereas a video might come off as real life due to its documentative qualities.  Installation also has a big effect on the medium as the message.  If there are additional factors used to draw in the reader they will perceive the message differently.  Viewing a video is one thing, but if things are flying at you or crawling on you during an exhibit your perception and take away from that will be very different even if the video hasn’t changed.

I’ve posted the link to the song on YouTube to give you a better idea of the mood.  I am particularly interested in the part from 2:33 to 3:12.

The first piece was a triptych, which featured images of a young woman walking through a forest of trees with side lighting and ambient noise.  I wanted to give this a sort of nostalgic/romantic feeling, but also like she’s does this everyday, it’s routine. I think that the imagery was well achieved, but myself and my critic agree that it would be nicer if there wasn’t as much camera shake especially on the beginning shots. The lighting works well because it was shot in early morning which allowed for maximum saturation of color.

The second piece was supposed to involve textual elements. I used the text as sort of a fade effect where it started as showing the video and ended up being words on video and then on black.  My critic thought this was my weakest image because the audio was distracting and the image wasn’t as compelling.  I think that if I were to shoot this again I would have a better idea about how to meld the text and the image because I think the way I moved the text is really cool, but needs to be further thought through.

The third piece involves layering and the manipulation of two images as they work together. I chose to create piece that used a soft wandering girl on teh bottom and replace the sky with a highly filtered image of car running by at night.  The lights sort of looked like shooting stars and gave it an other worldly glow.  My critic liked the juxtaposition of these two, but was unsure about the audio and how it corresponded to the piece. I think that if I were to go back and look at it I would take more time to make sure the audio didn’t sound like it wasn’t supposed to be there and more like it was purposeful.  I also was a little displeased with how the top portion was filtered and I would like to spend more time on getting it the correct amount of blur that I wanted.

The fourth piece was color manipulation. I choose to work with one of my old clips of water being filled into a glass and play with the 3 way color corrector and key framing.  This gave it a surreal quality, you couldn’t really tell what you were looking at anymore. I added this with the same audio it had before plus a few audio filters.  I think that by keeping the original audio and only tweaking it I can away with a stronger piece because the audio matched up completely.  My critic agreed on this point and also like how the colors moved from dark to light so that you couldn’t tell what it was a many points.

The last video was an obnoxious video using at least 5 or more filters.  I used a shot of traffic lights at night going from red to green to yellow. I blurred them and added a few more filters to alter the image, then put on kaleidoscope which gave the pretty designs.  I followed that with tile which divided it into parts and then to crystallize for the fragmented effect and strobe to make it flash.  I reversed and layer the audio to give this annoying high pitch sound mixed with foreign jumble.  I think the image that was created by these filters was effective because you couldn’t tell what it was, yet it was mesmerizing and annoying all at the same time.  I think, as well as my critic, that the audio really enhanced the overall feel of the video because it brought your mind out of the trance that was created by the video.

Overall I really liked working on this project, I think that video is giving me the opportunity to really explore multidimensional works and express themes that are harder to achieve on paper.

1. What makes the medium of video special or unique as an artform?

Video art began when video technology became directly available to the consumer.  Since it was not the first time a moving picture was created, video art is very linked to film and the industry of Hollywood.  In many senses, it began as a reaction to film, instead of narrative qualities it could be abstract or counter-intuitive.  The technology of video, however, enables the artist to create a truly expansive personal experience.  The viewer can be lead through a journey using the video, which allows them to believe they are there, but doesn’t give them full control of the situation.

2. Video’s unique qualities give way to certain themes that are central to the medium. They include:

Video is always linked to technology.  Many changes in video form are due to the increase or decrease in technology.  It’s young age also gives it a notably short existence and history from which to work allowing for more original ideas and concepts to be shown still today.  Video is not still image, hence taking on a sense of style all its own.  The images are moving, therefore take on the qualities of time, story, motion.  There is usually, although not always, a start and a end to the story and all viewers progress along the same path.

3. Why was video art and politics so closely connected at its inception in the 1960s?

Video art and politics were so linked in the beginning because many video artists used their credentials as videographers to get behind the scenes of many political arenas.  Frank Gilette used his ability to work a camera as a way to ‘enter the communications process’ and “cease being a passive recipient of commercialized media.”  There was also just a wealth of material to be had in politics during the 1960s.  The riots and anti-war movement allowed for a very distinct theme to emerge in art of the time period.

4.  What positive and negative implications does the accessibility of video yield?

Video can be viewed negatively because it is so accessible that people think it requires no skill.  This is a common theme with the post-modern art era, which focuses less on finished works and more on the emotional process of the art or how the viewer see it.  A positive to video is the ability to capture processes over time and relay them as accurately (or inaccurately) as possible.  It creates another dimension that comes closer to replicating and responding to life.  Accessibility is also an advantage of video art.  It gives those who cannot be filmmakers, or do not have the resources or desire to become such, the opportunity to work with moving image.

The following questions from the reading have to do with context (might take some extra google searching):

5.  In contemporary art, what does the ‘post-medium condition’ signify?

Post medium literally means ‘after the medium.’ This is to say that the medium has transcended itself and become something beyond, or after what was originally intended for.  Some artists use a combination of material to create a piece that defies the original intention, such as using appropriated advertising to mock at pop culture.  It can also mean using known objects in unconventional ways to illustrate a greater point.

6.  Describe formalism or formalist art.

Formalism or formalist art is a process of looking at art that takes it at face value.  It neglects to consider the notions behind the work, the ideas or history of the artist or the intention of the work.  It instead deals only with the distinct physical form: the line, color, shape, movement of the piece.

7.  Describe conceptualism or conceptual art.

Conceptualism or conceptual art is a way of thinking or works of art that draw questions about the art itself.  Conceptual art should not just exist, but exist to make a statement about itself or society.  This art can not be taken for merely aesthetic face value, but rather must be taken for the message which is attempts to achieve.  While conceptual art is typically uses a less ‘traditional’ skill set, it is foolish to think that it is merely a craft or production of someone without purpose or artistic ability.

8. What is Fluxus?

Is the term used to describe artists who combined themes and materials into one work.  Also described as mixed or inter media, these pieces worked to transcend merely one type of reaction, emotional process or medium.  Fluxus pieces are simple, many times in critique of modern art theory, and humorous in nature.

9.  What is intermedia?

Describes the work made by the fluxus in the 1960s.  The works were not nearly sculpture, yet not anything else either. It involves the use of many mediums to create a stronger visual picture or reaction.  Artists may use text, sound, images, appropriation or found objects to create their work.

View the article here!

And here are some recently edited photos!

The word is titled “Capture” and evokes a sense of sad nostalgia.  After digital production, I took the art a step further and placed it in a burnt frame and dripped wax on it.  I will put up a picture of the finished product after it is graded, but for now, here is the digital copy.

Capture