final project.

my final is composed of 3 works. the big idea is identity, particularly the pursuit of positive characteristics as part of one's identity, which are universally understood as positive.

(blog 4 contains the apologetic for this process and statements)

closing remarks. aka blog 5

a. What is the most significant accomplishment in looking at your Midterm or Final?

if Photoshop (PH) could be distilled down to a main feature for the sake of argument, i would argue that the use of layers is crucial and core to the program. before this class i hadn't used PH at all, much less did i understand the concept of layers. learning to use layers--especially labeling, color coding them, arranging them in groups--proved to be the one feature that no matter what i was doing or will do with the program in the future, will remai

n central to all i do. by the final i had separate folders named and colored with active images in the document, and inactive source material (for the professor). that's not to mention the final animation i did, which involved activating and deactivating 4 different layer effects so as to create a gradual change to an image over 200 animation frames. none of this would have succeeded were it not for the base understanding of layers.

b. project and most challenging learning experience?

my fourth quiz was by far the most frustrating project. the use of selections and masks was excruciating throughout the quarter, but reassigning the essence of that project for part of my final was much easier than it had been when i first manipulated the image. during the quiz i was attempting to make the final product as simple as possible, but i had a small portion of the image to remove. the best way i knew how at the time was to essentially delete that section of the base image. this left a square hole

in several layers that was covered in the final product. i accomplished my goal but it was ugly.

using the same base concept i was able to make the final animation accomplish the same end result as the quiz, but i avoided several steps and did not have to use such a base workaround. the result was much more fluid and clean.

c. compare meaning made in two projects.

the one thing i fought against in creating meaning in art was the challenge of being too overt. i value clear communication and was pleasantly surprised to learn more about the level of connotation in art and how powerful it can be. it was still a tension to work with, as i wanted to create meaning but do so in a way which would be received and still open to reception and processing by different viewers.

the earlier work to contrast against too-overt communication would be one that potentially was too complex or ambiguous (and received critiques along those lines as well). i sought to combine elements that are very specific mathematical and historical works that while they hold meaning on their own, combined they risk being washed of actual meaning. the previous video was the latter work and i think accomplished a better balance even though it uses actual words.

final project. aka Blog 4.

the big idea for my final project is identity. i have used that idea throughout the course and in the final i focused further to a) aspects of my identity, and b) characteristics which i believe are universally accepted as positive attributes of identity. in my midterm i explored the concept of specificity or randomness in nature--seeking to establish a solid foundation from which to focus in on the concept of human identity--without which “good" or "positive" becomes essentially subjective labels. my first image is an outward plea to others, the second the list of positive characteristics, and the third the visual embodiment of removing false masks to reveal who they actually are. the concept for the work is three panels, the man being the left-most vertical panel, the cycling words to the right top, and the unmasking-face the right bottom. the two moving images would cycle continuously.

i was influenced throughout by banksy who consistently pulls back the veils and superficialities of culture to make strong statements about things people might otherwise pass over. in so doing he often uses innocuous images, spliced or placed in contexts which radically change their meaning. essentially he represents a burgeoning trend of street art mixed with the visual and audio concept of “mashups” which take various songs or images and combine them to make something new.

during my diptych i enjoyed reviewing the works of Leonardo da Vinci and how he strived deeply to understand the mechanics of both natural and man-made things. it was this process that acted a catalyst as i dug deeply into my big idea. i didn’t stop merely at the surface (arguably where i am most weak artistically) but continued exploring the foundation of my big idea. i feel this proved to provide whatever strength my final project demonstrates.

finally, i am a product of the Nintendo, tv, internet, visual generation. when we learned animation i knew instantly that i wanted to attempt it for my final as a new technique, and also i felt it could help communicate otherwise static ideas in language familiar to my generation (and subsequent ones). i will attempt to use the animation feature of Photoshop in my final project. i'm not sure how that will turn out or be incorporated but i find it to be most intriguing of the newer concepts.

Quiz 4.

movie mash-up.

assignment: take two movies which appeal to two different audiences and manipulate the connotation of the poster of one of them, with opposing elements from the other.

this is my resubmit. before i had changed the movie, "Little Miss Sunshine" to be something else which doesn't exist. i focused on the Olive character and exploited that image--taking her overall innocence in the movie and granting her the persona of Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill.

i chose these two movies due to the similarity of yellow, yet the very different themes of action/slasher film and family satire. Little Miss Sunshine is dystopian enough that it wasn't a difficult bridge to establish. see for yourself if it worked.

fun times.

diptych inspiration 2.

Matt Siber

Matt Siber’s main appeal is the way he brings attention to themes that people pass by daily and rarely consider. His work has strong potential in connotations of culture and branding that are too easily overlooked (under-considered). Denotatively there is a haunting appeal in his work that again takes innocuous signage and pulls back its innocent existence in an over-saturated visual environment.

Cola, 2006-7

Siber’s work informs the way I am thinking about how to draw attention to what is easily overlooked--nature. Unless one makes a practice of considering their environment, they most likely will not give a second thought to the construction, whether “miraculous” or “base,” which gives it shape.

McDonald's, 2003

Many of his projects are extremely simple and this provides a clear focus on the subject matter. I wonder at times at the potential vapidness of his work, but with enough time I expect most would be able to discern the message he is communicating. The personal takeaway for me is the clarity. I tend to be verbose and while I wouldn’t attribute that tendency to the field of art, it is possible to be unclear both in too little and too much information.

Untitled #13, 2003

diptych inspiration 1.

Leonardo da Vinci

+3 images

da Vinci’s place in art history is remarkable by itself. The personal appeal lies in the thought and calculation da Vinci employed behind his genius. Many historians and critiques observe the mathematical precision inherent in his works. With immense skill and immense care he drafts precise works of art which generally are relegated to a discipline apart from intense calculation in my mind. Looking beneath the surface reveals to me that I am ignorant of the process some artists undergo in their craft.

Vitruvian Man.

For my big idea of Randomness vs. Specificity in nature, it was da Vinci’s Vesuvius Man which particularly caught my attention. He took a natural form (the human male) and subjected it to further mathematical examination. In so doing he speeds my thinking along the same lines as I consider the foundation of nature and in what ways (if any) it can be reduced and understood.

Womb (anatomical drawings)

I was further inspired to think deeply about my project, and the ways in which the seemingly covert theme of specificity could be shown. I fear being too overt in this attempt but understand too that I am in process. There is a fundamental simplicity in da Vinci, and this forces me to consider the building blocks and how I can incorporate them, directly or indirectly, to achieve my final goal.

The Last Supper

diptych.

statement.


Specificity in the design of nature is my big idea. By considering identity I was forced to ask, “Is human nature random or specific,” and responded with this project. I used an image of a sunset I witnessed in California last year, and considered Fibonacci’s numbers and the Golden Ratio. I also considered the work of Piet Mondrian and Leonardo da Vinci for their use of primary colors and mathematics in art, respectively. Each of these works applied rigorous and objective measures to the otherwise ambiguous and curious realm of nature. This is important to me because human formation is very important to me, and so it is essential to understand properly the foundation from which we develop.