Zhang Huan

I was researching performance artists and came across Zhang Huan. We did not discuss him in class but I find his work to be very interesting. Huan's performances usually involve his body, most on the time being nude. Huan is an artist from China.

I particularly like Huan's Boston performance when visiting the Museum of Fine Arts because I am from Boston so I am familiar with the area. The picture below is Huan sitting on a stack of books. Along with the photographs of his performance he explains how he never liked books growing up and was always pressured to study.

Here are other photos of Huan's work that I found interesting:

Video Art Comments

Danielle- This video was very good, I liked the idea of it and the background music made was really entertaining.
Hessa- I liked the colors of this video and the narration part, it was a very unique idea.
Luis- I liked how you decided to show your video in black and white, I think it added to the blurring effects from the bad weather.
Sebastian- This video was interesting because it actually displayed a message.
Stef- I thought your video was very good. There was a lot to focus on and could be watched multiple times. I liked how you made it kind of mysterious.
Francesca- I liked the idea of your video. It reminded me of your performance video slightly. At first I thought the people were singing, when listening closely it sounds funny because all of the words morph together.
Jon- I thought the sound effects to your video were funny, especially when you pour the popcorn out of the bag and it makes sounds of water droplets.
Roy- I thought your video was interesting to look at because of all of the motions. The monitor looked cool and the movements went along well with the music.
Hannah- I thought this video was very good. It looked like a video game. It was clear that you had spent a lot of time on your project.
Sarah- I liked the sounds and music of your video, I thought it fit the picture very well.
Abby- The view presented in your video was different to look at. After a while you start to get dizzy but I like the idea of seeing upside down on a swing.
Grace- This video was very funny and a really good idea. I like how you introduced each part separate and then showed them all together.
Amanda- I thought the rubix cube idea was really creative. There were many things to look at in your video and it made it interesting.

Video Art Project

Tamiko Thiel

The photo, Carnation Rain on Carmo Convent, was taken on a phone. Tamiko Thiel first loaded the flowers onto the screen and then took the picture of the Carmo Convent with the flowers on top. The carnations are very bright and go well with the picture. I like how she used a different style to capture and create the image. 

Charles Csuri

I was exploring Charles Csuri's art projects and came across one that I found particularly interesting. It displays what was talked about in class, that he made all of his pictures by calculating out where segments should be. The picture Frozen Moment has colors I really like, the red and pink, and the poses of the people, they look like models.

Electronic Music Videos

The end electronic music videos go along with the rest because each one displayed a different story pertaining to the culture it described. Specifically, Gaiteros de San Jacinto, a Columbian folk group which consisted of men playing instruments the majority of the time and singing at some points. The Toto la Momposina video is also Columbian music, a woman is singing through the whole video and seems to be telling a story. Though both of these videos are of Columbian music they are very different but are similar in that they both have an up beat tune.

Dream Machine

After reading the book, The Living Brain by Dr. Grey Walter, Ian Sommerville invented the Dream machine. He produced it in the 1960's, in order to replicate the flickering effect. The machine consisted of a cylinder with holes in it attached to a record table, with a light bulb in the middle. When the record table was turned on it would create the flickering effect that Sommerville had learned about. It is called the dream machine because when viewing the cylinder with your eyes closed and lights off, it creates alpha wave cycles, which are a sign of relaxed activity in the brain.


Dreamachine: Dreamachine

Performance Art

Joseph Beuys

Joseph Beuys is an artist from Germany who also served in the military. It was his wartime experience that sparked Beuys interest in fat. Being a post World War II artist, he represented his wartime experience by sculpting with fat. Another one of his most common used materials is felt. Beuys is often referred to as one of the most important revolutionary European artists, being known for his random use of materials, consisting of fat, felt, blood, and average household objects.

This is a piece from Beuys that I like, called Rhein Water Polluted. It is Rhein river water in a glass bottle that was signed by Beuys. I think this piece is very simple but I like how the water is bright yellow. 

Beat Generation

The Beat Generation began in the 1940s, with William Burroughs as one of its members. This group called themselves "Beat", which arose out of conversation when talking about how beaten and exhausted they felt.  They experimented with drugs, sexuality, religion and alternative forms of expression and were known for their spontaneous and extremely creative work. The group originally started being composed of a close group of friends who had met in New York, they later transferred to San Francisco and expanded the group. There, Beat Generation were able to organize the Six Gallery Reading for poets.

Xerox Project

First I made a picture from the xerox images, it is a sun, palm tree, grass and a dog.

Then I made a collage with the rest of the images I had.

Grid Art Comments

Hessa- I like the bright colors in your grid, it kind of looks like a placemat.

Luis- I thought your grid was very creative and realistic. It was very detailed and well thought out.

Sebastian- The grid you picked was interesting, it reminds me of a child's game. Overall I thought your grid art came out really well.

Stef- I found your project to be very creative. It is so detailed and unusual. I also like the colors used.

Danielle- I liked the texture of your project and how the flags projected out a little from the grid.

Francesca- The shark idea was very good, I liked how your whole project was made from the cards using the back and front of them.

Jonathan- I liked your idea of the bees nest and how your project was 3-D.

Roy- The elf is very colorful and fun, I like how you made him look in action sword fighting.

Hannah- I thought the puppy idea was very good, the colors were kind of dull but it resembled the picture perfectly.

Sarah- It was a good idea to use beads, the project came out very bright, I enjoyed it.

Grace- I loved the Michael Jackson pose I liked how you used opposite colors, black and white, and created his whole body.

Amanda- The idea of using Christmas lights was very creative. Your project looked like it took a very long time to do. I thought it came out very well.

Grid Art Project

Steve Jobs

The speech Steve Jobs gave was very inspirational. He stressed his devotion to being successful strictly resulted from his love for electronics. Jobs admitted to being a college drop out, fired from his own company, Apple, but still showed his determination for computers. From those two negatives he created a huge positive; creating Pixar. Pixar was then able to drastically change the movie industry. From this invention he was also rehired by Apple. Jobs has also faced very serious issues concerning his medical health, fighting prostate cancer. Overall, Jobs explains to the graduates at Stanford University that with out a drive and love for what he does, he would not have been able to overcome so many obstacles.

Mark J Stock

"Inside The Bomb" is my favorite piece of work done by Mark J Stock. It is a picture displaying chemical energy transforming into kinetic energy. I like how the picture has a center that draws your attention but then you move out from it and look at all the different strands connected to the middle. There is a lot going on in the picture, it is very busy though it still looks organized. I also liked the light blueish purple color in the background.

Fastest Computer

The fastest computer in the world was created by the United States and is a supercomputer called "Titan'. It is worth over $100 million. This machine is able to process 20,000 trillion calculations per second. Titan is used to calculate complex energy systems for the United States Department of Energy. These computers get their unbelievable speed from interconnected processing boxes, for Titan it is Gemini XE interconnect.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42238358/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/t/us-take-back-worlds-fastest-computer-title/#.TqSi7mAh_z8

OTR- Gosden & Correll's radio broadcast

Gosden and Correll's radio broadcast was a couple of men acting out a story. They work together for a taxi company. One of the men, Amis, is dating a girl named Ruby. The other night when he went to her house for a date there was a man named Earl there so Amis was angry. Ruby calls to talk with Amis but he is out so she talks with the man that answered the phone. She asks him for advice and he says he will get Amis to call and ask her on a date and when he does to say that she has a date and then he will be jealous and won't be able to be angry anymore. She agrees she will do it and they get off the phone. When Amis comes back he persuades him to call and ask Ruby on a date, as planned, but tells Amis that if she says no it is because she doesn't love him she loves someone else. He calls and she says that she has another date. At the end of the broadcast Earl comes in and confronts Amis about being angry and says he is going to go over to Ruby's whenever he wants and there isn't anything anyone can do about it.

I had chosen this broadcast because it was under the comedy section. It is interesting to see how people were entertained in the 1930s. Listening to this broadcast today it was not very amusing to me and definitely not a form of entertainment, as it was a popular form in the 1930s. I didn't hate the broadcast but I did not find listening to be something I am interested in. You can see how different even things as comedies have changed in the past 80 years.

Flip Book Pictures..

Flip Book

Singing in the Rain

The song "Singing in the Rain" was used in two completely different scenarios. First seen in the movie, Singing in the Rain in 1952, the song is played in a happy scene. The man is ecstatic and energetic singing powerfully and dancing in the rain. Next, Singing in the Rain is played in the movie Clockwork Orange in 1971. This scene is the complete opposite of the previous movie. Random men knock on a couples' door asking to use the telephone claiming they had got into an accident. The woman does not want to let the strangers in but her husband insists on doing so. The men are all dressed in white with black shoes and masks. They continually beat the woman and the man in an extremely violent scene while singing, "I'm singing in the rain". I believe the huge difference in the usage of this song is because of built up anger from all of the wars that had been occurring. Between the years 1952 and 1971 three different wars were taking place, the Korean War was about to end, the Cold War had been going on for a few years and the Vietnam started roughly in the middle of this period. During this time people may have been more violent due to all that was going on around them; fighting and war. Therefore, Clockwork Orange used the song "Singing in the rain" to display people's anger and emotions, while the movie Singing in the Rain was from 1952 when people were more calm and happy.

Still Frame Animations

Retinal Persistence

Retinal persistence allows the eyes to see still images in motion. This theory allows us to be able to store a visual impression in the brain for a few hundred milliseconds after seeing the image. Because we can store the image, that fills the gaps of darkness in between the still images. Therefore each new image seen is processed by the retina before the old image has been able to fade completely, so the new image blends on top of the old one, allowing the eye to see continuous motion. Though this theory was later rejected, it played a big role in the illusion of movement. Earlier it had been determined that a film rate any less than 16 frames per second would cause the eye to see flashing images. The eye can still see as low as 10 frames per second, which would not look as continuous, but like a flipbook to the brain.

Angel de Quinta's Stage Door

Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life
1. Only 6 seconds into the clip you can already see different forms of technology being used. At this moment the lights are used to create an enormous shadow behind the dancing lady. It seems as though this light effect is being used to blow up the size of the woman so the audience can easily see the dance movements she is making.
2. At 29 seconds a bright spot light is shown in the woman dancing. The use of the spot light draws the audience's attention to the woman, instead of focusing on the background dancers.
3. Another spot light feature is used at 1minute 15 seconds. This shows a more dramatic way to use the spot light. It is larger and brighter and seems to be coming from behind the woman instead of in front of her. This creates a black and white view.

Follies (2011 Broadway Revival)- Preview
4. Different lighting effects are used at 2 minutes 58 seconds. There is a subtle spot light in the middle of the stage on all of the characters and the rest of the stage is lit with blue lights. The blue lights create a darker scene. They work with the sparkling curtains in the back that reflect the color. The floor, stairs and all parts of the stage have the blue lights shown on them.
5. At 3 minutes and 47 seconds the same feature is used except this time with red lights. The use of different color lights sets different moods for each scene.

Too Darn Hot (Dance Sequence)- Kiss Me, Kate
6. 50 seconds into the video clip the use of a small spot light rests above a sign. This allows the rest of the stage to remain dark but lets the audience still see the important details.

Tony Awards: Cabaret "Willkommen" Joel Grey
7. This clip uses lighting in a very different way. Shown at 1 minute 34 seconds you can see hundreds of small lights positioned together to spell the word "Cabaret" in the background. Using lights instead of a poster makes the stage look fancier and more formal.

Stock Market Crash of 1929

The stock market crash of 1929 was known as one of the biggest devastations in history. It was the beginning of the Great Depression and did not end in the United States until World War II. Leading up to the crash the stock markets were at an all time high, this was a period of flowing wealth. At this time more and more people were involved in the stock market, as a result the prices were constantly rising which is what lead to such a high participation. Ordinary middle class people were able to become affluent. This crash put and end to people spending money. The entertainment business had been rising but decreased immediately after the crash.
The differences in the crash in 1929 and the crash today can be seen through what people were giving up. Back then people stopped going to broadway performances where as today most people are giving up luxuries and traveling and broadway entertainment is not as effected.
The crash of 1929 negatively effected some technology while others were on the rise. Instead of trying out for broadway, people began going to Hollywood to accomplish their dreams. Technology was able to advance by writing pictures instead of creating performances. Also at this time more people were listening to the radio, because it was a cheap way to keep up with news and to be entertained.
The current recession is also effecting technology. Instead of going to the movies or buying movies, most people have Netflix or know how to download movies online. The same goes for music, everyone who has access to the internet can easily download songs and CD's for free instead of buying them.

Madama Butterfly Animation

The animation uses the different tones of the opera to aid in telling the story. During the intense scenes the opera would be very loud and bold, for example the intimate moment with the sailor and when the baby is taken away. During emotional and depressing scenes the music is softer, when the woman is left alone pregnant outside. The added sound effects allow the viewer to better understand the animation.
The fish bowl was a metaphor for pregnancy. The fish in the bowl was growing into a baby in a comfortable warm environment, which is what would happen with a fetus. The bowl cracks and breaks, imitating the woman's water breaking before the baby is born.
During the animation the wind is blowing off and on adding to the emotional effects. I found the last scene to be the most creative and interesting. The woman is so upset after her daughter is taken away from her that she "kills her self" by taking the parts of the doll apart and letting them blow away in the strong wind.

Commercials with the Mozart

Zoom Kobe III with Mozart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0RRXveuijU

Audi S3 with Mozart

http://en.vidivodo.com/503748/spor-audi-s3-_-autocar

LG with Mozart

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeTuTj7AuiI

Bread and Circus

The idea of bread and circuses originated from the Roman saying, Panes Et Circenses. The saying is meant to describe public approval or satisfaction. Entertainment and food catch people's attention and allow the audience to remain calm and be distracted from any turmoil. Panes Et Circenses is a way to subtly control a crowd. An example that relates to the world today would be donating blood, after giving blood you are given food. Another example is running road races. Road races are popular events for athletes where snacks are distributed to all runners after the event is finished. Lastly, an open house is a relatable event. Many people attend open houses, most have small finger foods offered to all who make an appearance.

Farinelli

Farinelli, formerly Carlo Maria Broschi, was one of the most famous Italian "castrati" singers. He had starting his career in the early 18th century. Born in 1705 Farinelli belonged to a family of musicians and composers. Castrati were specifically known for their unique voice, which, because of the surgery performed on them, did not change with puberty. Young boys were castrated in order to preserve their voice into adulthood. Farinelli began his journey to become a well known castrati in the 1720s, making multiple appearances in Europe, London and Spain. After just a few performances in Europe, Farinelli's fame began to increase at a rapid rate. When arriving in Vienna in 1731 Farinelli was greeted by the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI. In his old age Farinelli not only sang but began to play the viola, allowing him to compose songs. Farinelli passed away in 1782 from a disease typically found in post-menopausal women. In his will he had asked to be buried in the mantle of the order of Calatrava.

First Thoughts..

Hi, my name is Emily De Lorme and I am a junior at the University of Tampa studying pre-professional biology. I am from Mashpee, MA, a small town on Cape Cod. From this class I expect to be able to make more use of the internet being able to do more artistically.