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When I attended my first day of Art and Technology class, I was freaked out. With all of the blog topics and the previews of projects I knew I would have to do, I didn't think I had the creativity and computer skills to successfully complete them. However, when previous students came in to speak about there experience, they encouraged us to stick with it. I am glad I did. With everything I have learned from my other classes, this is the only class that forced me to step 100 percent out of my comfort zone, both in class and out of class. I now know the true definition of art, and that if you put your mind to it, anything can be made into art. I am now an overall more creative person, as these projects have stretched the outskirts of my mind and have forced me to become openminded about everything in life. Before this class, I have never blogged, used iMovie, or been any kind of artist (except maybe in art class when I was seven). I believe I have become well-rounded and have expanded my horizon to great lengths, and I thank this class for that.

Massive Attack

Massive attack was one of the most influential groups of their generation, and set the trend for a lot of the (then) upcoming dance music that emerged in the 1990s. Through my research, I found that their music gave way to many artists such as Portishead, Sneaker Pimps, Beth Orton, and Tricky. Massive Attack formed in 1883 in Bristol England, and were actually originally called the "Wild Bunch." I thought this was funny because it's very similar to the name they later developed..so I wondered to myself why they changed it in the first place. Maybe they wanted to sound more sharp, or scary? Their signature sound was a combination of many different genres, and their music brought about the drug era of their time, included the usage of cocaine, crack, and speed, drugs that are much different than the average ones used in today's generation.

Video Art Project

I used myself and accessories to create a difference between overall presentation, and then the little things that can you can use represent yourself. When it's just you, you are present. You can always present yourself wherever you are. But to represent you may need other objects that may not naturally be there, and they can each mean different things. It I had a more advanced software, I would have made the second half of the video a different shade or filter, to add on to the representation. Hopefully I will have access to some in the future and add to it!

Critique:

Gina- I liked how she came up with her own music. I actually enjoyed it and I think it amplified the video very well since there wasn't too much going on. I also love the idea of using a mirror, and I'm surprised she's the only one who used one for her video!

Kyle- Loved it! He definitely had access to software that made his video awesome, but his overall idea of representing himself through his resume was extremely creative..didn't know he had it in him! I also agree that it would come to more of a shocker if he wore the resume at the end instead of the beginning. From the title, we already know he is doing something with the resume, so we wouldn't be completely confused. Awesome job.

Spencer- I like how the video was consistent and kept speeding up. If I hadn't heard his explanation, I would think he may be trying to show the presentation of representing a video game that we didn't see. Cool idea.

Andrea- I loved this idea. The fact that the whole thing was a dream made clear of the ultimate reality vs non reality. We have dreams all the time and wake up from them not know if they are real or not, so it was a really great, relatable concept.

Ralph- So cool! My favorite part was how he pored red paint on the "falling soldiers," relating it to the past reality of himself in the army/marines. I also liked how he used the needle in between his fingers, but then layered it out for the camera to get a glimpse of what it was he was holding. Good videoing!

Marvin- This was my overall favorite! I had no idea what it was about until he explained, but once he did it all came together. I was not expecting this from him and he made an amazingly powerful video. If it were anyone else besides his girlfriend behind the iPad, it would have worked as a "presentation vs representation" but it wouldn't have been nearly as powerful. AWESOME!!!!!

Brian- I thought his idea was comical in a way. It was funny how he presented the oranges in the beginning but than represented them with facial expressions. I was waiting for something more to happen about half way through, and it did (the water bottle poring). Good job.

Kaitlyn- This was also one of my favorite videos. I don't know if I wasn't paying close enough attention but I had no idea she was holding up a picture until I saw the side of the screen when her hand moved a little. I also made no connection between the title and the video until I saw the flames. So I was surprised and shocked when she lit the picture on fire. This was EXTREMELY creative, I loved it!

Holly- I like how she made her video out of something that she actually was planning to do. If she didn't film the beginning of the purchasing of the ticket, it wouldn't have worked. It was well planned out!

Leah- Creeeeepy! I was startled when I first saw her face. But when she began talking about the negative aspects of technology, everything made complete sense. I really liked how she added a theme on top of the "presentation vs representation" theme. Also, I didn't hear anyone mention this..her face looked like it was half normal, adding to what is reality and what isn't reality. Nice job.

Sight Short Film

I was really confused when I first started watching this, but when it started showing the video game aspect of it I thought it was awesome! After falling for a short period of time, it started to make daily tasks like a game. Isn't life fun!!! It was almost comical when the character was on a date and the technology was telling him how well he was doing. Overall, the clip was creepy because I feel like this is what is going to happen in the near future, if not to us then to our kids or grandkids. Technology is moving so fast and after taking this class, I have learned how fast it will continue to progress.

UK Underground Music and Smiths

This Smiths were the definitive indie rock band of the 80s, marking the beginning of guitar rock in England. Known for their rebellious songs and after listening to a few of their pieces, I can tell they were a very influential group of their time. I have come to actually really like some of their music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiFzKNmeeSw


http://www.buzzfeed.com/ailbhemalone/see-the-smiths-discography-as-a-transit-map
Here is something I found about their discovery that's pretty interesting as it compares it with others.

Video Art Examples

http://www.videoartes.com/videoartes/Macro.html

This video was awesome and creepy in a way because it almost looked like the insides of the human body (maybe the cells and organs), but it was actually the inside of a flower (shown in the beginning). It was strange because all of a sudden, the camera changed/jumped to what looked like the solar system, and then back down to where the video began. Weird!!!!

http://www.videoartes.com/videoartes/Arte_Publicitario.html

This video was unique in that it took different sea creatures and intermingled them within each other. It also mixed our human life within theirs, since they came out of the ocean and started performing a massive orchestra. Very interesting idea.

http://www.videoartes.com/videoartes/Video_Arte_Familiar.html

This video was different from the other videos I have been exploring because it had two screens. At first I thought it was going to be the same play, just filming two different times when they performed, but then the second screen skipped to a more specific person or thing, when the screen on the left was more of an overview.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWOxArn3L_4

This is just another video are piece I found on youtube that I thought was funny and cute. It features someone in a very colorful, goofy outfit, dancing around what looks like some type of balcony. Technology is used to make the character jump around from place to place. He even bounces a soccer ball without even touching it! I would really like to learn how to use software to do something like this sometime in the near future.

TR 808 Examples