April Gertler
April Gertler studied at BARD in San Francisco. There, she experimented with the medium of collage and studied abroad in Berlin. In 2005, she moved to Berlin and currently resides there. At first, she struggled with her artwork, but on her 38th birthday, she made a plan that would kick-start the process. Gertler created “The 38 Project”, where she would create a new work every week for a year. She posted each work to her blog every week and sold them for $38 a piece. Most of the pieces were collages of found photographs of people with some written text. After the year was up, she took on a new project where she found families in Berlin, collected their photos and recorded their personal stories. She took the photos and stories and created a series of pieces based on these families. Gertler has participated in many residency programs; one in particular was in Cork, Ireland. There, she worked on a show called “Prisoner of Damp Patches.” It showcased many collage pieces that were connected by
a common “thread”. She also began creating giant chalk murals right on
the gallery walls. In recent years, Gertler has been focusing much of her energy on a project she started called “Picture Berlin.” It started out as a critique group of Berlin artists, but has since transformed into a
hybrid residency/art academy for artists who practice photography. For a month during the summer, students work intensely on their photography, participate in multiple critiques, visit galleries, and meet other successful artists, gallerists, and curators.
Monday, October 24, 2011
Artist Lecture 1
Morgan McAusian and Jack Dawes
Morgan McAusian, a rather jittery and eccentric artist, began experimenting in art when he was a young boy. He was fascinated with ‘lawn art’ and began making wooden whirligigs. He was also obsessed, and still is, with collecting and dismantling found objects. In college, he studied painting and collage. He was commissioned for a world map mural in a junior high school cafeteria that he created
entirely out of scraps of paper. Throughout his lifetime, McAusian has continued collecting things like
audiotapes, suitcases, thermoses, Tupperware, plastic caps, and tags. He pays special attention to color, texture, and form and is constantly organizing these objects. He creates a particular bond to each item in reference to a memory, a time, and place. His biggest struggle is deciding when to stop, or when to keep working on a piece. One of his projects that is showcased in “Homefill” in the Sheppard
Gallery is an actual replica of windmill created entirely out of paper. He was inspired by the model homes during the 1950’s where cardboard cutouts of turkeys adorned the table to create the illusion
of ‘home’. His windmill creates a dialogue about the difference between what is reality and conspiracy.
McAusian also works in the medium of film/video. He experiments with color next to color and tries to create other worlds. He has a very painterly approach and he edits are based on his emotions. In
“Leslie”, he films a constructed object, a flipbook of a bird. It was filmed all in real time and there was little editing. In “Music Box”, the camera captures the insides of a music box. The amplified sounds,
hard light, and changing perspectives create something eerie and almost uncomfortable to watch.
McAusian is always taking an experimental approach to his art, often forging head-on into projects he has no previous experience with. He claims to relish in his mistakes and enjoys unexpected results.
The second artist to present at the lecture was Jack Dawes, who was equally as quirky as McAusian, but who seemed surer of himself and his work. Dawes’ work is often controversial, if not downright
offensive and I’d like to think he creates most of it for his own amusement. His pieces are simplistic in nature, making their commentary so subtle, it could easily go unnoticed by the casual
onlooker. Examples of these pieces are the White American Flag and the Twin Tower replica he constructed solely from McDonald’s French fries and Heinz ketchup. These two pieces play on American values and patriotism.
Another reoccurring subject in Dawes’ work is illegal drugs. The “Misdemeanor Box”, a 1’ concrete cube that encased an unspecified amount of marijuana, was almost banned from a gallery. Another example was a gumball machine that contained hundreds of dollars worth of prescription pills. These pieces were more light-hearted and I can only assume he, and many others shared a good laugh. Some of his other pieces pointed at racial stereotypes. These pieces were blatantly offensive in nature, but somehow Dawes executes them in such a manner that their ambiguity and playfulness make you want to laugh rather
than gawk-- or maybe that’s just me. Not all of his work is about laughs, though. Two pieces, a statue of
David holding an actual machine gun and a handgun painted to look like a child’s to gun are more sobering and actually terrifying. They speak words about the trivialization of violence and war. In his lecture, Dawes expressed that his artwork was all about intention. Most of his work was created deliberately to evoke a reaction from his audience and begin a dialogue.
Morgan McAusian, a rather jittery and eccentric artist, began experimenting in art when he was a young boy. He was fascinated with ‘lawn art’ and began making wooden whirligigs. He was also obsessed, and still is, with collecting and dismantling found objects. In college, he studied painting and collage. He was commissioned for a world map mural in a junior high school cafeteria that he created
entirely out of scraps of paper. Throughout his lifetime, McAusian has continued collecting things like
audiotapes, suitcases, thermoses, Tupperware, plastic caps, and tags. He pays special attention to color, texture, and form and is constantly organizing these objects. He creates a particular bond to each item in reference to a memory, a time, and place. His biggest struggle is deciding when to stop, or when to keep working on a piece. One of his projects that is showcased in “Homefill” in the Sheppard
Gallery is an actual replica of windmill created entirely out of paper. He was inspired by the model homes during the 1950’s where cardboard cutouts of turkeys adorned the table to create the illusion
of ‘home’. His windmill creates a dialogue about the difference between what is reality and conspiracy.
McAusian also works in the medium of film/video. He experiments with color next to color and tries to create other worlds. He has a very painterly approach and he edits are based on his emotions. In
“Leslie”, he films a constructed object, a flipbook of a bird. It was filmed all in real time and there was little editing. In “Music Box”, the camera captures the insides of a music box. The amplified sounds,
hard light, and changing perspectives create something eerie and almost uncomfortable to watch.
McAusian is always taking an experimental approach to his art, often forging head-on into projects he has no previous experience with. He claims to relish in his mistakes and enjoys unexpected results.
The second artist to present at the lecture was Jack Dawes, who was equally as quirky as McAusian, but who seemed surer of himself and his work. Dawes’ work is often controversial, if not downright
offensive and I’d like to think he creates most of it for his own amusement. His pieces are simplistic in nature, making their commentary so subtle, it could easily go unnoticed by the casual
onlooker. Examples of these pieces are the White American Flag and the Twin Tower replica he constructed solely from McDonald’s French fries and Heinz ketchup. These two pieces play on American values and patriotism.
Another reoccurring subject in Dawes’ work is illegal drugs. The “Misdemeanor Box”, a 1’ concrete cube that encased an unspecified amount of marijuana, was almost banned from a gallery. Another example was a gumball machine that contained hundreds of dollars worth of prescription pills. These pieces were more light-hearted and I can only assume he, and many others shared a good laugh. Some of his other pieces pointed at racial stereotypes. These pieces were blatantly offensive in nature, but somehow Dawes executes them in such a manner that their ambiguity and playfulness make you want to laugh rather
than gawk-- or maybe that’s just me. Not all of his work is about laughs, though. Two pieces, a statue of
David holding an actual machine gun and a handgun painted to look like a child’s to gun are more sobering and actually terrifying. They speak words about the trivialization of violence and war. In his lecture, Dawes expressed that his artwork was all about intention. Most of his work was created deliberately to evoke a reaction from his audience and begin a dialogue.
Assignment 6 Youtube Video Mixer
Check It.
For my Youtube mixer, I tried to chose a video that represented each part of the human brain according to the phrenology chart. I had higher hopes for the final outcome of this project, because I couldn't figure out how to arrange the videos so that they matched up perfectly with the background. I would like to take this project further by adding more videos and creating a better layout and design.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Reading Assignment 3 Manovich
1. In the article, Titchener says, "the suggestion has been made that an abstract idea is a sort of composite photograph, a mental picture which results from the superimposition of many particular perceptions or ideas..." Comparing this to the video of "reconstructions from brain activity" and assuming that this type of technology will advance, how will the world of New Media be changed if an artist need only to think of an idea for it to be rendered automatically and viewed by others?
2. The article also talks about interactive media. The author says that in using interactive media, "we are asked to follow pre-programmed, objectively existing associations" and "we are asked to mistake the structure of somebody's else mind for our own." What are some possible implications of interactive media? Does it hinder the viewer's own imagination?
2. The article also talks about interactive media. The author says that in using interactive media, "we are asked to follow pre-programmed, objectively existing associations" and "we are asked to mistake the structure of somebody's else mind for our own." What are some possible implications of interactive media? Does it hinder the viewer's own imagination?
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Assignment 3 CollaboAnimate
Below is my revised animation that includes the transitions. I was after Haleigh Hoff and before Nicole Dion.
Assignment 4 Soundtrack for Animation
Below is the link to my soundtrack. For the sound, I used the intro to the song "Yours to Keep" by Teddybears, some lyrics from the song "Lovely Bloodflow" by Baths, A telephone sound effect from Soundcloud, a recording of me crumpling paper, and the background drone.
http://soundcloud.com/you/tracks
http://soundcloud.com/you/tracks
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Assignment 5 Video Reenactment
For this project I wanted to choose a video that was humorous in nature. I chose to remake "Can't Swallow It, Can't Spit It Out" by Harry Dodge and Stanya Kahn. These two artists approach the alienation and violence of contemporary American life with absurd humor. Dodge and Kahn's collaborative, performance-based videos inhabit an urban L.A. landscape that evokes both the everyday and the post-apocalyptic. Dodge and Kahn infuse their uncanny visions of America with wit, dread and longing. The audio was all dialogue, which I knew would be a challenge to match up with my own video. With the very little experience I've had with Final Cut Pro, I think I was successful in doing this and I am happy with the final product. The only change I would make would be better lighting,higher quality film, and a Viking's helmet.
Original Video
(from 16:30 to 17:45)
My Video
Original Video
(from 16:30 to 17:45)
The player will show in this paragraph
My Video
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