The Medium is the Massage

Another book I got in Berlin is The Medium is the Massage by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore. It is one of four books in a Penguin (Modern Classic) series on design. The idea behind the book is that technological mediums are themselves messages and not necessarily the content they carrying. This is from the stand point that in the modern world people are constantly over-stimulated by technology. This over stimulation is reshaping society, the world and individual experience. I believe the book was written in the late 60's and the ideas are kind of prophetic considering the way the world is today but the design and layout of the book are the most interesting things. The design of each page is very different and layed out in a way that inforces what the content of that page is. A few examples:
It's pocket size and not expensive at all. I think it's worth the read, the ideas aren't very extreme and it's not a stance against technology. The layout turns reading into a puzzle and in some parts you even have to relearn how to read. It's fun and short and gives you some things to think about so give it a try. I plan on getting the other three books in the series: Design as Art, Ways of Seeing, and On Photography. In time...

Audiovisuology: See this Sound

An interdisciplinary Survey of Audiovisual Culture

So I wanted to share this book I got at the Hamburger Bahnhof Museum in Berlin. Audiovisuology: See This Sound runs through the history and theory of art forms that combine sound with image. Its survey ranges from philosophical models of antiquity up to present day technology. It is broken down into two parts:

Section I: The Historical
This section has 26 chapters each covering a single art form. Some fields covered are Animation, Theatre, Dance, Abstract Film, Color Organs, Expanded Cinema, Literature and Music Video. Each chapter is on only one art form, starting as far back in history where that form originated, touches on notable works and artist in the field and how those artists built off each other. Every chapter ends with an in depth analysis of a few works mentioned in the chapter with a lot of colored photographs. One chapter I found interesting was on Pythagorean theory of harmonics and how, at the time, those formulas were applied to both music and architecture, the idea that Architecture was to be seen as ‘frozen music.’

Section II: The Systematical
This section has 9 chapters and covers the psychological aspect of sound and image. Some chapters are Audiovisual Perception, Color/Tone Analogies, Synchronization and Synesthesia.

I haven’t finished the book yet but so far I can see this as a textbook to a survey course on the topic, if there is such a thing. Basically the book covers (broadly) a huge topic in less than 500 pages; for sure every chapter could be a book in itself (and probably is). It isn’t a “how to” book but there is plenty to be inspired and influenced by.

Accompanying website*
See-This-Sound

John Smith

The John Smith program was pretty awesome. Humor definitely plays a part in his delivery but the videos were intriguing on other levels too. I remember a few did run longer than I was expecting but I don’t ever remember being bored or lost watching. Sometimes watching experimental cinema I find myself wondering where things are going or how long something will drag on but that wasn’t the case with this program. I think his strongest talent was how fluid he made the story telling. Quite a few moments I had to remind myself I was still watching one film because he was able to take the story/topic off several different tangents and things never ended up where you thought they would. He is a real master at playing with your expectations and pulling you through different alley ways, I was always engaged but it wasn’t always because of what I was looking at so much as it was through the storytelling, the voice over. I also liked his editing techniques. With the camera a lot of his shots were straightforward but the way he cut them together into rhythms was neat. You couldn’t help but wonder how much time had passed between some of the shots in “Slow Glass.”

Untitled II

So, this next video in the series was supposed relate the "man made" landscape and the "natural" landscape. To me both are natural as everything comes out of nature, but it's not always seen that way. I tried to convey this in the form of a city skyline that continually emerges out of and back into natural elements. At one point in the middle of the video I reference the pattern of snake skin/scales. Here I was trying to make a connection with the natural order in the pattern with the organic pattern in cracked concrete that is super imposed over the scales. Also the snake has always been a symbol of power, danger and potentially healing. All of those things are true also of modern day society and modern technology.

After seeing this in critique I notice many areas that needed to be reworked, it was definitely not a point where I'd want to display for Luminaria. It will be revised and hopefully get to where I want it.

Sorry again everyone that I won't be around for the show, I know it'll be an awesome event and I wish I could see everyones work in it. Hmmm, maybe someone can document?

Untitled I

So after letting the concept I wanted to work with float around in my head for a while longer I managed to narrow it down some. I decided that what I was really trying to get at through this series was about the "naturalness" of Man. The destructive effects to the environment that we become more and more aware of in society kind of only come about as our technology to study such things becomes better. I think technological advancement is a natural part of our evolution. Another tool leading us to some higher awareness, of what nobody knows but in the end just a tool.

This first movie in the series was just kind of connecting the physical body to other elements in the natural world. Life, biologically, starts from just a cell and begins to grow more and more complex until you get a human being, a super complex form built of billions of cells. I don't think this is news to anybody now a days but I'm always kind of dumbfounded how widely this fact is only slightly accepted. I find it pretty ridiculous that today in the 21st century there is still a debate of whether evolution should be taught in biology classes. Today's concept of evolution is founded on observable phenomena in biology, no theories are accepted as scientific fact only recorded results through observation. Anyway, I digress, I just attempted to convey this in a creative way.

RiP: A Remix Manifesto

I really enjoyed this movie, it was so informative on so many levels. It really reignites your hatred toward corporate America. Since the dawn of time the wealthy have always been in control and today the wealthy just happen to be corporations. That’s nothing new but the rate at which information is spread today really can shed light on the shady ways those in power maintain control.

I think it is a real privilege living in the times that we do as we get to witness and be part of a really important moment in our evolution. The advances in technology have come so fast, drastically reshaping our lives, that you can’t help but wonder, “Where is this all going to lead us? And what’s it for?” It’s safe to say that we are passed the point of creating technology to ease our way of life; living in the modern world we have the easiest and/or most comfortable existences in all of history. This may not be true for everyone in the world right now but the technology for this to be true certainly does exist. As consumers of technology our constant want for the “latest and greatest” only further empower those that invent to keep inventing and pushing technological boundaries. This constant thirst for invention is real for all of us and comes from somewhere within us…in our brain...our biology…our DNA? Millions of years of evolution has brought us (walking, talking monkeys) to this point where the physical hardships of surviving in the world can all be evaded yet we constantly need more, to encourage each other to keep pushing those boundaries.

This video’s stance on technology, as functioning to share our ideas with each other allowing the world to be freer, is what I liked the most. I never thought of appropriation in this vein of sharing, most people just see it as stealing. But if technology is really about connecting the world, about sharing our ideas and connecting our minds to the rest of the globe, then appropriation seems the most appropriate form of Art for today. It makes sense then that appropriation in art doesn’t even come about until the industrial revolution. Since we make art to express our existence in the world to the world and we experience each other more now than in any other time in history then how can our expressions not take from others?

Semester Proposal

The conceptual theme I want to work with this semester deals with Man’s place in the natural world. This is a broad and abstract thought and I’ve not quite pinned down where I want to go with it exactly. Ultimately I just kind of see humanity as having the ability to be another destructive force in nature no worse nor better than a flood, hurricane, drought etc. at the same time being just as vulnerable. This is where I see the significance in using digital media to convey this concept, the amount of damage humanity has done to the environment correlates to our technological advances.

The reason this theme interests me is partly due to some of the traveling I’ve done. I’ve noticed to some degree that the environmental characteristics of a location have as much an effect on the people as the culture does. From my experience, places that have overbearing natural elements (mountains, oceans, forests) close by also tend to have cultural views and laws that are more respectful or considerate of the environment. Cities that do not have these kinds of elements present tend to continually expand/grow their city limits and populations, further imposing human development into nature. To me it’s as though the grandness of nature only comes to our awareness when it is literally present, even though it’s always present regardless.

I want to continue using Photoshop with digital video to explore stylistic ‘video paintings’ that function somewhere between video and animation and exist as projected video loops. I would also like to incorporate sculptural elements in some of the projects and make multi-channel installations. I want to allow the pixilation and scan lines to come through and “be” in a similar way that the modern painters allowed the brush strokes and paint drips to be what they are on a painting.