Final Blog Post: Thanks!

For my final project I really was trying to do a light hearted humorous “mockumentary.” As far as themes from the class I really tried to communicate humor in a non-verbal way with this project. I had some issues with video that I had taken becoming corrupted, but I was able to piece together a final product that I was happy with and that I thought I successfully used non-verbal communication successfully.  I started off the video heavy on environmental images. I did this in order to in a way lull the viewer into a sense of routine. I have done many environmental based projects in this class, and I was hoping to make students believe that this film was along those same lines. I was hoping that this preconception would play into the humor of a video about Chipotle.  While a lot of my footage at chipotle was lost, as well as a number of my interviews, I tried to show just how invested in this restaurant people can be.  The juxtaposing of the images of flowers with the corrugated steel side of chipotle and the chipotle sign is an example of my non-verbal communication. While there are words being displayed on the screen, my association between flowers and chipotle is saying that the two are related to one another in the context of beauty.  I hope that this relation is humorous to the viewer because it is supposed to be a funny video.  The final scene with Chipotle being eaten was probably my most significant use of non-verbal communication. I used a very close up very intimate shot to liken eating a Chipotle burrito to some very intimate, personal experience. This also is a concept that I hope people find humorous, because in my mid it is. There are some technical flaws and I will do my best to fix them by time my video airs (I didn’t realize there was a final at 2:00). But other than these minor flaws I am pretty happy with my final product. The fact that I had a smaller pool of video than I planned on was a challenge, but I think that that made the process that much more interesting and satisfying to complete. My edible portion is cilantro lime rice, which is a staple at Chipotle. I couldn’t really buy Chipotle for everyone so this is the next best thing. The rice along with the talk of Chipotle is supposed to make the users long for chipotle. In a way the edible portion will function to expose the Chipotle aficionados in the class. The senses will be flooded by chipotle, thus causing those like me who feel a deep connection to chipotle to long for its sweet embrace. This is in a way another attempt at humor. I am interested to see if this has the desired effect on the class. I chose a digital medium for my project because this class has really taught me a lot about digital art forms and I have found that I really enjoy them . I even used Adobe illustrator to make figures for my smp.

I really think that this final project is a great way to end this class. I used a medium that I basically discovered this semester in this class, and I tried to use methods of conveying ideas and thoughts visually but in a comedic way. I hope that everyone will appreciate the humor that I tried to bring into my project, and not think that I some weird fatty freak who is in love with a burrito (even if some of that may or may not be true).  Thank you for the opportunity to do this final project, I really enjoyed it, and thank you for finally helping me understand art for once in my life, I think I kind of get it now; At least if just a little bit.  

Allyson Moore's SMP Presentation

I also attended a studio smp presentation.  I believe the artists name was Allyson Moore. I had trouble understanding this presentation because I was in the way back behind a wall. As a consequence of this my view of the screen was almost completely blocked and I could only see the right portion of any of her photographs.  While my view was extremely obstructed I still thought that what she was saying was very interesting and her smp sounded very neat. She said that she liked to take pictures of commonplace objects all over the place. I believe she said this was partially inspired by a trip to the west coast that allowed her to return to the east coast with a renewed artistic energy. She said that her favorite place to photograph was behind a Mckays. At first I was thinking that it was a little weird to take photographs at such a location but as she got into it more I began to understand why she did that and became really intrigued by her decision to do so. What I though was so interesting was that she in a way documented a change over time in a place that many of us have been near but have never really taken the opportunity to look at. She described how one day there was a random cart there that someone had left. She did not only photograph the cart in the context of the space, but she also took close up shots of the cart from atop the cart. I thought that this was really cool how she not only captured the cart in its “environment” and in the context of the loading dock but she also documented the cart close up. She treated the cart in 2 different ways, in a large special context and a short individual context.

                All in all I wish I could have had a better seat. What she was saying about her work and what she did, sounded really cool and really unique and I wish that I would have had the opportunity to see her work as whole and not in the fragmented behind a wall way that I did. I really think that I would have enjoyed seeing her use of framing and subject matter, because it was interesting to hear about. I hope that I can go to the gallery at a later date and actually look at her photographs in person, not only so that I can see them, but so I can take my time and look at them up close.

Brittney Sigley's SMP Presentation

I attended an Art History Talk on Color Theory given by Brittney Sigley. She did a great job at presenting the information in a way that non-art scholars could comprehend. I’d be lying if I said I comprehended all of the talk. Some of it was over my head but I definitely got the main points. Brittney talked about how minimalist artists used color as an object in their works. She talked about how minimalist painters did not paint things onto objects but just painted objects in a monochromatic color. She talked about how the color then becomes an object in the work of art itself. She said that the color was a deliberate choice by the artist and that this was part of the reason why it could be viewed as an object. She showed many examples of minimalist works that utilized color heavily as an object. One really cool one was a dark box with all of these colors projected inside of it. The colors in conjunction with the darkness of the box really distorted the sense of space, making for a really cool effect .

Overall this presentation really opened my eyes to new ways of looking at art. I was really impressed with the way that Brittney was able to introduce this new idea to me, and really make me believe it and understand it. Before this talk I never would have thought of looking at color as an object in a work of art. I always just saw color as color, as being there. I never really put too much thought in to the color of any work of art other than super traditional paintings. I would see something and go, “Oh look that’s green,”  this presentation has allowed me to start to think about why that something is green and what the green is saying or doing in the work of art. The presentation also helped close a gap in my mind that existed  for a while. Abstract and minimalist artworks never really spoke to me, I never could understand them or see the merit in them. Our discussions in class have helped me understand and appreciate abstract art more, but I never really got minimalism. Now I have the tools to look at a minimalist piece and see beyond what I could see before.  By viewing color as an object I think that take color and use it as another way to understand what is going on with a minimalist artwork. Great Job Brittney, you taught an art challenged individual something about minimalism!