Art Encouter 3

In Janet Biggs Predator and Prey Biggs states a commentary on the beauty of nature and contrasts it with the horror of captivity. She also draws lines comparing the captivity of animals to man's self created captivities, his own habitats. The film was place on a series of plasma screens in a grid pattern. The sound in this film seems ambient at times, while synthesized at others. This use of sound directly contrasts Mircea Cantor's Deeparture. In this silent piece a film is projected on the wall of a gallery enclosure in which a wolf and a deer are together. In this piece the viewer waits in anticipation of an attack that never comes. This piece relates to predator and prey in its natural subject matter, though I see it as more of a commentary on the spatial use of galleries. My favorite piece that can be found at the Haggerty Museum, was a series of cut telephone conversations from well known films. I liked this piece because it intersected so many different actor's performances together. It amazes me at the numerous different ways in which the conversation can be cut. However I felt that this piece effected me most through performance.

Filmmaking Today

Filmmaking today is Nostalgia. Filmmaking tomorrow will split. It will include remakes and revamping franchises, as well as a plateau of creative originals or literary concepts. As for the state of news media the late Michael Crichton states, "The American media produce a product of very poor quality. Its information is not reliable, it has too much chrome and glitz, its doors rattle, it breaks down almost immediately, and it's sold without warranty. It's flashy but it's basically junk. So people have begun to stop buying it."

Journal Survey 3

I chose Bernard’s article, “Life in Film”. In this article film makers describe films that heavily influenced them. Bernard states she had never seen “A film that could do something, rather than simply be about something”. This means that a film could actually change the course of media, rather than just tell a story. This idea was revolutionary to her. She also iterates the way in which Snow’s “Wavelength” made her think about sound, space, and time. Bernard also iterates films depth in terms of time, noting a films ability to cause anticipation of the future observation of the present, and the retaining of the past. She also iterates a documentaries ability to not tell the truth. Bernard is constantly examining the relationship between the form of a film as a portal between the actual and the imagined. The author in this article makes their points through example and explanation. I believe films as texts are blue prints into the workings of a single directors thought process. Each process can be reverse engineered, and taken into consideration as a means to be creatively reapplied. The difference between filmmakers is the way in which it is reapplied. If this is done correctly the result is often incomparable to the original. This permutation of the original is unrecognizable in its new context. In my opinion it is impossible to skew toward audience expectations and still maintain creative autonomy. Sacrificing creative autonomy means losing something unique to the film’s core. While the benefits of this action may lead to short term success or a “blockbuster” this does not secure a film’s artistic integrity. These films are occasionally discarded over the test of time while the legendary films rarely falter.

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Journal Survey 2

I chose a piece by Brian Dillon titled, "Is F for Fake", of Frieze Magazine. In this article Dillon compares hack doctors to hack artist's. In this article he argues that being true to self in art, makes an artist. Charlatan's can be seen a pretender's in their trade. I have learned through my work to be passionate about what I do, and more importantly be true to myself and to my work. Dillon touches on the spectacle charlatan's create. He expresses charlatan's ability to dupe the public and laugh at their expense. Even if exposed they revel in the spectacle. It is hard to define a charlatan in modern times, often we project our own flaws onto others. One must not use a double standard, though one must also be vigilante in the entertainment they consume.

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Act/React

Interactivity is the most recent form of art. At the Act/React exhibit in Milwaukee there are many examples of this digital art in this digital age. Prominent artists’ know that the audience is a key element in the art experience. Art cannot be without someone to appreciate it, and sometimes the artist’s audience comes long after their death. The artist creates an emotional investment in their piece in which the audience can relate the art to their own life.

Scott Snibbe Deep Walls piece engages the audience in a performance. The artwork itself consists of a projection of grids on the wall, with different silhouette in each. At first glance the viewer may not recognize these anonymous shadows, but shortly after studying the piece they may come to realization that they are staring at different angles of their own shadow. This perplexing way of bringing the audience into the piece is most effective. Not only is the piece a mirror of the audience member’s shadow, but also their own artistic ability.

The second artwork I came across was boundaries. In this piece nothing is visible until two individuals cross the threshold of the art work. As soon as they do a green boundary line always separates them. Multiple individuals can interact with this piece; sometimes causing stranger’s to interact in an attempt to beat the system. The best example of this is when two individuals come into physical contact; this breaks any border lines in between the two.

The next room in the exhibit was Liz Phillips Echo Location room. This room is said to be modeled after mystical gardens that change the individuals while visiting. I immediately recalled Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer’s Nights Dream” in which a forest represents, complete chaos. This room utilizes the same technique bats use to locate food to make art. Several sonic projectors issue clicking bursts of sonic waves, which are then interpreted by the computer as the sound waves bounce off objects. In this case as you move about the room the artwork makes ambient sounds, and lights up neon lights within the room.

Brian Knep’s Healing Pool was intriguing. This artwork spanned the floor much like boundaries; however it consisted of large psychedelic biological blobs that resembled oversize bacteria. When walked over these entities are erased but reform in time. The difference is that they never “heal” in precisely the same way. In this sense it can be said that the viewer leaves their mark on the artwork. Much like the natural environments of today, humans have vast and everlasting effects on everything they come into contact with. Though the earth is very resilient and has the ability to heal, it will always be shifting and changing.

Daniel Rozin’s pieces in the exhibit were of significant interest. Each presented the audience with mirror reflections of themselves, in a way not previously done. One piece used wooden pegs to accomplish this. The pegs themselves became the mirror, changing and shifting like giant pixels to give the viewer a lens to see themselves through. His Snow Mirror was similar in principle, but had a unique effect of is own. This piece was more like a static television; a projected reflection on the wall would depict still moving audience members. These individuals would only become visible as the snow accumulated on them.

Frieze Magazine's Pros and Cons

In Geoff Andrew's article "Pros and Cons", it can be made apparent that the industry's film critics are quickly becoming extinct. Major production companies now find it necessary to pocket film critics in an effort to make greater profits. This is evident throughout American culture. As the production companies attempt to create major blockbuster's with very little artistic substance, they begin to employ film critics as a means of advertisement; rather than an outlet to improve their films. The effect of this campaign results in hollow spectacles and empty plots that are supplemented with special effects and major stars. A perfect example the third installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. This film went into production without a complete script, and became widely accepted as a major success, despite the lack of any kind of plot structure or artistic integrity. It is a clear hollywood sell out, yet it was undeniable successful. Critics are the only individuals that can steer the film industry away from these absurd excuses of films.

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Iverson White

On the weekend of October 5, I took the opportunity to view a screening of Iverson White's most recent short film, "Self Determination". In many ways this film is can be seen to be at the forefront of a paradigm shift in experimental film. The film itself was a character study of a woman driven to the verge of alcoholism as a result of her husband's implied infidelity. Most of the film was driven by acting rather than dialogue, a stylistic choice of the director. This affected the film's structure, leaving the plot open to the abstract interpretation of the audience.

On the topic of performance I feel that this film in many ways transcends Burnett’s “Killer of Sheep”; in the sense that the audience is left to interpret an open ending. Thus the audience themselves take a more active role during the film through their own subjective "spectrum of interpretation". By this I mean the audience’s ability to analyze any art piece, and filter the meaning behind it based on their own preconceived set of morals or experiences. This brings to the piece something that was originally absent: the audiences’ interpretation of the artist’s intention. The audience in a sense becomes a prism through which the art must pass, refracting into an infinite array of possible interpretations, all of which are at the disposal of the viewer’s inherent personality.

The audience is left with to toy with their own ego to determine the outcome of the situation. This active invocation of the audience assumes the audience is not only comprehensive, but can also derive from the film the artist’s original intention. The only aspects of the film that fall into risk would be the misinterpretation of the film, and losing the artist’s intention through translation. In the same way that Burnett’s “Killer of Sheep” evinces an emotional investment within the audience, so to does “Self-Determination”.