Evolving Tools/The Politics of Production

change!

2006-10-05T12:25:00.000-04:00

new meeting place for today: tech center video editting room (back right-hand corner behind the main dell computer lab)

2006-10-05T11:13:00.000-04:00

here's a video that shows the use of rotoscoping. this is a new form of filmmaking used in movies like waking life, a scanner darkly and also in charles schwab commercials.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gu2NlVmzi40

this video shows a new form of art made by new media tools like photoshop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYMRepK_aqw

late for meeting

2006-10-05T04:46:00.000-04:00

i work til 11 on thursday morning. i will catch the earliest train i can after work. i found some videos relating to the new forms of digital art and new filming techniques that i think will help our presentation a lot. i am having trouble posting them to the blog, but i will work on it more when we meet.

chris

2006-10-05T04:32:00.000-04:00

- Loss of Aura: relating to audience, time and space, alienation

- Reproduction: Availability to the masses, experience, quality, originality

- Re-Creation: New unique experiences, evolution of tools, shifting focus, website and video

- Perception: POVs, technology changes, politics/history

- Pop Culture: Art everywhere, posters, abundance

- Technology Role: Control of tools, social and economic issues, no barriers, blurs time and space (new media)

[ill see you tomorrow around 1045-11 in the tech center. i changed the look of our blog for our presentation. hope it's good!]

2006-10-05T01:04:00.000-04:00

- Camera isn't just a camera
- Film isn't just film
-These tools bring new way of thinking about expression
-Tools create new social ties
-Ordinary people are glorified
-Stars admired in new levels of intamacy
-Stars remind us of people we know, would like to know, or would like to be like
-Change in the beauty of politics brings war
-Change beauty of orginal you destroy it
-Destruction brings out new meanings

yeah

2006-10-05T00:28:00.000-04:00

sounds good. im sure that is something we can come up with for tomorrow when we meet. by the way... these posts lately are taking a REALLY long time to show up on the actual blog. so if we do post something, i hope it starts showing up a little faster by tomorrow.

2006-10-04T19:55:00.000-04:00

i think it may be a good idea to post an outline on what you are planning to present

meeting

2006-10-04T12:59:00.000-04:00

Let's all meet tomorrow morning sometime between 10:30 and 11AM to put final touches on everything. Meet at the tech center - Apple Internet lounge (where we met last time). See you then.

links

2006-10-04T12:43:00.000-04:00

http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpls/abs_all.jsp?arnumber=1435624
http://www.cybertherapy.info/ves%20in%20clinical%20psycho/Green.doc.pdf

expansions

2006-10-03T20:22:00.001-04:00

Guidelines
-Making painting and the atmosphere relative to aura
-Where the painting resides and its relationship to initial and secondary atmospheres
-Changes through photo-shop manipulation and alternative auras
-Show how the manipulation of images and composition can change ones view on the world

A Mind of Tools
Once the tools are introduced we become the product of their perception we no longer need to stay in one point of view when we can inherit those of a heightened symbolism of manipulated images correlating to current, previous, or futuristic media. For example, A Filmmaker decides to portray an object or atmosphere in order to communicate an intensified message or feeling.
In a sense as we watch movies and look at art we adopt the artist view as our own. We don’t see that object in our lives as what it means to us, but as it relates to the more symbolic and more interesting depiction of the director. Only when we return to our true, sometimes bland, view will we realize our own meanings and relationship with the world.

Juxtaposed
Close ups to long-shots, black and white to color, cult to popular, they all change our perceptions. The tools of photograph and film have done so for nearly a century. We break new boarders every day. The development of tools and ability to manipulate images has brought many new auras and left the past to define a classic culture. In The past few decades a electronic web of connection has evolved in the networking of computes worldwide. In processes of a neo-techno race in development we may see a cycle of overly inappropriate techniques used to communicate obsessive one-sided views. However they may inspire something new on the opposing side which is bound to exist. Trial and error, understanding and beneficial application are thing that cannot be ignored in this growth. Virtually connected, we exist in many realms of opinion and inspiration, privileged with ability to benefit communication…. or distort it.

Electronic Roots
If we have the original object of focus or the initial life source by our side we will know what the manipulated new aura constitutes in comparison. Once we loose the origin the new becomes the standard but with out the original the conclusions and interpretations are no longer generated from the source that we held in our hands. We lose the feeling and replace them with ideas just as a film actor is lost from his interaction with the audience. Ideas away from origin lack feeling and can be evasive, even self-destructive. In the case of internet and the high rate of manipulated sources and material that one can fill their mind with in only a few hours one can-create a freedom of free thinking boarder-lining brainwash that has the extreme characteristics and addictive properties. Answering and developing new paths of thought we should ground ourselves. Somehow it seems, maybe with the presence of that original object or life source. If we do so then we can make the right choices and use the privileges of conceptual tools to benefit from the core/roots of our ideas as well as push certain boundaries out in the right direction and pull back the ones that stray.

2006-10-03T19:01:00.000-04:00

If anyone wants to meet tomorrow I dont have class until 4 so i could do it anytime earlier in the day.

2006-10-03T17:01:00.000-04:00

i sent out an email. let me know if you guys got it.

2006-10-02T15:23:00.000-04:00

The ability to edit and recreate photos has evolved greatly over the years. There have been numerous examples of photos that have come out that question the integrity and honesty of the artist/photographer and whether the iamge is credible. How "real" can a photo be,? The camera lens doesn't lie; or so it is said. But what about the photographer and the technology?

revolutions

2006-10-02T11:37:00.000-04:00

This notion that a camera is not just a camera. The camera is an evolved to tool with great new possibilities. In comparison with paint one is limited to the amout of variation that can be played with, whereas the camera not only introduces a new tool but also introduces different ways to use the tool. The camera also introduces new methods of thinking about what to do with the images that are being captured. The camera functions as memory box, where the images can be controlled, manipulated, a distorted in endless form. This has revolutionized the way people view images. Capturing images with cameras and film allows for a more meticulous view of the image. The lens magnifies what may not be seen with the naked eye. Just this concept alone brings about new mothods and thinking for how one captures images, in color or black and white, magnified or out of fucus. These different ways to capture the image produce a new way to control the image. One doesn't have to be an incredible artist to produce art. They can exhibit images the way they want to.

cool video

2006-09-28T23:02:00.000-04:00

this is a really cool video of digital painting. check it out! it shows exactly how past art forms and tools are evolving and merging into today's new media (to the extreme).

URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-IlwqXi1MU

Two conflicting types of art

2006-09-28T18:47:00.000-04:00

we could build upon the ideas of the cult value and exhibition values of art.
ex: the indie movie vs. the hollywood blockbuster

Live Reproduction

2006-09-28T18:32:00.000-04:00

So... a group of people in Austria are actually repainting famous paintings by well-known authors for anyone to purchase. They can make these replicas look exactly like the original; even giving it an old and aged look if you want. Check it out. Pics included.

http://www.topofart.com/

presentation ideas

2006-09-28T18:23:00.000-04:00

we can actually make examples of what an "aura " is, using a person or an object, present the object for the class, this way they can see the piece and exerience the "aura" that it has
Then take a picture of that object exemplifying that the reproduction doesn't have that same "aura", encompasing the time and space.
Then using the tools of photoshop to alter the copy and show changes that we may now make that the naked eye is incapble of doing

Art in the Age

2006-09-28T18:16:00.000-04:00

found this in a newsletter from "Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" www.artintheage.com

just general info about art today:

"We live in an age where it is now possible for art to meet the public more then halfway. One person can view art on their own time and on their own terms. Mechanical Reproduction has successfully freed art from its historically ritualistic functions, allowing what used to be a mass public experience, for instance the viewing of an original painting in an art gallery, to become a private and unique experience, akin to looking at an artwork in reproduction out of a book in the privacy of your own home while eating your breakfast Cheerios. It is possible for good, thought-provoking and insightful art to be everywhere; on a billboard, an article of clothing, or even a pencil. The same piece of art can be several places at once, simultaneously and democratically appealing to several different social and economic classes of people.

Having been given this new freedom in reproduction, it is still true that quantity in art does not equal quality in art, quality equals quality. It is true that a work of art does not have to be unique or authentic to be "good" but an artwork still has to held to the same high level of criticism no matter how many times it is reproduced. In other words it has become necessary for a company that makes products and respects highly original and thought-provoking works of art to realize the potential that art has to become widespread."

Effects of Developing

2006-09-28T17:52:00.000-04:00

-Ties between art & news relative to development of tools

-Network connection of art, spreads inevitable overtaking of pop-culture in contemporary art once it is filtered trough the universal connection

-Takes it out of original aura and displaces the artwork from it creator
If the art defines itself well enough and is not manipulated it may hold true to its original felling and intensions.

-Once the media is placed into its unfamiliar context it may prove to work on new levels and fail in others.

-The blend of time and space has definitely opened new windows and is creating experiments and tests of new auras constantly. ONce ne aura is changed or distorded a new one is created. however the roots and essence may be lost in this transformation. I believe as we develope more tools users should have the right to experiement but be sure to keep judgemnt about the new aura the may be developing and is place and effects on society.

-In a sense we may loose appreciation by inability to stand in a museum and feel the true presence of a painting or sculpture. At the same time we are granted the opportunity to search numerous things at once and have infinite combinations of comparisons to base critique enjoyment, relativity, likes, dislikes, agreement and dis-agreement with the information and media experiences. This benefits in the way that we are not in real time anymore we have access to the ever growing universe of the network. However in this we may loose the real time experiences that truly relate us to the works of art, those which focus on the core and humanity of nature and the process. We should yield to become to fast for our own good, for once our nature is consumed by the tools themselves we become no more than the box itself and relative construction and future directions of development may show signs of a loss of aura as Walter Bejamine spoke of in his essay "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical reproduction."

- We see the growth of pop culture becoming part of every thing in life. But the aura before the pop influence should be recognized as just, more so, the most important to recognize it social effects and place in the media world.
Even so as our youth comes into a world of tools there seems to be two sides of their earlier and earlier introduction to the possibilities of creation and connection. A new aura is set with each generation and with the unavoidable community of shared work then comes the open opportunity for everyone to inspire, critique rebel, and overall, react, to one another. WE are creating not only new auras for art work and comm. but new eras. As our parents may carry the hints of previous experiences and origins we carry our own in to this electronically privileged era and keep or origins that for outside the computer as a basis for our responsibilities inside the computer and across the sea of endless connections.

-As our youth comes into a world of tools there seems to be two sides of their earlier and earlier introduction to the possibilities of creation and connection. A new aura is set with each generation and with the unavoidable community of shared work then comes the open opportunity for everyone to inspire, critique rebel, and overall, react, to one another. WE are creating not only new auras for art work and comm. but new eras. As our parents may carry the hints of previous experiences and origins we carry our own in to this electronically privileged era and keep or origins that for outside the computer as a basis for our responsibilities inside the computer and across the sea of endless connections

-The computers hypnotic properties can be used to zone ones attention into another dimension. Some find solace in the screen. This can benefit attention of children but also divert them from their normal interaction with other children.

-Ideas shifting realms of existence may confuse people who were immediately raised on it. It may fill them with programs and in formation while it depletes real life experiences and physic contact

getting started

2006-09-28T17:51:00.000-04:00

ok, Has anyone finished the reading yet, it is very intensive. I am almost through it.
anyhow I think it is important to start listing some of our ideas on this BLOG.
I think a key topic sould be that of this idea of the "aura" and how we lose that aura through the mass reproduction of images and reality.
I find this to be true, but in this process of reproduction I think that something else is then created. This is something we can develop a bit further.
Another good idea is actually going through some of the progression of the "tools"
for example, wood carving, engraviings, simple etching tools, to lithograph, press, photography, etc.

Also something I found very important was the idea that drury brought to my attention which was, that a tool like a camera is not just a camera, this tool the camera has changed the way we view images, how we would like to depict these images, and so on

Will someone post their thoughts,

Our Website

2006-09-28T13:53:00.000-04:00

Here is a very basic form of our group site. Let me know what you guys want to see and I'll try to get it running by thursday. Again, this is just a basic format so we can still make it look however we want.

http://astro.temple.edu/~tua07243

Some ideas

2006-09-26T01:47:00.000-04:00

I hope I am going in the right direction with this post, but I'm really not sure at this point. After reading the questions supplied for our central focus, I have found some ideas on technology and culture from San Jose University's website. I'm sure we can find a lot of other useful info online with this site as well as others to go along with the rather lengthy reading we have for our group. There is just so much information to take in with that Walter Benjamin reading that it's going to need a few days worth of attention to really understand everything it covers. Are we supposed to supply some history of new media tools or just discuss how they have evolved up to today's standards or ideals? Or neither? Politics? Slightly confused.... anyway, here is what I found. Hope it fits somehow into what we are trying to find.

"New media technology brings up important social and economic issues. Our notion of reality is based on what we know, and most of what we know comes from some form of media. This media could be television, print, radio, the Internet, and so on. As new media technology removes many of the barriers encountered in traditional media, we are exposed to more information. As an example, in a span of just over 50 years, the public perception of war has changed due to the amount, the realness, and the immediacy of the information communicated. During World War II, newsreel footage in theaters was the primary visual source of information on the war. The content was delayed due to the production and distribution time required, and it was shown in a specific context, the movie theater. During the Vietnam conflict, the emergence of satellite technology made video tape footage available nightly in living rooms across the country. Our access to more detailed, more realistic, and more timely information had a cultural impact in how Americans reacted to this war.

Recently in Kosovo, coverage was real-time and available through multiple media. Lacking production delays of the past, the content was even less controlled or edited. Coverage was utilized by the public and governmental and international relief organizations, to promote the government’s position, to inform the citizenry, and to move people to contribute to humanitarian aid for the refugees so graphically portrayed on television.

Twenty years ago this type of coverage shocked, then it was accepted, and now it is expected. And today, communication purposes are more integrated. The technology changes how the stories are told and increases the breadth of information.

New media technology blurs time and space, geographic and cultural distances, and it pushes us into a global communication environment. This in turn changes societies, economics, and the audience of mass media.

The media and the messages they communicate are evolving. It seems clear that the people who work in media must understand and also incorporate the changes."

more to come...

Walter Benjamin: The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

2006-09-21T07:53:00.001-04:00

This group is starting their exploration of media tools and their impact on culture by reading "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" by Walter Benjamin. This essay can be found at: http://bid.berkeley.edu/bidclass/readings/benjamin.html