Ecstasy in her Garden of Roses

The internet could change next week, and not in a good way

You may have heard about the efforts in Europe to reform copyright law. The debate has been ongoing in the European Parliament for months. If approved next week, these new regulations would require us to automatically filter and block content that you upload without meaningful consideration of your right to free expression. 

We respect the copyrights and trademarks of others, and we take all reports seriously to ensure that your creative expression is protected. We make this clear in our Community Guidelines. There’s already a legal framework that works and is fair: Today we take down posts and media that contain allegedly infringing content when we receive a valid DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) takedown request. We also provide clear-cut ways for people to fight back if they believe their removed content was not a true violation. These instances are monitored and reported and live in our biannual transparency report. 

The suggestion to use automated filters for issues of copyright is short-sighted at best and harmful at worst. Automated filters are unable to determine whether a use should be considered “fair use” under the law and are unable to determine whether a use is authorized by a license agreement. They are unable to distinguish legitimate parody, satire, or even your own personal pictures that could be matched with similar photographs that have been protected by someone else. We don’t believe that technology should replace human judgment. Tumblr is and always has been a place for creative expression, and these new regulations would only make it harder for you to express yourself with the freedom and clarity you do so now. 

If you access Tumblr from Europe and want to act, you can find more information on saveyourinternet.eu. 

Source

Project 4

Project 4; The Artist is Present 

For this project; the artist is present; I chose to use smoking and painting. My idea for this was for the unconscious mind to play a role in the painting, what I did with the cigarette at the end was an impulse decision, which I think turned out pretty cool. I usually never smoke, but for this project I thought it would add a little something. To me most of what I like to draw/paint doesn’t always make sense but sometimes it all comes together. I guess what I am trying to represent is that you can start out messy but in the end figure it out. That it doesn’t always matter where or how you start, as long as the end makes sense. I hope this makes some sense. Does it work?

For my final video I focused on to waste and to smudge. I wanted to show how long it takes to make something look nice and how easy it is to take it away. I used a filter to allow the viewer to not focus on the background and more so on what I was doing. I feel wasteful at the end of the day sometimes, because makeup is expensive and we just wash it down the drain at the end of the day. I did film this multiple times with different color lips, so it truly was a waste to create. I did enjoy smudging the lipstick across my face as it is something I have never intentionally done so it was a first for me. There is something satisfying about doing it too. I have messed up my makeup many times and wished I could just do this instead of trying to not mess up my other face makeup.

I love this because it involves so many different sensory experiences. The noises of every step as the heel breaks through the ground is my favorite part, I also love this because it is so interesting to watch as I eagerly wait for each step.

Project #4

For this performance, I wanted to get across the idea of a struggle. Although this particular kind of struggle is created and suffered by the wearer of the shoes, it is not an easy feat. It is a sort of metaphor for creating your own problems and then trying to live with them as they continuously make it harder to move forward. There is an amount of determination it takes to continue a walk like this through grass with heels on but, if you had just worn flats there wouldn’t be a problem in the first place. I decided to take the 1 minute video and speed it up so that I could play it backward too. If I had done this performance in real life I would have worn a fancy dress to go with the sparkly heels. I would have walked forward for a specific length and then walked backward. The walking backward is supposed to symbolize a backtrack from the struggle back to the beginning so that changes can be made in order for the struggle to be lessened. 

Project #4: To Erase

For my final project I wanted to use mirrors as a form of looking into yourself, in a physical manner but also mentally. The idea is that what you see sometimes is not the real you, because others have instilled this idea in your head of what you should be. To hide the mirror and erase what society has brought upon you (like for this video, make up) and see the real you is something everyone should step back and do once in a while. Even for myself making this, putting on the amount of make up I did is not something I am used to, and I couldn’t wait to take it off to be honest. 

So while the basic idea of this video is that your looks don’t define you, it is more so a point to prove that who you are is what you want to be, whatever can make you smile. There have been a few times in my life where I wanted to erase who I was because of something I wasn’t proud of. Luckily, you can usually erase those moments are still be you inside. Kind of like the idea that everyone has skeletons in the closet/no one is perfect. The point of revealing myself in the mirror bare faced is to express that that is the way I’d prefer to be to the world. The story could mean something else to someone different. This type of example has been shown in many ways and I appreciate that because it helps people see it. 

I wanted to erase what was expected of me and show who I really am. 

Wow! This is mind blowing and so awesome! I think this was a complete success you owned your space and I felt your actions were clear and full of intent. I was listening to this with headphones and the sound was so cool it was crisp but quiet and slowly built up to a massive climax! Really excellent!

Project 4 First, my performance has to do with preparation. From laying, for the most part, the materials I would use within the performance space, to having to utilize them in certain ways and in a certain order. I also wanted to focus on the idea of caring for something fragile. In this case, a piece of tempered glass. Had I just set the glass on the ground or not put cardboard in front of the pallet so that an errant nail or some other debris could impact the glass, the breaking would been an accident. I wanted to meticulously clean the piece of glass. I also deliberately wanted to have to exit the performance space to gather additional materials to be able to clean the piece of glass before the end, to draw on resources outside of the performance space. The end is then about taking steps that completely counteract the preceding actions, as in shattering the glass after having handled it carefully and cleaning it. I would say then that overall the piece is about waste. Wasted time, wasted energy, wasted potential, wasted work. But, I obviously knew while planning, arranging, and staging this performance that what would happen when I hit the glass with the sledgehammer was nearly certain. So, was it a success?

I also thought that was a great point, I feel there is a major emphasis of art from the past, and maybe we should give way more attention to art that is here and now! And it is another great point you make about how performance art can not be replicated it is solely based on the live moment.

Response to Performance: A Hidden History

What I appreciated most about the article “Performance: A Hidden History” by Roselee Goldberg was her continued focus on the fleeting and momentary “ephemerality” of performance art as a discipline. While the time, space, or materials an artist utilizes when “performing” are all central to the construction of meaning(s), of utmost importance is the idea that it cannot be truly replicated, that it is happening live and in the present moment. Indeed, Goldberg explains that even in the origins of “performance art” as we currently know it, from the Italian Futurists pre-World War I, to Dadaists in Zurich leading up to World War II, to artist enclaves of today in cities like New York, the ever-present core of performance art has been the act of creating artwork that is in direct opposition to the very concept of traditional art in museums.

To Scream, To Cry

For my performance artwork I focused on the verbs to scream and to cry. I recorded myself faced against a photo of president Trump behind a tarnished American flag projected on to the wall. I added audio from West Side Story’s America along with audio of immigrant children, who have been separated from their parents at the border, crying. I then Yelled” build that wall” along with a cry of my own, “donde esta el ninos “ English: WHERE ARE THE CHILDREN. I placed several roses in my hair which is often used to portray Mexican heritage in art. I was playing the role of the immigrant mothers and fathers who do not have a voice, who are afraid and desperately wanting to know where their children are. I put the audio of the immigrant children loud because we need to hear them, their voice must be as loud as ours. As the granddaughter of immigrants I feel very passionate about this cause and I hope I can share that passion with you.

This is awesome! I love how you make a chore into art! I also like that you chose to only show your arms which brings more attention to the pairing and music! Very creative!

Project #2 - The Loop

For this second project I chose to continue with the theme that I had started in Exercise #2 of making GIFs out of music videos. I personally really appreciate music videos and enjoy having a connection between the auditory and the visual. Music videos are a form of storytelling that add dimension to music. As an underappreciated form of art, music videos are postmodern in nature. They help bridge the gap between the high end of art production and direction by being available as a low art form to the masses through social platforms such as YouTube.

I have a connection to many music videos, either because of their artistic beauty or emotional response. For this project I chose to capture the moments from many of my favorite music videos that stand out to me every time I watch them. The music videos chosen are either new (Big God) or old (You & Me). I have included three GIFs from FKA Twig’s music videos because of my constant amazement at her artistic talent and vision. Credit is given to each of the original music videos. I aim to encourage a broader appreciation of these musicians - or at least these videos - through these GIFs.

FKA twigs x Nike - Do you believe in more?

Project #2 - The Loop

For this second project I chose to continue with the theme that I had started in Exercise #2 of making GIFs out of music videos. I personally really appreciate music videos and enjoy having a connection between the auditory and the visual. Music videos are a form of storytelling that add dimension to music. As an underappreciated form of art, music videos are postmodern in nature. They help bridge the gap between the high end of art production and direction by being available as a low art form to the masses through social platforms such as YouTube.

I have a connection to many music videos, either because of their artistic beauty or emotional response. For this project I chose to capture the moments from many of my favorite music videos that stand out to me every time I watch them. The music videos chosen are either new (Big God) or old (You & Me). I have included three GIFs from FKA Twig’s music videos because of my constant amazement at her artistic talent and vision. Credit is given to each of the original music videos. I aim to encourage a broader appreciation of these musicians - or at least these videos - through these GIFs.

FKA twigs x Nike - Do you believe in more?

I love these! To chant and shine are my favorite! Really cool and great drawings.

I couldn’t decide on three drawings, so here are a couple extra.  But I am thinking about combining some of these ideas.

Viewing Response 4:

Marina Abramovic took the form to another level with her performance art. She “used the body” and sometimes abused the body to express her meaning or intent. At times her performance were brutal and dangerous. She based a lot on slowing down or express the ugliness of society. Her candidness about her childhood and desire to be free and creative give some important insights about the context of her artwork. I came to understand the she was very deliberate with her art. There were focused intentions and meaning. People tend to react to her art in a visceral way, be it joy, anger, sadness or any other intense emotion. When she performed with Ulay, they conveyed the complicated relationships between male and female. Performance art can convey a variety of themes.

               Marina stuck to performance art through the 70’s and 80’s when it was not seen as “valuable” because she absolutely loved doing it. During the film she said, about living in the van with Ulay, that they did not need electricity or to pay rent, all they wanted to do was perform. Eventually she was met with great success, both critically and financially. Her goal to make performance art a relevant art form was achieved and she only seemed to be more inspired and motivated as time went on.

               I wanted to contemplate some differences between performance art and other types. A difference that struck me, is the lack of control or feeling of helplessness on the part of the view when they view performance art. When someone views a painting or sculpture you can dissect it with your eyes, absorb it in your own way, on your own time, trusting that nothing new will happen before your eyes. Whereas, when viewing performance art, you don’t know what will happen next, how it will affect you or how you might be asked to participate in some way and how that will feel. That might be the reason that some people are not sure what to think or how to feel about this art form.  All of this information and thinking about performance art is helping me to contemplate the message and methods I would like to use for my performance art piece.

I think your drawings are great too! Seriously your teddy bear is awesome! He’s got some attitude!

Line Drawing for 3 verbs. Exercise 4