Project 5: Word on the Street

For this project I thought it would be interesting to post my texts on stop signs in order to focus on everyday places that often get over looked. While everyone knows what a stop sign looks like and means, we often don’t even notice them when driving and our sub conscious just recognizes the red octagon as a symbol to stop our cars. By taking postage stickers and writing simple texts on them to encourage cautious driving, my hope would be that people stop and actually read what it says instead of just driving by. I also thought it would be interesting because it makes the actual sign, where the art is posted part of the message. For example, “stop texting and driving”. I have always been fan of graffiti art and I have many books that showcase graffiti artists work on postage stickers which is why I went this rout instead of just printing out paper and taping it up. I don’t consider it vandalism though because the sign is not ruined and it will eventually deteriorate into nothing. The only thing I would maybe do differently is try to find a larger postage sticker in order to make the text bigger. 

Jenny Holzer interview

After reading this interview, I thought it was pretty interesting to hear about Jenny Holzer’s transition from being a painter to using words for her artwork. I think the first line is arguably the most valuable as she states that she wanted to create content that regular people would be able to understand and relate to. I think the broader of an audience your work appeals to, the more exposure you will receive and the more people you will reach overall. One thing that I found really interesting is when she said that war protest is not as common in art today and that it is more of comedians that are speaking out against war than artists and musicians. I think her artwork consisting of de-classified government documents is a unique approach to protesting current issues. Despite being declassified, I am sure that not everyone knows about these things until they discover Holzer’s work.

           I also like how Holzer worked closely with other writers and poets and implemented their work into her own. I think collaboration is a big part of making any great work whether it is art or something else. Reading about Holzer’s success collaborating with other artists and writers was definitely inspiring.

Robert Montgomery Interview

I liked this interview with Robert Montgomery a lot too. I like how he has such a strong connection to the graffiti world. I think graffiti art is predominantly based on using words and I like that Montgomery has such an admiration for that side of the art world along with the art shows he has done. I also found it interesting that he has a connection to the fashion world. I don’t know anything about fashion but I thought it was cool how that particular designer had one of his pieces in his shop. The font and the LED lights run off solar power made it stand out and I imagine it would look really cool in the dark once the lights were illuminated.  I also liked his stance on religion and questioning the norms of religion. There are so many ironic relationships between religion and politics these days and I like how Montgomery is aware of this. I think his most valuable advice is when he says the street and the internet are the two most impactful ways of showing his art. I agree with this because similar to the other interview with Jenny Holzer, who wanted to make art for regular people, the street and the internet are the two best ways to reach the general population. Not art shows and galleries, that only exposes your work to the art world.

I liked this one a lot. Even though the act was simple (walking up stairs) it was very interesting visually. The effect made it look like a kaleidoscope  and I also like how you made it black and white. Really cool!

Project 4:

I struggled coming up with an idea for performance art that would be something interesting. I though about my daily routines and all the steps I take, so I decided to choose my path most travelled. 4 out my 5 classes are in Plaza, and besides work I spend most of my time either thinking about my education or being physically present in class. I chose to act out my daily steps where I always wonder how I look walking up and down the stairs because they are so awkwardly spaced. They’re too long to do an average step, but too short to fit in two steps. So enjoy my representation of my awkward daily trots up and down the Plaza stairs. 

I liked the concept of this one. While new technology is great and has afforded us many luxuries, I also agree that it is unhealthy to be so addicted to our phones and other devices. I liked how you tackled this issue with this project. 

Artist Statement:

This was really cool to see the process involved with this type of tattooing. I liked how you sped it up to show the entire duration of the tattoo. Also, the clip of you showing it off on your middle finger at the end was great!

Performance Art 4D Project: My Stick and Poke Tattooing Experience

I thought this one was very creative. It would have been interesting to show some of the peoples reactions but not everyone wants to be filmed.

Project #4: Performance Art Climbing Art

@williamlmoore

I like your idea of destroying your art for this performance piece. I agree that sometimes destroying something and starting over is healthy and can clear your mind. With art projects I have done in the past, I have definitely done this. 

DESTROY YOUR ARTttttttt

It was brave to do something so personal and share it with everyone. I am sorry to hear about your struggles with this disorder but this performance piece is very informative and eye opening. Like you said it is often quite and insidious and therefor might not get the attention it deserves.  

1 minute performance piece– “how many calories in an apple” 

I knew I wanted to make a performance piece documenting my daily struggles with eating disorders. I originally wanted to make a short performance documenting a scale or lots of food, but for my own mental health sake, and for accuracy’s sake I decided to make one more unassuming. This piece shows how eating disorder habits sneak in from the moment you wake up in the morning– here I am shown eating my breakfast of coffee and a cut up apple, worrying about how many calories are in the apple. You see me go to my phone to log the apple I’ve eaten in a calorie-tracker app. This is the reality of many eating disordered people living on their own, it isn’t always loud and scary (although it can be), it’s often quiet and insidious. 

@williamlmoore

I thought this one was really cool and it looked very satisfying to do. I liked how you used a variety of fruits and weapons to destroy them. Nice idea!

Performance Art Project

I chose to destroy fruit for my performance piece. All the weapons I used were my own. The katana sliced through everything like butter. The throwing knives and bow and arrow slid through the fruit’s skin with no resistance. The aspect of this performance that I knew would receive criticism is the amount of food waste that was produced. I think this brings up a commentary about how readily available food is in america and how quick we are to throw away a half eaten sandwich or how we forget about food in refrigerators for so long that it spoils. I garden vegetables during the summer and do my best to add to a sustainable way of living… by the way all the fruit I demolished was placed in my compost pile. :)

The artist is present-project 4

I had a hard time figuring out what I was going to do for this one but I eventually decided to go with this clip of myself balancing on a railroad track. I live in a small town with two railroad tracks running through it, so it was a reflection of where I am from in a way. I have always been fascinated by the way giant, heavy trains can travel such long distances and so fast while staying on two narrow strips of metal.  The act of walking along and balancing on a railroad track is a playful thing I used to do as a kid and I forgot how hard it actually is. Anyone who has ever walked along a railroad track has surely tried this as well and in that regard it is something that the viewers can connect with. The terms play, risk, and failure in the theme category on the project description are evident in this project as it is a playful act, and there is also risk of losing balance and falling off of the track which would result in failure. I chose the banjo music because it seemed upbeat and playful. 

           Balance is an important aspect of life as there will always be highs and lows. We strive for balance between our professional and personal lives and maintaining that balance is an important part of happiness. Overall I wanted to do something simple for this project and I chose to do this because it brought me back to my childhood, and it showed balance, which is something I am constantly striving for.  

module 4 exercise

1.To run

2.To write

3.To eat

4.To balance

5.To stare

6.To jump

7.To juggle

8.To curse

9.To type

10.To punch

11.To read

12.To rage

13.To beg

14.To feed

15.To breathe

16. To shuffle

17. To drink

18. To strengthen

19. To carve

20. To doodle

The artist is present reading/documentary response

reading

I found the reading by Roselee Goldberg to be pretty interesting. I am not very familiar with performance art and therefore, it was very informative. I found it interesting that she said many of the constructivists, dadaists, and surrealists tested their ideas in performance art before turning them into traditional mediums of art. I also thought it was interesting how she states that the history of performance art is complicated because it is ephemeral. In the documentary, Marina Abromovic The Artist is present, they also touched on this issue. One of Marina’s assistants or curators stated that with every performance she did they took one photograph to represent that piece and then they would sell the photographs. 

The documentary

I thought this documentary was very interesting. Unlike the reading, that talked about the origins of performance art and the history of performance in other art movements, this documentary focused on one artist who is seen as a leading figure in modern performance art. Marina is obviously very passionate about performance art and even said in the beginning she hates art studios with a passion and lives for that connection with her audience. I liked when she said that performance art has never been considered a real art form and that she wants it to be respected before she dies. After her exhibit at the museum of modern art, I think she can be assured that people will respect performance art as a real art form. I was amazed how many people were willing to stand in line all day, some people for days just in order to sit across from her and look into her eyes for a brief moment. She is clearly very dedicated to her work because she sat in the same chair for months, without moving, and staring at all of the spectators who wished to sit across from her. I thought it was crazy how her ex-boyfriend talked about doing the same thing early on in their careers while also fasting. Eventually, this was detrimental to his health and he had to stop. At her show at MoMA, Marina would not even listen to her assistant when he suggested that she could cut the exhibit short after she was feeling chronic pain. I get antsy after sitting in a classroom chair for an hour so I can’t even imagine the discipline she has in order to do this for hours on end, months in a row. It’s Crazy!

I thought the slow motion footage was really entertaining in this video. The quality is amazing and the colors are very vibrant! 

I had a hard time thinking of ideas on what to base this project around. Lucky for me, one of my favorite youtubers, The Slow Mo Guys, posted a video of them blowing up powder paint with airbags. I thought it totally encapsulated the theme of the project, so I went with that. I took clips from two of their videos and cut theme together, played with the speed and tried to time portions of it to the song I selected. Which was the Cowboy Bebop theme, because I am anime trash and thought it would be a good fit. They used lots of different vibrant colors in the video that are really saturated and nice to look at. Here are the main sources of the videos and song.

25 Airbag Rainbow Explosion in 4K - The Slow Mo Guys

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vUgGSLTtOg

Airbag Explosion in 4K - The Slow Mo Guys

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5ls-rAcaHs

Tank! - Yoko Kanno Performed by: The Seatbelts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-tMbLYGbvY

The drone footage of the fourth of July is really cool. Its amazing to see all of the different fireworks shows from above and I liked how you used your own footage for this project. The Canadian national anthem for background music is also a nice touch!

4D Video Art Project 

Vanishing and Becoming

This is original drone footage taken in my neighborhood last 4th of July. I liked the idea of using the fireworks as something fleeting and impermanent yet beautiful and lasting. I layered/blended some of the shots to add noise in the more tame sequences. The song is the Canadian National Anthem. :p

I liked this one a lot. The video clips showed a variety of vibrant colors and the song flowed very well with the video. Well done!

“Vanishing and Becoming”

For this project, I decided to use a massive storm front to illustrate the effects of color and light in a natural environment. This was one of the most natural forms of color I could think of. As far as lighting, I figured the vanishing and reappearing of lightening would be ideal for this project. I am from the Mid-West where storms come as a typical spring afternoon. Growing up, I have always loved storms; the quick and drastic darkening of the once clear-blue sky, the loud and jarring boom of the thunder, the melodic drips of the rain against the concrete, the starting flashes of lighting that cut across the world, I could go on. I feel like I can count on one hand the amount of thunder storms that have taken place in Colorado since I moved here 2 years ago. I miss these beautiful disasters!