tone matrix

wonderful tone interface...in flash, of course. be careful, it can really suck you in.

stopmotion inside stopmotion

you may have seen something like this, but this is a particularly nice example:

A Pet Unlike Any Other: the Work of Vaughn Bell

Since the beginning of art nature has been an important part, whether as the main focus in landscapes or a pretty backdrop. Then in the '70's and '80's environmental concerns increased, which were reflected in some art.

Now in 2009 this call for environmental awareness has been changed into a cry for help with the dramatic declines we have seen and predicted disaster that will be our world.

Which brings us to Vaughn Bell.

Vaughn Bell is part of a movement to raise environmental awareness to the public. This picture shows one of his works called Personal Forest Floor (Portable Mountain). Very simply, each object consists of a base, which is filled with different soils and plants, four wheels, and a leash. These can be purchased and are meant to give the owner personal responsibility for their environment much like a pet.

This concept is interesting because it does poke a little fun at environmentalists but it also is meant to show people how each individual is responsible for the health of the Earth, not just certain groups or people. Unlike the other posts I've talked about, where the audience was vast, this piece tries to connect with the individual. I think it is more effective in this way because without that connection on a personal level, I mean by relating some grass to a pet, the average Joe is not going to change any habits in order to help the environment. Also, this technique really brings in a viewer because it is like the artist is trying to speak directly to you individually, whereas now it is about reaching as many people as you possibly can. In that sense this borrows from older art techniques where there was a more personal level between the artist and the viewer.

I chose this particular artist not because of the direct relation with our class but to remind myself (and maybe others) that yes technology is important and great but there are other things that need to be included, such as the future of our planet. It also gives a direction that maybe one would not normally think about including in their works.

Little Red Riding Hood, a new illustration.

Slagsmålsklubben - Sponsored by destiny from Tomas Nilsson on Vimeo.

G.E's funky Flash camera & mic trick

I'll show this in class tomorrow, but you might want to try it out yourself too.

Fun with Flash's camera, microphone and a little 3D trickery.

G.E.'s SmartGrid site

Op-Video: Sex, Lies and Photoshop (NYTimes video)

Why magazines should let readers know if images have been retouched.

Portrait of an Artist as an Avatar - Filthy Fluno - NYTimes.com

How a struggling Boston painter finally found success through his alter ego -- a hip, virtual-world art-scene maker.

Article - NYTimes.com.

Experience - Nikki Chung

"The number of pages in each book corresponds to the number of tourist arrivals in that country in 2005. When viewed on a shelf, one year's worth of 'experience' is presented in a condensed physical model that can be shifted and rearranged to visualize where tourists travel and where they don't." - via nikkichung.com

TimeSpace: World

"TimeSpace is an interactive map that allows you to navigate articles, photos, video and commentary from around the globe."-washingtonpost.com

A Year in a Cage: A Life Shrunk to Expand Art

This form was extreme deprivation. For “Cage Piece” Mr. Hsieh deprived himself of nearly all contact with the world. In the next four pieces he eliminated, in succession, concentration, shelter, privacy and finally art itself. In each case he altered the nature of time radically for himself and, retrospectively, us. (NYTimes)

Project So Far (Shannon)

Here is the link.

http://students.smcm.edu/snslaughter/Art314/workInProgress.html

In progress project

http://students.smcm.edu/tmbrown/firstprojectpage1.swf

Text Project 1

http://students.smcm.edu/mndisque/work%2009/puzzle.html

Monika's puzzle project. Still working out the kinks.....

Tina's Project so far

In progress project, coding still messed up.

Do We Need a New Internet?

The Internet’s original designers never foresaw that the academic and military research network they created would one day bear the burden of carrying all the world’s communications and commerce.

via NYTimes

Being There - The Subtle Art of the Facebook Comment

People point out that there’s a significant sleight-of-hand in every status update, because the real answer to “What are you doing right now?” is always just “Updating my status.”

artist - #2

Olia Lialina - My Boyfriend Came Back From the War

I was reminded by this piece by the work that we have been doing in Adobe Flash. Created in 1996, this artwork is an early example of the use of hypertext and html coding. Lialina creates an animated story in which the viewer has control of the "shape taken on by the artwork. The animations and storyline change based on decisions by the viewer. This is another example of an artist working in a conscious effort to actively involve the viewer.
I find this piece interesting, as we move into using Flash to create artwork that are effected by the viewer. The artist must keep an open mind, and consider all the many ways that a piece should act based on viewer interactions. Creating interactive work can be quite daunting and complicated, as the artist must find that balance between personal artistic vision and audience interaction.

glocal.

The Glocal Project is a collaborative, multifaceted artist-led project that examines the changing role of digital image making today.

Rubens' Tube: Real Life Sound Visualization with Fire and Propane

geeky and pretty damn fun

a mirror with a memory

Errol Morris interviews Vincent Amalvy of the Agence France-Press on the photographic legacy of Bush

a mirror with a memory

Errol Morris interviews Vincent Amalvy of the Agence France-Press on the photographic legacy of Bush

a mirror with a memory

Errol Morris interviews Vincent Amalvy of the Agence France-Press on the photographic legacy of Bush

President Obama Inauguration: Captured in a Single Navigable Photo

Photosynth, the innovative Microsoft Live Labs application that was explained in a few online talks a while ago, shows off its spectacular capability of creating 3D navigable spaces from hundreds and thousands of 2D photos by capturing the exact moment of inauguration at CNN. One can relive this event by browsing from way back in the crowds, over to the very first row, to even right behind Barack Obama. If only that guy just one 1 meter away with the silver digital camera would submit his pictures... [via information aesthetics]

Sample Artist Post

Here's a sample artist post. I'll insert an image here.

hello there!

this is our class blog. i'll be using this to post stuff for class, and to link to your individual blogs.