Chatting contraption

I know class is over, but I think this is pretty cool.


Its a project by Aram Bartholl that features a keyboard, translucent text bubble, and a projector. The result is visualized texting, check the video out.

Jeremy Blake

I was recently introduced to the work of recently deceased video artist Jeremy Blake, who "made paintings move"

This is a very beautiful video he actually created for a Beck music video.

Vegetable Orchestra

This is very cool and creative.

20000 Stuffed Animals Thrown On The Ice At Once

This is fun to watch, without a doubt. Quite a site.

Portland Winter Hawks fans threw a world record 20,372 stuffed animals on the ice after what they thought was their team's first goal of the season. A goal which officials later disallowed.

Cyborg Manifesto anyone?

Here is what must apparently be an ad for HP.
It's quire surreal, and more than a tad disturbing, but also very slick and creative. It reminds me quite a bit of the Cyborg Manifesto.

Book covers: 2007

I recently started reading this blog "Book Design Review" by Joseph Sullivan. This doesn't entirely relate to the class, but I'm obsessed with print design and thought this recent post listing solid covers from 2007 was worth a read.

Oh man, this video is beautiful

Cool typographic video

Animal Photomanipulations

These are really cool photomanipulations of animals, that we are totally capable of doing, possibly even as videos

.

Michel Gondry "da cribbage"

Cremation Ashes at Disneyland

"There's an epidemic of covert (human) ash-scattering at Disneyland, a practice that has spread from the Haunted Mansion to the Pirates of the Caribbean. The scatterers generally get away clean, and the human remains are subsequently cleaned away by special janitors who are charged with keeping the Park in compliance with health rules about containing particulate matter......."

Read on into the wierdness of this. Kinda artsy though. People...you have to love what we do.

http://www.boingboing.net/2007/11/13/cremation-ashes-at-d.html

The Knife--You Take My Breath Away

I've always loved this song and video. I've been meaning to show a high quality version in class but haven't ever gotten around to it, so thought I'd post it here.
I like all of the "goods" spinning out towards me. It's a sort of ordered chaos that works. I only wish the quality of the online video version were better.

The coolest iPod ever

I don't own an iPod, but if I did, it would be this baby. Broken apart and encased in resin, the machine still plays music. Not overly mobile, but it would take a prominent spot on my coffee table. [Full article, Gizmodo]

puncher

Laser Graff

I don't really know how this works. But if its as simple as a projector and a laser, we should really try it.

White Space

A very eerie and otherworldly video, it uses minimal elements and only 2 colors to create a dramatic and engaging space.

The element of surprise

Leo Espinosa Article

This is hot.

For 4-7 grand you can get an impeccable 6-pack etched into your skin. It should be fun/morbidly confusing when I'm older to compliment my man-boobs with a rippled stomach. Read the WSJ article below for details on the procedure.

Full article here

Daft Punk's Electroma

This video is amazing. It deals with identity, self-creation, and self-destruction. It's made by Daft Punk apparently, but it has a visual style reminiscent of Stanley Kubric - long shots and impeccable use of color and composition, and has a very serious, emotional quality that is impressive for a film driven by "faceless" robots. Its a little over an hour, but if you have the time, I strongly suggst you watch the whole thing.

Performa 07

A very cool NYtimes slideshow (with side commentary) from Performa 07 in NYC. Christian Jankowski--the guy who did the Karaoke piece--is one of the participants here--having arranged a series of coordinated hula hoopers on the neighboring rooftops of the area where he lives. Be sure to check these cool pics and comments.

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2007/11/08/arts/1109-PERF_index.html

Youtube goes to 1GB!

Youtube now allows 1GB uploads, up from their previous 100MB standard. Still a 10-min maximum, but it should allow for much higher quality videos.

JENKEM ?!?!?!?!

Alright people...somebody please tell me if this is a hoax or what. I'm halfway believing this is real, but do feel free to set me straight. If it's fake, it's still pretty hilarious and creatively described. Enjoy some Jenkem....which is also referred to--apparently--in slang as: Winnie, Might, Butthash, Runners, and Waste.

Voyeuristic apartments

Full article here.

As we talked about in class and as the article mentions, this concept's parallel with facebook is strong. Read the full article to see how the designers also implement voyeurism within the space, making the bedroom clearly visible from the bathroom, as well as an opaque shower.

Photo series: creatures

Photo series here.

In line with today's photo series assignment, I thought these images by Andrew Zuckerman were really cool. Its obviously a little more high-production than we will be doing, with the professional white photoshoot background. But the general theme of taking an idea: natural animals displayed as otherworldly creatures, and then executing it with various forms, is similar. I'm excited to see what we can do with this project.

Recycled robots

Full article here.

Ann Smith takes found electronic scraps and sculpts them into robots. She goes an extra step by animating them in stop-animation movies. The found element is cool, taking scraps and making it into a new whole. Very frankenstein. I wish that instead of animating them with stop-motion, that when she reconfigured them they were actually mechanically constructed to move. That level of engineering may have been a little beyond the artist, but thats where I see this being the most powerful: collecting "dead" pieces and making them into a new "alive" whole through the seemingly inorganic medium of electronics.

Interactive Arcade Fire

My roommate just pointed me to this amazing music video my the Arcade Fire, in which you can interact with the video itself. This isanother great example of the possibilities of viewer interaction.

http://beonlineb.com/click_around.html

other worldly, and loving it!

I felt like this piece was very interesting. The thought of skating through balloons is a fun thought, bringing back childhood nostalgia when a balloon could make our day, not that much has changed. At first I thought the idea was just really intriguing, but after watching it play, I started to see other worldly properties start to emerge. the movement of the balloons was very fluid and something almost alive about them. I also believe that the color choice was important for the piece. What would it have been like if all the balloons were red?

And sometimes

Interactive texting

The following are a couple videos of shows where texting was implemented as a way for viewers to interact with art. The first video features a youthful character projected onto an urban landscape. The character has a text bubble which is filled with words that are provided by viewers. The second video has a similar premise, except for the viewer's chosen words are displayed in uniquely crafted graffiti. I found these examples in this article.





This affected me personally because I'm tired of making static webpages that offer no real opportunity for public interaction. I don't have the skills to do that right now, but damn, the concept of getting others to actively become apart of your work...that's good stuff. I think the music is really effective. I literally let out a sigh of relief during the first video when the line "TGIF" came up and the music corresponds with an understanding tone. I'm just in that kind of mood, I guess. It's late, I'm going to bed. Have fun making your videos this weekend, guys.

Apple turns student video into new ad

Eighteen year old University of Leeds student Nick Haley loved his iPod Touch so much that he made a video about it using Final Cut Pro. The NYTimes reports that after uploading it to YouTube he was contacted by Apple about coming to California and helping produce his work into their new ad for the product. I'm not saying that commercial success is the standard for quality of work, but isn't it kind of exciting to see a kid our age, making art like us, using the same tools as us, and then getting major recognition for it? I know we're not taking "Art 180: Learn how to make fly music videos/be an Apple fanboy" but still, somewhat inspirational, right?

The video below is his original work, the new Apple ad runs this Sunday during NFL games and the World Series. Unreal.

All I can say is WOW!

So pretty much I find it very amazing that someone would do something this crazy. In saying that, I am sure that several people felt the same way about my video piece when I sewed a heart on my tongue. It is especially interesting to me that so many people watch this kind of stuff and think it's hilarious! Why would a guy getting a dick branded on his ass be remotely funny? I also find the reaction his mother has pretty entertaining.

In case any of you missed this, Miss USA slipped and fell on her ass during the evening gown walk, (the evening gown part is judged by poise, elegence and grace) and she was still named into the top five for the question round. I think this is a very interesting piece, on or off youtube. The crowd reaction is totally justified in my opinion. I find it very funny how the question miss USA is asked couldn't fit better with the fall, it just seems that no one could have even thought about writing a movie with this many twists and turns.

Are you anyone's favorite person?

I really like the way this video was put together. I think the color, or lack there of, is a really great choice for the subject matter. The short piece is a little depressing with the answers that were given, especially how the woman was very confident about being someone's favorite person but it only took one questioning to make her drop her confiedence, where as the first man was very confident he wasn't a favorite person, even his g/f. I think this would be a very interesting question to ask random people on the street, and see what they say.

Reverse graffiti

Sonic Booms

Sonic Booms are amazing. Not only do they produce a loud thunderous sound, but they also produce amazing visuals. They make the tangible world seem somewhat miraculous to me. Check out these pictures of planes breaking the sound barrier.



Also, if you want a scientific explanation of how this works, check this link.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-d9A2oq1N38

Toys, robots, and Kermit

Adding Emotional Characteristics to Consumer Electronics with Pete Froslie
(the link above takes you to an interview which features several projects and 4 videos, none of which were directly linkable, sorry!)

Froslie has several instillation pieces that offer a new and fanciful way to interact with childhood objects. I think the concepts behind his projects are solid, his integration of new tech into older toys is creative and made me think. The execution left a little to be desired, none of the projects really lived up to their potential. The videos are relatively short and worth a look.

William Kentridge "Journey to the Moon"

This is an amazing video by William Kentridge. He employs his signature charcoal method, as well as stop-motion film work and other clever cinematography techniques to create a captivating and creative world.

Mona Lisa in MS Paint

the Mona Lisa is by no means new work to copy or alter, but I thought this is an impressive display of "high art" confronted by "low art". The music isn't fitting, but the video I think is interesting enough. How could something like this be incorporated into the "brushstroke" feature of after effects?

"Reflection"

If any of you are having trouble thinking of something otherworldly, this animation is incredibly surreal, eerie, and Poe-like. I can watch this over and over again, appreciating the visual creativity, storytelling, and animation itself.

From Walla Walla

Early Halloween

This is crazy. I've never seen anything like this before. It's almost funny, like a cartoon, but mostly it's just gnarley. Can't not watch though. And I must admit it's a unique talent.

Orifices

Graffiti Robot

This is nowhere as extreme as the last two videos, but I also found this inspiring on Youtube. Sort of an ironic direction to take a typically subersive and "free expression" medium such as graffiti. Also a very interesting and inspiring development of technology.

This is INCREDIBLE!

Okay, so following up on Stelarc, the australian performance artist. He had proposed his ear on the arm project 10 years ago, but the project was only just realized last week. It took him 10 years to find a surgeon who was willing to do it. Several surgeries were required to completely graft the ear onto the arm, but it's phenomenal, frightening, exciting, mental, visceral, and more . He now plans to implant a tiny microphone that contains a bluetooth transmitter which would allow any one else in the room to hear what his arm ear is hearing.

But watch this news coverage. It's disturbing to watch how baffled, uncomfortable, and dismissive is the newscaster and his guest. It reminds me of the Vito Acconci video we watched with him trying to open the woman's eyes. They refuse to understand or acknowledge any brilliance here, instead seeing only irrationality. IMO, Stelarc is visionary...he boldly demonstrates an incredible possibility, and shows us an actual example. (and the surgeon deserves some credit for being the first to see the vision through with him).

baby fights cobra

This video has perhaps the most visual tension of any I have seen on Youtube. The diametrically opposed forms of the baby and the snake are accentuated by the utter contrast of their movements. Also, listening to the voices of the parents (?) creates a surreal and troubling atmosphere that brought to mind both the otherworldly and "laughtrack" ideas for our upcoming projects. Aside from sheer anxiety at the images, the most interesting aspect of this video for me is the child's motivation and perisistence. The video seems to captivate the viewer while raising questions while altering expectations.

Ghosts?

William Hundelys' Entoptic Phenomena

This isn't video, but it's still a pretty slick project. William Hundley's Entoptic Phenomena captures people jumping in the air covered in sheets of fabric. The result is an otherworldly floating effect. It reminded me of our greenscreen endeavors, and although I don't know how to translate it to film, the concept of spectors is something I think is worth pursuing.

Kelly... once again, love it!

I think this video is awesome as an understatment. It was the first "Kelly" video I saw, so it might be one of the reasons I am prone to say it's my favorite. The song is so catchy and the beat works so well with the video. I think the changing colors and angles throughout the video really complete the music video/fashion show motif. It's so pop culture and I love it! Also, though I hate to admit it because it seems very silly, I feel a strange but real connection with Kelly in this video. I have a twin and the birthday thing was always like that! My mom always thought my twin was so great and it seemed as if she always got the better present and I would get some random object because my mom didn't know much about my interests or something. Granted the relationship became better over time, and now it's great, but there were a few years there where all I wanted to do after a birthday was go spend money on clothes or shoes, but couldn't because I was stuck in Wallowa!!

Bill Viola's ANTHEM

TEXT MESSAGE BREAKUP....KELLY STRIKES AGAIN!

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