Mike's Film 202 Blog

Do you hear what I hear?

2008-12-02T17:58:00.000-08:00

For this blog installment concerning sound, I visited the Haggerty Museum and checked out the Stop.Look.Listen. exhibit. One thing that Glenn Bach mentioned in our class discussion on field recordings resonated with me in regards to experiencing these films. Sound or absence of it is used, not to impose will on the audience, but helping to create a charged space where the audience can bring their own ideas to the experience. I believe these pieces to illustrate this concept.
In Mircea Cantor’s “Deeparture” (2005), two carnal enemies, a deer and wolf, are enclosed in a white room, much like the gallery its viewers find themselves in. The film is completely silent and is the only piece in the exhibit not containing noise of some form. Though completely silent, this aspect of “Deerapture” adds something to the piece, serving a function. Eventually, the wolf paces around the deer in the white room, visibly panting. The wolf is licking his chops if you will. You can’t hear it, but you can. The viewer makes mentally makes the connection, thus enhancing its effect. The absence of sound adds feelings of paranoia as the viewer nervously awaits the impending, vicious attack by the wolf. The lack of noise helps the viewer to not be distracted by the feelings conjured by the piece and the mental connections made during the film help to make these feelings stronger.
Janet Biggs’ “Predator and Prey” was a side by side, dual projection. Unlike “Deerapture” where silence served feelings of fear and anticipation, Biggs uses sound to illustrate feelings. Some of the memorable subjects in the piece were stampeding horses, loudly pounding the ground, swimming polar bears and soaring eagles. At one point in the film, one projection displayed an eagle and the other projection displayed a man. The eagle belted out a mighty squeal which rang eardrums, and the man on the screen opposite of the eagle appeared to be rubbing his head. The loud sound and imagery conjured up thoughts of having a headache, recalling such feelings. One sequence from “Predator and Prey” consisted of a polar bear swimming increasingly close to the screen. The noise provided here was minimal. The massive polar bear approaching was startling and more shocking the closer it got. I believe the lack of noise accompanying the bear heightened this effect.

“Today’s art world _______________________."

2008-12-02T17:53:00.001-08:00

Today’s art world is one in which is progressively growing, testing its boundaries and allowing its viewers to encompass its meanings while also providing new ones, exhibiting a relation between artist and viewer not previously emphasized in generations passed.

Afterall, December.

2008-12-02T17:51:00.001-08:00

In Sarah Lehrer-Graiwer’s “Broken Americas: The Cool World and The Exiles”, the journalist speaks about two American independent films from the early 1960’s that are experiencing a resurgence today. Kent Mackenzie's The Exiles (1961) and Shirley Clarke's The Cool World (1964) are the respected films of topic. Both films add commentary to an America exhibiting woeful race relations and economic troubles, effecting the core of its two major metropolises, New York and Los Angeles, the setting of the films. The Cool World in essence is about a troubled 15 year old’s struggles and frustrating journey through manhood in Harlem. In The Exiles, a group of Native Americans living in low rent housing (no longer standing today) is chronicled in Los Angeles. Mackenzie spent 12 hours documenting the people’s lives. Many themes come about, specifically thoughts of despair, ruined hopes, feelings of escapism as well as great frustration. The actions in the film represent a typical night for the documented, and can be seen as somewhat of a repeating loop in their lives.

These two films come from the same era and share a great deal of commonalities. The qualities of life of the characters expressed in the films seem to mirror each other. Both of these films can be seen as the product of a culture that was motivated for change. Both filmmakers brought to light the many impoverished urban communities left behind. Clarke and Mackenzie can be seen as products of their times, expressing the energy of the youth. This aspect of the films is probably what helps them resonate so well with the politically charged culture of today. I think it’s great that these two films, seemingly obscure from nearly 50 years ago, can come back in today’s era and have new life breathed into it. They both carry contemporary meanings, recognizable to viewers. Seeing the experiences from the 1960’s, and being allowed to understand them and also being able to relate to them from a current standpoint provides an interesting experience.

Journal Update

2008-10-28T19:56:00.002-07:00

One article from Afterall that interested me was about artist James Coleman and his most recent work “Background, 1991-1994”. “Background, 1991-1994” is the third and final installment in a series of slide-tape projections, now being shown at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin. This medium of art interested me because it is not familiar and somewhat unconventional. The act/react exhibit in which we visited, sparked thoughts about how one is expected to interact with art and James Coleman’s piece is one that may present challenges to spectators.
The piece is not strictly slides as they are accompanied by audio narration which helps tie it together. There are four characters on the screen and we later learn parts of their respective histories such as friendships, betrayals, and insight into a love triangle. The character’s desires and recollection of moments and past lovers forge the thematic elements of the piece.
Coleman’s piece doesn’t give its spectators all of the answers right away. This in turn keeps them interested and engaged with the piece, forcing them to look and listen closely to cogitate meaning.
Pedro de Llano’s “The 80s: A Topology’ at Museu Serralves” was another article that caught my interest. Porto’s Museu Serralves decided to dedicate an entire exhibit to the decade of the 80’s. Being a child of the 80’s, I thought that this was a pretty cool idea for the museum. This exhibit provided an opportunity for spectators and artists alike, to trace the progression of art, see just how far or little it has come since this decade. What was “in” then could very well still be today, or perhaps just one of the decade’s fads.
Reviewer Pedro de Llano had a pretty negative outlook on the exhibit, offering many criticisms. He believes that the decade was misrepresented with a lack of material that he wanted to see and wasn’t impressed with what did make the exhibit. The Museu Serralves doesn’t claim to offer a definitive reading of the decade, in fact claims just the opposite, that it is just one perspective on a recent past. De Llano feels that the presentation of the exhibit leads one to view the decade in general as a step backwards in art. He seemed very bitter in his review and perhaps his column would have been better served as a letter to the curator.

Act/React

2008-10-28T19:56:00.001-07:00

Artists today are working to stretch the boundaries of their respective mediums. Not necessarily being about technology, artists turn towards it and use it in an effort to better activate spectators. The “Act/React” exhibit currently at the Milwaukee Art Museum exhibits contemporary artwork which focuses on the interactivity between the spectator and respective artwork, resulting in fresh and intuitive experience for the viewer. The two installments I enjoyed the most were Daniel Rozin’s “Peg Mirror” and Scott Snibbe’s “Boundary Functions”.
Mirrors have been around for seemingly forever and aren’t typically seen as being anything special. People normally wouldn’t play around and interact with a traditional mirror which makes Rozin’s “Peg Mirror” stand out. The mirror itself is quite large and comprised of hundreds of pegs which mechanically rotate to fit the viewer’s image. As the viewer moves, the pegs follow. The engineering of the piece is quite impressive as it relies on a camera response system which triggers the peg movement. The mechanism of the piece and its function seem relatively complicated and impressive. Rozin’s “Peg Mirror” may help people see themselves in a different way than previously imagined, perhaps more in tune with the natural world as I did seeing my own image in wood. The wooden pegs, combined with the mechanical nature of the piece provide an interesting contrast between the natural world and the digital one.
Scott Snibbe enables the spectator’s body as an interface with “Boundary Functions”. A lone person moving across the pad conjures no reaction from the piece. The piece starts to function once another person joins the square, and those within it are divided by a digital line on the floor. No matter how hard you try, you cannot cross these boundaries. They follow the participant’s movements, always outlining their respective personal space. When one makes physical contact with another in the square, the boundary between them dissolves. I believe this to be a social message Snibbe wanted to get across, that maybe together we can bring down barriers.
“Act/React” and other interactive art exhibits are coursing responses from spectators in a way they aren’t traditionally used to. In testing the rules and boundaries for these pieces, people are willing to act in such a way that wasn’t previously acceptable in an art gallery, like running around and jumping up and down. “Act/React” invites us all to interact and experience the pieces in a physical manner. It is refreshing to see this trend of interactivity in art and even more fun experiencing it.

Afterall

2008-10-04T06:54:00.000-07:00

The journal I will be following this semester is Afterall.

http://www.afterall.org/onlinecurrent.html

Chan in no specific arrangement..

2008-09-30T22:00:00.000-07:00

For my field report I viewed Paul Chan’s “Waiting for Godot in New Orleans”. Certain aspects of the film reminded me of Chan’s “Baghdad in no Particular Order” as well as other films we’ve viewed thus far.
Like a lot of the content we’ve viewed thus far, much of it is open for interpretation. The original play “Waiting for Godot” is one that exhibits this quality of interpretation. Two men are waiting for someone named Godot, who never comes, and its symbolism keeps it very relevant today. Due to hurricane Katrina, many people lost their homes, possessions, and loved ones. People hopelessly waited for help, help from FEMA, Red Cross, National Guard, or any kind of help they could get from the United States government in that time of crisis. Chan’s decision to set this play in New Orleans is powerful because of the similarities and relevance. “Waiting for Godot” portrays a segment of New Orleans, real people’s lives, and is a metaphor for those who didn’t leave and give up.
With “Baghdad in no Particular Order”, Chan showed us Iraqi life and changed many of our perceptions or expectations of what life is like for them in a very personalized way. In “Waiting for Godot in New Orleans”, he has us relate and think about the many victims of Hurricane Katrina. Chan’s adaptation of “Waiting for Godot” works so well because of its relevance, much like his remix of a monumental speech given by Martin Luther King Jr. on the Viet Nam war, altered to relate to the war in Iraq. The similarities between the situations make the remixes a powerful success.