The Residents and Nam June Paik

As for Nam June Paik, probably one of my favorite artist i learned about this semester. He was aprt of the fluxux movement which is also one of my favorite next to dada. I suppose the two are somewhat similar in the sense that they both called for change in the norms of the art world.

His ability to transcend all genres is quite amazing. He can sculpt, earlier on he played the violin, paint, does installations. I think that once you learned so many disciplines it just makes you all the more creative when the time comes for you to step outside the box and produce something all of you own.

The residents is an avant-garde group that do music videos and short films. The groups is interesting to me because they maintain the anonymity and keep their identity a secret... like a superhero....

Television Delievers People

I liked the fact that the was a direct message but it was delivered in an indirect manner. The artist used the very mechanism that he somewhat condemned to bring forth the information to its viewers/viewers of his art.

It was certainly an interesting concept that we the viewers were the ones that had the most to loose when watching television and not the companies that own the television stations nor the companies that sponsor the stations.

I watch this documentary in my mass media and society class and talked about Rupert Murdock and how he had developed fox news and they type of biased information they depicted on that station. I completely agree with that documentary.

Media conglomerates, and just a few, mind you own all of what we see on television and in a capitalistic nation such as the US it was be absurd to believe that there aren't constantly individuals trying to make so sort of profit off you :-/

Pipilotti Rist I'm Not a Girl Who Misses much

In class we watched "I'm not a girl who misses much" by her and it scared the HELL out of me.... lol it was so freaky to me the voice, the fast forwarding, even her outfit was reminiscent of the children of the corn or even the scary well girl from The Ring.

But in retrospect i suppose an aspect art is to evoke some sort of emotion in its viewers, to make the viewer uncomfortable at times even. Putting aside my emotions i can see that their was definitely a great of video art taking place.

From an artistic point of view the actual cinematography was amazing. The textures she created complemented what she was trying to accomplish very well. The audio was well executed, however i couldn't understand what she was saying until it was explained to me but that could have been because i was so shell shock by what i was seeing. And finally her use of the video to fast forward was a great technique to alter what we as the viewer was seeing/experience.... and ah are we having a janet at the super bowl moment???????? i'm just saying.


I suppose if i put my fears aside it was an enjoyable piece after all.
check it out

Ryan Trecatin

Surprisingly i found his work to be very funny and entertaining. Judging from looking at he blogs of other briefly he seemed all too reminiscent of Matthew Barney's Cremaster series. Barney's works to me are bizarre to say the least.

However, i can see that Trecartin has taken some of Barney's techniques as far as costumes and maybe even wild choice of colors to bring his vision to life. Trecartin is definitely a character and i believe that is essential for an artist to bring an extra je ne sais quoi to his or her work...

The fact that he made me laugh just won my heart.....

Video Art

B-52's

This group was founded in the 1970' by Cindy Wilsons one of it's lead vocalist. Today they would be categorized as a new wave rock band. The are the inspiration for many of today's electronic band. All the members posses an upbeat, cheeky quality. The guys versus girl component of the group gives a a different feel and makes it all the more enjoyable. Their first single was Rock Lobster was an underground success.
A single that you may be familiar with is their Love Shack tract.

Around the late 1980's and after the death of a group member the group decided to transition to a more mainstream sound.

When listening to their music you can help but to be in a good moon whether or not of you are a fan of electronic music. I guess great music does transcend all boundaries after all.

Performance Art Piece

Trash Man

Stelarc

From suspension, to machines used as additional body parts to growing extra body parts on his own body.... YUP that's Stelarc!

Admittedly not a very good painter he quickly turned his interest to sculptures early on in his career. As he perfected his craft he began to experiment with technology as a means to replace or enhance the human body. He's know for doing very innovative works.

The ear thing is kinda scary to me though. What do you think?

Gilbert and George

These two would probbaly be my favorite artists that we've studied in class... The couple made paintings and they were live performers. THEY ARE SO FUN! this idea of using the human body as the only entity used in performance art speak to my SOUL.. lol that's the dance in me coming out i guess. But seriously these guys standing still from 9 to 5 is amazing. Their movements are so nsync and their personalities are probably what i love the most about these guys... I love it when artists laugh in the face what is the norm or conventional methods of art.

Their paintings are these gigantic puzzles and laid out properly you can see a paint that tells a story that is amusing and tackles a social issue.

Orlan

Her earlier feminist work was very comical to me. I always appreciate when someone gets their point across in an atypical manner.

Her later performance art pieces of her having plastic surgery while wide awake is certainly no for the squeamish. In a male dominated field i definitely support her ability to maintain longevity the years and always stay current and relevant. She is always growing, developing and perfecting her craft. Some of her most recent works include graphic art pieces where in which she portrays her self as many different nationalities. The above is just a taste. If you're interest in her plastic surgery performance piece take a look see!

If you can get past the gore. It's a very powerful piece. She feels no pain whatsoever so don't feel too bad for her.

Fluxus

" Initially received as little more than an international network of pranksters, the admittedly playful artists of Fluxus were, and remain, a network of radical visionaries who have sought to change political and social, as well as aesthetic, perception.(Artmovement)"


The movement was a combination of visual arts, and many other experimental art forms.

One of the most noted artist of the time Joseph Beuys. I could go on and on about tell you what he did and how he did it but i'd rather let you see for yourself.
Joseph Beuys.

His philosophy on appreciating an object for its artistic composition rather than manipulating it in someway resonates with me. It reminds me of marcel duchamps urinal. Art does repeat itself after all.

Un Chien Andalou

I saw this movie at the Dali museum in St. Pete. i didn't understand it then and really can't pretend that i understand it now.... lol

BUT what i can say is that i really appreciate all the visual elements that were displayed during time period because it required a lot of creativity. That is certainly something i cannot downplay the importance of regardless of my short attention span. lol

The idea of bringing surrealism to film was very innovative at the time this movies made. It definitely has served as reference for film makers today.

If you haven't seen it here's the link.... tell me what you think!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll8xvGEdp80

Dada Movement

The fountain by Marcel Duchamp is what epitomizes the Dada movement for me. Not his Mona Lisa with a beard.
When i first saw this piece about two years ago i probably would have argued for days as to why this particular piece was NOT ART. How could you take the creation of someone else, write a name on it that wasn't even yours, then turn around and place it in a museum and label it ART??????

But after having our discussion in class i can now properly explain why exactly it IS ART after all.

Although it is important for art to reflect reality it may be even more important that art is a reaction to reality. The Dada artist were tired of the same repetitive forms of art that seemed to never evolve. These artists were making all sorts of advancement in their respective fields but they weren't weren't widely accepted.

When i think back to the most noted artists in history i realize that they too weren't widely accepted during their lifetime either. Van Gogh for instance only sold one of his paintings while he was alive.... Today he's recognized as one of the greatest artists that ever lived.

Art represents reality and what makes art, art to me is that a statement is being made about something that is taking place right now. So if that's done using a urinal i suppose i urinal can be art as well... lol

Grid Art Project

Sometimes we think sex is love.... BUT IT AINT!!!!!!!!! so wrap it UP PEOPLE!

1950's to 1970's

Between the 1950s and the 1970s so many major events took place. For one the civil rights movement peaked and evened out with these 20 yrs. Another important event that took place was the Vietnam War. For the first time a large amount of Americans were against the government's decision. It set a divided between the citizens and "the man". People no longer believed that the government had their best interests at heart. As usual art imitates life so films like Barbarella and Tommy were created. Barbarella depicted the reality that many drug user would experience on their highs. Tommy was created to show the rebellion against the powers that tried to control the people. Tommy was saying there really was no point in being good nor was it fun.... Very interesting period in American history the transition can be seen in the fashions of women as well... hemlines went north and bras went south.

Super Bowl 44 continued....

So i was doing hw and only watched the second half..... JAY-Z performed!!!!!!!!!! omg!!!!!! watch and see Jay-Z

Super Bowl

So it's that time of the year again and its time for my favorite part of the big game THE COMMERCIALS!!!!!!!! Here are a few of the commercials that had me laughing for hours even after they went off the year. To make the commercials even better my team won! Did anybody see Tracy Porter make that touch down ???? Can you say how you doing (Wendy Williams voice)?

Auto Tune

Audi

VW

Doritos

Santigo Echeverry Art 211 Class UT

Apple CrunchPad

The Crunchpad seems like its going to be a a hit. It's the size of a notebook and will basically be used for web browsing. This could be useful in classrooms and as well as boardrooms. For many professor this may be an excellent tool to have in the classroom. In meetings this could be beneficial and not as costly as having a complete desktop. This is the first time i've ever heard about this product but it appears that it has been in the works for a very long time and if Steve Job feels this great about it i think it is definitely worth paying attention too. On an artistic level i think the design is extremely innovate it comes in a variety of colors so that too can appeal to many consumers. However if the price is initially too high i believe that not as many consumers will purchase it.