Hey, here is my final project. With this piece I was short on time, but was trying to illustrate the upper and lower worlds associated with shamanism. A more universal definition would be perhaps balance, of the dark and the light, with the middle world in the middle with the white body outline. Um yea, i guess thats all i have to say on this one, I want to revisit this work, with my original imagery as i find anything that is trying to define the spiritual realm visually captivating.
For my paper/presentation, I choose the Critical Art Ensemble, or CAE, as it was suggested to me, and also found it a rather interesting platform that political, biological, art and criticism are merged. Many of their concepts for their artwork aren’t the typical risque contemporary of the age that we are accustomed to. They are on an entirely different agenda to raise up these issues from a intellectual basis. One of their installation pieces labeled Seized, 2008, is described on their webpage as an “installation that documents all the work and household objects that were confiscated from Steve Kurtz’ home after the FBI raid in May 2004. It also shows all the trash that the FBI left behind.” This was a controversial issue as Steve Kurtz home was raided, even though he was thought to be innocent in the death of his wife. The contrast of the protection that the federal bureau of investigation, is put up against the preservation of the artifacts left behind of this “kind” endeavor of our government. I find the preservation to be one of they key elements of this work. Breaking down the remains of the raid, and reinventing them in the gallery space, gives the work a sense of almost antiquity or history. 
Some other interesting works:
This was a satirical piece offering cigarettes and beer to the unemployed.
In this work the primary emphasis was to raise awareness about the genetically modified food consumed in the European audience. They encouraged the viewer to bring in food, and they would test, in this mobile lab, to see if it was genetically modified.
This one i thought was pretty neat, with the minimalistic color usage, combined with a unique form of illustration. Im sure its been done before but still cool.
This one is oddly creepy. This artist has a wide array of entirely odd videos. He denys any sexual message in this work, and i think he said it is up to the individual for interpretation
heres another creepy one of his
and this one, is just funny, creepily funny.
and well bjork had to make the list, i couldnt find her video i wanted though :/
Out design group aimed to incorporate zombies with the projects necessary content of subversion. This is my attempt to do the such, with the Sanskrit saying something along the lines of “only God can judge me”, or so i hope thats what it says. My agenda with that, was more so along the lines of satire with zombies having the sociopathic behavior, that many dogmatic religions have upon their perceiving God in their own image. This is not to discredit theism, as i am a strong theist myself, I just find alot of human fallacy in the perception of theological matters. *steps down off of soap box*
The chapter on digital technologies as a medium, really is starting to display how broad of a medium it truly is. The dynamic qualities of digital art, make it extremely accessible in many settings, syncing with multiple stimuli, generally easy installation etc. One main outstanding thing about digital media, is the indisposability of it. One can create many pieces of art, one they have the correct equipment, without using any additional resources. Before when shooting pictures, you would have to be alot more economical with how much film you wanted to use, but now its a simple delete button. The diversity of the digital media contrasts with traditional media arts in that so many people have more access to the digital realm, then would set food in an art gallery. So much of the “art” people come across, is art mixed with advertising in the digital realm. The traditional media arts definitely have a alot more physical presence then digital media does, as well as more of a sense of energy into the piece, but digital with its low resource usage, with its diversity and ease of applications make it one that will only continue to get incorporated into our every day lives.
So here is the top five i chose, there was a few i could not find on my blog roll however, as when i did this assignment my browser was being buggy :/. But good job all, i thought all these went beyond the technological side, and started to encompass some emotional content.
So here is my definition of these two words to the best of my ability.
Here is a good example of a cliche metaphor combined
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The peace sign, it has been a cliche marker for peace, and has a metaphor status as everyone knows what it stands for. A purely cliche item would be something like a still life of fruit.
While it is good quality, and difficult it is nothing new, it has achieved cliche-dom, as everyone starts out drawing simple objects.
And metaphor, well this would be a hard one to try to describe in the visual realm. One that came to my mind is probably the cross. To most people it is a symbol of way people were put to death, but in christian religions it stands for their concept of Jesus raising from the dead, and what not. It has some metaphorical principles as it can stand for something it is not.
What makes this ad successful I would say is the simplistic imagery, with the product centrally located. It almost has an eastern architecture feel to the work, with the border and lotus at the top. The border encompasses rhythm and repetition, with the dots and symmetry, which make it aesthetically appealing, whereas the color used is fairly economical. . The focal point, is right in the center, not too much creativity there, but I think it is indeed the simplicity that makes this ad. The information is a bit broad, but it does allow one to flow through it easily especially on the web page itself.
Digital art/”new media” has been an upcoming medium that we are starting to define. It is one of those things, which we are not always conscious of how new it is. Compared to traditional line drawings, or even some of the cave paintings done in 6000 BC, this technological medium is basically brand new. It is crazy to think about how far it has came in our lifetimes, and where it will go. The computers even 10 years ago, where not even capable of doing anything near what the average cell phone can do today. This technology is a huge evolving force that does not seem to stop, as new updates are coming out what seems to be every second. This is only congruent with the world of digital art. The “older” digital art still holds its own in the art world, while all the new technological advances only seem to keep the evolutionary process of progression going. There is much headway to get digital art up to the level of say the Sistine Chapel, or even the expressionism of Picasso. The widespread availability of any technological device, as also made a huge impact on the world of art, as well as our western culture. Virtually everyone has access to the internet, or some sort of computer device. And most of these things have artists work in them. Having a cell phone, that allows you to have pictures as a background, most likely has a digital photographers work on it. This technological art is bridging the gap in between different parts of society, as it is a common ground for all to meet. The internet seems to be a new art gallery of digital artists. With myspace, and youtube, maybe artists’ work will not be seen on the physical realm, with their only legacy existing in “bits, and bytes” as the text suggests. It may also be suggested that digital art is a more accessible medium for people that would not typically be interested in art. More people are prone to seeing a cool website, or forwarding on a email, or video, then to talk about what they had just seen at the art museum. It allows for more convenience with a lot more resources available for no cost. I think since technology has been outputting such reputable artwork, it is giving technology a better aesthetic in our western culture. This is a bittersweet issue, as I feel technology, and digital art is definitely a great tool for people to use, but we have yet to understand the power behind technology, as many peoples life’s get obsessed around it, loosing their own will to create their own art. Regardless, technology is only going to be growing exponentially and we are only at the beginning. This era of digital art has only begun, as it has only been in the last 10-20 years that the average person could afford a computer. As the areas of digital art only start to get more defined, western culture will only continue to adopt all the computers will be able to offer us.
