9-30-09 Idea Post

While looking for inspiration two days ago I decided to look up the definition of the word 'anxiety.' Wikipedia says...

"Anxiety is a future-oriented mood state in which one is ready or prepared to attempt to cope with upcoming negative events, suggesting that it is a distinction between future vs. present dangers that divides anxiety and fear."

It goes on to describe symptoms...

"One of the most common symptoms of anxiety is fear, which includes the fear of dying... You feel an intense fear when you think of dying, you may think of it more often than normal, or you can't get it out of your mind."

I have known for quite some time that I have high stress levels stemming from OVER time management. By over time management I mean I have set strict working deadlines with myself and expect a lot of hard work from myself. Sometimes I push myself too hard and end up taking it in unproductive ways.

I also think about death... a lot. I'm sure death is on my mind more than most people. I used to express it in ways that I now consider immature and annoying (clothing, music, attitude). After exploring it through art in ways that I would never have considered before (due to society's negative view on dwelling or thinking about death incessantly), I feel more comfortable with my fears and thoughts. I think my fascination is more widely felt than expressed by a majority our society.

I constantly ask myself 'what happens after death?' As a kid I went to church every week not by choice, but by force until one Christmas Eve in high school where I told my mom I didn't believe in God and quite possibly broke a piece of her heart. Rationally, how can I believe without physical proof? Why should I believe the writings of ancient prophets or holy men when history is written by victors? When do the dead, prisoners, or slaves get to tell their side of the story to the entire world? I find it hard to believe in Heaven as the answer to life after death (as I was brought up), but it's hard to let go of the idea of the afterlife. My confusion and hope draws me to death as I search for answers through my art.

"Death is the termination of the biological functions that define a living organism." That sounds scary as hell and is 100% unavoidable. It is the one thing that will happen to every person and animal. It is the one experience we will all ultimately share and none of us will ever be able to answer the question "what happens when we die?"

9-27-09 Artist Post

Paul Weiner is a modern photographer who uses artificial light in manipulated time sequences to express memory or dream-like scenes. He primarily uses a flashlight to selectively illuminate a pitch-black set. Using the flashlight to both enlighten objects and point back at the camera, he truly develops a unique language of time and space. This leads the viewer to question the boundary in which the photograph exists- real time or alternate dimension? How does this speak to the person in the photograph? His haloing of some objects while shielding others creates a movement of light and shadow to draw the viewer’s eye throughout the photograph. He includes SO much detail in his set that its hard for the observer not to spend extra time examining every shadow and highlight.


I find that most of his images express a flawed polished moment- a scene full of objects and light but a look of emptiness on the model’s faces. Perhaps he is communicating our society’s use of objects as a barrier or our sense of item ownership symbolizing power, money, and class. His lighting is relatable to a modern interpretation of chiaroscuro with false voluminous shadows and a glowing light that seems to originate within the objects themselves.


I am more interested in Weiner's lighting techniques than his subject matter. I am intrigued in his ability to make objects appear as sources of light and his attention to detail of shadows and visual memory. Lighting an entire scene with a flashlight requires great spacial memory and a lot of research and testing. Digital obviously makes this process easier with instant results as you shoot, but I would really want to finish a shoot with a roll or two of medium format film.

Visiting Artist Lecture: Spencer Finch 9-24-09

I think Spencer Finch did a great job lecturing (and entertaining) yesterday in the student commons theater. I was truly inspired by the amount of research he puts into every piece. He is obviously a reader of mythology and history and takes a great interest in their figures. I could tell that simply reading about these influential people or characters just wasn't enough. It is his passion to incorporate them into every day of his life whether through his artwork, research, discussion, or travel.

All of his work was heavily color based (some quite literal and others conceptual), and I am much appreciative of someone who has found so many different ways to express his interest in a unifying subject matter throughout his art career. I found myself particularly drawn to Poke in The Eye. The idea of poking yourself in the eye and seeing an individually defining mark or pattern is something I have thought of before, but never imagined someone emulating in their artwork. I assumed a scientific explanation and left it at that. Finch has found another way to explain the effect and express something that could never be photographed or seen by anyone other than himself.


I was also fascinated by his series of colors based on the contents of a French hotel room at different times of the day. He blends the line between an artistic and scientific study of color. I wasn't so much drawn to the visuals of this project, but the concept. The below image is another project based on the same idea, but is a study of sunlight on his studio wall.


He approaches much of his work in a scientific manner (much like his admired historical figures) and literally experiments with his materials to achieve certain light waves. His consistent use of a colorimeter excited me, especially after learning about them in digital printing class last year. I personally think artwork based heavily on scientific fact or research is captivating, mostly because I enjoy a concept that is grounded in the rational or absolute (cold, hard evidence). More emotional, faith, or personal based concepts are harder for me to project myself into and my interest is left fleeting.

9-23-09 Idea Post

I am so frustrated by some of the responses I've gotten on my critique blogs. My efforts to explore new materials, whether or not these happen to be fake animals or not, has nothing to do with me being lazy or saving time. Maybe I am being misunderstood so I will try harder to be clear from now on.

I HAVE decided to use a combination of fake and real animals (or animal parts) in my most recent idea and I'm excited because I will finally be leaving the 'scanner realm.' I am also sticking with the yolk in this photo and plan to set up the shot in my basement... around a creepy bathroom which some of might have seen in one of Jenn's previous projects. It's more like an indoor outhouse if that makes sense- a toilet in an indoor stall. On the side of the stall I will be mounting fake bird heads on plaques. I won't go into too much detail on the angle or composition of the shot as I intend to vary it up. As far as lighting goes, I will be using a flashlight- also something new for me.



I will be shooting in digital but would ultimately want to photograph in medium format if this idea is successful and a concept begins to take flight.

After talking to several friends about the idea above I got an interesting response. I guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise, but I've been told that my art seems to be about pro animal rights and life. It's not what I would say my work is entirely about but I would agree that I have strong feelings for animal's rights. I'm definitely not one of the protesting or going vegetarian types. What I do have a problem with is eating meat straight off the bone. I do wonder why THIS is where it crosses the line into something barbaric and something I WILL NOT DO.

Back to the point: RESEARCH

While being stuck on my 'egg fever' I checked out several grocery stores to see if they had more exotic types of eggs. My biggest hope was Whole Foods out in Shortpump because I read online that their NY store had quail, duck, and ostrich eggs. Alas there was no luck here in VA. I did find a website that sells exotic meats- everything from zebra and tiger meat to quail and emu eggs. I haven't decided whether or not I will order something from them because shipping alone is over $20 (cheapest 2 day method).

Boneroom.com also provides emu and various other eggs, but they are blown and clean (meaning no yolk or egg mess). They are also almost have the price of the eggs on the exotic meats website. Shipping would probably be much less expensive as well. I'm not sure whether the egg mess is what I might want to work with or if it is the shell. We shall see...

9/14 Blog Evaluation

Paul Thulin has read your blog up to this point/entry. Your blog is currently up to date and complete.

9-20-09 Artist Post

Adam Fuss uses an alternative photographic technique to capture the images in his Ark series. He uses projected light to capture images on chemically treated surfaces creating a photogram. [The scanner technique I use is a sort of digital photogram.] The Ark series captures water’s moment of impact on a stagnant pool examining their rippling effect.
Ark series photograph >>>

Much of his work evolves around capturing a specific moment in time. His Untitled series confronts the viewer with a larger than life encounter with the insect world- particularly butterfly cocoons. The cocoons float in the middle of darkness as if they contain a spiritual power, and their size (print size of 72’’ x 44’’) speaks to their supremacy and otherworldliness. His shallow depth of field lends itself to his photogram technique and a more precise but detailed description of a single moment in time.
<<< Untitled series photograph

"We’re so conditioned to the syntax of the camera that we don’t realize that we are running on only half the visual alphabet…. It’s what we see every day in the magazines, on billboards, and even on television. All those images are being produced basically the same way, through a lens and a camera. I’m saying there are many, many other ways to produce photographic imagery, and I would imagine that a lot of them have yet to be explored."

-Adam Fuss

His series Love describes the intimately woven relationship between life and death/composure and chaos. An umbilical-like chord connects the two rabbits while also representing a tree and root system (cycle of life). Interestingly the animal he has used to make this series is known for its rapid reproduction rate with a short gestation period of only 30-32 days.

9-16-09 Idea Post

Eggs have been consumed by humans long before the birth of recording history mostly because they are easily obtained, but also because they can be cooked in a vast variety of ways. Long associated with social/religious symbolism and tradition, they have stood for an object of fertility, spring, rebirth, resurrection, long life, immortality, and even Earth's creation. The Hindu description of the birth of the world consisted of an egg breaking into two halves with one half becoming the earth and the other the sky. The outer membrane became the mountains, the veins became rivers, and the whites became the ocean. Still in other cultures the yolk of an egg is equated with the sun.

Eggs were also consumed for reasons other than survival. By eating eggs, it was thought in many societies that one could absorb the egg's power. In 17th century France, new brides broke an egg when they first entered their new homes, and Slavic and German communities eggs were smeared on hoes and farming equipment in effort to transfer fertility to the soil. Early Chinese tribal groups believed in the egg's power to foretell the future. They painted, boiled, and read cracks in the eggs to determine divinity. Ancient Egyptians hung eggs in temples to infuse the environment with fertility and new life.

A more present look at associations with eggs brings up salmonella. The disease originates in the hen when Salmonella enteritidis infects the animal's healthy ovaries and contaminates the eggs before the shells are even formed. Chickens are also used as a classroom tool to teach younger children about the development of life and birth. [I remember having an egg incubator in my classroom several years in elementary school]

The coloring of eggs is still used in celebration of Easter. The most famous decorated eggs are the Faberge eggs made by the House of Faberge (1885-1917). They are made of precious metals and decorated with enamel and gem stones.


Eggshells are rich in nutrients and can be crushed and added to anything from animal feed to orange juice. If ground finely enough, they can even be used as a substitute for pulp in paper. The thin membrane on the inside of the egg (collagen) is the same expensive material used in the production of skin grafts, tissue replacement, plastic surgery, and cornea repair. Eggshells also make a great fertilizer for any home garden.

In response to an earlier comment of obtaining an already fertilized egg and continuing my scanner exploration, I have researched photos. Most of them are pretty disgusting (perhaps right up my alley), but I have no idea where to obtain them. Nor do I want to be the cause of death for any animal.

Recent Activity

I began experimenting with a new substance this past weekend- eggs. They are so readily available and are actually super cheap! [[EXCITING NEWS]] I continued to work with my scanner. I began fooling around with the material like I do in the beginning of every project and made some very interesting observations.

#1: Cold eggs make the inside of the scanner glass fog up. Run under hot water!!
#2: Even if the scanner looks flat, the egg will STILL run unless you are completely sure.
#3: Egg starts to dry around the edges fairly quickly, so use overhead sheets over the glass for easy clean up.

Probably my most interesting and successful scan design (very rough editing):


I then decided to make it BIGGER and more interesting by doing another rough copy/paste job to make it look as if my grid were much larger.


I then decided to give my image a gradual diagonal tonal change by deleting certain yolks. After doing so, I copied and pasted the image into a new image four times and arranged it in the following:


All of this accidentally came together and I now feel like I really have room to stretch. I have been thinking about creating a picture of an object with the shading/placement of the egg yolks. I would plan on being able to reproduce the image fairly large so the viewer would have to stand very far away to see the object as a whole, but could still stand up close to see the detail of every yolk. As far as my ideas for an object to recreate, I was thinking of an egg (still shell intact). Do you think this is too obvious? Uninteresting? Any suggestions for other objects?

As far as researching eggs throughout history and their symbolism in today's society, they are a symbol of rebirth, new beginnings and fertility. Perhaps I should go more that route?

9-13-09 Artist Post

My post this week is about two artists.

Nate Hill has been described as having a "God complex" and having an affinity for cutting up dead animals. He is a New York City based artist whose work revolves around the collection of dead animals and transforming them into new species of his own mind's eye. Because NYC doesn't offer much roadkill, he searches the dumpsters throughout the city and has also begun a self-guided tour for other interested artist interested in gathering dead art material.

"Chinatown Garbage Taxidermy Tour" >>>

He also commenced to head a public, collaborative, dead animal collage in the city. [[I SERIOUSLY wish I had known about this and been able to go!]]

After creating his own 'animal kingdom,' Hill began to create his very own A.D.A.M. (A Dead Animal Man) and E.V.E. (Earthly View of Eden) sewn out of dozens of animal parts. The final piece of his 'Bible rewriting' was revealed on Halloween of 2008.


^^ Nate Hill with the head of A.D.A.M. ^^

The second artist I wish to touch upon in this discussion isn't a single person, but a group of persons and their exploration of processes thousands of years ago: the ancient Egyptians and their ever-evolving techniques of mummification. First discovered on accident, mummification was the result of the intense desert heat and a lack of insects beneath the sand. The shifting sands led to confusion in burial locations and mummies were first discovered. The mummification process took hundreds of years to perfect only to fade with the dwindling numbers of experts and the high demand for body preservation.

They also preserved a vast number of animals to accompany the dead on their journey to a successful and comfortable afterlife. Below is a mummified Shrew and Ibis.



I was intrigued by the shape and texture of the animals. The precision and delicacy used in the burial of an animal is practically unmatched anywhere else on earth and anywhere else in time. They preserved both the beauty of life and death. I found the below x-ray to be even more intriguing and surprising.

9-9-09 Idea Post

Cicadas

Though cicadas are often referred to as locusts, they are unrelated. Eaten throughout the world, they are considered a delicacy in China (the females especially due to being 'meatier'). Cicada molts are also used in traditional Chinese medicine as described in the "Compendium of Materia Medica."

*SIDE NOTE*
I decided to check on the price of this book for research. In six volumes it costs over $900 on Amazon.com. I will definately be checking the library.

Several different symbolic meaning as follows:

-Cicadas represent nonchalance and indifference to cultures throughout the world, as they 'waste their time singing instead of preparing for winter.'
-The molting of their shell is sometimes used to represent the transformation of a person into a final stage of enlightenment.
-The Chinese saying "to shed off the golden cicada skin" is a poetic name for a tactic used to describe escaping danger, specifically using decoys (molts/shells) to fool enemies. It is one of the 36 Classic Chinese Stratagems.


Owls

In western culture, owls are a symbol for wisdom and can be associated with libraries. They have tremendous eye sight (particularly in low light) that symbolically represents their foresight. They are responsible for rodent control and are often the victims of secondary rat/mouse poison. Their feathers are often used in native art and rituals, but their possession is strictly regulated by the government.

In other parts of the world (particularly in ancient times) owls were associated with death and misfortune. The Kikuya people of Kenya view owls as the harbingers of death with the sight or sound emanating death. The Aztecs, Mayans, and other native of Mesoamerica used the owl to symbolize death and destruction. The Aztec god of death, Mictlantecuhtli, was depicted with owls. In Mayan texts, owls were the messengers from 'the place of fright.' Considered funerary birds in Rome, seeing and owl in daylight was a bad omen. The Egyptians hieroglyph for the sound "m" was depicted by an owl. They drew the owl with its legs broken to prevent it from coming alive.

Contrary to bad luck, some cultures worshiped owls. In India, a white owl was the companion of the goddess of wealth and prosperity. The ancient Greek goddess Athena (goddess of heroic endeavor) was also often accompanied by an owl.

Henry David Thoreau wrote about owls in "Walden."
"I rejoice that there are owls. Let them do the idiotic and maniacal hooting for men. It is a sound admirably suited to swamps and twilight woods which no day illustrates, suggesting a vast and underdeveloped nature which men have not recognized. They represent the stark twilight and unsatisfied thoughts which all [men] have."

Some Things Realized...

One small realization = One small breakthrough

It was the last weekend of August when I traveled up to my parent’s house to go hunting for shark teeth at the Calvert Cliffs in Maryland. This is something I have done once before (as a family excursion), but now I was fueled by want and perhaps the need to collect animal artifacts. The morning of the trip I woke to the sudden knowledge of perhaps the ultimate source of my animal-based artwork over the past 2 ½ years. While lying in bed I thought of all the influences I had grown up around within my very own house.

I was born in Anchorage, Alaska and grew up with animals and the wilderness within my own home. My dad was a hunter so we had a caribou head, a preserved hammerhead shark, a bear head and hide, and many variations of furs throughout the house (and sometimes hanging over the fireplace). A family friend, Bob Cracknell was also a hunter and quite an amazing man who collected everything from his own animal trophies to found arrow heads, shark teeth, and even a human skull. I once saw this skull displayed it in a sort of glass cake dome in his basement- but that’s a different story. He found ways to frame his findings and made my parents several pieces that hung in our house. His work and stories made a huge impact on me during my childhood that I am just now realizing.

[Please pardon the photography. I had my parents e-mail me photos specifically for this blog!]




There were other ways I encountered this “primal” learning. My grandparents had a whale skull over a foot long sitting in their garden for many years and my next-door neighbor had Baleen whale teeth. Much of my childhood was spent visiting the Outer Banks where my uncle (and childhood hero) was a fish cleaner. I became very hands-on with the process of baiting, reeling, gaffing, and cleaning fish. Once I even ran into a dead beached whale that was well over the size of a pickup truck. I wanted to become an elasmologist (shark biologist) when I graduated from college, so I had originally been attending Christopher Newport University for two years as a marine science major before transferring to VCU.

I long to go back to the days of my childhood and relive these moments in a new light. Sadly, Bob Cracknell passed away several years ago and my parent’s no longer own a house in the outer banks. I want to be one of those people that surround themselves with the essence and remembrance of life, wilderness, and their beauty.

This was a scan inspired by Bob Cracknell.

9-6-09 Artist Post

Opposing Marian Drew’s portraits depicting human wastefulness and disconnect from nature is Alessandra Sanguinetti’s “On The Sixth Day”. In her series, Sanguinetti scrutinizes Argentinean farmer’s intimately woven relationships with their surrounding ecosystems- particularly animals. It portrays the honest truth concerning the coexistence between people and animals. The farmer’s livelihood and means of survival depends on raising, maintaining, and sacrificing these animals. She goes beyond documentation to paint an emotional picture of their sometimes brutal means of survival.

The angle from which she shoots her photos reminds me of a child’s point of view as he/she learns the ways and expectations of his/her culture. The sharp focus lends itself to poignant memories of first experiences. Her framework also seems childlike in her purposeful cropping of subjects and their occasional interference with the foreground. She is sure to keep all human identity inconclusive, as the important lesson is not the people but the unfamiliar process of survival.

***

This 25 photograph series absolutely blows my mind and I strongly encourage you to investigate it in its entirety at www.alessandrasanguinetti.com.

The language she uses in her photos is complex and open for interpretation. This is something I wish I had, and I can honestly admit I struggle with the development of my ideas in imagery.

9-2-09 Idea Post

While reading Dr. Bill Bass’s “Death’s Acre” I came across a quote that struck such a strong chord with me that I underlined it in bold black ink. This is something that happens so rarely, but it was a beyond perfect description of how I have approached my art the past few semesters.

“The more I thought about it, the more exciting it became: my pretty would be death itself… I would need to track death deep into its own territory, observe its feeding habits, chart its movements and timetables.” (page 89)

I approach my artwork in an incredibly scientific matter: observing, collecting, re-observing, dissecting, recording, preserving, collecting more, explaining, assembling, etc. My collection of animal remains is a constant evolution and I think it is my attempt to bridge the gap between myself and the biotic community (nature and the rest of ‘creation’). This interaction, which was once so normal and frequent, is one that is now repressed by technology and industrialization.

I had originally thought I would be moving away from this idea at the beginning of the semester. I was and still am at a dead end and unsure of where to pick up next, especially after last semester being so heavily technique-based (studio/location lighting and alternative processes). The fall before was SO conceptually rich and I felt more comfortable with abstract thinking. I know I will bring the two together this last year in school. I am very excited about it, but have no clue where to start.

I shot an exploratory test shoot this past Sunday night for no reason in particular. If it does relate to my current ideas and feelings, it’s something I haven’t quite worked out yet. Sometimes you have to just listen to your urge for a photo shoot whether or not you know why or what you will end up with. It’s another step on the staircase leading to a new idea.