final artist statement

Before the project I was thinking of how I could execute it the way I envisioned it. At first I thought it would be something that was kind of comical, but as you can see it turned out to be something more serious. I started out looking for pictures and they were harder to find than you would think. A lot of them had copyright protection so they were unusable.

While working on the project and putting the photos in order, I began to realize that the story was kind of sad. It was sad that I was telling a story of something that died so fast. Then I realized how it is all a cycle and I wanted it to end happy. So I showed a new bud in the fallen leaf's place. When I searched for the music, I ended up picking the first song I searched. I think it added to the seriousness of the video. 

After the project I felt like the narrative really mirrored all life. How everything is subjective and our live's seem so short to us. Hopefully in the end of our lives we will realize that it all had a purpose. It was really cheesy but I liked the idea and the music really helped create the atmosphere. I hope you enjoy!

The Life of a Leaf

My narrative is about a leaf's short life. I got the idea from my roommate and I took it in a more serious direction. In some ways it parallels human life. Our life seems so short and death is inevitable but necessary for life to go on. They leaf starts out as a bud  and grows bigger and older until it falls to the ground. As the seasons change and it gets colder the music builds. It builds up to the spring when a new bud arrives in his place. I linked it with an instrumental version of the song called Sort Of by Ingrid Michaelson. I like the upbeat tune of the song for the beginning because it shows how happy life is. In the end it gets more slow which changes the tone to be a bit more serious. I think the music invokes emotions that the video wouldn't alone.

Failure blog

On the first video assignment, shadow buddies, I recorded a straight 10 minute video on my camera. I thought it would be good to capture everything and I could edit out things that I didn't like. But because the video was so large I was unable to upload it. I had a lot of good shots of the shadows on my camera that Lindsey didn't catch. Luckily Lindsey had enough footage to use but it would have been a better video if I would have taken a lot of short videos instead of one long one. In the future I know to take small videos. They are easier to upload.

I think my biggest success was when I made the abduction video. I just happened to stumble upon the filter that changed the baby voices into alien voices. Before that I had no idea what I was going to do with my audio. After that everything fell into place. I learned from this success that not everything is planned and sometimes things just come to you and it usually ends up better when they do.

If I could have redone one project it would probably be the abduction video. If I could go back I would have recorded more things before. It would have been nice to have more audio to work with. But in the end I was happy with the way it turned out. It could have been better if I spent more time with it but maybe it would have been worse.

Assignment 10

For my narrative assignment I have been thinking of doing some sort of video. I was thinking of taking a lot of still photos of a stick figure drawing and put them together on imovie and make it look like it is moving. It would kind of be like one of those flip books everyone makes when they are in grade school. I am not exactly sure what I want my story to be about. I was thinking I want it to be something that people wouldn't normally think of. I also want it to be a short story because it will take me a long time to take pictures together and make them look like they are moving. Maybe a young man acting nervous and then he meets an older man and asks him if he can marry his daughter. Its something that most men have to go through but not many people think about. I will add some music and certain audio sounds but for the most part I think there will be no audio dialog. I might put some voice bubbles so the audience can read what they say. I am still not quite sure where I will go with this but that is my idea so far.

MP 5

Sever and Hang

My words were sever and hang. I choose to use both of them. I severed the shirt by cutting the top off with scissors and then connected the edges with stitch witchery. Then the two ends are buttoned together to make it an infinity scarf. The finished product is hung around my neck. I used at t shirt because I wear t shirts almost everyday. I think its a cool idea to think that my scarf once served a completely different purpose. Since I am majoring in fashion and retail studies I thought it was appropriate for me. Also, I just enjoy making things out of thrift store items. 

Assignment 9

It irritated me how closed minded the man was. I liked that in the end it seemed like the blind man had opened his eyes. He understood that being blind had something special about it. It was like he could see the world in his own way. I think being blind for a day would be a very good learning experience. There are so many things that I tune out throughout the day. I always liked those games where someone will make a sound and you have to guess what made the sound. I almost never guess right. I also think it is so interesting that when one of your senses doesn't work, your other sense increase to fill the gap. The blind see more that me in certain ways. Because that man was blind, he needed to pay attention to the details he was given more. I take my sight for granted and don't often remember the way things look when trying to recall. The blind man has to learn things about something to be able to understand it, because of that they remember it better and sometimes understand it better.

MP 4

Abduction

Everyday I go to my sisters and help her watch her foster children for a couple of hours. TJ and Tori are one year olds and they don't know words yet but they make a lot of noise. I usually listen to music in the car on the way over. I hear my engine turn off and I hear my door shutting as I get out. Now that its fall I notice the leaves on the ground crunching under my feet as I walk to the door. While I am there I listen to the babies playing with all of their automated toys but mostly they talk to each other with goos and gaas. Almost everyday one of them cries because I come around their nap time. If I were to close my eyes I would know that I am at this place because of the baby voices. They each have their own individual, recognizable voices. 

I put a filter on they baby voices and it ended up sounding really creepy so I decided to make it into alien voices. I also thought it was sort of funny that I used the voice of a baby (someone completely helpless) and made it into a frightening noise.

Assignment 8

Response to This is Water

I lived with my sister when I was a senior in high school because she had 2 children under the age of 3 and her husband was deployed in Afghanistan. While I lived there I learned that I need to have a job that I love and I do not want to take my work home with me. My sister, Ellen had the same problem that Wallace had. She would spend all day at work and then come home and see her kids for a couple of hours before she went to bed. I saw a little piece of my future by living there and I had to grow up fast. I had duties of a parent when I was 17 years old. I learned how hard taking care of kids was because I basically played a parent for a year. Not a very good one. I know that this article was about learning and being open minded, but it mostly just depressed me for my future. I do have to admit though, that college has definitely made me a more open minded person. I question things more now. I'm learning that even though I don't understand something, that doesn't mean its wrong.

Assignment 7

Kaprow "Blurring of Art and Life"

The most interesting part of this article was when he said that we routinize brushing our teeth and we probably routinize the majority of the things we do through out the day. Now that I think about it so many of the things I do everyday are just part of my routine and I am not really in the moment. I don't know where my thoughts are at during those moments but they are not focused on what I am doing. Sometimes it stresses me out if I realize that I have to do something everyday for the rest of my life. When I got my braces off, my dentist gave me a retainer and told me I had to wear it every night forever. That really stressed me out for some reason. I don't like to imagine myself as a 50 year old women, putting my retainer in before I go to be. I guess it's nice to have things as a routine when its something you don't enjoy doing, that way your mind can be elsewhere.

Shadow Buddies Video

By :
Angie & Lindsey

Assignment 5

The Wexner Visit

When I first arrived, I was not expecting the Annie Leibovitz exhibit to be as big as it was. The first thing I saw was the video in the room called The Box. My first impression was not very good because it was very different and creepy. However, I think that is what a lot of her pieces were about, being different. As I started to walk through the photographs I noticed she used a lot of skin to capture attention. There was one image in particular that stuck out to me. It was of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. He was completely naked hugging her, while she was fully clothed staring off into space. It seemed odd to me because only one was naked. I wonder what she was trying to show. She almost seemed indifferent as he clung to her.
Another photo that stuck out to me was the picture of the Rolling Stones fans. It was a picture of them up against a fence and if there wasn't a description I would have thought something terrible was happening to them. Some of them seemed distressed and they were all smashed against the fence uncomfortably. It shows how our culture looks at celebrities with almost an insane admiration. It is an interesting part of our sociology and I liked that she captured it.

MP 3

Upon waking up, I put my contacts in immediately, because without them I would be useless. Then I go into the kitchen and start the coffee pot up. I used a picture of a closet as my background because picking out my clothes in the morning is an important step to starting my day. Then I take my phone off the charger and it doesn't leave my site until I'm back home again. after drinking my coffee, I go and pack my book bag with my wallet and my keys. My wallet is always important to carry with me because I can't buy lunch without it and I usually need my BuckID everyday. My keys are even more important than my wallet. I almost everyday I have an OCD moment, making sure I do not lock my bedroom door with out the keys in my backpack. After all that, I'm ready for the day.

I made the clothes in the background because they are not as important as the rest of the items. I also edited them to look less vibrant. I put the contact lenses up against the yellow wallet so that they would not fade into the background. I also enhanced the brightness of the wallet so it would stand out more. I put my phone in the front because it is always in my sight. I also put the coffee cup against a contrasting background to make it stand out. I make the keys in black and white because they are always in the back of my mind even if they aren't in my sight.

Things I carry/use every day

Cup of coffee- It is what gets me started in the morning. Even after the first sip I feel more energized and ready for the day. Sometimes if I forget coffee in the morning I will come home and have it, even if its around 5 in the evening. It can make me more fun to be around. It can help me enjoy my day. Day starter 

Keys- I have a key for my bedroom door, a key for my front door, and a key to my car. My keys are my gateway to all of my possessions. With out them I could not get into my apartment. I could not get into my car, therefore prohibiting me from going anywhere and seeing my family. Opens doors

Wallet- It holds my what society says is valuable to me. I have my drivers license which validates my privilege to drive. It holds my money, which equips me to buy necessities and luxuries. It carries my old ticket stubs and photographs that hold my memories. This item allows me to do the things that I want. Passport to life

Clothes- These are the things that keep me warm. They help me express myself, and give me confidence. They can hide my insecurities and enhance my assets. I am majoring in fashion so clothes are my future, they are my interest. silent voice.     

Contact lenses- because I don't wear my glasses, they are what allow me to see. I literally don't know how I would function without them. I would not be allowed to drive, nor would I want to. I wouldn't be able to watch performances or even see the instructor's notes on the board. My vision 

Phone- my phone is what keeps me in contact with all of my loved ones. I can tell anyone in the world my thoughts as long as I have their number. It is how I spread information, how I get directions when I am lost, how I know when something bad happens, and how I know if something good happens. It can help me when Im hurt, or I can use it to call my friend for a laugh. Lifeline 

Assignment 6

Cardiff, Miller and Sound


I think it was cool that they said that they use their videos of the walks as a form of time travel. The person who watches and listens to them will feel like there are at the same place in a different time. It was hard for the person listening to be in the present because they were wrapped up in the time that the video was created. I also really liked that this new art form brought these two people together. Neither could create the work with out the other person. 

What I have trouble understanding is how they sell their work. If it is a video I guess that they can own the rights to it, but people usually find ways around that if it has been released anywhere. How do they sell their work. Also they said that people have been trying to but their piece called "dark pool" but they do not want to sell it because it is not something they can make 2 of. But if it is a video I don't see how it is a problem. 

MP 2

My idea was to put almost all of the pictures I took on the way to class in the work. I wanted to document my entire journey. Most of the trip was uneventful and I just walked through everything without even looking. However, some  of it was new and interesting. I walked through the union the day that the Today Show was shooting. I took some pictures and that was definitely one of the highlights. Then I walked through the oval and even though it was a clouding morning, it was still beautiful. I walked into the Thompson Library and the first thing I saw was the stature. I don't go to the library often so when I do it is nice to look around. The next thing I knew, I had reached my destination, the Ohio Stadium. 

For my map I thought it would be cool to show everyone the way I saw my journey. There were only a few key points that stuck out to me. For those points I decided to make them bigger than the rest. I kept them with full saturation and the unmemorable parts of my journey faded into the background. Some of the background pictures I used different filters to make them less sharp and less eye catching. And for some of my key pictures I added filters that would make them more eye catching. 

My Journey to Class

This morning was not my usual journey on Tuesday mornings. I got out of my 8am class early so I was able to go back to my apartment before my 9:30am art education class. I walked with my roommate, Cara, to the oval and I walked the rest of the way myself. Leaving my apartment I walked past my car and inspected it, making sure that the dump truck didn’t drop the dumpster on my car. Surprisingly, the trash didn’t smell bad, probably because it had just been picked up. Then my Cara told me that the Today Show was being shot in the Ohio Union that morning so we decided to walk through. When we got there, there were a lot of people, OSU cheerleaders, Brutus the Buckeye, and a few camera crews. 

It was wet on my way to class today. It was raining and because I wore sandals my feet were wet. My shoes made a squeaky noise as I walked. I walked on the oval today and felt a little uncomfortable talking pictures of people walking by. Then I walked through the Thompson Library and remembered that I have to meet my friend Mary on Thursday to study. When I got out of the library I saw the RPAC and knew I was close to my destination. The rest of the walk was uneventful. I walked past the bike rake and saw the Ohio Stadium. Just a few more minutes and I was there. 

Assignment 4

Hornby "Nipple Jesus"

I really like the way that the author wrote. He wasn't formal, he wrote like he was right there talking to me. It kind of reminded me of The Catcher in the Rye, which i loved. I think that the point of the article was that art shouldn't be boring. He starts out in the gallery walking through the picture of fruit, but then he got to the weird stuff. Even though it was strange, it was a lot more interesting to look at than fruit. I think the useful thing to take away from this article is that whatever you choose to make, it has to be interesting to get any attention. 

The difficult thing to understand is, I know it's saying its good to be controversial in art because it grabs attention, but what kind of attention do I want? There are so many people that are set in their ways, that they will never see your side of the story and will hate you for your perspective. However, the negative reaction seemed to be what she was after in the end. The way that people reacted to the work was what she would turn into art. It was a surprising twist. 

MP 1

People in their surrounding space

Person up close

My name on campus 

Stable

Symmetrical  

Radial

Unstable

Asymmetrical

Birds eye view 

Bugs eye view

I liked taking the first 10 pictures more than taking the last 10. I think the reason I liked it was because it didn’t seem like homework. There were no restrictions and I took them on a Sunday afternoon at my parents house. I think it was also less stressful because I had more time to work on them because I had the whole weekend. I think that the second 10 pictures were more challenging to take. There were more requirements and less time to get them done. However, the directions made me think more about what I was doing.

My favorite picture was from the second set of pictures. It was the one where we had to find our name somewhere on campus. At first I was really confused by the assignment but I think that’s what made my picture so unique. Because of the lack of guidelines, I had free reign. I talked about it with some of my friends and one mentioned that I should cut out cardboard letters and place them around campus. That gave me the idea that I should cut letters out of the cardboard and let the background be campus. Instead of finding my name on campus, I made campus spell my name. 

10 Photos

I went to my parent's this weekend so I decided to take the 10 pictures there. 

Assignment 3

Walker- Big Ideas and Artmaking

The author urges the reader to try to convey the same big idea with different subject matter. This will help the artist to better understand the big idea. Not only does it help the artist express the idea better, it also helps the artist know what he or she is trying to convey in greater depth. I think this is a helpful tip. By doing this, the artist will be able to approach the subject from different perspectives and it will decrease a bias. 

It was harder for me to understand that an artist's theme does not always have to be the big idea they are trying to convey. However, the author explained it well so I have a better understanding of what they mean. I think it's that the big idea encompasses the theme. There may be a underlying theme in every piece of the artist's work but that may not be the entire idea that is being portrayed. 

Barrett- Interpreting Visual Culture

I thought it was interesting that a a group of students studied the connotations and denotations of a magazine cover with Destiny's Child on it for 45 minutes. It doesn't seem like there would be that much to say but every denotation can come with many connotations.  The denotations were just what they saw, but the connotations were what those things meant. 

The class decided that because some of the people didn't know about Power Puff  but knew about the Dalai Lama, the picture could be excluding to other ages or cultures. Not everyone would understand the connotations implied by this image. Not every one will understand everything an artists is trying to convey. I guess that's why most advertisements try to appeal to a certain audience. They have to know that they will not always reach everybody, so they focus on one group. 

Assignment 2

Kidd The Cheese Monkeys Excerpt
Something useful:
I like the idea that "big can always be bigger and small smaller" and that "the atom is the universe and vice versa". It is hard to wrap my mind around but it's an interesting thought. The smallest thing i can imagine could always be bigger than something else. It is easier to imagine that some thing that is big can always be bigger because I cannot see the whole universe. However, i can see a piece of sand, and to think that that piece of sand isn't that big to an insect is crazy to grasp. No one will ever be able to see the smallest spec of that grain of sand.

Something difficult: As for the part where the author instructs the reader to design a moment, I am lost. How can one create a moment in time?  A moment happens. I don't understand how it can be designed. It is just something that everyone goes through. The moment holds the person, the person doesn't hold the moment. Maybe thats just my perception. 

Hickey The Heresy of Zone Defense
Something useful: Rules have never been explained to me like that before. You need them for any type of structure. Without rules you don't have anything. If there were no rules Basketball could never exist. If there weren't rules Julius Erving wouldn't have made that shot. He wouldn't have had to. The rules were what made that shot possible. 

Something difficult : Rules are required, yet if there are too many rules it is no longer a game. The player loses the artistic license. That is where it gets confusing. when do you stop making rules? If the players are too free someone could be hurt or they game would be to easy.  The YMCA newsletter started asking if the game was too rough. They didn't know if they should add more rules to make it safer. A fear might have been that it would ruin the beauty of the game. 

Weschler Uncanny Valley
Something useful: I liked the way that the animators use milk as a reference to the reflection in the whites of a persons eyes. Henrik Wann Jensen thinks about milk a lot. He said that it is harder to animate than Dinosaurs. I wouldn't have thought that it would be that complex to animate. However, they seem too have a lot of trouble with making it seem realistic. 

Something difficult: Its interesting to think about how animators have to build a facial expression from nothing. Actors know how to express an emotion because they have felt that emotion before. If they don't have a live example to reference it from it is extremely difficult to know what each individual face muscle will do in reaction to something. 

About me

My name is Angie, well actually it's Mary, but I go by Angie. That's because my Dad's family has a tradition to name every girl Mary, after the Blessed Mother. You might have guessed that I'm Catholic; if so, you're right. I come from a family of 8 and I love being with them. That's why I chose OSU, it's close to home. 

I am a fashion and retail studies major and this is my 3rd year. I haven't taken many fashion courses yet (mostly GECs), but I love redesigning old clothes. One of my favorite things to do is go thrifting, find an under-designed shirt and figure out what I could make with it.

I have a boyfriend of 2 years named Daniel. We met in high school and he happens to go to OSU as well. I live close to campus with 5 other girls. We have our fights, but for the most part its a lot of fun. I've never had a blog before so I'm not sure if I'm doing this right. Hopefully i'll get better. 

Oh yeah.. my top 5 places I love to eat are:
1. Chipotle
2. Akai Hana
3. Dirty Frank's
4. Cluck-A-Doodle-Doo
5. Panera Bread