Place Project Notes Part A

Places lived:

*Springfield, MA
*Charlotte, NC
*Huntersville, NC

Significant Meaning:

*Chicopee, MA - family
*Key Largo, FL
*beach (therapeutic?)
*house on 115
*my room
*old Huntersville
*cosmetology room
*"the trail"
*the south
*Folly Beach

Originally, for this project, I thought about doing home as my location and taking random snap shots of objects and food from home and maybe zoom in really close so you can't really tell what it is. Then, I thought about doing images that constitute "home," not just the physical home. I was thinking about taking pitures of the trees in my neighborhood, flowers, fences, the members area, down by the trail, maybe pictures from Massachusetts, and of random things from home. Pretty much I was going to try and capture the essence of home without be too literal and more so trying to capture things that remind me of home or make me feel at home. I was thinking of how to display this and was thinking about how to display or present this idea and came up with a few ideas other than just a plain photo collage.

Lately, I've been taking backroads to school frequently and it got me thinking about how much Huntersville has changed. There has been and continue to be a lot of changes to Huntersville that I am not real happy about. We moved to Huntersville about twelve years ago, and back when we moved here there were cows off the exit and it was still pretty small town. There wasn't a whole lot of shopping and restraunts back then. Downtown was tiny and a lot of the businesses were probably moreso local owned in there area. However, all that has changed pretty drastically. The cows are long gone, as is the curving road to get to our neighborhood. In my opinion, there are now too many neighborhoods and Huntersville is over built for my taste, but still they keep on building. Now I'm not opposed to a few grocery stores, a little shopping, and some restruants. I think it has gotten kind of ridiculous though, I do not think we need all they have put in. Recently, they put a new shopping center in next to an existing shopping center, and there is another one not too far down the road! We also have 3 Starbucks! An old car dealership that was downtown is no more and has been cleared out to make way for Discovery Place Kids! I think Huntersville has lost its small town appeal and I don't really like that.

All that got me thinking about doing a piece on Huntersville contrasting the what I consider to be the old Huntersville versus new Huntersville. I was thinking about taking pictures of remnants of old Huntersville, as well as the development and urbanization of new Huntersville. I want to use color to convey my feelings regarding the matter. I am thinking of using vivid color for the images of old Huntersville. Then, to contrast that I am thinking about using sepia for pictures of new Huntersville. I think the sepia setting can seem more dull and monotonous against the vivid colors of the other pictures, and to me I think it could maybe bring a smoggy dirty monotonous feel depending on when I take it. I was thinking of also taking the pictures to represent old Huntersville on a nice sunny day, then maybe doing the ones to represent old Huntersville on an overcast day.

I was thinking of using the pictures I take to create a "billboard." I don't remember exactly how I came up with the idea of creating a billboard. It could be because I feel strongly about this and would like to expose how I feel in a big way, kind of like a way of saying "Stop, we don't need it," and maybe getting people to realize their ruining what made us a small town. I am not going to put it on an actual billboard, but do have one in mind when I am creating it. There is a one road I sometimes take in the morning called Old Stumptown Road (Highway 115) that goes through downtown Huntersville. It is a two lane road and has a random billboard on it before you get to downtown Huntersville. This billboard is the one I have in mind while creating this project. I may try and get a picture of it.

Today, during the group discussion, the idea of using a map of Huntersville either to put the "billboard" on or on the "billboard" with images superimposed was suggested. I may possibly try and work in a map of old Huntersville somehow, but I am not yet sure how I would do that if I were to. I'll have to think about it and see whether or not I want to.



Update:
That comment got me thinking, and it seemed as though a political cartoon might be a better idea for this project. I wasn't sure how I would do a political cartoon, but yesterday I was taking pictures around Huntersville to go with my first idea for this project, and came up with a new idea. I still plan to use the same idea, but instead of doing the "billboard" idea, I'm going to try and do a political cartooon. I did a quick outline of what I plan to do on the back of a box I had in my car (maybe later I'll post it).

Victoria Vesna Reading Notes

1. -Why is this art?
-Why does she choose to work the way she does?
-What is the meaning of her work?

2. -I think we do tend to focus on our wants or desires, rather than what we do have. Majority of the time I probably do want something else, rather than just being content with what I do have.
-I have attempted to try and illustrate abstract ideas, such as anxiety. However, I have never thought about using something like how data is collected. I think something like that would require a good bit of research and an understanding of how something like that works. That could be a good source of inspiration when trying to create forms.
-Vesna said, "Technology is killing our time." I think that is an interesting statement that I have haven't directly thought about. I have thought about what it would be like to live in the past and sometimes long for a more simple existence, but am torn because it is hard to imagine life without modern conveniences such as cell phones, the internet, etc. that do not fit into that world.
-I like the idea behind her work, and did not get that from looking at her work.
-I think her concept is very relevent in this day in age. It is very convincing, and kind of makes me wonder how my life would be different if I did shut out some technology.
-Her choice of medium makes sense now after reading some about what she is trying to do in her work. Since she is trying to target the lack of time caused by technology, it makes sense that she would use technology to create this.
- When I was originally looking at her work, I did not like the virtual quality of it and how abstract it is, as well as the aesthetics of it.
-Vesna's work is very complex. I get the concept behind her work, but even knowing that, I still don't really understand two of the images in the book. Maybe if I were to experience it'd make more sense, or if it was in context?

3. -Victoria Vesna's work can be considered art beacuse it has aesthetic qualities about it, as well as a solid concept. It has also been shown in the gallery setting, so someone views it as art. I have an easier time seeing her work as art, after reading about the work.
-She chose to work the way she does because the issue that she is trying to address was created by technology, and therefore using technology to address it seems appropriate.
-Vesna's work is about the impact technology has on our lives. She works off of the idea that the technology that was supposed to make our lives easier and enables us to find things more quickly has actually inhibited us in that we spend more time going through all the information we find and isolate ourselves more.

4. -Is there a less complicated way she could have expressed the same idea?
-How is her work viewed in the gallery setting?
-Could someone experiencing her work first hand "get" her message, or is it something that requires further investigation?

Skip Schukman Reading Notes

1. -Why does he choose to work outdoors?
- What is the meaning behind his work?
-What is important about his selection of materials?

2. -His background in biology, forest service, and wildlife management may very well have impacted his choice to work outdoors, as well as his choice of materials.
-The idea of buying a "personal relationship with the artist," not the art seems wierd to me.
-It seems as though he is more focused on the process/what goes into creating his work, than on the actual finished product.
-Working in nature would be a cheap way to keep up with the creating art projects after graduating.
-I'm glad he does not use polluting machinery when he creates his work, although I am not so sure about how I feel about his changing the landscape. I know how humans we do it with landscaping and building, but I'm just not sure how I feel about him rearranging it to create art.
-I'm glad he tries to utilize the resources that are already there.
-It is an interesting idea that he tries to create all these different setting with the land and resources around clients' land.
-His ideology reminds me of the Native American's respect for the land, that I would like to have and wish more people would as well.
-I wish more people were so crafty with the land. As a society in general, we have moved away from a more intimate relationship with the land. During childhood, more of this bond exists, but as it gets older I think it seems to fade and becomes kind of frowned upon (unless your a farmer).

3. -I think he works outdoors because it is something he enjoys. He has a background in forestry and wildlife management, so it was probably a natural choice for him.
-His work is about interaction, both his interaction with the land and with his clients. Through his work, he wants to establish an appreciation of the simplicity of the land in his clients, as well as share his value system.
-His selection of materials comes from what is present on the site, or what he brings into the site that typically is recycled from elsewhere. However, he tries to only use what is already at the site.

4. -His method of working is very different from the maintstream, how did he come up with the idea of working the way he does?
-How did he find people to support his creations?
-Where does his inspiration come from in creating the structures?

Identity Project Notes Part B

I think my choice of media was successful in giving a shattered feeling. I also feel that using black for silhouettes of the images worked well; had I used color I think that it would not have the same feeling or effect and would have been "too much." Although, I think that maybe some of the silouhette images came out a little too ambiguous and maybe it would have been better to break up the mirror, then put the images on so that they didn't seem so random. I think had someone not known my concept and looked quick, maybe they wouldn't know they were from actual images. I think it would have also been better if I had an abstract but recognizable shape that went along with my concept that I pieced the broken pieces into instead of just a random mish-mash. Additionally, there was technical issues that if I were to persue this idea again I should try and work out. Some of the broken glass pieces continued to break when I was trying to glue them together, and I think if I had some type of board support that I was putting them on that could have been eliminated and the piece could actually hang on the wall as I had intended.