08 - The End

The end of this semester came quickly. It was a bitter sweet one filled with revelations, disappointments and encouragements. I a lot was learned from this unique step into creativity. I learned more about artists and more about how real they are. It's strange standing in front of someone that you are, not only interviewing yourself, but also studying about in the classroom.

I will be continuing this path of commentary-free documentary next semester. The topic of how much of it will be of artists is in the air though. I'm not sure weather or not I will try some other people or stories that I am personally interested in but building a better portfolio while, at the same time, getting my work into an educational institution is quite the achievement.

For the time being however, I need to work on more practical skills like making a respectable resumé.

Till Next Time...





Nurture Boy

07 - VRC Interview 02 - Richard Armendariz

With a more experienced hand and slightly stronger will, I was able to complete this interview piece of Professor Richard Armendariz. Unlike the Malaquias piece, this one was not rushed (at least not in editing) but that isn't to say it was easier.

Working with the Malaquias footage was slightly easier. Easier because the goal was much more set in stone. It was an interview where we gave a background of the artist, some advice to students, and then a promotion of his gallery opening. It was a simple plan that I had lots of guidance with.

However, the Ricky piece was a more hands off approach. I didn't really have a guideline other than "advice for students " and "3-5 minutes" this lead to a lot of self motivation and difficult decision making. It meant I had to decide what advice would resound the most with those who saw and and how to clearly present that. In turn, what that meant was, I had to leave a tremendous amount of footage on the cutting room floor. I had so many things I wanted to put in but I simply could not fit it in either for length, for clarity or for editing reasons. It was too much footage to fit into a 3 minute piece, yet too little to fit into a 5 minute piece. So I had to leave all sort of goodies such as information on his famous green mug, his art collection, his growing up stories... even the detail in his carvings.

On the plus side I and the VRC will have the additional footage in case I found myself permitted to revisit the project. In the meantime I hope you enjoy this heartwarming lesson on finding your own art style to marvel the world.

In the end this

06 - Studio and Watching the Sunset

Today I woke up with the intention of recording additional footage of Professor Richard Armendariz at his studio/home and that is exactly what I did.

I arrived at his house at 11:06am. The lawn was splendid with lush green and bountiful trees. I knocked on the door and Ms. Armendariz answered the door. Soon I was lead to the garage... Ricky's studio where I began gathering footage to enhance the traditional interview footage. It was a very successful endevor and I got a more robust feel for his influence and tastes. Also getting to see his work up front, I was amazed at how the images online did it little justice. His work is truly breathtaking. Breathtaking because of the mesmerizing skylines he painted and because of the carving process and how the items carved in seem to belong to the painting.

I look forward to incorporating this into the final interview.

---

I set up my Camera to watch the sun set at 7:45. It was a slow and beautiful progression. I am ashamed to say this but: was the first sunset I have ever seen.

I guess I never really marveled at the heavenly bodies. I never understood the desire to lay underneath the stars or sunrises. I did however enjoy the beauty of clouds. That's probably more to do with the fact that lots of digital illustrations call for a clear blue sky more so than the others.

05 - Luminaria, Alternative Ink and Professor Armendariz

I don't remember talking about Luminaria. Its a long time after but I feel I must mention little about it. I arrived with my girlfriend after walking through the torrent of people just coming and going in a downtown San Antonio that is filled with colorful lights; fitting enough for the occasion I guess. The event was hosted in a nice huge area. It was less hipster open air, and more modern. I personally like that direction although I assume many would disagree.

The works of art amazed me and frankly made me feel constantly inadequate. Techniques and ideas that, while I know how to copy them, I would most likely not have ever made. Not to mention how nice the works of my fellow classmates looked in a gallery setting. Too bad about the missing projectors.

---

I am not a fan of field trips. They consist of me moving to uncomfortable locations, a constant stream of improvisations and the uncertainty of if I will be able to find my way back to I-10. This one was fairly easy and quite rewarding. The studio was short, simply and chuck full of "we know what we're doing." I mean, there was a print in the studio by Caesar Martinez! It's like name dropping but subtle!

Anyway I was impressed by all the detail our guides, "Chuck" and Jennifer told us about. The dedication it takes to make a proper copy of a work is something work focusing solely on. When you hear chuck explain the need for constant color correction for their monitor you hear someone who has paid so much attention to his trade that he is able to fix problems that are in realms far past normal recognition. It makes me feel as though I should be as effective of my goals.

---

The Interview Footage of Mr. Armendariz is quite difficult. Difficult in the fact that I cannot figure out which story-combination I want to go with. There is a lot of things covered but it clashed with all the other ideas I am trying to incorporate into the video. I'm simply going to have to watch this footage over and over again until a storyline emerges.

Also... He is amazingly eloquent.

04 - VRC Interview 01: Malaquias Montoya

After working brute force though the final stretch I was able to put this together. It served a lot of goals in getting more skill and expertise in video creation.

Shooting the interview was technically the easiest part; meaning the a majority of the hassle came in the form of abstract, imagined fear. Thankfully, Connie (Executive Producer) and Rebecca (Interviewer) helped me get the equipment set up; Rebecca even helped me with the camera. Once the interview was done, I was able to reflect on what a wonderful team I was blessed with to guide me.

Now came the self-education part. I never truly realized how much work goes behind cleaning up an interview. So much structuring, editing and, depending on the subject, removal of the "um's" and "uh's". In the end I was able to cut it down to a sequence that would address the requirements.

The final and most adventurous part of this endevor was shooting B-Roll. I needed shots of students working in the studio, Professor Malaquias teaching and shots of San Antonio. For an entire week The HD Camera was mine and together we walked around the art building, we walked around San Antonio Down town (assisted by my lovely girlfriend, Jessica) and Professor Malaquias' Wednesday 8am class; all the while recording shots that would fit in with the video.

After popping in the B-Roll and fixing the errors, the video was posted the weekend before Spring Break. I felt accomplished and it's all thanks to the lovely people who supported me the entire way.

Next up... Interview with Ricky Armendariz!

03 - Malaquias and Procrastination

Entering into this project I can't say I wasn't aware of my problem. I procrastinate.

This is a very frightening problem to me. It shouldn't be, sadly it is causing some problems. The only thing I can truly be happy about is that I did in fact make some progress. I should be glad that I am typing this. I should be glad that I have edited the video. I should be glad that I have a girlfriend who would spend a Saturday with me going downtown and shoot San Antonio landmarks. These are things that should help to offset the amount of work left.

Mr. Malaquias, the gentleman in the interview, is one of those men who have really come to know how they operate and are able to use that system effectively. It is a trait I seriously envy. Sadly I am still developing so I am nowhere close to a sanguine level of living. At least that means I can learn about more and more things easily.

Speaking of learning, editing this work was quite educating. I found out how much work I had to do in order to make the cut down final piece be coherent, all the while, eliminating parts of the conversation that were unfit for whatever reason (including “um's” and politically incorrect phrases) and using B roll to cover up my edits. It works out fine for now. I only hope I can finish this before the spring break.

This week my focus is on completing all my B Roll shots which include:

Malaquias teaching

Malaquias Working in lab

Student on the computer

Student working in lab.

General shots of the Campus.

All this before Luminaria... so...

I better get to it.

02 - Remix Manifesto

Now that's one of the most promising kinds of documentaries.

Most documentaries shown on Discovery Channel, History Channel, etc. are more of what I'd like to call corporate Documentaries. Excluding the blockbusters like Supersize Me and Michael Moores works, they are the most profitable documentaries. However , while they are interesting to the majority of people, they don't truly connect with me on a personal level. However this documentary, in addition to some others I have come across by chance, feels like it belongs to me more than any other.

The idea of owning ideas is a frightening concept in the long run but it sounds tantalizing in short term. However, being the empathetical idiot I am, I keep on considering the other side. Why would a label want to much money and why would they deny the artist any of the gain. In a way it's no different than the people working at multimillion dollar companies making minimum wage. If a company grows, there's no incentive to help you grow.

I guess all that does is help create a dog-eat-dog mentality where the workers and customers try to screw over the company thinking "they can make it back" or "they are jerks". The company takes this as a threat and replies in their own ways which may or may not hurt them back. The sad part is that the company, being a unified group as opposed to being a random set of individuals, usually wins. Reminds me of that story about a bundle of sticks being stronger than each twig.

Maybe we could work the other way. What if everything is bought, all the companies make all the money and buy each other out. There would be the end where no one can buy anything else. The people at the lower end may not be able to increase rank and become the bottom masses. Maybe they complain to the head and then the head creates better surroundings. Because if they loose them, the other big companies will hire them. And if there is no labor, they will not be able to...

actually there are too many holes in that logic... lets stop it now.

The point is that everyone works out for what is best for them. Especially those who care less how others feel. It's no different from any other specie on earth. Besides we all die. So nothing really matters. That should be a comforting statement, instead of a depressing one.

PS: Shooting the first interview this week. I'm going crazy!

01 - SPRING 10 - A New Frontier for Me

When Lesley offered me the chance to work on a set of video interviews to be displayed on the art Departments website, I approached the idea the thinking the same way I do whenever I am about to get employed: “I will enter this shivering and scared, but I will come out much wiser and richer.”

However, after my recent conversation with Ms. Cornelia Swann, the webmaster (webmistress?), I feel a little more intimidated that I am used to. You see, with employment, I am guided quite closely through the process which, in a way, is not that vivid enough to loose focus in. This situation, however, is much more of a “make-this-professionally-and-we'll-see-you-at-the-end-of-the-semester”; a position I don't believe I ever have been in.

*takes deep breaths*

As you can see, fear is my knee-jerk reaction to the proposition but once I take a clear look at it, I shouldn't be afraid of anything. What this basically does is give me freedom to do what I wanted to do anyway. It would have been a tremendous missed opportunity had I turned this down from fear. After all, I will have all the equipment I will need to make this, I'll have the entire campus (or at least the art building) to use as a backdrop and the advice of lots of students and Professors whenever I get confused, overwhelmed or break down in the fetal position. Furthermore, it's not as if interviews are ridiculously hard; one, maybe two cameras recording an individual talk, a light on the person, a light on the background, maybe have them start over when they make mistakes, some cuts to the things they're talking about, it sounds reachable to me.

The one and only problem, and I believe this is what I truly fear, is Procrastination.

I am a notorious procrastinator and this could be my major downfall on this quite glorious opportunity. It has plagued me in the past and is still rearing it's ugly head on this the first week of this semester. But there is some good news on the horizon; lately I have adopted using my friends and family as living alarm clocks for things I have to do and when I cannot do that, I go to Starbucks. Yep. Definitely Starbucks. That's because if I am in a Starbucks, I absolutely have to be studying or working on something. It's probably because of the coffee smell.

And with that I raise a Vente Chai Latte to this Semesters Project.

Hip hip hooray.

Assignment 07 - Group Installation Project "Pandoras Box"

Pandora's Box
3 Channel (2 Monitors, 1 Projection)

Assignment 06 - Laurie Anderson

Laurie Anderson Official Website

Laurie Anderson Wikipedia

Laurie Anderson "O Superman"

Assignment 05 - "Dead Wrong"

"Dead Wrong" by Onemena Ofurhie
8 minutes 20 seconds

A self portrait of Onemena Ofurhie. The viewer watches a crime scene investigation full of descriptive events about the author.

Assignment 04 - "A Painful Look into my Writing Process" by Chel White

Through my time in New Media: Video, I have been attempting to find a balance between artistic and commercial. Artistic is more organic and more true to self and is what people seek when looking at artwork. The commercial side of me, however, wishes to explain things to people in a clear way so it will never be misunderstood. Both are difficult, and I constantly try to find where the medium is.

It was this way of thinking that brought me to envy this video by Chel White. He was able to create an easily comprehended piece that still counts as an art piece. I'm not sure how he accomplished it really. I feel it might have been the amount of work it must've taken to collect and engineer all the photographs and images he used and to form the visual narrative and the work it must have taken to specifically choose and place them as desired. This aspect is only quantified by the fact that my experience with editing assists me in understanding even how much more difficult it was. The second, and strangest part to me, is how honest the piece actually is. Whenever I listed to it again, it sounds as though it was made to make the audience laugh, sadly I won't actually know unless I become a writer. Then again it's completely possible that is, in fact, what he does and it is actually that outlandish.

In the end, however, it is an inspiring piece that helps in pushing the idea that being true to yourself doesn't mean you have to be cryptic.... and I shall work to find a balance that, in turn, works for me.

Assignment 03 - About the Author

I was brought into the world for the sole reason of making it awesome. I was raised as an urban Nigerian and despite my larger than life frame, was given a smaller than significant character. This contradiction began my never ending desire to forever defy expectations and all that could be presumed from me.

After a 15 year period of being groomed with the most elegant living and the most pathetic and emotionally scarring aspects of the Nigerian-British education system, I was then sent to Texas to finish off my hi school years.

Hi-school was where I first realized my potential. It seemed that all I had learned in my past residence had taught me the evils of humanity and the frailties of all people. So while I apprenticed under my aunt, one of the greatest chefs of them all, I also worked on manipulating and controlling the minds of my fellow colleagues. I also learnt the benefits of hard work as well as creating the illusion of hard work and finally, where the balance between the two lay.

Once I had arrived in college I realized that all that I believed I had learned was for nothing. As it turns out we all end up is the same boat as everyone else. The differences only mean different techniques must b e applied to reach out goals. Kinda saddening... but also kinda Nice.

I mean, it means this world is balanced in the end. No group is overpowered.

Unless god decides to Nerf Asian gamers... those guys are just too good.

Pogo - Expialidocious

Pogo is an Australian gentleman who has taken sounds and words from the movie Mary Poppins. His process is to use personal sine wave bass and custom drum sequences to assist the sounds from the movie in creating a full fledged song. In the way that it has been utilized, it is far-from its original piece.

While the video is not very subtle, the song itself stretches to greater heights through his tremendously melodic arrangement. He uses all techniques from reversing and looping a particular section of background music, to finding words that, once taken out of context and set on repeat, are more musical than they are logical. The latter techniques is one of the most fascinating aspects of his videos. His ability to use words yet not truly have any coherent sentence, therefore forcing the listeners mind to accept it as a musical rhythm. The fact that this is the main point of his work makes him unique in a way that the movie piece had little-to-nothing to do with.

Pogo has made quite a number of these songs. All available for free on the internet. While some of them are quite obvious over where their sounds were extracted from (Alohamora) others are even more cryptic and stretches farther away from their origin (White Magic). However Expialidocious seems to have hit that sweet spot where it is its own creation yet still receives attention because of its original forms popularity.

BLOG ASSIGNMENT 01 - Back for Another Semester

Once again I return to New Media video to try to fail even less than I did last time. How cruel it is, in such a case that the first thing I am to do is lead a team of otherwise hopeful people to doom by appointing me a "leader".

Let it be known that I am a tremendously gifted follower. I have the ability to follow instructions to the teeth and to take such amazing initiative. It would be fair to say that I am the stuff that makes leaders and the society they represent successful. However when it comes to NOT being the follower, I am wracked with confusion and uncertainty. I still consider unwilling leadership to be more frightening than public speaking.

However my team were very sporting and helped things move along gracefully. I most likely embarrassed myself multiple times but the fact that we completed the project the day and that far along says something worked.

I think next time I'll feign novicity.

Wait... that isn't a word!

Orange Dream

Orange Dream is a collaborated project by Onemena Ofurhie and Daniel Davis. Its is an alternate project created by the artists in lieu of their original project which consisted of a Paladin engulfed in glowing gold aura; a plan which was scrapped due to time constraints and the difficulty in actually finding a Paladin.

The audience is faced with liquor-creating apparatus laid on a table and both are pushed against a projection screen. A well-dressed figure is projected onto the screen and commences to creating a drink with the tools which the tangible objects displayed on the table. The piece loops infinitely, giving the audience more time to appreciate and enjoy the many different points of interest in the creation of the drink.

The installation speaks out to "art for arts sake", an idea which both artists share. It is made to be free from all form of social criticism, emotional influence or other distractions. That however didn't stop the artists from creating a well crafted Video installation. The crisp and colorful imagery and it's presentation are eye catching and captivating both with or without lighting. The actor in the projected video moves meticulously through the motion of creating the drink, a process which can be watched for long periods without loosing appeal.

Keep Moving - Neemo

This is the closest I've come to accomplishing what I had in mind.

This is by far the best I've done and it's only because I have been helping out a friend of mine who is directing a horror comedy. I got to see their entire process and I tried to apply that to mine.

I wish the digital pieces were not as cartoony and were more entertaining but I guess that's something to work on and strive for.

I don't know if I will continue this series again or if I'll move on to other ideas but this is something I strongly feel I can improve on.

Late Blog about Self-Portrait Examples

You know what I did after class? I went to look for that one video that we couldn't see named Are You Someones favorite person? I thought it was pretty nice and I'm sure I wasn't biased because it had Miranda July and John Reilly. However I was not given permission to speak about this video so I should just move along now.

I decided to speak of El Mundo LA: Humberto Sandovol. Talk about a simple yet effective video.

Lets face it... most of the power in the piece is held in the speech and the way its carried out. I love great speech. Not since Kill Bill did I break out of my "audience" mold and realized just how artistic one could be with their language. The words chosen and the way they are spoken have a big influence on me... more than my family and friends as they have taunted me when I point it out.

Speaking of speech... lets take a minute to think of all the times when someones trying to explain something and the receiver keeps on interfering by saying "right... right... right...". I honestly think its rude and it does nothing but force the speaker to stop. Therefore it is a bad attribute for people who call themselves "good listeners" and seeing as everyone thinks their "open minded and good listeners" then there's a lot of hypocrites.

Perhaps I shouldn't talk so prophetically.

Anyway, I honestly liked his choice of Purple monochrome. Its calming and makes me feel more comfortable. If he had chose to use all the colors in the rainbow I would feel inadequate mainly because I lack color theory knowledge and this would do nothing but distract me from the dialogue which I loved so.

As far as the random frame rate changes, I'm not exactly sure what the purpose was. It didn't enhance anything for me and it was quite unrewarding and jarring.

I Finally take a trip to The Blue Star!

So I went to the Blue Star. Considering all every art class always speaks about going to galleries and talk about "First Friday" I decided that I should probably talk a...

oh no... its happening., I'm loosing the will to type. why does this happen to me. it never did before. If this continues I will stop writing and chuck it up to some meaningless excuse... no... I must continue... but not with fore. if i use force it will end up like the piece of crap review i wrote for blue star... don't worry... i will post that soon.,.. very soon... mwahahahaha

And... back.

As I was saying, the blue star was a weird place to be. There were people walking around going from gallery to gallery, talking to the gallery curators/artists and amongst each other as though it were a party... which it might as well be because alcohol and snacks are semi-bountifully offered.

Needless to say I didn't feel as though belonged there one bit. Granted I was wearing Jeans, and carrying a notebook too but I didn't feel that I would be comfortable even if I was dressed in a Yves Saint Laurent three button Jacket and Louis Vuitton shoes.

I looked around and what I saw was a social event. People enjoying themselves and discussing amongst themselves. This was basically a party for sophisticated individuals. I've never truly enjoyed parties for my peers and I sure as hell wasn't enjoying a party with older individuals.

The theme was Japanese photography, a mixture of a place and culture I love and a medium I am interested in. But this was not to be fully absorbed by my curiousity...

I had to get out.

That's right, after I got to the Blue Star gallery, my first impression was to get out! But that just wont do. I have a job to complete here and I'll be damned if my self consciousness gets the best of me.

Following this will be a confused, uninspired, frustrated and consecrated review of the gallery. I advise that you not read it as it is mostly there for legal reasons:

COUNTER-PHOTOGRAPHY
Japan's Artists Today
Blue Star Gallery, San Antonio
September 5th, 2008


Japan.

Upon the mention of this word I have been completely captivated. Regardless of what follows my interest has already been raised to forty percent. You see, somewhere around the age of fifteen I discovered that Japanese cartoons were becoming the new wave of fashion for those in the nerd or geek sub culture. I, being a card carrying member, was attracted to this form of entertainment which eventually evolved from Love of Japanese Cartoons to Love of Japanese Culture and finally to Love of Japan.



So Imagine my delight to know that the Blue Star was hosting a Gallery full of modern Photography by Japanese artists. Not only does this sedate my Japanophilic needs but it also educates me on the artistic process oh photography. Please be aware that most of my judgment will be based on my feelings towards the works themselves and will not be affected by any social or political factors.

Let us begin with the Works of Eikoh Hosoe. Black and white photographs on Gelatin Silver prints. Mounted on a slim black frame with thick white borders. Nothing to distract from the work and why should there be? I find his work very easy to relate to. He chooses angles and perspectives to make the figures interesting or to make the entire composition effective. These pieces seemed to be the only ones in the gallery that chose to make the human form an active part of the photos.

However Mr. Hosoe is completely different from Tomoaki Ishihara. The works of Ishihara are larger, more colorful and employ mixed cultures in some cases. Untitled #195 is one piece that consist of a blurry face in the foreground while the background, where the focus is, is a beautiful triptych with what seems to be European art similar to that of the reconnaissance period. This seemed strangely comfortable with the process implemented. I'm not sure what experience leads one to such inspiration like that but I would love to reach that point someday.

Photography seems to be a very alien style of art from what I've seen. It seems to make even less sense than conceptual works and yet have a far more striking impact on those who know it's true nature. Walking around the gallery of Japanese art filled me with a sense of regression. I felt as though all that I have learned up to this point is so minute that I will never be able to catch up unless drastic measures are made. That or I re-roll Japanese.

FALL 2008 SEMESTER BEGINS HERE!

FALL 2008 SEMESTER BEGINS HERE!