ART 334 Projects

iMovie Project

Click the following link to watch my video! Painter's Block

    In my iMovie project, I made the video with the big idea of self or identity.  It really is about my identity as an artist.  Realistically, I put a lot of time and effort into my work, and it is not always fruitful.  Therefore, I wanted to make a video about that frustration.  In the video, these are all the things I do in my work - sketching, pouring paint, cutting up shapes, etc.
    I set the video to this music, "All of Me" by Jon Schmidt, because I felt it kind of captured that feeling of the calm before the storm which happens when you encounter any difficulty.  I actually know how to play this piano piece as well, and so it has a personal significance to me.  On the music, Jon Schmidt wrote little notes about how this piece literally takes all of you to play - at one point you bang a range of notes with your entire arm, and so I felt that his comments also related to my idea in this video. For me, art takes everything out of me; it requires me to spend a lot of time in the studio, working through ideas, making work, and to have it take so much from me when sometimes it doesn't give back is intensely frustrating.  I wish that every time I went to the studio something great would happen, but to be honest that is not the case, and I thought this video was a good way to document that.
    My hope for the viewer is that maybe they can relate to that idea of working at something and still have nothing come of it.  I feel like this is an idea that stretches easily beyond art - many people can identify with that problem.  So while the video may seem very personal and specific to me as an artist, and maybe even driven by certain experiences, my hope is that people can still relate to the feeling I am creating in this piece.

Lemonade Stand Animation 

Click the link to download and watch my animation  --  Lemonade Stand

Artist Statement 

In my animated piece, I hoped to show a complex topic in a more simplistic manner, so that it might be easy for even children to understand.  I made this video with the idea that it could be used as an example in my own classroom someday, so I tried to address a topic that a lot of people would be able to relate to.  I chose the big idea of generosity because I think that everyone can learn from the generosity of others. 

My goal with this video was mostly just to show that anyone could be generous, even when you think you have nothing to give.  The protagonist in my video is sitting at a lemonade stand – an adventure that may not result in a lot of money – but still, through the generosity of others, is able to acquire a lot more than one would think you’d make selling lemonade.  His dream is to buy an ipod with his money, and suddenly that dream becomes very real – it wouldn’t take as long as he thought!  Yet, if the viewer had noticed, the mailbox remains full of notices and warnings – late bills.  I hoped to make this small detail be one of the most important parts of the video.  It becomes an essential part of the scene, because it is what causes the boy’s mother to feel defeated, resulting in him giving his mother the money.

I tried to make this storyline something that people can relate to no matter what their age or affluence.  Using the familiarity of the setting and also the familiarity of having money problems can lead the viewer to relate to the piece, and possibly even picture themselves in it.  Maybe some picture themselves as the truck driver who was so generous, or as the boy saving to buy his dream toy, or as the mother, so desperate in her situation.  Any way, it is possible to relate to feeling I created if you can picture yourself in their places.

I hope that this sends a broader message to those who watch it, maybe a “pay it forward” kind of idea.  I think emphasizing what could be done for others is a good reminder for anyone.  This movie specifically for me highlights the joy of receiving, but also giving, and so I desire that those who watch it might also be compelled by those emotions.

            

            I made my three postcards from pictures I took of the pool where I am a lifeguard and swim lessons instructor.  As a swim teacher, I deal with fear on a daily basis, from people of all ages, and so I thought I might provide a little insight on how I view fear, and how it relates to the imagination.

            For the first postcard, we were required to cut and paste objects into our image, so I used this method to describe how someone’s imagination might embellish a place like the pool, in a positive light.  People who are excited by the pool environment may imagine there to be fish in the pool, or that the teachers are mermaids.  I used this technique to repeat the fish and dolphins throughout the image, adding a background of foliage to further show how someone’s imagination may enhance the environment.  This card therefore is about the absence of fear, and how the imagination can freely work to create a different world out of a simple place.

            For the second postcard, we were required to transform our image in a way that showed a place different from reality.  I chose to use this technique to show the pool in the presence of fear.  I am really interested in the fact that fear can transform any place into an image that will look similar, no matter where the place is.  All fearful places generally have an element of darkness, and so I think that fear limits your imagination – when you imagine a fearful place, the things you imagine are often not very specific to that place. 

            For the third postcard, we were required to use text in our image to reveal a personal insight about our place.  I chose to place my text on the diving board, since this is one of the most feared things about the pool – even those who swim well can fear it.  While the diving board has many different possibilities for imagination – some see it as a runway, others see it as a pirate’s plank – I did not want to project my own imaginings on the image, so instead I placed emphasis on the diving board itself, as well as the text.  I blurred out the background and applied a tint so that the diving board would stand out more, allowing the viewer to create their own imaginations freely.  I chose the text, “Fear is your imagination. Free it.” because thinking about fear as something that is imagined can help you get over it.  Seeing a place as something you fear instead of seeing it as just a place causes you to imagine differently.  Saying that fear is constructed by our imaginings about that place makes it easier to change those imaginings.  I also thought that so tell the viewer to “free it” was a good way to connect fear to imagination even further – by freeing your fear, you free your imagination, and vice versa.