Environmental Video

Final Journal Presentation

At first, I took these pictures of my friend's little dolls, called Danbos, because I thought they were cute. I experimented with them in different locations and positions, and then I photoshopped them a bit. As the semester progressed, I started realizing a pattern or a theme with them. The "personality" that these Danbos take on is representative of my younger sister. She's 11 years old, and this is the first time we've been apart for longer than a weekend. Being at college in Florida when my home is in New York was a big shock for me, because I've never been away from my family for such a long time. I went from never being away from home for longer than a weekend to being away from home for months at a time. So, these Danbos and the activities they do in these photos are similar to what my sister and I did when we were together, and the traits that the Danbos portray, whether it's helpful, caring, or just silly, is how I see my sister.​ The relationship between my sister and I is depicted by the relationship between the Danbos and myself.

Final Project

The Last Move

Spencer Haberman: Edited

Wendy French: Art Director

Megan Kiley: Cinematographer

Andrea Diaz: Actress

Conner Zazzo: Actor

Process:
We were brainstorming ideas of what to do and came up with the idea of death. Want to play off death and how smoking kills but not directly implied, but the person smoking loses and dies.

Summary:
We have two characters sitting at a table under the veranda. Mike is smoking a cigarette and slowly puffing on it. Mike is wearing dark colored clothes and is in obvious pain. In between each puff, he coughs and wheezes. Sitting across the table is Susan. Susan is dressed in bright color clothes and munching down on gum. She is perky and excited to be sitting at the table. In the middle of the table is a set of dominos. Susan places a domino on the board and says “Beat that!” Mike responds “Easy.” and places another one down. Susan looks at him. She places another one down on Mikes side of the table. Susan, “You have been blocked.” Mike looks up at her and smiles. He has realize he has lost the game. Mike Coughs a lot more as he finished his cigarette. He throws it on the floor.

                                                            END SCENE

Terms:

• Art of seeing: Setting (Sykes veranda), Mood (sad), Environment (college)
• Point of view: The camera will shift from points of view (ex. 1st person and perspective of the dominos)
• Metaphor: Domino is blocked and he loses the game (symbolizes he is about to die from smoking)
• Double Entrendre: Smoking kills
• Multiple frames: All of our different angles (wide, close, master, over the shoulder)
• Framing of the image: All of the shots will be framed and cropped to be aesthetically pleasing
• Life and Death: Cigarettes symbolize the death and color symbolizes the life
• Sound and Audio: Dialogue and sound effects (coughing)
• Implied sound: No cough sound when the cigarette falls

Transcending Numbers

Final:

Step 2:

Step 1:

Journal #8

They love my new Vera Bradley bag!

Lunch time with these guys.

And dessert of course. Their favorite candy!

Taught them how to make something new today.

Perspective Project Comments

1. Benjamin Dreiker & Spencer Haberman: good image, clear concept, maybe change the background to indicate that he’s a baker, could add more details (have him holding a cooking utensil, wear an apron with stains, wear an oven mitt, etc.), can’t tell that it’s a cake (add details to indicate so if necessary)
2. Michael Ciluffo, Dominic Gallone & Connor Zazzo: cool concept, maybe show more of the goal to indicate that it’s the goalie, nice details building the tension
3. Jeslin Ritz & Berkley Whaley: interesting concept but maybe show more of the bottom of the trunk to get an idea that the person’s being enclosed in it, good background setting but maybe use a male figure closing the trunk, nice angle
4. Megan Kiley & Stevie Ruzich: good idea combining the pictures, maybe use a different name for the contact to make it more realistic, good idea using the text to set the scene, the peephole in the middle is kind of confusing, might be stronger if the boy was facing the “peephole,” maybe use arrows or something to show the progression
5. Andrea Diaz & Peter Insdorf: good idea but confusing angle
6. Frank Calo & Tara O’Connor: nice variety of perspectives, maybe space the sides more to indicate that the top and bottom are related, interesting set of photos put together
7. Erin Brockman & Alex Medvedev: clear idea, great image details (hands, books, pen, drink, backpack, setting, blackboard, people, etc.), good camera angle
8. Micaela Figueroa & Jennifer McElroy: nice idea, maybe put people in the seats or darken it more, maybe show a little more in the second image, third image is the most visually intriguing, put both images together for the second project maybe, interesting concept for the second project, maybe crop the white out a bit and show more of the metal machine for the second project
9. Kofi French Cudjoe & Elizabeth Lynch: very interesting image, a little confusing conceptually

Claire Sherwood Observations & Questions

Observations:

• There seems to be a recurring "perfect" theme.
• The frosting used to cover each woman's face is a different color.
• Most of the people in her artwork are women.
• It's ironic that in her video, "Begin," she's destroying it, so it's as if it's actually ending.
• There are a lot of pieces that require a set of something.

Questions:

• What is your inspiration for your artwork?
• What is the significance of some doilies folded or missing from "The Offering"?
• Why are the girls blowing coal and flour piles into each other's faces in "Flour and Coal"?
• What is the significance of the recurring frosting in your artwork?
• What is the material of the piece "Blued," and why is there a bump in it (it's not flat)?

Response:

I had no idea how much her mother side influenced her art. I didn't notice the domestic implications at first, but now I can visualize how her pieces have strong traces of femininity. I also didn't know that her and her artist friend made videos in response to each other, which I thought was extremely interesting. I've always thought about art being a way to express yourself and not a conversations of sorts. I was also really impressed that she took over 40 hours to create the frosting pieces for shows, especially since she has two kids. 

Journal #7

They found a new hiding spot up there.

I think hide and seek is their favorite game.

They love my new picture.

Just showing off a little Spartan pride.

Point of View

Partner: Elizabeth Cox
Point of View: Cigarette

The flames around the edge represent the burning cigarette, and the circular shape is used to portray the shape of a cigarette. The smoke and the placement of her lighter is used to suggest that she is smoking. The black around the edge is used to indicate the ash inside cigarettes.

Journal #6

Took these guys on their first walmart run. We took the dolly to get drinks.

They're helping me clean up the dorm.

And now they're fooling around... climbing on everything.

They love my suitemates' bungee chair.

Journal #5

Uh oh. They found my suitemates' cards. This isn't the game for them...

They're so interested in my suitemate's homework.

They're trying to figure out how to make the bracelets I always wear. I'll have to teach them one day.

They love recycling.

World Record

World's Longest Scarf: 6.2 miles

Source 1
Source 2

Jason Hackett Observations & Questions

Observations:

• There are various lines in his pieces, whether it's jagged, straight, curved, bumpy, etc.
• His pieces are mainly sculptural or ceramic.
• There are recurring religious images, such as Jesus or a cross.
• Many of his sculptures and ceramic work involve him piecing together various items, so the proportions aren't necessarily perfect or the lines don't match up exactly.
• There's a repetitious use of body parts, such as feet, hands, or faces.

Questions:

• Do you make all your pieces or do you find pieces and place them together?
• Where do you get the inspiration for your pieces?
• Do you have a vision or theme to create a sculpture piece or do you just place them together?
• How long does it take you to make a sculpture?
• Do you ever make a piece with the intention to break it?

Response:

I really enjoyed hearing the symbolism behind his pictures. For instance, the green feet in a circle actually represents a wreath, and the feet were actually bear paws. I would have no way of knowing that from simply looking at the sculpture. The last artist we spoke with had heavy symbolism in relation to his life, but this artist considered the aesthetic and functional appeal in some regards, such as if it were hanging on the wall, there may be size restrictions. I thought it was particularly interesting how he said he connects to his sculptures in the way that someone might connect to something more literal. It made me think how everyone sees everything differently based on their prior knowledge and experiences and to keep that in mind when creating anything.

Journal #4

They're always so eager to help. They were really interested in my UPC code project.

They're getting so pumped for spring break! I told them they still have a few more days though...

They sure love popcorn.

I can't believe they've never seen a ring pop before.

UPC Code

Final: