Truth Vs Fiction

Truth in the media is like looking for a pot of Gold at the end of the Rainbow. It is literally impossible to showcase any type of information without creating a bias. The information included, left out, what cuts of information are put next to each other all determine the mood and underlying information in the news reports. I have a hard time believing much of what I see on TV news channel networks because while the information they are displaying may be true, there is a ton of information that they do not reveal. So, for example, all over the news are reports of theft, kidnap, and other forms of serious crime. This may create a fear in many homes because all the news is showing is bad stories, or "interesting" stories. My mother is one who believes that if I step outside my front door I will be raped/killed because of all he terrible stories on TV. Since these crimes are not happening where we live, this is an irrational fear. Seeing all the information at once on TV about the terrible things in life lead one to associate the outside world with terrible things, and what the news is not showing is all the good things that happen. Every news station has an unavoidable bias and therefore it is really hard for me to rely on TV for my view of the world.

Breaking News

Construction on the Little Acorn Park at the corner of El Embarcadero and Sabado Tarde Roads began earlier this month to renovate the area and add a new swimming pool.

The $180,000,000 plan, put forward by the Isla Vista Recreation and Parks District, includes plans for a heated swimming pool, hot tub, and water slide.
According to Liz Buddah, vice chair of the IVRPD, the organization initiated the project late last month.
“We had our general meeting on February 23, and that was when we decided to spend the money, so [construction began] probably around the end of the month,” Buddah said.
Buddah said the organization is funding the project with revenue from state grants for the Anisq’Oyo’ Bridge renovation.

"Even though the bridge was not actually built, us and the organization figured that an aquatic fun zone would be better suited for the Isla Vista public than a stupid bridge."
Buddah said the project is scheduled for completion at the time of to be announced, in compliance with state funding guidelines which really are not specific at all, as seen with the never ending construction in Isla Vista and around campus.
"We really don't think it is necessary to have a scheduled date for the completion of this project. The residents of Isla Vista can afford to wait for this awesome aquatic fun zone."
It is known that while the park will be completed with a good work ethic, there will be no one to help clean the pool after it is built. It will be the responsibility of the residents of Isla Vista to make sure the pool is kept clean.

Response to Lecture

The concept of self identity and classification was explored in lecture today through artists that were incredibly interesting to me. Albert Chong categorizes himself with his race and national origin of jamaica. Many of his works depict his religion of Santeria, and his home of Jamaica. I like the technique he used to layer photographs so that they appeared to be 3d images even though they were just layers of 2d images. His portraits and works are not abstract, but are foreign to me because I do not know much about his culture or country. Seeing his works really interested me and I want to learn more about where he comes from.

I am also interested in the 3 components of the portrait: the subject, artist, and relationship between the two. A portrait can be seen in many different ways, even though I have often thought of a portrait as a straight on head shot like the Mona Lisa. Portraits have always been a common interest for artists because it not only can a portrait be of the artist but also of anyone who commissioned a work of themselves. I like the way that Albert Chong's portraits are unlike any I have ever seen, using parts of his body and objects that are foreign to some but have an aesthetic that is very cohesive.

Puns

The pun I thought of was mail box. Instead of actual mail, the pun is that I went into class with a giant box. I randomly picked a boy and made him stand inside. After a little while of guessing I told everyone what the pun was, "Male Box".

Response to Comics

More abstract representative are more accepted by people when reading comics, because in a comic you put yourself in the story. McCloud is saying that by simplifying a character, you have more to imagine. The novelistic form of simplified characters leaves much to the imagination, therefore keeping the reader intrigued. The more a character is specified, the less that another person can identify with that character. So if someone wants a character to be accessible to anyone, they can have the illustration lack in detail. The counter argument to this however, is that as humans we have  the ability to empathize with almost any character. If an object or animal is personified successfully, then it is very easy to identify or sympathize with that character. If the character has redeeming qualities, then the go-to response is sympathy. Even if the character is not necessarily identifiable, they may relate to someone in our lives so that we form attachment to them.

Preliminary Thinking

Begin preliminary thinking about all upcoming assignments:
 a. Confessions- I think I want to confess something about my fear of being vulnerable with someone else. I have never felt seriously about someone enough to let myself be in a position to get hurt by them, and I think it is my greatest weakness. I am usually proud of every bit of myself. I am loud, gregarious, and completely embrace the eccentricity that comes from within. I believe that if someone does not like the real me, than they are no longer worth my time. So when it comes to being vulnerable, I would really rather just be independent and not let myself be put in a position to get hurt. The thing about that is that if I continue to set myself apart from those who could tear down my independence for the better, than I am most likely missing the best parts of relationships. 
 b. Sequence and narratives- I really like the idea of the comic. I think that it is an incredibly interesting way to tell a narrative and I would like to do a project that takes the concept of a graphic narrative and changes it in some way. I currently work with Adobe Illustrator and am very interested in doing a narrative through that medium. 
 c. alternate persona- I have never really thought about an alternate version of myself. I generally try to work on the real me instead of imagining another version of myself, but I do dream of what would have come of me following my desire to dance. If I had gone to a school with an intensive dance program I could have become a professional and dance choreographer(in this alternate reality). My life would have consisted of traveling all over the world to teach dance workshops and work with some of the most gifted people in the business. This is my alternate persona. 

d. personal space- The concept of personal space is a funny one. Everyone has different personal bubbles which can easily be disrupted. I think I would want to find a way to physically represent personal space without it being a bubble, which is how the concept is usually depicted. I want to talk to a bunch of people who are close to me and find out what they have to say abut the matter to give me some perspective. I am alright being physically close to people, but a lot of people have issues with being touched by others. I would like to work with the concept of differences in personal space between different types of people. 

Response to Introduction

This introduction mentioned a very famous choreographer named Merce Cunningham. I am a dancer, and in the past I have not only been academically educated on Cunningham's techniques but I have also tried his choreography. I must say that as a dancer I love the nontraditional forms of dance more than ballet. I have always been someone who can appreciate the commonplace, just like the other artists Duchamp, John Cage, Jean Tinguely, and Robert Rauschenberg. Placing a move like a "pedestrian" walk as many choreographers would say pays respect to the everyday movement while pushing the boundaries of what is considered choreography. Just like Cunningham pushes these boundaries, so does Duchamp in his work The Fountain. Taking a found object and putting your name on it is just like taking an everyday movement like walking and putting it in your choreography. Taking the found movement or object and calling it art is a statement of intention, not necessarily physical effort. As far as choreography goes, I believe that using commonplace motions like waving or walking in the right context creates a dance which respects reality in a creative way. At the Mpulse Ann Arbor dance camp I attended, I learned about Cunningham's techniques through an exercise in which we took five motions we used daily (i.e. brushing your teeth, waving, walking, sitting, etc) and choreographed a 30 second dance with them in it. It was very interesting to see how common motions could be used in such an artistic way.