Visiting Artist Jennifer Montgomery

We had an artist come today to screen some of her work that she has done relating to the use of 8mm film; focusing on Kodachrome. The first film we watched was an interesting film called “How to use equipment”, the film was basically film students who were using 8mm film to talk about some technological device that makes their life easier or gives them anxiety, or possibly what they don’t like about it. It reminded me of my time in California when I would do projects with my fellow filmmakers and we would just have great time goofing around with film.

Then we watched a film called Age 12: Love with a little L, it was a DV transfer of 8mm film. It dealt with the sexuality and frustrations of pre and present pubescence involving girls. Where they find themselves and how they connect with other girls around them. One of the purposes of the film was to discuss a form of transgressive behavior, a returning back to a pack mentality. This theory assumes we are descended of animals, not one I claim, however I will accept that people do associate themselves with people that they like, Birds of a feather flock together. Surprise, surprise, kids do not always gets along, not because they are returning to a primal instinct, but because they have no respect for humankind.

Lastly we saw a film called “Notes on the death of Kodachrome” It was a video installment prefaced and ended with 8mm films. The first of which was a graphic depiction of female anger towards the current feminist movement. Then it went to the video display of her getting old equipment back, and doing so to realize a dream that she had, in 8mm. She finally gets her equipment back and is able make her film. The whole performance was many things, however I really just focused on the journey to finish a film in time before it was too late. I have dreams about films and I know some of them are in film and some are in video and some are just in real life. However I understand the immediacy of needing to get equipment back in order to fulfill a film dream.

Vladimir and her Vladmasters!

This week I saw the awesome work of artist Vladimir, from Portland Oregon. Her art medium is View Masters. I had the privilege of seeing her twice in one week while she was here. We witnessed four of her six works that she has made for the view masters, which she has renamed vladmasters. The four presentations were Lucifugia Thigmotaxis, A story about a curious cockroach that ventures beyond his borders and learns a lesson of the hierarchy of the food chain. The second was The Pubic Life of Jeremiah Barnes, A fictitious story about a man who has an odd relationship with heavy earth moving machinery. The third was Actaeon at Home, A story birthed from the Greek mythology about the man Actaeon, a hunter who was torn to pieces by his own dogs after having been turned into a stag by Artemis, the Mistress of the wilds, whom he had seen unrobed. The final piece that we saw was Fear and Trembling, A piece of non linear images where composition and color rule the impressions of the artist and viewer. The thing about theses pieces is that they are not viewed on a screen with the lights down and everybody starring straight forward. These are viewed using ViewMasters with our heads positioned up looking towards a light source. The stories go along with a soundtrack sometimes narrated and sometimes not. The amazing part of the Vladmaster experience is that there is a theatre full of people all using a ViewMaster and everyone is following the story by clicking to the next slide. The community of the event is enough to get excited about. The nostalgia effect is also very cool. I had not picked up a viewmaster in years and now I am watching serious art through them. The one thing about Vladimir is that she is very honest about her work. She realizes that people like the ViewMaster already as a way of telling kids stories and now she takes them to the next level and tells interesting stories and shows artful compostions through a once thought dead medium. I was curious to see how ViewMasters were continuing on in culture and I went to Fisher Price’s website and found out that the art form is alive a booming. In summation I loved Vladimir’s presentation and I think people should support her work. Check out her website. Also visit The Paper Boat to buy locally.

Ethan Jackson and Camera Obscura

This past Wednesday I went to Inova Gallery, which is apart of the UWM Peck School of the Arts, to witness Ethan Jackson’s installation of Panopticon I. From my first walk towards the buildings east entrance I was greeted by Carl Bogner who alerted me that we were, at this very moment, apart of the camera obscura. I entered the building and turned into the large drapes that we hanging from the ceiling. When I entered immediately to my left was the camera obscura. When I stood there against the window watching this live presentation of the outside world I was thinking this was super cool. The scene that we witnessed was of the road directly outside from us. We could see many buildings that were across the street in a hazed form of their color. The weather outside was very cloudy so it allowed the scene presented on the wall to have a cool haze brought on by tints of blues and hints of grays. I saw a bag that was stuck in a tree directly across the street and thought at first of a tell-tale sign of the decay of Milwaukee’s beautiful city, then I realized that watching the bag in the tree being blown but never leaving gave the scene a reality that could have been lost if there was nothing imperfect on the wall being presented before us. After standing there for a little while I began to think how this made me feel very voyeuristic, in a sense, because people walking by and driving by had no idea they were being watched. I was my very own L. B. Jefferies from Rear Window. I was watching everything going on outside from me and no one had a clue they were being watched. I envisioned seeing a murder in the far distance of the camera obscura’s reach. Back to reality, I began to think how this very amazing feat before me was simply by bending light. I thought about the complexity of the human eye and the simplicity of the source being the sun. I wonder if people hundreds of years ago who developed this way of bending the light to project an image realized how groundbreaking this discovery was. Man I love cameras.

Film Screening

1. Lace of Summer (Storm De Hirsch)

1973, S8mm, 4min

This film, as Carl Bogner told us was a look at the lace that was on Storm’s window curtains. In all honesty my first impression of the film was that it was about voyeurism. If you look past the lace that we are supposed to look at we see what looks like a dock of some kind. Where there are many boat tents. In the distance we see a ship sailing at times and then just the ocean at other times. Half way through the film we see that director, Storm De Hirsch looking back at us through the lace. I, still thinking it was a film on voyeurism, felt these shots only confirmed by idea. We, the audience, were now being looked and peeped at. Then when Carl told us that her intent was for us to look at the lace I was confused with myself. Why had I come up with all these ideas on voyeurism? Was it some subconscious Freudian display that was coming up? Why didn’t I focus on the lace? The lace was right in front of us and I completely took it as a cue that we were trying to conceal ourselves from the outside. Odd it seemed that I had completely lost the original meaning of the film. I wanted to watch it again, only with the understanding of looking at the lace. Then I thought Hirsch might be interested to know someone thought she was being voyeuristic with her Super 8 camera. I am curious to know what other people thought of the films purpose.

2. Third Eye Butterfly (Storm De Hirsch)

1968, 2x16mm, color, sound, 10min.

The viewing of this film was a unique experience for me. I have never seen a film that required two projectors going at the same time. Very cool concept. Carl Bogner mentioned that the film gave a presence of the old “Drum Circle” ceremonies that Native Americans continue to this day. I have a deep interest for the Native American people and have witnessed a live drum circle. The importance of the circle is to hold the traditions of cultural oneness and use the drum to tell a story. Each time the story is told it is improvised and put in a different order, but it still holds the story. This film was displayed for us with a somewhat “drum circle” like soundtrack, there was no dialogue. The image of a butterfly would find its way onto the screen at many different times. Also a bulbous form would be displayed for us and moved about on the screen. The poster, for lack of a better word, of “third eye butterfly” would come on and fade in and out numerous times throughout the film. The screens also took turns, I noticed, displaying different things at certain times. One screen would be blank while another would show something and at other times the screens would be going back and forth with one another, displaying identical images while zooming in and out in an asynchronous pattern. Also the screens would go from two images to eight images, four on each screen. The pattern would be like a window pane with four smaller glass panes. This also reminded me of the drum circle idea because each member in the circle would not play at the same time. Town leaders would play first and then younger members would play after them. Each member has their own part of the song to play and each song is passed down in the family.

DEAR GOD,
Please help me recover from the insane Exam that I just took. I know I failed this first half of the Exam. Help me to be able to write a good paper to justify giving me a passing C for the semester.

Ok, how many of you in this class were like, "what the heck is this". I felt like I was supposed to dictate down every artist and the name of their work instead of write about their work. I am not a mnemonic machine. I don't remember people's names and I hardly remember title's of works, unless they are awesome ones. So I have to forget the questionnaire of intelligence I just took and try to finish my written work for the exam. I am not even going to explain myself and where I am coming from in regards to this first half of the exam, it can't change anything.

Hello again,

It's almost tomorrow so I thought that I should get online real quick. I am working on contact printing for a film workshop. It's very fun and I am getting a lot done, however my hands smell terrible. Yesterday I talked about the film D'est. I touched on some ideas that I had noticed throughout the film. The first one was transportation. Any form of transportation was utilized. There were cars, bikes, and trolley cars throughout the entire film. I wanted to understand what was meant by this but I still am not entirely sure what was meant, or if there is meaning to be found. Second was a constant dolly shot obsession with people waiting, I assume they are waiting for some type of train at a station. I am not sure though. After learning more about the film and understanding the title, "From the East" I realize that this film was a journey piece. From Germany to Moscow, and filming the people as she went. I did realize that we went from summer to winter as well. Very warm and inviting settings to cold, damp and dark settings. Talk to you tomorrow.

Fine, I failed miserably at the blogging five times in a row. Can you blame me, I can't I will however try to do it this week. So Monday the 19th of February is the first blog of five in a row. This is like pulling teeth. Today in Film 201 we screened D'est a film by Chantal Akerman. I have to admit to you all it was the most difficult movie I have ever sat through. I was fighting sleep the entire time. I had a full eight hours plus that previous night and I still found it hard to stay awake. I finally got over the lead for eyes and sat through the rest of the film. The whole film is a succession of dolly shots and still tripod shots, there is one time she uses the hand-held method and that is when a couple are dancing in the street. The film gave me the feel of the Lumierie brothers "actualities" that were just of people being in front of the camera and doing normal everday tasks. Some ideas that came up was the idea of transportation, waiting, menial tasks, and music. I will discuss tomorrow what I felt about those concepts.

I really have nothing to say today about the films screened in class. However I thought it was interesting to see in my film 115 class we watched some projects on video that used computers to complete the vision and aural effect. Good to see that my classes meld.

Today in my film 201 class we viewed numerous films/videos/presentations regarding the idea of a Daily Diary much like a video journal.

The first piece was by Jonas Mekas with his latest installment in the 365 Films series. Where he puts up a new video journal for each day. The concept of keeping track of ones thoughts or ideas on a video journal and putting it on display for the world to see online is a fairly new one. The concept came from the freedom to communicate with the world via the World Wide Web. I respect the efforts of Mekas and other artists deciding to do the same thing, however I personally find no real need or purpose for the practice. People, having access to the WWW, believed that by putting their information online meant that anyone could access it, and if anyone could access it then the people must care about what they're trying to say. Fact is most casual bloggers, video bloggers, and You-tubers do not care one bit about the images/ideas/ and goings-on in cyberspace. I think "what makes you so special, that I should take time out of my busy schedule to watch your ____(whatever)" People might have an inflated view on the impact of their words and images just because they are accessible by the entire world. The very fact that I am putting my thoughts online on Blogger.com is very absurd and in the end futile. After the class is over and the web-space is shut down NO ONE WILL MISS IT! I am not saying that the artists are disingenuous about their intent. I do think however if they really cared about their art form they would make it timeless and put the effort in to make sure that no matter how long of time passes their work will always be noticed.

Real quick thoughts on "Fist Fight"
- I was annoyed by the whole presentation material wise, however the way he used animation was was very good. Technique was well thought out, however the material lacked meaning. If the idea was a dadaist mentality they won't mind me saying my thoughts.

Cory Archangels "Data Diaries"
- possibly useful for some futuristic compositional prints however not much gleaned from the presentation, I could not wait till he turned it off.

More tomorrow... Leave comments (because I know you truly care about the bloggosphere)

Hello Folks,

Just a slight lapse in memory from my last semester. I lost all my account info and had a heck of a time finding my latest blog account. So I am back and I will be posting soon.