The Eyes continued

The Eyes, was a multi-step performance project.

Step 1: I sat down in the DSU and observed where my eyes and others were attracted to.  I noticed that they seemed to pay attention not only what was in front of them but the tables, the banners, and the people on the stairs.

Step 2: I went home and videotaped my eyes for as long as I could stare at the camera. This turned out to be about 5 minutes. I did this a few times and then watched them on the computer to see which one seemed more captivating.

Step 3: Make a video. I used an HP movie maker system on my computer to make a movie of my eyes; I had the 5 minute clip of my eyes play back to back for about 30 minutes.  From there I sat alongside a test subject and watched the video on a widescreen TV and an old school TV to see how it looked, mainly because I had no idea what kind of TV that I would get the day of the performance. I wanted to be sure no matter what the eyes would fit.

Step 4: Getting permission. I had to get the project approved by campus activities to secure a spot and then I had to go to the Communications department to get the approval for the TV’s around campus and the CNU channel 9 to play my eyes during my performance (which they failed at getting them to play at the right time, instead played them hours after my performance was done)

Step 5: Set up and watch my performance grow.  This went pretty well, at first it took some prompting to get people to actually go sit in front of the TV, but after the lunch crowd picked up there were many people who willing sat or stood by and looked into my eyes.

Overall I was happy at how this project turned out. I was proud of how the eyes came out and how you could clearly see them from many different place and heights in the DSU Street.  If I did it again I would have fought harder for a projector so that I could have made them even larger and in your face.  My hopes were that people would feel something, I did not want them to feel a certain way, I think that everyone sees/interprets another person soul differently. As people came and talked to me it was apparent that every person did take it differently, some were creped out, others said that it was cool, some thought something bad was going to happen, probably the best one was when someone felt like they were getting to know me on a new level.  If I could change one thing I would have added a little note about the piece, some people said that it was a lot more effective after they found out what it was about. I got my inspiration for this piece from Marina Abramovic, I really enjoyed her piece. I think that the people that had strong reactions from staring into her eyes was due to the fact that they were feeling her soul or her inner feelings coming outward.

My Partner in this project was Stephanie Barstow, who helped me document the project. She is the one that took the photos while I videotaped it.

The Eyes

Eyes Seen on TV's on CNU's Campus-channel 9

Staring deeply into another eyes can leave you feeling something, for each person it is something different. Some feel fear, angst, happiness, stress, passion, strength, weakness, sadness, joy.There has to be a reason as to why you feel the things you do when you stare into someone else eyes.  The eyes are the window to your soul, or at least that is saying. This is perhaps why we each feel something when we look into the eyes of another person. We are seeing their soul, so the feelings that you get when looking into their eyes is what their souls are conveying to you. In doing this performance I am inviting others to stare into my soul in hopes that they will feel what my soul is emitting. Take a seat and stare a while may you find something interesting.

Video:

Eyes video

Cicero (106-43 B.C.) is quoted as saying, 'Ut imago est animi voltus sic indices oculi' (The face is a picture of the mind as the eyes are its interpreter). The L*tin proverbs, 'Vultus est index animi' or 'Oculus animi index,' are usually translated as 'The face is the index of the mind.' The French say, 'Les yeux sont le miroir de l'dme (The eyes are the mirror of the soul). 'The eyes are the window of the soul' is a variant form of the proverb..."

Final Project- New Genres

The eyes are the window to the soul, or at least that is the saying.

For my last project I would like to base my project around that saying. I intend on wearing a mask that shows my eyes but conceals the rest of my identity. I will be doing it in the DSU next week some time. The viewer will get the chance to come and stare into my eyes for as long as they want, there will hopefully be a table next to it in which they can draw or sketch out what they saw when they looked into my eyes.

Claustrophobia

Trapped, confined, small, and hard to breathe are feelings I experience when forced to exist in tight spaces.  Claustrophobia is a constant challenge by my mental well beings when my physical surroundings close in on me.  Expanding to life experiences, in a metaphoric comparison, claustrophobia is experienced when considering the fact that there is always something that will keep you confined or trapped in your current state of being.  Life forces in to boxes that form the boundary of our existence and lead to the same feelings when our physical space becomes confining.  Using a simple box to demonstrate the trapped feeling of a claustrophobic person it takes sheer determination to not struggle to be free while battling the impending confinement.  As our mental will weakens and the body moves to try to find space and air the box also moves and retains its form and our boundary that is within the box remains unchanged.  At the core of this work the viewer must understand the struggle and turmoil that is taking place within the box.  In order to simulate this environment of being inside a box, I have placed myself in a white room and created an imaginary box on the floor to show the struggles that happen when feeling trapped and confined.  


Video:

http://vimeo.com/38826682

Claustrophobia part 2

Claustrophobia was a multi-step project, one in which the process was important to achieving the final piece.  It first started with testing out boxes that were pre made of wood in the gallery. From there I discovered that wood was too heavy and did not allow air in for me to breath.  Then I decided that cardboard would probably be the best material, lighter and allowed some air flow. Once I had the material chosen I went to a storage unit to find the right sized box. With the help of the storage gentlemen I came to the decision that I needed a medium sized wardrobe box. From there I headed to the Alexis Gallery to set the stage for my performance. A white room where I could control my surroundings. I decided that the white needed to be connecting factor from me to my surroundings. Therefor I dressed in all white.  The 1^st performance was where I sat in the box. In hopes that I would last 30+ minutes, leaving it open ended seemed suitable seeing as I would have no clock to tell me the time.  The second performance was one in which I explored the possible feelings in which one that suffers from claustrophobia would have sitting in the same spot in an all-white room. The second part was also to show the viewer what happens, seeing as when I was in the box all you could see was the movement of the box. Both performances were done on separate days so that my mind had time to rest from one performance to the next. It was important that the mind be cleared so that each was done with a new outlook on the performance instead of thinking of the one before it. My hopes in preforming a piece about claustrophobia was in hope that the viewer would feel the anxiety and fear that one feels when dealing with claustrophobia; trapped, scared, and alone.

Observations during these performances; sitting inside of something that does not bend to your body or forces you to sit a certain way is extremely hard and makes the effects come alive faster and harder to deal with. I also believe that this is a performance that would have different outcomes the more times I do it and greatly different depending on your surroundings. If I revisit this piece I plan on doing just the box with a camera on the inside and allowing people to crowd around and listen and watch as I sit in a box.

New Genres Project 2

Claustrophobia.

For this project I plan on facing my fear head on....

Step 1.

Will to actually sit inside a box. My goal is to do 30 minutes. I am not sure that it will happen as I usually freak out after a few seconds. 

Step 2. 

To sit in a room where there is nothing to look at in an imaginary box. I will do this by taping out the dimensions of a box on the floor. The theory is that even if you are confined by lines that the room will enclose in on you and that you will feel the same effects. 

The box:

I am going to use a cardboard box mainly because when I did a test run with a wooden box it got hot and with a cardboard box i can put some small air holes that will not distract me from my task.

Documentation:

My partner gets the fun job of photographing and videotaping me while I am doing my thing.

New Genres continued......

Blog Post #8

Yinka Shonibare was one of the artist that stood out to me in class this past week. I first of just enjoyed looking at his work. At first I was just drawn to the bright colors but as he began to speak about them I became even more infatuated with them as a whole piece. So I decided to do a little more reserch on him....

Shonibare examines in particular the construction of identity and tangled interrelationship between Africa and Europe and their respective economic and political histories.  Mixing Western art history and literature, he asks what constitutes our collective contemporary identity today. This is shown a lot in his headless sculptures that wearing Victorian style clothing that have African prints on them. "But actually, the fabrics are not really authentically African the way people think," says Shonibare. "They prove to have a crossbred cultural background quite of their own. And it’s the fallacy of that signification that I like. It’s the way I view culture it’s an artificial construct." Today the main exporters of 'African' fabric from Europe are based in Manchester in the UK and Vlisco from Helmond in the Netherlands. I personally loved how he was taking the things that he knew about history and art and mixed them all together to come up with these striking clothes. He also mentioned how he recreates scenes using these sculptures. I think the other element that I really like are the headless sculptures. I think not having a head allows you to picture yourself in the place of the person or to envision on your won what they will look like. 

Blog Post #9


Today in class we talked about David Byrne. I thought that his work was interesting.I really like when artist make musical pieces that are interactive.  To me it gives the viewer the feeling as though they are a great musician and are making the music that comes from within them come alive.

Guitar Pedals is an interactive piece in which the audience is able to walk on 96 guitar pedals and make different sounds come alive and be amplified over and over. To me it as though David has a young soul in which he connects to all the wonders and noises that go on in kids heads.

I also really enjoyed his Playing the Building. Part of the reason that I enjoy installations that make noise is that it takes a lot of time and understanding. You not only have to understand how sound is effected by space but how to manipulate the sound to get different noises. It is truly astounding. The other reason in which I loved this pieces is the fact that it all starts with a piano and moves outward to fill the entire room, and that you don't just hear the piano, he has incorporated other instruments like a flute. I would love to go there and compose my own little song.

Then we watched Stop Making Sense. I was blown away by this mind boggling show. At first I was not sure that I was going to like the video. The opening made me feel like I was watching a wanna be rock star at a high school talent show. However as the songs moved from one to the next it was clear that we were watching a genius. Even though it was done in the 80's I feel that today's generation could get into it and see the beauty that they presented. I think some of what made this video so amazing was the filming style of Jonathan Demme. I think that his lighting technique made it come alive in a whole new world. I also like how he had the change from one song to the next, by adding and taking away different people and elements of the stage. It made it more than just a concert but an art form. To me it was not just about the music but convey the emotion behind the music and making the audience apart of the performance.