Wrapping up the Semester

Overall, the semester was another great experience and such a blessing. Not everyone has the opportunity to attend college due to various issues. Our family worked in the fields with various agricultural crops. Our mom and uncle have enlightened us with the type of work they did at a very early age, even to the point where they're education needed to be sacrificed. This is why my brother and I take our education very seriously and which is also why we're so driven to go above and beyond with almost every class assignment. Our family is very proud of us because they want us to get a good paying job to support a family. Personally out of all the professors that we've taken out of our college experience we have only two favorite professors that we've connected with and consider great friends. Peter Christenson is one of them and no offense to the other DTC professors, Peter is funny and easy to connect with on a friend to friend basis. Thanks again Peter for another great semester, excited to see you next semester, have a great winter break!

Website for Case Closed Narrative

This was another great experience using Dreamweaver and so much fun connecting it with our short film. It's been a while since I worked on Dreamweaver but as my brother and navigated through the coding matrix it slowly started to come back to us. Adding in the content was fun because it ties the website up and implementing a creative touch would make it more interesting to read. I could overhear that plenty of our classmates had trouble but it's understandable because Dreamweaver can get pretty complicated. Overall, it was very fun watching everyone's websites and how creative they got and the way they connected it with their short film's. Here is the link: http://tricity.wsu.edu/~johnny.garcia/

Newsletter for my English Class

For my English class I was asked to create a survey based on a topic that was controversial or occurring today. My survey that I created was discussing specifically children and technology such as tablets, cell phones, and video games. I decided to choose non-parents as my target audience because I know that parents will definitely have an opinion on this issue and I think it would be interesting to get the perspective of non-parents who will someday have children of their own. Once I reached the required number of participants for the survey I then had to gather all the results and create a newsletter in the form an IMRaD report. I also needed to create at least one graph to incorporate into the report why also analyzing it in my results section. Here is the PDF of the newsletter feel free to check it out: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B08RUN43U2jjZDN5ZmlsYTlIMUE/view?usp=sharing

The Art Center

After our class yesterday my brother and I wanted to check out the art gallery and were very amazed with all the pieces by Worth Griffin who was in Mexico when he created these pieces. No wonder when I stepped in I could feel that the pieces connected with my brother and I and our Hispanic roots. We've never been to Mexico so it was a treat to get a glimpse into parts of the towns Griffin was at and the people he saw. It would be really awesome one of these days to actually go to Mexico and see the area and connect with a lot of my family members who we've never met before. My dad has been to Mexico many times and has brought us some very cool stuff like belts and boots made of animal skins.

Poster for "Case Closed" Narrative

The poster for our narrative film is finally complete. The first step I did was gathering the images of each of the characters. My inspiration for creating the poster came from the Star Wars posters where they place the main characters of the film in a way that looks dramatic.  I just simply edited the background from each of the characters and used the blur tool fix some minor edges. I then used a grid so that I could place the characters in a way that was easy for the viewer to scan. I also couldn't resist using the Star Wars font because I'm a fan of Star Wars and it looked right. I then placed text to give the movie some excitement by adding the motto, "The Force Will Prevail". Then I added the last two finishing touches which were the lightsaber, the background and the magnifying glass and this is the finished poster. Enjoy (:

Interesting artist found while surfing the web

I was recently on Facebook the other day when I noticed a link that said "Is Social Media a Silent Marriage Killer?" Here is the link: https://unveiledwife.com/is-social-media-a-silent-marriage-killer/. My curiosity struck so I clicked on the link and I read the article and it was very enlightening even though I'm not married but I enjoy reading about relationships. In the article the writer included images from the artist Eric Pickersgill. The work was entitled "Removed" where the artist had the participant hold his or her device and Pickersgill would take it from them and then take a photograph. These images were so shocking because the images have truth in them in how they are displayed. It's sad that a lot of relationships and individuals can become disengaged with the world around them and with others. This may cause further problems because one may feel that the person checking their phone has more priority when hanging out with someone or when on a date. Here is the link to the artist's website: http://ericpickersgill.com/Removed

Website Experience

For both Doug's and Sena's classes we both were required to some way to display our work. For Doug we were required to create our website on word press and to get our own hosting. It wasn't to difficult since we worked on word press with Doug in the previous semester. It took a while and gathering all of my work was a hassle but it got completed. Here is the link to check out my website: http://www.johnnygarciaportfolio.org/
For Sena were also required to create a site on Dreamweaver which we would also end up putting up on filezilla. Creating this website was interesting because I learned a lot about coding and how it works. Once we completed our work we put it up on filezilla and presented it to our classmates. Here is the link: http://users.tricity.wsu.edu/~johnny.garcia/
I'm very excited to work with Dreamweaver again because it's been a while and since my brother and I have plenty to work with and connecting it to our narrative video will be very fun indeed.

Flyer for English Class

In this class we were required to create either a mock-up flyer or a brochure based on a paper we've written in the past while also paying attention to the audience of our choosing. I thought about the vast amount of papers I had written even at CBC. I finally chose a paper that I wrote while a WSU about video games and how their are both sides to the issue. Once I chose the paper I then needed to plan out how my design layout would consist of. Once I had a general layout my next step was to go to Photoshop and design my flyer and since my audience was going to be a 10 year old I had to make sure that it would get their attention while also informing them and inviting them and their parents participate in the gaming fest. Once I made the finishing touches to my flyer I then had to make sure that it fit well for my designated audience and this is what I came up with.

Film Narrative

The film narrative so far has been going very well it's about 75% complete. All of the sound has pretty much been recorded. The next step is to edit minor parts of the film so that it's clean in design. The editing process is very tedious but I think it's worth it when it's finally complete. So far this project has really been a great experience for my brother and I becuase we never used green screen before. We've also learned a lot about how green screen works and to make sure that lighting is consistent. Now I know why so many filmmakers rely on green screen, it's just awesome!

Shanken (256-290)

The reading in the section about Brenda Laural discussing the the six elements and the casual relations among them was interesting because it brought up a important point about films and plays (259). For example in this section it states that plays are powerful but they can only engage sight and sound but not touch, smell, and taste. David Belasco who used bacon which although was a good experiment underestimates the power of smell. I immediately thought people would start to get hungry once they located the bacon with their nose which would cause them to leave and eat some food. I could only imagine the opposite where a bad smell would present itself which could also get people out of their seats. Another idea that was brought up was that the Sensorama's problem was that people didn't know what to do with it. It's like when film started using 3d it's nice and all but people just don't know what to do with it and the next thing you know 4d films will be making an appearance. This sort of reminds me of what happened with the Blu-ray concept. Blu-ray didn't catch on for quite a while because people just didn't know what to do with it plus a Blu-ray player was required. Now it seems that all everyone wants are Blu-ray movies with 1080p high definition quality.

Shanken (228-247)

The section by Bertolt Brecht about the radio being used for communication was an interesting thought because now a days radio is not what it used to be back then (228). Pandora I fell as evolved from the radio because even in cars Pandora is available for listeners. But Brecht brings up a good point if radio could be harnessed to communicate with others it would be very popular today. How I imagine this radio communication duo would be implemented into our lives could be that one could simply tune in to a radio station and talk with multiple friends who would also be tuning in to the same channel. This could also be another way for people to discuss about various topics and while turning the dial to search for friends to talk to he or she can also eavesdrop in others conversations and perhaps even jump in the discussion.

Shanken (213-228)

The piece by Nam June Paik entitled Afterlude was interesting because art doesn't have to be limited to painting or drawings, it can also be words (214). While reading Paik's piece Afterlude it sounded to me like an elegant poem that was also artistically created. Paik's piece reminded me of the piece I created using the Spanish words for various food items because when creating it I wanted to be more than just words on a canvas. The section by Nicolas Negroponte about The Architecture Machine was interesting because again it discusses bringing computers closer to becoming more human-like (217). An interesting section in the reading by Gene Youngblood states that "Entertainment gives us what we want: art gives us what we don't know what we want" (216). I feel that entertainment gives us what we want because we don't have to think, the entertainment does the thinking for you. While art on the other hand doesn't do the thinking for you, one must analyze art and think critically to explain why it's considered art in the first place.

Shanken (202-213)

Another interesting point that has been a recurring thought in my recent blogs about man vs machine is again brought to the table (202). This time involving sculpture, where the book states that some think that the computer may compete with with the sculptor to the point where he is no longer needed. I feel that it would be interesting to watch a computer create it's own sculpture and examine how it creates the piece and study why it does what it does, sort of like watching an artist at work. I enjoy watching an artist at work because it gives me a chance to analyze how they create art and the type of aesthetic choices they make during the art making process.

Shanken (193-202)

Their were a lot of interesting manifestos that we're interesting to read but the Inventionist Manifesto was tough to read because I did not agree (196). As an artist I'm very sensitive to illusory images because I wonder how they created the piece which pushes me to further sharpen my design skills as an artist. Another part in the Manifesto it states that "there is nothing esoteric in art: those who claim to 'experts' are frauds". I chuckled at this because by saying this no one can interpret art but I feel that representational art can be interpreted but I have trouble interpreting abstract are because it can mean something different to someone else. I'm sure if an artist left a direct meaning of what the abstract piece was supposed to represent this can give us an answer but someone else could still interpret it differently.

Shanken (182-193)

When reading this chapter the piece entitled software was intriguing because it encompassed artist and non-artist's which to me is very unusual (185). I do however agree that they should work together more often because artist's can bring the creative side to things when designing a new piece of art that has technological elements to it. Most people, me included would think that artist's tend to work with artist's when collaborating ideas but it's good to see diversity by including non-artists as well. This important becuase when creating new technologies that are innovative and new, fresh ideas are required so incorporating artists into the mix will definitely bring in some new ideas and concepts.

Shanken (166-182)

The piece that caught my attention in the section was the piece by Luc Courchesne entitled Portrait One (168). This piece reminded of another similar piece by Lynn Hershman Leeson entitled Agent Ruby. It would be interesting if someone could create a sophisticated AI that could communicate with you with just about anything, But then again it could end up like the movie called "Her" where the main character falls in love with the voice of an AI played by Scarlet Johansson. It would be awesome in the sense that one could communicate with the AI sort of like a digital friend who you could share opinions with and also receive feedback or advice. Courchesne's piece has limitations but it would be interesting if one could break those limitations to create a virtual friend.

Shanken (140-166)

While reading, page 144 about the artist Harold Cohen, was interesting because he created a pretty cool program about the artificially intelligent artist Aaron (144). This is something interesting to me because if artificial intelligent robots were smart enough to create art on their own it could create a competition between their human counter parts to who creates better art. It could probably even start an art war between humans and artificial intelligence which sounds like it came from a movie but technology is pretty smart on it's own so I wouldn't be surprised if this occurred.

                           Vs

Shanken (120-140)

The piece by Steve Mann was very interesting to read about because a powerful tool like that can be very useful in our everyday lives (126). The idea for his invention sounds like it came about from a movie in which technology is able to do so much in that fantasy world. But to actually create something like that in real life is pretty amazing, one could use it to improve the line of sight or even x-ray vision. This also reminded me of google glass and how it can connect with the Internet world. Since it's a powerful device it could also be used for evil if in the wrong hands. One could change the settings of the device to do criminal activities. So basically with great power comes great responsibility.

Shanken (96-120)

It's interesting that the piece by Carolee Schneemann entitled Snows incorporated the audience into her piece which makes it more unforgettable because the audience actually participated in the act itself rather than just watching the performers do there thing (99). In the description it also stated that Schneeman's piece entitled Viet Flakes showed war atrocities juxtaposed by classical music (99). I've seen a lot of video game trailers about war with creatures from different planets or zombie games and I noticed how they also put soft classical music which makes it funny yet horrifying at the same time and I feel that they took the same approach in Schneeman's piece called Viet flakes (99). Installation art is probably by far one of my favorite art forms because they are genuisly made and they can also involve the audience which is always great becuase they are then part of a new art experience.

Mapping/Data Visual Representation Ideas

So far I've been brainstorming about a lot of different ideas and how I want to execute the project. So far I've found a cool looking thing called a gastronomy map. I just like the way it's designed with the way the words are shaped and how well they fit in with each other. I've decided to choose a set of food entries and cover them with words that are in Spanish. It will allow me to express my art and culture into the piece which is very exciting. I'm also thinking about providing a key so people can participate and learn Spanish. I will try to go with more of the simple words that aren't too difficult to pronounce. All that's left for me is to execute it the way I see it in my head. Wish me luck (:

Shanken 78-96

What was interesting to me in the reading was the piece by Charles Csuri and James Schaffer creating the hummingbird because I'm very interested in animation and how to create movement (80-81). I've learned how to create motion with words in Adobe After Effects known as "kinetic typography" but their is still so much for me to learn. Another program that I've experimented with was the program called blender and I've seen many tutorial videos and with more experience I would hope to create a short animation but blender is still very challenging. Another piece that was very interesting to read about was the piece by Adrian Ward entitled Autoshop because it's like a different version of Photoshop that parodies it but I would like to try it out just to see what the program can do (94). I also thought that it was interesting that their might be a patch that does not allow the person to save as which is interesting because then it gives the person using the program a sense that all the hard work cannot be saved for later.

Mapping and/ or Data Visual Rep Project

For this project I'm very excited to dip my feet so to speak in adobe illustrator again and to further add to my knowledge and experience using illustrator. The project I did before that utilized illustrator was my cologne collection but this time I want to try something a bit different. I'm still in the brainstorming process of the project because there are so many things in the world I could map but I'm trying to decide if I want to map something else that I have a collection of or something in the real world. One my ideas would that I thought of would be to create a visual representation of my music collection where I could make a collage of all the album covers or something like that but I want the viewer to be able to distinguish the genre so that might be a challenge. Another idea I was thinking about was doing a visual representation of an imaginary refrigerator of all the food I would want to have. Other than that I will be thinking about various concepts in my mind until I have a concrete concept.

Shanken 54-78

The piece by Gyula Kosice entitled Estructura Luminica on page 59 is an interesting piece to look at because traditional neon lights are either words or images but it defies the way we look at neon lights by bringing them into the art realm. Also the piece has a lot of movement due to the diagonal lines which bring really bring the piece to life. Another piece that caught my interest was the piece by James Turell entitled Catso, Red because it uses light to create what looks like a hologram shape floating in the air and it interesting because the viewer can simply walk around the piece and actual reveal two different perspectives (65). The piece by Mario Merz is very similar to Kosice's piece because they both use neon lights except this time it uses words instead, but it comes to life because of the round like structure enveloped by the neon words which gives it sense of unity (65).

Shanken 45-54

The section involving art and technology was very interesting because at times artists didn't have access to high tech computers plus they were very expensive and not very user friendly but the Universities had access to the advanced stuff(48,51). So combing both art and technology back then was a challenge because the best equipment was at the schools and now it's readily available for everyone to use that is if you can afford it or have access to it. On page 50 it talks about the different challenges that come with electronic art and I agree there is a lot of various issues but nothing is perfect, technology is always improving.

Shanken 30-45

Upon reading I was very intrigued with the section about telerobotics and the art piece by Norman White and Doug Back entitled Telephonic Arm Wrestling because if all the problems in the world could be resolved by arm wrestling than it would all depend on who has the stronger arm based on physical power rather than military power (35). I would also like to see how it works and how it accurately measures the force in the machine to determine who wins the wrestling match. Another section that intrigued me was the section about the Ornitorrinco Project because I myself have wondered what the life of a dog would be like and how they communicate with each another or if they speak a certain language among themselves (35). It would also be so cool to create a realistic robot dog aka terminator dog that could act like a dog and interact with other dogs which would allow us see and hear what other dogs are saying to it so we could understand the type of life they live.

Troubleshooting Project 1

Now that I'm pretty much finished with project one there was some minor setbacks related to Photoshop. My first idea was to create the image montage slowly layer by layer disappear, but sadly it was not be possible becuase there would be way too many layers to load up on Photoshop. When I barely finished editing one of the images in the painting it took about 5 minutes to just save it. So in the end I just decided to merge the layers that I worked on into one and make each parts of the image in the painting disappear one at a time and add each of my personal values in place of each piece that I edited. Overall, this was a fun project to work on which helped to sharpen my editing skills and it was fun editing someone else's art piece:)

Shanken pg. 15-30

From the beginning of the reading I thought about stop motion because photographer Eadweard Muybridge did just that (16). Stop motion is something my brother and I are really passionate about because creating motion with still images can be challenging but when it is finished it looks pretty awesome because artist's can give life to inanimate objects. The section about created shadows is also something I find intriguing because shadows can give the illusion of space and whenever I see paintings I notice how accurately they pay attention to detail even including shadows (17). This also reminded me of supper-realism which is pretty awesome because it looks so real and it's mind boggling how much detail can be seen in a painting that it looks like a real-life photograph. On page 23 Walter Benjamin stated that images made technologically didn't posses the same aura that a hand painted one would. I agree with him but then again I also see that art paintings done on a computer or a canvas are pretty much the same thing but one is digital and one is tangible.

Digital Recreation Montage & Frame Animation

For this project I am very excited because I enjoy using Photoshop but my first step was to find an art piece that I could have a meaningful concept. Upon surfing the web I found various art pieces that I thought about choosing but for some reason all of the art pieces I saw I felt like creating a parody for. It was difficult because I didn't just want to create a parody of an art piece because it would lack a meaningful concept. All of a sudden I remembered the example Peter showed us in class about the table with the cell phones. So I decided to switch up my search on google to include a large amount of famous artists with a lot of their famous work they've done. Finally I found the art piece I wanted to recreate that also had a meaningful concept which was Rene Magritte's "Personal Values". I'm still in the editing process but my concept is to edit each of the personal values and gradually replace them with my personal values which I can't wait to get done.

Shanken pg. 1-15

The small history lesson accompanied with the very large font was very enlightening because it shows how far technology has advanced which has forever changed our lives for the good (14-15). This goes hand in hand with art because without technology there wouldn't be any new media artwork for us to enjoy and create. At times creating art using technology can be challenging, but to me it's worth it because I learn new techniques in the process. For this class I'm very excited to take on new assignments and take on the various challenges that accompany them. Each of us posses some form of "artistic alchemy" that we can all display when completing each project which is something I'm very excited to see (16).