Artist Lecture, Hauft, Kerry McDonnell

Counter-Reformation, wood/canvas/gesso/styrofoam/sugar/plastic, Amy Hauft, 2009

Tonight's artist lecture was at the Anderson Gallery for VCU faculty member Amy Hauft and her peice Counter Re-formation. This was really a wonderful experience to be able to view the artist's work as it is meant to be presented within a gallery space and hear her discuss it simultaneously. There is really a vast difference between hearing an artist lecture with her work in the studio space and being presented a powerpoint of images in an auditorium.

Counter Re-formation is a large installation comprised of a massive, oddly shaped table covered in white canvas. Atop the table on all of it's strange extensions were what look to be dunes of sugar, with a sugar-cast spiral staircase that sat in the middle section of the table on a larger dune. Hauft discussed she tries to recreate landscapes, describing this particular piece as something very bleak; the sugar mounds representing dunes, glaciers or mountain ranges. The walls surrounding the installation were painted white, the very back wall painted a faint grey-blue. The color pallate was very soothing and contributed to the over all bleak-ness of the landscape Hauft was trying to represent. Apart from the main installation was a white, floor-to-ceiling spiral staircase whose purpose was to "reveal" the landscape to the viewer. Hauft made the point that when one is within a landscape it's hard to understand the spacial relationship and see the entire composition. The aerial view was meant to help the audience organize the space visually.

Hauft's discussion about the background of her piece was informative and interesting. A majority of the concept behind this piece was inspired by the Baroque and the excess related to that era. The shape of the table is a less symmetrical and more modern replica of a table used to serve desert during King Henry the XIV's rule in England. During that time, the table would've been decorated with sugar sculptures (which she pointed out mimics the look of porcelain). She also mentioned that during that time, French wood-working apprentices would create a perfect spiral staircase as their means of passage into starting their own business and leaving the apprenticeship. The interesting juxtaposition of this piece is the references to the Baroque excess, which is countered by the bleakness of the landscape. Hauft discussed that this reductive quality is what makes this piece contemporary.

Hauft spoke a lot about using arcane materials and using whatever was suitable for the project/concept and that she would also try to relate said material to the concept. However, the only piece of sugar in the entire installation was the small spiral latter in the middle of the piece which was, sadly, very disappointing. The dunes were created by sculpting styrofoam and coating it in gesso. She then sprinkled shaved plastic on the styrofoam forms to make it more dimensional and sugar-like. What's ironic is that she's creating these landscapes with materials that are detrimental to the environment. The work itself was well made and pleasing to the eye, but with the absence of sugar it really negated the work and her process of creation.

Idea Blog for 12/03

Filmstrip & Detail 05, 20x16", Digital photographs, Kerry McDonnell, 2009

Filmstrip & Detail 07, 20x16", Digital photographs, Kerry McDonnell, 2009

I was very productive over Thanksgiving break! These are just 2 of the 4 I took over vacation and I must say I'm incredibly pleased. I was also able to photograph my sister (finally) which I think was very successful in relation to my concept. I have no issue relating the filmstrips to each other and I think the viewer could rightfully assume that all of these images are about 1 person and that those images not containing a figure still relate to said person or character.

After my meeting with Tom I felt refreshed and inspired to try new things. For instance, one of my filmstrips was taken outdoors. At first I was nervous about this because of shadow and the light being too strong and completely silhouetting everything including the moth, which would not have been ideal. Luckily I just winged it and it came out really well. Tom suggested that I "let the monster be the monster." Considering this, I allowed the moth to exist in other areas of the frame and background as well as took several images in the series without-or parts of- the moth in the frame to create suspense and anxiety. This didn't go exactly as planned as I originally wanted to tie string to the moth so that I could hold it a different distances from the lens. Unfortunately they're incredibly too delicate to even wrap fishing string around. What I ended up doing was blurring the image (taking pictures as I unfocused), placed the moth in the frame, and then took pictures as I refocused. I repeated this same process when moving the moth from another space in the frame to the front of the image. It created an interesting effect and the blurriness or soft focus contributed to the idea of loss of memory-those little instances in between that are too hazy to draw any detail or meaning from.

I plan on submitting the filmstrips in my portfolio in a similar format as these two for all 10 images along with the original strip on a disc with the resized detail images. They're sized at 16x20 which is a strange size for something like this. A few of the detail images only have one, larger film strip at the bottom or 4 detail images the top. My newest strips are much longer (around 200" when placed side-by-side). These strips have more detail images featured to make up for the length. The images I chose are just to cover the span. I tried to tell the story in around 4-9 detail images for each strip because the actual strip itself on a 16x20 print is far too small to see any detail.

I'm really happy with what I've done thus far and I can't wait to see these printed out!

Artist Blog 11/30

Videogioco, Stop-frame Animation, Donato Sansone, 2009

While browsing Google for experimental video I came across Italian filmmaker Donato Sansone’s Videogioco. I probably spent close to 2 hours trying to find a website but was only able to find him featured on a ton of blogs, his Vimeo and MySpace sites which both give little information about the artist. They did, however, boast quite a few very intriguing videos. The two that I found most interesting are completely unrelated to each other in concept and process.

Videogioco, Italian for Videogame, combines 2D drawing, flipbook-style motion and stop-frame processing to create an interesting take on a cartoon action sequence. The film focuses on a character whose head, having been dismembered by a rival, travels throughout the sequence by being punted, swallowed and cut only to land back on its body for a final punch. The video loops so that the end picks up at the beginning. What’s interesting is that you see the artist’s hand involved not only in the movement of the paper, but also in the storyline itself. He interacts with the characters by acting as the puppeteer, but also by-for instance- helping the dog who swallowed the head regurgitate it back into motion. The sound effects are intriguing and I do feel like I am watching a cartoon. The graphic nature of sound used reminds me of cartoons like Ren and Stimpy. The fact that he’s added in the sound of the paper flipping I think is wonderful because it emphasizes what exactly this piece is comprised of and I like that it acknowledges the fact that it’s not a traditionally-made cartoon. I am impressed by the amount of work that went into this piece as well as the organization and overall flow. The subject matter is easy to follow and more exciting every time I watch it.

The second film is called App-Circulatorio. It is narrated in Italian and discusses the flow of blood throughout the body and the function of the heart, veins and capillaries, among other organs. This video features a male subject whose body is overlaid by a graphic of internal organs. The subject moves quite a bit throughout the film and the graphic moves along with him. It’s interesting to watch, at least, how the graphic behaves when the subject moves. It’s interesting watching the color that emphasizes the organs the narrator is speaking about; it’s kind of like watching someone paint. There is a very stylized artistic effect being executed here and while the graphics are very advanced, I feel like I could be looking at a diagram from Da Vinci’s notebook.

While I think my images do have a style of their own I’d like to be able to push that even further and get even more specific with how I use light and photograph my subject matter as well as establish an easy flow with my filmstrips as well as in my videos.

Donato Sansone Vimeo

Donato Sansone Myspace

Idea Blog for 11/27

(I'm not entirely sure if a blog is due tomorrow, but here's an update anyway...)

I've been incredibly busy with everything but school work since I've been home. This is my first visit back to NOVA in about 2 months--which is some sort of record. It's refreshing being home and with my family and friends again and I feel inspired to move forward with my concept and create stronger, more involved work. I have renewed patience and hope that I am moving in a positive direction and that everything I've endured while photographing at home will be very well worth it.

I feel like a different person from when I started this semester. It's an interesting thought to consider the parallels between the concept of my work and the growth I've had over the past few months. My confidence has grown in my work, conceptually and technically and I feel sort of impervious to things that would've bothered me before this year. Coming full circle and concentrating this work on myself rather than on my siblings has enabled me to realize and face my own fears. When I was working with Michael and Hayley I think I was using them and their innocence as an escape. They are the closest thing to my childhood beside my own memories and they are still at that in-between age where they can still feel like children; they can still be ignorant and naive without second guessing themselves. But I suppose at the end of the day, once I was alone, the journey I took with my brother and sister was only a false hope for myself to overcome something I was too scared to face on my own. And while I do feel like I've grown as a person, there are still parts of me that feel like they're missing. There are parts of who I was a few years ago that I need to remember so that I can become whole as who I am now. Growing as an artist and a big sister is only a very small part of who I need and want to be.

Artist Blog 11/23

Wings, digital photograph, Elizabeth Fleming, 2007

Dust Bunny, digital photograph, Elizabeth Fleming, 2007

Hand Prints, digital photograph, Elizabeth Fleming, 2007

I am blown away by Elizabeth Fleming’s documentary style of photography. At first I found her work to be fairly superficial; a stay-at-home mom with a camera and nothing better to do. But after having enveloped myself in her work I can say that she is probably my favorite documentary/narrative photographer. Her work successfully encompasses and illustrates everything I’d like to communicate concerning my issues at home. Her work Life is a Series of Small Moments I & II effectively captures the in-betweens of daily life. The transient moments that aren’t quite here nor there. She elusively transcends words, yet manages to say so much. I admire her use of light and perspective in that they make the viewer feel they are seeing this image for themselves, as though one was actually present for such an instance, taking the picture themselves. Her images are comical, nostalgic, hopeful, and melancholy all at the same time. When viewing her work I feel a rush of emotion I can neither control nor want to control. Her work provides such a release that I feel inspired and brand new and excited to create work of my own.

Her artist statement describes her work perfectly: “Part of me is scared to reveal too much—but perhaps the tension between showing and withholding is where the intimacy lies; not in stripping everything away but in respecting my sometimes guarded nature. I’m riding a line, creating a push-and-pull in the coming together of mystery and revelation, discovery and hiding. I feel compelled to examine ordinary moments, to fight against my obsessive-compulsive rooted-in-the-mind-and-not-the-world tendencies through the act of being present behind the lens as I find poignancy in the commonplace. I’m there as a record keeper, and it is through repeatedly catching these instants that I become more and more able to anticipate them, which at times gives them a cinematic or allegorical air. But fundamentally, it’s about really seeing: honestly looking and observing and loving the visual, and then carefully editing and arranging my images.”

The part that allows me to really connect to her work is the last sentence in her statement that reads: “Each photograph has had a very particular journey, and has been fussed and sighed over and stated at until it reaches the state where I can say, ‘I am ready to present it to you.’” When photographing at home, there is such a pressure to feel okay with and cope with having to show my images to an audience and to have to explain the meaning behind them. It’s a struggle to force outward my existence within my head; because by doing that it means I’m verifying all that’s happened to me and suddenly everything becomes real and so much more complicated. But at the same time, photographing those suddenly-physical thoughts helps me to cope with the idea that these things no longer exist just to me, but can still remain personal.

Artist Website

Artist Blog

Artist Lecture, Cape, Kerry McDonnell

Waterline, image size: 11x16", 17 framed c-prints/wood/paint, Francis Cape, 2006

London Avenue, 96x156x36", poplar/text/sandbags, Francis Cape, 2008

Francis Cape is the visiting lecturer for the sculpture department. Cape apprenticed a wood carver in York England before studying sculpture at the City and Guilds of London Art School where he achieved his BFA before moving on to achieve his masters at Goldsmiths College at the University of London. He is represented by the Chelsea and Murray Galleries and has been featured in a number of group and solo exhibitions worldwide.

Francis Cape’s lecture was a huge disappointment. Having viewed his work online I was really interested hearing what he had to say. Unfortunately, for a majority of the time he spoke about other artist’s work who I assume he was influenced by. These artists included painters, furniture designers and photographers, among others. He spoke very little about his work and from what information he was giving us I concluded that one would have to understand the history and function of furniture in the mid-late 1800’s in Britain as well as the history and fundamentals of European Socialism. His concepts were very dense and jumped around quite a bit between the history and use of furniture in England to the destruction in New Orleans and the aftermath of Katrina as a result of the Bush administration. I had a huge issue relating to his work based on just the imagery and sadly found myself even more disconnected from it while listening to Cape share his ideas.

Cape also refused to share his current work being shown at the Anderson currently because he didn't want to deter us from seeing the exhibition itself. Kate and I were discussing that seeing the work on a large screen is going to be a completely different experience from seeing it in person in a gallery space. A majority of the work he did show us were what looked like unfinished walls with dressers or small desks and shelves attached to the wall frame. The gaps between the wood supports and the patterns they formed were interesting, coupled with the more refined forms of the desks created an interesting juxtaposition. However, most of this related to having to do with furniture made in the mid 1900’s in England as a result of the world wars; furniture was made to be accessible by the public and with as few materials as possible. They were meant to be functional on multiple levels. He tied this idea in with Katrina by making the dimension of the wall in said piece (he gave no titles) the same dimensions as walls in homes near New Orleans that suffered as a result of the hurricane. He also suggested that the fragmentation visible in his unfinished walls (I assume in reference to the gaps between supports) was mean to discuss the role of the viewer in that the viewer finishes the piece and not the artist.

Cape’s work is clearly political and while I’m not very interested in this type of work I thought he made some interesting points about the Bush administration. For instance, a few pieces he showed us comprised of wooden screens that he made in response to the Bush administration’s “murdering” of the English language to conceal or hide things from the public.

One piece that I thought was the most refined and accessible was called Waterline which is an installation that involves a yellow painted chair rail or wainscoting above which framed pictures of destroyed homes in New Orleans are displayed. The yellow chair rail was meant to illustrate the water lines left by flooding from Katrina as well as a way to domesticate the gallery space in an effort to bridge the gap between what one heard in the news about Katrina and Cape’s own experiences in New Orleans. Generally it was in effort to separate oneself from the gallery space so that they may genuinely experience the destruction, though abstractly.

Francis Cape Website

Francis Cape at Anderson

Idea Blog for 11/19

Moth Film 01, video, Kerry McDonnell, 2009

I did a shoot for Ink magazine at the Byrd over the weekend that focused on fashion in iconic films like Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and The Devil Wears Prada. In total we did 6 shoots for 6 final images to be run in Ink’s February issue. It was great to be able to work with a team again and not have to worry about doing the styling and makeup and photography all by myself like I did for a majority of my fashion shoots over the summer. I was able to focus on just the photography and hone in on the details for each specific shoot. I worked with about 10 models in a 5-hour period.

Lighting was an issue and a lot of problem solving was involved. I had help from my flash for the really dark areas, but I really didn’t like the way they were coming out as I was having trouble balancing the light coming from my flash with the incandescent light and the sunlight being filtered through stained glass. So: a majority of the shots were taken in the lobby/entrance area where the glass doors allow in a lot of natural light. Not to mention it was a cloudy day so the light was beautifully diffused. It was definitely a challenge to not make those shoots look like they were all taken in the same area.

Again, it was nice to be able to work on something not class-related and it was a great opportunity to network.

I’ve managed to create a short experimental video (about 8 seconds) taking about 20 images from one of my shoots with the moth. It’s pretty cool to be able to see it in motion and the progression of the moth’s position throughout the film. It’s allowed me to see where I need to make transitions smoother and certain parts longer. For instance, the swing in focus between background and foreground needs to be more gradual in the clip I’m working on. I am having an issue, though, getting it to loop without having a black frame and a large jump between the first and last images in the film strip instead of it transitioning directly back to the first frame. There is a choppiness to the film that I enjoy as it reminds me of seeing light flash as something passes in front of a light source. It even more so suggests the movement of the moth’s wings, though not present in each picture. However I think the transition is a little too choppy, but the fastest transition available on the program I’m using is .125/s. I’m going to try this on another program more suitable for projects like this and I’m sure I’ll get the results I desire.