Ning

The more I use Ning, the less I'm liking it.

Here's the link to my Ning network

http://acolorfullworld.ning.com/


I like the idea behind Ning, but I think Blogger is just as powerful (for the most part), and its much more user friendly. I think Blogger also has more powerful built-in tools, but I'll see how Ning does.

Some more stop motion to check out

Watch both of these on their respective sites;
The Youtube one should fit on screen, and I've got a higher resolution version of the one on the bottom too.

How Not to Paralel Park (V. 2) from Mark Sylvester on Vimeo.

Process

Topic Presentation Question:

is process an important part of creating artwork?


(actual typed conversation transcribed by Rachael Kulik)

RACHAEL: The process is definitely important when creating an artwork. I personally am process oriented, and tend to work and build as I go. I’m not usually a fan of others seeing the process beforehand – only the final product- but it’s still pretty important to get to the final product. Not to mention the process changes the piece entirely, whether you start out with an outlined drawing or just go draw for five minutes without thinking. Whether it’s a little or a lot, the process is still important to the piece.

MARK: I think that the process is important for new media because it shows whether or not the artist made distinct choices or just used premade decisions from the technology available to them, you know? It really lets you show how much work the artist put into it. Did you actually spend time toning and balancing a photo if your making it sepia or did you just quickly do it in photobooth where it looks like your dog peed on it instead? There’s the actual thought out way where your thinking about it and paying attention, and then there’s the quick-and-easy-do-it-in-two-seconds-on-your-computer-and forget-about-it-way.

DANIELLE: So, I think process is important because it shows how the artist thinks, and it shows the choices the artist goes about how they’re going to complete their artwork and how somebody chooses to complete a task, whether it be washing the dishes or doing a project for a school paper. For example, someone might use a reference photo instead of a still life or model to do a drawing or a painting. It might not seem that important when looking at the final product, but I think that depending on which one they chose, it affects the drawing or painting.



Artist Examples:

Glenn Feron


http://www.glennferon.com/portfolio1/index.html

One thing we found interesting about Glenn Feron is his interaction with the before and after process for doctoring photographs. These days, airbrushing photos is important for the industry. We live in a world surrounded by aesthetics and supposed ‘perfection’, in turn causing problems with those growing in the modern day society. It’s interesting to see the differences between the old photos and the new photos – some small, like a color balance change, and others larger, like eliminating wrinkles or ‘fat’ curves from the body (in some cases, even adding a few!) We found it interesting to see the before and after process with these photos, and loved being able to interact with them. They really get you to start thinking. Check it out for yourself - see what you think.

George Vlosich III


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYM__s3R5q0

George Vlosich creates artwork using an etch-a-sketch. We found his artwork interesting because the process is SO essential in creating the work itself. If you shake the etch-a-sketch, you essentially erase the whole entire piece. Plus, creating it takes such patience turning all the smallish knobs to follow the important linear components. However, if the viewer had no possible idea that the etch-a-sketch was such a temporal medium and had they not seen the entire process of creating the piece, we would only have a still image of basketball player that doesn’t nearly strike us as hard as knowing it’s created using a simple child’s toy.

Kseniya Simonova


http://www.popeater.com/2009/08/28/ukrainian-talent-winner/?icid=mainmaindl2link4http://www.popeater.com/2009/08/28/ukrainian-talent-winner/

For this example, the process of creating the work IS the piece itself. There’s so much that goes into her work - The motion of her hands, the background music, the sound effects, and the lines and shapes her hands create. One could take still pictures of all of her pieces, and it would mean absolutely nothing unless you saw her actual creation OF it. Her pieces themselves actually speak so much more than making a simple aesthetic piece. Her work stands for the pain and suffering her country has faced and survived. Without any of the other added components and without documenting the process, her work would not nearly hit anyone the same way it currently does. Can you imagine making an artwork out of the actual PROCESS of creating it? Talk about interesting!

Process Question

How does process affect the final product?

Looking at the artists and their works above, how do you think process affects the final product? We chose a few really thought provoking artists to help get you thinking about the concept. You can find a lot of resources about the artists by accessing youtube or even wikipedia. A lot of times the actual process can be overlooked when it’s actually such an important component. We've included a few good links for the artists, too.



Kseniya Simonova:

http://www.kseniyasimonova.com/

http://artisticthings.com/sand-animations-with-kseniya-simonova/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kseniya_Simonova

http://www.bareknucklevideos.com/video/o0xnLvk8xW4/Sand-Artist.html

George Vlosich III:

http://www.gvetchedintime.com/gvetchedintime/index.php

http://www.cleveland.com/tipoff/index.ssf/2009/01/tipoff_george_vlosichs_etch_a.html

http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Etch-A-Sketch-King-George-Vlosich-III

http://www.veoh.com/collection/PeerSientje/watch/v6259925f9GcbjWc

Glenn Feron:

http://photoshopdisasters.blogspot.com/2009/08/glenn-feron-i-have-no-sense-of.html

http://ocaoimh.ie/glenn-feron-the-art-of-retouching/

http://www.linkedin.com/in/glennferon

(more of glenn's work can be seen on his portfolio at his website: http://www.glennferon.com/portfolio1/)