ARTEDUC2520 FINAL "Genesis"

My final project, titled "Genesis":

 

 

Before the project I considered quite a few options for what to do.  The primary themes were:

- A narrative about creating art, such as but not necessarily the story of how I made something I've already made in this class.
- Something abstract, visually interesting and changing.  Initially I considered the evolution of a game of Go.
- Something showing more about computers than just their cases.

After a fair amount of thought I found what I expected might be a clean way to put these together: a video of me programing Conway's Game of Life, and a resulting session of the program running.  This would be a story about creating art - the video act of programing would be exactly that.  To someone unfamiliar with programing, watching me create and move text around would be abstract and, quite possibly, interesting to watch.  Similarly, someone unfamiliar with Conway's Game of Life would almost certainly find the results of the program abstract and visually interesting.  Finally, this would undoubtedly show my interest in computers without succumbing to yet another external shot of a computer.

My main concern was that either the video would go too long and become boring or, if shortened, have everything happen to quickly to be able to follow.  To keep some interest during the potentially boring stretches, I could provide a voice-over to the video.  Perhaps a poem.  I could have the voice-over switch themes at the point where the video switches from programing to the program running.  Ultimately, the goal of the voice-over would be to create a sense of mystery which, hopefully, the end of the video - the running session of the program - would answer.

Creating the videos of me programing and the program playing out went exactly as desired.  I didn't want it to go to quickly, so I used a programming language I was not overly familiar with.  This forced me to look up quite a few things while programing as well as spend a fair chunk of time debugging.  Capturing these two things - Googling for answers and debugging - was very important, as in "real" programing they consume quite a large amount of the time allotted.  In total it took me about forty-five minutes to create the program.

However, the voice-over did not go nearly as well has I had hoped.  I made short test videos with me programing and the beginning of my still incomplete poem, and I found that the poem took to much attention away from the video.  I became worried that an audience would focus more on catching me abusing slant rhymes than the real focus - the video itself.  I tried again, this time purposefully breaking the rhymes and cadence of the words to make it sound like a straight speech.  It still did not feel right to me.

I started to consider less attention-grabbing alternatives to the voice-over.  The most obvious thing would be subdued music.  I began to look through music I was familiar with that was both subdued and, hopefully, could create a sense of mystery.  Eventually I found a piece I rather liked.  I'm not sure either "subdued" or "mystery" really explain the feeling the music creates, but whatever the words to describe it are: it fits.  It may not be what I had originally aimed for, but the feeling of watching the video to the music just works.  I adjusted the speed of the video segments to fit the music and called it a victory.

The final video met all of the major original themes I had come up with while brainstorming for this project.  The plan to have a voice-over ended up being detrimental and scrapped.  In fact, it was unnecessary; the video, stand-alone, is more than interesting enough.  It's simply different - I don't think I've never seen a work of art that really tries to do something quite like this.

Historically when I try to create something - especially art - I tend to make myself the target audience.  Thus I know, if I like it, that it is probably good.  Here I found I did something quite different: I am not the target audience.  This work is for people who are familiar with neither programing or Conway's Game of Life.  It is intended to play off an unknown.  I'm not sure if I did that purposefully or not.  This also leads to the second project that I'm not quite sure will work as I had intended, because I'm not really the target audience.  I don't know what someone who is unfamiliar with programing will think when watching this.  Last time this happened I was apprehensive; this time, I think I'd be better described as excited to find out.

Final Brainstorming

Various ideas I had for this project, in rough order of how they came to mind:

- Do a narrative of my experiences in class.  Perhaps "summarize" the various pieces I've done thus far in one master piece.
- Revisit a discarded idea I had for the verb project.  My words were "hang" and "drop" - I was thinking perhaps I could play on the less used meaning of "hang" where someone is killed, and edit a photo of a person being hanged, but replace him with an every day object.  For example, a number of pencils could be gathered around watching a pencil be hanged.  I discarded this idea because I was not actually modifying an object, but rather just a photograph; however, this would be allowed here.
- I'm rather fond of a board game called "go".  It is esthetically very minimal - white and black circles on a yellow board.  The shape of the board and the flow of the pieces is particularly interesting.  Perhaps I could do something with that.  Perhaps show the evolution of the board, the back-and-forth between the players as the game goes on.
- While I had physical image of computers in some of my projects, I did not have programming.  Just the physical boxes.  While this does get across "Daniel likes computers", it doesn't really get the deeper spirit behind it.  Perhaps I should somehow explore software.  I've always found the flow of code quite interesting.
- Proposed by instructor: video of me programing and my surroundings.  Note how the world changes around me as I code. I am a constant in contrast to the changing surroundings.
- Most of the projects I've done thus far have been relatively shallow.  I'd like to go for something that at least appears to be deep and meaningful.
- I'd also like to stick with the programing idea.  Perhaps a video, not of me, but of the screen: just the letters as they change while a program is written.  However, this may be uninteresting.
- Spice up potentially uninteresting video with interesting audio.  Audio tells an interesting story over video.  The exact relationship between audio and video won't be known until the end of the video, which makes some mystery, which is always interesting.
- Video is recording of screen while I program Conway's Game of Life (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conway%27s_Game_of_Life).  Audio playing over video is a story or poem about creation or meaning of life.  Audio ends exactly when development of code (play with video speed).  Then, in silence or vocals-less music, a video of the animation of a simulation in the finished Conway's Game of Life, as though this answers or is a reply to the audio.

At this time, I like the last idea best.  It is a bit risky - there is potential that it will not come across as interesting as I currently envision it.  It is also depending on a creative audio script or poem, which is something I've not done in a while.  There is also the realistic possibility that I'll be embarrassed to show off my technical abilities coding something in progress - I usually prefer to keep my work private until it is good.  However, it is good to push myself.  Moreover, I can't think of ever seeing anyone else do anything quite like this, and from what I gather uniqueness is quite valuable in the art world.

Failure Paper

 What was your biggest failure this semester

 Micro-Project 3 was easily my biggest failure this semester.

 What did you learn from this failure?

 In engineering classes, usually something is either possible or (given current math/science/technology/money/time) impossible.  Art, in contrast, seemed so freeing.  Since there isn't really a "right" answer, I can do (almost) anything.  Whether this anything was good or not is debatable, but it would at least be a thing that exists.


I learned that this assumption isn't really true.  While I received credit for the assignment, I didn't feel like-to me-it was "correct."  It was an attempt, but it didn't meet the goal.  I'm not sure, at this point in time, that I'm actually capable of doing what was asked.  I didn't know that was going to happen going into this class.

What was your biggest success this quarter?

While I think other projects were better received by both the instructor and the classmates, I felt my biggest success was Micro-Project 4.


What did you learn from this success?

Just as I had my expectations flipped when working on Micro-Project 3, Micro-Project 4 also flipped an expectation of mine.  Artworks are abstract concepts-items from Plato's forms-made manifest on the cave wall.  I had an understanding-not sure where I originally picked it up-that it is inevitable that the physical content of the artwork is never exactly like the original idea.  Something is always changed-for better or worse-when the object in the artist's mind is brought into the tangible world.  That may be generally true, or perhaps just sometimes true, but it is definitely not always true.  Micro-Project 4 turned out exactly as I had pictured.  Not a single thing was different, for better or worse.  I didn't think such things could realistically happen with something of that level of complexity.

If you could redo one project, what would you change and why?

The obvious answer is Micro-Project 3, but I am hesitant to revisit it.  With time I could improve any of the projects, but I don't think I could get Micro-Project 3 to the point where I am actually happy with it.  I think I'd rather leave this defeat alone.  If I'm going to do something again, I'd like to see an improvement.  With that in mind, I'd be interested in taking another crack at Micro-Project 4.  Despite it being my "biggest success," I feel it has the most room to be improved.  Perhaps it turned out so close to what I had imagined because it wasn't ambitious enough.  If I try it again, I may try to do even more with it.

Micro-Assignment 5: Identity at Play

See the video of how I altered the objects here:

Action words:

 -hang
- drop

Begin by brainstorming what your action word means.

Both of these words - drop and hang - are relatively straight forward:
- "hang" means to suspend something
- "drop" means to let something fall

Looking for less immediately obvious definitions, these are options:
- "hang" has a special meaning when it comes to people, where they are hanged by the neck.
- "drop" is also a synonym for collapse, as one would do from physical exhaustion.  If the object were, say, me, I could step off a treadmill and drop to the floor.
- In the context of liquids, a drop (noun) has a different meaning.  Perhaps I could "drop" the object from a water dropper.
- In the context of several abstract things such as a conversation, it can be ended by having it be "dropped", e.g.: None of these less obvious definitions seemed workable, so I dropped them.

What limitations does it present?

- The instructions say that I should "alter" an object in an interesting way.  None of these definitions, when "done" to an inanimate object, change it in any noticeable way.

- Many of these definitions are only applicable in very narrow contexts, such as fluids or people.

What opportunities does it present?

- Attempting to both hang and drop something could be relatively easy, as the two are closely interrelated.
- I could potentially do some play on the meanings of the words and treat a solid inanimate object as though it was liquid or person, which could be interesting.

Pick an object/item that you use on almost a day-to-day basis that you don't give much thought to.  What is that object?

A mechanical pencil.  Several, in fact, as I have a habit of almost always grabbing at least two so I have a spare in case one is out of lead during a quiz or exam where it would be suspicious of me to dig through my bookbag for another.

Use the action word to alter the object in an interesting way.

I decided to connect multiple mechanical pencil in a way such that their normal mechanical operation - the push of the eraser - would result in some of them first hanging then dropping.  I then proceeded to press the eraser until they dropped.  The pending doom of the pencils set to the beat of the mechanical clicks reminded me of the Jaws theme.  I felt it appropriate to reset the system I had built and click away again, this time to the beat of the Jaws theme I found online as I watched the pencils savor their last moments of being attached to the wall in the odd fashion I chose. 

Keep notes throughout the process.

I took a picture of each step.  I'm not sure what else to take note of.

Decide the best way to digitally share your object.

The objects themselves - "altered" by their drop - are of little interest without the journey they took.  The best way to share this journey is by video, accompanied by the sounds of deep though followed by the sound of their pending doom. 

Write a statement explaining the object/item you chose, why you chose it, what word you had, and the process that went into making your final piece.

I chose a handful of mechanical pencils because they were, honestly, the first thing my mind jumped to when I looked for objects/items that I use on an almost day-to-day basis. While I could have kept looking, I felt it would be best to stay true to my first instinct. If nothing else, it would add to the challenge. My words were "drop" and "hang", and I used both of them. To hang and drop the pencils, I connected them in such a way that two pairs were each sharing one piece of lead per pair, then I used the clips to connect the two pairs. I then hooked one of the pencils - "the lucky one" - to a fixture on my wall. I then clicked on "the lucky one"'s eraser until the other three pencils dropped to their clicky-clacky doom. I did this all to the tune of the Jaws theme because that's what the physical process and their accompanying sounds brought to mind.

Responsesto Wallace and Carver

Response to Wallace:

The opening and closing - the water analogy - were brilliant choices.  Most
commencement addresses are typically quite boring.  Something needs to be done
to snag attention early on, or, failing that, something to should be provided
for the audience to chew on while waiting for the speech to end.  Even if the
entire middle of the story was boring, the audience will not be bored: either
they are thinking about the opening themselves, or eagerly awaiting when the
speech will come around and explain the opening.

While the itself was quite strong, the speech was depressing.  I expect when I
am next seated, listening to such a speech, I'd likely prefer something
uplifting and celebratory.

Response to Carver:

I find the phrasing choices of the narrator/protagonist in the flashback at the
beginning quite interesting.  Specifically, I find it interesting that he talks
about himself in third person: "She told the blind man she loved her
husband...", where the narrator is the husband!  There are a number of ways to
interpret exactly why this was done. For example, it could be used to reinforce
the fact that the protagonist, initially, felt excluded by the relationship
between the protagonist's wife and the blind man.

The distaste the protagonist had for the blind man was presented so many times
early on that it was obvious there was going to be a change, and that the
protagonist would warm to the blind man.  Knowing what is coming ruins some of
the fun.

Micro-Project 4

Micro-Project 4

Write a brief paragraph aobut your normal activities in [place where you regularly go].  What do you notice?  If you were to close your eyes, what sounds would let oyu know that you are in this place?

I attend the Open Source Club here at OSU.  The typical structure of a club meeting has one of our members give a presentation on some topic related to open source software.  These presentations often raise topics that people in the audience would like to discuss.  However, for the sake of politeness, we (usually) wait until the presentation is finished before talking amongst ourselves.  Often this discussion is carried on between groups of us as we leave the meeting to return to our residences.  Occasionally, a group of us gathers by a bus station next to a cross walk where we split up: some will take the bus and the others will walk on.  Some very thought-provoking discussions happen at that cross walk as we wait for the inevitable coming of the bus and end of group discussion.  The crosswalk makes noises to assist the blind in knowing when to cross.  I find these noises distracting when I'm attempting to carry on a deep, technical discussion with someone else.  To be clear, I'm glad its there - I see no reason this like major assistance to others should be removed to lessen the ultimately minor annoyance for me.  I find it distracting nonetheless.   Hence, the video below:

 

While I expect most of the video makes sense in the context I laid out above, I expect it is possible that someone would be confused about why I made the day/night switch.  Which itself is the whole point: to be confusing.  When I'm trying to think about complex technical issues with an incessent beep, I can get a bit disoriented.  While frustration is easy to display - tinge things red.  The switching mental focus tied to sound is easy to show with camera cuts synchronized with sound.  Confusion is a bit harder.  The day/night switch seems a good way to go about it.

Craft a summarizing statement of this process.

The majority of the process boiled down to: (1) Finding a place I would recognize from the noise.  (2) Figuring out what I want to say about this place in a way that is tied to the noise.  (3) Figuring out how to use sound and video to express these thoughts.

How did your initial visit to the place transform through the process?

It changed very little, as once the assignment was described I knew immediately what I wanted to do.

What kind of emotions do you think your final piece creates?

Hopefully, frustration and confusion.  If I can get across the feeling of attempting to focus on one thing while being distracted by another, that would also be great, but I'm not sure that is technically considered an emotion.

Did you make overt decisions about the piece or were there happy accidents?

Everything about the piece (that I find of note) was calculated and purposeful - if there is any happy accidents within it, I've not noticed them.

What was satisifying about the experience?

Often, when I attempt to create a work of art, the end result isn't exactly what I had imagined.  This doesn't mean it is bad - it may be better than what I had planed - but it isn't what I wanted.  Here, when I first saw the final video, I felt it was exactly what I wanted.  Everything fell into place.  That feeling, in a single word, is satisfaction.  Moreover, I feel this gave me a bit of an outlet to express my frustration with that damnable beeping, which, too, was satisifying.

What didn't you like?

Other than the beeping itself, absolutely nothing about the process was unpleasant.  This is my favorite thing I've done for this class thus far.

Micro-project 3

Micro-project 3

Years ago I decided that I wanted to learn how to pick locks.  Ideally I would never need to utilize this skill, but one can never know, and it doesn't hurt to be prepared.  I purchased a lock to practice on.  The key you find below corresponds to this lock.  I've never used this key, but I like to carry it around with me as a reminder to always be prepared.

Preparation.

Since I am known as a computer guy, I am often asked to assist with computer problems, usually without much of a heads-up.  I carry the flash drive you see below around with me.  It contains numerous software tools to assist with fixing computers.

Further Preparation.

I enjoy playing video games competitively.  As a result, I am regularly challenged to put money on a  game.  Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose.  In one particuluarly satisfying match I won a two dollar bill  which I like to keep with me to remind me that while sometime I lose, sometimes I win.

Victory.

It is customary for Ashkenazi Jews to name their children after a relative who has passed away.  I was named after an uncle who died in the Yom Kippur War. The 9mm bullet you see below was manufactured in one of same factories that provided this uncle with ammunition he used in said war.  Living in the United States it is easy to forget this heritage; I wear the bullet to remind me of my namesake.

Heritage.

My primary hobby is programming.  I simply enjoy creating intricate and useful things.  While I generally prefer using a desktop, it restricts me to coding only when it is available.  A laptop, on the other hand, I can take with me.

Creation.

Using these images to create a single picture that - standing alone - says something about me proved to be very difficult for me.  None of the items above - or really anything I carry on my person - says anything about me without the story behind them.  I don't see how I could possibly tell someone anything about myself just by showing them, say, the image of my never-used key, beyond the fact that I carry a key around with me, just as a great number of other people do.  It doesn't matter how I utilize things like size or orientation.

Since thinking about what I am unable to do wouldn't really get me anywhere, I decided to focus on what I could do that would actually say something unique about myself and ran from there.  One way in which I am relatively unique is that I primarily use computers to create rather than (just) consume.  I don't just watch youtube and post on facebook, but rather create software.  My focus is not what I see on the screen but what I can do with the keyboard.  Hence, the picture below.

I'm not sure it works.  I tried numerous variations, none of which really stood out to me.  In the end I decided to settle on this.  The keyboard-in-the-screen should be recognizable to others, and since it is a bit odd, it will hopefully generate some thought as to why I did this.  The picture is sufficiently simple
that there isn't anything else to focus on - the viewer has no choice but to think about exactly what I want them to think about.

It does not say anything about my self-taught lock picking skill, my competitive video game playing or my heritage.  It hardly says anything at all. I'm not even sure it completely meets the requirements of the assignment, since it only utilizes one of my five items.  I'd like to think, though, that it does say at least one thing: when the person who made that image looks at a computer, he sees the tools to create rather than consume.

Responses to Kaprow, Weschler, Saunders

Response to Kaprow:

The example used - brushing one's teeth - is brilliant.  This is something
everyone who reads the article does (or should do, anyways), and most likely
have been doing does in a similar "routinized, nonconscious" manner.  Bringing
this to the readers attention will almost certainly result in a conscious
change in the act of brushing one's teeth the next time it is done - it will be
a consciously analyzed act yet again, as it was once when the reader was likely
much younger.  I'm always impressed when something I read actually changes my
life once I've finished reading it.

However, I'm not entirely sure I grasped the point the author was trying to
make.  The activity of brushing one's teeth isn't traditionally considered art,
true.  Its placement outside of the traditional gallery also makes it unusual.
Then what makes it art?  I'm not saying it is not art, but that the author did
not quite get the idea across to me.

Response to Weschler:

When someone loses a physical thing, it is obvious that the physical loss would
be difficult.  Typically, focus is then brought on other things.  The real loss
is the emotional loss, the loss of space, what the things represented, etc.
Here, however, a character turned that back around: the loss was very much
about the loss of the physical objects themselves.  The choice to elevate the
normally base is quite an interesting one.

There is nothing in particular that is difficult or problematic about this
article that I can pinpoint.

Response to Saunders:

The opening airplane scene was a brilliant choice to generate interest from the
reader.  When I began reading the article I really wasn't all that interested
in it and was mostly just going through the motions.  However, the scene
certainly grabbed my attention.

The repeated topic matter of death was quite a depressing and, I feel,
unoriginal.  People have been dying - and writing about dying - for as long as
writing has existed.

Response to Cardiff and Miller

Response to Cardiff and Miller:

It is terribly easy fall into the trap of making a piece like this dry and
boring.  The ultimate excitement of the piece - the powerful experience of
witnessing the art - is something the reader cannot do.  Not even a picture.
However, surprise is usually interesting, and in the author's experience there
were at least two surprises: the boom of the "Forest" and the unexpected nature
of Fritz's identity.  I hence approve of how the author attempted to have the
reader mimic this his own response by cutting off a sentence mid-way and
initially mislead us as to Fritz's identity.

What I disliked was the complete absence of visuals.  While the focus of the
pieces were aural, not visual, each had a visual component.  Part of what,
presumably, makes the "Forest" piece so real was the imagery tied to the sound.
Similarly, seeing the "Forty-part Motet" and its array of speakers would have
been quite interesting.

Response to Hornby

Response to Hornby:

The story was about Dave's reaction to his first real exposure to the art
world.  It was important that Dave be relatively uncultured going into it or
have put much thought into art.  However, the author could not simply state
"Dave is not overly cultured and has not put much thought into art", because
that would be overly direct.  Instead, by telling the story from Dave's point
of view, we not only learn the story itself but are able to make inferences
about his level of culture from his style of speech.  I quite liked this fact.

At the same time, however, it made the piece much more difficult to read.  I'm
accustomed to reading "proper" English, and I found reading something something
more akin to how people actually talk challenging.  I would have to read some
sections more than once in order to determine exactly what the narrator was
trying to get across.

Micro-Assignment 2

Micro-Assignment 2

In preparation for this assignment I made a conscious effort to pay attention to what I do when I go to class.  What I've found was that I do very, very little.  I become myopic: I focus on my goal and how to get there.  I take in absolutely no notice of the feel of the taste of the air as I walk to class or the feeling of the texture of the lining of my pockets.  Only after I get to class, sit in my chair, and open up the computer program I use to take notes does it hit me that it was extremely cold and I should have taken a coat or that it was raining and I'm soaked.

What I do do is mentally track my position relative to my goal and focus on recognizing landmarks which indicate when I need to turn.  I don't look at things like street signs or address numbers for directions, as these may not be visible along my path.  Rather, I look at the outlines of the buildings that tower over me as I walk to class.  When I see a given building's silhouette, I know to turn.

Thus, the picture below.  No sound or smell or touch or taste, nor planes of color or grain or pattern: just outlines of buildings.  The colors I use are false color - they are simply there to indicate a conscious differentiation between buildings, because I do make such differentiations while walking to class.  I have passed this building, next I must look for that building.

I also consciously avoided providing a sense of direction along the path.  I have found that when someone I know passes by me on the path visualized below and waves or says hello they wake me from my robotic stupor and cause me to lose track of what I was doing.  Was I going to class, or from it?

Finally, I felt I should note that I made the outlines of the buildings glow for a very well thought out reason:  it looks cool.

Respons to Ono

Response to Ono:

If taken without context, I find a lot of the phrasing and imagery quite appealing.  The work opens, for example, demanding the reader attempt to "capture moonight on water in a bucket", which I have to admit made me smile.  Later, the phrase "It takes willpower to overpowe the will to power" similarly effected me.

However, I disliked the entire premise of the work.  The idea of an artist striving to be original is, frankly, unoriginal.  Had the focus been on how Ono was original, perhaps I would have enjoyed it more, because that is potentially interesting.  Demanding that "we need more impossible in our culture" nothing new.

Micro-Assignment 1

The first ten pictures can be found here:

http://thau4arteduc2520.blogspot.com/2013/01/blog-post.html

The ten new pictures are:

Assymetrical:

 Symmetrical:

 

 Radial:

  

 Person and their surroundings space:

  

Person up close:

  

Image from the point of view of an ant:

 

Image from the point of view of a bird:

 

Stable image:

 

 Unstable Image:

 

My name on campus:

Experiences with first ten pictures:

I enjoyed taking the first ten pictures more than I had expected I would.  The freedom to take a picture of anything forced me to reflect on what truly interested me.  However, I do not think the pictures went over well with my peers.  They did not say, out-right, that they disliked the pictures, but I expect they were being courteous.  This lead me to think about them more, and I realized that what I had initially found interesting in the items I took photographs of was the message behind the pictures - what they were about - rather than the images themselves.  The images themselves, without explanation, were evidentally dull.  One of the pictures, for example, is of a brick in a wall in my room.  My eyes have likely spent more time scanning across that brick rather than staring at it, and I thought it would be interesting to actually look at the brick.  Perhaps others did not agree - perhaps there is a reason my eyes always scanned across the brick without ever really looking at it.

Experiences with second ten pictures:

The second experience was more challenging, in that I made a point of making the pictures more visually interesing - remove the need for an explanation behind them - while retaining some story so that they kept the same interest to me, personally, without the visual asthetic.  For example, I've always had an interest in the way man-made light stands out in an otherwise dark night - the way it signifies that there is life there, warmth, in both a figurative and very literal sense.  This may or may not come across in the photographs from the "ant's view" and "bird's view", but if it does not, I expect the two images are visually interesting anyways.  Walking to class, I consciously notice the people around me doing the same, and I often contemplate on that.   I really like the way the sidewalk is visible, twisting and turning and forking, along the path the individual is taking in the "close up" picture, and hope that viewers - who've never been in my head - will see the sidewalk and similarly wonder about where this individual is going.

What was the same about the experience?  What was different?

It was mostly the same experience.  The restrictions placed on me had very little effect on the items I chose to photograph; it simply dictated how to frame them.  My primary interests in the pictures (ie, things I found interesting in all of them and things others may find interesting sans-explanation in the latter ten) were largely uneffected by the differing requirements.

Which process was more enjoyable for you and why?

Since the process itself had no real effect on my pictures, neither process was more or less enjoyable than the other.

Which images are your favorites?  Why?

My favorite from the first ten pictures was almost blank computer screen on its side, because that is how people will describe it, when the image is dominated by the shadow of me taking the picture.  The empty screen is ready, just about to be filled with content, and at the same time it is the content of a picture.  I find such thoughts interesting.  However, I worry this is overly obtuse.

Of the second set, my favorite is picture of the person up close, because of all of the pictures in the second set it is the one I feel is most likely to instill the same effect on the viewer - where is he going? - as it does on me, personally.

Ten pictures:

Response to Walker:

If we must define a "Big Idea" as something new (I will explain below why I
dislike doing so), I applaud the effort to differentiate it from closely
defined terminology.  This serves a double duty of avoiding confusion with
these other terms as well as gives something similar enough to serve as a
reference point.

I admit my knowledge of specific terminology in the field of art may be
limited, which could throw off my opinion here.  I know the term "space" has a
very specific definition in film theory, for example.  However, I don't see why
we have to define "Big Idea" as something new.  As I understand the article, it
is simply a theme that "persists throughout an artists body of work".  That's
it.  This does not need a new term; one could easily suffice with "over-arching
theme".  While it is an interesting topic which may be worthy of discussion,
there is no need to define a new term for this as I understand it.

Response to Barret:

I usually find it amusing when subconscious things which I do are brought to my
attention.  I type all of my notes, and I often study by/with my computer; as a
result, I apparently move my fingers as though I am typing when I am attempting
to recall information I learned in this fashion.  I find this interesting.  The
main point in the article - that we subconsciously interpret connotation and
denotation in visual imagery - fits this perfectly.  As the article points out,
I've likely been doing this since at least preschool - and rarely have I given
it conscious thought.

If I had to find a complaint with this article, I would say that more examples
are used than truly necessary.  I got the point well before the final page.
While the preschool children item is one of the more important ones, as it
helps frame the entire work, other examples could easily have been dropped
without a serious negative effect on the article.

Response to Kidd:

I absolutely loved this article.  I'm not completely sure I understand what it
is trying to say, but whatever it is, it says it extremely well.  What
immediately struck me about this article - presumably the most obvious thing,
but notable nonetheless - is that it barely gives you enough information to
figure out what is going on.  After the first page it is impossible to really
grasp the scene or follow the symbolism.  The result of this, for me, was
immediate intrigue.  I was challenged, and determined to read on until I pieced
things together.  It wasn't until a few seconds after I had reached the end of
the article, after I had figured out what was going on, after I had felt so
victorious, that I had learned something.  While I searched so determinedly for
one thing, something else had slipped - without my conscious awareness - into
my pocket.

I, personally, found nothing difficult or problematic with the article.
However, I suspect others may find the very thing I enjoyed so much about the
article off-putting.  Not everyone enjoys a puzzle as much as I do, and I
suspect some may become flustered at the context-less information.

Response to Hicky:

The most interesting thing I found about this article was in fact at the very
beginning and far from any point the author was trying to make.  After reading
the first paragraph, I realized that I had not only visualized the movements of
the basketball players in my mind, but also their pacing.  The movements were
quick.  Yet at no time did Hickey actually write to explicitly say this.  I
suspect that part of this was due to the fact that I was already familiar with
how such scenes play out in reality and played back this knowledge while
reading.  It seems that was not all: the author appears to have purposefully
used short sentences or sentences composed of short segments.  The staccato
rhythm of reading the work seems to contribute to the staccato motion of the
players in my mind.

Again I am hard pressed to find anything that I found difficult or problematic
with the article.  Since I have to say something, I will point out that some of
the enjoyment of this work hinges on sharing an interest with the author.
While I've seen numerous basketball games, I have yet to find myself able to
get swept up in excitement as others do and, thus, have a difficult time
relating to the author, making most of the article slightly boring where it was
explicitly intended to be exciting.

Response to Weschler:

The entire article was about the nuances of pictures of which, I found,
only one was shown.  This seems like it would be hugely detrimental.  I was
pleasantly surprised to find my pessimism about the feasibility of this work
was misplaced, as the author did manage to conjure up the images in my mind
with adequately textual description.

The author noted several times that he did not believe the goal of creating a
realistically looking computer generated image character was attainable,
without ever putting any justification forward other than the fact that - at
the time of writing - people are still having some difficulty with some parts
of it.  I found this off-putting.  How could anyone see the tremendous progress
the industry has made and come to the same conclusion?  I'm okay with a
differing opinion, but the lack of justification threw me off.

Oh, and the Final Fantasy film to which the article was referring was
significantly lacking in respect other than graphical prowess.  I'd look at
issues such as plot and character development first before making any claims
about it failing due to not providing sufficiently realistic-looking images.

Introduction

Hello, my name is Daniel.  From a young age, my interests have typically revolved round computers, such as but not limited to: computer hardware, computer programming, science fiction (primarily literature, but also movies), and computer games.  My major is in Electrical Engineering, specifically with a focus on (yes, you guessed it) computers.  I also work in OSU's Math Department's IT department where I often lead the student workers in various programming projects as needed by the department.  In addition to programming both for my academic career as well as in my current employment, I code as a hobby as well.  I am best known for a novel operating system I am working on called "Bedrock Linux".  The exact details of what makes this worthwhile can be a bit technical, but a simple explanation would be that it attempts to borrow the best aspects of similar projects in a transparent manner.  I am an active member of OSU's Open Source Club, a club based around a specific computer-focused philosophy/movement.

My top favorite books (in no specific order) are:

- Dune, by Frank Herbert
- A Deepness in the Sky, by Vernor Vinge
- Anathem, by Neal Stephenson
- The Silmarillion, by JRR Tolkien
- Grendel, by John Gardner

Lastly, a photo of me at a videogame tournament can be found below.  I am in the middleground, just behind the individual with the earring in the foreground.  I case anyone is curious, I am happy to say I secured third place, ensuring OSU students took the top three spots.