Author: hnb004

Below are three 3D images created using three different scanning technologies. The Kinect created the best images as both the Digitizer and the 123D catch app created weird geometries that had holes depending on the picture angles.

After reading Blyn’s chapter on Cremaster and her discussion of the posthuman, I believe that one point that she is comment on is the idea that humans are no longer defined only by their biological selves. There are many ways in which individuals can alter and “enhance” themselves whether due to necessity or in many cases, for cosmetic purposes. I believe that a possible feature of the post human era is that individuals are not thinking entirely for themselves and instead of have “brain washed” in a sense to think, behave or act in a certain way. This also relates to the fact that in a post human society, our bodies are not defined only by biology. There are many new forms of technology that allow individuals, such as Mullins to be “architects of their own identity”. In the case of Mullins, instead of accepting herself as disable, she has embraced the use of technology and can change her appearance and her appeal just by changing her legs. Aside from changing their clothing, there is not much that an individual without these technological advancements could do to alter their being. I believe that humanity is facing a net loss in regards to body augmentation. Of course, there are some individuals, like Mullins who may require augmentation for continue everyday functioning, however, overall, it is sad that individuals are no longer satisfied with their bodies and instead are turning to augmentation to improve their sense of self-worth. As augmentation increases in popularity, I believe that individuals will become less happy and satisfied as everyone is striving for a biologically unattainable goal. In terms of the corporate domination and ideological mechanization portion, I do believe that corporations have too much power within our country and will continue to have that power unless legislation is written that takes that power away from them.

Immediate Response

All I can think, “What did I just watch?” I watched the video twice trying to understand what was possibly happening. The music was off-putting, the characters were extremely bizarre, and I still do not understand the relevance of the video in regards to myself and this class. I was left with many questions and no answers, including, who are all of these characters, where are they, what is the point of this video, and many more that I cannot even express/comprehend at this point in time.

Objective Description

The video took place in a rather plain building that contained five floors and pillars connecting the levels. The narrative begins with skimpily dressed women in a bath tub. Then, more skimpily dressed women appear who appear to be line dancers, like the Rockettes. A Scottish looking man with a bloody rag in his mouth, a pink kilt, and pink hair appears. He encounters the dancing women and then proceeds to scale the walls of the building, finding a new group of people on each floor. The second floor contains members of a screaming punk band, the next, a women dressed in white who becomes a cheetah and proceeds to fight the Scottish man, the fourth piles of pillars/sculptures that the Scottish man must arrange, and fourth a man throwing a molten substance against a wall. The Scottish man appears to have to complete a challenge on each floor.

Technical Decisions

My best guess in terms of the technical decisions that went in to this film were to choose the most abstract and bizarre music, filming angles, characters,  plot etc. and throw them all together into one “work of art”. The video appears to take place in the Guggenheim Museum which is an interesting juxtaposition in comparison to the other content of the film. While the circular structure of the Guggenheim is interesting, the location appears bland and clearly stands out against the bizarre characters and music.  It is my guess that there are many allusions and references within the work, perhaps to the Bible (the cross on the second floor), however the metaphors and references were lost on me.

The Work in the World

Even after watching the video twice, I am unsure of connections between the work and the world. One possibility is that each level represents a different challenge that we face in our lives. These challenges could be chaos, represented by the punk rock band, seduction, represented by the women dressed in white and the dancing girls, and time, represented by the liquid/molten material that is moving down the ramp as it is thrown by the man on the top floor. The juxtaposition between the chaos in the video and the Guggenheim may also suggest an attempt by individuals in today’s society to mask the chaos within their lives through a beautiful and sophisticated exterior shell.

The Story it Tells

I believe that the video was meant to represent a game that the Scottish man is playing where he must complete a task, or escape, from the individuals on each floor. The game is being timed as represented by the liquid running down the ramp. Each level of the game represents a challenge that we face in our lives. There are points throughout the game where the man becomes stuck or returns to another level, therefore touching on the ups and downs that individuals face in their lives and the way that they are able to fight through those challenges.

Immediate Response

Farm by Tim Portlock evokes an immediate sense of sadness and despair. I was  drawn to the painting on the side of the building in the foreground as well as the yard surrounding the building. The painting humanizes the scene and makes it clear to the audience that this was once a prosperous land where happy and healthy people lived and worked. The trash in the yard consists of tires, couches, and an old car and there stray animals wandering the streets. This shows that these buildings are now uninhabitable and the owners have been forced out, leaving their old lives behind.

Objective Description

Tim Portlock’s Farm consists of an abandoned house and what is now a junkyard surrounding the house in the foreground. There is a mural on the left side of the home that depicts two African American farmers, a man and a woman, carrying a basket of colorful fruits and vegetables while standing within prosperous farmland. In the junkyard, an old couch, tires, empty boxes, an old car, and stray animals can be seen. Beyond the foreground is a series of other abandoned buildings that appear to be other homes and office buildings. The sky is gray-blue and cloudy with only small rays of light breaking through the clouds.

Technical Decisions

There are multiple aspects of the piece that demonstrate the technical decisions that went into this piece as well as the entire collection of work entitled “Here.” First, the trash and destruction that you see in Farm appear to be random but that is no accident. When the destruction that Portlock is displaying occurs naturally, tires will not be left in a junkyard lying perfectly flat next to each other and instead will likely be spread across the yard and stacked against other objects as in Portlock’s work. Additionally, while this is a strong piece of art on its own, it is presented as one of a series of six pieces all which display unfortunately common scenes of destruction. When you look at the pieces together, it becomes clear to the audience that Portlock is portraying a more widespread issue of abandonment and destruction which amplifies the emotions that the work evokes.

The Work in the World

This piece speaks to the subject of the industrialization and de-industrialization that occurred in the United States. The buildings in the image appear to be a mixture of factories, office buildings, and homes. This suggests that during the age of industrialization, people flocked to the land in search of jobs however once deindustrialization began, that factory industry was not the only industry harmed. Individuals lost their jobs and were forced to leave town leading to rampant abandonment and destruction issues in cities. The image of the African Americans on the side of the home touches on the issues of race and economic status, suggesting that many of the individuals who previously lived in such cities and were forced to leave their homes were those of color.

The Story it Tells

The title of the work, Farm, clearly tells the story behind the piece. Prior to the age of industrialization much of our country was composed of farmland where fruits and vegetables would grow. During the industrialization era, there was still growth on the land but instead it was the growth of factories, jobs, homes, etc. Once de-industrialization began, the vegetation that once existed on the farmland began to regrow but now instead of finding vegetables on the land, there is growth of trash which has been a growing problem within the United States. This piece is showing how much destruction we are causing to our land and to the people who once lived there.

Questions from the Modeling Earbuds Tutorial:

Can we go over some of the uses of the Transform – Array tool?

How do you know how many points and degrees you should use when you “rebuild” an object?

Can we go over all of the options in the “Adjust Surface Blend” menu?

Can we go over how to use the Boolean tools?