Monday, September 8, 2008
My First SAIC Project - rough
Here is the first thing I' m making in grad school (I use present tense because it is far from complete). The file actually has two video ideas in it. First is "spam," where some people (and I) read my spam in English, Japanese and Italian. While sitting in my hot tub. I wear a suit, they just wear whatever day clothes they have on. It's just my dumb luck that I thought to ask them to translate it. There will be several other men in the video, but I haven't had enough time to line them up yet.
Second is what was originally intended to be the intermittent shots between the scenes of people reading spam -- a girl dancing flamenco in the public park by my house while people walk around. I have three hours of tape and no idea how the entire thing will be finally edited. Maybe the dancing isn't necessary but it could be a separate video.... I may use stills of each of the people as a break instead. Or there may be no breaks at all. The lights, camera, script, sound, etc. are all purposefully cheap and low-tech. I don't know that fancy fades or editing is going to make the video better.
The video is for my projects class with Barbara. I met with her Thursday of last week and talked to her about using the spam but mentioned that I haven't figured out how to photograph it. She suggested using the spam (and said she has been collecting sex spam herself for a while), but she explicitly said to not make any photographs. And she wants to see it first thing tomorrow morning. I have no real experience with video. I checked out the most basic video camera and looked on youtube for videos about how to edit on imovie. I'm thinking of hiring the dancer, Liz, to be my Professional Nag through the first year of grad school and video taping each session. (she wants to be a professional nag as a business.)
My sculpture class was supposed to be the ultra cool class of the semester. Unfortunately, it's not a studio class. So we're reading lots and lots, and talking, and we make one project in class, which is ok, but I wanted to make stuff.
Today was the first day of the sculpture seminar and afterwards I went with a few sculpture kids to their studios to see them. They are more than twice the size of the photo studios. Tools and dust and saws and routers and amazing work everywhere. It really made me jealous. I wished I was in the sculpture studios all the time. The photo students haven't really figured out how to use the studios. We have the most pristine spaces. I went to CVS, where they are having a 90% off sale on summer stuff and bought several beach balls. I gave one to the guys in the studios next to mine and kept one in the studio group where I have a space. I'm hoping that we kick them around and throw them and maybe break something. Our studios are too new.
I took some cotton twine and thumbtacks to my studio and hung uup about 40 photos in hopes that other photo grads will follow the example and start using their damn spaces. I want to work with them. I want to sit in my space and make stuff and have a beach ball hit me in the head.
I guess it isn't fair to say the video is the first thing I've made in grad school. While I was in Houston last weekend, I pulled some very old Polaroid film out of the freezer, let it thaw, and ran it through an old camera. None of the photos came out. After the first one, I knew the film pack was ruined. But I continued making very purposeful photographs as if they would come out and then scanned the photographs together as a grid. A couple of them have some random chemical markings on them, but 8 of 10 are just blank. So each photograph has zero visual information but there was framing and exposure consideration for each. They are kind of interesting as "hidden" photographs but also as a pretty little grid. I will post the scan if the video ever finishes loading (it's 110 mb).
Since I haven't written anything for a while, I'll mention (while the damn video uploads) that there's way to0 much beer in grad school. I don't drink wine in public any more. I don't want everyone to seem me sucking down $10 or $12 glasses of wine. But, damn. These kids drink a lot of beer.
So when (if) the video downloads, remember that it is the first rough cut. There is another hour and a half of Liz being interviewed about her self, her family, her travels, thinking, relationships, etc. I hope to use it somehow.
Still waiting on the video. Hmmmmmm. Well, I have an art history class tomorrow where we were supposed to read 200 pages. Of course, I didn't read them all. And there's no way at this late date for me to do it. But i don't know how many passes I get on that front.
ok. I give up on the video. Another time.
