Paul Pfeiffer

Pfeiffer is a video/installation artist who focuses on the media and its relationship to its technology. He uses video and digital technology to manipulate mass media and reshapes it into something familiar yet alien. Many of his works focus on the world of professional sports. In short, looped videos Pfeiffer "digitally removes the bodies of the players from the games, shifting the viewer’s focus to the spectators, sports equipment, or trophies won." Pfeiffer also takes scenes or artifacts from movies or photos and recreates them in a different context and scale.

Personally, I don't quite get all of this out of Pfeiffer's work. I looked at some of the videos, and photos of his sculptures and installations. I read his statements. And I still couldn't appreciate the work in any meaningful way. Perhaps I'm jaded to the kind of digital installations he specializes in, or maybe he just isn't appealing to me. Whatever the reason, I simply didn't like Pfeiffer's work. It aroused no strong emotions or thoughts or anything.

Vito Acconci

It seems like Vtio Acconci has tried his hand at nearly every kind of artmaking, from performance to architecture. A web search revealed a large and disparate body of work, so it was difficult to read any themes or larger focus. A lot of Acconci's work seems to deal with the body, specifiaclly his. He also seems to be concerned with public spaces and how people interact with each other and with these spaces. Lately, he has been active in the fields of architecture, landscape and installation art, and furniture design.

Acconci's work seems to have a personality to it. A lot of it looks or sounds kind of irreverent and humorous, like his famous performanc piece "Seedbed;" where he hid under a wooden ramp and masturbated while telling viewers his fantasies via loudspeaker. I don't like his architectural and landscape pieces; he seems too concerned with manipulating and altering the space without really making any point. Still, after viewing Pfeiffer's work, this was much more palatable. Acconci seems to at least be competant at whatever he's doing, and for that I give him credit.

Alex Bag

Another video/installation artist, Bag uses her media to mock and deconstruct selective aspects of modern society, such as the military-industrial complex. A good portion of her work is concerned with the art world itself. As one review says of her piece "One Bit Alone," "it's just two hand-puppets humping each other, but it sends up Pipilotti Rist and Matthew Barney."

I couldn't find any of Bag's video's online, nor could I find details of her installations, so I didn't have much work to base my opinion on. What I was able to see was interesting enough; the comparisons of Halliburton to witches got my attention. However, Bag's work isn't terribly unique or insightful or well-crafted to make an impression on me. I've seen enough other 30-something video artists with satirical takes on the authority figures in society and the art world. But, once again, I'd have to experience her work in person before I say for sure.

More artists...

Matthew Barney

Barney is one of the most famous and critically acclaimed contemporary video/performance artists. He is known for his elaborate, lavish sets and costumes that he designs for his video performances, which resemble Hollywood productions more than independant art films (in terms of quality, not the sets themselves). Barney's work is full of high concept imagery and surreal scenarios that barely reveal any narrative. His work is controvercial within the art world, with some critics accusing him of being all flash and no substance while others have hailed him as one of the greatest living artists.

Personally, I'm still on the fence about whether or not Barney's work is full of the complex symbolism that he claims is there. I watched two parts of the Cremaster Cycle, parts 3 and 5, and they were visually quite stunning. Whether or not they have any depth, I still enjoyed watching. I'd call Barney's work surrealist post-modern video art.

Where are those video, eh?

I tried posting my flipbook and Flash videos, as quicktime files, on three separate occassions. Every time, the video would be "processing" for about half an hour before I gave up. I'd love for them to be up right now, but the Internets are a cruel misstress.

websites

http://www.thehalcyonhours.com/
I enjoyed the concept behind this site more than the actual animations themselves. The animations are subtle and not particularly action-packed, which communicates the idea of these "halcyon hours" well. By isolating these scenes of no particular importance, the artist captures each moment perfectly. The ambient soundtrack adds to the mood of an unrushed day. By keeping the animation minimal and spacing it out, the viewer is forced to slow down and savor these moments fully.

http://www.matthewmahon.com/
I think this is possibly the best way to show of a photography portfolio I've seen. The interactive, unorthodox presentation is a natural fit for the photos themselves. One gets the sense that these pictures are spread out over a bed or table, rather than in a gallery. There's no uniform orientation, and Mahon includes receits and fake IDs in the mix. By allowing the viewer to select and zoom in on whichever photo they want (as opposed to the standard linear slideshow format) Mahon creates a casual and at the same time intimate relationship between the photos and the audience. In all honesty, this is probably one of the coolest websites I've seen.

http://alanbecker.deviantart.com/art/Animator-vs-Animation-34244097
Not only is the concept wicked, but the animation is way convincing too. I can only imagine the amount of cut-and-paste screen captures that went into this. The story was great; action, humor, and a surprisingly effective way of learning about the various Flash tools. I enjoyed the very meta-perspective of having the battle take place in Flash itself; the line between animation and computer glitch is blurred effectively. Functions equally well as a metaphor for the relationship between the Creator and mankind, or as an amusing action cartoon full of nerd humor.

never trust printers

Here's what SHOULD be in my sketchbook:

Tom Friedman

Mel Chin







Cai-Guo Qiang

photo sequence project

Here it is...

Strange things are afoot at the Circle K...

Time, as Wikipedia defines it, is "one of the fundamental and universal aspects of LOL FAGOTS U SUCK DICKS." Personally, I reject this common concept of time in favor of one that allows for paradox-free time travel. Since time has been proven to be a relative construct of the human experience, I see absolutely no problem with changing the fundamental nature of time to facilitate personal gain. I'm assuming that you're familiar with Ray Bradbury's short story "A Sound of Thunder" because you're reading my blog, which is one of the most high-brow forums of literary discourse aside from Youtube video comments. So, I plan on getting legislation passed that will outlaw all forms of time-travel paradox. Daylight Savings Time seems to work every year, so I'm going to assume that it is possible to control the nature of time itself via Congress. A quick check over on Wikipedia confirms this statement, because I just wrote it in. Anyways, once these damn paradoxes are outlawed, the stage is set for unlimited time travel shenanigans. I'll simply travel back in time and give myself a spare time machine, thus inventing time travel in the present. For $20 at carnival booths, you can go back to 1938 and get a neat photo with Adolph himself. For another $5, you can get a souvenier keychain of you and your new pal. Or how about settng up time tours a la "Bill And Ted's Excellent Adventure." Clones of George Carlin would whisk you and your friends through time in a phone booth so you can kidnap and traumatize history's greatest figures. If ever there was a way to make mad cash, it's through the grossly irresponsible exploitation of the greatest technology on the planet. Like the Internet.