Medium Specificity

The YouTube series The Art Assignment is exactly what it sounds like. On it, each week a different artist is highlighted and gives a unique assignment that may challenges art as you know it. The show aims to “demystify the art making process and bring you to a wider understanding of what art is and what it can be.” This weeks class assignment also did this.

It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to do for this assignment. While I was reading Setting The Record Straight it made me question the definitions of other art mediums. So, I decided to look up some definitions for collage. I found that collage is universally defined as an artistic composition made by attaching various materials to a flat surface. I decided to explore that idea a bit more. I normally think of collages as physically cutting things out of magazines, that you might not think normally goes together and posting them together. For the project I thought it would be interesting to try collaging digitally instead of physically and try things that were a little closer related.

While out hiking in Eureka, I took a bunch of pictures while standing in the same spot. I wanted to see what they all look like put back together. After, I went though and played around with different pictures in front and how wide I wanted the final piece to be. I organized it to be as esthetically pleasing as I could. I didn’t worry much about making each picture fit perfectly because I felt that achieves more of a collage feel. I changed the overall contrast of the group of pictures but not pictures individually.
I thought it was very interesting that all the pictures were taken within a few minutes but the colors changed.Even though it wasn’t the nicest day out and each individual picture wasn’t that great, I think it looks cooler then one of the pictures would on it's own. Collages let you take things and put them together to make something new and sometimes better then one of the parts by themselves.

Process Piece

 By Emma Lynn and Britany Toolson

To create this piece, Britany recorded her monthly Tysabri infusion. The whole process normally takes about three hours. We then took all the audio and recut it to create a complete, cohesive story. The piece starts with Britany getting called back to start the medication. Next she gets her blood pressure taken and is asked a few questions before the medication can be ordered. It takes two times to get the IV in but the medication is then started. Once it is over the IV pump beeps to inform the nurse. Just like the other videos we watched this week, even though the final audio is so simple and short, this process it tells helps you get to know the subjects of the piece.

Something that really stood out during this process was how candid everything seemed to be. This caused me to reflect on how some processes are so natural to some, while being completely foreign to others. The process of Britany getting an infusion is something I [Emma] personally have not experienced. However, it just seemed to natural and repetitive to the subjects, both Britany and the nurses. This made me think about some of the videos we watched this past week. Creating a smokehouse from scratch is something not everyone experiences in their lifetimes, but by following a man chopping down wood, building this smokehouse, and telling his story, we are able to appreciate his skill. Although some processes can be different from what we know, we can also find something very familiar. For example, most people have experienced being greeted by a friendly doctor at some point in our lives, much like our process piece. The family scripture study video also reflected this. A lot of Mormon families are very familiar with the chaos of family scripture study, and can therefore connect with that particular process. When it comes to processes, audiences are able to appreciate differences or reflect upon the familiar.

This week made me think a lot about the film No Country For Old Men. In the film, the lack of a score really emphasizes the sounds and the processes they show. One scene in particular is when Chigurh is trying to kill Moss starting in the hotel and then out on the street. Without even watching the scene you can tell what is going on. The gunshots, breaking glass, choking, and heavy breathing tell you what you need to know. You also get to know the characters by the processes they carry out. For instance you see Chigurh is a hit man and cares little about human life by the fact that he kills many people for money. This project along with No Country For Old Men and the videos we watched really shows the impact sound has and how much you can learn from seemingly simple processes.

Processes are very beautiful, and being able to portray a process through only audible elements proved to be a rewarding challenge. Even without visual elements, we learned that a narrative can still exist. Our final process piece is able to show a larger audience a process they may not be familiar with. By gaining insight into Britany’s life as well as the lives of the doctors and nurses, audiences are able to gain a better appreciation for both Britany’s bravery as well as the doctor’s medical skill and training. Our final project is able to convey an everyday process to a larger audience in a new and interesting way.