not-a-snake96

[not-a-snake96]

Reflection

This work began when I considered the outcomes of my current past, I suffer from anxiety and have innumerable fears that I let control me. The worst possible future I can conceive for myself is one where I continue to let my anxieties dictate what I do. I developed my future it to a sort of play where the viewers are both the audience and performers. When reading my experience they are forced to wear the masks and manifest as my fears. Through the eyes of the mask they can see how I see a very metaphorical representation of how I see myself and my future the chicken and the cat are symbols of cowardice.

The technology used in this work is very simple, and therefor very stable however perhaps it makes the work look rather clunky? I do quite like the way I’ve utilised the large projector in this situation though, place it facing the door so it shines in people’s eyes as the walk in, I like to think it reflects some of my own distress on to them.

This work engaged my interests in video production as well as making props there was a large amount of DIY arts and craft involved in this work I even went out of my way to ensure that each mask used a slightly different medium. The mask of speaking used a type of paper mache called plaster mache, the  mask of heartbreak used my make-up skill and the mask of death I am most proud of as I’ve never really used clay before but I think the skull turned out very well.

I did a lot of research into masks and how they utilised in different form of theatre, I looked at the different things they represents and how their design depicts different symbolism. Japanese theatre masks were the primary inspiration for Heartbreak with it’s fair skin and subtle features.

The biggest issue I faced with this work was growing it out from the masks, how could I encourage people to look inside them and how could i get people to look beyond them. This problem was solved by the addition of the text inside the mask and the video playing over the top of them.

I found making this work to be very therapeutic as I was forced to look at my own short comings, I asked those close to me what they thought I feared most and I am grateful at how honest they were. I am not satisfied with how this work is in it’s present state but I believe it can be developed in to a truly great work.

[not-a-snake96]

A Life Ruled By Fear

Maya Saunders-5059008

A Life Ruled By Fear

When I considered the future I thought about my own, I imagined what my future would hold if I continued on my current road. It would be a life ruled by fear. At present I let my anxiety hold me back from many things and I know my life will amount to nothing if I continue to let them control me. They prevent me from speaking; from loving and from living, I decided to display a performance of my future with my audience as the actors.

Inside the masks you can read my experiences while looking through their eyes, trapped behind the anxieties you can see the symbols of cowardice, the chicken and the cat. I watch myself from inside my own mind with a look of disgust, I truly believe I am a coward and my only hope is that I can overcome these fears and face the future with strength and courage.

[not-a-snake96]

Japanese Masks

Japanese masks are usually linked to folk tales and myths and are used for entertainment and rituals.

Gigaku masks are the oldest masks, used in dance drama art form, but this dance art form doesn't exist today. They represented a face of superhuman, demon, lion, bird and were made from wood.

Bugaku masks are old masks of dance drama art form. They had moveable jaws.

Gyodo mask represents Buddhist figures. It is used for outdoor Buddhist processions.

Tengu mask represents bird-like protector of sacred forests and mountains. It looks like a human with a big nose.

Kappa mask represents river monster that can attack swimmers. This creature can challenge a man to sumo wrestling match.

(http://www.historyofmasks.net/famous-masks/japanese-masks/)

Noh is the oldest form of Japanese theatre still performed today, usually a supernatural being turned human would be the hero and only the main character and possibly the support actor would wear a mask. The masks were of a neutral skin tone and like Greek theatre were used to convey the character’s gender, age and social status.

[not-a-snake96]

Greek Theatre Masks

Masks have roots in many cultures. They serve numerous purposes including protection, disguise and entertainment. Greek theatre masks were made from stiffened painted linen because of this none survived to the present day however the theatre was so popular actors as well  as their masks were cast in to bronze statues.

The Greek Amphitheatres were huge holding around 7,000 people, because some would be watching at a distance and magnification spectacles had yet to be invented masks were a useful method to convey a character and their facial expression. This mask is a classic old man mask used in a number of comedies. Another issue encountered in the theatres was sound, while the amphitheatres were built in to the sides of hills to bounce sound it wasn’t enough. The shape of the masks themselves is somewhat funnel shape in order to project the actor’s voice. It also meant that a play needed less actors as people could play multiple characters.

[not-a-snake96]

Spring Meda: Week 6

Finished website:

https://mayaefs96.wixsite.com/mayas

[not-a-snake96]

Spring Meda: Week 3

I’ve started developing my website and have written a first draft for my bio however there is is not much content at present as there is some new footage I am looking to add to my show reel.

[not-a-snake96]

Spring Meda: Week 2

In spite of the fact we were given the task of brainstorming all concepts to do with “future” we because quite stuck on the concept of technology. Medical advancement> tiny micro medicine administering robots> technology, trave>technology, socialising> social media> technology. The future is very technology centric. But there was one matter that I was personally very focused on.

Most of us have heard of the trolley problem. A train car is speeding towards five people tied to the tracks on a different set of tracks 1 person is tied. You are by the lever that will make the train change tracks do you let fate take its course and kill the five people or change the tracks and kill one person sparing more human lives. Some people have no problem with this at first but the questions get harder. What if the one person was a family member? What if the five people were criminals? What if instead of a lever you were next to a fat person who you could push in front of the train to stop it?

This brings us to the problem of self-driving cars. Car technology is getting smarter everyday the intention is of course we eventually won’t need to drive ourselves. One problem noted with Google’s self driving cars is that they won’t break the road laws for anything, people have deliberately run them off the road. This brings up the first dilemma, should they be programmed to break the law when their passenger’s safety is a concern? Most people will say yes. But what if the car was driving at the (fast) speed limit and someone walked out in to the road, the car has the choice of hitting the person or swerving off the road and potentially killing its driver. I posed this to my group and they said it depends too much on the situation, if the person walked out without looking the car should choose to kill them since it’s their fault. Ignoring for a moment that the car probably wouldn’t be able to identify whether the person was neglectful to their safety or it was simply too blind a hill, what if it was a small child? Can a 3 year old really be held so accountable for their safety? But should the driver have to pay for the parent’s neglect?

One day a programmer is going to have to pick who lives and dies in that situation no matter what the circumstances are, they have to pick driver or pedestrian and this is what I find truly fascinating about the future.

[not-a-snake96]

Spring Meda: Week 1

The difference between art, craft and research is an obscure and blurry line but I believe it is safe to say that everything man-made is a product of at least two of these. A chair is made through research and craft while an animation is made through craft and art, when combining art and research you create a poem (although even these examples could be argued to contain all three elements).

Research is probably the easiest to define, it is the act of gathering data and information to develop your own practice and ideas. This may be done by reading over and examining what others have already done or by doing experiments of your own.

Craft is something I feel is producing something for a specific purpose but also about putting love in to the act of making it, I believe the concept of what craft is to be subjective as I believe one must love what they are doing for it to be a craft and not just a job.

Art is the hardest to define, it seems these days everyone has an opinion on what is and isn’t art so I suppose what matters is context, do you believe it to be art? Most ordinary folk say “no” to any art that falls outside the norm, for a lot of people the line of art is drawn at paintings and sculpture and that is fine if strange artistic films mean nothing to you then they cannot be art to you, but to others the medium speaks and it is through them it lives as art.

For me personally I feel that my final project from last semester falls under all 3 although personally I feel I was only involved in the craft and art aspects in the sense of offering my personal insight and making myself useful by hanging up the lampshades. However a lot of research and though had to be put in to the programming of the piece which Jane and Jasmine took care of splendidly.

The arrangement and idea for the work was originally one based in pure aesthetic something to look beautiful but It quickly developed a deeper meaning. The small stage and all the coding had to be crafted and we spent several weeks researching what worked and what didn’t.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 9

This week was mostly fine tuning, I’m not sure I like the feedback loop that much as it lost a lot of its musical quality as only one sound plays at a time and were there more time and we hadn’t spent so much effort on the feedback loop I’d have suggested we go back to just the sound activating the lights. However overall it does look very beautiful, our tech experts did most the work this week however so I instead enjoyed the piece itself.

We are very excited to present it and document people’s reactions, I intend to bring in some cushions to encourage people to sit around the work and take it in.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 8

This week the stage came back painted and looked great, the colour was slightly off what we intended but with the dark lighting we were going to have it wouldn’t matter. We decided to experiment with the placement of the pots and pans trying to have them spill out outside the stage but we found that it looked better with not only all of them on the stage but piled on top of each other. We were also able to place the lamp shades that were going to be used in the right places however we were unable to go further than that on that particular day.

A circular stage was defiantly the way to go, it’s inviting and encouraged the audience to move around the project rather than stand in the door way.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 7

This week we were able to test out our new circular stage, it still wasn’t painted but we tested it out again with the grey sheet concluding that a colour similar to the floor would work best, we intend to drill holes in the pots and the stage so that all the cables and the laptop can be hidden underneath. We were also pleased to discover that the stage looked like a floating island which we compared to The Great Artuin.

We also tested out a light sensor, as well as having the sound activate the lights we intend to have the lights activate the sound creating a feed back loop, personally I’m unsure how well this will work out.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 6

This week we were finally able to experiment with actual bulbs reacting to sound, we set up an Arduino with a mic and linked different lights to different volumes of sound, the results were amazing and were almost magical.

We also experimented with the placement of pots and pans as well as a base for them. We tested out different coloured sheets but in the end we decided to build a small stage to place them on, we measured the area our pots covered once we found a rough arrangement that we liked.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 5

This week we experimented more with hanging things from the ceiling, the entire space was filled with lampshade hanging at different heights from the ceiling (as well as one pan), just walking in to the room was a strange and wonderful experience, there was something fanciful about the whole thing, it reminded me of a ball room with dancers.

We also worked on using speakers to play the sound rather than using our phones, we tried to do it wirelessly but the program would allow us to play more than two recordings.

There is still debate as to how this will be interactive whether the pans will have proximity sensors or something else but the sounds will activate the lights. We have also decided that for a better effect we will be using actual light bulbs with filament.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 4

This week we experimented more with set design and lighting. We added in some furniture which allowed for some varying heights and spread the pots out across the space, we also hung up lampshades with lights in them which created a very interesting juxtaposition with the pots almost like there was a conversation between them. It looked like an abandoned house and was very creepy.

We also experimented with different coloured lights however this did not give off the right impression and was quickly dropped.

I was personally quite excited about the shadow that was cast by one of the lampshades when a light was put in it.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 3

This week we experimented with augmented reality (and I personally experimented with overcoming a fear of heights). Jasmine set up a water ripple animation projected on the floor to respond to motion with a webcam as a sensor, this involved a lot of expensive equipment being moved around on a ceiling and was quiet scary.

The animation did look very cool though if maybe not sensitive enough as it picked up people’s arm movements more than their foot steps. Our future hope was for there to be on ground sensors and instead of the water rippling to movement it rippled when the person stood still thus creating the impression they were the water drops.

However by the end of the day we had decided the augmented reality was not the way to go as it took away from the illusion of water.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 2

This week we further explored the illusion of dripping water, we set up speakers in pots and pans using actual recording of water dropping in to the pots we were displaying, this made for a more realistic sound.

We were immediately blown away by the meditative sound and the drops alternated between chaos and synchronization.

We also experimented with different height levels placing some pots on the floor and some on the table.

We really liked our theme of water and decided to explore it further.

[not-a-snake96]

Group Project: Week 1

Our starting point was The Storm Room by Janet Cardiff and George Bures Millers a room in which the audience sits and a storm is emulated around them. We attempted to create a similar kind of illusion. We started out by setting up a projector to project a flickering white square to emulate a window, it took us a long time to agree on how impressionistic the window should be. We set up speakers around the dark room playing a recording of a storm. To make the work more immersive we placed some objects in the scene such as a table and a broom to nail home the idea that it was a room. The real clincher of the project was when we looped a water drop recording on a phone and placed it in a bin. People would come in to the room and glance at the projection for a few moments and listen to the storm and then they’d notice the dripping, instead of looking in the bin they’d first look up at the ceiling to see where the drip was coming from before realising that it too was a recording.

After the successful illusion of the water drop it is the aspect we decided to pursue.