critiquing artists in the Canadian canon and toi, toi, toi*, Renée

If you know one thing about Canadian art history, it's the Group of Seven. Thing is, that's all I've heard about Canadian art history, and it's made me think, there has to be more to Canadian art than this! ...right?

Monday: I submitted a call for participants for my independent project to the NOW bulletin, which is published by the NSCAD Service Centre and distributed throughout the school three times a week.

Tuesday: Over lunch, there was a meeting about the grad show and catalogue. We can do either one or both, and both are voluntary, unlike NBCCD's grad show, which is a requirement of all the programs. I'm considering submitting stuff to the catalogue but not the show because of the cost of shipping my photos on top of the cost of mats and frames (Canada Post ain't cheap).

I was supposed to have an appointment with Joan that afternoon, but it was canceled because she was sick. I used the extra hour to get stuff done.

Wednesday: At the beginning of the semester, I had a look in The Plaid Place, which sells Scottish stuff, and checked out their tartan scarves. I have a Moffatt tartan scarf, but it's way too scratchy for me. The lady told me that they'd be having their annual sale (fifty per cent off) in the last week of January and the first week of February. On Wednesday I finally bought myself a scarf--or two. As I didn't have anything with the Johnston tartan (Mom's family--unfortunately, that tartan doesn't reproduce well: in addition to the gold stripe, it has dark blue, forest green and black) on it, I decided to get a Johnston tartan scarf as well.

While I did get stuff done, my time management was really bad and I was up until 2:00 AM studying for Thursday's classes...

Thursday: ...which meant that I only got about five hours of sleep, which is less than I get on Christmas (unless there's a power outage, I'm in bed at midnight and then up at 6:30 to put the cinnamon buns in the oven--and I'm someone who needs eight to nine hours of sleep a night in order to be happy).

Jayne spent the first part of class talking about the midterm exam, which will be my first-ever essay-format exam (all others have been multiple choice or fill-in-the-blank style). After class, I had a bunch of questions for her because I was new to doing an exam that way.

In between classes, I studied for Contemporary Indigenous Arts as I wanted to get a good start on the week's readings.

And yes, this week's Topics in Modern Canadian Art was about the Group of Seven. However, for the first time in my life, I was in a setting where there was freedom to actually think critically about the Group--in fact, one of the readings for this week took a step back and actually examined the Group and the National Art Gallery's role in promoting those artists to death. Apparently, the NGC's attitude has been, "if you don't like the Group of Seven, you're not Canadian or not patriotic" (which means I'm screwed: minus Harper, I love this country--but I like the Group of Seven about as much as I like Ketil Hvoslef: they're good, but not my style). I've been raised to think critically, and it's bothered me that no one has done that with the Group of Seven (at least as far as I could tell). Sure, I don't question the composers in the classical canon--but then again, I like most of them. And even with the ones that I don't like, I feel no pressure to like them and treat them like they're the best thing since music notation.

That evening I got my first response to the notice that I put on the SUNSCAD Facebook group, advertising for participants for my project.

Friday: During Helen's and my Skype chat/memorial service, she told me that she was going to be in Halifax a couple of weeks from then and we started making plans to meet. Friday was the big day and I met her on the first floor of the NSCAD library (it has three floors) and we talked for a while. Eventually Helen had to go put more money in the parking meter. On our way out, I said "hi" to Ken, who was also in the library and introduced him and Helen. The two talked for a while, discussing artist stuff. Also, yay, networking. After Helen fed the meter, we went in the NSCAD Art Supply Store's street door, as she wanted to get some supplies (unlike NBCCD's store, the NSCAD store is open to the public). Turns out, she knows Neil, the storekeeper. We finished with a thorough tour of the photo dept.--and a good, long chat with Alex and Chris (also: yay for all the random things you learn at art school. Today's topic: gardening.).

Saturday: I spent the day studying and listening to the Met.

I'm considering going to the simulcast of La Bohème. While I can afford it, the issue is that it's right at the end of the semester and therefore I'll be in the midst of studying for final exams and putting the final touches on my photo project. Keep your fingers crossed, everyone! I'd love to finish my time at university with a good Met Opera/MOO/favourite opera-induced sob-fest (Bohème never fails to turn me into a sobbing wreck in act four).

Because the BSO played a pops concert featuring the music of John Williams that evening, I thought I'd share my favourite pieces by him, some of which were on the program. Enjoy. What I would've given to hear the BSO play the Indiana Jones and Schindler's List themes...







You'll have to go to YouTube to view this one:



I still remember the time the BSO reduced me to tears with the Star Wars theme:



Sunday: Once again, I spent the day reading--while listening to opera on CBC Music in celebration of Renée Fleming's performance at the Super Bowl, which I was super-excited about (I was positively giddy as I wrote about the upcoming performance in an email to Lynn Saturday evening, and I think my excitement came across in my writing).

If you've ever wondered about Renée's vocal range--wonder no more. Long story short: it's impressive--yet another reason why she's my favourite soprano. I have always wondered about the numbers that followed note names, as in the video below, and I finally looked it up.



The video is included in this list on BuzzFeed.

Back in August, Suzanne Nance opened her final broadcast on MPBN with O mio babbino caro from Gianni Schicchi, as sung by Renée:



I know I've shared a lot of videos (eight, to be exact) with you guys already, but I promise this is the last one. How can I deny those of you who weren't lucky enough to see Renée's performance of The Star-Spangled Banner live the joy of said performance, which was the first time an opera singer sang the national anthem at the Super Bowl? As I watched--with tears in my eyes because her singing was so beautiful--I was thinking about the significance of her performance. This is what I had been gearing up for and getting excited about since yesterday. BRAVA, RENÉE!



*"Toi, toi, toi" is the opera equivalent of "break a leg".

hit the ground running

Never a dull moment at art school… Also, this is post #200, in case anyone's curious. And I don't think the fact that this is my final semester has really sunk in yet.

Monday: I was in for a bit of a shock when I found out that my access card no longer worked on the Photo Dept. doors (any of them) due to the fact that I'm not taking any PHOT credits this semester. Needless to say, that completely threw me for a loop, as the Photo Dept. is my home at NSCAD. It completely messed with my way of working.

I have a feeling that I'm going to like Contemporary Indigenous Art, and I'm excited about what I'm going to learn this semester. The course will cover indigenous peoples outside North America as well as First Nations peoples and Native Americans, and cover other topics in addition to art. Because a couple of people said that Carla Taunton (who teaches two of my history courses: Contemporary Indigenous Art and Topics in Modern Canadian Art) knows a lot about indigenous peoples, I wanted to make the most of my time having her as a teacher. Since Idle No More started and I (finally) became interested in First Nations' history and what Natives have had to deal with since white people came to North America, I had been thinking about meeting with Carla to learn even more than what's presented in the course. That may or may not happen, because the course covers a lot. The description in the calendar doesn't do it justice: "This course on contemporary Indigenous arts will introduce students to the diversity of contemporary Aboriginal art practices (including video, photography, performance, painting, installation) contextualized by Indigenous theories of sovereignty, self-determination, and survivance."

I stayed until Photo closed at 10:30 that night. Alex and I left at the same time, and he came up with a few suggestions that would remedy my situation, including Reconfigured Image (done) or an independent project (AHA!!!). I went over my list of possible projects for APC, and picked the one that I felt was the best after the one that I did last semester. By the time I got home, I was 95% sure that I wanted to do it, and not just because it gets me twenty-four-hour access to the Photo Dept.

Tuesday: Right away, I could tell that Survey of Twentieth-Century Art was going to be different from NBCCD's FVA art history survey courses, as almost right away Jayne Wark was talking about Modernism. I'm looking forward to it, though.

That afternoon, I started jumping through the hoops necessary to make the independent project happen, and went to OSAS and made an appointment with Shawna (the registrar). I also emailed Adrian. I called Dal and made an appointment with Joan to continue what we'd started last semester.

Alex told me that evening that everything had been worked out. From an email to Mom:

"My access card will eventually work on the doors in the Photo Dept., as Chris (who's the top tech) and Alex worked things out. However, I still plan to do the independent-study, as I'm all excited about it now, have picked my project and have started jumping through the hoops. I was talking with Alex just a few minutes ago, and he told me that everything had been worked out and he didn't have to kick me out tonight. I told him that I still planned to do the project, and that by the time I [was almost home Monday night], I was 95% sure that I wanted to do it. I decided to sleep on it, and I'm now going for it. I also mentioned that right from the start, my goal has been to make the most of my time at [NSCAD], and this is a way of doing that."

And yes, my letter was published in the Courier (page A5, for anyone who reads that paper). As promised, here it is:

Due to the intensity of the week up to that point, I decided to start writing this post that afternoon and continued writing throughout the week, adding to it every day.

Wednesday: I was finally able to catch my breath (and catch up on my sleep) that day due to not having any classes, and while I had things to do, the list wasn't as long as it had been for the last four days. I ordered the course pack for Contemporary Indigenous Art (which is thick as heck and equally expensive--good thing I don't plan to buy the course pack for Twentieth Century Art, as almost everything is on reserve in the NSCAD library--the exception is an article from an art journal, which is available at the library, just not on the reserve shelf--or the book for Topics in Modern Canadian Art, which will soon be available in the NSCAD library) and edited some photos.

Adrian replied to my email, and unfortunately he can't take on any more independent-study students. He suggested checking at OSAS to see if part-time instructors like Steve Farmer can work with students who are doing independent-study projects. And he's available to meet with me on Monday.

You may have heard of The Dark Side of Oz, which involves syncing The Dark Side of the Moon with The Wizard of Oz. Well, apparently if you sync Amnesiac by Radiohead with the rest of the movie, it works perfectly.

Thursday: During Survey of Twentieth-Century Art, I found out that there were readings for that day's class--and that I should've done them. After class, I clarified that part of the schedule. I then went to OSAS and asked about regular part-time faculty (RPT--NSCAD's system of part-time faculty is kind of complex, as there are three different levels) working with students who are doing independent-study projects. They weren't able to answer my question, and referred me to Joanne Reynolds-Farmer. According to her, RPTs can't, except in the summer.

That afternoon, I had Topics in Modern Canadian Art, which was interesting, as we spent most of the class waiting for course outlines to be printed. Though Carla was able to give us the rundown of what's going to happen.

I picked up the course pack (and forked over an arm and a leg--while I completely understand why Kinko's has to charge copyright fees, as a student those numbers can really take a chunk out of my loan) and marked in the list of readings in the front which readings were for which weeks, just as I'd done in the course pack for Obsolescence last year.

Friday: It's ridiculous how excited I was for the weekend. I don't have class on Fridays this semester, and after the whirlwind first week, I was looking forward to not having class until Monday afternoon.

I still had things to do, though, including checking at Student Services to see if NSCAD had received the second bit of the money that I owed for this semester (on Sunday night, I discovered that the federal loan folks had put more money in my credit union account than I'd expected. While extra money is awesome--even if I have to pay most of it back: some of it is in the form of bursaries--I was concerned that NSCAD hadn't gotten all that I owed them. I checked on Monday, and at the time the school had received half of what I owed for this semester.). They had, and I mentioned that I would possibly be doing an independent-study project. If I'm successful in taking on the extra three credits, I'll be responsible for paying the school. I'm so glad I have a chequing account now and don't have to get a counter cheque every time I need to use that payment method.

I emailed Alvin Comiter and Bob and asked about doing an independent-study project with either of them and emailed Adrian again.

And I wrote my assignments for the semester in my planner. I'd planned to do the readings that I needed to do that day, but decided to do them on Saturday instead.

Saturday: I spent the afternoon in the NSCAD Library, doing the readings for Twentieth-Century Art, and managed to finish the first reading and start the second.

The Met played Die Fledermaus (The Bat). Sadly, I was photocopying the chapters that I had to read and missed the Champagne Song (because NSCAD has the book that's used for Twentieth-Century Art and it's cheaper to do your own photocopying, I opted to borrow the copy that NSCAD has on reserve and use the library's photocopier). I usually write the parts that I find interesting or important in my notebook, but this time they were taking too long and I could only have the reserve copy for three hours. Making my own copies meant that I could take a highlighter pen to the readings.

Because I was in the library, I wasn't able to hum along with the overture, which is one of those pieces that never fails to make me hum along (the Moldau from Ma Vlast is another).

Every time I watch the Wiener Neujahrskonzert, I can't help but notice that all the musicians are men, with the exception of the harpist. And they're all white. Thankfully, my favourite orchestras (the BSO, Met Opera Orchestra and PBSO) are a lot more inclusive (though as of the last PBSO concert that I went to, Americans still outnumber Canucks by about 7:1, and Trond mentioned that the orchestra needs more Canadian members).

I was introduced to that song by the Met Opera Brass and their second album, Waltzes, Songs and Festive Scenes (the Champagne Song is track eight), and it's one of my favourite tracks from that album.

Sunday: I spent a couple hours in the NSCAD library today as well, finishing the readings. The library might end up becoming the spot where I do all my readings, as there's a lot more space to spread out than in the photo dept. Sorry, Photo.

I had a look at the list of important dates, and it looks like Friday was the last day that I could add a class. So I might not be able to do the independent-study project (for credit, anyway--I might just go ahead and do it, as it requires participation from other artists and I'm in the perfect spot). :-(

Earlier this evening I found out that a family friend, my honorary grandfather (and reader of this blog), Stan Hart, died Saturday night. I'll let my Facebook status do the talking. RIP Stan.

making connections

Just when I think the world of visual art is small, I take a good look at the classical music world: there are connections between composers all over the place. Also, the weeks are going by way too fast.

Monday: As it was Remembrance Day, NSCAD was closed (I didn't really celebrate--how could I when Harper pretends to support the troops while cutting services that vets need, especially mental health services?)--but I showed up, anyway. I spent probably several hours staring at my contextualizing statement, trying to come up with a better beginning and ending--and failing.

Tuesday: I met with Joan again and we talked some more.

I then headed over to the Academy Building to make a QuickTime version of my APC project. What I thought would take five minutes max ended up taking an hour or so because I found out that A. I'd done the video in 4:3 ratio (the ratio used by old CRT TVs) instead of 16:9 ratio (widescreen) and B. I'd done it in standard definition instead of HD. I knew something was up because the images looked low-resolution--but I knew that every single one was 300 DPI. I asked the technicians for help a couple of times. The first time I went back down to the basement and tried to solve the problem myself and when that didn't work I went back up and asked again. This time the technician came down with me and helped me sort out the issues. I then made the QuickTime file and headed back to Granville.

Wednesday: This week was the last week of doing readings. Several of us wanted to do work-in-progress crits, including me. Mine went extremely well. It was also the first time I saw my slideshow projected BIG and heard the music on good speakers (In the Hall of the Mountain King BOOMING above my head and a little to the right? Yes, please!). As a result, I could barely speak for a few seconds afterward.

Thursday: I spent most of the day glued to Twitter (though I don't have an account) following the hashtag "Elsipogtog", as there was another blockade/confrontation between the First Nation and SWP (which was protected by the RCMP--seriously! And police weren't wearing name tags, which also happened during the G20 protests and they got in trouble for doing that as wearing a name tag is a must.). Thankfully, there wasn't any violence this time around. Here's a really good article from the Toronto Star about the facts about First Nations peoples that are often completely ignored. These three paragraphs are especially important:

"In 1997, the landmark Supreme Court Decision in Delgamuukw finally clarified that even under Canadian law, Aboriginal title to most of the land within British Columbia’s provincial borders had never been extinguished. This ruling had immediate implications for other areas of the country where no treaties ceding land ownership were ever signed [Annapurna's note: this includes much of the Maritimes]. One day, Canadians woke up to a legal reality in which millions of acres of land were recognized as never having been acquired by the Crown, and that elephant has been occupying our national room ever since. 

"Unfortunately, this glaring issue did not seem to percolate into the wider Canadian consciousness, and many people remain unaware of it. In 1999, the Supreme Court passed down another judgement confirming that the Peace and Friendship Treaties of 1760-1761 did not cede land or resources. This cannot be emphasized strongly enough: the Mi'kmaq never gave up legal rights to their land or resources. Canada does not own the land that the people of Elsipogtog are defending. 

"This is not conspiracy theory, or indigenous interpretation. This is Canadian law, interpreted by the Supreme Court of Canada, applying Canadian constitutional principles. Yet somehow, this most important fact is left out of most reports on Elsipogtog as though it is barely relevant."

I have come up against the sorts of myths that this article debunks being presented as fact, and even just thinking about it makes me a bit mad at those who believe those lies.

Friday: I worked on my project, making the changes that I'd written down during my crit. Afterward, on my way to the Photo Dept., I stopped in at the NSCAD Visual Resource Centre and checked out Helvetica for the weekend.

As I've mentioned before, we've been reading Of Cigarettes, High Heels and Other Interesting Things as part of APC. However, we skipped the preface and chapters six and seven. I loved the book so much that I didn't feel right skipping any part of it so right from the beginning I planned to read the parts that were skipped on my own time by the end of the Winter '14 semester. I read the preface that day and plan to read a chapter a week, meaning that the last week of term will be the only week that I don't have to read anything. It felt weird to not have to take notes while reading.

Saturday: On my way to school on Thursday, I'd stopped to have a look at the Remembrance Day wreathes at the cenotaph in the Grand Parade. One of them had been laid on behalf of Norway, which made me wonder about the connection between that country and Halifax. I spent part of the afternoon researching the ties between Halifax/Canada and Norway. Turns out, Canada and Norway have had some form of connection for about a thousand years, and Norwegian military trained in Lunenberg, NS during World War II (Norway being part of the Allies). One of the ships involved in the Halifax Explosion was a Norwegian ship (the other was French). The Norwegian embassy's Canadian site has a good section on the history of the partnership between the two countries--though some of it sounds like it was written in the pre-Harper days (Canada interested in sustainability and being good to the environment? Only if Harper gets kicked out.). This makes me even more excited and proud to count two of Norway's best composers as favourites--and the grandson of one of those composers as one of my favourite violinists. That, and the fact that all three have a habit of knocking my socks off (not surprising for Trond: the ability to knock the audiences' socks off seems to be a requirement for BSO violinists).

Sunday: I finally got back in the Academy computer lab. However, I arrived a full hour early: on weekends the lab doesn't open until 1:00 PM. I went over to Granville, where I wasted time on Facebook until just before 1:30, and then went back to Academy. I spent a couple hours there, tweaking my project, figuring things out and asking myself questions. Afterward, I went back to Granville again, where I spent the rest of the day.

When I met with Adrian a couple weeks ago to fix the white balance of one of the series for my project, we discussed what sorts of things I could include in the contextualizing statement. I told him about my discovery of Tchaikovsky writing to Rimsky-Korsakov and praising the Capriccio Espangnol and some other connections that I knew about and it got me to thinking: what other composer connections are there? I'm talking everything: composers writing to each other, being from the same city, rivalries--you name it. This week, I decided to see if I still had MindNode on my computer and, if so, map out the connections. Below is a screen shot of what I've got so far.

when I said I wanted my last year of university to be one for the books, I didn't mean this!

Another interesting week, for better and for worse.

Monday: I shot stuff for my APC project and voted at the advance poll at NSCAD. I'm now registered to vote in two provinces as well as federally. I was concerned that I might not be able to vote at school, as my apartment is outside Halifax - Needham, the riding where the Granville Campus is, but they had a second ballot box for people voting outside said riding. I panicked momentarily when I blanked on how to spell the candidate's last name, but was told that I could just write the name of the party. The ballot was put in an envelope, which was put in another envelope, which was put in yet another envelope before finally being dropped in the out-of-riding box.

Tuesday: Once I finally got going, I did some grocery shopping and printed off my notes for Wednesday's presentation on my previous work.

Wednesday: This week was my group's turn to walk the class through the week's chapter of Of Cigarettes, High Heels and Other Interesting Things (we still went around and everyone discussed said chapter). We then did presentations and mine went very well.

That evening was the opening of #Keji at the Port Loggia Gallery, which I went to. The work was from a summer course in which students spent four days camping at the Kejimkujik National Park and then created art in response to the experience.

I also put together a schedule for my APC project. After five independent projects for Peter's classes, I'm used to having to come up with a schedule as part of the project proposal.

Thursday: Once again, I planned to get lots of homework done, but virtually nothing got accomplished.

Instead, I went to my first pro-choice counter-rally. Even though we were mic-less (unlike the pro-lifers across the street--they had a full-on sound system), I think we drowned them out. I shouted slogans until my jaw ached, took a break and then got right back at it.

Friday: I finally got this week's reading done.

Saturday: After planning to shoot for my project since Thursday, I finally got it done and did some editing.

Sunday: The issues of two weeks ago resurfaced spectacularly and painfully today. I spent much of the afternoon and into the evening at NSCAD, editing photos and writing this post.

computers: awesome when they work, frustrating when they don't

This week was one of those where I blinked and it was over.

Monday: I've been having problems accessing the school proxy server from my apartment (one of the books we're reading in APC is Of Cigarettes, High Heels and Other Interesting Things: An Introduction to Semiotics, which is available through the NSCAD server), so I took my computer to the Port Campus to try to get the issue fixed. Unfortunately the server was down that day, so the IT guy, Tim, had his hands full and told me to come back the next day.

I then headed to the Granville Campus and to OSAS on the second floor: I desperately needed to talk with someone about the stuff that happened last Sunday. And this was one of those times when talking with Mom just wouldn't do (she's awesome, but there are times when I need to go to someone else). I met with Christina Warren, who replaced Bernadette Kehoe when Bernadette accepted a job at NSCC in Dartmouth this past summer. I started whimpering immediately as I told Christina what was going on. That turned into full-on sobbing which came and went throughout much of my time in her office. By the time our conversation turned to other things, I was feeling much better. I also told her a bit about myself--turns out she's an amateur violinist, too, so she completely understood me when I made a music analogy (I do that: because I've studied so many different performing and visual art disciplines, I see connections between them and will sometimes point out said connections)--and signed my page of the 2012 edition of Free Coffee. Christina wants to meet all the students who contributed to the publication last year, and I was the first. As someone who's never been asked for her autograph before, it made me feel like a star.

I spent the rest of the day hanging out in the student lounge and the SUNSCAD office.

Tuesday: I went back to Tim's office. Turns out, the port number in the URL was wrong.

My student loan had finally come in that morning. However, it was only the federal portion, which is way smaller than the provincial part. I didn't notice the memo saying "320 CANADA" in my online account info, so I thought that that was all I was getting for this semester--and that I needed to redo my budget, which I did.

Wednesday: The week I've been waiting for: after going through the week's reading we presented our ideas for our independent study projects. Mine will be about the importance of dance in my life. I'd originally planned to print the photos out, but because music is such a big component of the project, Adrian suggested showing the photos on a screen or with a projector and include the music with each photo. So a photo inspired by The Ballad of Revolt would be accompanied by that work. As someone who doesn't have anything to show photos on besides her computer, I was concerned about the logistics of displaying the project that way until Adrian said that NSCAD has projectors and monitors that I can use. He also talked about the cantankerousness of the NSCAD proxy server. Apparently it only lets up to twelve people log in at one time and it's less cantankerous on-campus.

That night the internet suddenly disappeared and there was nothing I could do to get it back.

Thursday: That morning I still wasn't able to access the internet, so after calling the NB student loan office and finding out that yes, I would be receiving more money in a couple days, I called EastLink (my service provider). They had me try a few things and then suggested that it might be the router, which I then replaced (free). I went back to my apartment, got the router activated and... still nothing. They then got a guy to come over to my apartment that evening. There went my plans to attend the Queer Collective meeting at NSCAD... He tried just about everything possible, and couldn't get the internet to work.

That afternoon, I visited the campaign office of Labi Kousoulis, who's the Liberal candidate for Halifax Citadel - Sable Island. I'd recently found out that yes, even though I'm a New Brunswicker and all my government ID has my NB address, I can vote in the NS provincial election. I just need to provide two pieces of NS ID, and my apartment lease, EastLink bill and student ID card count. I told one of the women there about the things that I'm concerned about, mainly education, NSCAD and the NDP's treatment of both. I also told her how impressed I am by the Liberals' education platform: this is the kind of stuff the NDP should be doing. I left with a magnet, brochure and an election sign--my first (it's totally fine to put them in apartment windows, though because my apartment's so high up it's more for my own enjoyment than anything else: soon after I taped it to my window, I looked up at said window from outside the building. All I could see was a white shape. However, when my building is casting a shadow on the side that I live, I can make out the red on the sign.).

Friday: I called Apple Support to sort out my internet problems. Because the AppleCare expired on my Mac earlier this month, I had to fork over some cash (less than a hundred, thankfully) and because I don't have a credit card, they made an exception and accepted my debit card. The issue was remedied by deleting a folder and then restarting the computer, and I wrote down the procedure just in case this happens again--and because I hate having to ask other people to solve simple tech problems for me.

I spent the afternoon at my favourite coffee shop, reading the chapter for APC, which at times was well beyond awesome.

Saturday: Another afternoon spent at my favourite coffee shop. This time I started putting together the playlist for my APC project. Whittling a playlist down is not easy when it contains so many awesome tracks.

Sunday: I finally started photographing for my project, having set a deadline of tomorrow. I also edited the photos, which presented the usual challenge of how to translate what I see in my head onto the computer screen.

Today was the BSO's first concert of the season--their one hundred and eighteenth, which at times is hard to believe--until I remind myself that they're the oldest community orchestra in the US. Congratulations, guys--and go violins! The first piece on the program was Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture, which is one of my favourites.



This video, Maestro Richman's breakdown of what's going on this season, makes me ridiculously proud to be a fan of the Bangor Symphony. By the way, next May marks ten years since I became a fan.

looking ahead

We're officially in Finals Mode.

Monday: Elections for the '13 - '14 SUNSCAD executive were that day, Tuesday and Wednesday. I voted on Monday.

We talked about our final projects for Reconfigured and Bob made some suggestions as to how we can take them even further.

Tuesday: My registration period opened at noon and I registered for my first course (Survey of Twentieth-Century Art, a mandatory 2000-level course) half an hour later. I also started the process of registering for Advanced Photo Critique (a.k.a. APC), which is a 4000-level course and, like Twentieth-Century Art, is mandatory. APC is an independent-study thesis course. I've been talking with a couple of friends who are taking it this semester, and I think I've finally wrapped my head around what's involved. Said independent project is a semester long, which is more time than I've ever had to work on a project (projects for Peter's courses were seven weeks long). I'm still so used to just having seven weeks to do a project that an entire semester almost feels like too much. But having an entire semester means that I have the time to do my very best.

I spent the day studying at NSCAD and doing prep for APC registration, which started with a stop at OSAS, then being directed to the administrative assistant, Joann. That's when I started to get a bit stressed: because I'm one history course (three credits) short of the nine required for that course, she doubted that I would be able to get permission and would have to do APC in a fourth semester. I'm hell-bent on finishing my degree in three semesters, so that was a bit scary. I also want to finish with as little debt as possible.

That evening, SUNSCAD held a meeting with the students, FUNSCAD and Friends of NSCAD in the student lounge to talk about what's next now that we don't have to worry about FUNSCAD going on strike (woot!).

Wednesday: I got an email late that morning telling me that the division chair, David Clark, would be in his office that day as well as Thursday. I immediately emailed back and called a cab. Once I got to the university I headed for Joann's office. She told me that David was in his, which was next door. After going over my audit sheet, chatting about New Brunswick (seriously, the world keeps getting smaller), discussing my history situation and what I covered at NBCCD, I filled out the APC form. David added a note saying that I'd be doing my last history credit concurrently and signed it. I took the form back to OSAS, filled out a course add/drop form, and then both were taken to the registrar's office. Done. One of the things I love about NSCAD is that as long as administration knows that you're going to take any missing prerequisites, you're good to go.

After all that excitement, I spent the rest of the day studying.

We presented our logos. I'm to redo mine for this week. Jeff introduced the final project, which is a portfolio of our work.

Thursday: We discussed two readings that were handed out a couple weeks ago.

Friday: More presentations--and this time the walk to school was uneventful. I presented this week. I'd spent the last few weeks doing a ton of research. Bob's suggestion: keep it personal. In other words, screw the research. We'll see what happens--I have two thousand words to play with, making this essay (which will be on humanity's relationship with technology, both the good and the bad) the longest one that I've ever written for school. I may or may not use some of the research.

I checked Facebook when I got to the Port Campus and found out that one of my friends got into NSCAD (although she's graduating from NBCCD with a diploma in photography this year, she's decided be an Interdisciplinary major at NSCAD). I was--and still am--ridiculously excited for her. It'll be wonderful to have another NBCCDer flitting around NSCAD, spreading her own brand of awesome. I love both schools, and I love having my alma mater represented at my second school.

That afternoon was the final presentation (on graffiti) for Writing for the Arts. Throughout the semester, each presentation group has had to come up with a post-presentation activity or writing topic. This time, newsprint had been wrapped between two posts, and we were allowed to draw or write anything we wanted on it. I wrote "NSCAD ROCKS!" As I said to a classmate, this is why I love art school.

I spent part of the evening working on my project for the show.

Saturday: I got an unbelievable amount of work done.

That evening my floor's RA and some friends observed Earth Hour. We played Pictionary in near-dark, using an (unplugged!) iPhone flashlight.

Sunday: I spent the afternoon at the Port Campus doing Graphics homework, and I'm just about finished.

Next weekend is Easter weekend, which means that I'll be staring six unstructured days in the face. I'll get to sleep in on Friday (wonderful!), and then, because Canada likes to squeeze an extra day out of that weekend in the form of Easter Monday (which I just found out is a religious holiday in Orthodox Christianity), I'll have yet another free day. I don't have class until Graphics on Wednesday evening. I plan to spend those days getting work done and relaxing--maybe even exploring Halifax some more, which I've missed doing and won't have time to do next semester (two words: eighteen credits). Sometimes I'm tempted to move here for a year or so to work and experience Halifax with only my latest photo project for homework.

I love my school, I love my union

I take back what I said about finals last time (it's going to an intense month): with almost three weeks (two weeks and six days to be exact--the last day is outside NSCAD's normal calendar, more on that later) left, and us NSCADians being super-busy--some even taking advantage of the university's twenty-four-hour access--the final weeks of the semester are going to fly by.

Monday: I spent the afternoon at NSCAD, scanning negatives for my project for Intro.

Tuesday: We met individually with Adrian to discuss how our projects are coming along. He and I went over the contact sheet that I'd done and discussed which ideas were more successful and that I should pursue.

I went to my first SUNSCAD council meeting that evening. Among the highlights, there's a possibility that FUNSCAD 1 (the faculty union) could go on strike next semester. I can't remember all the details, but teachers' salaries is one of the issues. Another issue is the fact that, as a way for the school to save money, a lot of the faculty members are part-timers, which means no benefits and that they're paid a fraction of what full-timers are paid. SUNSCAD will have to decide whether or not to join the faculty in the strike. I think we join in the protest because a. we'll have nothing better to do; b. because of NSCAD's financial issues, we're all in the same boat whether we're students, teachers or studio techs and c. solidarity. Even if SUNSCAD officially says "no" to taking action, I'd probably show up anyway in solidarity. Although the school needs to cough up cash that it doesn't have right now, NSCAD is one of the best art schools this side of Ontario, and no matter how the financial issues are resolved it must remain so--ahem, Board of Governors!

Wednesday: I put together one of the earlier books (until that day, it'd been in two pieces), and worked on another book.

In the afternoon, I shot another roll for Intro and processed it.

Thursday: Turns out, I'm going to be staying in HFX an extra day: we decided to have the final critique on December thirteenth (the day after classes end) because then we can use a room in the Academy Building. We'll arrive that morning to put up our work and spend the rest of the day critiquing said work. We also talked about how we're doing with our projects and watched a couple of movies.

Friday: I spent the morning at NSCAD, scanning negatives. I'm not a morning person, but I actually enjoyed walking to school that day and burying my nose in a computer screen. At least I didn't have to be out the door by 7:30/6:30 EST, which is the case on Wednesdays.

We developed photos on fibre-based paper that afternoon, and then used the remaining time to work on our projects. In case you're wondering, there are two kinds of photo paper: resin-coated (RC) paper and fibre-based (FB) paper. One of the main differences between the two is that FB paper is a lot more work than RC: more time in the chemicals, more time to wash, more time drying, more, more, more... As to which kind is more archival, throughout my post-secondary career, I've heard that FB is the one to beat. We're talking hundreds of years here. Once we had a print that we were happy with, we were free to do whatever we wanted. I went back to scanning.

Saturday: Saturday was about as unproductive as Friday was productive. I got virtually no homework done that day. Though I did go to the Letterpress Gang's Christmas market.

Sunday: I was determined to make up for Saturday's unproductiveness. I worked on my projects for Intro and Beyond the Frame until I could barely take it anymore.

it's going to be an intense month...

We're officially in Finals Mode. **gulp** But other than that, this week has been fairly uneventful.

Monday: I have no idea what happened, but that day was one of my most productive all semester. I got a lot of work done for my project for Beyond the Frame and skyped with my parents.

Tuesday: As per usual, this week we had a work-in-progress critique, which went well.

Wednesday: I started the next project, which is way easier. It's another book, and I got fairly close to finishing it--I just have to attach the cover. I spent the rest of the day working on my project for Beyond the Frame and printing for Intro Photo.

Thursday: I finally presented my project for Beyond the Frame (that critique also went well). We talked about what we're doing for our final projects, and Bob gave us a "how to survive and pay the bills after NSCAD" lecture (always helpful).

I spent the evening in the printshop, working on my box, and I'm close to finishing that as well. In the process I found out that the Letterpress Gang (a group in Halifax comprised of NSCAD faculty and students and people from the wider community) will be having a Christmas market in a couple weeks. Hello, handmade cards!

Friday: The final critique for the second-to-last(!) assignment. Mine went fairly well: I could've brought the tones up a bit, but other than that I did a good job.

Like Beyond the Frame, the final assignment for Intro Photo is an independent project. Adrian talked about it, and it's the most intense and involved project of the semester (which is typical of finals). We were given the choice of either working in the darkroom or scanning our negatives and working with them in Photoshop, and I chose the latter.

Saturday: I spent waaayyyy too much time procrastinating, but eventually buckled down and got some work done on my Beyond the Frame project.

Sunday: Workworkwork. I shot a roll for my Intro Photo project, developed it and wanted to get it scanned, but by that point it was too late and I needed to get back to my place. Before I left, I developed a contact sheet so that I could see what I had and start to choose images that I wanted to use. I finished the evening by working on the Beyond the Frame project and submitting a photo to Free Coffee, which is an annual publication by NSCAD of student work. Another addition to my CV!

Because the PBSO played one of my favourite pieces this past weekend, and I wish I could've gone to the concert:

it's about time I heard the Met play an encore

As of this past Monday, there is exactly ONE MONTH between the Class of '12 and life post-NBCCD. As someone who is fiercely loyal to the college and doubly so to the photo studio, I'm going to miss this place.

Monday: All we had to do was meet with Linda. However, I totally forgot and showed up at the college just before one--and my meeting wasn't until 2:40. I spent the next almost-two hours getting other homework done. Linda critiqued what I'd done so far for Imagery, and suggested what sort of direction I could take the project.

Tuesday: I started work on my Photoshop independent-study project. Photoshop CS6 is going to be yet another huge step forward/learning curve.

Still to Motion was devoted to getting all of us more or less on the same track. I finally added the audio tracks to my video, which is about the history of the family home and the surrounding area. I just have to add a title and the credits.

Wednesday: This week we finally talked about how to price our work. Although I fantasized about a clear answer from Karen, I realize that that's unrealistic, as you have to take the cost of your materials, frames, etc., into consideration. One her most straightforward tips was to look at what other people in the surrounding area are charging, and use that as a guide. Karen also included a couple of websites, and I jotted down the URLs in my notebook.

We presented our most recent research projects. For me, that meant talking about the results that I got with the Speedotrons and gushing about the Einsteins. We also talked about what we wanted to do next. When I chose my current project, I debated between researching affordable and expandable backup systems and professional/near-pro DSLRs. I decided that I could probably figure out backup stuff on my own pretty well--it's choosing a new camera that I need help with. The more advanced I've become, the more important choosing the right camera to fit my needs has become to me. I'm not going to go to a camera store, look at the cameras, point and say, "I want that one." I need to research the different brands (since I started thinking about getting a new camera, I've only been considering Nikon and Canon--kind of like only considering Stradivarius and Guarnieri, if those guys had made different levels of instruments for everyone from beginner to the best in the world), find out which cameras are at the level that I'm considering and look into what features each camera has. Like my current violin, my next camera will be the first DSLR that I will choose on my own. When I chose my violin in the summer of '01, my parents named a price range and I tried three different fiddles--and as many bows--in that range. However, this time I have a lot of bells and whistles to consider, and I need to know what each camera has. Therefore, this topic wins. Originally, the project was to be two weeks long (which would mean that it would be due on the eleventh), but Drew gave us the option of taking another week, meaning that it'd be due on the eighteenth. I decided to do an extra week, as I feel I could use it.

Thursday: We talked about where we are in our projects, and I presented the two videos that I've made so far. I found a sequencing glitch in one of the videos, which is stop-motion (a couple of the photos were out of place--I thought that I'd fixed all the problems in that department). Peter and my classmates critiqued the videos, corrected a couple of facts, and suggested better ways in which to do said videos. Peter also talked about a ballet performance that will be happening at the Playhouse on the thirteenth. The company, Ballet Jörgen (YOR-gen--with a hard G), is doing a masterclass before the performance, and has invited people to take photos. I believe they'll also be talking about dance photography, which would be great for me.

As Peter was coming down with a cold, he cancelled everything in the afternoon and went home. He planned to be in the next day, though. As usual, I devoted the afternoon to homework.

That day, the 2012-2013 federal budget came out--and it's a real slap in the face for us young folks. Katimivik (which gets young people out in Canadian communities, helping out--and they do it purely as volunteer work) is kaput, and the retirement age will be raised to sixty-seven (from sixty-five) in the next ten years, forcing older people to stay in the workforce longer and denying jobs to people my age because those jobs are taken by those older folks--and those are just two things. The CBC will also have it's budget slashed by $115 million over the next three years, which will reduce the quality of the programming (which is very high). I can understand why someone like Harper would want to cut funding to an institution like the CBC: freedom of the press--which is guaranteed under section 2. (b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms--is a scary thing to a leader who wants to exert full control over the country, get things done their way and not have anyone criticize them, but it still infuriates me. I love the CBC (and PBS over in the States)--in fact, I was listening to CBC Music's Orchestral channel on iTunes this afternoon--and I don't want the quality of their programming to be affected in any way. I cannot stress how important institutions like CBC and PBS are to a country. Yay for culture and freedom of the press! By the way, note that on the budget web page the tag line is "jobs growth and long-term prosperity." That statement couldn't be more untrue if the Tories tried.

As usual, Helen and I skyped that evening, and we talked about some of my projects. We won't skype again until the nineteenth, as Helen will be away and/or busy for the next couple of weeks. She thought about waiting until after I'm done school, but during finals I crave things in my life that allow me to relax, so we agreed on that date.

Friday: I spent a couple of hours at the UNB Art Centre, taking photos of, and notes on the current show. I'm reviewing it for the second show review that I have to write for Gallery as a Market Place. The day before, I called the Centre and asked for permission to take photos there to use as visual notes while writing the review. They were totally fine with it as long as the photos were just for my use--otherwise they'd have to get approval from the artists--Monica Lacey and Brody LeBlanc (who are Class of '11 NBCCD grads).

That afternoon, I fired a bunch of questions at Peter: approaching NSCAD with my research on the credits that I'd found (NSCAD originally awarded me fifty-four credits, and I wanted to get as close to the seventy-five-credit mark as possible), when he's going to talk about the grad show and how many pieces to put in the hard-copy portfolio that I have to do for his class.

Saturday: As usual, I devoted the day to homework. I got a really good start on the gallery review. By "really good", I mean that I banged out two hundred and eighty-six words. Five hundred and fourteen more to go! I did homework for Imagery, and I started putting together a list of cameras to consider.

This week the Met performed L'Elisir d'Amore--and I heard the orchestra and one of the singers, Juan Diago Flórez,  play an encore for the first time. After they played Una furtiva lagrima, the audience went nuts, applauding for a long time, quieting down--and then starting up again, shouting, "BRAVO!" and, although I didn't catch it, "ENCORE!" So the Met played the aria again. And because I hadn't heard the calls for an encore, I couldn't believe my ears: they were playing it again? Really? But after that performance, I distinctly heard the shouts for an encore. This time, the Met ignored those requests and went on with the rest of the opera.



Sadly, this version isn't with the Met:


Sunday: Today, I didn't get over to the college until around four--I'm usually there around two. I started looking at reviews of cameras, and I knocked a few off the list because this time around, I'm not getting an entry-level cam. After two years at NBCCD, I'm itching to play with the big boys.

you know you're a photographer when... high-speed flashes are the way to your heart

I have another surprise this week! But you'll have to wait until the end to read about it.

Monday: Imagery was mostly taken up with presentations. As I wrote an essay instead of doing an oral presentation, I just had hand it in. Afterward, I got started on my final project for that course.

I then shot photos for the first part of my project for Peter's class, as that part of the video is stop-motion.

That night was byelection night in Toronto-Danforth, which was Jack Layton's riding.

Tuesday: As usual, I checked the news first thing that morning: "Jack Layton’s former riding will remain NDP orange after rookie candidate Craig Scott easily won Monday’s byelection [...]." 'Nuff said. GO NDP!

The End is officially in sight, and this week Drew gave us our final Photoshop assignments. We're doing independent-study projects, and almost immediately I decided to do mine on Photoshop CS5 (the most recent release) and CS6 (which is due out soon--and Adobe employees and other Photoshop geeks are already talking about the features and improvements that it'll have). As I'm running CS4, I'll use the copy of CS5 that's on one of the computers in the Photo Studio. I'm going to turn on the "What's New in CS5" feature and try out the things that it highlights.

Wednesday: That day was "the warmest March day in recorded history for many of Canada's major cities, [and] it was also warmer than any April day at St. John, New Brunswick." In F'ton, the highest temperature was close to 30˚C/86˚F, and as an environmentalist, warning bells were going off in my head loud enough to drown out all three of my favourite orchestras. It should not be +27˚C/80˚F in March. If that isn't proof that global warming is here (and not some thing that won't rear it's head for another generation or two), I don't know what is. Okay, I'll get off my soapbox.

In Gallery as a Market Place, we discussed how the opening went down, and things that could be improved for next time. I won't say anything more, as Karen swore us to secrecy on some of the things that we covered.

Thursday: That day (another record-setting hot one), we didn't have class. I used the time to get homework done.

Because I've never transferred credits, I talked with Peter about getting more credits transferred from NBCCD to NSCAD. NSCAD will accept up to seventy-five of my credits, and when they accepted me the university awarded me fifty-four credits. Peter suggested that I go through the NSCAD calendar and look for courses that sound similar to ones that I've taken at the craft college, and then present that research to NSCAD.

Later that afternoon, I signed out the college's new Einstein flashes, as the second part of my latest research project was to work with them. To quote my final report for that project, "I was so mind-blown by what I was seeing on my camera's LCD screen that at one point I came close to tears." I was also madly in love with them--I still am, in fact. As you can see in the photo, most of the water was on the table by the time I was done. Because those flashes can freeze motion due to the speed of the flash (which goes as low as 1/3,000 of a second), I'm definitely getting a few if I go into dance photography.

I lightened the photo, as it was a bit dark (need. more. powerful. camera.) and boosted the contrast and clarity (to make the glass and droplets look more defined). Check out the droplet exploding on the table!

Friday: On Thursday, I decided that enough was enough: as I wanted to include some of my portraiture on my website, I needed to have my models sign release forms. So on Friday I went over to Backstreet Records. Eric wasn't in that day, but would be on Saturday. However, I did get one of the forms signed (Peter, in case you're wondering).

That evening, Helen and I had our first chat in several weeks. We talked about the ins and outs of transferring credits, and about some of the things that I've been creating at the school.

Saturday: That day was one of NBCCD's open houses, which they do a couple times a year. I wasn't officially a part of it, but I spent the day studying in the studio. On my way over, I stopped by Backstreet Records again and Eric signed a release form. When I got to school, I got the last form signed by Erin, who's one of my classmates.

I spent a sizable chunk of the afternoon going through NSCAD's academic calendar, looking for courses that could correspond to ones that I've taken at NBCCD. I came up with fifteen more credits, for a total of sixty-nine. I'll go over it again, as I'd like to get credit for at least one of my Photoshop courses and Imagery: Sources and Development, but sixty-nine is still really good.

Throughout the evening, I kept at least one eye on the NDP leadership convention as I worked on my homework, and was thrilled beyond belief when they announced that Thomas Mucair would be the next leader of the party. For the last month or two, Mucair has been the most popular (and best-known) of the candidates, so I'm not surprised that he won. A few months ago he visited UNB, and when I read the (front-page) article in The Brunswickan, I got really excited about him. His views almost perfectly mirrored mine--and this is coming from a woman who is a lot further left than the NDP. If I were a member of the federal party--I am considering joining both the provincial and the federal NDP at some point--I would've voted for him.

Sunday: I didn't get off my butt and over to the college until around three, but once there, I finished up stuff that needed to be finished and proofread what needed to be proofread. I also skyped with Mom: somehow, she'd missed that little fact that I love doing portraiture. And we went 'round and 'round and 'round about the fact that I'm into dance photography, and want to do it professionally. Thankfully, I realize that it won't be easy getting started--but I'm tough, and I won't take "no" for an answer. And I'm not one of those people who takes the easy route and becomes a teacher or something and only goes into art later in life (if at all), which has been the case with some people that Mom has known or taught. When I want to do something, I'll find a way to make it happen, even if making it happen involves taking a long, sometimes tedious, route. I don't expect to do dance photography right away. And then we went 'round and 'round and 'round about NSCAD and finding a place to live.

And now for that surprise: as of Sunday afternoon, my website is LIVE! And it's looking gorgeous. Go check it out if you haven't.

Bangor Symphony + Star Wars = awesome

Just when I thought Star Wars couldn't get any cooler, it did--with a little help from the Bangor Symphony Orchestra. There's a reason why I love the BSO as much as I do.

Monday: All I had to do that day was meet with Linda, so I hung out in the Photo Studio for most of the afternoon. We Photogs are a pretty funny bunch, but that day it felt like the humour was ratcheted up a couple notches, and I was howling with laughter before you could say, "Peter."

It turned out that I had the wrong time written down for my meeting: it was supposed to be in the 2:00 - 3:00 hour, but I had 3:00 - 4:00 written down. However, it was one of those times where just showing up is good enough, as I was one of the few students who actually came to their meetings. I showed her the photos that I'd taken of my experiments, and we decided on the best one, which would be used for the final version.

Tuesday: My independent Photoshop project is to design a business card, and this week I had my rough-draft version critiqued. This isn't the first time I've done a business card--I did one in first-year Photoshop class--but this time around, I wanted to end up with something that I could actually use in real life.

Turns out, the Røde directional mics aren't as nice as we thought they'd be--and as they pick up sound even from the side, they aren't exactly directional. Oh, well--at least we know now.

Wednesday: We've officially hit crunch-time in terms of prep for our Gallery as a Market Place show. It opens in almost three weeks (March sixteenth), but we lose a week due to March Break (the week of March seventh). This week, we did a lot of work in class: writing bios, tweaking descriptions of our work, writing the press release... We'd planned to visit Ingrid Mueller Art + Concepts, but A. we had enough on our own plates, and B. Ingrid had enough on her plate, as there's a show coming up at that gallery.

That afternoon, we presented our research. I talked about what I'd found out about digital portfolios--which ranged from an Adobe Bridge web gallery to a PDF portfolio (note to self: include a title page next time!).

I spent the evening doing prep for my next Still to Motion (Tuesday afternoon) assignment. My plan is to film myself singing some of my favourite songs (I'll be listening to them on my iPod and singing a cappella). As I went through iTunes, picking out pieces, I landed on MPBN radio, which is in my library. I caught the tail-end of Neptune, the Mystic, which is the final movement in The Planets (Pluto hadn't been discovered yet, though because it's now classified as a dwarf planet, I wonder if Holst would include it if he wrote that work today). I listened, and then got back to work. But somehow I ended up back on MPBN--and was treated to the Main Theme from Star Wars. I'd read the Bangor Daily's review of the BSO's last concert, and wished that I could've heard the concert in person, so I was ridiculously excited. Because I hadn't tuned in earlier, I didn't know that it was the BSO until the end of the broadcast, but I knew that they'd performed the Main Theme as an encore thanks to that review, so I immediately started putting two and two together, and thought, "could that possibly be the BSO?" I jumped up and danced around my dorm room, revelling in the sound of one of my favourite orchestras and one of the most beautiful violin sections I've ever heard. The performance was so thrilling, spectacular and beautiful that I cried as I danced (not the first time the BSO's gotten that sort of reaction out of me). A couple times I slowed down in places where I wouldn't normally slow down, as I wanted to take in the beauty of the violin section. After the last chord had faded, and I found out that yes, it was the BSO, I let go and sobbed with indescribable happiness.

After all that, I had to listen to the theme again, so I searched YouTube. I threw in the Imperial March for good measure. Thanks for starting something, BSO! By the way, this was my first time listening to that orchestra on the radio since the 2004 - 2005 season. A lot has changed since then: new concertmaster, new conductor, new logo, new slogan... But that orchestra is still awesome.

Thursday: This week was the final week of our independent projects. For me, that meant that I played teacher for a few minutes. And then Peter and my classmates critiqued the project (I still need to make changes).

During our meeting, Peter and I discussed my next project--and I showed him the file of notes, ideas and resources that I'd been feverishly putting together for the last couple weeks.

Because I wanted to share my experience with her personally, I emailed Lynn (who's the BSO's co-concertmaster), telling her about the night before.

I also printed my photos for the show, and one of my classmates cut mats for me.

That evening, Helen and I had our usual Skype meeting. In between tech problems, we discussed the project that I'm finishing and the one that I'm about to start. She also talked about paintings that she's working on.

Friday: I'd planned to shoot my Still to Motion homework that day, but as one of my classmates signed out the studio's only Zoom H4N mic for the weekend, there went that idea. Hopefully, I'll get it done tomorrow, but if not, then I'll try to double up this week. But because it's something that's completely out of my control, Rod will probably understand.

However, I managed to get other stuff done that day, including starting my log book for Imagery (my Monday class). And I started the final report for the independent project that I'm finishing, and the proposal for the one that I will start after March Break--and got more than a little fired up about it. Watch out, Harper!

Because my last project was so uneventful--there weren't any serious changes or mishaps, just improvements to stuff that was already decent--I had problems getting up to the five-hundred-word mark. So I consulted with Peter, and he came up with some slightly different questions for me to answer.

I also put together the final version of my Imagery assignment.

Saturday: I spent a large chunk of the afternoon researching the ins and outs of combining Photoshop with Final Cut Pro X (I'm going to use Photoshop to give the different segments of my video their look, and then import those videos to Final Cut). I also edited my final report and project proposal, and made smaller versions of my photos for the show (to be used for publicity). And I did it all while listening to opera (Ernani, by Verdi).

political art: one the awesomest things about being an artist

I've been feverishly working on prep for my next independent-study project for Peter's class for the last few days. This will be my last one, so my motto is "go big--or go home!"

Monday: This week's class was completely devoted to introducing us to the next project: Political/Personal. I'm used to new assignments being presented in fifteen minutes max, but this time Linda spent the entire three hours talking about it, giving us ideas, showing clips from a DVD, etc. We could choose either theme (political or personal), and I chose political: human rights, specifically Foxconn, which makes iPads and Kindles, among other gadgets--and does it all under conditions that horrify human-rights groups.

Tuesday: Another independent-study project in Photoshop. After several days of wondering what I wanted to do (although this is technically impossible because Photoshop is such a powerful tool, I'm starting to feel like there's nothing left to learn), I decided to work on designing a business card. I've wanted to design one that I could use in the "real world".

This week, Rod introduced us to the Røde directional mic and the BeachTek receiver. Although my shoot during the weekend when I was home gave me a leg up (Rod was surprised for some reason when I told him that I'd used a Zoom H2 mic--hey, he wanted good sound, so I used equipment that's better than your average built-in camera mic), I wanted to do the assignment because knowing how different systems/tools work is very important to me.

In the evening, we presented to Photo Fredericton. I went first, and I think I was more nervous than I thought I was at the time: I only really loosened up after the planned part of my presentation, when the PhotoFred members started firing questions at me. But as this was my first time in a long time being the first for something like this, that may have been what threw me off.

Wednesday: We had a guest this week: Joss Richer, who's a sculptor living in F'ton (originally from Montreal). Among other things, he volunteers at the Charlotte Glencross Gallery, where my class is having it's show in less than a month. He talked about the gallery, it's layout, and the ins and outs of showing there.

In Research, Drew ended up giving us another week to work on our projects. I used it to try out some plug-ins that I meant to try out earlier, but somehow never got around to. One of them still doesn't work (it's probably in the wrong location), so I'll ask Drew about that.

Thursday: Just before I started to write about this day yesterday, I kept asking myself, "what did we do that day? What did we talk about in class?" And then it came to me: I couldn't remember because there wasn't a class that day! All we had to do was meet with Peter. Naturally, I used that unexpected freedom to do homework.

During our meeting, Peter critiqued the PowerPoint that I'd put together: change this photo and this photo, add photos here, etc.

As usual, I skyped with Helen that evening. We talked about the independent-study project that I'm developing for Peter's class, and I think she's about as excited about it as I am. She even jumped in with ideas of her own. I'm picky about ideas from other people because sometimes those people take my idea and twist it around so that it ends up going in a different direction that I'm not intending to take: changing the subject, etc. But this time I actually added her ideas to the list of info that I've put together. Helen's ideas stayed within the realm of what I wanted to, but they also expanded it: I can add this subject, and that subject, etc. (And don't worry: I'll tell you what that idea is after I'm done talking about the week.)

Friday: I spent the afternoon working on homework, including my homework for Rod's class (I shot the FVA students as they went about the business of learning about film photography).

Saturday: Yesterday, the Met performed The Barber of Seville, and for the first time ever I wasn't late to that opera. I've seen the simulcast on PBS twice, but both times I was late to the broadcast. This time I was determined to listen to the whole thing: I really wanted to hear the MOO rock the overture. Though in a couple of sections, I expected to hear a good blast from the horn section, and I didn't. Whatever happened to "go big or go home," guys? But other than that, it was spectacular. Then again, I'm used to a specific version, and different orchestras play the music differently (like the BSO's October 23, '04 performance of Washington Post vs. André Rieu's recording of the same piece on his 2006 CD New York Memories: André's version is big and grand, whereas the BSO's has a clipped sound, and seems to bark, "up and at 'em! Feet on the floor! NOW!" Orchestra, yes, orchestra! I admit that I'm partial to the BSO's version, and have been for years.).

Sunday: I spent this morning being lazy, watching a couple of documentaries, and figuring out some shots for my next project. But eventually I ended up at the school, as I'm a lot more productive when I'm in the Photo Studio then when I'm in my dorm room.

-----------------------------------

Now, about that project that I'm prepping for.

First off, it's totally different from anything else I've ever done. Because many people still don't know what Harper has up his sleeve, and don't pay attention to the goings-on on Parliament Hill, I've decided to do a video about things like Bill C-30 (the Lawful Access Bill), Bill C-11 (which I talked about a couple weeks ago), and cuts to the arts and public services. And then I'll post it to YouTube and Vimeo--and hope that it'll go viral.

The video probably won't have much talking, letting the images speak for themselves. I'll probably have some text, though (probably some excerpts from the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, as well as short explanations of parts of the laws in question). I'll get music from a site that has Creative Commons-licensed tracks.

I'll also talk about how social programs are being cut, as are the arts, Environment Canada, and scientists are being asked to not publish parts of studies--or to not publish those studies altogether.

Even after the Orange Wave last election (which had the second-lowest turnout in Canadian history), most Canucks remain uninformed about Harper's plans for Canada. The prime minister is intent on moulding this country into one that's unrecognizable to it's citizens. I love Canada dearly, and I'm proud of what we've accomplished (universal health-care!)--but I'm not proud of Canada in it's current form. I'm not proud to be a Canadian--and I'm downright angry with the federal government.

I've spent the last few days compiling a Word document (notebook layout) filled with ideas, resources and topics that I might cover.

As is the case just about every time I contemplate an idea like this--something that's definitely outside the "safe" zone--I'm unsure about whether or not I should do whatever it is that I'm thinking of doing. I've had those thoughts about this project, but as Helen said on Thursday, by doing this project, I'm joining the long tradition of commenting on the political or current events of the day. If that isn't validation of my project, I don't know what is.

And besides: I've done political art before.



And because I can't resist:


Rabbit of Seville from TravisD on Vimeo.

FVA nostalgia--and it's only been two years

I'm sick. Again. Grrrr... According to Mom, I haven't been sick twice in a row in twenty years. Though there was that time when I was twelve, and I got two colds, one on top of the other. I was sick for months. Oh, well. I'm in much better shape than I was thirty-six hours ago.

Monday: I've officially applied to university!

As a refresher, unless they are connected with a university, colleges don't grant degrees: the highest you can go is a two-year diploma. You can also get a certificate after one year (I have a certificate in Foundation Visual Arts, and I'm currently working my way toward my diploma in photography). If a college is a program within a university--like UNB's Renaissance College--then they can grant a degree. Universities, on the other hand, can grant a four-year degree.

Last week's drawing class was purely one of experimentation, with no real homework--just collect images for the next assignment, which we're starting today.

Tuesday: We did another stop-motion movie for Rod's class. This time, I took advantage of the fact that I now own a couple of camera remotes, and put myself in said movie. My movements were a bit stiff and jerky, but hey--I had to hold each one for about five shots! Overall, I'm happy with it.

Wednesday: My second research project is going to be on digital portfolio options. I found out yesterday that you can get a couple of free plug-ins for Photoshop CS4 that will allow you to make web galleries. The ability to make web galleries is pretty much the only reason why I would want to get Lightroom (when it comes to photo-editing, I'm a bit power-hungry, so Photoshop is right up my alley), so now that I've discovered these plug-ins, that makes buying Lightroom unnecessary. And I couldn't be happier. Thanks, Adobe!

The day before St. Pat's Day is the opening of the second-year Photogs' first show. We'll have two shows this year: that one, and then the grad show at the end of the year. As the first one is only about a month and a half away, we have to work our butts off in order to get the thing off the ground. However, as we've done this before, it should be easier--at least for me. I usually find stuff like that easier the second time around (I'm looking at you, ArtsNB scholarship application, and you, studio lighting class).

Because university is different from college, I decided to ask Karen about those differences, as she went to both NBCCD and Acadia University. We talked for a bit, and then she put me in contact with a guy from St. Stephen who actually went to both NBCCD and NSCAD.

Thursday: That morning, we had the dress-rehearsal for our presentation to PhotoFred. In other words, we presented to the first-year Photogs. I couldn't help but think back to last year when the Class of '11 presented to my class. The presentations went well, though we ended up not having time for a project critique that Peter wanted to do. We're going to do it this week.

As usual, I spent the rest of the day working on homework and my ArtsNB application, and then skyped with Helen in the evening.

Friday: More work: homework and scholarship application.

That morning, I made a point to sit down with a good book. As I was going through a period of nostalgia for the time when I applied to the diploma program, in all it's stress and excitement, I decided to watch the movie that Drew made, showing us FVAs how to document our work for our portfolios. After almost two years of photo courses, I found myself wanting to shout out, "HOT LIGHTS!," "SEAMLESS BACKDROP!," and say, "yep, that makes perfect sense."

Saturday: Sick. Once again. I managed to get a fair amount of work done, but by seven that evening, I was wiped. So I trudged back home through the snow.

Sunday: I can't remember the last time I had such a productive day. I'm usually fairly productive, but not this productive. I basically woke up, got brunch, sat down at my computer for several hours (Gallery homework: thisclose to being done), took a shower, sat down again (Imagery homework: done; Research proposal: done except for proofreading), got supper, sat down again (Photoshop homework: done). Whew! And I'm supposed to be sick, right?

The BSO played a concert yesterday, and The Planets was one of the pieces on the program. The orchestra's Facebook page has been hyping the concert, and has featured a movement from that work every day for the past week. My favourite movement was featured on Wednesday: "'Jupiter, the bringer of Jollity,' usually one of the favorite movements of Holst's 'The Planets.' It's one of ours, anyway!" Mine, too, BSO, mine, too. Click here to see that video.

this is going to be one heck of a semester

I think I'm going to enjoy this semester. For one thing, Mondays are more relaxed, as I only have one class, and it's in the afternoon. And I think I'm going to really enjoy it.

Monday: The class in question is Imagery: Sources and Development. Although we're starting with observational drawing, the course goes beyond that form of drawing, using different sources, techniques and media. "Emphasis [is] on developing personally relevant imagery" (from the blurb about the course). In other words, it's the drawing course that I've been waiting for for three years.

By the way, that class is huge by NBCCD standards: twenty-two students, including me.

After class, I hung out in the photo studio and chatted with Peter before heading home.

Tuesday: This semester's Photoshop course is brand-new, so, as with Preparing for Professional Life last semester, my class gets to deal with the kinks and bugs in said course. However, I'm okay with that because I know that the course is new (I didn't know that Professional Life was new until the last week or two of the semester), and I know what my teacher (Drew) is like and what his expectations are, and he knows us students and what we're into--and whether or not we even like Photoshop.

And because this course is new, we students have a say in how things are going to go down this semester: our assignment this week was to come up with some techniques that we wanted to learn more about.

Still to Motion started with talking not about the visual aspect of creating movies, documentaries, etc., with DSLRs, but the audio aspect. And it reminded me just how interested I am in sound: how it behaves, how one can manipulate it, etc. (I'll happily blame it on my eight years of violin lessons). Our assignment this week was to record ourselves reading an excerpt of text--like a Wikipedia article--with music in the background (don't speak until after the first verse), using the built-in mic on our computers. We were to then decrease the volume of the music when we were speaking, bring the volume back up when we finished our speaking bit, and then decrease the volume again at the end. Simple, but so much fun! I did my homework that evening, and it was a good thing I did, because...

Because everyone knows me as a classical music-freak, I decided to shake things up. Although I'm crazy about classical, I'm also into a lot of other genres, including indie, punk/alternative and folk. This time, I went with one of my favourite Green Day tracks, 21st Century Breakdown, from the album of the same name. I read the first paragraph from Green Day's Wikipedia article.

Wednesday: ...I woke up with the telltale sore throat of a cold. Ugh. And as I tend to do, I spent the first half of the day in denial: "please don't be a cold **swallow** please go away **gulp**." But by two that afternoon (one PM EST), I admitted that I was sick. I immediately went into recovery mode.

Oh, yeah: classes. That morning, I had Gallery as a Market Place--and I had Karen as a teacher again! Let's just say that, as with last semester's business class, I have much to learn about the ins and outs of galleries. But I actually want to take this course.

I'm applying for the ArtsNB scholarship again, so I asked Karen to be one of my references: she said yes.

That afternoon, I had another class with Drew, and, like Peter's second-year classes, it's devoted to independent study projects. But these are little projects: I think the biggest is about three weeks long. My first one is on model releases, and I want to have one that's readily modifiable based on the situation/project by the time I'm done.

I also asked Drew if he'd be my other reference (I need two): he said yes. And he reminded me to print out two copies of the form that the reference people fill out.

By that point, my throat was so sore that it hurt to speak, or even whisper, for longer than a few seconds at a time--which is a major blow to someone who's as talkative as I am.

Because Drew wanted a project proposal for the first project from each of us, he let us go after an hour. I spent the next hour-and-a-half writing mine, and then packed up my stuff and headed home as soon as I dropped the proposal in the assignment folder for that course.

When I got home, I was so tired that I decided to take a nap. Afterward, I felt a bit better, but I didn't do much for the rest of the evening.

Because I felt so crappy, I was more than a bit concerned that I might have to skip Peter's class the next day. And because I love Peter's classes so much and this week's class was the first of the semester, I did not want to have to miss that class.

Thursday: When I woke up that morning, I still felt like crap, but I was well enough to go to school. Yyyyyeesssssssssss!

Because Karen's history class was taking over the Photo Studio classroom (where Peter normally has his classes) that morning, he moved us to the Surface Design classroom. And starting the second week of term, his class will start not at 9:00 AM (8:00 EST), but 10:00 AM (9:00 EST)!!! As someone who's not exactly a morning person, I can't complain.

Like all the other classes this week, Peter talked about how the semester's going to go down: things like the fact that we each have to have a website by the end of the term, and that we're doing a presentation to the local photography club, Photo Fredericton, next month. And the fact that from now on, that class starts an hour later than what's posted on the schedule.

He also wanted us to take another look at the project proposals that we'd written and handed in at the end of last semester. We were to make any necessary adjustments, and then email them to him by this coming Thursday. Taking another look at the proposals also served to remind us exactly what we wanted to do.

I spent the rest of the day working on homework--except for when I had a meeting with Peter that afternoon.

Friday through Sunday: On Thursday I'd drawn up a to-do list of everything that I wanted to accomplish over the weekend, and although I worked on it a bit that day, it was on Friday that I really buckled down and started in on The List. I...

• Reworked the project proposal and emailed it to Peter.
• Did my Photoshop homework.
• Did my Gallery as a Market Place homework (more on that after the list).
• Researched model releases.
• Started putting together the PowerPoint presentation for Peter's class.
• Wrote notes for said PowerPoint.
• Photocopied some of my sheet music for Imagery.
• Wrote like crazy for my NSCAD application (250 - 500 words) and my ArtsNB scholarship application (one 8 1/2" x 11" page or less), and tweaked my RBC scholarship application (two questions, 600 words or less total).
• Skipped the Met's radio broadcast--though I did it in the name of Gallery as a Market Place, so I'm sure they'd understand (there's a gallery at the Met Opera House--**squeal**).
• Wondered where Sunday disappeared.
• Hung out with friends/fellow Photogs (there's never a dull moment in the studio).

This week, for our Gallery as a Market Place homework, we were each assigned a city (I got Saint John), and we were to find as many galleries in that city as possible. Out of that list, we were to contact one gallery and get their submission guidelines and mandate. I called Peter Buckland Gallery on Friday. However, Peter was a bit busy that day, and when I asked, he said that Saturday would be a better time (the gallery's less busy on Saturdays).

So I called back on Saturday afternoon. Because Peter ran a bit late, we didn't connect until after two. But once we did, he was happy to answer my questions (I typed up a summary of each of his answers in Word, having written down my questions earlier)--in fact, the guy was a perfect interviewee, and patiently waited for me to finish typing (at the beginning I told him that I'd be typing up his answers).

However, for me, this was more than just another school assignment: this interview marked a huge turning point for me. For as long as I can remember, although I'm an outgoing person, I've always been shy when I call someone for the first time. It was to the point that I had to force myself to dial the number. But something happened between the last time when I had to do that, which was in November, and Friday: I lost my shyness about calling someone out of the blue. When I called Peter, I just picked up the phone, dialed the number (making sure to dial 9 first, as it was on a school phone--Peter Gross' phone, to be exact, as he's one of the ones with long-distance. And yes, I asked him for permission.), explained that "I'm a student at NBCCD, I have an assignment to contact a gallery and ask for their mandate and submission guidelines. Is now a good time or is there another time that would be better?" Done. And it was no big deal: in fact, I'd say it was almost as easy as playing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.