So my last post seems to have taken on a life of its own: as of this evening, it has sixty-two views. Normally, a post will get somewhere between twenty and thirty views in a week and only hit the higher numbers (anything above thirty) in the second week. However, I'm not surprised: it was a fairly dramatic post, and we humans seem drawn to that kind of thing (why do you think we have tabloids like the National Enquirer?). I myself love a good, dramatic opera--even better if it ends tragically (see: Carman, La Bohème--which I will talk about later--La Traviata, etc.)
Monday: The End is definitely in sight, after an intense semester (that's what happens when you study anything to do with Indigenous peoples, given how much white settlers have put them through since Contact in 1492). Carla praised our writing, as we've all written strong papers. I wanted to applaud, and I told her so after class.
Tuesday: This week's meeting with Joan was extremely emotional on my part and I cried several times. We discussed what I've been going through and how I could deal with it--some of Joan's suggestions overlapped quite a bit with Lynn's, and I told her so. I also shared with her the part of Lynn's email that makes me cry (you know which part I'm talking about, Lynn), which I'd written on a Post-It note--and this time I had to put my head on my arms facedown and sob, I was so moved by Lynn's words and thankful for her support. A few minutes after reading the excerpt to Joan, I put it in my wallet, behind my drivers' license, which is always in front of my other cards. It will remain there for the rest of my time in Halifax.
Wednesday: What is it with me taking on personal projects during finals that end up taking over my life??? This time it's an art project (the blog book is still happening, though: I'm going to dive into finishing it once I'm home, and I want to have it sent off to Blurb by the end of May at the latest), but I can't say much more than that because it's a surprise for one of my friends/readers (not saying who). I will say that it's in a medium that I haven't worked with since graduating from NBCCD. I've been doing some preliminary work, but the bulk of the project won't happen until I'm home. I might do a post about it once it's in said friend's hands (I plan to keep writing here after I'm done school, as I'm now officially hooked on blog writing and writing in general).
Thursday: Exam Review Day (the exam for 20th Century Art is on Tuesday). This time I somehow managed to not end up with writers' cramp. Hmmm... Maybe it had something to do with the fact that the review started about half an hour after class officially started, due to the need to fill out course evaluation forms.
That evening I went to a show opening at ViewPoint Gallery--and I finally met one of the guys who skyped with Peter's class during my first semester as a Photog: Eric Boutilier-Brown, who photographs nudes. Like me, Eric went to both NBCCD and NSCAD.
Friday: As per usual, I spent the day studying. In this case, I finished copying my notes from the review into a Word document. I'm not going to worry about the other two exams (both of which are take-homes) until after the one for 20th Century Art is done.
Saturday: La Bohème Day. During the intermission between acts three and four, Margaret and Ira talked about how the bohemians of the opera are not the same people in the fourth act that they were in the first: they've experienced so much. Boy, do I know what that feels like. Since really getting into that opera a few years ago, I've found that I really identify with it, and now more than ever: I'm a poor art student (however, they just had to worry about making rent--not paying back a student loan) and I've been through a difficult year. At its heart, Bohème is about life and its ups and downs, its joys and sorrows, which is one of the reasons why I love it so much. Bohème could happen in real life--and probably has.
I spent the day copying my exam notes back into my notebook, which Ken Rice (the administrative assistant in the history and critical studies department) had suggested as a way of making sure the info's in my head.
And yes, I sobbed like my heart was breaking during the fourth act--which it was (as Ben Heppner said during the intermission between the third and fourth acts, "ready, set... Cry." La Bohème in a nutshell.).
The woman who played Mimí that day was filling in for the woman who was supposed to sing the role, as that woman is sick with the flu. The replacement had just sung the title role in Madama Butterfly the night before and was running on about two hours of sleep. And, gee, I sometimes struggle to get through those days when I get less than eight hours of sleep--and I don't have to sing a whole (emotionally demanding) opera. Although the performance was simulcast and I wanted to go (I'd seriously considered it), I couldn't due to the need to study. When I go to the Met--and I will someday--La Bohème will be one of the possibilities. I just hope they're still doing the current production (by Franco Zefferelli, the guy who directed my favourite Romeo & Juliet): it's been at the Met since '81, and the company has started to retire some of the older productions. The predecessor to the Met's current Ring production, which was by Otto Schenk, opened in '87 and was retired at the end of the '08 - '09 season (the current production by Robert Lepage--a Canuck!--opened two seasons later).
As the opera hadn't been broadcast since '10, when I was a stressed-out FVA student, I had a few moments early on where I thought, "I'm listening to my favourite opera!" While I have other favourites (Carmen, Doctor Atomic, La Damnation de Faust, The Nose and La Traviata), La Bohème holds a special place in my heart, and if I had to whittle my favourites down to just one opera, Bohème would be it. And I'll admit that I lip-synched parts of it, especially O soave fanciulla (see video below), and smiled as I heard familiar tune after familiar tune, each one feeling like an old friend that I hadn't seen in forever (I deduced that La Bohème is the opera equivalent of The Nutcracker, in terms of how much I love it in relation to other works in its art form--though I came to Bohème probably about five to ten years after falling in love with Nutcracker).
Sunday: I had a mild run-in with the person with whom I'm not getting along today, and, although it was mild, the incident coloured my entire day. Let's face it: I'm extremely worn down emotionally, and everything has the potential to make my entire day either a good one or a bad one (note to Mom and Tom: when I come home, be extremely gentle with me. You are already good, kind parents, but I'm extremely fragile right now, as this year has been traumatic.). I spent the day prepping for the Twentieth Century Art exam, which is on Tuesday--and found out that I have to fill in some gaps in my notes in the definitions section, which will happen tomorrow (**gulp**). Wish me luck! It's only after that exam is over that I'll even think about the other two exams.
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Sunday, December 8, 2013
life, death and art
The countdown to the final day is in full swing.
Monday: I spent much of the day decompressing from the trip to Elsipogtog. Turns out, Laura and I had gone at the right time, as the protesters had another confrontation with SWN and the RCMP. This one wasn't as major as the one that grabbed headlines in October, thankfully.
I also had another meltdown related to what I've been going through this semester. I could feel it bubbling just under the surface after I read the thing that triggered said meltdown that morning. I waited until late that afternoon before talking with Jake and Alex about it--and crying. And Chris (another tech) now knows some of what I've been going through this semester. This time of year is busy for everyone, techs included, so I'm really thankful that they managed to find time to comfort me.
Tuesday: I had another appointment with Joan--my last for this semester. And I discussed the events of the previous day with her (it was one of those times where, yes, I had an appointment the next day--but I needed to talk with someone right then).
That day Mom told me that she wanted some of my photos from Elsipogtog for the Christmas newsletter. She also wondered why some people are pro-fracking, which I happily researched (see here and here).
Wednesday: Crit Day. I did really well and I'm proud of what I've accomplished this semester. To paraphrase Neil Gaiman: going through a hell that keeps recurring? Make good art. I'm going to deviate from talking about the crit to share this passage from that address with you guys because it's so awesome: "Fourthly, I hope you'll make mistakes. If you're making mistakes, it means you're out there doing something. And the mistakes in themselves can be useful. I once misspelled Caroline, in a letter, transposing the A and the O, and I thought, 'Coraline looks like a real name...'
"And remember that whatever discipline you are in, whether you are a musician or a photographer[!!!], a fine artist or a cartoonist, a writer, a dancer, a designer, whatever you do you have one thing that's unique. You have the ability to make art.
"And for me, and for so many of the people I have known, that's been a lifesaver. The ultimate lifesaver. It gets you through good times and it gets you through the other ones.
"Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love and in business and in friendship and in health and in all the other ways that life can go wrong. And when things get tough, this is what you should do.
"Make good art.
"I'm serious. Husband runs off with a politician? Make good art. Leg crushed and then eaten by mutated boa constrictor? Make good art. IRS on your trail? Make good art. Cat exploded? Make good art. Somebody on the Internet thinks what you do is stupid or evil or it's all been done before? Make good art. Probably things will work out somehow, and eventually time will take the sting away, but that doesn't matter. Do what only you do best. Make good art.
"Make it on the good days too."
And now, back to the blog post.
While my crit went well, I had to rewrite part of the contextualizing statement. I was okay with that, though I'd planned to be done with the thing: once I'd gotten the final draft down to seven hundred and fifty words and was happy with it, I planned to never touch it again. Turns out, I had to dig it back out after all. I spent the afternoon rewriting the statement during the open studio.
Mom had told me that she and Tom were going to work on the annual Christmas newsletter the next day, so I chose photos from the Elsipogtog trip, edited them and wrote a couple hundred words on the experience. I sent everything that night.
Thursday: I worked on the statement and some other things that needed to get done, including getting some Christmas presents. Early that evening, I found out that Nelson Mandela had died and I emailed Mom with the news. She hadn't yet found out. As I was writing this on Saturday night, I was listening to CBC Music's Essential Classics channel and as I was writing about what happened on Thursday, the folks at CBC had Barber's Adagio on. I wanted to include something in this post to honour Mandela, and the Adagio is perfect. Thanks, CBC!
And this, from another wonderful human:
Friday: I didn't get a whole lot done, which I wasn't thrilled about. Though I managed to finish the contextualizing statement. That evening I went to an end-of-semester/birthday/some-classmates-are-done-this-semester-and-are-moving-away party. I was there during the first half of said party, while it was still fairly small and intimate. We played music on the host's (Greg, one of my classmates) turntable and iPad Mini and iPods from a couple of his friends. This was the first record that he put on. Also, I tried blueberry wine for the first time. I liked it and would happily have it again, but I was expecting more of a blueberry taste.
That day, SWN finally backed down. I wish I could go to Elsipogtog again just to give everyone involved with the protest a high five. However, the fight isn't over: SWN will be back. Some sources are saying in '15, others say they don't know when the company will try again.
Saturday: Saturday was the Met's first radio broadcast of the season: Verdi's Rigoletto, which was wonderful as always. I've missed the Met (and their wonderful orchestra, complete with a horn section that could give the BSO's violin section a run for its money when it comes to knocking peoples' socks off), so it was great to hear them again. Here's Questa o quella from act one (the Met's current production is set in Vegas in 1960):
I spent the day getting a bunch of things done.
Sunday: I worked on several things not related to school, including my packing list and a surprise for the techs, as I want to thank them for supporting me through this semester's bumps and scrapes.
Today marks ten years since my worst violin lesson ever. I hadn't practiced all week, and Lynn knew right away. It took her three tries to get me to tell the truth--the first time I don't think I really gave an answer, the second time I probably said something along the lines of "maybe...?," the third I admitted to what I'd done. I'll never forget her telling me that the lesson was a waste of money (hers don't come cheap, but they're so worth it as she's a really good teacher). And I'll never forget the times that I wanted to find a small corner in her house, curl up into a ball and sob--and the times that I came close to tears on the way home. Simply put, I was miserable. For the last few years, I've been suspicious that that lesson was an early sign of what would culminate in me quitting lessons in April 2004. I can't believe it's been ten years.
The next time I write, I'll be enjoying a much-needed and -deserved break at home. And a week after that is Nutcracker weekend for the BSO. Here's a version of the entire ballet that was performed as a concert (you read that right--no dancers were involved in this performance). My god! We're only two weeks away from Nutcracker weekend!!! **squeals**
Monday: I spent much of the day decompressing from the trip to Elsipogtog. Turns out, Laura and I had gone at the right time, as the protesters had another confrontation with SWN and the RCMP. This one wasn't as major as the one that grabbed headlines in October, thankfully.
I also had another meltdown related to what I've been going through this semester. I could feel it bubbling just under the surface after I read the thing that triggered said meltdown that morning. I waited until late that afternoon before talking with Jake and Alex about it--and crying. And Chris (another tech) now knows some of what I've been going through this semester. This time of year is busy for everyone, techs included, so I'm really thankful that they managed to find time to comfort me.
Tuesday: I had another appointment with Joan--my last for this semester. And I discussed the events of the previous day with her (it was one of those times where, yes, I had an appointment the next day--but I needed to talk with someone right then).
That day Mom told me that she wanted some of my photos from Elsipogtog for the Christmas newsletter. She also wondered why some people are pro-fracking, which I happily researched (see here and here).
Wednesday: Crit Day. I did really well and I'm proud of what I've accomplished this semester. To paraphrase Neil Gaiman: going through a hell that keeps recurring? Make good art. I'm going to deviate from talking about the crit to share this passage from that address with you guys because it's so awesome: "Fourthly, I hope you'll make mistakes. If you're making mistakes, it means you're out there doing something. And the mistakes in themselves can be useful. I once misspelled Caroline, in a letter, transposing the A and the O, and I thought, 'Coraline looks like a real name...'
"And remember that whatever discipline you are in, whether you are a musician or a photographer[!!!], a fine artist or a cartoonist, a writer, a dancer, a designer, whatever you do you have one thing that's unique. You have the ability to make art.
"And for me, and for so many of the people I have known, that's been a lifesaver. The ultimate lifesaver. It gets you through good times and it gets you through the other ones.
"Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love and in business and in friendship and in health and in all the other ways that life can go wrong. And when things get tough, this is what you should do.
"Make good art.
"I'm serious. Husband runs off with a politician? Make good art. Leg crushed and then eaten by mutated boa constrictor? Make good art. IRS on your trail? Make good art. Cat exploded? Make good art. Somebody on the Internet thinks what you do is stupid or evil or it's all been done before? Make good art. Probably things will work out somehow, and eventually time will take the sting away, but that doesn't matter. Do what only you do best. Make good art.
"Make it on the good days too."
And now, back to the blog post.
While my crit went well, I had to rewrite part of the contextualizing statement. I was okay with that, though I'd planned to be done with the thing: once I'd gotten the final draft down to seven hundred and fifty words and was happy with it, I planned to never touch it again. Turns out, I had to dig it back out after all. I spent the afternoon rewriting the statement during the open studio.
Mom had told me that she and Tom were going to work on the annual Christmas newsletter the next day, so I chose photos from the Elsipogtog trip, edited them and wrote a couple hundred words on the experience. I sent everything that night.
Thursday: I worked on the statement and some other things that needed to get done, including getting some Christmas presents. Early that evening, I found out that Nelson Mandela had died and I emailed Mom with the news. She hadn't yet found out. As I was writing this on Saturday night, I was listening to CBC Music's Essential Classics channel and as I was writing about what happened on Thursday, the folks at CBC had Barber's Adagio on. I wanted to include something in this post to honour Mandela, and the Adagio is perfect. Thanks, CBC!
And this, from another wonderful human:
Friday: I didn't get a whole lot done, which I wasn't thrilled about. Though I managed to finish the contextualizing statement. That evening I went to an end-of-semester/birthday/some-classmates-are-done-this-semester-and-are-moving-away party. I was there during the first half of said party, while it was still fairly small and intimate. We played music on the host's (Greg, one of my classmates) turntable and iPad Mini and iPods from a couple of his friends. This was the first record that he put on. Also, I tried blueberry wine for the first time. I liked it and would happily have it again, but I was expecting more of a blueberry taste.
That day, SWN finally backed down. I wish I could go to Elsipogtog again just to give everyone involved with the protest a high five. However, the fight isn't over: SWN will be back. Some sources are saying in '15, others say they don't know when the company will try again.
Saturday: Saturday was the Met's first radio broadcast of the season: Verdi's Rigoletto, which was wonderful as always. I've missed the Met (and their wonderful orchestra, complete with a horn section that could give the BSO's violin section a run for its money when it comes to knocking peoples' socks off), so it was great to hear them again. Here's Questa o quella from act one (the Met's current production is set in Vegas in 1960):
I spent the day getting a bunch of things done.
Sunday: I worked on several things not related to school, including my packing list and a surprise for the techs, as I want to thank them for supporting me through this semester's bumps and scrapes.
Today marks ten years since my worst violin lesson ever. I hadn't practiced all week, and Lynn knew right away. It took her three tries to get me to tell the truth--the first time I don't think I really gave an answer, the second time I probably said something along the lines of "maybe...?," the third I admitted to what I'd done. I'll never forget her telling me that the lesson was a waste of money (hers don't come cheap, but they're so worth it as she's a really good teacher). And I'll never forget the times that I wanted to find a small corner in her house, curl up into a ball and sob--and the times that I came close to tears on the way home. Simply put, I was miserable. For the last few years, I've been suspicious that that lesson was an early sign of what would culminate in me quitting lessons in April 2004. I can't believe it's been ten years.
The next time I write, I'll be enjoying a much-needed and -deserved break at home. And a week after that is Nutcracker weekend for the BSO. Here's a version of the entire ballet that was performed as a concert (you read that right--no dancers were involved in this performance). My god! We're only two weeks away from Nutcracker weekend!!! **squeals**
Sunday, May 19, 2013
just when I thought I had it all (or 95% of it) figured out...
When I did my research project on what sort of camera I wanted to get next, Drew cautioned me about getting a new one right away because my skill level might go up while at NSCAD, and I might outgrow said cam like I did during the first year of the photography diploma at NBCCD. While my skill level has gone up, it hasn't affected what I demand of a camera. Instead it's affected the kind of art I want to make and my future plans. This is one of those times when I think I have it all figured out and then everything changes. It's happened before: a few years ago, I expected to be out on my own and doing my own thing by now. I'm still living at home and struggling to find a job.
FVA opened me up to different ways of creating, and I fell in love with art-making all over again (when I wasn't stressed out about getting my assignments done on time). I was exposed to possibilities that I hadn't known existed--see Denise Richard, Adam MacDonald and WhiteFeather. Being the artist that I dreamed of being was possible after all!
Fast forward to convocation 2012 and I had most of my plans figured out and how I was going to accomplish them. Fast forward again to September '12--whoa! There go most of my plans. Although I still want to do portraiture and dance photography (me + other artists of just about any media = I'm the happiest woman in the world), I'm being exposed to the more artistic and conceptual side of photography and am throwing myself into it more fully than I ever have in my life. The first semester was a bit of a push to think that way and I wondered if I was going to burn out in the process, but the second semester I was right back at it and having a blast. And it got me to thinking: I want to do more of this at a professional level. I want to be a fine artist, not just a photographer who hangs out with a backdrop doing portraits for clients (either in a studio or on location). I want to do work that would only be at home in a gallery (and then hopefully someone's living room wall). I want to apply for grants and use said grants to make art. I want to do residencies (anywhere--Canada, North America, somewhere else--just as long as it isn't a war zone and I can do my thing properly, which means electricity). I may even turn to crowdfunding, e.g., Kickstarter, at some point.
Thing is, I've almost always been surrounded by one way of doing art, and that way is "money first". Yes, in our capitalist society money matters. I need money to pay off the student loan (grrrrrrrrr...), eventually buy a car and get my own house/apartment, get new camera equipment (rechargeable batteries don't last forever), pay for Photoshop once I upgrade from CS6, which will be when what would've been CS8 is released, because I've been upgrading every two versions since I got my first laptop, which means that I have thirty-six months between versions (though I will say that I despise their new subscription-only format, and will hold onto CS6 as tightly as possible for as long as possible). Back on track (whew!), said "money first" approach generally means (for me, anyway) focusing on the commercial aspect of photography rather than the artistic side. I'm told that creating art is fine, but it shouldn't be your main thing because you won't make much money. I know that, but I still want to make art a bigger part of my career than my plans currently state (currently it's down at, oh, item number eight, if not lower). One of the things that I remember Peter telling my class is that if you're a photographer you have to work your butt off for the first ten or so years of your career before you really start to "make it" as an artist. And I realize that I may not end up being the next Ed Burtynsky (though I photograph different things than he does), but who says I can't dream? I may not get to that point, where my images are selling for thousands of dollars a pop, but then again it may end up happening--you just never know. Personally, I wouldn't mind having my work shown in a venue like the National Gallery of Canada (a show there = you've officially "made it").
NSCAD's unofficial motto is "nolo facere insipida", "after John Baldessari's lithograph I will not make any more boring art" (the official motto being "Head, Heart, Hand": [the] school's 'heart' beats as a unique independent art educator; the 'head' is the creative spirit of all who have a connection with the school and its historic good works; the 'hand' is the physical energy and assistance commanded out of loyalty to the school in ensuring its long-term well-being"), and I take said motto seriously. Although I will have to make boring art sometimes in order to make a living, when I don't have to I won't--I'll make art that lives up to Baldessari's words.
Thing is, I need to be able to create and experiment like I need air. If I'm not pushing myself creatively what's the point of life? Many of the artists and musicians that I admire are people who push the limits of creativity, and I aspire to be like them. Gene doesn't make boring art, neither does WhiteFeather. Beethoven didn't--in fact, if it weren't for Beethoven Gene wouldn't be writing music the way he does. I don't want to be a game-changer to the extent that Beethoven was (and Beethoven lived back in the day when artists had patrons), but I'm not exactly someone who will accept the status quo. I want to challenge the old ideas--and yes, I am idealistic.
Some young musicians dream of becoming a famous soloist when they grow up. I never wanted that: during the time that I wanted to be a violinist, I wanted to be a musician in an orchestra. Now, if this were music instead of visual art, I'd be leaning more toward being a soloist. Maybe play in an orchestra, but I'd also be a soloist in my own right. Photography and music are two completely different disciplines, but they are both art--and it's all the same in that it's difficult to "make it". By always wanting to be an artist of some kind, I've never chosen the easy path, anyway. But I prefer the challenge. I don't want to always skip through life because my work is fuelled by both the easy and the difficult times. And yes, I have to state to my parents that yes, this is what I want and I'm going to go for it no matter what. Photography isn't just about the more commercial side, just as painting isn't all about what'll sell--look at the Impressionists (though I do want to sell my work during my lifetime--I'm not Monet).
I will have to spend some time over the next year or so figuring out how I can/want to do this. How much time will I spend on art as opposed to other kinds of photography? How will I do it while still making ends meet and paying off the student loan (I've learned this past year that I'm happy not being the richest person out there--just as long as I know that I have enough to pay the bills and loan, buy food and other important things, buy new cam batteries every four or so years and new equipment every now and then, pay for Photoshop once I switch to the Creative Cloud version, go to PBSO concerts--tickets are just $10 each--maybe go to a movie once or twice a year, and get some new music and books every now and then, I'm happy)?
As I was writing this, I thought of chapter two, The Top Hat, from Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder (Google's preview of that chapter is so awesome that you can read the whole thing), which discusses how, although we start out life being amazed by the world and everything in it, we eventually get used to life. The fact that we're told that the things that amaze us are just ordinary and nothing to get excited about and to shut up and sit down doesn't help matters. Like Sophie, I am aware of this and I never want to lose my childlike wonder at the world. Devoting more time to fine art is a way of holding onto said wonder.
FVA opened me up to different ways of creating, and I fell in love with art-making all over again (when I wasn't stressed out about getting my assignments done on time). I was exposed to possibilities that I hadn't known existed--see Denise Richard, Adam MacDonald and WhiteFeather. Being the artist that I dreamed of being was possible after all!
Fast forward to convocation 2012 and I had most of my plans figured out and how I was going to accomplish them. Fast forward again to September '12--whoa! There go most of my plans. Although I still want to do portraiture and dance photography (me + other artists of just about any media = I'm the happiest woman in the world), I'm being exposed to the more artistic and conceptual side of photography and am throwing myself into it more fully than I ever have in my life. The first semester was a bit of a push to think that way and I wondered if I was going to burn out in the process, but the second semester I was right back at it and having a blast. And it got me to thinking: I want to do more of this at a professional level. I want to be a fine artist, not just a photographer who hangs out with a backdrop doing portraits for clients (either in a studio or on location). I want to do work that would only be at home in a gallery (and then hopefully someone's living room wall). I want to apply for grants and use said grants to make art. I want to do residencies (anywhere--Canada, North America, somewhere else--just as long as it isn't a war zone and I can do my thing properly, which means electricity). I may even turn to crowdfunding, e.g., Kickstarter, at some point.
Thing is, I've almost always been surrounded by one way of doing art, and that way is "money first". Yes, in our capitalist society money matters. I need money to pay off the student loan (grrrrrrrrr...), eventually buy a car and get my own house/apartment, get new camera equipment (rechargeable batteries don't last forever), pay for Photoshop once I upgrade from CS6, which will be when what would've been CS8 is released, because I've been upgrading every two versions since I got my first laptop, which means that I have thirty-six months between versions (though I will say that I despise their new subscription-only format, and will hold onto CS6 as tightly as possible for as long as possible). Back on track (whew!), said "money first" approach generally means (for me, anyway) focusing on the commercial aspect of photography rather than the artistic side. I'm told that creating art is fine, but it shouldn't be your main thing because you won't make much money. I know that, but I still want to make art a bigger part of my career than my plans currently state (currently it's down at, oh, item number eight, if not lower). One of the things that I remember Peter telling my class is that if you're a photographer you have to work your butt off for the first ten or so years of your career before you really start to "make it" as an artist. And I realize that I may not end up being the next Ed Burtynsky (though I photograph different things than he does), but who says I can't dream? I may not get to that point, where my images are selling for thousands of dollars a pop, but then again it may end up happening--you just never know. Personally, I wouldn't mind having my work shown in a venue like the National Gallery of Canada (a show there = you've officially "made it").
NSCAD's unofficial motto is "nolo facere insipida", "after John Baldessari's lithograph I will not make any more boring art" (the official motto being "Head, Heart, Hand": [the] school's 'heart' beats as a unique independent art educator; the 'head' is the creative spirit of all who have a connection with the school and its historic good works; the 'hand' is the physical energy and assistance commanded out of loyalty to the school in ensuring its long-term well-being"), and I take said motto seriously. Although I will have to make boring art sometimes in order to make a living, when I don't have to I won't--I'll make art that lives up to Baldessari's words.
Thing is, I need to be able to create and experiment like I need air. If I'm not pushing myself creatively what's the point of life? Many of the artists and musicians that I admire are people who push the limits of creativity, and I aspire to be like them. Gene doesn't make boring art, neither does WhiteFeather. Beethoven didn't--in fact, if it weren't for Beethoven Gene wouldn't be writing music the way he does. I don't want to be a game-changer to the extent that Beethoven was (and Beethoven lived back in the day when artists had patrons), but I'm not exactly someone who will accept the status quo. I want to challenge the old ideas--and yes, I am idealistic.
Some young musicians dream of becoming a famous soloist when they grow up. I never wanted that: during the time that I wanted to be a violinist, I wanted to be a musician in an orchestra. Now, if this were music instead of visual art, I'd be leaning more toward being a soloist. Maybe play in an orchestra, but I'd also be a soloist in my own right. Photography and music are two completely different disciplines, but they are both art--and it's all the same in that it's difficult to "make it". By always wanting to be an artist of some kind, I've never chosen the easy path, anyway. But I prefer the challenge. I don't want to always skip through life because my work is fuelled by both the easy and the difficult times. And yes, I have to state to my parents that yes, this is what I want and I'm going to go for it no matter what. Photography isn't just about the more commercial side, just as painting isn't all about what'll sell--look at the Impressionists (though I do want to sell my work during my lifetime--I'm not Monet).
I will have to spend some time over the next year or so figuring out how I can/want to do this. How much time will I spend on art as opposed to other kinds of photography? How will I do it while still making ends meet and paying off the student loan (I've learned this past year that I'm happy not being the richest person out there--just as long as I know that I have enough to pay the bills and loan, buy food and other important things, buy new cam batteries every four or so years and new equipment every now and then, pay for Photoshop once I switch to the Creative Cloud version, go to PBSO concerts--tickets are just $10 each--maybe go to a movie once or twice a year, and get some new music and books every now and then, I'm happy)?
As I was writing this, I thought of chapter two, The Top Hat, from Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder (Google's preview of that chapter is so awesome that you can read the whole thing), which discusses how, although we start out life being amazed by the world and everything in it, we eventually get used to life. The fact that we're told that the things that amaze us are just ordinary and nothing to get excited about and to shut up and sit down doesn't help matters. Like Sophie, I am aware of this and I never want to lose my childlike wonder at the world. Devoting more time to fine art is a way of holding onto said wonder.
Monday, April 1, 2013
home stretch
Just when I thought finals couldn't get any more intense, they do.
Monday: If there's one thing I love during finals it's a working class. I spent most of it slaving away on one (rather difficult) photo.
Tuesday: I spent much of the day working on homework, including printing the first set of photos for my project for the WftA show.
That evening, we had a meeting to decide the next direct action. This one will be an outdoor party, celebrating the end of an intense year and letting the bigwigs know that the students are going to come back even stronger next Fall.
Wednesday: I spent much of the day writing for WftA and Obsolescence. I also registered for the last two courses that I'm going to take next Fall. In addition to APC, I need to take nine credits of art history. Two can be any level, but one must be a 3000- or 4000-level course. There weren't many 3000-level courses to choose from that hadn't already been waitlisted (which is nuts, considering that registration only opened a few weeks ago) and I don't have enough history credits to take 4000-level courses. Before registering, I went through the academic calendar and made a list of all the history courses that I was interested in. I then had a look on WebAdvisor (which is where you register for courses) to see what was actually available for next Fall. Only one of my choices was available: Survey of Indigenous Art, which is a 2000-level course. Most of the 3000-level courses that were available required prerequisites that I didn't have. The only courses that met my credit requirements were Craft and Design History 1750 - 1950 and Craft: Decor Arts of Ancient Rome. The first one (which lists 20th Century Art as a prerequisite) is the prerequisite for the second one. Whew! Thankfully, I already have four history courses under my belt, including the two FVA art history survey courses. I had to get permission from the prof in order to take the upper-level course (Decor Arts), so I emailed her. She emailed back within minutes, and off I went to school to print off the email, which I took to OSAS. Turns out I'd already been registered for that course, so all I have to be concerned about now is time-management for next fall. **gulp**
That evening's class was the shortest yet: all we had to do was split into groups, discuss each others' final projects, and then meet with Jeff individually and discuss said projects as well as any re-dos for the last project with him.
Thursday: I went to school early because I wanted to visit the Visual Resources Collection and see if they had any movies that I'd like to check out for the long weekend. I spent several minutes reading titles and nothing sounded interesting--until I spotted a couple of movies on the top shelf. Anna and the King and another, Anna and the King of Siam, which turned out to be the original--Anna and the King being a remake. I checked out both. I've seen Anna and the King before, probably around 2000 or 2001, meaning that I was no older than thirteen. I remember Tom fast-forwarding over some of the nastier parts (PG-13 rating, BTW), and although I understand why he did that--he's a parent after all--it's still frustrated me for over a decade. Now I can finally watch those parts: while I sometimes wish that I could go back to the carefree days known as childhood, being an adult has its perks.
Another working class. I finally finished the photo that I'd been slaving over. I didn't want to look at it for another day or so.
Friday: Hello, sleeping in until ten on a Friday!
I spent the day being as lazy as possible while still getting work done. I also skyped with my parents for the first time in forever and spring-cleaned my room.
Saturday: More homework--while listening to La Traviata. I think it's time I admitted that I love that opera. I can hum along with at least a third of the melodies. Having seen Moulon Rouge!, I wondered if the writers got ideas from the opera. Turns out, I was right. La Bohème and Orpheus in the Underworld (Offenbach) are also cited.
Anna and the King of Siam, which I watched that evening, is an okay movie, though overly-dramatic and Louis dies at the end when he's thrown from his horse. In real life, he married, his wife had a couple of kids, and he lived to be sixty-two, when he died in the flu pandemic in 1919. Also, in the movie Anna's surname is Owens, rather than Leonowens. Turns out, Leonowens is actually an amalgamation of her husband's middle and last names--and when he combined the two, her mom and stepdad were not happy.
Saturday night was far from dull. The emergency alarm went off at about nine and we all had to evacuate. It went off again at three AM for about ten torturous minutes and then there was yet another alarm at six AM, this time a one-minute test. I should mention that the alarm that the school where I live uses is not your ordinary alarm: in addition to the usual ring, they also throw in a high-pitched tone that tortures your ears. There's also a robotic male voice telling you what to do, which is the system's only redeeming quality.
Sunday: On my way back to my room from brunch at the meal hall, I found out that the three AM alarm had been a fire in one of the other two residences.
I spent most of the afternoon at the Port Campus, working on my Graphics final (a portfolio of my work, which I'm doing in a brochure layout). On my way back, it was so warm out that I took my coat off a few blocks from home. I had my windows open for a couple hours after supper. The evening was devoted to starting my final essay for WftA (1,500 words minimum) and watching Anna and the King, which is much better than Anna and the King of Siam.
Monday: If there's one thing I love during finals it's a working class. I spent most of it slaving away on one (rather difficult) photo.
Tuesday: I spent much of the day working on homework, including printing the first set of photos for my project for the WftA show.
That evening, we had a meeting to decide the next direct action. This one will be an outdoor party, celebrating the end of an intense year and letting the bigwigs know that the students are going to come back even stronger next Fall.
Wednesday: I spent much of the day writing for WftA and Obsolescence. I also registered for the last two courses that I'm going to take next Fall. In addition to APC, I need to take nine credits of art history. Two can be any level, but one must be a 3000- or 4000-level course. There weren't many 3000-level courses to choose from that hadn't already been waitlisted (which is nuts, considering that registration only opened a few weeks ago) and I don't have enough history credits to take 4000-level courses. Before registering, I went through the academic calendar and made a list of all the history courses that I was interested in. I then had a look on WebAdvisor (which is where you register for courses) to see what was actually available for next Fall. Only one of my choices was available: Survey of Indigenous Art, which is a 2000-level course. Most of the 3000-level courses that were available required prerequisites that I didn't have. The only courses that met my credit requirements were Craft and Design History 1750 - 1950 and Craft: Decor Arts of Ancient Rome. The first one (which lists 20th Century Art as a prerequisite) is the prerequisite for the second one. Whew! Thankfully, I already have four history courses under my belt, including the two FVA art history survey courses. I had to get permission from the prof in order to take the upper-level course (Decor Arts), so I emailed her. She emailed back within minutes, and off I went to school to print off the email, which I took to OSAS. Turns out I'd already been registered for that course, so all I have to be concerned about now is time-management for next fall. **gulp**
That evening's class was the shortest yet: all we had to do was split into groups, discuss each others' final projects, and then meet with Jeff individually and discuss said projects as well as any re-dos for the last project with him.
Thursday: I went to school early because I wanted to visit the Visual Resources Collection and see if they had any movies that I'd like to check out for the long weekend. I spent several minutes reading titles and nothing sounded interesting--until I spotted a couple of movies on the top shelf. Anna and the King and another, Anna and the King of Siam, which turned out to be the original--Anna and the King being a remake. I checked out both. I've seen Anna and the King before, probably around 2000 or 2001, meaning that I was no older than thirteen. I remember Tom fast-forwarding over some of the nastier parts (PG-13 rating, BTW), and although I understand why he did that--he's a parent after all--it's still frustrated me for over a decade. Now I can finally watch those parts: while I sometimes wish that I could go back to the carefree days known as childhood, being an adult has its perks.
Another working class. I finally finished the photo that I'd been slaving over. I didn't want to look at it for another day or so.
Friday: Hello, sleeping in until ten on a Friday!
I spent the day being as lazy as possible while still getting work done. I also skyped with my parents for the first time in forever and spring-cleaned my room.
Saturday: More homework--while listening to La Traviata. I think it's time I admitted that I love that opera. I can hum along with at least a third of the melodies. Having seen Moulon Rouge!, I wondered if the writers got ideas from the opera. Turns out, I was right. La Bohème and Orpheus in the Underworld (Offenbach) are also cited.
Anna and the King of Siam, which I watched that evening, is an okay movie, though overly-dramatic and Louis dies at the end when he's thrown from his horse. In real life, he married, his wife had a couple of kids, and he lived to be sixty-two, when he died in the flu pandemic in 1919. Also, in the movie Anna's surname is Owens, rather than Leonowens. Turns out, Leonowens is actually an amalgamation of her husband's middle and last names--and when he combined the two, her mom and stepdad were not happy.
Saturday night was far from dull. The emergency alarm went off at about nine and we all had to evacuate. It went off again at three AM for about ten torturous minutes and then there was yet another alarm at six AM, this time a one-minute test. I should mention that the alarm that the school where I live uses is not your ordinary alarm: in addition to the usual ring, they also throw in a high-pitched tone that tortures your ears. There's also a robotic male voice telling you what to do, which is the system's only redeeming quality.
Sunday: On my way back to my room from brunch at the meal hall, I found out that the three AM alarm had been a fire in one of the other two residences.
I spent most of the afternoon at the Port Campus, working on my Graphics final (a portfolio of my work, which I'm doing in a brochure layout). On my way back, it was so warm out that I took my coat off a few blocks from home. I had my windows open for a couple hours after supper. The evening was devoted to starting my final essay for WftA (1,500 words minimum) and watching Anna and the King, which is much better than Anna and the King of Siam.
Monday, March 4, 2013
I am artist, hear me roar
This week was extremely busy, crazy and rather stressful, but I think I'm mostly recovered from it.
Monday: Monday was the beginning of Assessment Week at NBCCD (this week is their March Break).
When I got to school that afternoon, Keven, NSCAD's daytime security guard, told me that the reason why NS' "spring" break is at the time that it is is because that's the week in which students where committing suicide the most. So while it makes sense to have the break during that week, universities (including NSCAD) are still in midterm mode, so students come back with a few more exams or midterm projects to do. I like NB's break schedule a lot better.
We watched another movie during class: Blade Runner (I can't remember which version).
Tuesday: I spent the day tweaking the first project for Graphics, coming up with ideas for the second one and doing the readings for Obsolescence. I finished the afternoon by taking the files to Staples and getting them printed (which was an adventure).
We had another GA that evening. FUNSCAD I (the teachers' union) could go on strike on Wednesday. If they go on strike, SUNSCAD will hold a rally on Friday. One of the issues that FUNSCAD I is fighting is the fact that the administration is trying to prevent part-time and regular part-time faculty (part-time has three different levels, and from there it gets rather complex) from being on-campus outside the regular semester, which doesn't bode well for students who want to meet with a part-timer in the summer. If this is anything like FUNSCAD II's almost-strike, Tuesday night is going to be a sleepless one for me: I, like my fellow students and the faculty, don't want the strike to happen.
Wednesday: I went to school early to put my book together (Jeff wanted them bound).
He met with us individually to critique our first projects and discuss our ideas for the second project. My crit went very well.
Thursday: Thursday was a working class, which made me very happy because I wasn't as far along with the project as I would've liked.
I finally finished my homework for Friday that night (the usual readings for Obsolescence--this week's set was the last for that course--and writing for Writing for the Arts).
Friday: The usual discussion of the week's readings. At the end of class, Bob went over our proposals for the final focus essay (two thousand words, which will make this essay the longest I've written for a college or university assignment--bring it) and suggested ways in which we could take the essay further.
I did my presentation for Writing for the Arts, and I think it was one of my best presentations at either NBCCD or NSCAD. My theme was Marcel Duchamp and readymades. I gave a biography of him and then branched out, talking about the Fountain, his paintings, and artists who do similar work: Gene Nichols (who'll use just about anything to create rhythm: "I am addicted to sound, all sound. That's what gets me to thinking about everything as music.") and Andy Warhol (who used cheap, readily-available techniques to churn out multiples of his works). I couldn't help but get excited: this is the kind of thing that I live for. This is why I'm an artist.
After class, I discussed my idea for the WftA show with Anna. My idea was to take a bunch of photos around NSCAD, print them, arrange the prints with an envelope and take a photo of that. Title: Love Letters to NSCAD. While my idea was good, Anna felt it could be a bit stronger. She suggested actually mailing the photos to the Board of Governors (BoG) and NSCAD's acting president. We both got rather excited about the project, and Anna was thrilled that I was taking on a project like that: it couldn't be more timely.
That evening, I posted on the SUNSCAD Facebook group, explaining my idea, asking who's on the BoG and how I could contact them. I got the info, and then another comment suggesting that I send photos to the HFX Chamber of Commerce, as business organizations would be negatively affected in a big way if the university went under and the municipal government, as they have been silent throughout the whole mess at NSCAD.
One of the things I love about NSCAD is how they encourage students to be political. To quote the manifesto, "NSCAD's ability to nurture critical, political and philosophical thought continually sets us apart. It cultivates the artists and critical thinkers needed in today's society." I noticed that atmosphere right away, and while I soaked it up last semester, it was only in my finals that it really started to worm its way into my art. My approach to my education at NSCAD was always as another set of tools in my creative toolbox, and as someone who's become more political in the last four or so years, I appreciate the university's contributions to my art practice. Thanks, NSCAD!
Saturday: After such a crazy week (I was up to my eyeballs in homework every evening and stressing about whether I'd be able to get it all done on time), I tried to take the day as slowly as possible while still getting work done--and listening to Parsifal. By the way, the Met's current production was directed by Fraçois Girard, who directed The Red Violin. Oh, and he's a Canuck!
Sunday: I spent the afternoon working on my Graphics homework.
The BSO played a concert today. Feels like they just did one, but it was back in January. You know you've been busy when... Today's concert was the one that, if I lived in or around Bangor, I would've gone to (the cheap tickets are fairly affordable on a student budget--and yes, I'd put up with the crappiest seats in the world if it meant a couple hours of listening to one of my favourite orchestras). They played Vaughan-Williams' Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (one of my favourite pieces), Suite No. 1 from Respighi's Ancient Airs and Dances and Vivaldi's Four Seasons (another favourite). All three pieces are rather strings-heavy, which makes me happy. I love a full orchestra--and when the BSO is going full-tilt, they can knock my socks off--but there's just something about a beautiful string section. The fact that the BSO's violin section is beyond awesome, reminds me why that instrument is one of my favourites and makes me proud to play the violin doesn't hurt, either. Long story short: BSO, I love you!
Monday: Monday was the beginning of Assessment Week at NBCCD (this week is their March Break).
When I got to school that afternoon, Keven, NSCAD's daytime security guard, told me that the reason why NS' "spring" break is at the time that it is is because that's the week in which students where committing suicide the most. So while it makes sense to have the break during that week, universities (including NSCAD) are still in midterm mode, so students come back with a few more exams or midterm projects to do. I like NB's break schedule a lot better.
We watched another movie during class: Blade Runner (I can't remember which version).
Tuesday: I spent the day tweaking the first project for Graphics, coming up with ideas for the second one and doing the readings for Obsolescence. I finished the afternoon by taking the files to Staples and getting them printed (which was an adventure).
We had another GA that evening. FUNSCAD I (the teachers' union) could go on strike on Wednesday. If they go on strike, SUNSCAD will hold a rally on Friday. One of the issues that FUNSCAD I is fighting is the fact that the administration is trying to prevent part-time and regular part-time faculty (part-time has three different levels, and from there it gets rather complex) from being on-campus outside the regular semester, which doesn't bode well for students who want to meet with a part-timer in the summer. If this is anything like FUNSCAD II's almost-strike, Tuesday night is going to be a sleepless one for me: I, like my fellow students and the faculty, don't want the strike to happen.
Wednesday: I went to school early to put my book together (Jeff wanted them bound).
He met with us individually to critique our first projects and discuss our ideas for the second project. My crit went very well.
Thursday: Thursday was a working class, which made me very happy because I wasn't as far along with the project as I would've liked.
I finally finished my homework for Friday that night (the usual readings for Obsolescence--this week's set was the last for that course--and writing for Writing for the Arts).
Friday: The usual discussion of the week's readings. At the end of class, Bob went over our proposals for the final focus essay (two thousand words, which will make this essay the longest I've written for a college or university assignment--bring it) and suggested ways in which we could take the essay further.
I did my presentation for Writing for the Arts, and I think it was one of my best presentations at either NBCCD or NSCAD. My theme was Marcel Duchamp and readymades. I gave a biography of him and then branched out, talking about the Fountain, his paintings, and artists who do similar work: Gene Nichols (who'll use just about anything to create rhythm: "I am addicted to sound, all sound. That's what gets me to thinking about everything as music.") and Andy Warhol (who used cheap, readily-available techniques to churn out multiples of his works). I couldn't help but get excited: this is the kind of thing that I live for. This is why I'm an artist.
After class, I discussed my idea for the WftA show with Anna. My idea was to take a bunch of photos around NSCAD, print them, arrange the prints with an envelope and take a photo of that. Title: Love Letters to NSCAD. While my idea was good, Anna felt it could be a bit stronger. She suggested actually mailing the photos to the Board of Governors (BoG) and NSCAD's acting president. We both got rather excited about the project, and Anna was thrilled that I was taking on a project like that: it couldn't be more timely.
That evening, I posted on the SUNSCAD Facebook group, explaining my idea, asking who's on the BoG and how I could contact them. I got the info, and then another comment suggesting that I send photos to the HFX Chamber of Commerce, as business organizations would be negatively affected in a big way if the university went under and the municipal government, as they have been silent throughout the whole mess at NSCAD.
One of the things I love about NSCAD is how they encourage students to be political. To quote the manifesto, "NSCAD's ability to nurture critical, political and philosophical thought continually sets us apart. It cultivates the artists and critical thinkers needed in today's society." I noticed that atmosphere right away, and while I soaked it up last semester, it was only in my finals that it really started to worm its way into my art. My approach to my education at NSCAD was always as another set of tools in my creative toolbox, and as someone who's become more political in the last four or so years, I appreciate the university's contributions to my art practice. Thanks, NSCAD!
Saturday: After such a crazy week (I was up to my eyeballs in homework every evening and stressing about whether I'd be able to get it all done on time), I tried to take the day as slowly as possible while still getting work done--and listening to Parsifal. By the way, the Met's current production was directed by Fraçois Girard, who directed The Red Violin. Oh, and he's a Canuck!
Sunday: I spent the afternoon working on my Graphics homework.
The BSO played a concert today. Feels like they just did one, but it was back in January. You know you've been busy when... Today's concert was the one that, if I lived in or around Bangor, I would've gone to (the cheap tickets are fairly affordable on a student budget--and yes, I'd put up with the crappiest seats in the world if it meant a couple hours of listening to one of my favourite orchestras). They played Vaughan-Williams' Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (one of my favourite pieces), Suite No. 1 from Respighi's Ancient Airs and Dances and Vivaldi's Four Seasons (another favourite). All three pieces are rather strings-heavy, which makes me happy. I love a full orchestra--and when the BSO is going full-tilt, they can knock my socks off--but there's just something about a beautiful string section. The fact that the BSO's violin section is beyond awesome, reminds me why that instrument is one of my favourites and makes me proud to play the violin doesn't hurt, either. Long story short: BSO, I love you!
Sunday, October 14, 2012
art festivals = best thing ever
Just when I think I can't fall any more deeply in love with Halifax, I do. Also: the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival has some serious competition in terms of awesomeness.
Monday: Tom helped me upgrade to Photoshop CS6, which was complicated by the fact that I hadn't done a proper uninstall when I lost access to the beta version of CS6 (oops). Photoshop = tons of files that are hidden all over your computer. I eventually found the uninstall application for CS6, uninstalled the beta version, and everything went smoothly after that.
Tuesday: We did a critique and then disappeared into the darkroom. I'm proud to say that I'm becoming more comfortable with the NSCAD enlargers with every day that I spend in the darkroom.
Wednesday: We started on another book, a hardcover one this time. We put together the cover in class, and we'll finish our books this coming Wednesday.
I spent the rest of the day printing for Intro Photo and listening to CBC Radio 2 (102.7 FM in Halifax).
I planned to go to that evening's dance club meeting--a belly dance class--but because I'd been coughing a fair amount for a day or two and my lungs were rather dry, I didn't think it'd be a good idea to do the class.
Thursday: I'm interested in teaching a ballet class for the NSCAD dance club, so I Facebook messaged the dance club's founder, Hannah, that morning. Because my first teacher, who taught me for six years, taught according to the Royal Academy of Dance's (RAD) method, and I only have a year of another method (Cecchetti, which is more difficult than RAD), I'll teach according to the RAD method.
That afternoon was a crit for our projects for Bob's class. The theme was documentary and documents, and I did my project on my experience of NSCAD thus far. My critique went well, though Bob wanted me to add to the project and play around with the slide show settings in Lightroom.
After class, I put up election posters.
Friday: Before class, I had a look through one of the binders of scholarships in the OSAS office. I found one that I can apply for and have enough time to do it (the deadline's in December). I'm also applying for NSCAD's two general scholarships, and the deadline for those is in eleven days. However, I don't have to do a portfolio for the NSCAD scholarships: I just have to fill out the form, photocopy a page from my student loan and write a statement about my eligibility for the scholarships. After doing the artsnb scholarship twice, the lack of a portfolio--and therefore stress--feels weird.
We spent most of class critiquing each others' work. Mine went very well, though I had to reprint one of my photos.
Saturday: I spent a large chunk of the day working on my essay for the NSCAD scholarships.
That evening was Nocturne, which was about as much fun as Harvest Jazz and Blues--but compressed into six hours (6:00 PM - 12:00 AM). I started at the Granville Campus, and worked my way down to the Port Campus, where Bob had an installation piece called Sea Wall. Much of what I went to was very avent-guarde, which I loved.
I then worked my way down Barrington, stopping to watch dancers perform in the windows of Serpentine Studios, three circus shows (one was a street-style show with fire-eaters, the other two were more polished shows by Halifax Circus: one featured juggling, balance acts and contortionists, the other was a silks routine), a show that was a combination of music (which was sometimes melodic and sometimes a cacophony), modern dance, writing, spoken word--that was more about the sound than the words themselves--and drawing, and see ViewPoint Gallery's Indivisible show, which is based on prime numbers. I then headed down to the Port Campus and Sea Wall. I walked around the piece--and then discovered that you could walk through it! So I did, and I walked through it no fewer than three times. Bob was there, chatting with festival-goers, and I stopped to say "hi."
By that point, it was almost midnight, so I went home.
Sunday: I spent the afternoon in the senior darkroom (NSCAD has two darkrooms, BTW), reprinting that photo for Intro Photo.
I also took some more photos for my Beyond the Frame project. I plan to put the slide show together tomorrow.
Monday: Tom helped me upgrade to Photoshop CS6, which was complicated by the fact that I hadn't done a proper uninstall when I lost access to the beta version of CS6 (oops). Photoshop = tons of files that are hidden all over your computer. I eventually found the uninstall application for CS6, uninstalled the beta version, and everything went smoothly after that.
Tuesday: We did a critique and then disappeared into the darkroom. I'm proud to say that I'm becoming more comfortable with the NSCAD enlargers with every day that I spend in the darkroom.
Wednesday: We started on another book, a hardcover one this time. We put together the cover in class, and we'll finish our books this coming Wednesday.
I spent the rest of the day printing for Intro Photo and listening to CBC Radio 2 (102.7 FM in Halifax).
I planned to go to that evening's dance club meeting--a belly dance class--but because I'd been coughing a fair amount for a day or two and my lungs were rather dry, I didn't think it'd be a good idea to do the class.
Thursday: I'm interested in teaching a ballet class for the NSCAD dance club, so I Facebook messaged the dance club's founder, Hannah, that morning. Because my first teacher, who taught me for six years, taught according to the Royal Academy of Dance's (RAD) method, and I only have a year of another method (Cecchetti, which is more difficult than RAD), I'll teach according to the RAD method.
That afternoon was a crit for our projects for Bob's class. The theme was documentary and documents, and I did my project on my experience of NSCAD thus far. My critique went well, though Bob wanted me to add to the project and play around with the slide show settings in Lightroom.
After class, I put up election posters.
Friday: Before class, I had a look through one of the binders of scholarships in the OSAS office. I found one that I can apply for and have enough time to do it (the deadline's in December). I'm also applying for NSCAD's two general scholarships, and the deadline for those is in eleven days. However, I don't have to do a portfolio for the NSCAD scholarships: I just have to fill out the form, photocopy a page from my student loan and write a statement about my eligibility for the scholarships. After doing the artsnb scholarship twice, the lack of a portfolio--and therefore stress--feels weird.
We spent most of class critiquing each others' work. Mine went very well, though I had to reprint one of my photos.
Saturday: I spent a large chunk of the day working on my essay for the NSCAD scholarships.
That evening was Nocturne, which was about as much fun as Harvest Jazz and Blues--but compressed into six hours (6:00 PM - 12:00 AM). I started at the Granville Campus, and worked my way down to the Port Campus, where Bob had an installation piece called Sea Wall. Much of what I went to was very avent-guarde, which I loved.
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| Chaos and Co., which performed at the Granville Mall. They also had a guy playing a drum kit, and two other drummers playing djembes. |
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| Antic Art/Instar Variation. These performers danced all through downtown. |
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| Dance at Night at Serpentine Studios |
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| Sea Wall |
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| Sea Wall with the Port Campus. |
Sunday: I spent the afternoon in the senior darkroom (NSCAD has two darkrooms, BTW), reprinting that photo for Intro Photo.
I also took some more photos for my Beyond the Frame project. I plan to put the slide show together tomorrow.
Monday, October 1, 2012
having fun in the photography department
We're officially in the third week of school at NSCAD--but having spent three years at NBCCD (which starts the school year for non-FVA students on the Tuesday after Labour Day), it doesn't feel like three weeks.
Monday: I spent the afternoon walking around NSCAD, exploring and taking photos for my Beyond the Frame project, which is about my experience at NSCAD thus far.
That evening, I went to the Imaginus poster sale at St. Mary's University and bought three posters: Carmen by Mark Spain, Guns and Roses by Shepard Fairey and a Warhol quote poster, "Art is what you can get away with."
Tuesday: Because I'd booked the lighting studio for nine, I was up bright and early that morning. I did the shoot, making a handful of mistakes in the process (I corrected them).
Class that afternoon was a working class, which was great because I needed to process that roll that I'd shot a couple hours prior.
The day before, my new computer arrived--but neither my parents nor I knew where it was (the location given in the tracking info was rather cryptic). I didn't even know that it had arrived until Tom emailed me on Tuesday. A bunch of stressed-out emails ensued, and I planned to call UPS on Wednesday.
Wednesday: This week, we designed and printed book covers on a letterpress. We'll bind the books using perfect binding. My covers (we had to print three) have a treble clef followed by the word "music" with each letter a different font, with a silhouette of a violin from the side and lying on it's back below the word. All this is printed in dark blue ink. Here's a video about letterpress.
Upside Down, Left To Right: A Letterpress Film from Danny Cooke on Vimeo.
During lunch, the NSCAD Dance and Movement Club had their first meeting, which I attended. We discussed what kinds of dance we wanted to do, and we'll be inviting local dance instructors to teach at NSCAD--which means FREE DANCE CLASSES!!! You can't beat that--especially if you're a student who's living on a shoestring budget.
When I checked my email that afternoon, I found out that the computer had arrived at the residence mail room. I immediately emailed my parents, and then called a cab to NSCAD and went to the mail room. The parcel had already been picked up by my RA, Julia, so I went up to her room, where I opened it. Hello, new computer! It turns out that the computer had been sent to the employee mail room, which explained the mysterious location in the tracking info. I emailed my parents again, telling them the good news. End of stress. I plan to migrate my stuff--almost five years' worth of it--next weekend. I'm going to lose the ability to work with one or two programs, specifically Quark Xpress, but I'm thinking of getting Adobe InDesign (Quark's competitor, which is currently the industry standard) at some point. The fact that Adobe is very helpful when you have a question about one or other of their products doesn't hurt, either (Quark is known for being extremely difficult to deal with).
That evening, I reshot the Intro Photo assignment again. Thankfully, this was the final reshoot.
Thursday: This week, class was moved to the Academy Building, which is a stone's throw from the Granville campus, because NSCAD's board of governors was meeting in the classroom where I usually have Photography Beyond the Frame. We spent much of the class finishing the critique (mine was a good one, in case you're wondering), and also discussed the current project, which we'd started a week prior (the one where I'm taking photos that document my NSCAD experience).
I spent the evening in the darkroom, along with four of my classmates: we all needed to bang out five prints for the critique on Friday afternoon.
Friday: The critique went fairly well for me. I still needed to reprint my five prints because they didn't have as good a range of values as they should have (B&W photos--both film and digital--should have a full range of values: from pure white to pure black).
Saturday: I got my Intro Photo homework done that afternoon. The current assignment is to shoot three rolls of thirty-six-exposure film or the equivalent in another kind of film (e.g., nine rolls of twelve-exposure 120 film). I shot the first roll that afternoon. We were to work briskly, but carefully--and no looking through the viewfinder! I had the first roll done in about fifteen minutes, which is amazing, considering that it can take me forever to finish off a roll.
I spent the rest of the day getting little things around my room done and reading the Framework for Sustainability (the link goes to the PDF download), which is the report that the board of governors submitted to the NS government--and which SUNSCAD opposes (for good reason: there's got to be a better way of saving money and bringing NSCAD back into the black than slowly killing the university).
Sunday: I spent yesterday working on my Beyond the Frame project and slaving over a letter to the Nova Scotia premier and minister of labour and advanced education, telling them what I, as a NSCAD student, think about some of the parts of the Framework. I'm going to tweak the letter a bit more before I send it.
Monday: I spent the afternoon walking around NSCAD, exploring and taking photos for my Beyond the Frame project, which is about my experience at NSCAD thus far.
That evening, I went to the Imaginus poster sale at St. Mary's University and bought three posters: Carmen by Mark Spain, Guns and Roses by Shepard Fairey and a Warhol quote poster, "Art is what you can get away with."
Tuesday: Because I'd booked the lighting studio for nine, I was up bright and early that morning. I did the shoot, making a handful of mistakes in the process (I corrected them).
Class that afternoon was a working class, which was great because I needed to process that roll that I'd shot a couple hours prior.
The day before, my new computer arrived--but neither my parents nor I knew where it was (the location given in the tracking info was rather cryptic). I didn't even know that it had arrived until Tom emailed me on Tuesday. A bunch of stressed-out emails ensued, and I planned to call UPS on Wednesday.
Wednesday: This week, we designed and printed book covers on a letterpress. We'll bind the books using perfect binding. My covers (we had to print three) have a treble clef followed by the word "music" with each letter a different font, with a silhouette of a violin from the side and lying on it's back below the word. All this is printed in dark blue ink. Here's a video about letterpress.
Upside Down, Left To Right: A Letterpress Film from Danny Cooke on Vimeo.
During lunch, the NSCAD Dance and Movement Club had their first meeting, which I attended. We discussed what kinds of dance we wanted to do, and we'll be inviting local dance instructors to teach at NSCAD--which means FREE DANCE CLASSES!!! You can't beat that--especially if you're a student who's living on a shoestring budget.
When I checked my email that afternoon, I found out that the computer had arrived at the residence mail room. I immediately emailed my parents, and then called a cab to NSCAD and went to the mail room. The parcel had already been picked up by my RA, Julia, so I went up to her room, where I opened it. Hello, new computer! It turns out that the computer had been sent to the employee mail room, which explained the mysterious location in the tracking info. I emailed my parents again, telling them the good news. End of stress. I plan to migrate my stuff--almost five years' worth of it--next weekend. I'm going to lose the ability to work with one or two programs, specifically Quark Xpress, but I'm thinking of getting Adobe InDesign (Quark's competitor, which is currently the industry standard) at some point. The fact that Adobe is very helpful when you have a question about one or other of their products doesn't hurt, either (Quark is known for being extremely difficult to deal with).
That evening, I reshot the Intro Photo assignment again. Thankfully, this was the final reshoot.
Thursday: This week, class was moved to the Academy Building, which is a stone's throw from the Granville campus, because NSCAD's board of governors was meeting in the classroom where I usually have Photography Beyond the Frame. We spent much of the class finishing the critique (mine was a good one, in case you're wondering), and also discussed the current project, which we'd started a week prior (the one where I'm taking photos that document my NSCAD experience).
I spent the evening in the darkroom, along with four of my classmates: we all needed to bang out five prints for the critique on Friday afternoon.
Friday: The critique went fairly well for me. I still needed to reprint my five prints because they didn't have as good a range of values as they should have (B&W photos--both film and digital--should have a full range of values: from pure white to pure black).
Saturday: I got my Intro Photo homework done that afternoon. The current assignment is to shoot three rolls of thirty-six-exposure film or the equivalent in another kind of film (e.g., nine rolls of twelve-exposure 120 film). I shot the first roll that afternoon. We were to work briskly, but carefully--and no looking through the viewfinder! I had the first roll done in about fifteen minutes, which is amazing, considering that it can take me forever to finish off a roll.
I spent the rest of the day getting little things around my room done and reading the Framework for Sustainability (the link goes to the PDF download), which is the report that the board of governors submitted to the NS government--and which SUNSCAD opposes (for good reason: there's got to be a better way of saving money and bringing NSCAD back into the black than slowly killing the university).
Sunday: I spent yesterday working on my Beyond the Frame project and slaving over a letter to the Nova Scotia premier and minister of labour and advanced education, telling them what I, as a NSCAD student, think about some of the parts of the Framework. I'm going to tweak the letter a bit more before I send it.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
here's to another 125 years!
Just when I thought I couldn't fall any more in love with NSCAD--I have. This school is amazing, not just because it's one of the best art schools in Canada, but because it also has a great atmosphere and a "get off your butt and get involved in your community" attitude. And the school knows how to have fun. NSCAD, I love you!
Monday: So far, I've been doing a lot of work at the place where I'm living, rather than going to NSCAD to work on stuff. Partly it's because I live an hour's walk from the Granville campus. But on Monday, SUNSCAD had a teach-in about the school's financial situation, so I ended up at school on my day off. Right now NSCAD is in debt and has a significant deficit, which was largely caused by people who were supposed to be in charge not doing their jobs. And also the Nova Scotia government (NDP, though they could pass for Conservative) doesn't see why NSCAD is so important, why the arts are so important, and that contributed to the current situation. Last year it was so bad that NSCAD could've closed it's doors for good. But SUNSCAD has fought hard to keep the school open and to kick out the staff who were being irresponsible, including the last president, who was anything but available during this whole ordeal. Two members of CLASSE--the student organization behind the Canadian Spring strike--also spoke. They talked about the events leading up to the strike, and how it happened. The premier at the time, Jean Charest, proposed the tuition hikes way back in '10, and the students tried every possible method of making their voices heard--going on strike was a last resort. When they took questions, I asked what was next for the students, what with a new premier, Pauline Marois (Parti Québécois), who was elected earlier this month. I knew that the tuition hikes have been cancelled for now, but I wanted to know what else was happening and what CLASSE was up to. Marois and her government are going to negotiate with the students, and try to find a solution that both the students and the provincial government can agree to.
Afterward, I talked with one of the students who's actively involved in SUNSCAD because I want to be more involved than I am right now. Simply being a member of SUNSCAD isn't enough for me, now that I know about all the awesome stuff that they do, whether it's teach-ins or days of protest, and I want to be involved. Also, I'll only be here for a year: if I don't run, I know I'll regret it for the rest of my life.
I spent the rest of the afternoon doing homework for Intro Photo.
Tuesday: This week, we were introduced to that awesome camera known as a twin-lens reflex or TLR, and NSCAD's lighting studio and hot lights. Although I've logged about ten gazillion hours in NBCCD's photo studio, I'm starting from rock bottom again. But since it's a different school, with a different lighting studio setup, I think it's a good thing. Even their hot lights are a different brand and shape. And they're terracotta coloured, rather than black. And whereas the black and white backdrops were secured to the floor at NBCCD, at NSCAD they're stored close to the ceiling and you pull whichever one you want down with a chain. The best part: their product table is very sturdy and isn't held together with tape. And it has wheels on the back legs!!!!!!!! You know you're a photographer when you get excited about wheels on product tables. However, NSCAD's lighting studio has the same issue that NBCCD's does: the ceiling is too low, and I won't be doing any jumping shots anytime soon.
That evening, I shot the first half of the assignment. Another thing about NSCAD's lighting studio is that it's always booked. Working with the TLR is a bit different than with an SLR because everything is backwards in the viewfinder, and I found it a bit disorienting.
Wednesday: We started a larger project this week: making a book using Coptic binding. This week we just made the covers.
After class, I processed the roll that I'd shot the night before.
Thursday: This week, we critiqued each others' projects, which were due. However, we ran out of time, and will finish the crit this coming Thursday.
One of the things I love about art school is that there's art in places where you'd least expect it. NBCCD's photo studio has a photo from a contact sheet stuck to a random beam, and in the classroom where Photography Beyond the Frame is, there are several drawings of Ethernet sockets pinned to the wall, high enough that whoever pulled the stunt off would've needed a ladder to do it. I asked Bob about them, and according to him those drawings have been there for several decades.
Friday: Some of us (including yours truly) hadn't done that week's reading (I'd completely forgotten about it), so we read it in class and then discussed it. We also watched Koyaanisqatsi, and then discussed that. The movie completely blew me away and overwhelmed me. It's beautiful, thrilling, contemplative, and even a bit sad. The word "koyaanisqatsi" means "life out of balance" in Hopi, and that's exactly what the film depicts. The music is by Philip Glass, and it also contributes to the feeling of being overwhelmed by the movie. There's no dialog. A few of my classmates said that the movie depicted humanity as bad and nature as good, and I also got that feeling. It's something that I believe, anyway. To quote the alien in Contact, "You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares."
Saturday: ANNAversary Weekend! And another one of those "I'll only be at NSCAD for a year--so I should immerse myself in as much NSCAD culture as I can" situations. So I volunteered for ANNAmotion LOGOmotion, which recreated Robert Harris' portrait of Anna Leonowens and NSCAD's "125" logo using large painted boards. I arrived at Citadel Hill, where the performance was to take place, around eleven--about half an hour before I was supposed to, and walked around the hill (which is big) looking for people who looked like they may be involved in the flash mob. Eventually, I spotted a familiar face, got crossed off the list of people who'd signed up, given a sticker with a number (137 M) on it and a pixel. After standing around for a while, wondering what to do next, I found my row, and waited some more. I also practised flipping the pixel with my row.
Shortly after noon, we walked and squelched our way (it was very foggy, as you can see in the video) to the Duke St. side of the Hill. We then did several variations of raising the pixels and flipping them. After that, we paraded single-file on the sidewalk over to the Granville Campus, where we assembled in the plaza outside the university and did the pixel flip, as Bob calls it, again. We then chanted "NOVA SCOTIA NEEDS NSCAD!" and "ONE, TWO, FIVE!" After that, we posed for a group photo. Steve Farmer, who teaches part-time at NSCAD and took all the faculty and staff photos for the website, took the still photos at both locations.
Throughout the event, there were several moments where I felt like crying because I was so proud to be affiliated with NSCAD, and proud to be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Eventually I couldn't hold it in any longer, and I cried a bit.
By the way, I'm the woman in the bright yellow raincoat. In ANNAmotion LOGOmotion I'm in the front row.
After the event, I headed home, stopping at a patisserie that I'd discovered while parading over to Granville. I spent the rest of the day doing homework and other things that needed to get done.
Sunday: I spent today finishing the reading for Intro Photo, skyping with my parents (including discussing with Tom whether to migrate or do a clean install of my stuff when my new computer comes. We decided to migrate some things, e.g., iPhoto and Firefox, and do a clean install of others), catching up on my podcasts and YouTube subscriptions and writing this post.
Tomorrow I'm going to start on my next project for Beyond the Frame. The theme this time is documents and documentary photography, so I've decided to do a piece documenting my NSCAD experience so far.
Monday: So far, I've been doing a lot of work at the place where I'm living, rather than going to NSCAD to work on stuff. Partly it's because I live an hour's walk from the Granville campus. But on Monday, SUNSCAD had a teach-in about the school's financial situation, so I ended up at school on my day off. Right now NSCAD is in debt and has a significant deficit, which was largely caused by people who were supposed to be in charge not doing their jobs. And also the Nova Scotia government (NDP, though they could pass for Conservative) doesn't see why NSCAD is so important, why the arts are so important, and that contributed to the current situation. Last year it was so bad that NSCAD could've closed it's doors for good. But SUNSCAD has fought hard to keep the school open and to kick out the staff who were being irresponsible, including the last president, who was anything but available during this whole ordeal. Two members of CLASSE--the student organization behind the Canadian Spring strike--also spoke. They talked about the events leading up to the strike, and how it happened. The premier at the time, Jean Charest, proposed the tuition hikes way back in '10, and the students tried every possible method of making their voices heard--going on strike was a last resort. When they took questions, I asked what was next for the students, what with a new premier, Pauline Marois (Parti Québécois), who was elected earlier this month. I knew that the tuition hikes have been cancelled for now, but I wanted to know what else was happening and what CLASSE was up to. Marois and her government are going to negotiate with the students, and try to find a solution that both the students and the provincial government can agree to.
Afterward, I talked with one of the students who's actively involved in SUNSCAD because I want to be more involved than I am right now. Simply being a member of SUNSCAD isn't enough for me, now that I know about all the awesome stuff that they do, whether it's teach-ins or days of protest, and I want to be involved. Also, I'll only be here for a year: if I don't run, I know I'll regret it for the rest of my life.
I spent the rest of the afternoon doing homework for Intro Photo.
Tuesday: This week, we were introduced to that awesome camera known as a twin-lens reflex or TLR, and NSCAD's lighting studio and hot lights. Although I've logged about ten gazillion hours in NBCCD's photo studio, I'm starting from rock bottom again. But since it's a different school, with a different lighting studio setup, I think it's a good thing. Even their hot lights are a different brand and shape. And they're terracotta coloured, rather than black. And whereas the black and white backdrops were secured to the floor at NBCCD, at NSCAD they're stored close to the ceiling and you pull whichever one you want down with a chain. The best part: their product table is very sturdy and isn't held together with tape. And it has wheels on the back legs!!!!!!!! You know you're a photographer when you get excited about wheels on product tables. However, NSCAD's lighting studio has the same issue that NBCCD's does: the ceiling is too low, and I won't be doing any jumping shots anytime soon.
That evening, I shot the first half of the assignment. Another thing about NSCAD's lighting studio is that it's always booked. Working with the TLR is a bit different than with an SLR because everything is backwards in the viewfinder, and I found it a bit disorienting.
Wednesday: We started a larger project this week: making a book using Coptic binding. This week we just made the covers.
After class, I processed the roll that I'd shot the night before.
Thursday: This week, we critiqued each others' projects, which were due. However, we ran out of time, and will finish the crit this coming Thursday.
One of the things I love about art school is that there's art in places where you'd least expect it. NBCCD's photo studio has a photo from a contact sheet stuck to a random beam, and in the classroom where Photography Beyond the Frame is, there are several drawings of Ethernet sockets pinned to the wall, high enough that whoever pulled the stunt off would've needed a ladder to do it. I asked Bob about them, and according to him those drawings have been there for several decades.
Friday: Some of us (including yours truly) hadn't done that week's reading (I'd completely forgotten about it), so we read it in class and then discussed it. We also watched Koyaanisqatsi, and then discussed that. The movie completely blew me away and overwhelmed me. It's beautiful, thrilling, contemplative, and even a bit sad. The word "koyaanisqatsi" means "life out of balance" in Hopi, and that's exactly what the film depicts. The music is by Philip Glass, and it also contributes to the feeling of being overwhelmed by the movie. There's no dialog. A few of my classmates said that the movie depicted humanity as bad and nature as good, and I also got that feeling. It's something that I believe, anyway. To quote the alien in Contact, "You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares."
Saturday: ANNAversary Weekend! And another one of those "I'll only be at NSCAD for a year--so I should immerse myself in as much NSCAD culture as I can" situations. So I volunteered for ANNAmotion LOGOmotion, which recreated Robert Harris' portrait of Anna Leonowens and NSCAD's "125" logo using large painted boards. I arrived at Citadel Hill, where the performance was to take place, around eleven--about half an hour before I was supposed to, and walked around the hill (which is big) looking for people who looked like they may be involved in the flash mob. Eventually, I spotted a familiar face, got crossed off the list of people who'd signed up, given a sticker with a number (137 M) on it and a pixel. After standing around for a while, wondering what to do next, I found my row, and waited some more. I also practised flipping the pixel with my row.
Shortly after noon, we walked and squelched our way (it was very foggy, as you can see in the video) to the Duke St. side of the Hill. We then did several variations of raising the pixels and flipping them. After that, we paraded single-file on the sidewalk over to the Granville Campus, where we assembled in the plaza outside the university and did the pixel flip, as Bob calls it, again. We then chanted "NOVA SCOTIA NEEDS NSCAD!" and "ONE, TWO, FIVE!" After that, we posed for a group photo. Steve Farmer, who teaches part-time at NSCAD and took all the faculty and staff photos for the website, took the still photos at both locations.
Throughout the event, there were several moments where I felt like crying because I was so proud to be affiliated with NSCAD, and proud to be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Eventually I couldn't hold it in any longer, and I cried a bit.
By the way, I'm the woman in the bright yellow raincoat. In ANNAmotion LOGOmotion I'm in the front row.
After the event, I headed home, stopping at a patisserie that I'd discovered while parading over to Granville. I spent the rest of the day doing homework and other things that needed to get done.
Sunday: I spent today finishing the reading for Intro Photo, skyping with my parents (including discussing with Tom whether to migrate or do a clean install of my stuff when my new computer comes. We decided to migrate some things, e.g., iPhoto and Firefox, and do a clean install of others), catching up on my podcasts and YouTube subscriptions and writing this post.
Tomorrow I'm going to start on my next project for Beyond the Frame. The theme this time is documents and documentary photography, so I've decided to do a piece documenting my NSCAD experience so far.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
I'm set for next year (or almost)
I got into one of the universities that I applied to!! However, I won't tell you which one just yet. Remember: there were two of them. NSCAD University and the University of New Brunswick.
Monday: Mom and I managed to leave home on schedule this time. I think it's because I made sure to pack everything (except last-minute things, like my iPod) the night before.
Imagery was shorter than usual, as we went over to the college library to find a painting in a book to modify (we were given a list of artists to choose from). I decided on a painting by Botticelli, and I'm going to modify it so that St. Augustine is surrounded by tech stuff, rather than books and a sheet of paper. Linda also talked about our independent projects. We're to choose an artist, and do a mixed media piece based on something by that artist. Right away I chose William Kentridge, as I was really inspired by the production of Shostakovitch's The Nose that he designed for the Met Opera.
Tuesday: We finally started using Final Cut Pro X this week! I cut up and messed around with the stuff that I shot with Tom when I was home in February. This version of Final Cut feels a lot like iMovie, which I've also used. Although I've never used any other version of Final Cut, I agree with the people who say that it's been dumbed down. Final Cut Pro is one of the best pieces of movie-editing software out there--it should feel like it!
After class, I walked to the Home Hardware and bought TremClad paint, as I needed to paint the frames that I wanted to use. There are a bunch of frames in the photo studio that have scratches all over them, and it drives me nuts because those frames reflect badly on the college. If we bash up our frames this badly, then what exactly do the students learn here? That dinged-up frames are acceptable? I spent the rest of the evening painting frames, and was really happy when I was done. It was a long evening.
Wednesday: The day before, I found out from Karen that we were putting up our show at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre on Wednesday. Because I had yet to frame my photos **gasp**, I asked her if I could skip Gallery as a Market Place so that I could get my photos framed. As I expected, she was okay with it. I got there around my usual time (for morning classes, which start at 9:00 ADT/8:00 EDT, I'm usually at school around 8:30 ADT/7:30 EDT), and got straight to work cleaning glass, taking said glass out of the frames that they were in originally--note to NBCCD: get more glass for the 25"x19 1/4" frames--putting the glass in the frames that I was using, replacing one of the sheets of glass when I found out that my original piece had a chip taken out of it, and fiddling with the hardware--thanks to our maintenance guy, Joe, for helping to get the snap-in hangers to stay put. Eventually, I got both photos framed and wired, and Karen packed them and took them over to the Arts Centre with everyone else's photos. **whew!**
After all that fun, the afternoon was rather uneventful. We talked about our next research projects, and Drew and I went down to the lighting studio afterward so that I could see how the Speedotron power-packs are set up now. Drew rigged them with a couple of Paul C. Buff transmitters so that they'll slave perfectly--which makes me happy.
Thursday: That morning we talked about our next independent projects. Some of the students already had stuff to show. I didn't, but I talked about what I'll be doing.
Over lunch Larry, one of my classmates, shot my portrait. I'd asked him to do one for me as I didn't have any that were really, really good.
In the afternoon, I found out that I'd been accepted at one of the schools that I'd applied to. And that school is (drum-roll, please)... NSCAD UNIVERSITY!!!!!!!! I still have to negotiate with them about which credits have been accepted, but the thing is, I'm in! And I did it all on my own, with only a little bit of input from other people (mostly about my portfolio).
Friday: Show-opening day. Larry gave me the photos soon after I got to the school, and I paid him (yay for student rates!). As they were the full-size files, I had to downsize them and switch them from sixteen-bit to eight-bit so that I could save them as JPEGs and put them on my website. I'm really happy with the photos.
I tried to get as much homework done as possible before going over to the Arts Centre. For me, that opening was a lot more successful than the City Hall one last year: at that one, I only talked with a handful of people. But this time, I talked with quite a few show-goers--even some that I didn't know, which was great. When Karen opened the show, she invited each of us students to come up and she talked a bit about who we are, what we're into and what's next for us. When it was my turn, she mentioned that I'd been accepted at NSCAD. I added that I got word just the day before.
Afterward, Karen and I and a couple of my classmates went back downtown to the Garrison District Ale House, where we had supper. The place was packed, and Karen and I (we were the first of our group to arrive) had to wait a bit, as the Ale House doesn't take reservations on Friday evenings. Nonetheless, we had a good time. Somehow, at one point we got onto the subject of pricing photos, and I mentioned to Karen that, although I have an advantage because my mom's an artist, I'm still a bit clueless as to how much to charge for my work--whether it's at the farmers' market, a gallery, or if I get my own studio someday. So I want to talk pricing at some point before the year's over. Karen agreed that it's important, and she's going to do a class on pricing--and maybe invite Ingrid Mueller to speak at our class (we planned to visit Ingrid's gallery earlier in the semester, but she had a show opening that week).
Saturday: I shot for my research project--and even used the big (and I mean BIG) softbox for the first time. For once, I had no issues slaving the Speedotrons. YYYYEEESSSSSSS!!!! As for the rest of the day, I think I made up for the three hours that I lost on Friday.
Sunday: Today was the warmest day that we've had this year: I had to ditch my winter coat in favour of a fleecy, and even that was too warm. I finished up stuff for tomorrow, did preliminary work for the first section of my independent project for Peter's class (I'm doing a political video, raising awareness about some of the plans that Harper has up his sleeve). I skyped with Mom and Tom, and went 'round and 'round and 'round with them about NSCAD stuff. And I talked with a friend that, although she's also a photography major (first year), I hadn't talked with beyond just a quick chat in passing in months.
Monday: Mom and I managed to leave home on schedule this time. I think it's because I made sure to pack everything (except last-minute things, like my iPod) the night before.
Imagery was shorter than usual, as we went over to the college library to find a painting in a book to modify (we were given a list of artists to choose from). I decided on a painting by Botticelli, and I'm going to modify it so that St. Augustine is surrounded by tech stuff, rather than books and a sheet of paper. Linda also talked about our independent projects. We're to choose an artist, and do a mixed media piece based on something by that artist. Right away I chose William Kentridge, as I was really inspired by the production of Shostakovitch's The Nose that he designed for the Met Opera.
Tuesday: We finally started using Final Cut Pro X this week! I cut up and messed around with the stuff that I shot with Tom when I was home in February. This version of Final Cut feels a lot like iMovie, which I've also used. Although I've never used any other version of Final Cut, I agree with the people who say that it's been dumbed down. Final Cut Pro is one of the best pieces of movie-editing software out there--it should feel like it!
After class, I walked to the Home Hardware and bought TremClad paint, as I needed to paint the frames that I wanted to use. There are a bunch of frames in the photo studio that have scratches all over them, and it drives me nuts because those frames reflect badly on the college. If we bash up our frames this badly, then what exactly do the students learn here? That dinged-up frames are acceptable? I spent the rest of the evening painting frames, and was really happy when I was done. It was a long evening.
Wednesday: The day before, I found out from Karen that we were putting up our show at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre on Wednesday. Because I had yet to frame my photos **gasp**, I asked her if I could skip Gallery as a Market Place so that I could get my photos framed. As I expected, she was okay with it. I got there around my usual time (for morning classes, which start at 9:00 ADT/8:00 EDT, I'm usually at school around 8:30 ADT/7:30 EDT), and got straight to work cleaning glass, taking said glass out of the frames that they were in originally--note to NBCCD: get more glass for the 25"x19 1/4" frames--putting the glass in the frames that I was using, replacing one of the sheets of glass when I found out that my original piece had a chip taken out of it, and fiddling with the hardware--thanks to our maintenance guy, Joe, for helping to get the snap-in hangers to stay put. Eventually, I got both photos framed and wired, and Karen packed them and took them over to the Arts Centre with everyone else's photos. **whew!**
After all that fun, the afternoon was rather uneventful. We talked about our next research projects, and Drew and I went down to the lighting studio afterward so that I could see how the Speedotron power-packs are set up now. Drew rigged them with a couple of Paul C. Buff transmitters so that they'll slave perfectly--which makes me happy.
Thursday: That morning we talked about our next independent projects. Some of the students already had stuff to show. I didn't, but I talked about what I'll be doing.
Over lunch Larry, one of my classmates, shot my portrait. I'd asked him to do one for me as I didn't have any that were really, really good.
In the afternoon, I found out that I'd been accepted at one of the schools that I'd applied to. And that school is (drum-roll, please)... NSCAD UNIVERSITY!!!!!!!! I still have to negotiate with them about which credits have been accepted, but the thing is, I'm in! And I did it all on my own, with only a little bit of input from other people (mostly about my portfolio).
Friday: Show-opening day. Larry gave me the photos soon after I got to the school, and I paid him (yay for student rates!). As they were the full-size files, I had to downsize them and switch them from sixteen-bit to eight-bit so that I could save them as JPEGs and put them on my website. I'm really happy with the photos.
I tried to get as much homework done as possible before going over to the Arts Centre. For me, that opening was a lot more successful than the City Hall one last year: at that one, I only talked with a handful of people. But this time, I talked with quite a few show-goers--even some that I didn't know, which was great. When Karen opened the show, she invited each of us students to come up and she talked a bit about who we are, what we're into and what's next for us. When it was my turn, she mentioned that I'd been accepted at NSCAD. I added that I got word just the day before.
Afterward, Karen and I and a couple of my classmates went back downtown to the Garrison District Ale House, where we had supper. The place was packed, and Karen and I (we were the first of our group to arrive) had to wait a bit, as the Ale House doesn't take reservations on Friday evenings. Nonetheless, we had a good time. Somehow, at one point we got onto the subject of pricing photos, and I mentioned to Karen that, although I have an advantage because my mom's an artist, I'm still a bit clueless as to how much to charge for my work--whether it's at the farmers' market, a gallery, or if I get my own studio someday. So I want to talk pricing at some point before the year's over. Karen agreed that it's important, and she's going to do a class on pricing--and maybe invite Ingrid Mueller to speak at our class (we planned to visit Ingrid's gallery earlier in the semester, but she had a show opening that week).
Saturday: I shot for my research project--and even used the big (and I mean BIG) softbox for the first time. For once, I had no issues slaving the Speedotrons. YYYYEEESSSSSSS!!!! As for the rest of the day, I think I made up for the three hours that I lost on Friday.
Sunday: Today was the warmest day that we've had this year: I had to ditch my winter coat in favour of a fleecy, and even that was too warm. I finished up stuff for tomorrow, did preliminary work for the first section of my independent project for Peter's class (I'm doing a political video, raising awareness about some of the plans that Harper has up his sleeve). I skyped with Mom and Tom, and went 'round and 'round and 'round with them about NSCAD stuff. And I talked with a friend that, although she's also a photography major (first year), I hadn't talked with beyond just a quick chat in passing in months.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
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).
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).
Sunday, January 8, 2012
flying the coop, bit by bit
Tomorrow, I start my final semester at NBCCD. **sniffle**
I thoroughly enjoyed my break. I photographed, stayed up late, slept in, danced (including celebrating twenty years of dancing), got high on music (who needs illegal drugs when music and other art will do just fine, and maybe even better?), hung out with my parents, cooked, cuddled the cats, watched movies, listened to opera, wrote, took an online typing course (I'm good--when I started the course, I could type forty-five words per minute, and I've improved by ten WPM--but I never finished my first typing course, and as a result I'm almost completely self-taught), finally put some photos up on my 500px account, read, and stayed up late and slept in some more.
Christmas was a bit weird in that after we opened presents, I spent the rest of the day wondering what to do next. I usually spend the day enjoying my presents, but this time I didn't know what to do (though Tom and I watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, which he gave me).
Last night, my parents and I had what Tom called a "life perspective" talk. I have to admit that, although I'm a good person (I'm well-behaved most of the time, I try my darnedest to obey the law, I do my chores--most of the time--and I try to treat everyone the way I would like to be treated: with kindness and respect), every time my parents say that they want to talk with me, I assume the worst: have I done or said something that I shouldn't have?
Basically, as of last night my parents have officially begun to cut me loose and to remove those training wheels. Which in a way feels great, but at the same time it's a bit scary. You mean I now have to go after things myself?? **gulp** However, I've known for years that it would happen some day. And I'm actually ahead on at least one of the things that they mentioned: as of September sixth, 2011, I've started to try to figure out what I'd like to do as a career. I know that I want to do something in photography, but what, exactly? What do I want to do within the world of the medium known as photography?
They also talked about how far I've come: prior to starting at NBCCD, I'd never finished anything in my life, and, frankly, my parents were more than a little concerned--and for good reason. Actually (and this is from me), I had finished stuff: I knew when choreography that I was working on was where I wanted it. However, I never consider a dance completely finished: I may come back later and tweak it a bit. So does that exclude it from the "finished" category? Hmm...
I remember Christmas Break of my FVA year: I didn't want to go back. But my parents basically shoved me out the door with a "you're finishing this, kid. You're graduating with your certificate in Foundation Visual Arts" attitude. And I'm incredibly glad they did.
Thing is, until FVA, I didn't really take education seriously. I think that's one of the reasons why I didn't finish academic stuff--and why I procrastinated on my school work (Mom had to ground me once when I didn't finish a report on the RCMP--even then, it was weeks before I finished the darn thing).
When I got to NBCCD, all of a sudden I had to finish my projects--otherwise, I wouldn't get into Photo. Yikes. And I had to keep my GPA at 2.0 or higher. As it was, I graduated FVA with a 2.43 GPA. And I had to worry about grades.
Somehow, I managed to survive. And here I was, on the eve of my final semester at a school that I love dearly, being told, "you're thisclose from graduating from college, and it's time that you started pursuing what you want yourself (e.g., scholarships). You are the one who has to look for job openings, scholarships that you can apply for, etc."
So, with that in mind, here's to the next semester and whatever it brings. And I want to publicly thank my parents and my college: thanks for putting up with me, for teaching me, for supporting me. I am proud to know you (parents)/be affiliated with you (NBCCD). And to get this semester off to a wonderful start, I thought I'd pick out some festive music. This is the overture from Die Fledermaus (The Bat), by Johann Strauss, Jr., which the Met Opera broadcast on New Years' Eve day (an archive performance from January twentieth, 1951, which was sung and spoken in English, rather than the original German). There's a reason why I hummed along in the shower--and I never sing in the shower!
I thoroughly enjoyed my break. I photographed, stayed up late, slept in, danced (including celebrating twenty years of dancing), got high on music (who needs illegal drugs when music and other art will do just fine, and maybe even better?), hung out with my parents, cooked, cuddled the cats, watched movies, listened to opera, wrote, took an online typing course (I'm good--when I started the course, I could type forty-five words per minute, and I've improved by ten WPM--but I never finished my first typing course, and as a result I'm almost completely self-taught), finally put some photos up on my 500px account, read, and stayed up late and slept in some more.
Christmas was a bit weird in that after we opened presents, I spent the rest of the day wondering what to do next. I usually spend the day enjoying my presents, but this time I didn't know what to do (though Tom and I watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, which he gave me).
Last night, my parents and I had what Tom called a "life perspective" talk. I have to admit that, although I'm a good person (I'm well-behaved most of the time, I try my darnedest to obey the law, I do my chores--most of the time--and I try to treat everyone the way I would like to be treated: with kindness and respect), every time my parents say that they want to talk with me, I assume the worst: have I done or said something that I shouldn't have?
Basically, as of last night my parents have officially begun to cut me loose and to remove those training wheels. Which in a way feels great, but at the same time it's a bit scary. You mean I now have to go after things myself?? **gulp** However, I've known for years that it would happen some day. And I'm actually ahead on at least one of the things that they mentioned: as of September sixth, 2011, I've started to try to figure out what I'd like to do as a career. I know that I want to do something in photography, but what, exactly? What do I want to do within the world of the medium known as photography?
They also talked about how far I've come: prior to starting at NBCCD, I'd never finished anything in my life, and, frankly, my parents were more than a little concerned--and for good reason. Actually (and this is from me), I had finished stuff: I knew when choreography that I was working on was where I wanted it. However, I never consider a dance completely finished: I may come back later and tweak it a bit. So does that exclude it from the "finished" category? Hmm...
I remember Christmas Break of my FVA year: I didn't want to go back. But my parents basically shoved me out the door with a "you're finishing this, kid. You're graduating with your certificate in Foundation Visual Arts" attitude. And I'm incredibly glad they did.
Thing is, until FVA, I didn't really take education seriously. I think that's one of the reasons why I didn't finish academic stuff--and why I procrastinated on my school work (Mom had to ground me once when I didn't finish a report on the RCMP--even then, it was weeks before I finished the darn thing).
When I got to NBCCD, all of a sudden I had to finish my projects--otherwise, I wouldn't get into Photo. Yikes. And I had to keep my GPA at 2.0 or higher. As it was, I graduated FVA with a 2.43 GPA. And I had to worry about grades.
Somehow, I managed to survive. And here I was, on the eve of my final semester at a school that I love dearly, being told, "you're thisclose from graduating from college, and it's time that you started pursuing what you want yourself (e.g., scholarships). You are the one who has to look for job openings, scholarships that you can apply for, etc."
So, with that in mind, here's to the next semester and whatever it brings. And I want to publicly thank my parents and my college: thanks for putting up with me, for teaching me, for supporting me. I am proud to know you (parents)/be affiliated with you (NBCCD). And to get this semester off to a wonderful start, I thought I'd pick out some festive music. This is the overture from Die Fledermaus (The Bat), by Johann Strauss, Jr., which the Met Opera broadcast on New Years' Eve day (an archive performance from January twentieth, 1951, which was sung and spoken in English, rather than the original German). There's a reason why I hummed along in the shower--and I never sing in the shower!
Sunday, October 2, 2011
confessions of an art addict
After the non-weekend that was last weekend, this week I made a point of getting as much work as possible done between Tuesday and Thursday. I knew I'd have stuff that I needed to work on over the weekend (for example, my drawing assignment, which isn't due until the Monday after Thanksgiving weekend), but I didn't want to be doing homework all day for three days straight, crashing into bed every night, and waking up exhausted every morning. Mission accomplished.
Monday: This time Adam took us outside--to the Loyalist Cemetery (between George and Brunswick Sts., with Carleton St. stopping at the south end of the cemetery and picking up again at the north end). I couldn't resist taking off my sandals (a pair of Tevas that have probably been through everything except snow), having worn them since about eight (seven EDT) that morning.
As that night was the Met Opera's Opening Night (the Met premiere of Anna Bolena, with Anna Netrebko in the title role and Marco Armiliato conducting a certain favourite orchestra), I listened to the last few minutes of the second--and final--act of the opera when I got home. For the first time in several years, the Met pretty much nailed the opening night performance (in '09, the director, producer, and the rest of the team were booed when they appeared onstage after the performance; and opera-philes are still iffy about Robert Lepage's production of the Ring Cycle). And that brings me to...
Tuesday: Drum-roll please: I ordered my ticket to the Met's Live in HD simulcast of Anna Bolena!!! I'd originally planned to order the ticket last weekend, but they weren't on sale at the time. Time to start counting down to October fifteenth (by the way, that performance is completely sold out at the opera house)! And this time I'm going with a friend who's a fellow Met fan (I went to the other simulcasts alone)!
I also calibrated my MacBook Pro's screen. This is the second time that I've done that, but it's the first time that I've done a really good, thorough job. The screen has more of a magenta tone to it now, but the blues are noticeably richer.
That day I decided that next weekend (this weekend) wouldn't be another non-weekend weekend, and I dug into my homework that afternoon.
Bonus: I was well-rested for the first time since the Thursday before the non-weekend weekend (September twenty-second). And as a result, I felt like the happiest woman in Southside F'ton.
Wednesday: I started the day bright and early by rolling film before Photoshop class. I considered developing it, but realized that I didn't have enough time. So I stuck the canister (which is light-proof) in my locker, to be developed after lighting class.
Thursday: That afternoon I finally finished the reading for Output--as I believe I said before, one of the textbooks that Drew has us reading from, Fine Art Printing for Photographers, 2nd edition, is fond of long chapters. I've been reading each chapter all in one go, but I've found that that's a bit much for me, especially when I have a bunch of other assignments bouncing up and down and trying to get my attention: "pick me! I'm due on Thursday!," "pick me! I'm due on Monday!" So this week, I decided to split it up into at least two readings: half the chapter on Tuesday, the other half later in the week. Done.
My independent study project is starting to come together even more: Peter had me bang out a bunch of quick 'n' dirty prints that might work for the project, and I'm glad I did that. It renewed my excitement for the project, and helped to give me some ideas as to where I might like to take said project in the coming weeks.
That evening was the first of two show openings that I went to this week, both of which feature work by one or other of my teachers: Obscura: Confessions of a Pinhole Photographer opened at the Campus Gallery. Obscura is a show of photos (both black and white and colour) taken with pinhole cameras by Drew Gilbert, who's my Digital Output, Lighting, and Photoshop teacher. Here's a PDF version of the poster.
The show also features some of his camera obscura photos. For the last decade or so, Drew has built a camera obscura in every single place that he's lived--sometimes he's moved just to make a camera obscura at that location.
In addition to Drew's work, one of my classmates, Erin, who's also into pinhole photography, showed a few of her photos on two of the walls. Some of the photos were straight-up pinhole photos, but some of them were taken using a technique called solargraphy. Solargraphy is when you use a pinhole camera to track the sun's path over the course of a month or more. The sun is recorded as bands (either white or coloured) across the paper. After X number of months, you cover the hole, take the whole thing into a darkroom, and scan the image (no developing). Because the photo isn't fixed, you have one chance and only one chance to scan the image. Drew and Erin had to work on that a bit...
As a special touch to the opening, Karen had some of Drew's students talk about what they like about Drew. I spoke, but right now I can't remember what my exact point was. I think it was that Drew is really approachable.
After the show, I went back to the photo studio--specifically, the darkroom--and cranked out those photos for the independent study project.
Friday: That day was primarily a work day, and I spent most of it working on stuff for Preparing for Professional Life. However, I also shot my Lighting assignment (shiny objects).
But that evening, there was another show opening: Boneyard Blues by Adam MacDonald (yes, my drawing teacher), and Funcrush by Jean Rooney at Ingrid Mueller Art + Concepts. I met Karen and one of her friends in the NBCCD gallery that afternoon, and we walked over to Art + Concepts (on Regent St., just up from King St.).
As usual, Adam's work sent my head for a spin, and I felt like there was something more to it that my brain just wasn't grasping. But that's what I love about his work: I want my brain to be stretched, twisted and spun. I might go back at some point between now and the eighteenth, which is when the show comes down. Neither of the artists spoke, but I was cool with that: until I started going to show openings in F'ton, I hadn't been to an opening where the artists spoke, so it was a new, and even foreign, experience for me. It's still rather new.
Boneyard Blues was also a milestone for me: after being a student at NBCCD for two-and-a-bit school years, and knowing Adam as my academic adviser, teacher, and favourite artist, and hearing about his shows at Art + Concepts (this one is his fourth there, and the third since I started at NBCCD), I finally made it to one of his openings (I'm not counting Journey into WHATEVER, because that one was super-easy to get to because it was at the college gallery)! The first one that I heard about (in the spring of '10), I would've gone to if I hadn't been going home that weekend. The second one I knew about, but the wording on the Art + Concepts website was a bit confusing as to where and when the show was to take place, so I didn't make it to that one. This time, it was very clear as to where and when the show was, and since I had yet to make it to the opening of one of Adam's shows, I decided that I would make a point of going. No ifs, ands, or buts--I. would. be there.
Saturday: Yesterday was the second annual Guess Who? fundraiser, put on by Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre, Inc. Just like last year, the event was sold out, and all 119 canvases (created by 104 artists, including Mom and me) went to good homes (you can tell that I've had too much exposure to cat rescuing and adoption). The event raised $13,200.00 for the centre.
Next weekend is Thanksgiving weekend, so I'll be going home for the first time this year. Yippee! Home on Thursday before Thanksgiving, and back to F'ton on Tuesday!
PS: In case you're wondering, yes, the title of this post is a play on the title of the show that's currently hanging in the NBCCD Gallery. ;-)
Monday: This time Adam took us outside--to the Loyalist Cemetery (between George and Brunswick Sts., with Carleton St. stopping at the south end of the cemetery and picking up again at the north end). I couldn't resist taking off my sandals (a pair of Tevas that have probably been through everything except snow), having worn them since about eight (seven EDT) that morning.
As that night was the Met Opera's Opening Night (the Met premiere of Anna Bolena, with Anna Netrebko in the title role and Marco Armiliato conducting a certain favourite orchestra), I listened to the last few minutes of the second--and final--act of the opera when I got home. For the first time in several years, the Met pretty much nailed the opening night performance (in '09, the director, producer, and the rest of the team were booed when they appeared onstage after the performance; and opera-philes are still iffy about Robert Lepage's production of the Ring Cycle). And that brings me to...
Tuesday: Drum-roll please: I ordered my ticket to the Met's Live in HD simulcast of Anna Bolena!!! I'd originally planned to order the ticket last weekend, but they weren't on sale at the time. Time to start counting down to October fifteenth (by the way, that performance is completely sold out at the opera house)! And this time I'm going with a friend who's a fellow Met fan (I went to the other simulcasts alone)!
I also calibrated my MacBook Pro's screen. This is the second time that I've done that, but it's the first time that I've done a really good, thorough job. The screen has more of a magenta tone to it now, but the blues are noticeably richer.
That day I decided that next weekend (this weekend) wouldn't be another non-weekend weekend, and I dug into my homework that afternoon.
Bonus: I was well-rested for the first time since the Thursday before the non-weekend weekend (September twenty-second). And as a result, I felt like the happiest woman in Southside F'ton.
Wednesday: I started the day bright and early by rolling film before Photoshop class. I considered developing it, but realized that I didn't have enough time. So I stuck the canister (which is light-proof) in my locker, to be developed after lighting class.
Thursday: That afternoon I finally finished the reading for Output--as I believe I said before, one of the textbooks that Drew has us reading from, Fine Art Printing for Photographers, 2nd edition, is fond of long chapters. I've been reading each chapter all in one go, but I've found that that's a bit much for me, especially when I have a bunch of other assignments bouncing up and down and trying to get my attention: "pick me! I'm due on Thursday!," "pick me! I'm due on Monday!" So this week, I decided to split it up into at least two readings: half the chapter on Tuesday, the other half later in the week. Done.
My independent study project is starting to come together even more: Peter had me bang out a bunch of quick 'n' dirty prints that might work for the project, and I'm glad I did that. It renewed my excitement for the project, and helped to give me some ideas as to where I might like to take said project in the coming weeks.
That evening was the first of two show openings that I went to this week, both of which feature work by one or other of my teachers: Obscura: Confessions of a Pinhole Photographer opened at the Campus Gallery. Obscura is a show of photos (both black and white and colour) taken with pinhole cameras by Drew Gilbert, who's my Digital Output, Lighting, and Photoshop teacher. Here's a PDF version of the poster.
The show also features some of his camera obscura photos. For the last decade or so, Drew has built a camera obscura in every single place that he's lived--sometimes he's moved just to make a camera obscura at that location.
In addition to Drew's work, one of my classmates, Erin, who's also into pinhole photography, showed a few of her photos on two of the walls. Some of the photos were straight-up pinhole photos, but some of them were taken using a technique called solargraphy. Solargraphy is when you use a pinhole camera to track the sun's path over the course of a month or more. The sun is recorded as bands (either white or coloured) across the paper. After X number of months, you cover the hole, take the whole thing into a darkroom, and scan the image (no developing). Because the photo isn't fixed, you have one chance and only one chance to scan the image. Drew and Erin had to work on that a bit...
As a special touch to the opening, Karen had some of Drew's students talk about what they like about Drew. I spoke, but right now I can't remember what my exact point was. I think it was that Drew is really approachable.
After the show, I went back to the photo studio--specifically, the darkroom--and cranked out those photos for the independent study project.
Friday: That day was primarily a work day, and I spent most of it working on stuff for Preparing for Professional Life. However, I also shot my Lighting assignment (shiny objects).
But that evening, there was another show opening: Boneyard Blues by Adam MacDonald (yes, my drawing teacher), and Funcrush by Jean Rooney at Ingrid Mueller Art + Concepts. I met Karen and one of her friends in the NBCCD gallery that afternoon, and we walked over to Art + Concepts (on Regent St., just up from King St.).
As usual, Adam's work sent my head for a spin, and I felt like there was something more to it that my brain just wasn't grasping. But that's what I love about his work: I want my brain to be stretched, twisted and spun. I might go back at some point between now and the eighteenth, which is when the show comes down. Neither of the artists spoke, but I was cool with that: until I started going to show openings in F'ton, I hadn't been to an opening where the artists spoke, so it was a new, and even foreign, experience for me. It's still rather new.
Boneyard Blues was also a milestone for me: after being a student at NBCCD for two-and-a-bit school years, and knowing Adam as my academic adviser, teacher, and favourite artist, and hearing about his shows at Art + Concepts (this one is his fourth there, and the third since I started at NBCCD), I finally made it to one of his openings (I'm not counting Journey into WHATEVER, because that one was super-easy to get to because it was at the college gallery)! The first one that I heard about (in the spring of '10), I would've gone to if I hadn't been going home that weekend. The second one I knew about, but the wording on the Art + Concepts website was a bit confusing as to where and when the show was to take place, so I didn't make it to that one. This time, it was very clear as to where and when the show was, and since I had yet to make it to the opening of one of Adam's shows, I decided that I would make a point of going. No ifs, ands, or buts--I. would. be there.
Saturday: Yesterday was the second annual Guess Who? fundraiser, put on by Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre, Inc. Just like last year, the event was sold out, and all 119 canvases (created by 104 artists, including Mom and me) went to good homes (you can tell that I've had too much exposure to cat rescuing and adoption). The event raised $13,200.00 for the centre.
Next weekend is Thanksgiving weekend, so I'll be going home for the first time this year. Yippee! Home on Thursday before Thanksgiving, and back to F'ton on Tuesday!
PS: In case you're wondering, yes, the title of this post is a play on the title of the show that's currently hanging in the NBCCD Gallery. ;-)
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| In the Hall of the Mountain King, inspired by Grieg's piece by the same name. This was my creation for Guess Who? |
Sunday, September 18, 2011
the fun of being a college senior
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| Tom took this photo at my first student recital, in June '97. That's Lynn at the piano, and I'm the kid with the violin. |
Every time one of those big anniversaries (first violin lesson, seeing The Nutcracker at the Maine Center for the Arts--with the BSO in the pit--other important concerts) comes around, part of me looks at the anniversary in question and thinks, "has it really been that long? Has it really been nine years since my first André Rieu concert?" (which was on April 29th, 2002--and speaking of violin lessons, the twenty-ninth was supposed to be a lesson day, but of course it was cancelled). But when I really look at it, and think about all that has happened since (good and ill), the anniversary becomes a lot more real.
Monday: Welcome to my first three-class day since FVA year. Except that this time it was a lot more brutal: in FVA, the final class of the day was History of Visual Culture, which was split into two parts--a lecture on Tuesday, followed by a tutorial later in the week--so it was only an hour-and-a-half long. Three-class day, version 2.0 was a lot more intense due to the fact that my final class--a drawing class--was a full three hours long.
By the time I finally packed up and staggered off campus and towards home, I was completely wiped, and it probably showed.
Tuesday: I didn't do much other than slog through the longer of the two readings for Digital Output (my Monday afternoon class). I have much to learn.
Wednesday: I finally started my independent project: before my Photoshop class, I bought a couple rolls of Kodak T-Max 400 ISO film, and after my afternoon Lighting class I shot one of the rolls and in the process came up with a theme for my project. The project itself is on urban/street photography, but the main theme will be juxtaposing the pretty, glamorous side of the city with the not-so-pretty, grittier side. Downtown with back alleys.
Thursday: That day, I developed the roll that I shot on Wednesday. And I made a major mistake: I used the developer that's used to develop prints (that's stored in the darkroom) rather than the one used to develop negatives (that's stored outside the darkroom, across from where the film reels and canisters are stored). That mistake caused the negatives to come out clear--not even the name of the film or the exposure number was visible. Which meant that I had to re-shoot the project on the other roll that I bought.
But after a few minutes I moved on from the "oops" moment, and actually saw it as a good thing: now that I'd figured out a theme, I could devote the entire second roll to it.
That second roll turned out almost perfectly when I developed it that evening. I busted a couple of exposures, but that was due to how I rolled the negatives on the reel. As I said to Peter on Friday, "you should've seen the celebration!"
During my meeting with Peter that afternoon, in addition to talking about my project, we also talked about life post-NBCCD (the same happened in the meeting the week before), and I'm now seriously considering doing a BFA at NSCAD University in Halifax. With my credits from NBCCD, I'd only have to do a year there.
When I skyped with my parents today, Mom and I talked about the possibility of NSCAD (which is her alma mater), and it's doable. BFA in Photography, here I come (though if I decide to get a degree in art education, I'll have to go somewhere else because NSCAD doesn't offer any sort of education degree)!
Friday: Workworkwork all day. I finally started my drawing homework (I knew that if I started it earlier in the week, I'd probably do it with a "finish it" mindset, and the finished drawing isn't due until a week from tomorrow). I'm working from a photo that I took of my plate and mug from breakfast (the theme is "mundane"). I also put the negatives from the second roll in sleeves, and shot my lighting homework--which took three hours.
Although I was finished at school at around six, I didn't get back home until about nine because I couldn't help getting caught up in the fun that is the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival. One of the guys who lives down the hall from me was selling his paintings (and making new ones) across the street from the school, so I stopped to watch. I really liked one of the paintings that he made while I was there, so I spoke for it and will probably buy it this evening.
Saturday: I spent most of the day working on my drawing homework--and watching Drew cart huge pinhole cameras (one was made from a garbage can) in and out of the studio. That evening I made a contact sheet of the roll that I'd processed on Thursday. I'll probably make prints on Tuesday.
And again I didn't get home until about nine, due to all the fun of Harvest.
If all goes well this week (which will be the infamous Third Week), this coming weekend I plan to order tickets for Anna Bolena (Donizetti), which will be simulcast on October fifteenth. LET'S GO, FRENCH HORNS! (Yes, MOO violin section, you're awesome, too.)
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