A totally indulgent & self-referential work that I've been wanting to do for some time

I finally, after talking about it for so long, wrote the block of code that can interpret XML files to control various video parameters in Processing (thank you, proXML library for being so handy). Jonny and I had this convo about a year or so ago, discussing how rad it would be if an art object was somehow conscious of how popular/valuable it was, and was then able to react accordingly. If it wasn't doing so well, it would spruce itself up to get your attention. Conversely, if it was doing extremely well, it could flaunt it. This would be an exercise of pure cynicism in the face of "net.art" and its convoluted market, and would explore the tension between the facets of a networked art object that are participatory (or require active participation from the viewer) and those that are autonomous to the object itself (i.e. its aesthetic).

I will post some vids or other visual proof-of-existence once there's more to look at; I've been using a boring-looking video to do my testing. But, now that the engine is up and running, I can start populating it with beautiful images. Also, I have to think about the indices I'd call upon to continually test the object's value. Last year, Maegh (a Marxist scholar who studies art movements through a socialist lens) and I started thinking about what a Mei Moses index for net.art would look like. This is a difficult question, because the object in itself, by definition, exists in a place that is accessible at all times by anyone. In a traditional art market, collectors pay for an object that is a stand in for the artist's "genius" and non-alienated labor. But in net.art, the prospect of ownership gets nullified (although the genius+non-alienated labor combo is still there); the net.art object requires a shift/reorganization of the market forces.

I'm still on the fence about how to quantify such an object's worth, though. I guess the clearest indicator is whether or not the artist has gained the stamp of approval from the various cultural institutions. But is there more than that?

BTDubs, I just had a dream in which a novel was written about Olia Lialina. I saw a commercial for it on TV, and jumped up to go buy it. Then I woke up, sat down at the computer, and for some reason, my code started working... Creepy!

MySpace asks the hard-hitting questions

Q:


I love targeted advertising! Enjoy this jewel... (and who are those green people?)

I've become an MVP!

...by which I mean, I have been Producing Music Videos over the past few weeks. It's been a lot of fun, and definitely the best way to get a crash-course in how to shoot more cinematically (rather than journalistically), how to storyboard, and how to coordinate productions. This has been keeping me super busy, and is the main reason why my blog has gone neglected over the past few weeks.

CCTV is starting a group that produces music videos for local artists, which is a great idea. Our group chose a pretty hot track by Rebel and the Truth, a live hip-hop group that sprung out of Berklee, for our pilot. The song is called "Reminisce," and reminds me of old Will Smith/CL Smooth tracks from long ago. It will not leave my head. We just finished shooting the performance sequence at The Middle East Upstairs, and are going to shoot some vignettes illustrating the lyrics throughout the rest of the week...



(photos courtesy of Matt Landry. Mine were crap.)

Also editing a video by The Lost Crusaders for a track called "Whose Name Will I Call?" The track is a bit maudlin, but pretty good. And the shoot I assisted last Sunday was a lot of fun. I also served as Media Manager, which meant sitting in a U-Haul with a bunch of computers all day, uploading data from P2 cards, and generally bopping my head to Hot 97. I could get used to a permanent gig like that :) The vid was shot on those P2 cards rather than to tape, so I'm probably going to need help treating the footage correctly (MXF files, anyone?) Luckily, I've got people.


(Cam-whore auto-portrait. Who could resist?)

Finally, I started teaching HTML at CCTV. The group I teach is kind of advanced, and interested in learning CSS along with a primer in basic page structure, which thrills me, because CSS is fun to teach. What's cool is that the ladies in my class are all non-profit professionals, whose organizations have actually sent them to CCTV to learn how to enhance their web presence. Having that responsibility feels kind of awesome!

Yellow Drum Machine!

Last night, we did Share.tv episode 4 with Calliope Quartet, which was awesome. Ricardo, the percussionist, actually played his face: he kept rubbing a mic across his stubble to make these crackly noises. It was so cool!

Also, I finished my feature on the Yellow Drum Machine by Frits Lyneborg from letsmakerobots.com. It turned out pretty well, I think.



I'm currently uploading the full episode onto Blip.tv. Usually, uploading an hour-long vid to the internet is a pain in the ass because it takes so long. But now that I've got my Asus Eee PC (I named it Mylo), I can at least do that same task at the bar across the street from the station!

Cheers!

Perpetual Care: Poems and Photos by Susan Eisenberg

Recently, I was asked by CCTV to do a feature on Susan Eisenberg, a poet and photographer affiliated with the Cambridge Women's Commission. Eisenberg's latest project, Perpetual Care, is an installation of photos and poems inspired by her 5-year long battle with multiple chronic illness. It's a thoughtful exploration of the "thin membrane" separating sickness and health, life and death, and the artist's struggle towards a "plan forward" in the face of illness.



Perpetual Care is currently on view at Lesley University's Marran Gallery until March 31. This project is sponsored by The Women's Committee Cancer Project, The Cambridge Women's Commission, and Lesley University.