Jeremy Deller Artist Lecture: It Is What It Is: Conversations About Iraq

It Is What It Is: Conversations About Iraq, a new exhibition by Turner Prize-winning British artist Jeremy Deller commissioned and produced by Creative Time and the New Museum. The project encourages public discussion of the history, present circumstances, and future of Iraq through unscripted, nonpartisan conversations in cities across the country. Talks are held in public spaces such as shopping malls and parks by guest experts Jonathan Harvey and Esam Pasha.

Website: http://conversationsaboutiraq.com/

This was by far my favorite lecture this year. Four men from completely different backgrounds have come together to have peaceful, meaningful, and productive conversations about the war in Iraq. Jeremy Deller came right out and said that protests were useless at this point. I have felt like this for some tome now and it was good to hear an intelligent person say this out loud. He felt that it was counter productive to argue over the war. "It Is What It Is", the itile of the piece speaks for itself. We're there, there isn't anything we can do about the past, so let's talk about it.
What I found to be very interesting was the variety of people that were in this project. Jeremy Deller is an artist from the UK, Jonathan Harvey served in Iraq, Essam Pasha was born in Iraq, and Nato Thompson is a gay, American artist. While listeneing to their panel discussion , I couldn't help but be amazed at how well they all worked together, and how how different they were form each other.
This was a very eye opening, informative, and inspiring lecture. I was happy to see that they were trying to start an intelligent proactive discussion rather than an explosive protest, which we see a lot of in the college world.

Lorie Novak (Installations)

Website: >http://cvisions.nyu.edu/Novak/

Shows,Galleries,Exhibitions:
ArtSway, Hampshire, England; The International Center for Photography, NY; Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, AZ; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; the Houston Center for Photography; Breda Fotografica, the Netherlands; Jayne Baum Gallery, NY; University Art Museum, Cal. State Univ. Long Beach; Addison Gallery, Andover, MA; Stanford University Art Museum.

COLLECTED VISIONS I is a three part slide and music installation that examines the representation of women and girls in family photographs. These photographs were collected from approximately 100 women from varied backgrounds and different generations.

I wrote about Lorie Novak in a blog earlier this semester. I decided to look at her again to see how she installed her work. This installation really stood out. I have thought about using a projector to show my work. I love seeing the silhouettes of the viewers interacting with the work. It also just seems fitting to show this type of work with a projector. My Great Grandfather showed these home movies on a large screen with his family and the still pictures thta are in the movies were taken from a slide projector. I would love to be able to do this. Although, at the moment I don't know if I have the time or resources to do this.

Another thing I found interesting about this project was the way she talked about her work. It reminded me a lot of what I have been thinking of while working in this project.
"Subtleties of gaze and gesture become clues for how girls find their voices, and the layering of images within and between sequences emphasizes the complexities of representation."
While working with these images of my Grandmother and mother I can see the slight movements and gestures that show uneasiness. It seems that they are trying to find their voices, as mentioned by Novak.

I will continue to look at Novak's work for installation ideas and inspiration.

Between Mothers and Daughters

Fischer, Lucy Rose. Marriage & Family Review. New York: Aug 31, 1991. Vol. 16, Iss. 3/4; pg. 237


Abstract (Summary)

Sociologists, anthropologists and psychologists have described a special closeness between mothers and daughters over all stages of the life course, from the infancy of the daughters to the old age of the mothers. (For a review of recent research on the mother-daughter relationship, see Boyd, 1989; see also Baruch and Barnett, 1983; Fischer, 1986; Hagestad, 1981; Hammer, 1976; Walker and Thompson, 1983.) Mothers are said to identify with daughters more than with sons; daughters are more likely than sons to be caregivers for their elderly mothers. Potentially, however, recent changes in women's roles undermine the special mother-daughter bond. These trends may widen the "generation gap" so that mothers' experiences may have little relevance to their daughters' actual futures. More specifically, the fact that an increasing proportion of women remain childless, along with the salience of professional careers in the lives of many women, means that the mothering role often is not passed down from mother to daughter.

How this relates to my work:

After working with more photographs, I have started to take much more interest in the lineage of women in my family. I have talked before about the direct line from my Great Grandmother to me, that has become so apparent to me while working with these pictures and movies. Of course I have always known about my Great Grandmother, and understand that we are related, just as I am related to my mother and grandmother. Working with these images has just reaffirmed the connection that we all have. Seeing my Grandmother as an infant in her Mother's arms, then a child, then a teen, then an adult having her own children makes me look at my these women in my family not as my Grandmother, mother, or great grandmother but as people with their own separate thoughts, lives, and identities. What connects us is that line of birth. Each woman has gone through the birth experience, and passed down a child, who then has a child of her own. The line has come to me. The study, explained above, mentioned the importance and power of mother daughter relationships, as well as the fact that things are changing. Women are working more and more, not spending as much time with their children. Many women are choosing not to have children at all.

Reading that this mothering role may not be passed down form mother to daughter, and that the mother's place in her daughter's life will lessen is a scary and sad forecast. It made me start to look at these images in a different way. The gift of coming from a line of loving, caring mothers is a gift. It made me realize that I want to be able to have children and continue this line of loving mothers and families.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti: Rossetti Family Photograph Album

Artist's Collection at National Portrait Gallery Website:
http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait.php?search=ap&set=184%3BRossetti+Family+Photograph+Album&page=1&rNo=3

These are photographs of albumen prints form the 1800's. I know that this is not a modern artist, but I was very interested in his work. Rossetti was an artist and poet. He dealt mostly with drawing but spent some time working with photography.
I found it interesting that Rossetti took the time to photograph drawings. I know that this was done at the time, when photography was a rather new art form, for artistic as well as more functional purposes. These photographs look like more than just documents of drawings. The fading and distortion makes the artist's hand much more noticeable.
I found the process to be very interesting and not too different from what I am doing with my work. I especially like the first and third picture on my post because of the fading and distortion.
Even though these are drawings, the photographs make the people and scenes in the drawings look more realistic. Taking a photograph of a drawing almost makes the drawing come to life; it gives them a sense of space and time. It puts breath into the drawings.
I feel like this about my work. The videos I am using have their own sort of life. They are moving images of moments in history. Photographing these moving images brings them to life again. Some of the photographs form videos look as if they were taken first hand.
It is interesting to see that a artist in the 19th Century was possibly working with some of the same concepts as I am. The same basic concepts are very clear between my work and the work of Rossetti: reinventing something for a new purpose and taking something found and making it into your own meaningful piece of art.

Mother-Daughhter Relationships

Mother-daughter relationships and adult daughter friendships by Welleford, Elizabeth Ayn, Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University, 1998, 213 pages; AAT 9839194

Purpose:
The purposes of this study was to explore the associations between adult daughters' relationships with their mothers and close friends and to describe factors that contribute to the development of adult relationships and linkages between mother- daughter and daughter-friend relationships.

Findings:
120 adult mother and daughter couples were interviewed. Six categories were explored in the interviews: parenting, transition to adult mother-daughter relationship, current mother-daughter typology, daughters' relational tools, daughters' relational work, and current daughter-friend relationship qualities. Two things were discovered in this study: First, the mother's parenting goals and behavior influences the dyad's transition into an adult mother-daughter relationship. Second, mother's parenting goals and behavior influences the daughter's current friendship via daughter's relational tools and relationship work.

How this relates to my work:
Although some of the findings in this study were rather obvious, I still found them interesting. The study found that those who were most comfortable in their mother-daughter relationship were more affectionate and were secure in their identity. It was also found that they had better personal, relationship skills than those who had slightly less or even alienated relationships with their mother's.
My mother and I have a very strong and affectionate relationship. We are very close. I also have a very close relationship with my Grandmother, more so than I usually see in other Granddaughter- Grandmother relationships. On the other hand, my Mom and Grandmother have a tense relationship. My Mother has said in the past they she purposely took note of the things her mother did that she would never do. I know how important it is to have a healthy relationship with one's Mother, in terms of growth and development as well as for social reasons. If a child is raised with love and affection, and is close and comfortable with one's mother, they will be more likely to be healthy and stable in their lives.
While working on my senior project I have become very interested in studying the history of my Grandmother, Mother, and myself. Seeing how my Grandmother was raised and how she related to the world and seeing how my Mother was raised is very interesting. I am able to see them at the same ages in these videos. I am able to see the similarities in their actions, expressions, and movements. I can see how they were raised. How they were treated by their parents, what their living situations were like. Of course I know how I was raised and what my living situation was like. It is very interesting too see the line from My Grandmother to my Mother to me. This project has started to become much more. It is more about the relationships between three women.

Amy Stein Artist Lecture

As always, I went into this lecture knowing very little background on the artist. I had seen only a few of her pictures. Honestly, they didn't interest me all that much. Once I started listening to what she had to say and how she felt about her work, I ended up liking her work and appreciating it much more.
I was surprised to find out that she came into photography at the age of 32, with no previous experience. I was also surprised to find out that she didn't have a degree in the arts. It impressed me that she just went out and pursued a life in the arts.
One of my favorite things about her lecture was that she showed her very early work; some things that she may not be very proud of. she showed pictures that, she said herself, were not very good. She was very real and easy to understand and feel comfortable with.
It seems that photography comes naturally to her. Her first series, Women and Guns, had some very powerful images. They looked a bit unprofessional, but I could see her growth as she went through her portfolio.
Her second series was more mature. Her lighting was much better. I loved to hear her stories, and how they made the photographs. It was interesting too see a project that I had never seen done.
All in all this was a very interesting lecture. She was a good speaker, and had the language to back up her work. So many times i find that listening to an artist completely changes my feelings for the work. If only every artist had the chance to do this.

Similarities Among Generations

Kornberg, Wendi F. "A Single Family Case Study of Patterns of Movement Phrasing and Effort Dynamics Among Three Generations of Men" 30-Jan-2009

Link to Abstract: thttp://idea.library.drexel.edu/handle/1860/2950

Objective in Study:

The objective of this single family case study was to explore the similarities and/or dissimilarities of patterns of movement phrasing and effort dynamics among three generations of men. A Grandfather, Father, and Son from a Caucasian, Catholic family were recruited and asked to participate in a three part assessment, which included a questionnaire, a movement activity, and an interview.

Findings:

Overall, the analysis of the data collected fostered a greater understanding of this family, and it revealed that similarities among the Grandfather, Father, and Son are present. These similarities were observed among all three generations of men, as well as within the Grandfather-Father dyad, Father-Son dyad, and Grandfather-Son dyad. After evaluation of the movement demonstrated by the three generations of men, it was determined that this family has access to all of the effort factors, which signifies the presence of health. Since currently there is no baseline of normal patterns of movement phrasing and effort dynamics of male family members, this research began an exploration of the intergenerational transmission of nonverbal movement patterns. Future research can possibly use these nascent findings to expand and continue understanding this phenomenon. Further pursuit of this intergenerational research will continue to increase our knowledge and understanding of the family and the transmission of behaviors through the generations.

How This Relates to My Work:

While watching my family videos over and over again I began to pick up on similarities between my Grandmother, my mother, and myself. We all look alike in certain ways and act in move alike as well. Seeing my Grandmother at birth, then as a toddler, a young child, a teenager, and then an adult was very interesting. I recognized expressions, hand movements, and a certain look in her eyes. She does the same things now at the age of 70 that she did when she was a child and young adult. I noticed this with my Mother even more. There are a few scenes of her as a baby all the way to an adult, after she gave birth to me. She had the same gestures and expressions as she does now. It was amazing to see her from a time that I can't remember her, but am still able to recognize her and understand her movements. I can draw major similarities between my Grandmother, my Mother, and myself.
This case study, that I mentioned above, reminded me so much of these recent thoughts I have been having. They found that there were dramatic similarities between the three generations of men, in the way they moved and talked. It also mentioned that, because of these similarities, the three men were able to have healthier relationships with one another.
This was also very similar to some of my recent thoughts. My Mother and I can understand each other in ways that no one else can. Sometimes we hardly have to say a word, and many times don't complete sentences. We are able to talk to each other through body language. At times our expressions and gestures are loaded with more information than our words can convey.

Eternal

"All there is, is the reflection of the eternal, the eternal that is formless and within each of us. The gaze of the persons in the paintings turns inwards always, it is this look within that is the essence of this art." Benoy K. Behl

This is a statement made by behl, the artist in my last blog entry. His most recent work focuses on photographing the Anjanta cave paintings in India. This excerpt, from a recording about his thoughts on his project, struck me for a number of reasons.
In Hindu philosophy it is believed that we all have an individual soul, and that this individual soul is the reflection of the divine. This soul, or Purusha in Sanscrit, lives on forever. The soul is not affected by nature. It is always clear and true.
The next part that interested me was the way he talked baout the gaze of the person's in the paintings. He mentioned that the gaze turns inward. This is the essence of the art. While looking at my family videos, and studying the gestures, expressions, and gaze of the subjects this idea rings true. Each expression and look of my grandmother or mother helps me to look inward, at my family as well as myself.
My work is much more than documenting my family history. This work is a study of the inner workings of my family. I can sense the inner person or sould within each of my fa,ily members while looking at these images.
At times I have thought of these images and videos as making the passing moment into something more eternal. By documenting these moments in history they are no longer souly in the past. They have moved into the present and the furure. Over the past year I have thought of these images as eternal now that they are in tapes and recorded back to film, then printed out on paper. After listening to this recording I have started to realize that nothing I do will make these recorded moments eternal. The moments, and the souls of the subjects are the only eternal things. The thing are not tangible though. There is not a thing I can do to make these things permanent. The only permanent things can be the moments in the past. The fact that they occurred at sme point in time makes them live on.

Benoy K. Behl

Photo 1: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/india-ancient-art/map-interactive

Photo 2: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/india-ancient-art/behl-photography.html

Photo 3: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/india-ancient-art/behl-photography.html

Website: http://www.benoykbehl.com/

Benoy K. Behl has worked on documenting ancient paintings in the Ajanta caves in India, using only natural light. Behl has also visited many more sites in India, Thailand, Indonesia, and Myanmar. He is interested in much more than just documenting for historical purposes only. He was compelled to do this work to "convey the essence and harmony which underlies all of creation."

His work has been shown in National Geographic and the National Museum at New Dehli.

I was very interested in Behl's work because of it's ties to Hinduism and Buddhism. I have only begun to scrape the surface of the different philosophies of these religion,s but am very interested in how they relate to my work.
What caught my attention at first was just the fact that for thousands of years people have been using art to understand the world around them. And for hundreds of years artists, historians, philosphers, and anthropologists have been studying the art of other cultures and generations to understand the world around them as well.
While looking at these photographs I began to see some similarities with my current project. Thousands of years ago people were painting pictures to learn, understand, and remember their stories, beliefs, and memories. This is not much different from families recording their special moments to remember and understand their life and their world. While looking at my family movies I learn more about my history, my family, and my life. I can draw similarities between my Grandmother, my Mother, and myself. I see similarities in gestures and expressions. This helps me to better understand my family members. It helps me to rememberthe past and enables me to put a picture to certain stories that I have heard from my family members.

Another thing that I found to be interesring was the first photograph I posted on this blog,by Bruce Dale. This is an image of Benoy K. Behl in one of his photography sites. His figure is translucent, and ghostlike. This reminded me of the work done by Lorie Novak. She used her figure, translucent and ghostlike as well, with some of her family photographs. This is something that I have played around with. It seems people have the urge to not only look and understand the past but to make themselves a part of it. This is basic human psychology. No one wants to think of the world without them, we are all afraid of death. We are unable to comprehend death, the unknown is impossoible to fully understand. In this same way it seems that in order to understand the past, we tend to have the need to put ourselves into the past.