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09.29.08

Response to Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction Communications Lab, Uncategorized | (0)
While I found the majority of the reading pleonastic, there were certainly interesting comparisons made. Benjamin analyzes the effects technology has on art and, as inferred by the title, specifically how the ability to reproduce the piece augments its meaning, as well as varies the how we regard the medium. It is also briefly mentioned how the aesthetic can change to facilitate ease of reproduction. Benjamin interprets the advancements in speed of reproduction as a change from the skilled artisan to the precise technician. With his comparison of painting and film, Benjamin describes this recent shift in paradigm. He uses painting to ...
09.18.08

Observing [ambient] technology Physical Computing, Uncategorized | (0)
[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="518" caption="Jerry, how could you just wake up one day with a pink moustache?"][/caption] To better understand what makes an interface great, we were assigned to wander the city and observe all the interfaces already being used. Not just identifying the technology, but to analyze how the user interacts with the device and what motor skills are involved. Also, the amount of time spent using it, the intentions behind its use, and the number of people involved in the transaction. On Monday, 9/15/08, Filippo and I walked west on Waverly St to 7th Avenue, and took West 4th Street ...
09.17.08

Bang A Gong, Read Some Ong, Get it On Communications Lab, Uncategorized | (0)
Walter Ong loves to cite himself (talk about shameless self promotion). The first four chapters of Orality and Literacy anthropological account on the transition from oratory culture to that of chirographic or written culture. He distinguishes chirographic culture from use of pictograms or any other symbol based system. Essentially, his meaning of writing is concerned with the first alphabet in ancient Sumeria. Yes kitties, cogito ergo sumo. In distinguishing the two cultures he addresses the contradiction that is "oral literature," referring to storytelling. Literature, meaning writing, as per "litera" meaning "letter of the alphabet" is certainly a case of a literate ...
09.17.08

Olafur’s Waterfalls Communications Lab, Uncategorized | (0)
This four-part installation of waterfalls on the East River is brilliant. Oddly, I often find myself defending both their artistic integrity and beauty. They are simplistic structures, scaffolding and piping, maybe the critics wanted something more elaborate? I don't think that anything would've pleased all of New York. Though Eliasson has his purposes behind the structures, the refocusing NY to its rivers has much more connotation to locals. Certainly they draw attention to fervently discussed environmental issues as well as draw community to our public spaces. But the East River represents far more than your average metropolitan waterway. It represents new ...
09.17.08

ICM Add/Drop Uncategorized | (0)
Originally, my first ITP-related post was an assignment to convey a message to our classmates with two dimensional shapes using Processing. I ended up using three dimensional shapes, using the box() command and the openGL engine. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="317" caption="My first ICM assignment"][/caption] During this first week with Processing, I was amazed by its versatility, and essentially how little I had to code to get something tasty lookin'. I was especially looking forward to being mentored by Daniel Rozin, the artist behind the infamous Wooden Mirror in ITP foyer. But alas, the ease of ICM backfired. Looking through the syllabus, I realized ...
09.16.08

Migration time Uncategorized | (0)
Transferring data from one site to another on the web isn't so dissimilar to moving. I've been labelling all the folders, even found a theme for this site, but still reluctant to put in the time. 8 oz of motivation. Gosh I hate the line spacing on this theme. Eh, CSS mods yet to come. Okay, I'll try to preserve some sort of chronology to these relocated posts. Feel free commenting on any language you don't understand, I get accustomed to speaking with peers, especially in electronic format.
09.15.08

test test one two Uncategorized | (0)
mawtis. is this thing on?

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