Week 8: Presentation Magic

   In the past I have strongly disliked animations used during presentations and on websites. I viewed them as cheesy and thought that they distracted onlookers from the main objective. My opinion has turned 180º this week.
   After watching a presentation done by a Swedish man named Hans Rosling, I am now able to see the value of animation. Rosling executed his presentation with a perfect balance of humor, animation and simplicity. The animations he used did a phenomenal job of illustrating change on a chart. Rather then showing the typical before and after slides of different charts Rosling used animation coupled with an entertaining, live announcement to draw his viewers in and point out the facts.
   Rosling uses technology to bring statistics to his audience in a whole new way. He has three key elements for his technique. Animate, liberate and make it searchable. I hope to mimic his method in my future presentations so that they might be successful too.

Week 7: Kindle Kontroversy

   If robotic voices are considered performance then I do believe in the possibility that many AI  are existing among us under a humanlike skin. Seriously, the lawsuit between the Amazon Kindle 2 and The Author's Guild is riddonkulus. The audio reading that the new Kindle 2 offers is in no way infringing on a market. If a person wants a book read to them they are not going to seek out one of those horrible monotone computer voices. Anyone wishing to be entertained will gladly dish out the extra bucks for the author's audio version.
   I think what Kindle 2 has to offer is fantastic. I've always had an issue with disabled people having to shell out more money because they need special accommodations in life. What Kindle 2 has incorporated into the base price of an ebook is simply humane. Through the audio feature it is now possible for blind people to have a book for the same price as seeing people. It makes it more affordable for many disabled populations to enjoy books at a fair price.

Week 6: A New Hope

   Today we are discussing whether or not the street artist Shepard Fairey infringed on a copyright of an image owned by Associated Press in order to create the Obama HOPE poster. Mannie Garcia is the actual photographer of the Obama picture in question. "Garcia seems perfectly happy that his photo was used" according to an article in tech dirt. It is absurd for AP to be filing a lawsuit against the artist.
   I for one think that the whole matter falls under fair use. The art that Shepard created was considerably altered from the image he referenced. Also it was not done for $$$, rather a combination of recognition for his art and promotion on his political stance.
   I chose the image and command SIT for my "Obominized" poster for two reasons. The first being the shear stupidity of the matter. The second as a tribute to the street artist. (SIT like OBEY) 

Week 5: Creating Art in The Cloud

    Creating art in the Cloud, not only does it sound amazing, it is! Artists no longer have to lug heavy easels, paint, brushes and cleaning supplies around with them. With applications like Brushes, SketchBook Pro for iPad, SketchBook Mobile, Colors, Layers , my personal favorite, Vellum, Artisan and many many more, artists are now able to draw, doodle or paint just about anywhere, anytime.  
    French artist and videographer David Lasnier claims that iPod art has inspired him to pick up his acrylics and start painting agin after a 10 year break. Art Apps are convenient and easy to use. They are a great way to sketch out an idea quickly for reference use in another work of art later. 
   Cloud artists like David Lasnier enjoy the challenges that come with the medium. For example, working on such a small screen and having limited accuracy with brush placement. Lasnier doesn't find himself working too much on his images due to small size. He also takes advantage of saving images so that he can revert back if he doesn't like his alterations. 
   I am totally pumped about creating art in the Cloud and really want to buy one of the aforementioned apps for my iPad2. I know I said that I wanted to remove my presence from the Cloud in Week 2's post but...
What can I say, I'm an artist.


P.S. I liked this quote from David Lasnier.
"I choose objects just because of how I think they will catch the light, not because of their inherent nobility or aura as an contemporary icon."
Ditto homeboy!