I am sorry the image is blurry. It appears clear on my computer and I do not know how to fix it. In case the image is difficult to see, the bottom of the pyramid has more rugged jobs while the top is a CEO in a big office.

 

The keywords that I used in my picture were: no wrong way, dedication, colors, pretty, and free flowing. I believe my imagine could be considered art because I used my creativity to develop something that reflects my feelings towards art. In week three’s reading, Dissanayake reveals her word “palaeoanthropsychobiological” which she believes defines the many different forms of art. Dissanayake describes what this word means when she writes, “First, that the idea of art encompasses all of human history; second, that it includes all of human societies; and third, that it accounts for the fact that art is a psychological or emotional need and has psychological or emotional effects” (Dissanayake 15). Based off of Dissanayake’s definition, I believe my picture would fall into the 3^rd criteria because the picture that I created has an emotional effect on me. While I was creating this picture, I took the emotions I was feeling and put them into something that people can now see. Furthermore, I think post modernism demonstrates that my picture is considered artwork when the author writes, “Postmodernism points out that any ‘truth’ or ‘reality’ is only a point of view” (19). This quote demonstrates how postmodernism is very open with what they consider to be art. Therefore, we can consider my picture to be my “truth” of how I see art.

 

References

Dissanayake, E. (1991). What is art for? In K. C. Caroll (Ed.). Keynote adresses 1991 (NAEA Convention), (pp.15-26). Reston, VA: National Art Education Association.

 

 

Although I am not very familiar with what is technically classified as copyright infringement, it seems to me that it would be very difficult to draw a line. For me personally, it is hard to develop a strong argument defending copyrights or not because I see both sides.

In the Ted talk, the speaker, Lawrence Lessig, mentions that he does not support people stealing someone’s work for commercial purpose but he believes it is necessary, especially for the younger generation, to use peoples work in order to foster creativity. Lessig gives examples of how the younger generation uses copyrighted music in a nonthreatening way when they take a song and put it so someone else’s lips line up with the words of the song. While the speaker was talking, I completely agreed with him that someone should not use someone else’s work for commercial use without their permission. In addition, I could also see where he was coming from regarding people reusing music for personal use. If it became illegal to use music in the ways he demonstrated, it would limit the way people could express their creativity.

In the Amen Break video, it reveals how a drum line has been altered numerous times and put in things ranging from other songs to commercials. Although this drum riff has been altered in some cases to the point where an untrained ear would not recognize it, is this still considered copyrighted?

While comparing these two videos and the assigned reading, I have come to the conclusion that copyright infringement caries a lot of value in modern society. With the internet being accessible to almost everyone in the world, people are able to share things with anyone instantaneously. As a result, this makes it very easy for people to illegally share copyrighted music and movies. Although copyright laws might limit creativity, I do not think those were its intentions. Lessig writes about this in our assigned reading when he says, “Artists want their expression framed just as they intend it…doctors or pharmaceutical companies want to assure that instructions or medial explanations are not translated by just anyone” (Lessig 85). I believe that copyright laws were set up to protect the people who created the work of art. When Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa, he did not have to worry about people copying his work because the only way people could truly experience it was by going to see it. Nowadays, with a click of a button, someone can pirate a movie that someone created and send it to the rest of the world without their permission. As a result, this artist could lose a lot of money that should have been paid to him. Furthermore, this could lead to less people using their creativity because they feel it is not worth it due to the fact someone else is going to steal it once it is made. Finally, I think the copyright laws should remain the same. I believe they are doing the best job they can to maintains peoples original works without trying to curb peoples creativity.

 

References

Lessig, L. (2008). Comparing Cultures. Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy (pp. 84-116). New York: Penguin Press HC, The.

The main thesis that the author discusses in Computer Graphics: Effects of Origins is how art is changing. If we look into the past, people used to only see art as paintings and sculptures. Now however, we are at a new point in time where technology is much more prominent and as a result has started to become interwoven with art. The author writes about the mix between these forms of art when she says, “An examination of the fluctuating borders between computer graphics theory and practice in scientific/technological use, in artistic use and in ‘everyday’ use reveals differing patterns of culture authorization” (Jones 21). This quote demonstrates how our society is starting to change the old borders that were once set up between art and technology/science.

Jones gives a historical example of how technology and art were combined in the 1940s when she writes, “Computers were used to generate the earliest computer graphics and display them on oscilloscopes” (Jones 22). This quote reveals how technology and art used to be connect 70 years ago. If we take a step back and look at how art and computers have developed together, it is amazing to see the advancement. An example of this is with animation. Nowadays, we are able to digitally draw characters and have them do things such as act in movies. Animationschool.net discusses the basics of animation when they write, “Animation is the art of bringing something to life. How it’s brought to life can be done any number of ways…You can put it on a computer, like Toy Story.” In the 1940s this would have never been impossible and because of that, people would not be able to consider something such as animation as art. By comparing Jones 1940 example and this animation example, we are able to support Jones thesis on how art is constantly changing.

 

References

Jones, B. J. (1990). Computer Graphics: Effects of Origins. LEONARDO: Digital Image – Digital Cinema Supplemental Issue, pp. 21-30.

How Animated Movies Are Made. (n.d.). Retrieved March 2, 2015, from http://www.animationschool.net/how-animated-movies-are-made.html

I decided to respond to the Ted Talk that discusses making the world a better place through video games. Before watching this speech, I always considered video games a waste of time. It never occurred to me that the amount of time people spend playing video games would give them some sort of skillset. However after I was finished, it made sense to me that we have a large number of people who have mastered the skills suggested by Jane McGonigal: urgent optimism, social fabric, epic meaning, and blissful productivity. Furthermore, when I finished watching this speech, I personally felt that gamers could better change the world by utilizing their skills in a unique work places. Although Ms. McGonigal’s idea of creating video games that people would play then ideally carry with them in real life was a valid idea, I personally felt that if we designed a work environment with the same principles that draw gamers to excel, and focused that energy to fix real world problems, we would truly exceed in solving real world problems.

I personally define spirituality as a belief that an individual feels emotionally attached too and makes an effort to adjust their actions to go along with this belief. So for example, if someone feels very strongly about being in shape and they feel that by working out they are an all-around better person than if they were to not do this activity, I would define that as spirituality. The reason being is that this individual feels so strongly about being in shape that they contribute many of their outcomes to this belief.

Although I see spirituality and religion as very similar, I believe they differ from one another. I see religion as a more defined form of spirituality. As stated above, spirituality is very open and can be anything that a person has a strong personal, emotional belief towards. As for religion, I think that this strong emotional belief is focused on a God. Therefore, I believe someone could classify their religion as part of spirituality but they cannot classify their spirituality as part of religion unless it involves a God.

I personally define creativity as the process of coming up with an idea. The reason I defined creativity this way is because whenever we come up with an idea, we need to use some form of “creativity” to get there. For example, if I am trying to find a way to complete a task, I am “creating” an idea in my head to get from where I am to where I want to go. I personally see this “creating” process as a form of “creativity” because your mind is using its tools to think abstractly and come up with a solution.

I believe the source of creativity can come from anywhere. If I follow my definition from above, then creativity can come from anything that you get an idea from. An example of this can be if I am walking down the street and I see a cool looking building but I think it would look better red. In that situation, I am “creating” an idea that I gained from looking at a building by thinking abstractly that the building would look better red.

The part of the reading that I found to be the most interesting was the creative process steps. As I was reading through these steps, I was having some trouble relating to them. Although some steps made sense to me, I realized that this was my first time seeing the creative process put into a step by step basis. Before reading these steps, I had never thought about the method that took place for me to reach my creative solution. Then as I started to think more, I realized that putting the creative process into a list of steps seems counterintuitive. When I think of creativity, I think of a free flowing process that everyone does differently. There is no right or wrong way to be creative and therefore you cannot categorize creativity into steps. Although these steps do have some valid points, overall I do not think you can categorize creativity into steps.

Another part of the article that I enjoyed reading was the inspiration section. During this section, the author writes, “Inspiration is the most mysterious step in the creative process. The artist is possessed by a creative force, overtaken by a vision and driven to create” (Grey 81-2). I find this quote very interesting because although I have a set of goals that I get inspired by, I often times get random bursts of inspiration that I am unable to explain. In addition, when the author discusses how he and his wife differ in styles of inspiration, I found myself relating to the author much more. The author describes how he gets inspired when he says, “For me, pressure is my greatest catalyst. Important ideas can come at the last minute under a deadline. Often as a painting is coming to completion, I will have to change an entire section because an essential insight suddenly arises” (80). I personally found these sentences to relate to me perfectly. When I am on a time crunch trying to complete something, I usually have a moment of clarity where I find great insight for a better way to complete my topic at hand.

 

References

Grey, A. (2001). Art as Spiritual Practice. The Mission of Art (1st ed., pp. 205-233). Boston & London: Shambhala.

The first article I chose is written by Richard Sine and discusses why someone would chose to watch a scary movie. At the beginning of the article, the author describes how there is something peculiar about people wanting to watch scary movies when he says: “No doubt, there’s something really powerful that brings people to watch these things, because it’s not logical…most people like to experience pleasant emotions” (Sine 1). The author then begins to reveal that our brain cannot determine the difference between something scary happening on a screen and something scary happening in real life. In particular, this draws men to scary movies because they want to feel like they have mastered the scariest situation. It is almost like an alpha male complex. Another rational on why people might enjoy watching scary movies is because adults generally do not approve of such movies. This can make the viewer feel rebellious since many people want to do what they are not supposed to. Lastly, there has been a major increase with violence in the media. When people see all this, it does a lot of things to their minds and one of them is making them curious. People become curious with how these events occur and where they take place. As a result, the viewers are able to fulfill this itch by watching horror films.

The last part of Sine’s article matches with what Carroll said in her article on why people watch these types of horror films when she writes, “Thus, to a large extent, the horror story is driven explicitly by curiosity” (Carroll 279). I find it weird and slightly discomforting that the human mind naturally wants to know more about such horrible things.

 

My second article is written by Lauren Suval and also discusses why we are drawn to horror films. Suval starts off her article by telling the viewer that she has a love hate relationship with scary movies. Whenever she is watching a scary movie, she can’t take her eyes off of the screen but at the same time she is really scared. She also knows that after the movie is over she is going to have nightmares. Suval mentions that family members often ask her why she watches them if she knows it will have such a negative cognitive impact afterwards. The author then goes on to tell the reader that she has done some research and she has discovered some of the mains reason are that: “it’s a distraction from the daily routines of life; we want to counter social norms; we seek an adrenaline rush; and we hope to voyeuristically glimpse fright from a distance” (Suval 1). Suval also mentions that some adults may watch horror films because they want to relive the fears they had as a kid and let their imaginations become more active again. These horror films give people the opportunity to do these things while maintaining a safe distance from danger.

In our assigned reading, Carroll mentions that: “Horror stories, in a significant number of cases, are dramas of proving the existence of the monster and disclosing the origin, identity, purposes and powers of the monster” (Carroll 279). Although I think Carroll did not intend it in this context, I think this supports the theory mentioned in Suval’s article that people watch scary movies in order to relive childhood fears. Since many children were once afraid of monsters, by watching a scary movie, people are able to believe again that monsters do exist.

 

References

Carroll, N. (2002). Why Horror?. In Neill, A. & Riley, A. (eds.) Arguing About Art: Contemporary Philosophical Debates (2nd ed., Chap. 17). New York, NY: Routledge.

Feature, R. (n.d.). Why We Love Scary Movies. Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/features/why-we-love-scary-movies?page=1

Suval, L. (n.d.). Why Are We Drawn to Horror Films? Retrieved February 16, 2015, from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2014/01/04/why-are-we-drawn-to-horror-films/

When watching a show for entertainment, I rarely notice the effects that go into creating the emotion that I feel; I just feel the emotion. However, I find it very interesting that when you are looking for ways to evaluate a show, things that you never would have notice stand out. This episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer really supported my opinion on this because right away I noticed mise-en-scene, diegetic sounds, as well as non-diegetic sound. I also noticed than many of these elements occurred simultaneously or right after one another.

One example of mise-en-scene and diegetic sound that stood out to me occurred in the same scene at 2:23. During this scene, a girl is singing a song about death in a creepy looking hallway. The song would represent diegetic sounds because the voice is coming from the character. As for the lighting, it represents mise-en-scene because it is one of the characteristics that you observe during the scene. The reason the hallway gives off a creepy persona is due to the lighting. The beginning of the hallways is the darkest point with occasional lights leading down the corridor where the girl stands at the end. Where the girl stands, the lighting has an effect where half of her body is in the dark and half has a little light. In addition, there is a reflection going down the hallways which gives off the affect that it is night time with a bright moon. When the director shows this, you can make out the words that the girl is sing: “you are going to die screaming but you won’t be heard.” This contributes to the aesthetic of horror because this type of lighting has a persona of being scary, especially when there is a girl standing confidently in the middle of a dark hallway. When the design of this scene is combined with the diegetic sounds of a horrific song, it makes the audience feel tension and wonder what is going to happen next.

A good example of non-diegetic sounds occurs at 13:22. When the scene starts, you can hear spooky music that sounds like deep wind instruments being played slowly. I am not exactly sure why the music feels spooky but the same type of music occurs whenever something bad is about to happen. This type of music represents non-diegetic sound because the music is played to create tension for the audience. In addition, the music adds to the horror in the film because it builds up the viewer’s emotions to the event that is about to occur. This is crucial for a horror film.

As I think about what influenced the way I dress and my body adornment, I have come to the conclusion that there are two factors that have had the biggest impact on me. The first one is my family. Within my family, my parents have the biggest impact on the way I dress and I have adopted some style from each of them. Overall, my family has fairly relaxed dress habits. My dad grew up in San Diego, California so he has a casual, laid back way of dressing while my mom was taught to dress a little nicer. When I was growing up, I was dependent on my parents so I could only buy clothes that they approved of. Although they were not super strict, I used to want shirts that had designs with skulls on them but my mother would never allow it. In addition, my brothers always influenced the way I dressed because I looked up to them and I wanted to dress just like them. However my parents were not as relaxed about body adornment. Growing up, my father always had two rules: no tattoos and no piercings. While I was in high school, my dad told me if I ever got a tattoo or a piercing he would cut me off financially and would not pay for my college. This sounded a bit extreme but I did not want to test him. There were times in high school when I wanted to get a tattoo or my ears pierced but I had to refrain from doing so. Right now I am a senior in college and I still have not had a piercing or a tattoo. Although this is something that I would never admit to him, I am now thankful for his no body adornment rule. I also find it interesting how my dad’s pressure for no body adornment has slowly transformed my opinion to now agree with his view.

The second factor that has influenced me is society and the area I grew up. I feel like my generation has the greatest appreciation for body adornment thus far. You can see this while walking around campus or back home in California because you can constantly see people with tattoos and piercings. In addition, I feel like they are much more casual than they used to be. If you ever ask someone about their tattoos they are generally very open about them and they will tell you the story while showing you the art on their body. When I see this, it makes me want to get one because people express themselves so freely. The author reveals how ancient societies used to think of tattoos much differently than we do now when she writes, “Tattooing in ancient Egypt was confined to women, especially concubines, dancers, and priestesses” (Sanders 9). This is interesting because this is the opposite of how modern society is. The external societal forces and the area I grew up in also impacted the way I dressed myself. Although I would not consider myself the ‘trendiest’ person, I do like to look nice. The time in my life where society and the people around me influenced the way I dressed the most was when I was in middle school. I can clearly remember this because this was when designer jeans started to become very popular. There was a pressure that if you wanted to be cool you had to wear designer jeans. Nowadays, I do not let that kind of external pressure decide what I am going to wear. When I am shopping, I will take other people’s opinions into consideration but it will not be the deciding factor.

The biggest value that is expressed by the way I dress is the belief that there is a time and place for everything. What I mean by this is that there are certain occasion where it is acceptable to wear casual, comfortable clothing and there are certain places where you should put on your suit and tie. I love wearing sweats around because they are easy and comfortable but I am not going to wear them in a place where it is not suitable. I think the reason that I have made this choice can be tied back to my parents. As I mentioned earlier, my dad dresses casual while my mom tends to dress up and as a result I see myself falling somewhere in the middle. I can also definitely witness myself changing overtime. My first couple years of college I would often wear sweat pants to class because dressing up for class was not very important to me. However once I got into the business school, I noticed myself starting to change. Everyone around me was wearing nicer clothes so I started to do the same. This year I have not worn sweat pant once.

References

Sanders, C. R. (1989). Introduction: Body Alteration, Artistic Production, and the Social World of Tattooing. In Customizing the Body (Chap. 1). Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.