Join Or Die

Justine Lai - Artist Statement:

In Join Or Die, I paint myself having sex with the Presidents of the United States in chronological order. I am interested in humanizing and demythologizing the Presidents by addressing their public legacies and private lives. The presidency itself is a seemingly immortal and impenetrable institution; by inserting myself in its timeline, I attempt to locate something intimate and mortal. I use this intimacy to subvert authority, but it demands that I make myself vulnerable along with the Presidents. A power lies in rendering these patriarchal figures the possible object of shame, ridicule and desire, but it is a power that is constantly negotiated.

I approach the spectacle of sex and politics with a certain playfulness. It would be easy to let the images slide into territory that's strictly pornographic—the lurid and hardcore, the predictably "controversial." One could also imagine a series preoccupied with wearing its "Fuck the Man" symbolism on its sleeve. But I wish to move beyond these things and make something playful and tender and maybe a little ambiguous, but exuberantly so. This, I feel, is the most humanizing act I can do.

March 2009

Via justinelaie

Super 8

I plan to explore the world of super 8 filmmaking this summer with a few projects in mind. The camera pictured above is what I have purchased recently. It's part of a solid line of Braun Nizo cameras  that are compact and light offering a lot of freedom to move and film. There is something foundational to the super 8 format that I think will be a tremendous help in the overall composition of my shots in later film or video projects. Here are some technical specs of the camera in case you're interested:

• Film speeds: 9,8,24,36 fps, single frame
• ASA daylight: 25 - 100
• ASA artificial: 40 - 60
• Lens: Schneider Keuznach 7 - 56mm (8x zoom) - f/1.8

Aside from some planned ideas I think documenting things in general will be a pretty entertaining experience. I plan to shoot mostly with Ektachrome 64T. From what I've gathered it produces some rich colors and the grain is pretty fine. I found a couple of videos that test out the filmstock with two different cameras:

Called are Many

Here are two sample pieces from Yasser Aggour, an assistant professor in the art photography program. I've been viewing his online portfolio recently and the diversity of his subjects has piqued my interests quite a bit. His body of work contains multiple series that are distinct in their cultural observations, but they almost all appear to be linked by some sort of subversive performance element. Each series in his portfolio contain some nice supportive commentary that shed light on his work process. Dude seems pretty funny from some of the written statements, too.

Putting it to Bed

Poster design by Sidearm Design

Tension mounts as the last bits of preparation swirl together to form the annual MFA Film showcase on Thursday. This is it. My film is done and I'm debuting it for the first time to the general public. It's called How We Left It, narrative, 16 mm, color, 10 min. I began writing one film in October and came out with a different one in April. Am I happy with the results? Somewhat. However, I will invariably stand by the labor and effort I put into this project which has been like nothing else I've experienced. I created something, and for better or worse, it is a piece of work that has taught me some irreplaceable lessons on production and responsibility and above all, composure. Ryan encouraged me to continue to pursue work that appeals to my interests. We sat down together following his thesis defense and ate pineapple bites with assorted cheeses and crackers. His advice was simple, if not stock, but contained a potency to it that appropriately marked a good way to end the year and start the summer. And it was nearly a year ago I met him for the first time in the basement halls of the Shaffer Art Buidling. Now he's moving on and I am slowly emerging into his position.

Two weeks left to go until school wraps and I'm playing clip shows in my mind over dinners and hangouts. It does not feel like it was just yesterday that I boarded a plane to New York. That sentiment is lost to me. It most certainly feels like a 10-month endurance test is winding down and I can for the first time in a while anticipate the joy of being surrounded by my friends. I'm approaching this summer break with a wholehearted outlook, some new scars and victories. 

See you shortly.

+25 Experience

The semester is in its final stretch and I've got a plane ticket home. I also leveled up today by making it to twenty-five.

Turn this one up for me.

Reduce Reuse YouTube

Via Gizmodo

Josh Poehlein's Modern History is a series of collages assembled exclusively from screen grabs of YouTube videos. The result is a bit staggering after considering that YouTube has accumulated such a tremendously high volume of content. It is refreshing to see an artist's interpretation of so many forgotten images and what they can amount to when collected and reused. Click on the photos to enlarge.

 

WTWTA

Aaahh!!! Real Monsters

Charmed by the art direction for the new teaser advert from Spike Jonze and the folks working on Where The Wild Things Are. Looks like a theatrical trailer is on its way soon. Hopes are up.

Update: Trailer looks great. Hopes elevated higher.