Introspect

When im sitting in Art class, taking in the day's lecture.. alot of things that Glenn talks about makes this scene from American Beauty pop into my head. I guess you can say this scene is how I interpret what it is Glenn is looking for in us, the student. Im sure many of you have already seen this movie, and remember this scene. But watch it again. I bet it will make more sense to you, after learning what we have learned so far.

Nam June Paik

Nam June Paik (July 20, 1932 – January 29, 2006) was a Korean-born American artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the first video artist.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nam_June_Paik)

"Our life is half natural and half technological. Half-and-half is good. You cannot deny that high-tech is progress. We need it for jobs. Yet if you make only high-tech, you make war. So we must have a strong human element to keep modesty and natural life." - Nam June Paik

I agree with this statement above. You can't deny that technology is a very important part of humanity, but it must be utilized also for positive purposes. The ability to blend human naturality and technology is a beautiful thing, as shown by the clips above. I really enjoy Paik's work, im a big fan of audio/visual blends. It's like a rush, or surge of copious amounts of information in an aesthetically pleasing audio video mesh. With the first video, theres really no space left unused. Theres a main image, and there is always something going on in the background. The second video is fairly simple in regards to todays technology, but theres something about the blending of audio and visuals that always leaves me wanting more :)

Erwin Redl

I was instantly intrigued when I saw some of Erwin Redl's work. This instantly reminded me of an amazing laser light show or even some art installations you would find at edm festivals. I was reminded of what we learned about in class today, "Total Installation". Given the space, Redl has created a piece that works in the space that he was given.

I find it amazing that something as simple as an led light, put together in a certain fashion can create something so mindblowing to look at. As I mentioned before, I haven't seen Redl's work in person, but i have seen some smaller, less complex led displays and it's definately breathtaking to look at, with or without music. This makes me interested in learning more on how to put something like this together!

Click here, and scroll to the bottom to see a video of a pretty cool led wall!
http://aninfluxofculture.blogspot.com/2011/02/pendulum-and-giuseppe-ottaviani.html

A moment from UMF 2011

I saw this as a result of Deadmau5 sharing this video on FB.. This is just a reminder that FUN IS FOR EVERYONE!!!!!!

Earth Hour 2011

It's events like these that allow me to keep my faith in humanity. It brings smiles to my face, and tears to my eyes.

Beyond Wonderland at the NOS Events Center

Best party ive been to in a long time. Its been at least 6 years since my last visit to NOS, and it was perfect. open area to roam, no tight LA crowdedness, great art, amazing soundsystems and even better djs. Totally glad I made it out! I took over 200 photos and about 20 2-5 minute videos. But as luck would have it, I lost my camera!!! Bummer I know, but what can you do? Ill see if I can get my friends who took pictures to send me some, and ill post them. If you didnt make it out for this, Ill see you at Audiotistic!

                                                     Audio memories of Beyond Wonderland!!

The mysticism of a culture

Ill let the videos and music do all the speaking. Enjoy.

The Crime of Altruism

Im not here to talk about this painting or who its by. Im here to talk about the crime of being altruistic. Why is it such a bad thing to care about others over oneself? I find myself always being hurt by people for caring too much. I can't be a blatant asshole, thats not my nature. Im tired of feeling guilty for reaching out and being there for others who can use the sympathy only to be hurt in the end. Yes altruism is about selflessness, but i would think that a selfless act would be accompanied with at least respect in the end. Yet here I am, shedding tears for being made to feel bad for being there for others.

Save The Rave!!

In San Francisco, there is a bill being proposed that blatantly targets people or organizations who throw raves, making them criminally responsible. If you can, do your part and ensure this doesn't happen!!

If I would have known about this earlier, I personally would have made it out to San Francisco to voice my opinion. You can still do your part, check out the link below.

Raving isn't just something you do, its a way of life. Remember that!

Don't let legislators tell you your lifestyle is criminal.

Get involved.

Jason Sperling, also know by Dyloot in the EDM world and proponent of Save the Rave had this to say:

"Since I started in this industry, I have seen an explosion in the popularity of electronic dance music. The younger generation has embraced this community in higher numbers than we have ever seen, leading to larger events and an increased number of attendees who have not yet benefitted harm reduction program. (A Little knowledge can save a life)


Issues of drug and alcohol abuse are larger social issues that are not the result of EDM events. We welcome the opportunity to work on harm reduction with the cooperation of City Officials. I suggest that we look to our colleagues in Los Angeles for a valuable model about how to proceed. Their task force – made up of public health officials, venue operators, promoters, and local law enforcement – arrived at a series of recommendations that are extremely helpful. "
     
            - Jason Sperling - President, Skills DJ Workshop Inc

Thanks Jason for your contributions to the EDM world!
Please check out http://www.savetherave.org/ for details.

Trance euphoria, a celebration of life.

You must listen to this very loud, with a decent surround system with a sub to get the full beauty of this track. This track always brings tears to my eyes. =`)

And this track is just.. ahh! Always gives me chills. I think about why it is I am sharing trance secrets with everyone, and its because I can't keep music such as this a secret. Too amazing not to. If I ever find my motivation or muse I will mix an epic trance mix, post to Soundcloud and then on here. Perhaps.

This man is a genius.

A fitting track.

To share

Ive also got a cheap pair of Stanton turntables (obviously not pictured) Missing the AC plug for the Numark Digital mixer too :( need to get these badboys up and running again!

Identity collage

I really didn't really know how to tackle this project, as easy as it seems. I went through a million ideas before coming up with the final result. It's not very elaborate, but I did put alot of effort into making this as interesting and unique as I could. Before I get to the final result, lets take a look at the process!!

LACMA

The LACMA was a pretty fun time, except that I got there around 6pm, and they closed at 8pm. Also the Art Of The America's building wasn't open, and a few areas were closed as well. I took a few shots of the art I found most interesting. Sorry, I didn't get artist or art names, was in a rush. Enjoy!

Coco Fusco

I spent alot of time examining this photo, especially the significance of Coco standing infront of this piece by Glenn Ligon. I now understand the significance. Coco Fusco work is definately interesting.

An insightful day

Im still brewing over what was discussed in class today.

The reality of beauty

Since the beginning of the semester, we have been given the idea, or the question to think about, "What is reality?"