Assignment
1: Socialized Vision, visual habits, using
the Oculus,
Due:
Week 2. Be prepared to discuss your observations
in class.
On an 8 1/2 X 11 piece of white cardboard
cut an oculus in the middle of the page
that is a horizontal rectangle two inches
wide and one and a half inches high. The
proportions should be roughly the same
as that of a conventional television set,
the 4:3 ratio, horizontal rectangle. During
the coming week take your oculus with
you where ever you go and use it to frame
your view. As you are framing and composing
these shots be looking for specific examples
of socialized vision and the visual habits
you come across at home and in public
spaces. Write down you observations and
hand in to me next week a one to two page
paper and also be prepared to discuss
your observations in class. You will use
this oculus throughout the semester so
bring it to every class.
Assignment
2: Review of Sam Chen's presentation
For
the second assignment you will write a
700 word review (the typical length of
an art review in a free newspaper, i.e.,
the Reader) of Sam Chen's presentation.
As you write the review, refer to specific
points I made in last week's presentation
regarding the origins of the moving image
and the first, second and third waves
of globalization. Your review should NOT
be a series of sentences describing what
you like, but rather, should be a critical
analysis of his work. I will explain in
greater detail in class today.
Assignment 3: Hypathetical proposal
for a site-specific video installation
Using your oculus
to look through, choose a familiar place
and look very carefully at this site.
What do you see? What kinds of activities
are happening or not happening there?
Who enters the space, etc. Write a short
narrative/description/poem about it. After
you have described the site, create a
hypathetical installation for this site
which would include one or more monitors
(televisions) installed at the site. The
content of what is seen on the monitors
should relate to the site. For instance,
if you chose the front entrance to the
library as your site, the images seen
on the monitor could be close-ups of pages
of books. You can create this hypathetical
video installation using drawings, still
images and writing. The monitors should
be installed in such a way that the typical
orientation to the monitor is subverted.
Think of the ways Nam June Paik has subverted
the viewerÕs orientation to the monitor
and how this changes the viewers experience
of the images. Hand this in after the
break--bring to class.
Assignment
5: Observations of the panopticon in everyday
life
This is a hands-on photo or video assignment.
Writing, research and observation: During
the coming week, note and document instances
of the panopticon in your own life, either
actually, architecturally or symbolically.
Be aware of how the panopticon works as
a system of visual control, power or punishment.
Also, how does the campus exhibit instances
of the panopticon? Have your observations
ready for discussion and to turn in next
class (two pages). You can use photos,
video, web or text to document your observations.
You may also use your occulus to frame
and reframe your observations.
Assignment
6: Midterm paper: Analyzing "the
gaze"
through these texts: "Under Western
Eyes", "Visual Pleasure and
Narrative Cinema" and Berger, Chapter
3. All texts are in your reader.
Assignment 7: Abstracts for panel presentations.
Assignment
8: Flip book animation
In
the lower right hand corner of your reader
make a simple flip book animation. The
drawings can be as elaborate as you want
to make them. In class we will shoot video
of each of the animation and make a compilation
of your annotations. This video will be
edited, compressed and posted on the class
website.
Assignment 9: Final Presentations