When preparing this project I was truly restricted by time and resources. I originally wanted to go along the lines of a traditional machine which made audible sound, something with lots of twisted rubber bands and spinning wheel things. But since I was away all break I just couldn't make that happen, and I had to go a different route. What I came up with was something having to do with implied sound. That idea resonates with me because as a trumpet player I am constantly trying to hear what I play before I play it. That sound in my head is what I wanted the audience to experience.
I found it interesting that a few other people went the implied sound route. Especially interesting was Miles' project, where I thought his point was for us to imagine the sounds associated with the pictures, so I was focusing and intently trying to hear the sounds of lightning, snow, kittens, or whatever, when actually Miles wanted us to react as an audience. It really goes to show that no matter what your intention, the audience will probably do something unexpected with your work.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Fluxus
I figured out what I wanted to do with this project as soon as I got the cards. I liked the idea of using whatever was at hand because it shows that art doesn't have to be something that can only be accessed or created by those with means. It reminded me of something the chancellor said at the first meeting of my freshman year. He was talking about how funding had been cut, and he said that we would do what artists across all the ages have done with little to no funding; we will make do with what we've got.
In that vein, I wanted to give my performers tasks that were either impossible, or monumentally hard to accomplish without specialized training. I wanted the performer to push themselves beyond what their body is actually capable of, like singing the lowest and highest c's on the piano, or destroying a chair with their bare hands, or holding a single hand handstand for 5 minutes.
Only the chair challenge was performed, and I was surprised at what happened. Instead of destroying one of the plastic chairs, the person made themselves a chair and then destroyed it. I found it very interesting that even though they didn't do what I expected and didn't really go beyond physical limitations, they did buy into the spirit of the project by making do with whatever was arond to accompish a seemingly difficult task.
In that vein, I wanted to give my performers tasks that were either impossible, or monumentally hard to accomplish without specialized training. I wanted the performer to push themselves beyond what their body is actually capable of, like singing the lowest and highest c's on the piano, or destroying a chair with their bare hands, or holding a single hand handstand for 5 minutes.
Only the chair challenge was performed, and I was surprised at what happened. Instead of destroying one of the plastic chairs, the person made themselves a chair and then destroyed it. I found it very interesting that even though they didn't do what I expected and didn't really go beyond physical limitations, they did buy into the spirit of the project by making do with whatever was arond to accompish a seemingly difficult task.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)