dance+off

__//posted new wrk today - dance+off
originally I wanted to reconstruct "iconic" clips from cinema in which the main protagonist, denied of any other agency, used dance as a method to vent their frustrations and as protest to the oppositional institutions surrounding them. the original cinematic dance scenes needed to be solo + private - as if the character was having their own therapeutic relationship w/ the body + rhythm.
after shooting a few clips, I thought more about the male body's relationship to dance, esp. when represented on screen; and how the feminizing effects of technology, dance, + pop music alter how this body is sexualized in relation to on screen representation.
obviously, the only way to proceed is a 10-channel video installation w/ endless loops of this exploration.

on a tech. note, this was also a way to test the 1280x720 video of my nikon d90. the 24fps is still sticky for someone who's been using 29.97 for years, but other than that, I'm pleased w/ the results. I'm really interested in finally exploring a decent depth-of-field in video.

...more than ever, hour after, our wrk is never over

__//wrk log: from 10dec2008 to 15jan2009
• revised/recut Architectural Animation project
• built a new enclosure for the body//nes project. this one uses a portable DVD player and the screen is just 1.5" larger; but because the enclosure is more cube-shaped and the scale is slightly bigger, the "weight" of the piece has changed dramatically. before, with a smaller screen and in a smaller project box, the piece felt quieter and intimate. now, since the viewing corridor is longer and the unit has more presence, the piece is definitely more "object-like." it's still intimate, but it's a very different relationship than before. because of this dramatic shift, I probably should change to version v0.3.
• began the nespainter project; basically I figured out all the technical issues surrounding the game/video capture interface. incidentally, this is leading into IRL explorations of the traced motion + generating/processing data from these motions.
• built a scanner-camera. this was actually a longer build - 40+hrs and I'm still not 100% satisfied w/ the hardware. I'm using a Canon LiDE 30 scanner + photo enlarger head. I can get a _decent_ image, but it's not totally there yet. development's on hold until I return to gso.
• continued work on the newjunk v0.5 project. it's still an interactive piece loosely-based on a gender survey I constructed in the fall, but now I really feel that I'm trying to explore the constructed body in relation to gender, and not constructed gender in relation to the body. gender's still a construct, but since it's fluid and dynamic, I wanted to reframe the focus towards the a new fluid+dynamic body. //updated to v0.55 to reflect changes
• submitted to a bunch more exhibs, shows, festivals, conferences, etcs.
• revised the www
__//

updated architectural animation

I spent all day recutting the proposal for the architectural animation project. I had some new footage I wanted to add, plus added more text/description for the page.
now to submit this project to more places.

plz to enjoy:

architectural animation __// project proposal from christian.ryan on Vimeo.