Topics in Convergent Media: Vision (Krukowski)

DreamScapes

DreamPlay (Matthew Tray, Drew Moses)

Details

€ The primary software tool in this course is a program called FormZ. It is installed on all the computers in the ACTLab with the exception of the PCs in the back of the room. Tutorials for this program and for numerous others will be scheduled as extra lab sessions throughout the semester. While you are not required to attend these sessions, it is strongly recommended that you do so. In advance of the FormZ lab sessions (ie starting now), please familiarize yourself with the interface of the program and make use of the tutorials section under the help menu of the program. FormZ is complicated, and you will need to spend a lot of time with it outside of class.

€ Individual classes will be about making and thinking. Some classes will be project oriented, others will be discussions of ideas and readings or of other material brought to the class by us or by you. Additional class times may be scheduled throughout the semester in order to accommodate the growth and interests of the class.

€ All students in this course should plan to attend all lectures and presentations of the First Annual Convergent Media Lecture Series, to be held at 5pm on various Thursdays (mostly) in CMB Studio 4B throughout the year. See the postcard for more information.

€ The course has a listserve: vision@actlab.us. Use this listserve to communicate with your fellow students, ask technical questions, contribute ideas, share resources. Your e-mail address will be added to the listserve by Wednesday of this week. In addition, the ACTLab has a discussion list at discuss@actlab.us. Participating in this listserve allows you to communicate with and hear from a large number of interesting people from various backgrounds. Subscribe by sending a message to discuss@actlab.us. In the text box, write the word ³subscribe² and nothing else‹no signatures, no extra doodas. Some things you might want to knowŠ

€ You should be self-motivated to succeed in this course. Classwork is cumulative, and those of you who are unable to set your own goals and pace may have trouble participating and producing work. I am here to help you as you develop ideas, interests and questions. Do not take this course if you are unwilling to work hard, collaborate with others.

€ Questions you have and develop may be resolved by practice or by other types of inquiry--theoretical, philosophical, scientific, poetic, etc. There should be times during the semester that you get stuck. You should develop the tools to unstick yourself. If you don¹t know what to make, go look at what other people have made. If you don¹t know what to say, go read something or watch something or listen to someone interesting. If you are still stuck, in all probability you are not making enough stuff to get yourself moving toward a question you can answer through practice or thought. A motto for the course: Make, make, make. If you come to me disoriented, I will first ask you what you are making and ask to see evidence of your efforts and research in the direction of your inquiries.

€ Creating a work between the physical world and the virtual world requires a lot of time in the labs outside of class. You should expect to spend at least ten hours of lab time each week in addition to class time. Your technical ability will increase in proportion to your effort. Hack and be resourceful. There are many, many online tutorials and resources for various programs. Learn as much as you can about everything that comes your way, but focus on those technologies that interest you, and seek their subtleties on your own time. Lab facilities are limited which necessitates cooperative scheduling. You may need to use resources in several locations, and finding the right equipment at the right time will require considerable initiative on your part. € Presentation is a large part of your participation in the course. From time to time you will discuss your project's progress with the class. I will be reviewing your individual progress over the course of the semester by observing your skills and creative choices as you work. There will be a peer and faculty review of your final projects at the end of the semester. Scheduling and location will be worked out in class and via e-mail. The nature of the public exhibition of your projects will be determined during the semester, but you are required to attend the end of semester events that take place, be they reviews, installations, performances, demonstrations, or the like. Readings:

€ There are no required texts. Instead, there will be readings assigned on a weekly basis that reflect the ways in which the course develops during the semester. Two copies of these readings will be placed in a folder at Longhorn Copies marked Krukowski. They will be available to you a week before they are to be discussed in class. You should be prepared to discuss these readings on Mondays; readings for the week to follow will be available to you on Tuesday mornings. It is your responsibility to xerox these readings and return the original copies to the folder. DO NOT keep the originals‹this inconveniences your fellow students and diminishes the energy of the course. You will be individually responsible for each set of readings. I strongly advise you to spend time struggling with them, even if they seem beyond your reach. If you are having problems with a particular week's readings, contact a classmate or three and meet to discuss the material. I grade your understanding of the readings (and your sensitivity to the issues raised by them) during class discussion, so it is to your advantage to read carefully and participate. Additional classes may be scheduled to discuss particular articles or ideas.

Exercises

1.

Team up with a person or a few people in class. Find a description of a dream written by an historical figure. Interpret the dream visually and spatially by making a model that describes it. The character of the model should convey the character of the dream. Consider, as you are representing the dream, how the following relate to its character: €your material choices (what is soft, hard, transparent, translucent, opaque, touchable, untouchable, smooth, frictionalŠ) €the way you see into the model (does the dream offer entrance? what kind? how many openings? of what shape?) €how you hold the model (is the dream big or small, what is the nature of its body, what is its heft and weight?) €images (does the dream suggest that you make images, collect them from a certain kind of source, refuse them altogether?) €structure (is the dream fragmented, solid, weak or strong at points of connection?) €sequence (what is the relationship of the parts of the model to the narrative of the dream?)

2.

In a gallery or museum...

Step 1 Find a partner or two (max)

Step 2 (Alone) Wander the galleries upstairs and downstairs. Survey the collection. Don't look at any one particular object with too much intensity--instead allow each object to pull or push at you, attract or repulse you. Allow this gravitational field of looking to be open in spirit. Avoid judgments (I like it, I don't like it) and favor the inexplicable as a reason for being drawn toward or away from something.

Step 3 (With your partner or small group) Sit down in front of the most forceful object--the one that has played you most (you might have to argue a bit amongst yourselves, but argue sensically as well as nonsensically). Diagram/List every component of its composition (think: color, line, scale, volume, space, illusion, perspective, time, motion, light, texture, pattern, symmetry, rhythm, proportion, contrast, form, formlessness, character(s), material, narrative, gesture, relationship between work and audienceŠ) and the way these components relate to each other and to the work as a whole. There are many ways to represent these relationships--come up with a system of representation before you begin that is derived, in part, from the type of work you are dealing with.

Step 4 Change your viewpoint relative to the object at least 6 times. Look at the object upside down, from very far away, at the level of its surface, etc. Document each viewpoint change and the result in the character/appearance/meaning of the work in question.

Step 5 Begin an exercise in recombination. Pick the ten most salient aspects of your chosen work. Using some guidelines from the original, but treating these as flexible borders, re-draw the work in question 3 times. The practice of this re-drawing is up to you. You and your group may wish to individually sketch out a series of recombinations and then combine the recombinations themselves. You may wish to identify the ten aspects and then, by passing around a piece of paper, allow each person to place an aspect as they see fit. You may wish to identify each aspect, smack it on the head a few times until it changes shape, and then represent it as a changed form. If you choose to morph your aspects, create a morph ratio that is applied consistently to each aspect.

Grading

Grading is based on your participation in the course, the quality of your dream journal and final project. While class participation is not graded as a percentage of your final grade, what you give is proportionate to what you get. In order to receive a grade for this course, there are three requirements beyond the above. First, you must attend class (you will be dropped after 3 absences). Second, you must complete all of your projects with dedication and perseverence. Third, you must present your final project in a public setting (we will discuss options) and document it in a web-ready version that you hand in to me. As in any creative class, grading criteria are necessarily subjective. You may not agree with my personal evaluation, but decisions are final and no post-grading negotiation will be permitted. I rarely give incompletes.

Dream Journal (30%): Buy a large unlined sketchbook of at least 100 pages. Carry this book with you everywhere and put it by your bed at night. Collect your daydreams and your nightdreams. Develop a routine for the use of this book--write/draw in it just before you get out of bed, or at 10am every day, or in a particular chair when you first get home for the day. At the same time, use it as a vehicle for spontaneity. Incorporate found objects, related images, stories and thoughts--things that do and don't seem related to what we are doing in class. Don't allow yourself to override a possible inclusion. By the end of the semester, your journal should contain an entry for every night from tonight until the night of the last class day. This journal is a place to develop ideas for your final project. The first page of your Dream Journal should be a photograph of you accompanied by a description of a dream.

Final Project (70%): € Your final project is the construction of a dreamscape. During the semester you should collect ideas, images, sounds, video, and constructions that will make up the content of your work. Your project must represent a rigorous investigation and should include three parts: 1) Research. 2) Practice (the process by which you think about how you make something of your research--sketches, preliminary writing, media investigations, stylistic forays.) 3) Product. These three parts should all be well represented when you hand in your Final Project at the end of the term. Both Independent and Team projects are permitted. Groups are almost always preferable for projects of significant scale and technological maneuvering. Project proposals are due electronically on February 12 (to vision@actlab.us) for both group and individual projects, and should include the following: A summary of your intentions, the nature of your research and a list of 20 references (web sites are additional if you include them), necessary practice and preliminary work, the physical/virtual scope of the final project. Once the proposals come in, you are expected to respond to at least 3 of the proposals with comments and ideas by February 19 utilizing the class listserve. A web-ready version of your Final Project is due at the end of the semester. We will not be able to give you a grade without this component of your project.

UNIVERSITY SPEAK Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonest damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.

About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.

About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.