An Artist Impression

Art:
Aesthetic
Emotive
Creativity
Natural
Intuition
Captivating
Suggestive
Passion
Beauty
Animated

Mobile Technology

Artistic expression comes in many different forms. Cell-phones have provided the opportunity for mobile art forms. One technology allows users to mark their territory and for others to recognize this by observing the placed "Yellow Arrow". The yellow arrow contains a computer chip that interacts with other cell phones and indicates what its placer placed it there for. This allows for annonymous long distance interactions to exist while simultaneously engaging personal interactions at the place where the yellow arrow was placed. This type of communication is known as psychogeography and it is expected that in the long run could become more game-like. What this technology does is enable people to know more about a place or the significance of that place, so it is an enriching experience.

The Yellow Arrow project defies conventional thought on art and communication. It enables masses of people to participate in an interactive display of symbolism and importance. The cool thing about this technology is that it is in the public and the public help create the project. It is interesting to consider this dynamic because its similar to the internet in that everyone can use the information as well as provide the information, but in this case it is on the street and can be accessed on the fly. Taken from the computer graphics article, this type of mobile interaction may not foresee what it is truly capable of or what it will become similar to electricity and its potential within a computer. Mobile technology will continue to evolve and it will be interesting to see what kind of a role it takes in our lives.

Periman, Stacey M. The Art of Mobile Technology. The Boston Globe. 2005. retrieved on November 18, 2007 from http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2005/04/18/the_art_of_mobile_technology/

Virtual Reality

Reading the article Virtual Reality Art: Beyond Technology I thought about how we can live in a world of virtual reality. This is in fact pretty amazing and a testament to our technological capabilities. From the beginning the article discusses how virtual reality challanged the common way of thinking. Appearently, the word is only a couple centuries old and essentially means "in effect". Many people spend much of their time in an altered state of reality, within mediums like videogames, computer interactions and role playing games, more commonly known as RPG's. Millions of people between the ages of 18 - 35 are participating in this cultural shift. According to the article virtual reality is the art of illusion, and is designed to look artistically appealing and also believable and interactive. Artist have the ability to use this medium for relatively reasonable prices these days and that is why the common understanding of virtual reality players has shifted in recent years. The ultimate virtual reality experience is the 3-D experience where the entire body is engaged. Much of the technology has been moved along or designed for military strategists and not the layperson. The artist of the virtual reality has a particularly difficult tast because it is not art in the common sense of viewing it, but the new sense of living in it. One artist describes it as "a small world that evolves and changes with its own rules." The take home point of the article is that the technology is available and its up to the artist to truly free all that it is capable of.

Similar to the article Computer Graphics: Effects and Origins this article discusses the symbolism that is utilyze in many artistic works. Also, its interesting to consider the evolution of the use of the technology. Most mediums of art require a period to iron out the kinks and understand what that art form is really capable of, it is a growing up period. The class article emphasises how art forms are dependent upon their predecesors and may even be limited by them. That is why the Virtual Reality article was interesting in its take on "freeing" the art of technology to see all that it is capable of. Art is a fickle creation, styles come and go, but technology like computer graphic art is profound enough to truly alter the way art is seen and created.

Rush, Michael. Virtual Reality Art: Beyond Technology. Herald Tribune. 2006. retrieved on November 18, 2007 from http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/01/06/news/rush.php?page=2

A Spiritual Reflection

My definition for spirituality is a practice or experience of divine proportions. It is a focused and intense pursuit of universal understanding as well as personal growth. It allows one to put things into perspective and gain insight into how to better oneself as well as his or her surroundings. In special cases spirituality can reveal itself as a euphoric and enlightening experience.

Religion, in my opinion is a particular set of guidlines for spirituality. Depending upon history as well as practice the spiritual process can vary, and this is what we have categorized as religions. Religions provide a foundation and criteria along with a community to share the spiritual pursuit. By distinguishing these pursuits as separate and different, many strong feelings have been elicited which has lead to countless problems and a lot of violence. To me this appears ironic, because in reality I believe all religions share the same core principles as well as goals. Hopefully, one day more people will begin to realize this.

Creativity is a form of expression that is unrefined and not previously formulated. It is an organic construction unimpeded by guidlines or preconceptions. It is a novel creation that could be said to have been inspired by a thought or concept and in turn could have symbolic implications. With creativity as a component, that creation would have to be unique and thus captivating. Creativity is a tool and an outlet that gives a form of artistic freedom and benefits society by providing new and interesting creations.

Creativity itself is kind of a catch-22 in that to form something that is unobstructed and organic one must throw out all preconceptions and experiences out the window, but by being a human mind this is not only innefective but impossible as well. This begs the question of what is the source of creativity? Sometimes creativity manifests itself by intention other times it occurs spontaneously. With intention the creative process will certainly be influenced by the persons beliefs and experiences, while the organically inspired creation could be by the suggestion of the subconcious and potentially have some deeper meaning. For believers this may indeed be devine inspiration stemming from a spiritual revelation. Though creativity can be manifest from a variety of sources.

Horror, A History

In this article the author recognizes that horror most likely has been around as long as stories have, but as a genre it is more of a recent hapenning. Similar to the assigned reading "History of Horror" the article attributes the witchcraft and stories of as contributing to the beginnings of the horror style. Also, Edgar Allen Poe, Mary Shelley, and Robert Louis Stevenson had a part in the origins of horror. Most horror stories were in the short story or novella form and not until the 1970's then the thriller novels caught on. It was Stephen King who really brought popularity to the horror novel. But when considering the horror genre it only makes sense for it to be relatively young in its appeal. Horror is made-up terror. Up until recently there was plenty to worry about in regards to survival, so intentionally scareing oneself didn't really come up. Fear was a normal part of daily life, so not much entertainment played on fear in those days. Today, we lack ever feeling truly afraid if anything, or we fear different and less substantial things. Survival is no longer a driving force of what we do for the day, therefore a certain amount of amusement can be derived by creating visual or textual situations that replicate horrifying times. If anything horror will continue to evolve as the times change, but our fear will always be an inherent part of our complex matrix of feelings.

North, Anthony. 2007. 'A History of Horror Fiction'. WordPress. retrieved November 4, 2007 from http://beyondtheblog.wordpress.com/2007/03/06/a-history-of-horror-fiction/

Freak Show

The article "Why People Love Horror" illistrates many reason why people are drawn to terrifying images. The author suggest that its fun to be scared. That is when you are sitting comfortably on your sofa. The author also poses the question of what is scarier, that which you can see or that which you cannot. Horror comes in two different forms: psychological horror concerning the thoughts and scary plots that occur, and then there is physical horror dealing with gore and freakish looking things. Another aspect of enjoying horror is the fact that we can place ourselves into the characters situation and wonder what we would do differently. Similar to the "do not go in there" we sometimes think when watching a horror flic. Perhaps, we feel the need to watch horror so as to best be prepared when a scary situation does arise. This might be our inate survival mechanism that allows a hightened sense of awareness when fear is in the air, and thus we may need to scare ourselves to replicate that feeling of being fully alive. This is similar to the question "How can horror audiences find pleasure in what by nature is distressful and unpleasant?" that the Why Horror reading assignment proposed. So certainly a good number of people have wondered about the paradoxical nature of horror. Furthermore, the thrill of the chase also draws a lot of people to the theatres, because not knowing whether they will get away brings a greater level of anxiety than an abrupt shock that occurs at some moments in horror films. So there you have it, the fear of the unknown, the novelty and the adrenaline rush all bring people to like horror as this author suggests.

Andrea Dean Van Scoyoc. (2006). 'Why People Love Horror'. AuthorsDen. retrieved 11/4/07 from http://www.authorsden.com/categories/article_top.asp?catid=52&id=25283