The Artist and the Devine Daze, a blog about art, observations, and my life

As I mentioned in the last post, I am teaching Video Art at the New Arts Camp at Living Arts of Tulsa.
It is a summer arts program for students in the 5th-12th grades, and takes place every weekday for 2 weeks, 8:30am-4:30pm.
Each day, the students take 4 classes: Installation, New Music, Performance Art, and Video Art. Their final art piece that is presented on the last Friday of the camp, will involve all 4 of these media.
The students have a blast creating these personal art pieces. It really gives them an unconventional way to express themselves.

I am very proud of all my students this year. Each of them have been using the video medium in very unique ways, and creatively incorporating them into their pieces.

Student 1-
This student's piece has elements of eerie beauty and deception. She will have the audience crowd into their space, then have a projection play in front of them as a sort of a distraction from what is going on around them (she will be sneaking around the audience, secretly moving amongst them). The video is film of her her walking slowing towards the camera, going from a blur to in focus, then editing in sharp, fast movements with beautiful slow motion. Then suddenly the video will switch to a live feed of the audience's backs, with a view of the student moving through the space.

Student 2-
This student is using "finding yourself" as a theme for her project. First, she is going to read a poem that she has written, while a dry-erase board animation that she has created of a girl, with bubbles with letters on them coming from her mouth, each spelling a key work from her poem. Then, the audience will come up to her space to blow bubbles, step on bubble paper, etc. while a video of distorted faces is projected on the wall at the back of her space.

Student 3-
This student is using his love of the game "Minecraft" as the theme of his piece. He is a creating a game show, where he is the host. Before he starts, his dry-erase board animation of the logo and opening credits will play on the wall behind him. Then, he will ask 3 contestants questions. There will be a video projection response to each right and wrong answer.

Student 4-
This student will use her love of underwater life and mermaids as her theme. She has prepared a narration for her piece, where she and an other student will be dressed as mermaids. She has taken some video at our local aquarium and made a short claymation video for the backdrop of her piece.

Student 5-
This student has a love of mystical creatures, namely dragons. She has made a large dragon head and an egg that she will be "popping" out of during her piece. She has made a video of fire, which is a picture that she cut out in Photoshop and manipulated in AfterEffects to look like it is flickering, with people behind the fire, making it look as if they are on fire. She will project with video by the dragon's mouth.

Student 6-
This student is using the pressures of the business world as his theme. His presentation will start out with him inside a "cubical" wearing a suit made of newspaper…there will be a camera inside which is hooked up to a monitor. The monitor is the only view the audience will have of him during the beginning of the piece. Then, he will rush out of his cubical, where there will be a projection of an explosion and fire on him, making it look as if his suit is on fire.

Student 7-
This student a doing a sort of "Hands Across America" theme. She will have a box in the middle of her space, then the audience will be invited to put their hands in paint and put them on the box, while a video of various clips of people holding hands in various ways is projected over her piece. Then, the audience will be encouraged to hold hands, mixing the various colors of paint together.

Student 8-
This student is using birth and coming of age as her theme. She is building a sort of forest in her space, with a tress on the wall and a nest she has made sitting in the corner. A video will be projected between the two, showing her moving as a bird in a costume. She will be using a camera curing the piece, pressing the camera lens close to her body and face, creating an image that will be projected over the other video as a live feed.

Student 9-
This student has written a short, slightly comedic story with a classic "castles and princess" theme.
She is having other students play parts in the story in her space, which she has built a "castle" that is assessable to the audience. She will project a drawing of the castle directly onto her structure, giving it "windows", "bricks", and "doors". It also has instructions on it to "draw on the castle", which is painted in a chalkboard paint. The inside of the castle will be illuminated with a projection of the outside (trees, sky, etc.), turning the "inside out" in a way.

Student 10-
This student is using the feeling of "home" and security as his theme. He has built a "house" that will stand in his pace. His film of a dry-erase board animation of the house will project on it, bringing the outside of it to life; bricks will gradually start to build, a door and windows will show up, a person will walk into the door, etc. Then, the projection will change to a film of people standing stationary outside their houses, bringing his structure to life in other ways, making it look "realistic".

I am very excited to see these students' pieces come to life. I am very proud of all their creativity and progress through this entire camp. I will be sure to post picture of their presentations soon!!!