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iota News – June 28, 2010

June 21, 2010 J-Walt 0 Comment abstract animation, animation, experimental animation, live performance, lumia, music videos, synesthesia, visual music, vj

The iotaWeekly – June 28-July 4, 2010

	Clip of the Week “A Moment Revisited” (2009) by Diana ReichenbachWatch this charming short work from Diana Reichenbach, “A Moment Revisited” (2009), a playful interaction retold with a light soundtrack and frame manipulation as an experimentation in live-action movement and found footage editing.
	Site of the Week Expanded CinemaPublished in 1970 by media arts theorist and scholar Gene Youngblood, Expanded Cinema was the first book to place video within the realm of the art world, and helped to establish the world of media arts.In his book, Youngblood looks at new technological advances and their function in film and media creation, including computer & video art, special effects, and even holography. He traces the evolution of cinematic language to the end of fiction, drama, and realism. New technological extensions of the medium have become necessary. Thus he concentrates on the advanced image-making technologies of computer films, television experiments, laser movies, and multiple-projection environments, laser movies, and multiple-projection environments.The entire book of Expanded Cinema can be found and downloaded from an online database hosted by visual media performers Woody & Steina Vasulka.
	Artist of the Week Maya DerenMaya Deren’s first film Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) immediately designated her as one of the seminal figures of experimental cinema. As both a theorist and artist, Deren created works that paved the way for future trance filmmakers by using film to explore and express her psychosexual identity in a stylistic and poetic way. She also wrote essays about the nature of film and filmmaking, emphasizing concepts (such as medium specificity) that she believed were essential to film as a medium. Deren was an outspoken critic of Hollywood and its artistic, political, and economic grasp on American cinema, believing that it prevented cinema from developing into a fine art form. She was a key figure in the formation of the New American Cinema.Deren and her work are currently featured as a film exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City entitled Maya Deren’s Legacy: Women and Experimental Film.

The iotaWeekly – June 21-27, 2010

Clip of the Week
“Coney” (1975) by Frank & Caroline MourisWatch a clip from Frank & Caroline Mouris’ “Coney” (1975), a live-action experimental journey through a collage of exciting, electric, and explosive sights of New York’s famous Coney Island.

Site of the Week
Flicker AlleyVisit the website of Los Angeles-based Flicker Alley, founded in 2002 by cinephile Jeff Masino whose love of silent, classic, and independent cinema moved him to found this incredible DVD production company.Learn about the history of Flicker Alley, explore their back catalog of titles like the 5-Disc “George Melies: The First Wizard of Cinema,” view clips in the Screening Room, and be the first to find out about the latest news and events.

Commuter

Artist of the Week
Mike Patterson“Mike Patterson is an animator and director of commercials, music videos and short films. He began his career in 1985 by animating the epic MTV hit, Take On Me for A-Ha. Teamed up with his wife Candace Reckinger, they directed a string of MTV hits that include, Suzanne Vega’s Luka, Sting’s Be Still My Beating Heart and Paula Abdul’s Opposites Attract, which won the Grammy Award for Best Music Video……Patterson studied animation with Jules Engel at CalArts where he produced his Student Academy Award winning animated film Commuter. In fall of 2006, Commuter was added into the Museum of Modern Art’s permanent collection along with seven Patterson & Reckinger music video clips.His current animation work combines digital illustration, live photography and visual effects. Collaborative visual music projects in development include cross platform audio-visual installations and performances.”–USC Faculty Profile

Patterson’s “Commuter” was recently shown as part of the May 2010 iotaSalon: “The City” at UCLA.

The iotaWeekly – June 14-20, 2010

	Clip of the Week “Oli’s Dream” (2008) by Jaroslaw Kapuscinski & Camille NortonWatch a clip from Jaroslaw Kapuscinski & Camille Norton’s “Oli’s Dream” (2008), an intriguing experimental work that captures the hesitation and flurry of the poetic process in stark black and white type. “Oli’s Dream” was also featured in the January 2010 iotaSalon, TEXT AND SPEECH, at UCLA.To learn more about Jaroslaw Kapuscinski and his work, please visit his website.
	Site of the Week Woodbury University Department of AnimationLocated in Burbank, California, Woodbury University‘s School of Media, Culture & Design hosts the Department of Animation, whose mission is to keep pace with the rapid technological changes in animation while providing the most basic tools and knowledge to excel in all areas of the craft, where students are encouraged to strive for artistic excellence and professional expertise as they develop their individual vision.iotaCenter-affiliated artists Audri Phillips and Angela Diamos, both of whom are engaged in the practice of experimental animation, are faculty in the Department of Animation at Woodbury.
	Artist of the Week Diana ReichenbachAs a recent graduate of the MFA program from USC’s John C. Hench Department of Animation & Digital Arts, Diana Jo Reichenbach is inspired to challenge the concept of a singular reality, believing that through animation, one can subvert the prejudices we associate with the waking world and open our minds to digest ideas in a different way. Through constructing original soundscapes, experimenting with the abstraction of visuals, and altering spatial relations, she hopes to tap into the human subconscious. To view some of Reichenbach’s work, please visit her Vimeo page.Reichenbach’s work was also featured in an iotaCenter New Acquisition, Adobe First Frame 2009, a collection of exemplary student and faculty work from USC’s John C. Hench Department of Animation & Digital Arts.

The iotaWeekly – June 7-13, 2010

	Clip of the Week “Karatchi Scramble” (2008) by Chris CasadyBeautifully flowing between vivid lines, colors, and imagery, “Karatchi Scramble” (2008), by Punto y Raya Festival featured artist Chris Casady, provides us with an excellent example of creative work done using Flash. “Karatchi Scramble” was also featured in the January 2010 iotaSalon, TEXT AND SPEECH, at UCLA.
	Site of the Week VJForumsVisit VJForums.com, the go-to site for both aspiring and practicing VJs. Spread the word about your next gig or see what’s happening in the VJ world in your neck of the woods. VJForums is a great community site for staying plugged in to the realm of this very special slice of live Audio/Visual performance.
	Artist of the Week Madeleine Gallagher“Madeleine Gallagher (b.1977, Media, PA, USA) is a visual artist, educator and designer. Centered at the intersection of traditional object making, time-based media and performance, Madeleine uses her work as a means to investigate cultural filters and cognition in media perception. She thrives on the opportunity to make installations and objects that explore physical, visual and aural sensation, endurance and perceptual thresholds of the body. A large portion of her past work includes audio/visual performance, using live video image processing, drawn from prefabricated clips she created with analog video synthesizers. As an experimental film and video maker, she has created a series of abstract narratives that address issues of control, power, desire and the distortion of memory.”–Design Media Arts Department, UCLAGallagher was instrumental in bringing the most recent season of iotaSalons to UCLA’s Broad Art Center. Gallagher holds degrees from Maryland Institute College of Art and will graduate this June with a MFA from UCLA’s prestigious Design Media Arts Department.

Infinite Animation: The Work of Adam Beckett

As a tribute to the great animator Adam Beckett, his friends and colleagues gather on August 17, 2009 to screen his works and tell old tales about the late artist. With commentary from David Berry, Beth Block, Chris Cassady, Richard Edlund, Roberta Friedman, Pat O’Neil, and David Wilson.

Infinite Animation: The Work of Adam Beckett: 1hr 52min, DVD, Color, 2009

The John Whitney Collection: Combining Art, Music, & Computer Graphics

Experimenting with the medium of computer graphics systems, John Whitney, Sr. balances a cutting-edge use of technology with integrity and a strong sense of artistic control. Considered by many to be “the father of computer graphics,” Whitney successfully links musical composition with experimental film and computer imaging. He was a pioneer in the field until his death in 1996.

For more information on John Whitney and his work, please visit his webpage.

Experiments in Motion Graphics: 13mins, DVD, Color, 1968
Permutations: 7mins, DVD, Color, 1968
Matrix: 6mins, DVD, Color, 1971
Arabesque: 7mins, DVD, Color, 1975
A Personal Search: For the Complementarity of Music and Visual Art: 24mins, DVD, Color, 1992

Semiconductor: Worlds in Flux

A collection of short films, art works, music videos, & live animation from Semiconductor, the creators of stunning, cutting-edge digital works guided by obsessive interests in landscape, architecture, geography, and artificial lifeforms. They reveal cities in motion, shifting landscapes, and systems in chaos.

For more information about Semiconductor, please visit their webpage.

Semiconductor: Worlds in Flux: DVD, Color, 2002-2007

Omega by Donald Fox

“Omega” deals with the end of mankind on earth, prophesying man’s liberation from his earthly bounds to roam the universe at will. By sending an “energy ray” to the sun and harnessing its solar power, man is able to make an evolutionary leap. The film can be used to explore the outer limits of the concepts of death, evolution, the after life and the future of mankind. A visual experience to inspire young filmmakers.
-from www.pyramidmedia.comOmega: 13mins, DVD, Color, 1970

Peter Mays: A Sixties Trilogy…and other films

Psychedelic experimental filmmaker Peter Mays recreates acid trips, surreal dreams, and erotic sex fantasies in his hypnotizing 8mm and 16mm films. Indeed, as Mays himself states, “I have sacrificed certain things in life – a career, raising a family, a house – in order to make this body of work.”

For more information on Peter Mays, please visit his webpage.

Vision: 26mins, 8mm, B&W, 1962
The One Bedroom Apartment: 25mins, 16mm, B&W, 1963
Stream: 15mins, 8mm, Color, 1964
Death of the Gorilla: 16mins, 16mm, Color, 1966
The Star Curtain Tantra: 18mins, 16mm, Color, 1969
The Time Beyond Thought: 23mins, 16mm, Color, 1966-2000
Sister Midnight: 65mins, 16mm, Color, 1974
Astral Man: 46mins, 16mm, Color, 1968-2000
Light Show: 4mins, 35mm, Color, 1970
The War of the Roses: 90mins, Video, Color, 1992
Arrival of the Purple Legions: 8mins, DV, Color, 2005
Cleopatra: 18mins, DV, Color, 2006