Air In Motion

This is a video I finished last year. I just posted it on YouTube and wanted to post it on here as well. I can’t stand the jumbled, busy mess of YouTube. I wish when you pressed play, it would surround the current video with a plain black screen. Perhaps I will write to them about that… perhaps this is too complicated considering the amount of traffic on there. What do you think Codesters? Tim also mentioned a way you can delete the YouTube logo through coding. I need to figure that out.
Anyway, this is a short video honoring the beauty and power of wind and promoting wind generated power.

Industrial Revolution -vs- Technological Revolution

There is a sadness in these crashing walls. A crumbling factory that once stood for industry, progress and wealth. The Gates Rubber company was a major employer for Denver in the early 1900’s but since the manufacturing was sent overseas, the factory has been vacant for nearly two decades. However, there is also hope for rejuvination. Technological advancements have brought new opportunities to replace those that have been lost, sometimes creating a positive tranformation.

This urban space just south of downtown will be used for a public transport station and a residential area. Apart from the transport station, I still feel this historic and valuable land should be honored by becoming an entirely public space that is beneficial to all… a park, a museum, a butterfly pavilion.

to show, not tell…

I have been deliberating over what text or explanation I should include, if any, within the Gates Factory project. Usually I prefer work (others and my own) that leaves room for the viewer’s response and individual interpretation… I like to present a question or topic to engage the viewer, creating awareness and discussion but not telling others what I think, or what they should think. In the past I was even resistant to writing statements or titles for my photography. However, I also want to create work that is informative, especially for documentary projects. This project seems to fall somewhere between documentary and experimental art. How do you find a balance? I don’t know if this project is communicating too much, or not enough. At this point, it has multiple meanings for me. I am looking forward to critique tomorrow and also for feedback via the blogging community and internet. Hopefully hearing other’s perspectives will be helpful and interesting.

The Gates Factory

simulacra turns to meme…

I will try an experiment with this Gates factory project. I will post this project online either directly on UTube or on this blog. I will then contact ten people and ask them to forward my project to people I do not know and have them share their feedback. This is a challenge for me because this project feels very undeveloped and is still just a rough sketch. All I know at this point is that I am compelled to create images and document the Gates Factory for historical and personal reasons. I also want to address city development issues and historical preservation. Right now, I’m not sure I will convey my message clearly and I feel vulnerable posting a project in this phase. I rarely show or even talk about visual or sonic work before I have obsessed over it and come up with at least a somewhat polished result. Even blogging about my process is challenging for the same reason. Regardless, I will see what kind of feedback I receive and see how the project may evolve through spreading it around and using the internet as a tool to propagate a meme.

Simulacra as sign of existence

When a historical landmark is torn down, only it’s simulacra will remain. In this case, only photographs or videos will serve as a reminder of what once was.

A Fading History

I find the Gates factory strange, beautiful and important to Denver’s history and aesthetic. It’s currently being torn down to build condominiums. It’s the same situation with Coney Island, where they are replacing the historic space with amusement park themed condos. The next generation will wonder about its’ true history while America is filled with nearly identical, cheaply made condominiums and strip malls. The last remaining open space will turn to landfills filled with a crumbled history. We are a trash culture. I admit, this is a complicated issue. The Gates factory has been vacant for many years, it’s contaminated and many feel it’s an eyesore. Coney Island was booming in the forties while now it has only occasional visitors that are more into the novelty than the amusement. Both spaces would cost a fortune to keep and remodel (although probably a fraction of what we spend on war). I am not opposed to progressive development decisions, but whom are these decisions benefiting? Apart from the aesthetic concerns, will these new living spaces only benefit the development companies and a small demographic of middle to upper class society? Why not create a public space accessable and beneficial to all? I need to further my research on this topic and would like to create a short visual and sonic commentary.

I have been thinking about how to do this for a while. Perhaps I dreamed of it last night. This morning I woke up thinking about it and came up with some ideas.
I plan to piece together a series of gates images through video and stills. These images would be primarily my own but if possible I may borrow some historic photographs. These images will begin with stark contrast and start in B&W. I will also visit the Butterfly Pavilion, one of my favorite local places and an example of a great public space. I will capture butterflies with lucid movement on video. I will then juxtapose these images with the factory images… perhaps the factory images will evolve into the butterflies. The sound will somehow reflect these visuals…
As I’m writing this it seems too obvious or not developed enough. I will need to start working on it to hopefully sort this out.