To Tag Or Not To Tag

Ever since the graffitti group presented on Wednesday I have been thinking about my take on graffiti. I have never really stopped to think whether I love it or find it annoying or beautiful or disgraceful..so I decided to stop and ponder my opinion on it.

For me, as a resident of the Capitol Hill neighborhood, I am constantly seeing art..in the way people dress, in the houses, in the posters, etc. It is a colorful and wonderful place to live. I got to thinking about if I mind graffiti being in my neighborhood or even on the side of my house. I came to the conclusion that no matter where it is, graffiti is welcome, as far as I'm concerned. It adds color and design to our streets, buildings, and bus stops. We live in a city..what do you expect? Even if it is just a simple tag, it is still the trace of a person..it signifies risk through a signature. To some people graffiti is distasteful, gross, and annoying. I feel that cookie-cutter houses in cookie-cutter neighborhoods are annoying..so we all have our preferences. The more that people decorate our world, the better.

I took some photos of beautiful graffiti by the train track in South Seattle to document some graffiti I really liked. The murals are gorgeous to me, and the others are just as significant because they made me stop and think.."I miss you child"? That made me really sad and curious when I read it. Hope and despair are mounted on the wall side by side for everyone to see.
Thank you graffiti group..your presentation has changed how I see the art form and the culture of graffiti that is alive in our city and in our world. I know I will appreciate it more in the future.

Happy Holidays?

Wow..I have never been more claustrophobic in my life as I was on Friday. Yikes! I was just minding my own business, walking to rehearsal downtown when I found myself in a dense jungle of people and shopping bags. I never dare to venture downtown on Black Friday, but this year I just happened to be there and get stuck in the middle of it. People are crazy with their holiday shopping..I was really blown away. I was standing on the sidewalk waiting to cross the street when I overheard a mom talking to her 20-something year old daughter saying, "I am so fucking pissed right now! We need to go home. You have already spent $3,000 dollars today! And you want more?! We need to leave RIGHT NOW!" Now THAT is a fun and festive day out..yuck. The concept of money and the extreme need to buy things and maximize everything is just disgusting when it's presented like that in everyday life. I couldn't stop thinking about those two ladies for the rest of the day. It kinds made me sick to my stomach thinking about the way their day had turned out and the crazy world that girl must live in thinking that $3,000 is just NOT enough. It got me thinking about people and their loss of perspective on things like money versus healthy relationships. Why anyone could feel so entitled to $3,000 dollars worth of clothes, makeup, and jewelry in a day makes me wonder about if they see anything as having real genuine worth. Later on in the day I was running into Westlake Mall to grab a bite to eat. I walked out 45 minutes later to see the entire outside of Westlake Mall had turned into a sea of people just excited as could be for the tree to be lit. I shuffled my way around the building to get to a street that was not blocked off. It was like making my way through a crazy concert that I did not want to be at. Well, I suppose it was exactly that..since there were people singing Christmas songs from the top of Westlake with a microphone, blaring the songs all across downtown Seattle. I wasn't feeling it. Everyone else sure was though. I suppose for some people it is a nice holiday tradition..maybe I am just not as into that sort of thing. The size of the crowd, for someone who doesn't like crowds, was very disturbing.
To finish the day off, I was walking down Pike and passed the most ironic store sign I have ever seen. The store name is SIMPLE LIFE. Now, may I just repeat, this store is located on Pike Street right in the heart of downtown Seattle. It was just perfect seeing it on Black Friday. I had to take a picture. What a day! Won't put myself through that next year if I can help it.

Things Things and More Things

The Goodwill Outlet is an amazing place for people when money is tight and also a great thrift store..er..warehouse..for those who love unique clothes and things. I have been going there for about 2 years now for little treasures and odds and ends, but the other day I decided to go there and look at it in a different way. I wanted to capture the unique and often very ridiculous atmosphere of "THE BINS". First of all, it is referred to as "THE BINS" because that's what it is..a warehouse full of bins which are full of things. Some bins are full entirely of shoes..other bins are full of clothes..others are full of child's toys or housewares. That is as organized as it is. Other than having things in their general piles it is just a mess of things, things, and more things. There are about 20 bins in the place and each bin is about 12ft by 4ft..about 1 1/2 feet deep. Then come the vultures..wait..I mean the people who go to the bins. Granted, some are peaceful and calmly look through each bin and mind their own business. I appreciate those people, but they obviously don't have the drive it takes to be a part of the chaotic bins competitive world. Yes..people are cut-throat. It is ridiculous. Hipsters from Capitol Hill who are buyers for stores like Red Light show up everyday of the week at 8:45 to make sure they are the first ones in the door at 9am. All the bins are fresh at 9am and it is prime feeding time for them. Then there are the older Asian ladies who are always there just for the shoes. They are not at all picky either..they fill shopping cart after shopping cart with all the shoes that are put out. There is grabbing, there is pushing and shoving. Everyone wants what everyone else has got. Everyone wants that same leather jacket or shiny purse. It's a fight to the death. One time I was at THE BINS and almost got tricked by a hipster guy into giving up a great find. They lie they cheat. It's wrong and funny and ridiculous and very entertaining and exciting in a weird way. I love it and can't believe I engage in it at the same time. Always a good time at THE BINS! I have seen people almost get in fist fights about articles of clothing. There are also electronics off to the side..when these are brought out so are people's claws. It gets ugly at the bins. I had to blog about it. It is one of the most interesting people watching experiences as well as aerobic thifting experiences one can have. People have shopping carts and pile things into them to sort through later. Once the hipsters have sufficiently picked through the bins they wait off to the sides and talk amongst themselves until an old bin is switched out for a new one. Oh yes, bins are constantly switched out throughout the day. This is the most vicious time, when a picked-through bin is traded for a brand new bin of things from the back room. Everyone must wait with their hands behind their back until the switch is done..to be fair. Then we are unleashed and clothes fly in the air as people throw their backs into the treasure hunting.

THE BINS bring out the worst in people. But if you can't beat 'em join 'em, right?!

Cartwheel Piece.

Cartwheel for an entire day.
Do not walk.
At the end of the day record all the things your hand felt that day.
Then record everything your feet felt.

Internet Archive: Details: Everyday Overdrive

For my audio project I combined sounds of an engine, flipping of playing cards, a soda being opened, and a human voice. I used Cool Edit Pro 2.1 to layer the sounds and make interesting effects. I used a lot of repetition as well as new sounds being introduced along the way. It is entitled EVERYDAY OVERDRIVE because they are everyday sounds combined to make an artistic piece. This was my first time ever using an audio editing program so it was pretty fun just playing around with the different tools. I think I could definitely get into editing audio for stage productions. It is challenging but not entirely impossible, which is nice! I was surprised at how once I experimented for a bit I was able to use the program comfortably. Since then I've been playing around with layering music of different kinds, which is going to be a nice skill to have in my experience with stage production. It was nice to have this introduction to audio to get my feet wet and become somewhat familiar with importing audio clips and layering them. My 18 yr old brother is incredibly savvy with these programs and does a lot of music production in his free time, so I am sure I will be learning all the fancy tools in no time. Until then, I am happy with my first little audio project.

Novel #1

Edith ended up leaving Murray behind and ran off with pneumonia. Their affair had been a secret for five years and finally surfaced. Good bye New York.

Novel #2

Breathing rate wasn't the only thing that sank regarding a Moscow submarine. The suffocating gas had 20 people regretting their decision to be in the sub during the safety test. It failed!

Novel #3

New York City Opera lost it's general manager, Gerard Mortier, due to financial problems. A plummeting economy has taken a toll on the Opera. Apparently money outweighs art.

News From Home

For some reason as I experienced this film I found my brain going quiet for the first time in weeks..I knew that no matter what I wanted to jump up and do to keep "productive", I couldn't. I had to sit and let thoughts come and go. I was sitting waiting for something to happen..soaking it all in and zoning out at the same time.
I love walking around downtown..taking the bus..people-watching. It felt soothing in a strange way to watch the people walking and going about their daily activities..car noises..people seemingly unaware of the footage being taken..recording their slightest actions and mannerisms. It was a nice little escape. It made me think about sitting somewhere for a long amount of time and soaking up the details. But when does anyone ever have time to do that? I guess I am realizing that I need more of this in my life. More fresh air, more time to sit, to observe the world around me. I also found that watching the people go about their daily life made me think about how fleeting moments are. The man waiting for the subway was there for a moment and then was gone. Who knows where that same man is now? He is not an actor to my knowledge, just someone caught on film. Was he aware that he was captured. Did he ever see the film? Who is at that same subway station as I write this? It made me think about all the hundreds of people who use public spaces in one day. They are there for a few minutes and then are gone. We fade in and out of places we go. A small bit of history was captured in the film..a small, fairly insignificant piece of someone's life. What kind of day were they having. Were the people in the film happy or depressed about their life. And why were so many people looking down as they walked along? It was strange to be an onlooker to a scene that has no obvious value or significance besides just being. The people are just existing..the cars are just driving..and we are just observing. After I got into it I found watching this film brought up a lot of questions and wonder in me. The mother trying to communicate with her daughter and keep that connection added some tension to the film as well as a semi-understood reason for the particular footage. Not hearing the daughter's voice except through her mother's narration was interesting, too. It was one-sided and the daughter's character seemed not to have any character. We did not experience any of her emotion. This film was a combination of very personal and very impersonal. The mother added a personal narrative and the footage of random people and places took away from that. I thought the juxtaposition of the two was a great idea and made for a very unique film.

A Whole New World

Right Foot Red

My two roommates and I decided to take time out of our busy Saturday morning to play a few games of Twister. Since we are all limber dancers we were able to do pretty well and it became more of a silly game of attempted body contortion than balance alone.
What a game like Twister tells us about everyday life is that..well..we are not alone. We must interact with other people and how they are living the same day. We must encounter people we don't necessarily want to and we must make things work. In all of our "everyday" we have an agenda for ourselves or else we are just wandering aimlessly. Either way, we are going to bump into people, have to get around them, and change our agenda to be flexible in that way. In the same way, if we are in close proximity to others, whether physically or emotionally, we are going to affect each other in many ways and one should be prepared for that in the everyday. If one person falls, often others around them will also fall. In Twister however, there is an element of fending for yourself but being blocked and limited due to others. Sometimes you will fall alone, and this is to the benefit of the other players. There is no teamwork whatsoever. It was interesting to analyze something like Twister on a deeper level involving the everyday and see the many different metaphorical aspects that could be attributed to it.

Stream of Consciousness: The Daily Grind

Sometimes my lifestyle cracks me up. At this point it seems so ordinary because I am ALWAYS involved with performing and rehearsing. When I take a step back and look at it again I realize that my "everyday" is very unique. As unusual as it is, I consider the Can Can a huge part of my "everyday" environment and experiences. The obscenely cluttered dressing room, the low ceilings, the random vintage mirrors hung on the walls. I see it vacant. I see it full of people. I live most of my life under 1st avenue in this hidden venue that I had only ever seen in my head before coming upon it in real life. I always saw it in my head as I grew up. I knew that I had to perform at a cabaret. Its dark lighting and otherworldly ambiance..I saw it all before. My everyday is the market. The short man yelling about Belgium waffles outside the Pike Place Bar and Grill every morning when I go to rehearsal. We chat. He is the most full of life person I've ever seen. No matter the weather, he still addresses the crowds of tourists with the daily specials and tells them to "Come on in folks!". These are the things I see in my daily life when I take a step back. It's refreshing. My everyday is the flea market in the back corner of the Pike Place Market. I converse with the vendor of the day. They give me good prices on silly shiney things that I like. My everyday is the rain of Seattle on the cobblestones in the market..the crowds of people darting past each other. You can always tell the locals..they are the one's darting around the slow-poke tourists who have nothing else to do with their day but meander around and take their sweet time. My everyday is the crumpet shop..I would say I am a regular. I know every twist and turn of that market. I love how much character it has. I feel the most invigorated there, and knowing that I am a part of the workforce there makes it even better.

The Transformative Potential of Everyday Art

As I began reading the text I found myself agreeing with a lot of what Johnstone put forth. He speaks of "the vast reservoir of normally unnoticed, trivial, and repetitive actions compromising the common ground of everyday life" (Johnstone 12). The idea that what is present in everyday life is virtually a never-ending supply of material for art and creative license in our lives. The repetitive could be seen as boring and uninspiring, unless of course we recondition ourselves to see the world with more appreciative eyes. We should not let our eyes glaze over as we scan the block we live on or as we walk by people downtown. There is material everywhere and just by recognizing it as important and interesting down to the smallest details it can be given new meaning and value.

A quote that stood out to me as I read through the text was, "Commitment to the everyday can also indicate the desire to give a voice to those silenced by dominant discourses and ideologies - a commitment couplesd with the responsibilty to engage wth the everyday's transformative potential" (Johnstone 13). Johnstone is saying that by becoming aware of the value in things we take for granted and giving value to the undervalued, people and things are removed from the binds of society's social constuct and appreciated for all that they are. Creating art from the everyday means that anyone can shine the light on any subject of their chosing to show that that person, place, or object is worth praise and recognition as much as a Picasso painting or other form of widely appreciated art. There is beauty all around us. Attention to detail in this form of art and creativity refers to finding the details that already exist, as opposed to creating them. By becoming immersed in the world around us we can begin to see, perhaps, how things must change, and art gives us a means of doing so, or at least bringing issues to the public eye in a creative way. By creating art that is honest, organic, and raw, it gives a voice to matters that may be important but so deeply ingrained in the everyday that no one stops to think about it. Bringing attention to peoples' habits, priorities, and the scenery in which we exist can be a strong agent for transformation on a larger scale.

20 Minutes of Nothing

I sit. I fidget. I realize that fidgeting does not count as "doing nothing". I blink I breathe. My eyes dart around and I try to silence my mind..but to no avail. I wonder about how long it has been..not even 2 minutes. I hear my roommate's music..I feel unproductive. "Doing nothing" is the most difficult and unnatural feeling for me personally. I feel the need to be engaged in a project..I am always coming and going..constantly on the go, back and forth from somewhere or another. I am always planning, running errands, working, or thinking about doing one of these things. I am not making a single noise myself except for the occasional cough brought about by the common cold. I wonder how long it's been. My mind is alive and I know that thinking, pondering, contemplating, are all things that I am doing, and therefore I have not stopped to "do nothing". Where is that zen inside of me? I try to concentrate on finding a stillness in myself. I tell myself to enjoy this moment out of life as a sort of mental break. I attempt to release any sort of internal pressure to go, to move, to think, to transition out of this state. I sink a little deeper. I try to listen to the sounds that are going on around me. I take a step outside of myself and try to focus. I hear the bus stopping outside my house. It screeches to a stop. I hear my neighbor park their car, shut the door, and jingle their keys. My joints ache. I need to stretch. I think about last night. I think about what everyone said and where we were, who we met, and what happened. I wonder if there's anything I've forgotten to do today. Off track. FOCUS. My cellphone beeps, I don't check it. I just sit propped up on my couch looking at the marks on the wood floor. I close my eyes. I should take a nap. My roommate turns on the shower. I lie on the couch staring at the ceiling now. I think about counting things to pass the time, then I realize that will put me to sleep in less than a minute. I listen harder. I focus on my breathing and my heart rate. It calms me down. I realize that I should do this more often.