buon natale

This is an illustration that I did for the band "Alessandro Guido ed i Trerrote."
Alessandro Guido (guitar and vocals)
Stefano Palma (bass guitar)
Fabrizio Barbareschi (drums)

refugees+soccer (in progress)

This clip is from an animation that I am currently working on. The central plot revolves around three boys who have been forced to flee their homes due to persecution and a well-founded fear. They are resettled in the United States where they become united through a mutual love of soccer.

Studio 100 SAT (Remix)

This animation was created around an audio sample pulled from a live performance of Alessandro Guido ed i Trerrote. It is a parody of the journalistic methodologies utilized by Studio 100--a local television station broadcasting throughout Puglia, Italy.

Sorry, but there are no subtitles. To help you understand, I have included a few notes below.

While some of the points are specifically relevant to this station, I think that we can all relate to the hyper-sensationalized nature of local new broadcasts. The point is that the information is so convoluted by, not necessarily what they say, but how they say it. Alessandro has identified certain rules that further illustrate this point.

It begins with a simple phrase: Oggi ho mangiato la mela (Today I ate an apple)

Rule 1: Use of plural pronouns
Today we ate an apple.

Rule 2: Referring directly or indirectly to city government
Today, thanks to the initiative of City Hall, we ate an apple.

Rule 3: Stating with redundancy "that which is"
Today, thanks to the initiative of City Hall, we ate that which is an apple, and in fact there was only one.

Rule 4: Use of "really" and "great" as much as possible, and frequently together
Today, really, thanks to the great initiative of City Hall, we ate that which is an apple, and in fact there was only one.

Rule 5: Mimmo's confirmation
Today, really, thanks to the great initiative of City Hall, of which Mimmo can confirm, we ate that which is an apple, and in fact there was only one.

Rule 6: Reference to the Great Salento (this is a geo-cultural area-->if you think of Italy as a boot, Salento would be the heel)
Today, really, thanks to the great initiative of City Hall, of which Mimmo can confirm, we ate that which is an apple, and in fact there was only one--none of which would be possibly without the bounty of our Great Salento.

To view the original video click here.

Deep-sea diver

This figure is a custom deep-sea diver made from a small 2.5" vinyl Qee.
Front view without the lid.

Top view without the lid.

Top view with the lid.

sputnik!

I was making a demo cliché-verre, and realized that I had inadvertently created a portrait of Sputnik out of soot, salt and water on a glass plate. This was an exciting accident. I have been fascinated with Sputnik as a result of all the material that emerged in 2007 for the 50th anniversary. In fact, there was an entertaining video that circulated on the Internet (see video). Let me warn you in advance--the tune is extremely catchy!

Eggs...

I have begun working with my father on a very interesting imaging project. Using a Leica microscope in tandem with the AutoMontage software system, we are attempting to photographically illustrate the developmental sequence of the Northern Dusky salamander (Desmognathus fuscus).









(left: 18 source images, right: 22 source images)

public service announcemet

the mind's arcade

The following images are shots of my thesis work installed in a current show at the Maryland Art Place. Convergence: Work by recent MFA graduates (June 10-July 19).

My approach to image making is predicated on the historical topography of memory, perception and the apparatus. It is a response to the contemporary notion that seeing is a discretely individual phenomenon that extends beyond a discussion of optical physiology, and aims to construct visual metaphors that point to the nostalgic and mimetic nature of the eye’s mind. By employing the mechanical language of nineteenth century optical apparatus to traverse this mental landscape, an opposition is established between the presumption of optical illusion, and the authority assigned to the mental fodder that constitutes our perceptions and imaginative understanding.

Coupling proto-cinematic design with found images, The Mind’s Arcade is an installation that aims to present models of interior thought that conjure visions, which do not and cannot exist except for as ghosts, figments, and recollections. Wood, reappropriated mechanical parts, and other various metals have been molded into resemblances of the stereoscope, praxinoscope, momuscope, and blower wheel. The four devices are situated within a relatively darkened room so as to allow the light produced by each of the sculptures to resonate. This arrangement produces a heightened sense of intimacy, and permits the work to build into a loose narrative.

The Mind’s Arcade prompts the viewer to critically reflect upon the emotional volatility that is created at the intersection of memory and the visual world. Furthermore, it seeks to provoke a broader dialogue about the implications of living in an image culture, where the apparatus continually mediates our interactions with the world. It plays on the notion that our willingness to ingest the optical machine has not diffused the “Cartesian riddle of separating reality from the appearance of reality,*” but rather only complicated it further. In fact, it lays a foundation for suggestions, such as those made by Jacques Lacan, that our obsession to fasten to images is an effort to deny the absence of reality.

*Errol Morris, “Play It Again, Sam (Re-enactments, Part One),” morris.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/03/play-it-again-sam-re-enactments-part-one/ (posted April 3, 2008)

Photos by John Dean

anticipate anxiety

I came across this animation that I put together over a year ago. It's amazing how little things have changed.

calling on anyone with a bit of mechanical prowess...

So here is the challenge:

I have been trying, with the help of local sculptor and friend Paul Daniel (check out his blog, he makes really cool stuff--pauldanielsculpture.blogspot.com), to build two blowers as part of a piece for my upcoming MFA show. The design is rather simple, however I am not able to produce the kind of air power that I had anticipated.

A 3.75" dia. cw blower wheel is turning on a crankshaft inside a 4" dia housing. A hole was ground out in the housing to allow air to be funneled into the exhaust shaft, and a grate was attached to the front to create an intake vent while minimizing leakage of air from the sides. The only results that I have been able to produce are tantamount to a baby 's whisper.

Does anyone have thoughts on what I might be missing? Would there be a way to increase the efficiency of the blower wheel?

more lenin...

With the exception of resolving some timing issues, as well as the addition of sound, I think that this animation is near done.

lenin_movement studies

what do you see?

Cut Paper Projection
2008

billie holiday

I have been working on a magic lantern box for the up-coming BMA exhibition "Notes on Monumentality." My piece reflects on the bronze sculpture of Billie Holiday made in 1985 by Baltimore artist James Earl Reid. The statue is located in the 1300 block of Pennsylvania Avenue, across the street from what remains of the Royal Theatre where Billie Holiday once preformed. This exhibit will run from February 27-May 25, 2008.

lenin on a bike

tour de...

These are a few new sketches from a stop-action animation that I have started. It deals with a woman's relationship with her bike.

"phantasmapenascope"

While the name “phantasmapenascope” is intended to be a bit of a joke on the names given to 19th century optical devises, I am quite serious about exploring the apparatus as a conduit for representing the “mind’s eye.” This is simply my first attempt.


Front view of the box.

Top view of the box.
On the right side of the image you can see the top of the spinning turbine. Transparent film with the silhouette (seen below) is attached to this disk, and is being projected on the back of a small screen with the images of four women sitting on a couch.

Partial interior view seen through the peephole.

Raw image of the rotating projection.

medusa's daughter

thesis exhibition 2007, MICA Decker Gallery

animation: japre l'uecchie guagnedda

This video was created by cutting elements out of paper, scanning them, and finally animating the narrative using Adobe After Effects.