Over the weekend I went to Adam Phillips Pond, which interestingly enough, was next to a correctional facility, and Carter Historical Farm, which wasn’t far from that.  I was glad to get some shots of water finally to diversify my landscapes.  It was a workday today, so I also made one more image (the last image).  I have several versions saved so after sleeping on it I will finalize it this week.  The first five images are a sample of some of the images I took from over the weekend, and I edited them in class today too.

I have five new images and reworked two, according to the feedback I got from the BFA Midterm.  Several of the faculty said my two images with circles did not fit with my series so I modified them.  People said they were too graphic looking, so I faded the harsh lines of the circles to make them fit better.  Those images are images one and two in the order below.  Some other feedback I got was to focus on the Holographic Universe Principle more.  I did that with the images three to five.  Like I have explained in past blog posts, the Holographic Universe Principle is the idea that our reality is the result of information spread out on a 2D surface.  This would make our reality something like a hologram.  This theory originates from the discovery that when an object falls into a black hole, a copy of the information to make that object is store on the 2D surface of the black hole, while the psychical object is lost in the black hole.  Theoretically, it would be possible to recreate the object with the 2D information on the outside of the black hole.  I illustrate the Holographic Principle by magnifying an image to emphasize it’s 2D quality, and overlaying that with the source image, like the copy of 2D information on the outside of the black hole.  The source image represents our reality, and is itself as a photo, which captures our 3D world and presents it as a 2D image.

I do have 7+ images completed, which is according to my production calendar.  I have more than that, actually, but I don’t feel that they are all equally cohesive in quality and theme, so I am making more, and modifying existing images.

Over the weekend I went to Bradner Preserve.  I was amazed by how beautiful it was.  There was a variety of trails and scenery.  Unfortunately, one of my SD cards got corrupted and I lost 2 gigs of photos I took there, but on the bright side, at least it wasn’t one of my 16 gig cards, and I got some naturally glitched files out of it.

There was a critique today, and I got some useful advice. In the coming weeks I will edit and rework some images based on the feedback I got from my professors and peers.

I have been editing my photos based on the feedback I got during my midterm.  The first and last photos are images i have reworked because the feedback I got was that they were too graphic-like, and did not fit with the other images.  I also stuck with the holographic principle in the way I edited my images, stretching them and overlaying them onto the image to create a multi-leveled, illusory effect.  The new images are mostly works in progress, with the second and fourth being more finalized.

I also talked to Jason about what I will need to display my piece in the gallery.  I will have to use one circuit for my nine displays, and I will need nine media players, and nine flashdrives.  I bought a pack of ten flash drives last night.  The displays are LED, and I will need time to set it up and test the color accuracy.  He said it will take a while to set it up, and likened it to building a house, so he suggested I don’t actually hang the displays but set them up on the floor for my December defense.  He also said the best place for it would be in the corner of the gallery by Jackie’s office, so the wires can go up and over the wall. He advised I start hanging the monitors from the bottom up, and recommended I use an inch or two of space between monitors because otherwise it would be very difficult to accurately place the hanging mounts for the displays to be tightly placed.

On Friday, I gave my presentation and got some good advice.  My notes that I took after the presentation consist of:

-Narrow focus

-2 circle images don’t fit

-Focus on holographic universe theory

-Listen to the landscape when I’m out shooting

-Printing images adds 2D-ness if I’m focusing on the holographic universe principle

-Kim said my concept is up her alley

-Using screens because of the simulation hypothesis is good

-Dena feels like she is experiencing the holographic universe when she is out shooting

Keeping these things in mind, I went out shooting in Wildwood Park.  I was amazed by what a nice park it was, complete with a picturesque covered bridge and a winding boardwalk high above the forest.  These are a sample of the images which I have edited.

It was a work day today and I spent the day editing the images I took over the weekend.  I also received good advice from my professors and peers on my progress. The following are the images I made/reworked.  The colors are not web friendly, so they are not 1 to 1 representations.

The Holographic Universe Principle is simply put, the idea that our reality is the result of information spread out on a 2D surface, making our world comparable to a hologram. This theory is valid because when an object falls into a black hole a copy of its information is spread out on the surface of the black hole.  With the right method, it is theoretically possible to reconstruct the object using the 2D data.  I exemplify this in my images by taking an image and spreading it out very wide emphasizing the 2D-ness of the image.  The idea is represented in all of my images to some degree, but is perhaps most noticeably featured in the first image.

In the second image I was inspired by the Multiverse Theory, which is the theory that there are multiple universes. This idea is exemplified through the circle as a metaphor for several time related things including a wormhole, a clock, and the sun. The different colors used on the same scenery conveys that the scene takes place in different realities.

The third and fifth images are meant to convey the idea of Eternalism, or the idea that all time is happening at once.  In the third image I’m going to replace the sepia-toned oval with a picture of the same place in the winter time. The ovals sepia tone as a shorthand for old film, and the oval is not hard edged, conveying the idea that both images bleed into each other, and are happening at the same time.  In the final image by overlaying water over the landscape I’m referring to when the landscape was actually underwater.

The fourth image depicts Plato’s Divided Line and the Theory of Forms.  Plato believed that there existed the world of appearance, which consisted of shadows and images and was the world of illusion, and the world of the forms, which consisted of ideas, mathematical forms, geometry and knowledge.  The line seen is meant to be the divided line dividing the two worlds.  On the right is the world of forms, and the left is the world of appearance.  Plato believed that the world of the forms was more real than the things that we saw.  To explain the theory of forms, imagine all the cats there are in the world. They are all cats but no one cat is more real than the other cats yet we have this idea of cat-ness.  That idea is unobservable, and real.  The cats we see are illusions, according to Plato.  The cat can also be substituted for a circle, given that we cannot truly observe a perfect circle in nature, but we have the idea of one.

Over the weekend I went to the Black Swamp Preserve and Slippery Elm Trail.  It was beautiful, but hard to find my way around with no trail map available, and it rained lightly for a bit, but luckily cleared up after 10 minutes or so.  Thanks to the rain, I got some interesting shot of the clouds breaking.  The following are a small sample of the images I took at both locations.

There was a critique today as well where I presented my progress and received the following advice for the midterm.

-Include inspiration

-Incorporate quotes

-Include piece dimensions and gallery display

-Introduce self

-Why should we care

It was an in class work day, and I got at least one other image I would consider finished (the first one) completed.  The colors are not accurate at all here (too saturated/not saturated enough), but on my computer they look good.  The first image shows the passage of time with the rising water.  My classmates helped critique my work in class which I found very helpful.   The second image is a previous version I made before I arrived at the first image.  The third image is completed, but I am unsure how I feel about it, and I might play more with the original image to change up the composition.  The forth image is a work in progress.

Unfortunately, I was having computer troubles that prevented me from going out and shooting over the break, but I plan to make up for it this weekend.  I am planning on going to the Black Swamp Preserve.