Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Postmodern
Ought we not to distinguish ethnography as an academic discipline
from doing and writing ethnography? As an academic discipline, at least
in the United States (and we have to recognize our parochialism) it is
an arena of contestation in which science and the humanities -- science
and art -- confront each other. Science has, of course, the (economic)
clout.
After I had written Tuhami, I was introduced at conferences as a writer and an anthropologist: never as an anthropologist and a writer. Was this simply a question of sonority? I think not, but those attitudes have been by-passed. Or have they?
My point is that the contestation between science and art affects them both. There is, in the theological sense, an apologetic, if not a defensive, dimension to ethnography s written. I cannot speak for others who do ethnography, but I am quite certain that this contestation influenced my field research and my findings, It is not a simply a question of rigor, systematicity, or objectivity. I am haunted, less so today than when I was a student, by the parti-pris of my interlocutors – my mentors, colleagues, and other insistent figues. Yet, in my most recent fieldwork, with the Harkis, I was troubled by questions of objectivity, even though I tend to look at claims of objectivity with considerable skepticism. I question the objectivity of objectivity. Wasn’t it Goethe who called attention to the fact that objectivity is subjectivity grasped?
But to answer the question: the doing of ethnography is an art as living is an art. We live our field research, despite methodological mystification. This is not to deny the importance of method and methodology. They -- their enactment -- are minimally social facts and have to be taken as such. They must not blind us, however, to the lived dimension of our research – to the lived resistance to order, coherence, and continuity. That too is a social fact. Ethnography has always to loop back, self-critically, on itself.
Yes, within our culture, the writing of ethnography is an art as is all literature. It is, despite itself, a literary form; in fact, a constellation of literary forms.
After I had written Tuhami, I was introduced at conferences as a writer and an anthropologist: never as an anthropologist and a writer. Was this simply a question of sonority? I think not, but those attitudes have been by-passed. Or have they?
My point is that the contestation between science and art affects them both. There is, in the theological sense, an apologetic, if not a defensive, dimension to ethnography s written. I cannot speak for others who do ethnography, but I am quite certain that this contestation influenced my field research and my findings, It is not a simply a question of rigor, systematicity, or objectivity. I am haunted, less so today than when I was a student, by the parti-pris of my interlocutors – my mentors, colleagues, and other insistent figues. Yet, in my most recent fieldwork, with the Harkis, I was troubled by questions of objectivity, even though I tend to look at claims of objectivity with considerable skepticism. I question the objectivity of objectivity. Wasn’t it Goethe who called attention to the fact that objectivity is subjectivity grasped?
But to answer the question: the doing of ethnography is an art as living is an art. We live our field research, despite methodological mystification. This is not to deny the importance of method and methodology. They -- their enactment -- are minimally social facts and have to be taken as such. They must not blind us, however, to the lived dimension of our research – to the lived resistance to order, coherence, and continuity. That too is a social fact. Ethnography has always to loop back, self-critically, on itself.
Yes, within our culture, the writing of ethnography is an art as is all literature. It is, despite itself, a literary form; in fact, a constellation of literary forms.
Experimentation
The formation of the countercultural movement in the mid 1960’s marked
the first cultural-revolution that utilized multiple media forms to
ignite society to action. It capitalized on a nation filled with youths
eager to experiment with increased liberation in all aspects of life.
This shift toward experimentation was backlash against cultural
assimilation into middle America that had occurred so rapidly during the
post WWII years. It encapsulated movements related to conflict in
Vietnam, Civil Rights, Women’s Rights, and the Sexual Revolution,
contributing to the intense passion of each cause’s respective
supporters. Nowhere was this desire for societal change more prevalent
than in music. Youth’s fervent desire for change in the fundamental
organization of American society manifested itself through music.
The emergence of new musical genre was one of the most notable means of expression for voices of the counterculture. While music had previously been characterized as black or white, young or old, the countercultural movement shattered those norms. 1950’s Rock and Roll, characterized by Elvis Presley, morphed and diversified into sub genres including pop, folk, acoustic rock, and electronic music. This diversification of music was linked to the increasingly prominent diversity of Americans, and the desire for true freedom of expression. During the countercultural movement, African American artists became more prominent and mainstream. As a whole, music became a much more open and free field of expression, open to experimentation with new sounds and alternative instrumental arrangements. Listeners were now free to explore the wide spectrum of musical genres, breaking down stereotypical barriers that had previously limited audiences.
Another fundamental role of music within the countercultural movement was to provide female artists with the ability to forge their own distinctive place within the music business. It provided a medium through which to comment on issues specifically related to gender, like the Second Wave Feminist Movement, and the Sexual Revolution, both intrinsically linked in the counterculture. Female singing groups emerged with a new sound and a new look. The Ronettes, The Crystals, and the Shangri-Las emerged in the mid 1960’s, attracting their own concert crowds without male singers accompanying them. Later, such talented performers such as Janis Joplin and even African American songstress Aretha Franklin would challenge traditional views of femininity with their confident and innovative musical sound.
Music during the counterculture was also increasingly politically charged and directed. Gone were the days of easy listening songs with feel good lyrics. Music became a powerful medium through which to drum up political support during rallies and protests. Artists such as Crosby, Stills, and Nash and Creedence Clearwater Revival wrote lyrics regarding specific political events, calling attention to the hypocrisy within government and calling for outrage among listeners. Music became a way of citing inequities within society and calling for an immediate countercultural response.
The emergence of new musical genre was one of the most notable means of expression for voices of the counterculture. While music had previously been characterized as black or white, young or old, the countercultural movement shattered those norms. 1950’s Rock and Roll, characterized by Elvis Presley, morphed and diversified into sub genres including pop, folk, acoustic rock, and electronic music. This diversification of music was linked to the increasingly prominent diversity of Americans, and the desire for true freedom of expression. During the countercultural movement, African American artists became more prominent and mainstream. As a whole, music became a much more open and free field of expression, open to experimentation with new sounds and alternative instrumental arrangements. Listeners were now free to explore the wide spectrum of musical genres, breaking down stereotypical barriers that had previously limited audiences.
Another fundamental role of music within the countercultural movement was to provide female artists with the ability to forge their own distinctive place within the music business. It provided a medium through which to comment on issues specifically related to gender, like the Second Wave Feminist Movement, and the Sexual Revolution, both intrinsically linked in the counterculture. Female singing groups emerged with a new sound and a new look. The Ronettes, The Crystals, and the Shangri-Las emerged in the mid 1960’s, attracting their own concert crowds without male singers accompanying them. Later, such talented performers such as Janis Joplin and even African American songstress Aretha Franklin would challenge traditional views of femininity with their confident and innovative musical sound.
Music during the counterculture was also increasingly politically charged and directed. Gone were the days of easy listening songs with feel good lyrics. Music became a powerful medium through which to drum up political support during rallies and protests. Artists such as Crosby, Stills, and Nash and Creedence Clearwater Revival wrote lyrics regarding specific political events, calling attention to the hypocrisy within government and calling for outrage among listeners. Music became a way of citing inequities within society and calling for an immediate countercultural response.
Phillies Game Garage Band
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2533948801159179802#editor/target=post;postID=3588395984814642178;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=6;src=postname
Final Art Video
For the final performance art project I used a video of me pitching against the Philidelphia Phillies and cut in and out along with adding music to the background
Music Videos
MTV isn’t keen on playing music videos these days, but when it did,
it helped to define eras and careers, and became a phenomenon in its own
right.
The music video didn’t simply appear out of nowhere in 1981 when MTV opened. Rather, there were many music videos before this, but few were successful, thanks mainly to only occasional airings on weekly pop shows on TV stations around the world.
While music videos are almost exclusively watched on YouTube these days, this is only the latest stage in the evolution of a movie sub-genre that can be as elaborate as a feature film and as personal as a family photo.
In order to recount the history of this medium and show how it has evolved over the decades, we have taken a look at 10 of the most iconic music videos of the past 50 years.
The music video didn’t simply appear out of nowhere in 1981 when MTV opened. Rather, there were many music videos before this, but few were successful, thanks mainly to only occasional airings on weekly pop shows on TV stations around the world.
While music videos are almost exclusively watched on YouTube these days, this is only the latest stage in the evolution of a movie sub-genre that can be as elaborate as a feature film and as personal as a family photo.
In order to recount the history of this medium and show how it has evolved over the decades, we have taken a look at 10 of the most iconic music videos of the past 50 years.
Video Mapping
Video Projection Mapping is an exciting new projection technique that
can turn almost any surface into a dynamic video display. Specialized
software is used to warp and mask the projected image to make it fit
perfectly on irregularly shaped screens. When done right, the end
result is a dynamic projection installation that transcends ordinary
video projection. The goal of this site is to compile examples of
impressive uses of video mapping techniques.
"Each art has its own medium and that medium is especially fitted for one kind of communication. Each medium says something that cannot be uttered as well or as completely in any other tongue." --John Dewey
"Each art has its own medium and that medium is especially fitted for one kind of communication. Each medium says something that cannot be uttered as well or as completely in any other tongue." --John Dewey
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