ART211 Blog #10 Flip-Book/Stop-Motion

Well here it is. My final product of Pac-Man in my flip-book & Stop Motion. I used my iPhone to take all 400 pictures and used iMovie to fuse them all together, including the music. The Autograph by J. Cole. This is one of my favorite songs by him, and there was no particular reason this exact song was included.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWLqE9WFi0k&feature=youtu.be

ART211 Blog #9

Today in class we discussed our flip books that are due on thursday (next class). I decided that I am either going to use index cards or an old book to make mine. I am still on the fence between pacman, a castle, or maybe a road. Something with straight but unique line structures. We also have to upload a video using Youtube of the flip book on this blog. The video I believe will be the easiest part of the project and the hardest part will be physically making the book flip correctly and fluidly throughout the 400 pages.

Today I am going to buy the index cards and caught them to shape. Then I am going to try to draw all of the outlines, then fill them all in with color before finally assembling the whole book.

ART211 Blog #8 Sandy Skoglund

Since the start of our class, I believe Sandy Skoglund has been the most fascinating artist we've covered. The fact that we somewhat attempted to mimic her work with our last grid project, excites me but also gives her a whole new respect of her craft.. Here is some of my favorite work by her. The last picture is the exact grid I was attempting to create with my project. Also I love the 2nd photo of the cats not only cause I have three unbelievable cats but the way the cats are uniquely set up around the room give a different ora.

ART211 Blog #7 Electronics in the audiovisual world

Last class, we spent most of the time watching different types of live performance art, such as stop action films, and time lapse videos. The most important thing I took away from these videos was that it truly was art. Before having any knowledge of these art forms, I assumed these were just your average videos and needed only a small amount of knowledge to perform. I now have a much higher respect for these types of artists, seeing how many frames these people used in their videos, meant numerous days of footage as well as editing to create the exact mood/feeling of the video.

I truly enjoyed the stop-action video we watched in class of the buildings in the city. The way the artist was able to convey the scenery and make the 5 minute video so fluid is amazing. One couldn't blatantly  tell that it must have taken years and years if practice and experience to perform/create such a unique masterpiece.

The TI994A is was a Texas Instrument that was made for early home-based computer activities. It can first hit the assembly line in 1981 and was sold at 525 dollars. There was an updated/newer version of the TI994 model but that had been a failure. It featured an additional graphic mode, inclduing lowercase characters, and a full travel keyboard. The TI994A came with an array of games, that were new and fun but back thens standards. It had many awesome features and extra applications that allowed more buyers to become fascinated and intrigued by this and otherTexas Instruments.

ART211 Blog #6

Our flip-book project is due this thursday. I have been doing some brainstorming and researching on this topic, and have decided to base my project on something fundamental with multiple line structures. I have narrowed it down between making a Pacman game, a castle, or a illustration of the horizon.

All three of these ideas interest me, and I Believe any of these ideas on pursue will turn into a successful flip book. Here are some of ideas that inspired me. I am truly excited to see what my own flip-book will end up like.

ART211 Blog #5 GRID PROJECT

Today our grid project was due in class. For my project, I originally was going to sketch the picnic tables located near the river on the edge of class, but the paper I used turned out to be too thick to sketch. Therefore I decided to draw every straight line by hand (ruler). I then colored in each line either with Red or Black marker before gluing the strays on the intersecting lines.

To be honest, I do not consider myself to be the most artistic individual by any measure, but knew I had the capability to create my own and original project, using grids and different techniques we learned in class. Overall I am truly pleased to what my grid project became and surprisingly found this assignment not only fun but also eye-opening as well. Here is the final product.

ART211 Blog #4

Today in class we talked about Professors and there "trigger" teaching. It is any topic that can possibly trigger someones true emotion such as anxiety or a panic attack. I personally don't really believe and agree with this type of stuff. Maybe because (thankfully) I have never been through anything traumatic. I also do believe society these days, are way to over sensitive.

Today I also discovered the Bed & Breakfast app, like we discussed today in class. I am truly not a huge fan of the idea, and would still 100% prefer a hotel, maybe because I have also loved hotels ever since I was little, or maybe the fact that your staying in a random persons home is just unattractive to me. 

Our Grid project is due next class. I have been researching and discovering a lot of ideas of what I'm going to do for this project, and am excited to see what the final product turns out to be.  

ART211 Blog #3 Opera Paper

Jacob Levenson

3/3/15

Art + Technology

Opera Video Game

                                                            Les Troyens

            The opera I found most interesting to turn into a video game is Les Troyens, written by Hector Berlioz. Although Les Troyens was originally written and composed between 1856 & 1858, it did not premiere until 1921 in Paris. This opera is split into five different acts, most of them taking place in different settings but all taking place either in the ancient cities of Troy or Carthage. “Les Troyens” can be translated to English as The Trojans.

            The story of Les Troyens starts off with Act 1, where the Greeks have laid siege on the city of troy for over a decade. The Greeks have just recently left Troy, leaving behind a giant wooden horse. The people of Troy are to believe that this horse is just an offering to Athena. Cassandra the prophetess, however, is the only individual who is suspicious of the Greeks’ disappearance and of the horse. The next night Cassandra has a mysterious vision, seeing her dead brother, Hector. She decides to alert and warn her father and Coroebus, her fiancé, of the up and coming danger. She explains that she foresees the death of both of them, but neither of them pay any attention to her. As each day passes, the Trojans give thanks and offering to the gods for their peace, until a young warrior reports that the priest, Laocoon, is dead. Laocoon is suspected of throwing a spear at the horse and urging the crowd to burn it, before two giant serpents appeared and devoured him and his two sons.  As soon as word spreads of the death of Laocoon, Aeneas orders the horse to be brought into Troy. They beg Athena to pardon them and spare their lives.

Act 2 starts with Aeneas getting a vision similar to the one Cassandra previously had, with a visitation of the ghost of Hector who again tells them to leave the city immediately. The ghost of Hector reiterates to Aeneas that his destiny is to start a new empire and to rule the world someday. As soon as Aenea’s vision of Hector disappears, he gets word that the Greek soldiers have finally emerged from the wooden horse and have now entered and started destroying the city. Aeneas hurries to join the fight, but is too late. Corebus has already been killed, along with most of the soldiers in the city. As the Greek soldiers make their way through the city and closer to the palace, Cassandra prophesizes the escape of Aeneas and a few Trojan soldiers who will come back to Troy and start a new city. Cassandra and the other woman then take their own lives before Aeneas and his men escape.           

Act 3 starts in Carthage, North Africa, seven years after Aeneas and the Trojans fled the crumbling city of Troy. After escaping death in a recent storm, Aeneas and his Trojan Army wash ashore at Carthage.  Dido, the queen of that region, welcomes the Trojans. Soon after the arrival of the Trojans, news comes that an enemy of Dido plans to attack Carthage momentarily. Aeneas’s army and the Carthaginians rally and fight alongside each other. As a final act of assurance, Aeneas leaves his son, Ascanius, to watch directly over the queen.

Act 4 opens with Aeneas returning to Carthage victorious. During the festivities and celebrations over the victory for Carthage, Dido and Aeneas find themselves together in private and soon discover their love for each other. Several months pass and the queen’s advisor becomes worried that Dido has been neglecting her duties as queen.  The queen’s advisor fears that Carthage is now doomed.  Both Aeneas and Dido pay no attention to these accusations. The act ends with Dido asking Aeneas to describe the last days of Troy and its destruction by the Greeks. They see each other’s situation as similar to their own and proclaim their love.

Act 5 opens with a discussion between the Trojan captain and his men. They become worried and superstitious about omens and feelings of their failure to return to Troy. Aeneas becomes torn between his love for Dido and his obligation to return to Troy. He decides he must stay loyal to his Trojans and leave Carthage, but not before seeing Dido one last time. Just before seeing Dido for what is to be the last time, he is again paid a visit not only by the ghost of Hector, but also by the ghosts of Coroebus and Cassandra as well. The ghosts urge Aeneas to leave immediately and Aeneas agrees but, before being able to depart, Dido appears. Aeneas explains his love for her, but that he has a bigger obligation to the people of Troy. Dido makes multiple attempts to persuade Aeneas to stay, but nothing will convince him.  He and his army sail away from Carthage. Dido becomes furious with the whole situation, ordering the destruction of the gifts and tokens of their love. She comes to the conclusion that she must end her own life and bids her farewell to the people of Carthage. The last scene involves Dido stabbing herself with Aeneas’s sword and having a final vision of the destruction of her Carthage by the Roman Empire, with the curse of Aeneas and his descendants.

The video game I created based on this opera is named “Trojan Creed.” It is very similar to the current video game Assassins Creed, which is a historical fiction, action-adventure, open world, stealth video game. Trojan Creed involves the two ancient cities of Troy and Carthage, where you can travel freely between the two. The game consists mostly of the experiences and memories of Aeneas, as well as the memories of his ancestors. These memories and experiences take place through an advanced device called the animus. The animus displays equipment, health, goals, and other features of Aeneas.

Each of the five acts of the opera has its own unique missions to complete which correspond to what takes places within the story. The first act’s mission involves the user in navigating through the city of Troy, while getting adjusted to the controls and their interactive abilities.  The user must then attempt to save Laoccon’s sons by fighting the serpent.  The second act’s mission involves the user, as Aeneas, seeing and interacting with the ghost of Hector. The user then must decode Hector’s vision with a variety of puzzles. The puzzles must be completed in a timed manner in an attempt to stop the Greek invasion. The user must also run through the ruined city to find Cassandra and the other women in the palace before they commit suicide. The third act asks the user to fight along side the Carthaginians against the Numidians who are attempting to take over Carthage.  The user must also assassinate the Numidian leader, Larbas. The user must use his stealth ability to kill Larbas without alerting his surrounding soldiers. The fourth act involves the user in gaining skills and other abilities while exploring Carthage and helping the people of Carthage. The user must also search an island for secret artifacts in order to win over Dido’s heart. The fifth and final act asks the user to strategically round up his or her troops and attempt to sneakily exit Carthage without alerting Dido and her Carthaginian army.

This video game provides users the experience of playing as one of the most famous heros in a non-fictional context. I found turning this opera into a video game not only interesting but much easier than I thought. I just had to take the extra step and unlock the artistic and conceptual part of my writing ability. I truly believe that if I was able to actually create and market this video game, people throughout the world purchase and enjoy playing this non-fictional, third person game.