Zombies, monkeys, and kung-fu.
...
Uh, fine.
From the first handful of bars evoking 'The Good, The Bad & The Ugly's theme (from which the song's title is derived) in combination with the subtitle lifted from the original (read 'good') Dawn of the Dead's dialogue, the video is playing with the viewer's sensibilities as an intrepid pop-culturenaut.
The bold, clean style of the visuals, pitched roughly halfway between the punk chic of Hewlett's Tank Girl and the hyperactive brightness of a Tartakovsky Saturday-morning cartoon brings a unique style to the table: a world, and consequentially a music video, where anything is possible. As newly created cartoons however, the Gorillaz are to begin with in statis: the white room so often represented by television and film as Limbo. This all changes, of course, when drummer Russel's frazzled id decides to go for a shuffle.
The representation of Del tha Funkee Homosapien as a sputtering, poor-quality television transmission again nudges knowingly at one's cultural awareness, and his joyful awakening of the graveyard introduces another genre trope into the cultural mélange -- the realistic appearance of the cenotaphs giving the whole video a tinge of Gothic pedigree.
Other moments to draw attention to: the hilariously realised dancing zombie gorillas, slamming the kitschy Thriller shtick back into the cartoon world where it belongs; the kung-fu hijinks of the Martial Arts Prodigy in all her technophile otaku-drool-inducing glory; and the Genie-esque manner in which Del is sucked back into Russel's head, owing as much to Disney's Aladdin as Ghostbusters.
As I said, this is my favourite music video because it has zombies, monkeys and kung-fu. The team behind Gorillaz, like us, have grown up on music videos, trashy pop-culture and cartoons. They know what they like, they know what people like and they know what to do with it.
Saturday 20 October 2007
Friday 19 October 2007
'Bedshaped' by Keane
Right, the song's not my favourite but the video is. Its use of stop-motion and animation is beatiful, and arguably implies that Keane put as much thought, effort and artistry into the creation of their music as an animator does with a plasticine model, an idea imperative to sustaining the image they attempt to put forward of themselves as independent artists - although, ironically, the fact that the band are only ever represented in the video through drawings of themselves suggests the idea that they are somewhat manufactured themselves.
Bedshaped is, according to the band, a song about feeling left behind by a former friend or lover and the hope that in the distant future they will be reunited. This sentiment is well conveyed by the lonely, tramp like plasticine figure who seems daunted by the grim, urban environment he inhabits and whose only friend seems to be a kindly cat. The tramp figure himself is visually grotesque, perhaps reflecting the idea of a person becoming literally 'bedshaped' through illness and age.
The stop-motion animation has an urban-gothic aesthetic to it (resemblant of Tim Burton's The Corpse Bride at times) and the band appear as graffiti-esque animations within the walls of the tramp's world along with the lyrics of the song. As the band sing to him from the buildings and walls, the tramp seems to find his only solace from the construct of the city itself, including his resourceful cat friend, as opposed to the people who occupy it.
The lyrics and the band finally break out of the walls in the 'white light' of the song and the tramp finds himself within a white room surrounded by 3D renderings of the lyrics (that he himself has been reading and writing) and the bandmembers who are now drawn in a rougher, more energetic style. The implication is that he has either died or that the city itself has saved him.
I think I enjoy the video because it's just very aesthetically pleasing and it complements the sentiment of the song well, if not its exact meaning. I believe however that the representation of the song here was much less important than the representation of Keane as artists rather than a pop act. Whether it succeeds or not is, of course, debateable.
Smashing Pumpkins - Ava Adore
Smashing Pumpkins - Ava Adore
This was the lead single from the Pumpkins' "techno" album. They fired their drummer, replaced him with a machine and announced to the critics that they were now an electro outfit. Just in case some people hadn't got the message, they then released this video, which features no instruments, no live performance and only a half-hearted attempt to lip-sync. Filmed in one continuous take, the video sees the nearly-unrecognisable band dance through a series of cliched music video settings peopled with extras who might be mannequins and mannequins that might be extras. The camera repeatedly swings round to show the track and crew, emphasising that the video is a technological illusion, while the band often miss cues or disappear and reappear from shots at random as the music carries on without them. While the one-shot conceit and the sets themselves are impressive and Romanek plays interesting in-camera tricks with time and space, what I really like about this video is that it is such a blatant, knowing exercise in rebranding.
This was the lead single from the Pumpkins' "techno" album. They fired their drummer, replaced him with a machine and announced to the critics that they were now an electro outfit. Just in case some people hadn't got the message, they then released this video, which features no instruments, no live performance and only a half-hearted attempt to lip-sync. Filmed in one continuous take, the video sees the nearly-unrecognisable band dance through a series of cliched music video settings peopled with extras who might be mannequins and mannequins that might be extras. The camera repeatedly swings round to show the track and crew, emphasising that the video is a technological illusion, while the band often miss cues or disappear and reappear from shots at random as the music carries on without them. While the one-shot conceit and the sets themselves are impressive and Romanek plays interesting in-camera tricks with time and space, what I really like about this video is that it is such a blatant, knowing exercise in rebranding.
Coldplay - The Scientist
I particularly like the way this video plays the protagonists narrative in reverse, allowing us to see the effects before we witness what actually caused them. The director is able to convey what we discover to be a very traumatic event in a slow, trance like manner communicating the initial disbelief that you may actually feel if you were in that situation. I feel this also reflects the sad and sombre nature of the song perfectly. The first time we watch the video and follow Chris Martin’s journey “back to the start” is extremely compelling, as the viewer is almost discovering what happened as Chris replays it. This gives the video a unique quality as when you have watched it through once and found out about the car accident, the video will never again offer you the same sort of suspense initially felt when you didn’t know what had happened.
Once again, this can be seen as a mediated piece of art in the sense that its video documentation has been manipulated after the live filming. However, the video (a basic level) has only been played backwards, with a few special effects added. So in a way it could still be interpreted as showing a live set of events but instead focusing on the how the smallest of movements appear backwards.
Once again, this can be seen as a mediated piece of art in the sense that its video documentation has been manipulated after the live filming. However, the video (a basic level) has only been played backwards, with a few special effects added. So in a way it could still be interpreted as showing a live set of events but instead focusing on the how the smallest of movements appear backwards.
Wednesday 17 October 2007
Radiohead - Street Spirit (Fade Out)
A Street Spirit (Fade Out) is reflected in that the spirit of a community, represented by caravans here, fades out continuously throughout the video. This is made possible by the use of black and white, which allows, through a brilliant manipulation of lighting and great editing, people to apparently disappear and reappear. The fading effect is also aided by the variations in the timing of shots. For example, early on figures move at different paces in front of the caravan; a constant pace set in the centre by Thom, and an exaggerated escape from the caravan behind, slowed to accentuate each point of the descent. Whilst this does not fade that character out, they are almost alienated from the action in the shot, and that the frames are still shots throughout, alienates the characters from the viewer all the more, reinforcing the fading theme of the video.
I particularly like the aesthetics of the video; some of the images such as the slow movement of feathers to suggest a weight to them followed by a rapid fall create interest in their peculiarity. Everything seems emphasised and studied, helped by the fact that the images are repeated and developed. An interest is then created in the narrative of the images and the video as a whole, as well as the narrative of the video against the song.
Radiohead are at times a quietly explosive band and this tension is not only heard through the lyrics, but also seen, an example here being Thom’s violence with the hammer in shattering the glass, but that the glass is then held and suspended. The video ends where it started but in reverse; that Thom eventually refuses to fade out and rises instead of falls, creates another level of tension and reflects the contradictions, confusion and the overall style of the band.
I particularly like the aesthetics of the video; some of the images such as the slow movement of feathers to suggest a weight to them followed by a rapid fall create interest in their peculiarity. Everything seems emphasised and studied, helped by the fact that the images are repeated and developed. An interest is then created in the narrative of the images and the video as a whole, as well as the narrative of the video against the song.
Radiohead are at times a quietly explosive band and this tension is not only heard through the lyrics, but also seen, an example here being Thom’s violence with the hammer in shattering the glass, but that the glass is then held and suspended. The video ends where it started but in reverse; that Thom eventually refuses to fade out and rises instead of falls, creates another level of tension and reflects the contradictions, confusion and the overall style of the band.
"D.A.N.C.E" by 'Justice'
Some of you may remember 'Justice' from the collaboration they did with 'Simian' (now 'Simian Mobile Disco,' or at least some of the original group are) in Summer '06 with "We Are Your Friends." Here's a track, and its accompanying video, from their recently-released debut album:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo_QVq2lGMs
What I love about this video is paradoxically both its simplicity and its visual complexity (in regard to the animation). Whilst the art is monochromatic and fairly basic in style, the implementation of it into the video as part of a continuous animated piece is what really makes this baby feel fresh.
Not only does the animation provide the viewer with what is essentially a Disney-style sing-along option, but it also keeps pace, visually, with the track itself. It's a synchronization of numerous 'mediated' components:
- The original track, which itself has been electronically modified in the studio.
- The original footage, which has clearly been altered from its original colour to black and white in post-production.
- The animated effects, which were most likely drawn digitally, then applied to a computer model, generating the illusion of the animation being one with the performers' clothing (there are three obvious 'remediations', as it were, in this process alone).
Enjoy!
I would go into an conversation I had post-seminar yesterday morning regarding computer-generated animation and imagery, but I'll save that for a later post.
Faithless - Insomnia
This Video completely captures the mood of the song, there is a real sense of isolation. This is created not only through the empty streets, but also through the fact that the director has chosen to shoot the video in black and white. when the music becomes more frantic and the protagonists inner devil is seen in flashes, the colour used is even more poignant, adding to the intensity of the song. This video never ceases to send chills down my spine!!
Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srgi2DkDbPU
This video is a black and white minimalist piece without any editing whatsoever. Dylan holds up placards containing words and phrases from "Subterranean Homesick Blues" and discards them as the song progresses. Throughout the piece, many of the placards are deliberately spelt wrongly and phrases and words appear on the placards that aren't even in the lyrics (maybe to create comedy or puzzlement for the audience). The end of the video is particularly entertaining. Dylans final card simply reads "WHAT??" possibly to show that the presentation may have even left himself confused.
This video is a black and white minimalist piece without any editing whatsoever. Dylan holds up placards containing words and phrases from "Subterranean Homesick Blues" and discards them as the song progresses. Throughout the piece, many of the placards are deliberately spelt wrongly and phrases and words appear on the placards that aren't even in the lyrics (maybe to create comedy or puzzlement for the audience). The end of the video is particularly entertaining. Dylans final card simply reads "WHAT??" possibly to show that the presentation may have even left himself confused.
E-40, Tell me when to go
Think the video captures the energy of the track and 'hyphy' hip hop sub-culture. It portrays the animated car culture and community aspect of scene really well. Between the artists performing, the shots of the street party aids the music giving it a clear context rather that people dancing around in some club or on a yacht somewhere.
Tuesday 16 October 2007
Homework Week 4
Hi everyone,
please remember to post yr link to yr favourite music video and a par about the reasons for your choice
to get things rolling here is mine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjAoBKagWQA
Björk··All is Full of Love
released April 1999
commissioner Paul McKee at One Little Indian, UK
PRODUCTION
company Black Dog Films
director Chris Cunningham
producer Cindy Burnay
director of photography John Lynch
production designers Chris Cunningham, Julian Caldow
art director Chris Oddy
model effects Mattes & Miniatures
robot design Chris Cunningham
robot builder Paul Catling
robot model assistants James McKeown, Liam Williams
I like the way that the performance of the robot captures the key tropes of Bjork's persona: cool, high tech, experimental but also infused with an odd sense of pathos and a real vulnerability. Its one of Chris Cunningham's most eloquent music video conceptions and is far clearer than his own statements about it eg:
"When I first heard the track I wrote down the words 'sexual,' 'milk,' 'white porcelain,' 'surgery.' [The video]'s a combination of several fetishes: industrial robotics, female anatomy, and fluorescent light in that order." (Dazed and Confused)
"I think I mentioned that I think it should be ... something that's white and frozen, and then it sort of melts, because of love, and making love."
Chris Cunningham
http://www.director-file.com/cunningham/bjork.html
please remember to post yr link to yr favourite music video and a par about the reasons for your choice
to get things rolling here is mine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjAoBKagWQA
Björk··All is Full of Love
released April 1999
commissioner Paul McKee at One Little Indian, UK
PRODUCTION
company Black Dog Films
director Chris Cunningham
producer Cindy Burnay
director of photography John Lynch
production designers Chris Cunningham, Julian Caldow
art director Chris Oddy
model effects Mattes & Miniatures
robot design Chris Cunningham
robot builder Paul Catling
robot model assistants James McKeown, Liam Williams
I like the way that the performance of the robot captures the key tropes of Bjork's persona: cool, high tech, experimental but also infused with an odd sense of pathos and a real vulnerability. Its one of Chris Cunningham's most eloquent music video conceptions and is far clearer than his own statements about it eg:
"When I first heard the track I wrote down the words 'sexual,' 'milk,' 'white porcelain,' 'surgery.' [The video]'s a combination of several fetishes: industrial robotics, female anatomy, and fluorescent light in that order." (Dazed and Confused)
"I think I mentioned that I think it should be ... something that's white and frozen, and then it sort of melts, because of love, and making love."
Chris Cunningham
http://www.director-file.com/cunningham/bjork.html
Monday 15 October 2007
MULTIMEDIA PERFORMANCE 2007/08
School of Theatre, Performance and Cultural Policy Studies
Autumn/Spring Term Module 2007/08
Convenor: Dr. Edward Scheer (e.scheer@warwick.ac.uk)
Timetable and Room: Tue 11.00-1.00 G56
Introduction
This subject examines the places of technology in contemporary performance culture from MTV to performance art. It considers the rise of video literacy and the expanding field of digital culture in terms of the ways in which such technologies have shifted the parameters of performance and representation. It looks at questions of the convergence of performance genres and the remediation of art works and theoretical concepts such as posthumanism and cybernetics. It develops the argument that live performance forms are also mediated and therefore connected to contemporary cultural and technological change. This is a level 3 course which enables a more focussed and theoretically intensive discussion than first and second year courses. It also brings the new developments in the field of performance studies into contact with issues in media studies and reflects an interdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning.
COURSE OUTLINE
Part I. Autumn Term
Week 1. Introduction
- course particulars
Week 2. From slide shows to pomo.
- Performance theory reviewed
- genealogy I: early media/art experiments
- Debates in culture and technology.
- Theories of Multimedia.
Reading:
- Michael Rush ‘Media and performance’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 36-77, 78-115
- Randall Packer and Ken Jordan (2001) ‘Overture’ in Multimedia: From Wagner To Virtual Reality, New York: W.W.Norton and Company, Ltd (xii-xxxi)
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Introduction’ Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
Week 3. Liveness
- Live V Mediated performance
- Remediation and simulation
- Performance documentation
- Mediatised culture
- Marina Abramovic’s Seven Easy Pieces
Reading:
- Philip Auslander from Liveness. Performance in a Mediatized Culture, (extract of Chapter 2).
- Philip Auslander. ‘The Performativity of Performance Documentation’, PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art 84 Vol 28.3 (2006) 1-10.
Week 4 The Performativity of Music Video
- the emergence of music video
- the influence of music video on other performance styles in other media
- MTV and postmodernism
Reading:
- Will Straw, ‘Popular Music and Postmodernism in the 1980s’, in Sound and Vision: the Music Video Reader, eds. Simon Frith, Andrew Goodwin and Lawrence Grossberg, 3-21.
Week 5 The Evolution of Multimedia Performance I
- genealogy II: happenings, John Cage and time-based art
- fluxus and performance art
- integration and interactivity in multimedia
Reading:
- Michael Rush ‘Video Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 78-115
Week 6 Reading week
Week 7 The theatre of images revisited
Screening: Einstein on the Beach (Robert Wilson) and Home of the Brave (Laurie Anderson)
Week 8 The new theatre of images
- Laurie Anderson, The Builders Association
- Postmodernism reviewed
Reading:
- Jon McKenzie, ‘Laurie Anderson for Dummies’ (TDR v41 #2 1997)
- Maria Shevstova from Robert Wilson Routledge 2007-09-27
- Connor, Steven. “Postmodern Performance.” Postmodernist Culture. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1989. 141-175 (141- 163)
Week 9 Dance + Virtual = …?
- the stage as screen and vice versa
- Merce Cunningham Biped with Paul Kaiser.
- Ghostcatching with Paul Kaiser and Bill T Jones
- Choreography ‘Dance Forms’ and ‘Life Forms’
Screening: Biped
Reading:
- Paul Kaiser, ‘Frequently Pondered Questions’ in Envisioning Dance on Film and Video, ed. Judy Mitoma, Routledge Press, 2002. See Paul Kaiser's website http://www.openendedgroup.com/
Week 10. Digital Dance in Australia
- Chunky Move Glow
- Company in Space Escape Velocity
Screening: Glow
Reading:
Johannes Birringer ‘Contemporary Performance/Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 361-381
****
Part II. Spring Term
Week 1. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance I
- contemporary Japanese video performance, Kyupi Kyupi, Dumb Type PH, OR and S/N
Reading:
- http://dumbtype.com/
- Cynthia Gedrich and Woodrow Hood, ‘Noise and Nudity: Kyoto’s Dumb Type’ Theatre Forum #18 (Winter/Spring 2001), 3-11.
Week 2. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance II
- Blast Theory: Kidnap, Desert Rain
Reading:
- http://www.blasttheory.co.uk
- Matthew Causey ‘The Screen Test of the Double: The Uncanny Performer in the Space of Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 383-394
Week 3. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance III
- New Australian performance
- Artspace and P Space
- Monica Tikachek, The King Pins, Tony Schwensen
Reading:
- http://www.performancespace.com.au/
- Scheer, E. (2006) ‘Documents of Paradox: Negotiating Liveness in Video Art’ The Ends of the 60s. Performance, Media and Contemporary Culture, Peter Eckersall and E. Scheer eds., Sydney: Performance Paradigm. 128-35
Week 4. Video Installation and time-based art
- Bill Viola confessional video,
- Martin Arnold, Cinemnesis
- Guillermo Gomez-Pena
Reading:
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Towards an Aesthetic of Virtual Reality’ in Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
- Michael Rush ‘Video Installation Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 116-167
Week 5. New cultural media
- Hacktivism and digital politics, activist sites, flashmobs
- Digital performance
- The production of identity in Blogs and Myspace
Reading:
- Rebecca Schneider, ‘Nomadmedia: On Critical Art Ensemble’
TDR: The Drama Review - Volume 44, Number 4 (T 168), Winter 2000
- Jon McKenzie, ‘Hacktivism and Machinic Performance’ in Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture #1 March 2005 http://www.performanceparadigm.net/
- Michael Rush ‘Digital Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 168-217.
- John Potts and Andrew Murphie from ‘Digital Aesthetics’ in Culture and Technology, 66-83.
Week 6. Reading week
Week 7. Towards a posthuman performance
- Stelarc: Movatar and other actions
- Critical Art Ensemble
- What is post-humanism?
- Cybernetics
Reading:
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Cyborg Theatre’ in Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
- Edward Scheer ‘Performing Indifference, An Interview With Stelarc’ Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture. #1, (March 2005) www.performanceparadigm.net
Week 8. Performative Architectures
- Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. UnderScan and BodyMovies
- Diller and Scofidio: ‘The Blur Building’ 2002
- Krzysztof Wodiczko ‘Projections’ various 1991
Reading:
- Nick Kaye, from Site-Specific Art. Performance, Place and Documentation, 33-41.
- http://www.art-for-a-change.com/Krzysztof/krzy.htm
- http://www.designboom.com/eng/funclub/dillerscofidio.html
Weeks 9,10. Powerpoint presentations
- Individual and small group consultations with lecturer (summaries due)
- rehearsals
- Presentations and discussion
Assessment
(1) Exam (50%).
(2) Individual or Small Group Research Projects (30%)
Part I. Tuesday 15th January 2008 (Week 2, Spring Term)
Part II. Tuesday 29th April 2008 (Week 2, Summer Term)
(3) Class/blog participation (20%). This grade assesses contribution to the subject in terms of levels of preparedness and approach to activities and discussions. It includes the quality and cogency of blog postings.
Essential Reading
Philip Auslander Liveness. Performance in a Mediatized Culture
Will Straw, ‘Popular Music and Postmodernism in the 1980s’, in Sound and Vision: the Music Video Reader, eds. Simon Frith, Andrew Goodwin and Lawrence Grossberg, 3-21.
Randall Packer and Ken Jordan (2001) ‘Overture’ in Multimedia: From Wagner To Virtual Reality, New York: W.W.Norton and Company, Ltd
Hans Thiess Lehmann ‘Robert Wilson Scenographer’ Parkett #16 1988, 44-50.
Jon McKenzie, ‘Laurie Anderson for Dummies’ (TDR v41 #2 1997).
Cynthia Gedrich and Woodrow Hood, ‘Noise and Nudity: Kyoto’s Dumb Type’ Theatre Forum #18 (Winter/Spring 2001), 3-11.
Paul Kaiser, ‘Frequently Pondered Questions’ in Envisioning Dance on Film and Video, ed. Judy Mitoma, Routledge Press, 2002.
Johannes Birringer ‘Contemporary Performance/Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 361-381.
Matthew Causey ‘The Screen Test of the Double: The Uncanny Performer in the Space of Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 383-394
John Potts and Andrew Murphie from ‘Digital Aesthetics’ in Culture and Technology, 66-83.
Rebecca Schneider, ‘Nomadmedia: On Critical Art Ensemble’
TDR: The Drama Review - Volume 44, Number 4 (T 168), Winter 2000.
Nick Kaye, from Site-Specific Art. Performance, Place and Documentation
Gabriella Giannachi, Virtual Theatres: an Introduction London: Routledge, 2004
FURTHER READING AND RESOURCES
- Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture http://www.performanceparadigm.net/
- http://www.realtimearts.net/
- http://www.director-file.com/cunningham/
- http://www.billviola.com/
- http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/theatre_journal/toc/tj51.4.html
Back issues of the following journals can sometimes provide some interesting essays on specific artists and their work:
High Performance
TDR: The Drama Review
Performance Research
PAJ Performing Arts Journal
Theatre Journal
New Theatre Quarterly
Theatre Research International
Autumn/Spring Term Module 2007/08
Convenor: Dr. Edward Scheer (e.scheer@warwick.ac.uk)
Timetable and Room: Tue 11.00-1.00 G56
Introduction
This subject examines the places of technology in contemporary performance culture from MTV to performance art. It considers the rise of video literacy and the expanding field of digital culture in terms of the ways in which such technologies have shifted the parameters of performance and representation. It looks at questions of the convergence of performance genres and the remediation of art works and theoretical concepts such as posthumanism and cybernetics. It develops the argument that live performance forms are also mediated and therefore connected to contemporary cultural and technological change. This is a level 3 course which enables a more focussed and theoretically intensive discussion than first and second year courses. It also brings the new developments in the field of performance studies into contact with issues in media studies and reflects an interdisciplinary approach to teaching and learning.
COURSE OUTLINE
Part I. Autumn Term
Week 1. Introduction
- course particulars
Week 2. From slide shows to pomo.
- Performance theory reviewed
- genealogy I: early media/art experiments
- Debates in culture and technology.
- Theories of Multimedia.
Reading:
- Michael Rush ‘Media and performance’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 36-77, 78-115
- Randall Packer and Ken Jordan (2001) ‘Overture’ in Multimedia: From Wagner To Virtual Reality, New York: W.W.Norton and Company, Ltd (xii-xxxi)
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Introduction’ Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
Week 3. Liveness
- Live V Mediated performance
- Remediation and simulation
- Performance documentation
- Mediatised culture
- Marina Abramovic’s Seven Easy Pieces
Reading:
- Philip Auslander from Liveness. Performance in a Mediatized Culture, (extract of Chapter 2).
- Philip Auslander. ‘The Performativity of Performance Documentation’, PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art 84 Vol 28.3 (2006) 1-10.
Week 4 The Performativity of Music Video
- the emergence of music video
- the influence of music video on other performance styles in other media
- MTV and postmodernism
Reading:
- Will Straw, ‘Popular Music and Postmodernism in the 1980s’, in Sound and Vision: the Music Video Reader, eds. Simon Frith, Andrew Goodwin and Lawrence Grossberg, 3-21.
Week 5 The Evolution of Multimedia Performance I
- genealogy II: happenings, John Cage and time-based art
- fluxus and performance art
- integration and interactivity in multimedia
Reading:
- Michael Rush ‘Video Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 78-115
Week 6 Reading week
Week 7 The theatre of images revisited
Screening: Einstein on the Beach (Robert Wilson) and Home of the Brave (Laurie Anderson)
Week 8 The new theatre of images
- Laurie Anderson, The Builders Association
- Postmodernism reviewed
Reading:
- Jon McKenzie, ‘Laurie Anderson for Dummies’ (TDR v41 #2 1997)
- Maria Shevstova from Robert Wilson Routledge 2007-09-27
- Connor, Steven. “Postmodern Performance.” Postmodernist Culture. Oxford, UK: Blackwell, 1989. 141-175 (141- 163)
Week 9 Dance + Virtual = …?
- the stage as screen and vice versa
- Merce Cunningham Biped with Paul Kaiser.
- Ghostcatching with Paul Kaiser and Bill T Jones
- Choreography ‘Dance Forms’ and ‘Life Forms’
Screening: Biped
Reading:
- Paul Kaiser, ‘Frequently Pondered Questions’ in Envisioning Dance on Film and Video, ed. Judy Mitoma, Routledge Press, 2002. See Paul Kaiser's website http://www.openendedgroup.com/
Week 10. Digital Dance in Australia
- Chunky Move Glow
- Company in Space Escape Velocity
Screening: Glow
Reading:
Johannes Birringer ‘Contemporary Performance/Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 361-381
****
Part II. Spring Term
Week 1. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance I
- contemporary Japanese video performance, Kyupi Kyupi, Dumb Type PH, OR and S/N
Reading:
- http://dumbtype.com/
- Cynthia Gedrich and Woodrow Hood, ‘Noise and Nudity: Kyoto’s Dumb Type’ Theatre Forum #18 (Winter/Spring 2001), 3-11.
Week 2. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance II
- Blast Theory: Kidnap, Desert Rain
Reading:
- http://www.blasttheory.co.uk
- Matthew Causey ‘The Screen Test of the Double: The Uncanny Performer in the Space of Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 383-394
Week 3. Case Studies in Contemporary Multimedia Performance III
- New Australian performance
- Artspace and P Space
- Monica Tikachek, The King Pins, Tony Schwensen
Reading:
- http://www.performancespace.com.au/
- Scheer, E. (2006) ‘Documents of Paradox: Negotiating Liveness in Video Art’ The Ends of the 60s. Performance, Media and Contemporary Culture, Peter Eckersall and E. Scheer eds., Sydney: Performance Paradigm. 128-35
Week 4. Video Installation and time-based art
- Bill Viola confessional video,
- Martin Arnold, Cinemnesis
- Guillermo Gomez-Pena
Reading:
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Towards an Aesthetic of Virtual Reality’ in Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
- Michael Rush ‘Video Installation Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 116-167
Week 5. New cultural media
- Hacktivism and digital politics, activist sites, flashmobs
- Digital performance
- The production of identity in Blogs and Myspace
Reading:
- Rebecca Schneider, ‘Nomadmedia: On Critical Art Ensemble’
TDR: The Drama Review - Volume 44, Number 4 (T 168), Winter 2000
- Jon McKenzie, ‘Hacktivism and Machinic Performance’ in Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture #1 March 2005 http://www.performanceparadigm.net/
- Michael Rush ‘Digital Art’ in New Media in Late 20th Century Art, 168-217.
- John Potts and Andrew Murphie from ‘Digital Aesthetics’ in Culture and Technology, 66-83.
Week 6. Reading week
Week 7. Towards a posthuman performance
- Stelarc: Movatar and other actions
- Critical Art Ensemble
- What is post-humanism?
- Cybernetics
Reading:
- Gabriella Giannachi, ‘Cyborg Theatre’ in Virtual Theatres: an Introduction
- Edward Scheer ‘Performing Indifference, An Interview With Stelarc’ Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture. #1, (March 2005) www.performanceparadigm.net
Week 8. Performative Architectures
- Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. UnderScan and BodyMovies
- Diller and Scofidio: ‘The Blur Building’ 2002
- Krzysztof Wodiczko ‘Projections’ various 1991
Reading:
- Nick Kaye, from Site-Specific Art. Performance, Place and Documentation, 33-41.
- http://www.art-for-a-change.com/Krzysztof/krzy.htm
- http://www.designboom.com/eng/funclub/dillerscofidio.html
Weeks 9,10. Powerpoint presentations
- Individual and small group consultations with lecturer (summaries due)
- rehearsals
- Presentations and discussion
Assessment
(1) Exam (50%).
(2) Individual or Small Group Research Projects (30%)
Part I. Tuesday 15th January 2008 (Week 2, Spring Term)
Part II. Tuesday 29th April 2008 (Week 2, Summer Term)
(3) Class/blog participation (20%). This grade assesses contribution to the subject in terms of levels of preparedness and approach to activities and discussions. It includes the quality and cogency of blog postings.
Essential Reading
Philip Auslander Liveness. Performance in a Mediatized Culture
Will Straw, ‘Popular Music and Postmodernism in the 1980s’, in Sound and Vision: the Music Video Reader, eds. Simon Frith, Andrew Goodwin and Lawrence Grossberg, 3-21.
Randall Packer and Ken Jordan (2001) ‘Overture’ in Multimedia: From Wagner To Virtual Reality, New York: W.W.Norton and Company, Ltd
Hans Thiess Lehmann ‘Robert Wilson Scenographer’ Parkett #16 1988, 44-50.
Jon McKenzie, ‘Laurie Anderson for Dummies’ (TDR v41 #2 1997).
Cynthia Gedrich and Woodrow Hood, ‘Noise and Nudity: Kyoto’s Dumb Type’ Theatre Forum #18 (Winter/Spring 2001), 3-11.
Paul Kaiser, ‘Frequently Pondered Questions’ in Envisioning Dance on Film and Video, ed. Judy Mitoma, Routledge Press, 2002.
Johannes Birringer ‘Contemporary Performance/Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 361-381.
Matthew Causey ‘The Screen Test of the Double: The Uncanny Performer in the Space of Technology’ Theatre Journal 51.4 (1999) 383-394
John Potts and Andrew Murphie from ‘Digital Aesthetics’ in Culture and Technology, 66-83.
Rebecca Schneider, ‘Nomadmedia: On Critical Art Ensemble’
TDR: The Drama Review - Volume 44, Number 4 (T 168), Winter 2000.
Nick Kaye, from Site-Specific Art. Performance, Place and Documentation
Gabriella Giannachi, Virtual Theatres: an Introduction London: Routledge, 2004
FURTHER READING AND RESOURCES
- Performance Paradigm Journal of Performance and Contemporary Culture http://www.performanceparadigm.net/
- http://www.realtimearts.net/
- http://www.director-file.com/cunningham/
- http://www.billviola.com/
- http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/theatre_journal/toc/tj51.4.html
Back issues of the following journals can sometimes provide some interesting essays on specific artists and their work:
High Performance
TDR: The Drama Review
Performance Research
PAJ Performing Arts Journal
Theatre Journal
New Theatre Quarterly
Theatre Research International
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