Darlene Rogers' Blog of Wonders

This movie is set in Rwanda after the genocide.  It starts with two young boys going on a journey but to where the viewer does not know.  A boy named Ngabo (short for Munyurangabo) takes a machete from the market which creates a sense violence in the movie.  The second boy, Sangwa, travels with Ngabo on his journey. We learn later in the movie that they are going to kill the man who killed Ngabo’s father during the genocide.  Along the travel they stay with Sangwa’s family whom he left three years ago.  There he decides that he doesn’t want to go kill but remain with his family.  The audience also finds out that Ngabo is a Tutsi while Sangwa is a Hutu.

The Rwandan genocide was bands of Hutu’s gathered together despite religion (religion was a common cause of war, especially Muslims vs. Christians) that killed hundreds of thousands of Tutsis or anyone that got in their way.  The Hutu saw the Tutsis as more than just a minority but as vermin that needed to be exterminated.  They did just that.

Sangwa’s father was not happy with the fact that Ngabo was a Tutsi but yet hated the idea that his boy was going out to kill and disowns his son.  It may not be the fact that Sangwa is going to kill but going to kill a Hutu.  There are many open-ended points in the movie where the viewer is confused about the facts.  We are not sure whether his father was a Hutu soldier in the genocide but you do know that he has gotten better since Sangwa had last seen him — stopped drinking and smoking; however, he is ill.

AIDS is a common aftereffect of the genocide.  Many of the soldiers and women whom they raped were diagnosed with the disease.  During the genocide, women would be kept for sex and raped all night by lines of men.  This was not a sexual act but a violent one where the Hutu men wanted to show their power over the Tutsi women.

A friend of Sangwa’s in his home village becomes ill and this reflects the AIDS victim that at the end of the movie — Ngabo’s father’s killer whom is weak, near death, and lying on the floor.  The weirdest part about Ngabo’s reaction to his father’s killer is when the Hutu asks for water Ngabo takes pity on the man and goes out and fetches it for him.  The most confusing part for me is the fact the Sangwa appears at the pond were Ngabo is collecting water; however, Sangwa did not follow Ngabo, he was told not to come.  I am still confused as to what this could mean.  Maybe that Ngabo has become like Sangwa and forgiven his father (or father’s killer) for killing innocent people.  I think that why Ngabo changes his mind is the poem about the liberation of Rwanda that a local recites for him upon entering the killer’s town.  The poem talks about the pain and suffering that happened but a plan for peace in Rwanda and all its people.  The inspired that by the fact that this film did not tell the story of the genocide but rather about the people who are living with the horrible effects.  Those who survived live with hatred but few know that there is still hope for Rwanda.  At first I was frustrated with the openness of the movie but now I think without it the viewer would not think about what the movie means or how it applies to them.

The movie is shown from an outside third person viewpoint.  The viewer does not know what is going on but will occasionally ease-drop in on only Sangwa and Ngabo’s conversation.  This leaves mystery in the plotline.  Visually we see only what the two boys see but not through their eyes rather as if someone was watching what they did.  The parents are never seen unless the boys are interacting with them, this shows the importance of the boys and what the movie is about.

Surfwise is a documentary film about the Paskowitz family.  One of the first things that interested me was that a family of eleven including the parents lived in a tiny “rig” and traveled all over the Americas.  The Paskowitz children did not attend school which hurt them later in life when trying to obtain their dream jobs.  I am inspired by the father “Doc” Paskowitz who went to medical school and became a doctor.  He hated being a classical doctor and went out to find a wife (after divorcing several times) and create a family.  His goal wasn’t to hurt his children’s futures but to teach them a natural way of living.  During the movie, one of Doc’s sons states that there is nothing wrong with living this way but not in the modern world of today.  I admire the fact that Doc did achieve his dream of living free and traveling — something that many people dream of but very few do.  This whole concept made me think about how complicated the world has become as a result of technology.  People forget about the world around us and the importance of living healthy.  Today we eat things in which we have no idea how it is made or what is in the product.  After we are done with things we just throw them away and litter the earth with waste.  I think Doc’s idea is one all people need to have — to care.  I was frustrated with the fact that the Paskowitz’ father was so strict.  Yes, all children need discipline but they should also decide for themselves how they want to live in today’s world.

The concept of the film was presented in a happy and light form in the beginning.  Throughout the movie things kept getting heavier in terms of the Paskowitz’ way of life.  It was almost a complete turn around in the movie.  The style of the movie was very documentary and based on the interviews of the family and people who knew them.  In this way it was very biased.

I was amazed at how many photos they had for being a poor family. I realized later that the majority of the photos in the film were from surfing competitions where they had won.  These photos were the only way of see the past without someone telling their experiences in the past.  During the movie, I would pause and examine the photos — they all seemed happy in every photo.  Today they talk about their life as a child as worrisome over money and unhappy with their father.  Either they know how to fake a picture or they are thinking with their adult minds.

I found the Surfwise website. If you are interested in the movie take a look:   http://www.surfwisefilm.com/

Paul Nicklen is an artist that I aspire to in my career.  Nicklen grew up in a small Inuit tribe but he and his family were not Inuit.  He learned from the tribe about the environment in which he lived as well as about patience — which is very important in nature photography.  Patience helped Nicklen to wait for his sly subjects in the harsh weather of the Arctic.  In order to dive into Arctic, Nicklen had to be able to operate in water that would kill him almost instantly without a thermal suit.  This alone is something that majority of people are not willing to go out and do.  To add to the danger, Nicklen is photographing animals that could easily kill him if he makes a mistake or if the animal is too weak to hunt its normal prey.  This is something that I wish to do in my own career — travel to remote places of the world and photograph things most people will never see. I think Nicklen translates this foreign environment from a scientific way into photographs that tell a story.  By doing what Nicklen does I hope that people will care about the creatures and environment that is so important to the balance of the world.

This link is one of his experiences during a National Geographic shoot in the Arctic with a Leopard Seal that could easy rip him apart.  http://www.boingboing.net/2009/11/16/leo…

Nicklen did not start as a photographer but as a wildlife biologist. An interesting quote from his website is

“In my fourth and final year of studying marine biology at the University of Victoria, I was having a very hard time preparing for my genetics final. The night before the exam, I had a huge revelation. Instead of studying, I wrote feverishly on scrap paper, outlining my career as a nature photographer, right down to the tiniest detail: species, locations, goals, dreams, travels and the list goes on. As expected, I failed the exam miserably but passed the course. But best of all, I had a blueprint for a career filled with passion and hard work. It is kind of eerie how much of what I wrote that night has come true.” -Nicklen

Throughout his career he has always had his camera with him. Nicklen soon became a freelance photographer after a few years as a biologist.  He has had his works published in  National Geographic, Canadian Geographic, Natural History, International Wildlife, and Equinox.

Nicklen specializes in underwater photography but works mainly in all cold environments. Now, I know what you are thinking, just because he is a nature photographer does not mean that he throws composition out the window.  In his work, Nicklen organizes the photographic space to center around the subject.  I found that some of his photos are even a little humorous by the way that he photographed his subjects — one of my favorite is three ducks that look like one  http://www.paulnicklen.com/birds.html).  My favorite collection is the Life on the Edge series found on Nicklen’s website (listed below).  In this gallery he shows the hardships of living in such a cold and harsh habitat.  In many cases it is not pretty though I am disappointed that Nicklen shows it in a charming way.

You can decide for yourself about Paul Nicklenand his work by visiting his website at:  http://www.paulnicklen.com/

I chose to listen to the February 20,2009 show that talks about Wall-e, The Class, and Kweller.  I am involved in the student radio at Longwood University and ofter review shows.  This show is very professional and transitions before sound effects and the host talking is beautifully done.  I am very pleased to the quality of the show as well as the fact that I was entertained by the speaker.  I had problems with the streaming video which was a downside but the upside is you can download or listen to a podcast of the show

In terms of responding to the given questions:

I am very frustrated with the library computers because it is has been 15 minutes and nothing is downloaded.

Now that I finally have the episode loaded.. I enjoyed the segment with Ben Burke and learning how all the sounds in different movies were make. I was inspired mainly by Ben Burke and Ben Kweller.  Ben Burke’s ear and constant listening skills reinforced the knowledge that an artist must always be looking for subjects.  The other Ben, Ben Kweller has been playing music since he was small which gave me the inspiration that I too can do great things if I keep trying.  I think I relate to Ben Burke the most will how I look at the world and how no matter where you are there are always things to inspire you.

The show was presented in manner that made me think about how things are made.  I was interested in the topics from the beginning, especially because of the Wall-E topic which is an excellent graphic movie.  The wittiness of the host was very punny!  The variety of the Studio 360 was one of the best ideas of the show. If I didn’t like the talk about The Class then a few moments there was a new topic. I think I will research Ben Burke’s work more. He created sounds from Wall-E and Star Wars.  The way the topic was presented was very interesting and I believe I will pay attention to the sounds around me.

First off, Aperture is only available online from the library website — was what I was told yesterday when I could not find the magazine on the shelves. The bad part about the online version is that you cannot see the whole magazine but only pages at a time and that sucks! Fortunately, the library worker I spoke to was very wrong. After getting frustrated trying to read on a limited computer screen, I looked back on the shelves today and magically they have returned! Thank God! I was about to fall asleep.

Anyways, Aperture is by far my favorite art magazine. It provides a story behind the art much like Life or National Geographic does.

I think my favorite article that I have ever read in a magazine is Intended Consequences: Rwandan Children Born of Rape found on page 44 -49. This article with the help of the magnificent images that move people emotionally. I have read this article many times and used it for inspiration in a poetry class I took last Spring. The reason why I loves this article is because how personal it is. The artist, Jonathan Torgovnik, wrote the article to go with the photos. In the article it tells the reader about the horrors of the Rwandan genocide and why children of rape are hated by most mothers. We often forget about Rwanda. I don’t think that we should.

Below is a link to films about Torgovink’s project, please take the time to watch at least the first video Intended Consequences. The Individual Stories are worth watching and learning how this people feel about their children and what they want to the world to know.

I am inspired by this article because of the emotion that I feel from these women’s stories and the photographer’s passion for his research in his work. I hope that I will feel overwhelming emotion for my work and show that I want to know my subjects and care for my subjects. I feel as if I don’t care for my work… it is not worth my time or energy.

I believe this topic is a hard one but Torgovnik portrays these women in his work even in under 3 minutes he conveys his message. It makes me feel as if there is no computer.. it is just me and the women of Rwanda.

Please visit the link below for all the videos:
 http://www.mediastorm.org/0024.htm

Upon picking up the Economist October 11-17th 2008 Issue, I am very interested to understand why this is part of our Sourcery assignment. The first that I noticed is that instead of art shows littering the front pages it is businesses… not unexcepted. The reason why I picked up this issue was because I am very interested in African politics. In this issue, I am looking forward to reading about their political views and why they are in The Economist.

The first article I found about the continent was called Opportunity Knocks on page 33. In the article, I was informed of the financial and corrupt of the majority of the countries in Africa. Their greed has taken them over; however, some countries will not be crushed by the economic crisis that is happening all over the world. The images that I found inspiring in this article contained hands. One image contained a hand holding a gem, the other hands holding a newly sprouted planted… both reflecting the hope that some African countries like Ghana and Mali have to break free of the hold that the rest on the continent has upon them.

The second article on page 68, The Mystery Tanks, involves tanks that were purchased from the UK traveling across Sudan and hopefully into Kenya. The problem is who purchased the tanks within the Kenyan gov’t and why are they in Sudan? The head of Kenya’s government, Adan Keynan, is just as in the dark as the rest of the world.

My favorite part about this magazine is a section called A Special Report of the World Economy. Not only was it informative but also had cartoon art throughout the article. Within the last few pages an information chart with all kinds of numbers reflected the money crisis throughout the world.

Well, I thought there was going to be more about the continent but I only got two articles… I learned a lot about the world’s money issue though!

If I were to make artwork about the articles that I read it would probably be called “Rediscovering Africa.”  They were represent the transition that the continent has made into the modern world and how some people still live traditionally.

Tradition and Modern

In the February 2009 Issue, I found photographs that applies to an assignment that I am working on now — an Environmental Photography project assigned in my Color Photography class.   Upon reading the article Cyprien Gillard on page 172, I discovered that the images based on destruction of a building and the surrounding area was in fact a documentary.  The article impressed with the detail about the event including why the building was destroyed.  The act of destroying building caused by a community organization whom gathered to see the event by doing so (it was a little violent in the beginning) it reflects the artists work on urban complexes and the effect on the community.

“Instead of causing us to remember the past like the old monuments, the new monuments seem to cause us to forget the future” – Robert Smithson page 174

Interpret this quote as you will but I feel as if this reflects how the community is effected by the building in it.  This day and age, humans have taken over everything! We wonder why deer jump in front of cars on the road or why little slugs crawl on the sidewalk and get stepped instead of staying in the grass… where they belong.

Below will be a post link to the video on youtube.  Upon watching the video I am a little confused because we don’t even see the building in the video.  It not clear in the article that in fact the author is talking multiple videos by Cyprien Gaillard.  In the video is only a community fight.  The other videos are Cairns; Cenotaph to 12 Riverford Road, Pollokshaws, Glasgow, 2008; Real Remnants of Fictive Wars IV, 2004; and Crazy Horse 2008. Now that I know there are more videos, I suppose the images in the article make more sense.

This article relates to me not only in an environmental way but also in a political way. The footage that Gaillard films is related to the social boundaries in the society at he lives.  I feel the living near Washington D.C., I am desensitized to strange public gatherings.  Though I should not be I feel as if I will pay more attention to protests in the future as well as the present.

Overall, ArtForum reminds me a printed blog.  Though a little confusing the first time, I think the magazine is an excellent source for any contemporary artist.

Desnainsky Raion:

In the July – September 2008 Issue of Flash Art, I was surprised to see that the first 117 pages of the magazine were all advertisements for art shows! One can definitely find a show that is not only near where they live but also something that actually applies to how they create art.

On page 224 the article Political Minimalism was not as I was expecting it. First off the image on page 224 is blown up to the point that it is blurry then on page 225 it is a smaller version of the same image but clear! This is a careless mistake. The article itself, I feel doesn’t really talk about anything at all. It relates to the creation of art movements but just beats around the bush. Not to mention that some of images that are placed in the article are not even recognized but in short passing while other images are explained in length not even in the magazine. This article is really frustrating to me and brings down my opinion of the magazine in general.

Although I am not happy with this article I can relate to the idea that it is based on, minimal art. Minimal art is based on an idea but simply show in a visual way. This article was very minimal… maybe that is what the author was going for.. hmm.. but I digress. I feel as though all artist create minimal art at some point in there lives, I feel as though majority of this artwork is political because as a culture we will recognize the idea. Other matters, like things in an artist will need more context because we can not all be in the artist head. Things will the current war would be very easy to recognize for any American in today’s society. I feel as though I can create minimal art based on the Farmville community or on a wider range back home close to Washington D.C. Minimal art is not limited to only politic topics; however, it can relate to anything that is based more on meaning than the work. I feel my work is based majority of the time on meaning, how something makes the viewer feel. I think I will have to research this topic more before I can define this form of art in full.

Overall, Flash Art was not a horrid as the article. The magazine is based heavily on art and art alone. There are a number of articles on artists and their influence on the world. Though this was not my favorite magazine, I feel as if I could definitely use this as a source in any art paper.

Though I just started reading Issue 108 for June-August of 2007, I was very surprised to find that this magazine has written more about cultural problems and how it ties into art. On page 41 an article titled Title Deeds explains how in Argentine the economy has gotten so bad that some publishers  cannot mass produce book covers. Instead a group called the Eloisa Cartonera creates book covers handmade by non-professional artists, even children. By doing so it brings a whole new meaning to the relationship between literature and art in their community.

In past years, I have studied many professional artist whom choose to create child-like artwork. Stepping back, I wondered why would a professional artist do this. After sitting in the library staring as this screen for awhile I realized that the answer was simple. By creating child-like art one’s attention is not on the artwork itself but on the meaning of the work.  Eloisa Cartonera was brilliant! Children will connect with the given literature differently than I or any of my peers would. Unfortunately, looking back at the pictures of the article, I am very disappointed to see that the children’s book covers are only words. This leads me to believe that they were not read or told to read the books. However, their book covers remind me of my first graphic design class where we had to learn how to use type to convey the word itself. Maybe there is hope for further expansion during the economical crisis in Argentine.

On a side note, while reading this article, an ad for a Martin Creed expo was on the opposite page. He ad was a picture of feces… I found myself avoiding putting my elbow anywhere near the poop. Apparently Mark Creed is a very gross yet convincing artist.

Funny enough I can relate to Mark Creed not because I like poop but because I always for some reason or another what to make my art realistic. As a photographer I think this can work to my advantage because people always have a tendency to believe photographs. I think that in the near future I will work to deceive my viewer on a greater scale than I have before.

Frieze magazine relates to the artist of today because it does not only write about visual art but also the world and all other arts within. I think this is an excellent read for anyone who can read.