Thursday, March 26, 2009
art:21
i know we aren't required to critique this site but i just wanted to express my love for this program. i accidentally discovered this show on pbs about four years ago. i barely watch tv due to bad reception. there's only so much telemundo i can watch so when i found this show it was like winning the lottery. even though i don't consider myself as innovated and complex as the artists displayed on the show, i gain inspiration from them and appreciate their quirky and original processes and lifestyles. lately i have visited this site to see the interesting art projects/lesson they provide. helps me brainstorm and think of creative and captivating lessons of my own. this summer i hope to catch up on each season. it's been a while.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
web critique #9- chicagoartdepartment.org, proarts.org, messhall.org
http://www.chicagoartdepartment.org/
at first viewing i found the design to be a bit dull for an art related website but i have defiantly seen worse. also when first viewing i was unsure to what the site was about and what it was offering. i read the mission statement and saw that it emphasized on contemporary art. i thought that could be more apparent in the somewhat boring title of the organization. titles aside i think what they are doing in chicago is creatively great. the polaroid program looked like a lot of fun. i like their programs that introduce different art forms that i think are relevant too current cultures and sub-cultures such as the live visuals project and the dj/scratching project. i think the youth can relate to these projects because they may be relevant to interests and lifestyles.
http://www.prosarts.org/index.html
i noticed right away is the lack of color and creativity, which again, is strange for being an art-related website. i found the information on the main page very useful and direct (minus a few grammar/punctuation errors). i love their commitment to a particular neighborhood and that their programs/projects are influenced by the people/children that live there. i like how they concentrate on both school related programs as well as programs in the community. it's great to see that there are so many activities going on on their calendar and it is up to date. and i like their strong emphasis on performances. "Performing since 1979, the Pros Arts Ensemble presents its shows in English, Spanish, Italian, and Clown". -- i am curious to know more about this clown aspect :) looks interesting from the few photos they do have on their site. when you click on the showcase link the font and layout is a but different on that page and possibly how all the other pages should look. it's a little cleaner and stylistically up to date.
www.messhall.org
i have heard messhall mentioned a few times since i have been in chicago but have never been quite sure what it was all about. i thought maybe it was a gallery, a collective of local artists, or non-profit organization. i am still a bit unclear what messhall is all about. when visiting the main page i wanted to see a mission statement, background, or some other information right away. there was nothing there. took me a moment to find a link that would help explain this site and "organization". under frequently asked questions it provides me with a brief description of messhall's purpose. here it tells me it is a cultural center. i wish that was evident on the main page. then another link leads you to another description of messhall written by dan s. wang. i found his writing and information may be difficult for an "average" art enthusiast to grasp and gain meaning from. it is if he's writing to a more "educated" audience but since it is a website i feel it should cater to the massive, but interesting non the less. i found other links kind of scattered through out the main page and a little difficult to navigate due to it's lack of categorizing. a the bottom of the page are an abundant of links. i feel these links could be placed on another page rather than the main page. the archive still needs some updating. i would like to see what sorts or projects, exhibits and events they have had. i think i may need to visit the space and people for myself to get a better grasp on what they are all about.
at first viewing i found the design to be a bit dull for an art related website but i have defiantly seen worse. also when first viewing i was unsure to what the site was about and what it was offering. i read the mission statement and saw that it emphasized on contemporary art. i thought that could be more apparent in the somewhat boring title of the organization. titles aside i think what they are doing in chicago is creatively great. the polaroid program looked like a lot of fun. i like their programs that introduce different art forms that i think are relevant too current cultures and sub-cultures such as the live visuals project and the dj/scratching project. i think the youth can relate to these projects because they may be relevant to interests and lifestyles.
http://www.prosarts.org/index.html
i noticed right away is the lack of color and creativity, which again, is strange for being an art-related website. i found the information on the main page very useful and direct (minus a few grammar/punctuation errors). i love their commitment to a particular neighborhood and that their programs/projects are influenced by the people/children that live there. i like how they concentrate on both school related programs as well as programs in the community. it's great to see that there are so many activities going on on their calendar and it is up to date. and i like their strong emphasis on performances. "Performing since 1979, the Pros Arts Ensemble presents its shows in English, Spanish, Italian, and Clown". -- i am curious to know more about this clown aspect :) looks interesting from the few photos they do have on their site. when you click on the showcase link the font and layout is a but different on that page and possibly how all the other pages should look. it's a little cleaner and stylistically up to date.
www.messhall.org
i have heard messhall mentioned a few times since i have been in chicago but have never been quite sure what it was all about. i thought maybe it was a gallery, a collective of local artists, or non-profit organization. i am still a bit unclear what messhall is all about. when visiting the main page i wanted to see a mission statement, background, or some other information right away. there was nothing there. took me a moment to find a link that would help explain this site and "organization". under frequently asked questions it provides me with a brief description of messhall's purpose. here it tells me it is a cultural center. i wish that was evident on the main page. then another link leads you to another description of messhall written by dan s. wang. i found his writing and information may be difficult for an "average" art enthusiast to grasp and gain meaning from. it is if he's writing to a more "educated" audience but since it is a website i feel it should cater to the massive, but interesting non the less. i found other links kind of scattered through out the main page and a little difficult to navigate due to it's lack of categorizing. a the bottom of the page are an abundant of links. i feel these links could be placed on another page rather than the main page. the archive still needs some updating. i would like to see what sorts or projects, exhibits and events they have had. i think i may need to visit the space and people for myself to get a better grasp on what they are all about.
web critique #8- three-walls.org
http://www.three-walls.org/
i must have missed seeing this web critique on the syllabus two weeks ago. sorry for the late response:) right away i like the lay out and design of the site. very simple and clean. and i love the wood panel. have used it for many of my own design purposes. the home page does not initially inform me about the organization and purpose of the site. i like to see that right away. luckily it's only one click away to the left in the easy to navigate and bold menu bar. it's nice to see fairly new programs going strong today. being an artist i have always been interested in the residency experience. i am trying to stay in touch with my artistic "lifestyle" but still wanting to be involved in the community and expanding my art beyond my living room walls. i like the archive of all the past artists. their events, lectures, etc seem very interesting. seems like they're full filling their mission statement to the fullest.
i must have missed seeing this web critique on the syllabus two weeks ago. sorry for the late response:) right away i like the lay out and design of the site. very simple and clean. and i love the wood panel. have used it for many of my own design purposes. the home page does not initially inform me about the organization and purpose of the site. i like to see that right away. luckily it's only one click away to the left in the easy to navigate and bold menu bar. it's nice to see fairly new programs going strong today. being an artist i have always been interested in the residency experience. i am trying to stay in touch with my artistic "lifestyle" but still wanting to be involved in the community and expanding my art beyond my living room walls. i like the archive of all the past artists. their events, lectures, etc seem very interesting. seems like they're full filling their mission statement to the fullest.
ooh MCA...
as i mentioned in a previous post, i really enjoyed the design, information, and accessibility of the MCA's website. now to say the same thing about the museum itself... it's a bit different. some people may not feel the same but i enjoy the layout of the museum. some galleries are very open and some are more intimate. i like the variety. i found that navigating through the museum was pretty easy. what it lacked is the great information that was available on the site. especially all the wonderful interactive activities and education information. i wish there was more, a lot more hands-on activities for both adults and kids. contemporary art can be a bit intimidating and not easily absorbed just from viewing. i think viewers would benefit from physical interaction with the art. also, i feel a better space could be provided to display and embrace all the education resources and events. if you're a regular museum goer i feel this museum is great. for newbies, may be a bit lost, uncertain, and informed properly about the works.
Friday, March 13, 2009
how much are you making?
i currently read a piece in chicago magazine about who makes what in the city. i wanted to take notice to jobs in the art/education field since i don't see myself working anywhere else in my future. these salaries are from particular people...
arts:
tattoo artist- $70,000 (wow)
self-employed photographer- $39,000
managing director for harris theater- $151,000
toy designer-$80,000
painter/art teacher for children-$0 (haha, been there)
education:
instructor/graduate student at nw university-$21,000
associate professor of biomedical engineering at ITT-$372,000
third year teacher at cps-$56,000
music:
lead singer in local band-$1,000
hip hop artist, kanye west-$30 million (whatever)
artistic director of chicago children's choir-$88,000
others:
president/ceo frank lloyd wright preservation-$139,000
excutive director of developing communities project-$59,000
president/ceo of YMCA-$412,000
actor, wall climbing instructor, clown (ha)-$21,000
freelance costume/fashion designer-$27,000
arts:
tattoo artist- $70,000 (wow)
self-employed photographer- $39,000
managing director for harris theater- $151,000
toy designer-$80,000
painter/art teacher for children-$0 (haha, been there)
education:
instructor/graduate student at nw university-$21,000
associate professor of biomedical engineering at ITT-$372,000
third year teacher at cps-$56,000
music:
lead singer in local band-$1,000
hip hop artist, kanye west-$30 million (whatever)
artistic director of chicago children's choir-$88,000
others:
president/ceo frank lloyd wright preservation-$139,000
excutive director of developing communities project-$59,000
president/ceo of YMCA-$412,000
actor, wall climbing instructor, clown (ha)-$21,000
freelance costume/fashion designer-$27,000
web critique #7- mca.org
http://www.mcachicago.org/
i have visited this site numerous times since moving to chicago. i like to be in the know of current exhibits in the city whether i can find time to see them or not. the main page is great. i like the non-stop moving images and text. i am attracted to the movement which then encourages me to read the information. also on the main page is area dedicated to planning your visit which provides a link to useful information. i found that it takes a few clicks to find the price of the museum. that is something i always search for when visiting museum sites since i am on such a tight budget. it gives decent information on current and past exhibits. i would love to see more images associated with those exhibits though. i was surprised that there was a lot of great educational resources on the site, including podcasts. the interactive section is great! there are games and quizes and ecards (i love sending ecards, well mainly someecards). i love sites that have a fun aspect to them because searching just information can become dull and i need some entertainment. looks like there are many great activities and events for children and their families. the design, color pallette, and lay out is fitting and effective for the museum. in addition, yours truely in under the photo section for the first friday event :) first fridays an okay time. a bit pricey and a bit of a meat market but i always enjoy the museum setting out of it's orginal centext.
web critique #6- areachicago.org
http://www.areachicago.org/
i agree with everyone else that the design of the site is pretty boring and uninspiring. especially since it is a site for artists, art educators, etc. at first the site was a difficult to navigate. if it wasn't an assignment i think my interest in the site may have dwindled due to the design and layout. i was interested in the "5 questions about art in chicago" link. i liked the the questions asked about socially engaging art in chicago and the variety of artists/professionals that responded. i always like to hear what my current contemporaries have to say about important issues. i liked that a list of topics was available to follow when searching this site. the "notes for a people's atlas" was a cool feature. viewers can make their own maps. this feature could be advertised better with eye-catching design and color as well as all the other links. there is some very useful and fun information on this site that could really be emphasized by a better designed site. i will defiantly return and recommend it for other peers.
i agree with everyone else that the design of the site is pretty boring and uninspiring. especially since it is a site for artists, art educators, etc. at first the site was a difficult to navigate. if it wasn't an assignment i think my interest in the site may have dwindled due to the design and layout. i was interested in the "5 questions about art in chicago" link. i liked the the questions asked about socially engaging art in chicago and the variety of artists/professionals that responded. i always like to hear what my current contemporaries have to say about important issues. i liked that a list of topics was available to follow when searching this site. the "notes for a people's atlas" was a cool feature. viewers can make their own maps. this feature could be advertised better with eye-catching design and color as well as all the other links. there is some very useful and fun information on this site that could really be emphasized by a better designed site. i will defiantly return and recommend it for other peers.
Friday, March 6, 2009
ron mueck
a little eye candy for y'all...
i know, ron mueck is so four years ago (ha), but i am still amazed by his work. i just learned that we was a puppeteer on Labyrinth, one of my favorite movies of all time.
i know, ron mueck is so four years ago (ha), but i am still amazed by his work. i just learned that we was a puppeteer on Labyrinth, one of my favorite movies of all time.
podcasts
for our techno teach-in i choose the topic of podcasts. i didn't know too much about them and wanted to explore more. also, it seemed to be a more interesting topic than some of the others offered :) i use itunes quite often but was still not quite familiar with the podcasts offered in the itunes store. jess showed me how she browses the store. i didn't realize you could download so much free music. good to know. beyond music i really wanted to know what roll the podcats could take in the education field, especially art education. in our powerpoint presentation i posed some advantages and disadvantages the podcast could present in educational world as a young student, college student, and teacher. for the use of pocasts for students prek-12 i stated a few advantages:
-provides an engaging way to learn
-gives them an authentic platform for publishing, gathering information, etc
-record poetry, stories, etc
-creatively share work in the classroom
-portable
and disadvantages:
-possibly no face-to-face interaction
-lack of equipment (computers, voice recorder, software, bandwidth, etc)
-lack of knowledge by teacher
-finding appropriate podcasts for viewing can be time consuming
advantages for college students:
-wide-range of educational content available to download for research, etc
-class lectures available with in days
-mobility
-research tool
disadvantages for college students:
-poor attendance
-no audience participation
advantages for educators:
-allows teachers to create authentic audio and video material (curriculum, lesson plans, examples, lectures, websites, resources for other educators)
-include technology into their classroom
-easily available and inexpensive equipment, portable
-parent and community involvement
-tutorials, lesson plans, activities available as teaching resources
for each group we asked the class what other advantages and disadvantages could surface when using podcasts in teaching environments. i was hoping for more input and discussion from our class. possibly i did not present much excitement in the topic? did we not define the term podcost appropriately making it easier to discuss? did they fear their ideas were non-relevant to the topic? or was everyone just tired and ready to go home? all of the above? instead of being stared downed by blank faces we continued the presentation. in the future i hope not to do this. i did at this time possibly because these were classmates rather than my students. i want my students to engaged in dialogue. possibly this is a skill i need to work on... exciting a classroom to want to talk, even if it's a boring subject. students and fellow classmates.
jess and i decided to create our own podcast. we didn't just want to talk the talk but wanted to walk the walk as well. the process of creating a podcast wasn't as hard as i thought but it was more time consuming than i thought. since everyone seems to be extremely stressed by the beginning stages of our thesis as well as other classes and life in general, we decided to make a fun and entertaining podcast. apparently not. from the confused and blank faces afterwards we assumed folks were not impressed. maybe just tired? this was in no way to offend any of our piers but merely put a smile on our stressed faces. we hope people found humor in it. we then struggled to show exactly how we created the podcast. we should have had our laptop hooked rather than the class computer which had minimal resources on it to use for examples. we could have also had a step-by-step process written out to show/hand out to the class. hopefully the class can now have at least an interest to explore garage band and the use of podcasts.
here are some of the sites we mentioned in the presentation that contain educational podcasts:
Podcasting News
http://www.podcastingnews.com/
The Educational Podcast Network
http://epnweb.org/
Princeton Online:Art Education Blogs and Podcasts
http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/links/blogs.html
here are instructions on how to get to saic podcasts on itunes:
Go to www.saic.edu not the portal
Click on Wired at bottom of page
Open with your iTunes
Log in using your usual name and password
Explore lectures, Visiting Artist Series, tutorials and more
-provides an engaging way to learn
-gives them an authentic platform for publishing, gathering information, etc
-record poetry, stories, etc
-creatively share work in the classroom
-portable
and disadvantages:
-possibly no face-to-face interaction
-lack of equipment (computers, voice recorder, software, bandwidth, etc)
-lack of knowledge by teacher
-finding appropriate podcasts for viewing can be time consuming
advantages for college students:
-wide-range of educational content available to download for research, etc
-class lectures available with in days
-mobility
-research tool
disadvantages for college students:
-poor attendance
-no audience participation
advantages for educators:
-allows teachers to create authentic audio and video material (curriculum, lesson plans, examples, lectures, websites, resources for other educators)
-include technology into their classroom
-easily available and inexpensive equipment, portable
-parent and community involvement
-tutorials, lesson plans, activities available as teaching resources
for each group we asked the class what other advantages and disadvantages could surface when using podcasts in teaching environments. i was hoping for more input and discussion from our class. possibly i did not present much excitement in the topic? did we not define the term podcost appropriately making it easier to discuss? did they fear their ideas were non-relevant to the topic? or was everyone just tired and ready to go home? all of the above? instead of being stared downed by blank faces we continued the presentation. in the future i hope not to do this. i did at this time possibly because these were classmates rather than my students. i want my students to engaged in dialogue. possibly this is a skill i need to work on... exciting a classroom to want to talk, even if it's a boring subject. students and fellow classmates.
jess and i decided to create our own podcast. we didn't just want to talk the talk but wanted to walk the walk as well. the process of creating a podcast wasn't as hard as i thought but it was more time consuming than i thought. since everyone seems to be extremely stressed by the beginning stages of our thesis as well as other classes and life in general, we decided to make a fun and entertaining podcast. apparently not. from the confused and blank faces afterwards we assumed folks were not impressed. maybe just tired? this was in no way to offend any of our piers but merely put a smile on our stressed faces. we hope people found humor in it. we then struggled to show exactly how we created the podcast. we should have had our laptop hooked rather than the class computer which had minimal resources on it to use for examples. we could have also had a step-by-step process written out to show/hand out to the class. hopefully the class can now have at least an interest to explore garage band and the use of podcasts.
here are some of the sites we mentioned in the presentation that contain educational podcasts:
Podcasting News
http://www.podcastingnews.com/
The Educational Podcast Network
http://epnweb.org/
Princeton Online:Art Education Blogs and Podcasts
http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/links/blogs.html
here are instructions on how to get to saic podcasts on itunes:
Go to www.saic.edu not the portal
Click on Wired at bottom of page
Open with your iTunes
Log in using your usual name and password
Explore lectures, Visiting Artist Series, tutorials and more
web critique #5- stockyardinstitute.org
http://www.stockyardinstitute.org
lately i've been thinking about redesigning my website. why, i don't know, since i have little to zero time to focus on it due to school work, thesis, work, painting and my sorry attempt to have some sort of a social life outside of talking to my cat. my first viewing of this site i was really attracted to it's simple design and lay out. exactly what i would like for my site, design wise. small yet noticeable icons for the links to other pages and a logo/title at the op of the page make it visually pleasing and as well as user friendly.
as any site, i really appreciate it when they describe what the site is about from the get go, whether it's in a headline, mission statement or a brief description on the main page easy to see. stockyard institute has done just that. right away i am intrigued by what the organization is offering to it's audience. i love the projects they have listed and described on the site. projects are creative, collaborative, and educational for participants and viewers. many of the projects that involve local chicago youth implement dialogue about certain issues, themes, ideas about their community as well as . this is something I am very interested in pursuing when working with future youth. the dialogue and discussions students have is just as important as the hands-on art making experience as well. and with new technology i'm learning here in grad school i can record and share these group discussions, which excites me greatly. i also took notice to projects that involved youth physically into their neighborhood, such as the austin community history book project. here students walked through out their community and took photographs to better understand and share. there is project listed that sounds extremely interesting but i'm not too clear on what was actually accomplish because of some of the terms they used. the fast eddie's car wash was an attempt to raise radical ideas of pedagogy. i am really curious to know how this attempt was executed during the exhibition. i love their creative way to make relevant resources in their binder archives project. as an educator, i want interesting ways to document and store all my information and work. i like how the team consists of a handful of versified talented and young people. gives inspiration to young art educators as myself.
lately i've been thinking about redesigning my website. why, i don't know, since i have little to zero time to focus on it due to school work, thesis, work, painting and my sorry attempt to have some sort of a social life outside of talking to my cat. my first viewing of this site i was really attracted to it's simple design and lay out. exactly what i would like for my site, design wise. small yet noticeable icons for the links to other pages and a logo/title at the op of the page make it visually pleasing and as well as user friendly.
as any site, i really appreciate it when they describe what the site is about from the get go, whether it's in a headline, mission statement or a brief description on the main page easy to see. stockyard institute has done just that. right away i am intrigued by what the organization is offering to it's audience. i love the projects they have listed and described on the site. projects are creative, collaborative, and educational for participants and viewers. many of the projects that involve local chicago youth implement dialogue about certain issues, themes, ideas about their community as well as . this is something I am very interested in pursuing when working with future youth. the dialogue and discussions students have is just as important as the hands-on art making experience as well. and with new technology i'm learning here in grad school i can record and share these group discussions, which excites me greatly. i also took notice to projects that involved youth physically into their neighborhood, such as the austin community history book project. here students walked through out their community and took photographs to better understand and share. there is project listed that sounds extremely interesting but i'm not too clear on what was actually accomplish because of some of the terms they used. the fast eddie's car wash was an attempt to raise radical ideas of pedagogy. i am really curious to know how this attempt was executed during the exhibition. i love their creative way to make relevant resources in their binder archives project. as an educator, i want interesting ways to document and store all my information and work. i like how the team consists of a handful of versified talented and young people. gives inspiration to young art educators as myself.
visit to hyde park...
if you haven't noticed i've been a bit behind on my critiques and other class related blog posts. some of my "excuses" are beyond my control (health issues) and yet some due to my prioritizing skills. regardless, excuses aren't acceptable and i'm back to bloggin' away. i hope to post more images in my posts. from both our class and other outside resources that i hope everyone finds of interest.
here are some photos i took from our hyde park art center visit... enjoy...
here are some photos i took from our hyde park art center visit... enjoy...
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