Week 10 - JB - [Passion] - Ebullition

 Week 10 - Ebullition

Growing up, cooking has always been essential to family time. Both my parents are incredible home cooks, and they've passed on that passion to me as I've moved away from home (shameless advertisement for my food Instagram, chick.please). I've always cooked on an electric/coil stove before moving here to Irvine, so I'm experiencing a gas stove for the first time. I was definitely a bit scared of them at first, but I've grown to love the speed and efficiency of cooking on an open flame. The flame itself is blue, signifying its heat, with flickers of cooler oranges and reds. I often watch the little dance of the tongues of fire as I wait for my water to boil.

-Jeevika

Week 10 - Bradford - Chanukah

 

With the overwhelm of Week 10 and finals week next week, my partner and I have not been good about observing Chanukah and lighting our menorah. Of the eight days thus far, we've lit our menorah twice...

Last night, we celebrated Chanukah with our friends. They made a completely vegan Chanukah meal (complete with vegan brisket!). Especially with our friends' kids present, it was really cool to both say and sing the Chanukah blessing while lighting their menorah (much prettier than ours). And even more cool that they placed their lit menorah on the windowsill to share it with the rest of the neighborhood.

Chanukah is a celebration of light. In keeping with the origins of Chanukah, the evening was lit primarily by candles and supplemented by dim artificial lamp light. This felt particularly appropriate for discussing the significance of certain Chanukah traditions and the inspiration of light with the kids and, in a sort of ironic way, watching the menorah slowly burn out into wisps of smoke with the littlest one.

The evening continued into games and me falling asleep, but not before we humorously noted how the candlelight flickering on one of the game props looked like a cheap, low-quality effect from a dated film.

Chag sameach!

Week 9 - JB - Silhouettes on the Horizon

 Week 9 - Silhouettes on the Horizon

As always, I am in awe of sunsets. I spent two back to back days at the beach this weekend, staying just past 5pm to savor the watercolor beauty of the sky. The first photo is from a cloudless day, with a lone paddleboarder silhouetted against the horizon. The video, which does not capture the richness and intensity of the painted sky, features the silhouette of San Diego's Coaster train. I thought about the aesthetic of shadows and silhouettes, as I was very drawn to the emotional image of the paddleboarder in particular. The images give me a sense of hope, yet longing, loneliness, yet the prospect of new beginnings.

-Jeevika

Week 9- Colors in motion - TA

 I found this very colorful Wall while wondering around Vegas and asked my friend to move infront of it. It was interesting of how some of the colors made him disappear and some brought him to life. This was my favorite since he is wearing black and he faded into that deep red color. Also his movement changed according to the color change. With deeper colors he got more grounded and mysterious and brighter colors he was more energetic and interactive.

 

WEEK 9 - Rubí Danielle - Dark Moon 

This is a photo I took of a Navajo Native American Indian, who was giving a presentation on the history of the Navajo Native American Indian Tribe. During his presentation he played music and sung songs of the Navajo Tribe, and performed a few dances such as the Eagle Dance. He also shared the wisdom that his ancestors passed down to him, about our relationship to all things around us, such as the earth, sky, and moon. This performance/presentation was especially meaningful to me, being that I am Navajo Native American Indian. When I reached adulthood, that is when I began to feel uneasy about the Thanksgiving holiday, as this holiday is revolved around the White man slaughtering my ancestors. So I am grateful that I was able to see and hear someone speaking of my people with great honor, during this holiday when so many of my people are dishonored. I was immediately drawn in, not only by the music and haunting voice of the performer, but also by the striking lighting that was utilized throughout this demonstration. The tones that were used in this lighting design, created a mysterious atmosphere that allowed me to feel and see the mood that the performer was evoking. There is a combination of deep blue, purple, and amber tones, that altogether create a natural, yet saturated environment. The performer talked about the moon, and the lighting definitely matched the narrative he shared about the moon. It felt and looked like I was under the deep blue moon that was in the story that was being told. The lighting most certainly added to this performance, and without it, it wouldn't have been as magical.

Week 9- Food Coma- KM

 

Is there anything better than an afternoon nap after having way too much food?

What I appreciate most about this photo is the way the light from the window is contouring the shape of Arlo's body. Because the light is coming at a downward and slightly sideways angle, the light really accentuates the shape of his muscles the same way side light  highlights the form of a dancer onstage. I also appreciate the golden glow off his fur which is emphasized by the warm afternoon light. There is also some cool shadowing showing up on his body and uninteresting light streak on the wall to the right. Overall, a very pleasant and cute image. 

Week 9 - Joey NM - The Net of Dreams

I miss being a kid, and I could sit and wonder all of the time. Yet, I am grateful for the gift of hindsight and age to afford, do, and buy the things I want because of my ability to mobilize quickly. 

Lately, I've been amazed at people's ingenuity in creating beautiful creations out of ordinary or straightforward things. 

When I initially saw this image, it was as if I were looking from a bird's eye view onto the stage. I thought it was a large sheet with teacup lights installed into a transparent netting or sheet. (It also didn't help that the window was a bit dirty). When I looked closer, I realized that regular string lights were meticulously strung in parallel rows to appear like a sheet. Perhaps it's my overactive imagination or my appreciation of dream interpretation from my nightly sleep. Still, this image looks like a dream net or a stage set to make the scene aetherial. 

If I had the money or the extra time, I'd play with filling the space with fog. I imagine the scene would appear more dreamlike. Or, perhaps If I carefully laid out sheets of a mirror or mirror-like material and lit the area in blues, from the sides and some from the diagonals, it could become nebulous. 

Again, I think a good artist allows himself to sit and wonder. Yet, he has to put imagination and motivation into action. Although I would love to sit in one place longer than the other, we can't heavily exist in one extreme all of the time. Given this is still real life, the beauty of scene design is that you can be in real life and still be in the dream or wander through the nebula with the proper stage setup.

week 9 - ws - light shaping form

 This week I have noticed more how distinctly shadows can capture the essence of human form. I am almost more captivated by shadows rather than seeing all of the other details with frontal light. Body expression and attitude is almost heightened because the viewers mind can "fill" in the gaps of detail that are not seen. The interaction of shadow on the surface creates another storyline of the shadow form and the texture it is "dancing" with. Seeing multiple silhouettes really makes me think about the relationship between them all. The space between them is exaggerated and the shapes are more noticeable. 

Week 9 - FH - Sunset & Street Lights

     I was initially intrigued by rays of the sun hitting the industrial buildings and bridge; although the camera just doesn't capture it the same. And when I turned the bend and saw the incoming traffic building up and starting to turn their headlights on with the sunsets early arrival, I thought it would be nice to try and catch the tiny red and white dots weaving all the way up to the hills. And of course I'm always interested in the dirty specs of my windshield adding texture. Honestly, the idea of the textured tiny light with one large focal point gave me a lot of inspiration for lighting design ideas as well. 

Week 9- LA- Conflicted

 

A thin line of neon blue highlights a female-presenting astronaut as beautiful, sexy, and desirable. Does this lift up women or put them down? Does she have it all? Are brains in a woman exalted only if she looks like a model? Does exoticizing an intelligent woman make her less threatening in a man’s world? Imagine different faces in this circle and how that might affect meaning. Imagine your own; how does that feel?

Week 8 - JB - [Obsession] - Do it for the 'Gram

Week 8 - Do it for the 'Gram

Lately, cafes attract customers mainly by decorating and creating particularly instagrammable walls. Every I go, I see aesthetic arrangements of plants, succulents, neon signs, lights, flowers, which are often paired with frustratingly mediocre food. This particular neon message struck me as ironic - since everyone standing below the sign to get their pictures for the Insta stories were oxymoronically not at all living in the moment. I thought about our growing obsession with social media and how without check, it can restrict us from living our lives to the fullest. I am definitely an avid social media user myself, and I found myself wanting to take a photo of this moment for myself (even if I didn't have this blog assignment), but it made me think regardless.

-Jeevika