Jumpsuits & Teleporters

Curious to see Saturn in action? Well, here you have it - in all...

Tue, 15 May 2012 12:35:00 -0400

Curious to see Saturn in action? Well, here you have it - in all of its glory. I’ve always been bewildered by this gaseous planet and its 62 moons (and counting).

Thanks to Moonbeam (my Saturn sister) for sharing the link!

I recently began an internship at the National Endowment for the...

Tue, 15 May 2012 11:53:00 -0400

Departing from CHS

NEA lanyard

Underneath a yellow-brick bridge

Looking down from the atrium

Old Post Office Pavilion

Spot the National Monument

DC doesn't do color, but I do

Kenneth Snelson's tensegrity sculpture

Project Bandaloop

I recently began an internship at the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) where I work in the Office of Program Innovation on projects related to art and science. The photos above are a highlight of spending the last two weeks in the District (DC).

As a daily commuter (Annapolis → New Carrollton Metro → Federal Triangle), I have a different perspective than that of a museum goer. I also have the enlightening experience of viewing the inner-workings of the NEA, a federal grant-making agency for the arts in America. I’m at the heart of the Arts & Culture Machine! This insight is everything I’ve been working towards with my Arts Administration degree. And I’m surrounded by passionate arts lovers who are well-connected and established in their careers—actors, poets and writers, musicians, dancers, and so on.

It’s a wonderful feeling to play a tiny part.

A little over a week ago I wrote a blog post for the National...

Mon, 14 May 2012 17:12:00 -0400

A little over a week ago I wrote a blog post for the National Endowment for the Arts’ Art Works Blog. Check it out by clicking on the link above!

Programs with ArtScience themes—exploring universal ideas, discoveries, innovations, and current topics—can promote greater understanding of humanity and cultural legacy, a topic that is increasingly important in today’s society.

"The Internet has provided unprecedented access to shared knowledge assets, materials, fabrication..."

Thu, 03 May 2012 21:36:31 -0400

“The Internet has provided unprecedented access to shared knowledge assets, materials,...

Making Science Intimate: Translating and Integrating the Arts and Humanities with Biology

Wed, 02 May 2012 11:49:00 -0400

Making Science Intimate: Translating and Integrating the Arts and Humanities with Biology

The Imagine Engine! or Art and Science—a True Story

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:18:00 -0400

The Imagine Engine! or Art and Science—a True Story: Bill O’Brien, Senior Advisor for Program...

Seeking: A career in Arts & Culture. Two weeks ago, I...

Sun, 22 Apr 2012 00:05:57 -0400

Seeking: A career in Arts & Culture.

Two weeks ago, I defended and submitted my thesis. I now have a Master’s degree in Arts Administration! It’s been what feels like forever since I’ve had time to even consider “blogging,” apart from briefly sharing things I’ve stumbled upon during research — my apologies. I now have time to dabble online and will update frequently.

However, I am now faced with the dreaded job search. I often struggle with the ‘unemployed blues’ while reminding myself that I have acquired an amazing internship (to be disclosed later) through my thesis, which will allow me to work remotely and travel up to connect for important events. I’ve already begun working on an exciting project.

So things are bound to happen, right?

Machine Project is Seeking a Summer Intern!

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:05:47 -0400

Dear Friends, Thanks to the Getty Foundation’s Multicultural Undergraduate Internship Grant...

I just came across Daylight Magazine’s Cosmos issue with...

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:55:17 -0400

I just came across Daylight Magazine’s Cosmos issue with Vincent Fournier on the cover at Barnes & Noble. This is a teaser featuring some of the work included in Issue #9 where you can hear a few artists telling stories about themes and artistic processes. You can buy a print copy for $10 or get a PDF for $5 here. I couldn’t resist adding it my collection of odds-and-ends periodicals about space. (In fact, one of my favorites is Cabinet’s Issue #34 on Testing.)

Congrats to Jonathan for being featured in Oxford...

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 18:16:56 -0400

Congrats to Jonathan for being featured in Oxford American’s 100 UNDER 100: The New Superstars of Southern Art Continued!

Photo

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:58:00 -0500

Tell Congress: Don’t censor the Web Fighting online piracy is...

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:21:00 -0500

Tell Congress: Don’t censor the Web

Fighting online piracy is important. The most effective way to shut down pirate websites is through targeted legislation that cuts off their funding. There’s no need to make American social networks, blogs and search engines censor the Internet or undermine the existing laws that have enabled the Web to thrive, creating millions of U.S. jobs.

Too much is at stake – please vote NO on PIPA and SOPA.

Please sign the petition here: https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/

Attention artists using technology and digital media!...

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:59:00 -0500

Attention artists using technology and digital media! Established in 2010, The Creator’s Project, a partnership between Intel and VICE, is an online platform-network that celebrates creativity, culture, and technology. Their new initiative The Studio offers opportunities to artists for funding, showcasing, technological access, and support for collaborations to create and spread their work. This includes creative projects in visual art, music, gaming, film, design, fashion, and more. I’m interested to see what they come up with next.

The Rise of the New Groupthink

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 20:35:51 -0500

The Rise of the New Groupthink: Collaboration is in. But it may not be conducive to creativity.

Pearl B. Marsh

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:47:00 -0500

In researching my grandmother I’ve discovered a tidbit about the changing art world and...

PressPausePlay (by House of Radon) A film about Hope, Fear and...

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 18:27:00 -0500

PressPausePlay (by House of Radon)

A film about Hope, Fear and Digital Culture.

http://www.presspauseplay.com/

Mel Bochner, Oh Well, 2010, oil and acrylic on two canvases, 100...

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:09:00 -0500

Mel Bochner, Oh Well, 2010, oil and acrylic on two canvases, 100 x 75 inches. Courtesy Peter Freeman Inc., New York © Mel Bochner 2011

I saw this painting at the National Gallery of Art’s In the Tower: Mel Bochner exhibition over the holidays. It was great to see Bochner’s thesaurus series paintings since I’m most familiar with his conceptual measurements and oil stick works. The pieces are based on synonyms and slang or catch phrases that make you laugh out loud. But this painting (and Die too) is my favorite; it made me think of my dad who has Parkinson’s Disease and how hard “get over it” and “learn to live with it” really is. This painting makes me laugh. It’s funny. And it puts a satirical spin on negatively associated words. But my dad is an aeronautical engineer, not an artist. So when I told him about the painting he didn’t get it. He chuckled though. I think that’s the best response, especially since I told him I was going to hang it in his office.

P.S. We had a huge culture cram during the holidays including the MoMA, Guggenheim, Wired Store, National Air & Space Museum, American Museum of Natural History, and more.

"…film and particularly the manner of its creation, holds steadfast as a prime example of the..."

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:58:00 -0500

“…film and particularly the manner of its creation, holds steadfast as a prime example...

I don’t know what rock I’ve been hiding under. After...

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 01:23:00 -0500

I don’t know what rock I’ve been hiding under. After noticing an increase of infographic résumés and CVs, I just discovered vizualize.me and re.vu. These websites offer the easy means of converting your work experience and accomplishments into neatly user-friendly visual elements. Both sites are similar in practice (you can import your info directly from LinkedIn), but each has its own design, organization, and typefaces. Here’s my assessment:

VIZUALIZE.ME (Example: Eugene Woo)

- Six themes - Great selection of fonts and graphics - Options to customize colors - Summary - Work & education - Links - Skills - Interests (6 at most) - Languages - Awards & honors - Stats (up to 4) - LinkedIn recommendations

Cons: No profile pic. No portfolio widget or document sharing, but it’s coming soon (ETA unknown). Also, no option to export/save profile as a PDF for printed use though it’s a planned feature for the future. Links are displayed at the bottom by icon, which could be better displayed in the profile summary below name and title as full links opposed to logo icons.

RE.VU (Example: Barack Obama or Felicia Day)

- Thirteen themes - Option for a 100 x 100 pixel profile pic - Summary - Work history timeline - Separate education section - Vital stats in numbers (up to 6) - Breakdown of job duties by percentages - Skill evolution graph - Proficiencies in percentages - Quotes (yours or someone else’s for inspiration or philosophy) - Percentages (example: thesis completion rate) (up to 6) - Pastimes pie chart - Interests over time - Image portfolio - Work examples (.pdf, .doc, .docx, .odt, .ppt, .pptx) - You can also upload a downloadable PDF of your résumé linked to your profile.

Cons: Timeline dates require month, day, and year; day is unnecessary. No customization option for colors or fonts. This greatly limits the visual format because it relies on uploading a background image. No known plans to offer the export/save option. There’s also no option to delete your account; you have to contact them directly right now.

VERDICT

The graphic designer in me prefers vizualize.me over re.vu. But while vizualize.me is more visually pleasing and customizable, re.vu offers more. However, quantifying and entering your personal data into re.vu takes more consideration and time. It’s not as easy entering into vizualize.me, which is simplified but effective. If vizualize.me were to implement the portfolio section sooner than later complete with downloadable work samples, it would be near perfect—with two suggestions: a life/work accomplishments section (or inclusion in the work & education timeline) and a top-five dream jobs section. Ok, maybe one more: a percentage breakdown of each job would be great too.

Art-Sci-Tech has so much going on in various avenues, areas, and...

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 20:01:00 -0500

Art-Sci-Tech has so much going on in various avenues, areas, and communities. Its complexity makes it difficult to visualize.

There’s the blanket term “new media art.” Then there’s bioart, information art, algorithmic art, genomic art, maker/DIY art, hacker art, eco art, cybernetic art, video art, kinetic art, interactive art, etc. Other areas of experimentation include robotics, virtual reality, gaming, citizen science, and more, which just touches the surface.

I like Andrea Grover’s simple chart trying to explain the areas (above):

…the practice has mostly moved outside rarified institutions and industries (the relationships were too complex and tied to capitalism and results-oriented economics), and into the hands of individuals and collectives (facilitated by networked communication which gave agency to maker culture, the open source movement, peer-to-peer sharing, crowdsourcing, etc.). From there, the types of activities exploded and yielded a variety of subtypes of Artists/Scientists/Technologists.

How would YOU make a map, diagram or chart of the many communities at the intersection of art, science, and technology?