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MEDA302 - Reflection statement

Throughout this project, I have developed a project encompassing the experiences, thoughts and early lives of 4 women in my life, who immigrated here from Australia. The idea for this arose out of an installation I was inspired by last semester and wanted to emulate it in a project. Through combining the old, stylised frames, with modernised format (projections and multi-screen installation), it brings together the past and the future in a cohesive format. The concept of the ‘future’ is propositioned to the individuals, as they reflect on their lives and think about the future of being in Australia; What would they find? How would they live? Questions posed to prompt thought of a future, that is now in the past. 

The process of my installation remained very stringent throughout, and I had a set plan for filming and editing. During class time, I was not presenting iterations, rather I was using this time to edit. Although I am very happy with the final outcome, there are elements, that should I have constructed iterations earlier – I would have perfected it. Most notably, as soon as I uploaded the file, there was an issue with the scaling of some videos. Two were quite small and hard to read. Should I have presented in earlier weeks, this could have been avoided, however in terms of the grad show I will be able to amend it. There was also difficulty in explaining the exact framework of questions, due to the language barrier. The women were fine with recollection of these thoughts, however, explaining the exact questions was hard and not being able to speak Greek fluently, I had to have my mother present to translate for me. This was, in my opinion, where a majority of the intended footage (regarding future) would have been lost. 

The composure of the frames themselves turned out exactly the way I envisioned. I had intended to create a family-home style wall of frames, that is present in the homes of my older relatives, inclusive of the ones I interviewed. The presentation of family photos, memories, awards and documents to name a few, is an integral part of the culture and so I felt it was a central point of how to display this work. I feel it adds an aura of integrity and legitimate feel of the past, colliding with the future which was my intention of creating. Overall, I am very happy with my work, however there are amendments and improvements that definitely could have been made in the earlier stages of this process. Regarding the Grad Show, I will look into the further improvements taken from this assignment and appropriate them for the Main Campus presentation.

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MEDA302 - Installation Week

During this week, I installed the greater majority of my project on the 8th of November. With assistance from Glen, I was able to successfully present the majority of my frames (I have purchased 3 more since the installation) and will be placing these up on the 13th. He also assisted me with the layout of my films, and rather than set up numerous projectors (which would probably be a problem for installation at the Grad Show) thereby taking up space and prevent other students from using them, I was able to claim the HD Projector and we have set this up to cover the entire portion of my installation (see image below - PRE INSTALLED FRAMES).

PROCESS

For the video elements, I have been able to utilise one single projector, and in order to make this satisfy the multi-screen aspect, I am doing all the editing of my videos and then will import them into one large AfterEffects/Premiere document. From here, I have measured the exact dimensions of the frames I want to project into and this will correlate to the AfterEffects/Premiere document. In essence, it is TECHNICALLY, a single screen work that I have split into multiple screens within the document. 

In the third photo, I have attached a layout of what each frame will contain. The frames compromise of the video elements as well as physical items. Photos and documents have been photocopied and scanned (as the originals are fragile) and presented within the frames. Some of the video works are also showcasing images from initial years in Australia, in celebrations, family events, and individual photos. The display of these enhances the content discussed by the women I interviewed. Due to time constraints, and distance required to be traveled to visit other members, I was only able to film one other interview, falling below my proposed idea for a minimum of 7. Even so, I have still gathered a significant amount of footage that will be edited into the small videos for this installation. 

Frame Layout 

Frame Layout - corresponding elements to frame

SUMMARY OF DEVELOPMENTS SINCE ORIGINAL IDEA

Over the last few weeks, both during and outside of uni, I have made creative decisions as to what would benefit my work and changed accordingly. Most significantly, I have introduced approx. 15 frames, and have raised the video component, to a 4-screen work, displaying additional physical elements (such as photos, certificates, and other mementos) to accompany it. Initially, I had planned to have maybe 5 large frames, and it being no more than a single  (or at most, dual) screen work. The physical presentation also changed, from being a room layout, to purely wall. This was also due to feasibility issues with moving the installation over to main campus for the Grad Show. 

The editing process has also seen development. As I mentioned before, I felt that (once I had fully installed the frames) since the work is so large scale it warranted more visual work for audiences. and upped the amount of screens I was introducing. By doing this, it creates a more surround interest for the viewer from the work. 

RESEARCH

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDiJ17Xgaw8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIpARa44KlQ&t=140s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFHq6nRDBKU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg1-Q3Zobwc 

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MEDA302 - Week 13

Topic: Work-in-progress review presentation

Shown below is the layout I had initially intended to create versus the final layout created during installation week. My process has seen small amendments throughout, in decisions such as the materials used, number of interviews etc. I do maintain the stance that while I should have placed iterations up during the classes, my time was better spent editing and refining my video footage. The process I have taken, and decisions made throughout have led to the final work that will be shown in Week 16. 

LAYOUT AS AT WEEK 13

LAYOUT AS AT WEEK 15 (See full post)

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MEDA302 - Weeks 11 and 12

Topic: Project progress documentation, research, critical reflection

Classwork - Week 11: How we organise ourselves

The class time spent during this lesson primarily focused on upcoming dates and important times for the submission, installation dates (for both assessing and Grad Show) as well as our roles in the Grad Show. We discussed the following video, What Scientists and Philosophers Get Wrong about Art.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsYaAgD2Sjg

This topic relates to the discussion a few weeks ago regarding Alva Noe and some quotes that, in my opinion, were blatantly wrong. In this video, Noe refers to the process of art ad ‘manufacturing’. Again, I disagree. The video becomes convoluted throughout, however, essentially the point I draw from this is that Noe sees art as more of a ‘research’ that of expression. Which really, art is a form of expression, not so much a research process. 

Major Installation Progress

Over these two weeks, I have not actively put iterations up in class, rather I was externally filming and then editing that footage during class. As of Week 12′s lesson (October 17th) I have run interviews with 3 different women in my family. I aim to continue filming in the next few days and edit prior to Tuesday so come Week 13′s lesson I will be able to finally put up some work and see how it interacts. I am planning to create a montage-style video of all the interviews (and bring in several more interviews) using video editing techniques that will communicate the concept of future and the history accurately. In preparation for lessons, I have also been perusing various furniture stores, Vinnies, Gumtree and eBay for frames for my work as they are a central component. I have contacted a few sellers and between today (October 17) and next week’s lesson (October 24), I will hopefully have gathered a few and therefore be able to gain a very clear idea of what the end result will look like. 

While it would’ve been beneficial for me to present iterations in earlier weeks, I was more focused on cultivating my footage and gathering as much as I can. Hopefully, come the final presentation (both for MEDA and the Grad Show) I will have filmed with a minimum of 7 participants. Currently, at 3, I believe I have a sound amount of footage and a good sampling to present next week and from there, take critique and advisement as to where I should progress to by the due date. 

Below is a sample layout with the sizes of frames I have researched, to get an idea of the positioning of the frames, particularly the ones where films will go. The one on the bottom right corner will host the main video and either one or 2 smaller videos in other frames. 

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MEDA302 - Weeks 09 and 10

Topic: Project progress documentation, research, critical reflection

In preparation for this lesson, I set up an interview with my grandmother Sylvia (English name), on what it was like to arrive in Australia from Greece. The kind of idea behind my project was to capture the thoughts and circumstances under which family members of mine, immigrated to Australia. By creating a look at the ‘future’ and their expectations of it, against what it was like in the past would create a cohesive look for my installation. 

Below is footage from one of the interviews I ran, with the first 2 minutes edited and subtitled, as it would be in the actual assessment. I haven't edited this as I would be in the presentation, in terms of creating the montage style. Password for the Vimeo link (if there are any issues in viewing the embedded video here) is “Footage01″. 

In true “black hat” form, I had a period earlier this week, where I came to a point where I no longer loved my idea. At first iteration, I was extremely confident and proud with my idea. From each aspect, I was quite satisfied, but after really analysing it and comparing to the ideas of my classmates, I really reconsidering this idea. Over the next few days, I aim to come up with some ideas, possibly an iteration or two, and bring that into class. Once again, the overanalysis turns into dissatisfaction and frustration in the ideation process. After this lesson, I resorted back to original idea (50% of it was the issue that it was far too late to start changing ideas and creating iterations, hence why it was a better option to stick with the idea at hand).

Format of interviews

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MEDA302 - Week 08

Topic: Documentation of project experiments and tests, research and critical reflection

In this week we looked at Edward deBono’s “Six Thinking Hats” as an approach to our major works. The six thinking hats and their corresponding attributes (listed further below), all focus on different elements of the ideation and iterative process. An often occurrence with this process is that some hats may end up ‘forgotten’ or others prioritised. For example, the black hat, associated with critique, caution and analysis is one I personally find myself stuck with majority of the time. I suppose the dream is to achieve equal balance between all the hats in the process of the project, but realistically some are always going to be prioritised over the others.

This process and way of thinking is highly appropriate for the major task. In my own work (thus far) I find myself predominantly focusing on the black hat, green hat and red hat (however the emotions experienced in the red hat thinking stage, often parallel the pessimism of the black hat). In thinking about my major project, I am using the influence of the hats and after the lesson and reflecting on my thought process, I’ve found I need to be more conscious of the black hat’s presence.  

The six modes and corresponding hats are:

Blue: Management of the Hats and when to wear them and how long they should be worn. The equivalent of the meeting chairperson.

White: Information, research, facts, no opinions/neutral.

Red: Feels. This is the hat from which to voice intuition, feelings, emotions, ‘I (dis)like that’ – and without justification. Be careful not to slip from emotion to criticism.

Yellow: Positive thinking, what is working, what is good about a project and why.

Green: Creative thinking. How could we develop/change, identify and my opportunities Lateral thought and extension of the project.

Black: Criticism, Evaluation, Logic, Caution

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MEDA302 - Week 07

Topic: Documentation of project experiments and tests, research, and critical reflection

In this week off, I began to lay out a schedule for testing the different elements of my installation. While I have still not covered the issue of concept/content for the actual film part of the work, the layout will involve screens and some kind of furniture. It is because of this that I have included electrical wiring, Arduino, and multi-screen testing into my schedule. The interaction of all these elements is crucial to the seamlessness of the overall project. By testing something small each week, I can evaluate the effectiveness of that part to my project, and explore if that is the suitable method or if amendments need to be made. I would prefer to not use Arduino, as I struggled significantly with it last semester, and am hoping that the screens and furniture I choose to use in the display wont require the use of an Arduino.

The image below outlines my general plan for this task. I want to create a display on a wall with an accompanying installation-like display which invites audiences to interact with it. This connects to the criteria of reflecting on work from last semester, as well as incorporating the concept of the future and staying true to my personal practice.

It aligns with last semesters work by being an installation, as the MEDA301 work my group and I completed was a 3-Dimensional wall-based installation. While there was no technological elements to it, this project will have that as a central part. It also reflects work I did in another subject, by using the influence of Robert Rauschenberg’s collages. I studied the collages in another class and found them fascinating. For the final task for that subject, I attempted to emulate his work, and would like to continue on that for this task.

The photo below, as the schedule as described earlier. It outlines a very brief goal from each technological test and at the bottom, outlines the weeks that each form of testing will occur. In doing this, I am able to document the testing process of each element (non-visual) and development of my major project. 

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MEDA302 - Week 06

Topic: Documentation of project experiments and tests, research and critical reflection

Classwork: Iterative Practice and Critical Reflection 

In this lesson, we discussed several quotes regarding art and craft forms in relation to technology. In this first quote, from Jonas Mekas, as attached below, he is essentially stating that the art from the past is a) more valuable than that of modern art, and b) technology does not aid and rather inhibits the existing classical art. I highly disagree with this, especially considering my personal practice and how it revolves around a central point of technology. I believe that modern and technological art is just as valuable and useful as the classical forms of art  (think Van Gogh, Manet, etc.) and possibly even more given the day and age. Mekas goes on to speak about how technology destroys the sanctity of the classical forms and again, I disagree. if anything, technology aids the preservation of original art. Photography and videography can be used to document these forms and should they ever deteriorate, would be visually preserved. Furthermore, technology also allows these art forms to be ACCESSIBLE. The Mona Lisa for example, confined in a bulletproof within the Lourve in Paris, France has now been photographed and posted online and through the aid of technology, allows audiences wordwide to access it. 

A good professional is a good craftsman who knows how to build a house exactly like his father used to build it; or make a wheel, or bake good bread, or make good wine, cheese or anything else. I admire crafts people, they are true professionals. But I hate experimenters who destroy our bread and our dwelling places and wine and yoghurt and everything they touch because they want to improve on what has been tested by hundred of generations. But, of course, what I say here about professionals has nothing to do with art. Artists are never professional craftsmen because gods have propelled them and possessed them in order to expand human possibilities, of what they now call human potential… And no past lessons, no professionalism will save them: they have to invent new technologies and new forms in order to record new sensibilities and now emerging content and help to form that content. The crafts people, the professionals, the more they remain faithful to the past, the more useful they are to humanity.

In continuation, the below quotes are from Alva Noe, and reinforce what Mekas is discussing. 

Art and philosophy are practices [that] share a common aim: self-transformation and the achievement of understanding (p137)... Artists make stuff. They tinker, they stage, they build, model, shape, mold, sketch, and construct. And yet as everyone knows, they are more than manufacturers. They don’t make stuff merely in order to make better pictures, to be more entertaining […] Artists who make pictures are […] picture-making technologies to put pictures and the role that pictures play in our lives on display in order to call them into question. (p140)

Furthermore, as a digital artist, I don't believe that Noe is correct IN ANY WAY. The notion that someone’s work should be called into question is ridiculous. When considering art it encompasses so many facets. For example, contemporary art, the word CONTEMPORARY, quite literally means ‘current’, and when looking at the world as it is today, you cannot escape technology. Thus, art does not exist without technology. Also, the idea of technology is not limited to camera, computers, etc. It also refers to the material used by an artist. For example, TECHNOLOGY nowadays can produce new canvas styles, delicate brushes and paints.This form of technology produces that typical classical art, so how can the technology used to create digital art be considered any differently?

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MEDA302 - Week 05

Topic: Draft project proposal, rough plan and schedule

Given that this week was the last prior to the due date of the first assignment, I spent the lesson focusing on my personal statement for the website. I made a few adjustments to mine but overall came to find it really difficult to reflect on my personal practice. To incorporate the personality and professional elements was actually more of a task than I had initially thought. However, in doing this I was able to also start the initial ideation for my final project. I want to incorporate the form of an interactive installation, reminiscent of the exhibition new visited last week. As a film-maker I also wanted to make this a prime focus but combine the two elements in a cohesive installation. As I explored in my professional statement, I aim to capture my own personal style of film-making and presentation through the final project.

IDEAS FOR MAJOR 

INCORPORATING CONCEPT OF ‘FUTURE’ AND LAST SEMESTER’S WORK

Installation-style layout; Contrast some old furniture with newer technology (Physical layout) >>> See Melbourne photos from last semester’s blog posts. 

For film content;

Snapshot from different movies: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE. Ie. Snippets of old movies, contrasted against screens showing present-style and future-style movies. 

Utilise personal content. ie, childhood videos, Current videos and delve into the development of future???. 

PROJECT PROPOSAL

Week 05 - Brainstorm ideas.

After this lesson (developed from the above ideas and in discussion with teachers and classmates) I came up with the following idea. As shown below, I have attached some brainstorming and potential starting points for my major project. In terms of the idea of the ‘future’, I wasn’t sure what, to begin with, and then came up with the idea to interview my family members who immigrated from Greece. For me, this was going to be a personal project that, while satisfying all the criteria was something I was interested and invested in producing a final assessment. Below is an attached beginning to my idea for the major assignment, which requires further development, particularly on the content. However, the overall idea is relatively the same.

Week 06 - Finalise idea and plan iterations. 

Attached below is the statement I submitted as part of my first task for this semester; 

Full-time student. Part-time Westfield Hurstville employee. All-the-time dumpling addict.

In a nutshell, the above is what you need to know. However, to introduce myself, I am Joanna Halias, a soon-to-be graduate from the University of Wollongong. Across my 3 years of studying, I have completed a Bachelor of Digital Media, Diploma of Screen and Media and an Advanced Diploma of Screen and Media. So, let me tell you what I can do. I have excellent customer service skills, am a great multi-tasker, significant knowledge of Adobe Suite, and always open to new learning opportunities. With a particular interest in filmmaking and editing, my portfolio is primarily video-based. While I work best in film production, the overall scope of my proficiency is inclusive of 2D and 3D animation, as well as graphic design and photography. The works included are ones completed within university as assessment pieces, and externally while working under Ompty Media. During university, the tasks have ranged from snappy (and sometimes entertaining) videos to evocative conceptual pieces, while my self-directed work is more showcasing and documenting places such as businesses and events.

Now to the nitty-gritty. What INSPIRES my work and what is my PRACTICE?

I have a passion for creating all films, but in particular, documentaries and video montages. The iterative process of capturing a moment with a camera and experimenting with how footage can be manipulated is the driving force behind my love for film making. Seeing a film develop from the ideation and developmental stage to the editing and eventual export is an experience that is undertaken with each project. Currently, I explore a more literal side to my works, focusing on pieces based around businesses and food. In future projects, I’d love to broach a more personal connection and characterisation in my work, moving on to documenting a person and their story.

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MEDA302 - Weeks 03 and 04

Topic: Project research, draft proposal

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MEDA302 Assessment Task 01 - Professional Site

The following is a link to my personal site for the assessment.

joannahalias.com

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MEDA302 - Week 02

Topic: Response to set reading

COVERED IN THIS LESSON:

Exercise on the difference between research and theory. 

Begin first assessment and how to go about it. 

Terry Eagleton -  "Introduction: What is Literature?"

Terry Eagleton - KEY POINTS FROM ESSAY

A distinction between 'fact' and 'fiction'; then, seems unlikely to get us very far, not least because the distinction itself is often a questionable one...if 'literature includes much 'factual' writing, it also excludes quite a lot of fiction....Your language draws attention to itself, flaunts its material being,  as statements like 'Don't you know the drivers are on strike?' do not.

A set of discourse/characteristics associated to/that align with the practice. 

Ways of thinking about “cinema” can affect/change the way people think about cinema. 

Idea shapes practicality.

Contemplation and speculation - nothing to do with truth or fact, personal reflection, thinking about the way they could be VERSUS what they currently contemplate. 

Shapes the way we interact with a technology, society, person, etc. 

Structure = why is it structured that way? How is it designed that way??

CONTEMPLATE >>> SPECULATE >>> FUTURE???

Disrupt discursive structures >>> creates something new, realise new possibilities. 

Eagleton is not interested in the TANGIBLE LITERATURE, he is talking about the THEORY OF LITERATURE. 

WHY DO THEORY? 

Provides a basis for research, context, foundation, understanding.

Is theory different from research? 

Context is fundamentally important needed to fit into discourse....an ongoing conversation. 

Coming up with concepts and evaluating/researching/theorising how that plays out.

How does a new concept arise or something original change and become different to a final outcome.

WHAT IT WAS??? 

DEVELOP THESE CONCEPTS AND IDEAS???

Research >> verify the facts...Use own personal experience. 

WEEKLY RESEARCH sourced from KATE BENNET 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26031413-don-t-get-a-job-make-a-job

“First things first – the days of trading in your degree certificate for a nice safe job offer are gone, and who knows if they will ever return? It is simply not enough to graduate anymore; the world demands more from you – you are the future, you are the next generation of entrepreneurs, design-thinkers, hyper-specialists, and cultural agitators. You have a role, you have a responsibility. It is no longer just about the world of the design… it is about the design of your world!”

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MEDA302 - Week 01

Topic: Media Arts Project analysis, Response to set reading

COVERED IN THIS LESSON:

Introduction to the subject. 

Overview and distribution of roles for 2017 Grad Show. 

The relationship between Art, Craft and Research. 

(Image sourced from http://medadada.net/meda302-2017-01/#more-3511) 

The relationship between “art, craft and research”, we discovered, was not as straightforward as it seemed. The overlaps, collisions, and murkiness between the three different areas, became a conversation of different theories, ideas and interpretations. For example, what started out as a simple 3-circle Venn diagram, developed into a cacophony of categories and working out where the pieces would fit. We, as a group, quickly deduced that while the analysis of these three concepts and their intersections could continue, the end result was all subject to interpretation. 

The 3 external circles were not respected, “Art”, “Craft” and “Research”, rather they were a culmination of “Sensory Experience”, “Aesthetic Experience”, “Intentionality/Accidental”, “Contextualization” and “Research”. The intersecting point of these circles was where placed “Art”, as art in our opinion, was that which came to be of all the sectors. For example, art cannot exist without some form of craft or research, nor without an aesthetic experience (irrespective of tangibility or not). There was a large circle encompassing ALL of “Craft”, “Aesthetic Experience” and “Sensory Experience”, as well as all the smaller circles and sections. This was because there is research can exist on its own, but all the other sectors are essential to creating art.

It has to be suggested as well, that where does context, or meaning go? Again, this is where the lines become blurred and interpretation rises above all. The experience one individual has to a piece can be vastly different to that of another individual.  

Pictured below is our Venn diagram; 

NOTES FROM CLASS:

Richard Sennet, The Craftsman (research this). 

‘A basic human impulse: the desire to do a job well for its own sake’.

FUTURE AS A CONCEPT- development of a project/craft/work. Where does it begin? How does it change? How is it influenced or amended by research? 

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT - How does technology/craft/art/a project LITERALLY develop over its time and into the future?

Does MEDIA ART tend to be an art of new media --> TECHNOLOGY??? Does this relate to concept of FUTURE given the contemporaneity of the present time. 

(Image sourced from: http://medadada.net/meda302-2017-01/#more-3511)

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MEDA301 Major Assessment - Weeks 14 and 16 Blog Posts

Across these two weeks, our group came down on both Mondays to work on the assignment, in preparation for the submission on Tuesday 20th (Week 16), we made some adjustments as a team which resulted in the final project, attached below. 

In Week 14, when our group gathered for a meeting we revamped the idea and while the use of plywood to create floating shelves to bring 3-dimension to the work remained the same there were amendments made. For one, we opted for wool instead of the thinner thread (in below pictures) as it has a more vibrant colour and boldness. As explored in the previous week’s post, the boards had nails hammered in, in straight exact rows. We changed this in favour of line-graph style data representation and utilising the walls rather than the boards for the majority of the nails. Similarly, we also changed the data we used. Rather than use refugees statistics, (which were difficult to obtain), we decided to use statistics concerning Gender Inequality, an issue that we all were passionate about. 

On the Monday of Week 16, we came in and assembled the entire project. Along the way found great difficulty with the floating shelves, as the brackets kept popping off the wall and disrupting the project. We overcame this by strategically balancing out the weight by stringing from underneath as well. The amount of wool we ended up using strengthened the boards and added dimension to our work. 

Research from; 

https://www.humanrights.gov.au/education/face-facts/face-facts-gender-equality

https://www.wgea.gov.au/fact-sheets-and-research-reports/fact-sheets-and-statistics

http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/4125.0~August%202016~Main%20Features~Democracy,%20Governance%20and%20Citizenship~10012

https://www.wgea.gov.au/sites/default/files/20160428_International_gender_equality_statistics_factsheet.pdf

http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statisticsexplained/index.php/Gender_statistics

https://www.wgea.gov.au/sites/default/files/20160428_International_gender_equality_statistics_factsheet.pdf

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MEDA301 Major Assessment - Week 13 Blog Post

During this week’s lesson, after discussing materials and construction, we settled on using wood as a platform and building the statistics on that. We found that a certain way of arranging nails in correlation to angled pieces of wood was able to create a 3-dimensional elements to it. As shown in the video and image below, the dimension added through this method allow a more intricate and interesting arrangement. 

Once we had an idea of how to progress with this idea we started to experiment with how the thread would interact with the nails. We found that it was quite tedious with hammering the nails into the board and the thread was difficult to work with. Below is the iteration we produced in Week 13. This trial and error allowed us to come to an understanding of the materials we were going to need for this task.

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MEDA301 Major Assessment - Week 12 Blog Post

During this lesson, Mia and I, (Peta was absent due to illness) began to create ideas for our project. We focused primarily on conceptual and statistical foundations and then considered the visual expression. The ideas were as follows; 

STRING MAP;

Representative of population of major cities in Australia. 

Different colours or densities of the thread/string would indicate a heavier or lighter population. 

Large scale map, built into wall(?) or on FoamCore board(?) -- develop material for basis of map. 

Examples of potential layouts and displays shown below.

STRING SCULPTURE;

Inspired by artist, Aili Schmeltz. 

http://www.aptglobal.org/en/Artists/Page/7629/Aili-Schmeltz

http://www.ailischmeltz.com/

http://culturepop.com/art/aili-schmeltz-is-a-multi-talented-art-master/

3D sculpture built into wall, create dimension using different material and positioning. 

What data is being represented?????

Similar to previous idea in the similarity between using darker colours to simulate heaviness or larger amounts of data, while thinner lines and less weight would indicate less data. 

Examples from Aili Schmeltz shown below.

Different sites for information collection - REFUGEE STATISTICS

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1617/RefugeeResettlementhttps://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/12/which-country-has-hosted-the-most-refugees-this-century/

http://www.unhcr.org/en-au/figures-at-a-glance.html

http://popstats.unhcr.org/en/overview#_ga=2.215598039.1183703200.1495506045-1586303304.1495505897

https://www.unrefugees.org.au/?WT.mc_id=AW0017&gclid=Cj0KEQjwmIrJBRCRmJ_x7KDo-9oBEiQAuUPKMuyzQqtlQ3o8qOYuHY1cQrBP9FYUThcJ1Qe6sTH1U0YaAhBV8P8HAQ

http://www.unhcr.org/576408cd7

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-21/where-does-australia-rank-on-its-refugee-intake/7864070

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_refugee_population

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1617/RefugeeResettlement

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/10/global-refugee-crisis-by-the-numbers/

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MEDA301 Major Assessment - Week 11 Blog Post

During this week, our group had the aim of completing an iteration of our idea by the end of class. This process saw us developing on Peta and Mia’s suggestion of using data to create the shapes to be used in the sculpture. As explored in last week’s one that we found to be useful was the population of each of our respective home cities. Then taking this data (converted into shapes) and creating various sculptures to represent our findings. 

Mia, Peta and I, experimented with translating the data onto FoamCore to see how the shapes would interact with one another to create a cohesive sculpture. In doing this, we were able to ascertain an idea of how solid, non-malleable material would work as a conceptual object. This also caused some conflicts within our group as the remaining members were not receptive to the ideas or contributing critiques of any kind. 

It was after the lesson that one of the members approached us via Facebook and had made their decision to split off. While they had not discussed with us their frustrations and only spoke within themselves regarding the issues, this split allowed us to refine and develop a new concept. The progression of ideas that were suggested resulted in a more diverse idea development. As discussed in next week's post, the newly-formed group of three formed more conceptual ideas, particularly regarding data representation and repetition.

Above is the iteration produced out of FoamCore for the end of the lesson. We experimented with methods of presentation such as;

Presented the sculptures side-by-side, suspended lights where audiences would move it to create shapes from the shadows of the sculptures. 

Projecting a short-film reflecting the data over the sculptures (similar to projection mapping but not the exact methodology).