Web Identity

Austin De'Rosa

     Sometimes I forget how easy it is to manipulate aspects of your identity online. By simply censoring and combing through the things you make public in your life, the friends you have online and the pictures you post, you could seem like an entirely different person. I completely understand how people can become addicted to social networking websites like second life because it give an otherwise shy and introverted person a chance to explore being social in a non threatening, non confrontational atmosphere. However, It is easy to see the dangers in social networking sites since a web identity can carry as much presence nowadays as our physical presence. Today there are more than 500 million active users on facebook, which is why it didn't surprise me when I received a friend request from my mother, cousin, aunt, uncle and many others who I thought were completely web illiterate. Although I didn't invite most of my family to snoop around my pictures, It makes me uneasy to think how virtually anyone can see my profile if they wanted to. My profile which I thought was as harmless as an email account now has become a window into my personal life for anyone who owns a computer. My profile is now on permanent lock-down via privacy settings.

  I really enjoyed creating an entirely new web persona because it gave me a chance to explore aspects of my life simply by taking some pictures and setting up a profile. My identity was Austin De' Rosa, the flaming Macy's makeup counter super-star who moved to the big apple to explore life outside Redding California. Although I used certain aspects of my life to create Austin, I wanted to create an identity that represented parts of me that I might be afraid to show. Though me and Austin are both gay males, Austin never has to hide from his sexuality, where ever he goes people automatically know that he watches sex and the city with his "girl friends" and listens to Lady GaGa. I, on the other hand, am out but struggle with making my sexual preference apparent since most everyone assumes that I'm straight. This is why I thought it might be good for me to explore being able to live the stereotypical gay life style. Although it was fun to dress up and do a photo shoot as a different person, it was also astonishing to see how easily I could project this aspect of me in the Internet realm. Also, I was under the impression that for our final class with Liz we were supposed to dress up as our persona. It was apparent that I was the only one who had this impression when I showed up for class, however, making my way to school from Powell station in jean hot pants and a tray full of sprinkle cup-cakes was a experience in itself. I was surprised to find that people were much nicer to me than usual. Maybe it was because I seem much less threatening...or maybe because everyone wants a token gay friend in San Francisco. Either way, SF truly is the place to be whoever you want with minimal judgement. This assignment has thought me to explore parts of myself that I am still uncomfortable with and let my inner weirdo shine though.

Unheard of...

this is the best thing that has ever happened to anyone who doesn't have a CD player in their car and has to listen to that catchy crap on the radio. you're welcome :)

unhear it

"You Were a Landscape In My Dream" a mountian conquest in Google Earth.

Mountian Conquest Movie

...The title might sound a little dramatic, but don't let it throw you, its from an Of Montreal song. One of the most incredible aspect of Google Earth is the ability to visit the highest peaks to the lowest points in the sea with no more effort than typing your desires coordinates into a search bar. Both of these places might not be rendered more than blurry geometric figures, but the idea of creating a pseudo-realistic world in which you can fly between continents in a matter of second leaves one with a sense of power, almost as if in a lucid dream state. This is why, for my project, I propose to use my dream ( and most everyone elses' dream) of flying and couple it with visiting the highest peaks I have ever been, stopping by to see the view, in a matter of minutes, much like a real dream. This dream will start from my bed in the small town of Truckee California, fly through downtown and up into the sierra Nevada Mountain range I know so well. From here my tour becomes a little more fantastic as I stop by The Italian Alps, Mt. Vesuvius and finally the Rif mountain range in the small town of Chefchaouen in Morocco, supplying a view from Google earth and a picture that I have taken from each one of these mountain ranges. These are all mountains that I have already visited so my ties to them are clear. With help from Google I will attempt to make alllll my dreams come true. 

Art inspired by google earth/ maps

google maps art progect

http://www.streetwithaview.com/

Pittsburgh based street artists Ben Kinsley and Robin Hewlett use google maps to create a world of their own. In may, Kinsley and Hewlett teamed up with google by staging unexplainable and wild scenes that would then be photographed by the google maps van and put on display for anyone who googles Sampsonia street, Pittsburgh. By photographing scenes such as two 17th century swordsmen in battle, or an escape from a window using knotted bedsheets, Kinsley and Hewlett attempt to make people "...question the notion of reality in something that we perceive as a factual representation of our world." this piece was inspired by the random moments of real life that seem mundane until they are isolated by google maps, such as being able to read your name on a wall or someone breaking into a car.

I think this project is very cleaver because it uses new media and pairs it up with installation art and created a piece that is reliant on technology but, in my opinion, maintains the hand-made feel of a painting or installation. I also like this piece because it is the concept that is most important by introducing the idea of making people question their trust in technology as well as reality; the execution seems like the easiest part of this project leaving the idea behind it the main focus.

Google Bible Earth

Australia's own James Dive is a different kinda of "Jesus-freak" as he uses google earth in order to recreate 3D models of biblical scenes. From Noah and the arc to the parting of the Red Sea and finally the crucifixion of Christ, Dive wanted to show events that may or may not have happened seem concrete when seen through the lens of technology. Dive also plays with our trust in satellite technology and wants us not to trust everything we see in a birds eye view, or what Dive in this case refers to as a "God's eye view." By mastering this new medium, Dive pieces together these biblical scene through actual images seen on google earth, for example, using images from parts of the Niagara Falls, various deserts, and the Red Sea in order to recreate the Moses scene. Dive even went as far as leaning secrets of the medium such as depth through shadows and colors schemes depending on the season to make this piece even more realistic

I really enjoyed this work because is makes google earth seem like just as much as a legitimate medium as acrylic paints or clay. It provides depth to a program that many people never thought possible. Also, I think it is very interesting how artist are now able to communicate controversial ideas though new media technology enforcing the idea that these new devices are not only here to help find direction but to make us think a little harder about how we perceive the world around us. Google earth is here to stay. might as well make it interesting.

Hyper-realism

The most incredible paintings ive ever seen.

....This just ruined my day.


Hyper-realism

VooDoo Child

This is a picture of a painting of mine before I got a chance to finish it. Its acrylic on a skate deck...I was listening to a lot of Jimi Hendrix

Community art event #1- Pixar Exhibit at the Okland Museum

After wondering though the Oakland museum and catching up on history lessons from the gold rush which didn't linger much longer than a flash of fools gold in a pan, let alone longer than 5th grade summer vacation, I found the Pixar exhibit to be much more relevant to my life. It was really nice to be able to see the progression of each individual character with every new drawing and how many sketches it took to get the perfect fit. It was kinda discouraging however thinking how none of these amazing drawings, paintings, models, sculptures, etc. are never even seen unless in a special exhibition in a museum. Also, an interview with one of the main animators for the film Finding Nemo, revealed that these films are 90% computer simulation and 10% animation...this pissed me off a little bit because it seems as though the human touch is becoming less and less apparent in new media, especially since I wish to persue a lucritive career in classic animation. I might have to give that one second thought. These are some picture I took of some of the amazing concept designs for different pixar characters. These pictures also led to me being asked to leave the museum...it was worth it.

                                           Monsters INC

                                          Finding Nemo

This next one was possible the coolest thing ive ever seen...atleast in the exhibit. They used the principals   from early cinema devices such as the praxinoscope where multiple images are placed in sequence on a wheel and then reflected through a mirror so that when you spin it the images meld and create the illusion of movement.

 Pixar, however, takes this concept one step further and creates a sequence of models on a large disk so when it spins at a high speed, and with the help of a strobe light, the forms come to life in a spectacular of overlapping images and characters. pretty sweet.