Sunday, October 1, 2023

Understanding Mediation: John Berger and Walter Benjamin

  

John Berger, who was an art critic, is most well known for his seminal work, Ways of Seeing (1972). This revolutionary book, and the accompanying four part BBC film series, has been a cultural phenomenon for decades, and it has helped shape the way in which we see and perceive art. Chapter 1, which you will be writing about this week, is largely inspired by Walter Benjamin's essay, The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, but unlike Benjamin's dense text– Berger writes in a very approachable way. Therefore, please watch the 4 film installments (HERE), and read the book (particularly Chapter 1) before you tackle Benjamin's essay.

Walter Benjamin, who wrote The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction (1936), was a German philosopher from The Frankfurt School. He is best known for his studies of literature and mass culture, and he became among one of the most celebrated philosophers from the 1960s to the present.

In this essay he essentially tracks the cultural shift, and thus the displacement of original works of art, through the abundance of mechanically reproduced copies of them. He suggests that which makes works of art unique cannot be transferred to its copies, and that the abundance of copies interferes with our ability to experience the original. He posits that we no longer approach the original work through the lens of its own cultural and historical context, but instead that the abundance of copies serves to divorce it from its history and essentially decontextualizes it. 

Questions to ask yourself while reading The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction:

1) What does Benjamin mean by the "aura of the original"? 

2) How does he frame the way in which one experiences a work of art in person when compared to the way in which it is experienced through its copies (made through mechanical reproduction technologies– i.e. photographs, JPEGs etc. of those works of art)?

3) What does Benjamin mean when he makes the distinction between cult value and exhibition value?

4) What concerns does he express about the use of reproduction technologies to disseminate propagandistic or politically biased information?

GREAT RESOURCES TO GAIN INSIGHTS INTO BENJAMIN'S ESSAY:

1) For more on Walter Benjamin, visit Stanford University's Encyclopedia of Philosophy HERE.

2) For a very approachable description of the basic themes in The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, visit this Yale University Campus Press article HERE.

3) Watch this helpful video (9:29) because it clearly distills and contextualizes many very important ideas in The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction HERE, and embedded right below Berger's Ways of Seeing videos.  

Understanding Mediation: Photography and Cinema
• John Berger: Ways of Seeing (Entire book, especially Chapter 1)
• Walter Benjamin: The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction 
• Marshall McLuhan: The Medium is the Message

• Neil Postman: The Judgment of Thamus 
• Check out this reference to Marshall McLuhan in The Sopranos HERE.

FILM CLIPS:

MEDIATION IN FILM:

1) Triumph of the Will: Night Rally  (Leni Reifenstahl, 1934. Cue to 54:00):

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6uajey

2) The Great Dictator (Charlie Chaplin, 1940. Cue to 0.55):

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

3) Charlie Chaplin: Final Speech from The Great Dictator:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7GY1Xg6X20

4) The Producers: Springtime for Hitler and Germany (Mel Brooks, 1968):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPXHRX8Q2hs

5) The Producers: Springtime for Hitler and Germany (Mel Brooks, 2005):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zY1orxW8Aw

Thursday, September 14, 2023

Welcome to Art 1A Visual Literacy Fall 2023

 Hello everyone,

Welcome to Art 1A: Visual Literacy, and to UCSB for all of our new students. I wanted to reach out to let you know that everything that you need to know about Art 1A will be posted here on the Art 1A website, not on Canvas. However, your Teaching Assistant will use Canvas for some aspects of their sections (including for the submission of assignments, etc). Please read everything carefully, I will go over this information in class when we meet, and I will answer any questions that you may have.

Our first meeting, on Thursday, September 28 will be via Zoom. The Zoom link can be found HERE

Art 1A lectures and sections will be taught in-person. If you have time conflicts with work, or with other classes, then you should take Art 1A another quarter. There are also two Los Angeles museum field trips that are an important part of the class. We are offering an alternative museum filed trip in Santa Barbara for one of the filed trips, if you can't get to Los Angeles twice. Please make sure that you are available on Saturday, October 21 and Saturday, November 11. These two class meetings will be in lieu of the lectures those weeks, but sections are still scheduled.

Please purchase your course reader and book as soon as possible because you will have written assignments due the first week of class. The course reader is on reserve at the library, and the book is on reserve every single quarter.

Please fill out the Art 1A Questionnaire (HERE), and return it to me and your TA ASAP. This will help us get to know you, and it will also let us know whether you are having any technology issues. You can find our contact information HERE.
Course Reader and book information (please have them in your possession before class meets for the first time). The course reader is on reserve at the library:

1) The Course Reader is only available from Associated StudentsYou can either purchase a physical copy HERE. Hard Copy $36.00 and eReader $29.60. Weekly assignments are due the first week of class, and if you don't have your reader you can use the Reserve Copy at the Library. Order eReader HERE or click on the picture of the eReader above to order. Note: Allow 24-48 hours to receive your link for the eReader after your payment has been processed. If you don't have it in time to do your first assignment, then you can go to the library and check out the Course Reader on reserve.

The physical copy will be available at the Associated Student Ticket OfficeLocation Information and Hours HERE.

2) John Berger's Ways of Seeing is available from the Campus Bookstore and Amazon (Click HERE and HERE).
3) The Course Syllabus can be found HERE.
4) The Calendarwhere your weekly reading and writing assignments are located, can be found HERE.
5) Information about Lectures and Sections can be found HERE.
6) The Research Paper prompt can be found HERE.
7) The UCSB Library Art 1A Research Page can be found HERE.
9) View the UCSB policy about Academic Integrity and Academic Dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, furnishing false information, unauthorized collaboration and misuse of course materials) HERE.
10) Fill out the museum liability waiversBoth trips require Liability Waivers: and they will be linked to here, once they are available.
    11) Information about the Department of Art can be found HERE.
    12) The UCSB Diversity Statement can be found HERE and the University of California Diversity Statement can be found HERE.
    13) The UCSB Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) contact information can be found HERE.
    14) The UCSB Health and Wellness website can be found HERE.
    15) UCSB Department of Art Intellectual Challenge Policy: "Intellectual challenge and academic rigor are among the foundations of our program. Our faculty foster communities of inquiry and free speech based in self-awareness, individual responsibility, and an informed world view. We encourage divergent opinion and cogent argument, believing lively debate, exposure to differing viewpoints, and a certain level of discomfort are essential to intellectual and artistic growth.
     
    In our classes, students will be shown work and introduced to theories and practices that may challenge their beliefs and assumptions. Students are expected to think critically rather than react impulsively; to consider opposing viewpoints and others’ opinions and experiences with openness and thoughtfulness; and to engage in a manner befitting themselves as artists and scholars in this university, an institution of higher learning."

    Wednesday, September 13, 2023

    Art 1A Museum Field Trips Fall Quarter 2023

    This quarter we have two spectacular field trips planned. Our first field trip is to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and the second field trip is to the Getty Center. There are simply too many important exhibitions between these two museums that are relevant to Art 1A, therefore we will have two field trips. These field trips are all day events, and they are in lieu of the lectures that week. Sections are scheduled as planned. If you are unable to go to the Getty Center or LACMA, there is an alternative field trip for you to attend on your own during the week of our LACMA or Getty Trips. The alternative trip is to the and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and the MCASB (details below). You must attend one of the Los Angeles field trips, and can do the other in Santa Barbara, if you can't make the trip to LA twice.

    A FEW TIPS TO PREPARE FOR OUR FIELD TRIPS:

    1) Be sure that you have our emails with you! If you arrive late, you want to be able to find us at the museum. However, try to leave early so that you arrive on time, because reception isn't good in all parts of the museums, and you may be waiting a long time before we see your email.

    2) I would suggest eating a big breakfast since we won't be taking a break for lunch until later in the day. Furthermore, pack snacks for the road, and for lunch, unless you want to treat yourself to food at the museum.

    3) If you are driving from Santa Barbara, be sure to give yourself at least two hours to drive to LA. You never know what kind of traffic that you will encounter.

    4) Wear comfortable shoes and clothing! We will be doing a lot of walking and hiking up stairs, so you want to be very comfortable.

    5) Charge your phone since you will want to take a lot of pictures at the museum.

    FIELD TRIP #1: LACMA ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 21

    FIELD TRIP #2: THE GETTY CENTER ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11

    MANDATORY LIABILITY WAIVERS (PLEASE FILL OUT ALL OF THEM TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR ALL OF THE FIELD TRIPS):

    LACMA Liability Waiver


    Students must submit the liability waiver forms for each trip, and will not receive free admission without them. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    FIELD TRIP #1 ON SATURDAY, October 21: LACMA AT 12:00PM:

    Students must submit the liability waiver form, and will not receive free admission to LACMA without it. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    LACMA FIELD TRIP: 

    One of the important exhibitions we will be viewing is Matthew Barney: REPRESSIA (decline), and since his work is the subject of your research paper it will be worth the trip!

    MEETING AT LACMA:

    We will meet at LACMA at the Wilshire Blvd. entrance next to the ticket office and Chris Burden's Urban Light sculpture (shown picture above) at 12:00PM on Saturday, October 21. LACMA will be providing us with free admission to the museum. I will send you the information to register for your free ticket once LACMA sends it to me.

    IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION: LACMA’s first priority is the health and safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers. Masks continue to be required indoors for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, until further notice. Maintaining some health and safety protocols remains critical to provide a safe environment for staff, volunteers, and visitors of all ages, including those with compromised health and families with children who cannot be vaccinated. These protocols are in place to help protect against the spread of COVID-19. 

    Please read all guidelines HERE before your visit. https://www.lacma.org/plan-your-visit

    5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036
    Phone: (323) 857-6010
    Parking costs $20.00 per vehicle, and it is not part of our free admission.

    ALTERNATIVE TRIP to SBMA & MCASB:

    Santa Barbara Museum of Art
    1130 State Street
    Santa Barbara, CA 93101
    Phone: 805.963.4364
    @sbmuseart
    Tues - Sun 11 am - 5 pm
    Thurs 11 am - 8 pm
    Closed Mondays and holidays
    Free to students with ID

    MCASB
    Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara
    Paseo Nuevo Upper Arts Terrace
    653 Paseo Nuevo
    Santa Barbara, CA 93101
    805.966.5373
    Tues-Sat 11am-6pm
    Sun 11-6
    Closed Mon.

    Nota Bene: The museum trip is all-day immersive experience, and therefore the museum field trip is in lieu of both of the Art 1A lectures that week (section attendance is as scheduled). If you do not go to the museum that week, or the alternative assignment, then you will receive two absences. Take a selfie at the museum, and works of art that were of interest to you, and include it in your paper as proof of attendance.
    FIELD TRIP #2 ON SATURDAY, November 11: THE GETTY CENTER AT 1:00PM:

    Students must submit the liability waiver form, and will not receive free admission to LACMA without it. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    We will be meeting at 1:00PM on the museum side of the tram drop off (shown above). If you are carpooling (2 or more Art 1A students in a single vehicle), then you are eligible to receive free parking, otherwise you must pay $20.00 for parking. Only Art 1A students are eligible for free parking. Parking Information: https://www.getty.edu/visit/center/parking-and-transportation/

    The Getty Center
    1200 Getty Center Dr.
    Los Angeles, CA 90049
    Parking and Transportation Information HERE

    ALTERNATIVE MUSEUM TRIP: If you are unable to attend the Getty Center, and you went to LACMA with the class, then you may do the alternative assignment to the SBMA and the MCASB (listed above). You need to attend one off the LA field trips, and preferably both, but only one LA trip is mandatory.

    Sunday, July 30, 2023

    Artist Talk Featuring Mariana Rodela on Monday, July 31

    What: Artist Talk featuring Mariana Rodela
    When: Monday, July 31 from 3:30-5:35
    Where: North Hall 1109
    Instagram@marianarodela

    Artist Bio:

    Mariana Rodela is a Mexican American interdisciplinary artist from Southern California who works predominantly in sculpture, video, performance, and social practice. Her work explores the use of play as a subversive entity against late stage capitalism. She graduated from the University of California Riverside with a BA in Studio Art and a BA in Art History. Currently, she is an MFA candidate at the University of California Santa Barbara.

    Thursday, July 27, 2023

    Artist Talk & Gallery Talk Featuring Catherine Jenks on Wednesday, August 2

    Courtesy of Catherine Jenks

    What: Artist Talk & Gallery featuring Catherine Jenks
    When: Wednesday, August 2 from 3:30-5:35
    Where: Arts 1344 and the Glass Box Gallery 
    Glass Box Gallery: Phases, the artist's solo show, is on view from August 1st through 18th.

    Artist Bio: Catherine Jenks is an artist using paint as a tool and language to express, examine and understand the human experience. She has a B.A. in Art, with an emphasis in Painting, from University of California Santa Barbara’s College of Creative Studies. She currently lives and works in Santa Barbara, CA and is the Undergraduate Program Manager for UCSB’s Art Department. 

    Jenks uses her painting practice to explore her desire to create a tangible form for invisible thoughts and emotions. She utilizes color, rendering and composition to influence the viewer’s psychological responses and invite them to step into her perceptual reality. This reality is shaped by the intensity of her experiences as a woman and a mother. Her delicate, representational oil paintings dance along the fine line of displaying the beauty of reality and within the physicality of paint. These paintings provide opportunities for reflection and reminders that everything is worthy of a close look. 

    Directly following her Artist Talk, Catherine Jenks will discuss her exhibition in the Glass Box Gallery.

    Sunday, July 9, 2023

    MECHANICS OF A FORMAL RESEARCH PAPER WORKSHOP

     

    WHEN: Wednesday, July 12 at 3:30PM PT in class.

    Chizu Morihara (Art & Architecture Librarian):
    cmorihara@ucsb.edu
    http://guides.library.ucsb.edu/art1a
    (805) 893-2766

    Paper Format (PAPER TOPIC HERE)

    - 8 pages of text (this does NOT include the cover page, bibliography or images)
    - Double-spaced
    - Cover page
    - Footnotes or endnotes
    - Bibliography
    - Images (in a separate document at the end of the paper)
    - Use at least 8 different research sources (including peer reviewed 
journal articles, books, exhibition catalogs, monographs, etc.)
    - Use at least 10 citations

    QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN WRITING & EDITING YOUR PAPER:

    1) Do I have the proper number of citations and sources?

    2) Did I properly format my citations using MLA or Chicago?

    3) Do I have a properly formatted formal bibliography?

    4) Did I adhere to the proper paper length?

    5) Do I have a clear, and specific thesis statement?

    6) Does my thesis statement specifically relate to the final draft of my paper?

    7) Did I run spell check (repeatedly)?

    8) Did I carefully edit to make sure that I used proper grammar, and were my tenses consistent?

    9) Did I formulate clear arguments and substantiate all of my claims with clear and concrete examples?

    10) Did I avoid sweeping generalizations and vague assertions?

    11) Did I use casual colloquial language in my formal research paper? If so, find more precise ways to describe the point being made.

    12) Did I use scholarly research sources such as peer-reviewed journal articles, scholarly articles and books rather than sources such as blogs, Wikipedia, encyclopedias etc (that are not acceptable sources for a formal research paper).

    13) Did I properly cite quotes and summaries of other people's intellectual property (footnotes and in-text citations)?

    14) Did I avoid excessive biographical information about the artist? Instead I should only include biographical information that is directly relevant to their artistic practice.

    15) Would anyone reading my paper understand what I am trying to convey, or do I need to more clearly define the scope of my research and ultimately the point of my paper?

    16) Did I place the pictures at the end of my paper? If I embedded them in the text, I need to remove them and place them at the end of my paper.

    17) Did I remember to put my name, perm number and section time on my paper?

    18) Did I remember to frequently save, backup and email drafts of my paper to myself (just in case my computer crashes)?

    19) When I had questions, or needed help, did I reach out to my TA, professor or CLAS?

    GENERAL TIPS ON WRITING YOUR PAPER:

    1) The selection of a good thesis and supporting examples is an important part of producing a good paper. Be selective. The paper is about how to look closely at works of art and how your evaluation of objects and images is expanded by the specific context in which they are presented.

    2) Write primarily with nouns and verbs. Avoid unnecessary (especially vague and imprecise) adjectives and adverbs.

    3) Revise and rewrite. Proofread your work. Do not rely solely on "spell check."

    4) Use the dictionary to refer to words you do not fully understand.

    5) Do not overstate, or excessively use qualifiers (such as very, rather, little, etc.).

    6) Use orthodox diction and accurate spelling. ("Its" is possessive; "It's" is a contraction for "it is," "Its' " doesn't exist. "Their" is possessive, "They're" is a contraction of "they are," There is declarative).

    7) Be clear. Make references clearly. (Do not use the word "this" as the subject of a sentence).

    8) Do not let your opinions get in the way of your writing.

    9) Avoid using Wikipedia, blogs, newspaper articles and other materials that are not scholarly. These ARE NOT research materials for a formal research paper.

    10) Get to the point quickly. Concentrate on quality of writing not quantity of words.

    11) For help with formatting MLA and Chicago citations, visit Purdue Owlhttps://owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_owl.html

    For help writing the paper contact CLAS at 893-3269. They have a writing lab that will help you with papers, and will even proofread your papers. They also offer help specifically to students for whom English is a second language. CLAS site: http://www.clas.sa.ucsb.edu/

    Wednesday, June 21, 2023

    Art 1A Museum Field Trips Summer Session A

    This quarter we have two spectacular field trips planned. Our first field trip is to the Getty Center on Saturday, July 8 and the second field trip is to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) on Saturday, July 22. There are simply too many important exhibitions between these two museums that are relevant to Art 1A, therefore we will have two field trips. These field trips are all day events, and they are in lieu of the lectures that week. Sections are scheduled as planned. These field trips are a mandatory part of Art 130 (since the class meetings take place at the museums), and therefore you should only take the class this session if you are able to attend.

    A FEW TIPS TO PREPARE FOR OUR FIELD TRIPS:

    1) Be sure that you have our emails with you! If you arrive late, you want to be able to find us at the museum. However, try to leave early so that you arrive on time, because reception isn't good in all parts of the museums, and you may be waiting a long time before we see your email.

    2) I would suggest eating a big breakfast since we won't be taking a break for lunch until later in the day. Furthermore, pack snacks for the road, and for lunch, unless you want to treat yourself to food at the museum.

    3) If you are driving from Santa Barbara, be sure to give yourself at least two hours to drive to LA. You never know what kind of traffic that you will encounter.

    4) Wear comfortable shoes and clothing! We will be doing a lot of walking and hiking up stairs, so you want to be very comfortable.

    5) Charge your phone since you will want to take a lot of pictures at the museum.

    FIELD TRIP #1: Getty Center on Saturday, July 8 

    FIELD TRIP #2: LACMA on Saturday, July 22

    MANDATORY LIABILITY WAIVERS (PLEASE FILL OUT ALL OF THEM TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR ALL OF THE FIELD TRIPS):

    The Getty Center Liability Waiver (CLICK HERE)

    LACMA Liability Waiver (CLICK HERE)

    Students must submit the liability waiver form for each trip, and will not receive free admission without them. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    FIELD TRIP #1 ON SATURDAY, JULY 8: THE GETTY CENTER AT 1:00PM:

    Students must submit the liability waiver form, and will not receive free admission to LACMA without it. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    We will be meeting at 1:00PM on the museum side of the tram drop off (shown above). If you are carpooling (2 or more Art 1A & Art 130 students in a single vehicle), then you are eligible to receive free parking, otherwise you must pay $20.00 for parking. Only Art 1A & Art 130 students are eligible for free parking.

    The Getty Center
    1200 Getty Center Dr.
    Los Angeles, CA 90049
    Parking and Transportation Information HERE

    FIELD TRIP #2 ON SATURDAY, JULY 22: LACMA AT 12:30PM

    Students must submit the liability waiver form, and will not receive free admission to LACMA without it. If you show up to the museum without having done this, you will have to pay full admission and you will not legally be recognized as part of the UCSB Department of Art field trip. If you have difficulty filling out your DocuSign Liability Waiver, then email your professor and our Undergraduate Advisor, Catherine Jenks: arts-undergraduate@ucsb.edu

    MEETING AT LACMA:

    We will meet at LACMA at the Wilshire Blvd. entrance next to the ticket office and Chris Burden's Urban Light sculpture (shown picture above) at 12:30PM on Saturday, July 22. LACMA will be providing us with free admission to the museum.

    IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION: LACMA’s first priority is the health and safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers. Masks continue to be recommended indoors for everyone. Maintaining some health and safety protocols remains critical to provide a safe environment for staff, volunteers, and visitors of all ages, including those with compromised health and families with children who cannot be vaccinated. These protocols are in place to help protect against the spread of COVID-19. 

    Please read all guidelines HERE before your visit. https://www.lacma.org/plan-your-visit

    5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036
    Phone: (323) 857-6010
    Parking costs $20.00 per vehicle, and it is not part of our free admission.