Project # 4: United by Video

Posted on November 14, 2010 by admin

United by Video: Project Description

United by Video is an experimental thirteen-piece video installation that connects Canada’s provinces and territories by a continuous live video stream for a period of 48-hours.  The installation explores issues concerning surveillance and Canadian identity. Due to the size of Canada, the average Canadian will not experience or visit the entire country during their lifetime.  United by Video aims to break down these geographical barriers by providing an interactive and engaging method of visual communication.

Individuals are captured on camera multiple times on a daily basis.  What happens when a camera is placed in a populous area that broadcasts users live across the country?  How do individuals interact with each other over a video stream?  Are Canadians that live near the American border comfortable in communicating with Canadians that live in the North?  These are questions that United by Video aims to explore.

The video installation will be set up on populous street corners in the capitals of each province and territory in Canada.  Each location will have it’s own video wall and high-definition camera to capture the location.  Individuals will approach the wall and interact with fellow Canadians that are visible on the screen.  Since there are thirteen capitals in Canada, the users will be able to see all thirteen locations on the video wall, including their own location.  This will allow for users in Toronto to interact with other users in Iqaluit, Charlottetown, and Regina for example.

I intend to place these video feeds at the SAW Gallery in Ottawa, where I currently hold gallery space.  At the gallery, individuals will examine and explore what is taking place at that specific moment in each province and territory in Canada.

While the installation will examine how individuals interact with strangers over a live video feed, it is also experimental in that it will have no formal structure.  Users can approach the camera and interact with the video screen and other Canadians in anyway they please.  They may simply wave to each other, perhaps they may dance or make faces – users can interact with the installation as they see fit.

The video streams will contain no audio, as I would like users to interact with one another in visual forms rather than in spoken words.  We commonly associate video with audio, especially when we communicate with video feeds over the Internet.  Applications like Skype and Messenger allow for simple two-way communication online, where two users will engage in conversation over live video and audio feeds.  This is very limiting, as only two people can see each other at any given time.

I aim to explore this limited method of conversation by opening the live video stream to all corners of Canada.  This project will allow for Canadians to connect and interact with one another simultaneously – and the ways in which they communicate will explore notions of surveillance, visual communication and Canadian culture.

United by Video: Work Samples

Sample # 1
-Title: Video Sample1.mp4
-Production medium: High-definition video
-Format: CD-ROM
-Running time: 0:30
-Completion date: Nov. 14th 2010

This video sample includes layout of the video in the gallery, and demonstrates the overall size of the installation.

The installation will be set up in a very similar fashion to what is depicted in the video. Note that the projected video will be live streams from the cameras placed around Canada.

Sample # 2
-Title: Video Sample2.mp4
-Production medium: High-definition video
-Format: CD-ROM
-Running time: 0:30
-Completion date: Nov. 14th 2010

This video is a sample of how the feeds will be displayed on the installations placed around popular locations in capital cities.

The projected video will be arranged in the exact layout that is visible in the video sample.  The bottom video will display the location in which the installation is placed.

Please find the installation mockup photos on the attached CD-ROM.

United by Video: Budget

Subsistence: This project can be done from my home. I will not require a subsistence grant for this project, as I will incur all living costs and necessary arrangements.

Equipment and space rental: United by Video requires multiple pieces of technology and equipment.  The total of $7832.62 includes:

-14 Outdoor television screens ($5062.40) – Park AV Rentals
-13 Canon T1i SLR Cameras w/ video ($989.69) – Headshot Rentals
-14 extension cords ($252.84) – Park AV Rentals
-13 Acer Aspire 64X2 Dual Code laptops ($1469.00) – Park AV Rentals
-1 iMac for handling video feeds ($58.69) – VernonTech

Server space to handle the video exchanges has already been purchased and will run off of personal server space.  The applications needed (Quicktime Player and Quicktime Streaming Server) are free applications that do not require costs to operate.

As I already have gallery space, I will not require funding to carry any gallery-related costs.

Technical experimentation: All experimentation and development will be accomplished using the equipment noted above.  Should any costs arise, I have allocated funding for any unknown/emergency costs.

Training or professional development costs: I am very familiar with the above technology and equipment. I have also secured volunteers in each capital city who are fellow video artists and are familiar with the equipment.  Should any training issues arise, the unknown/emergency costs will carry this expense.

Professional fees/honoraria: I will not be hiring technical assistants of any kind, as volunteers will help with the production of this project as noted above.

Travel costs: I will not be travelling to any of the capital city locations unless an emergency or large technical problem should arise.  I have budgeted $2000.00 in travel costs if this were to occur.

Production costs: Since this video installation is completely live, no editing, filming, or production costs will arise.

Promotion costs: I have allocated $520.00 for promotional materials. This money will be used to print out title and description signs for each of all fourteen video installations.

Other project costs: I have allocated $2000.00 for any unknown costs that may arise over the course of the project’s development.

Grant requested from Canada Council for the Arts: I have requested a $13,000 grant, which will cover all costs noted above.  The total budget for this project is $12,852.62

United by Video: Resume

Film and Video Work
2010 Mountains. Calgary, Alberta. Video – High Definition. 2:20.
2010 Minnewanka. Banff, Alberta. Video – High Definition. 2:24.
2010 Nose. Calgary, Alberta. Video – High Definition. 0:55.
2010 Bragg Creek. Bragg Creek, Alberta. Video – High Definition. 3:15.
2009 The Naked Eye. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – High Definition. 5:42.
2009 Thanksgiving Weekend. Sturgeon Falls, Ontario. Video – High Definition. 1:58.
2009 The Waterfront. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – High Definition. 2:18.
2009 Synchronization. Toronto, Ontario. Video – High Definition. 4:34.
2009 Melted. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – High Definition. 0:28.
2009 On Acid. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – Standard Definition. 0:39.
2008 Subverting Expectations. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – Standard Definition. 1:03.
2008 Starving Artists. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – Standard Definition. 5:01.
2008 Stealing Music is a Crime. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – Standard Definition. 0.55.
2008 Online Romance. Hamilton, Ontario. Video – Standard Definition. 1:31.

Exhibitions
2010 Drum Table (with Daryl Spong). Communication Studies and Multimedia FRESH Symposium. Hamilton, Ontario.

2009 Melted: Melting Magnets to Death. Communication Studies and Multimedia FRESH Symposium. Hamilton, Ontario.

2009 Synchronization (with Daryl Spong, Daniel Esposto). The European Media Art Festival. Osnabrueck, Germany.

Publications
2009 Melted: Melting Magnets to Death. The McMaster Journal of Communication. Hamilton, Ontario. Currently under review.

2009 Hindering Creativity: The Production and Circulation of Player-Generated Content. The McMaster Journal of Communication. Hamilton, Ontario. Currently under review.

Design
2009 Art Editor. Text Technology: The Journal of Computer Text Processing, Volumes 15 and 16.

Presentations
2008 Jakob Nielsen & Usability Engineering (with Daryl Spong). Introduction to Digital Media for the Humanities, McMaster University. Hamilton, Ontario.

Awards
2009 Communication Studies and Multimedia FRESH Student Symposium Award. McMaster University. Hamilton, Ontario.

Media Arts Training
Master of Arts (MA), Communication & New Media.
McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. 2011.

Bachelor of Arts (Hons BA). Communication Studies & Multimedia.
McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. 2010.

Media Arts Teaching
2011 Introduction: Culture & Communication, Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.
2010 Multimedia & Digital Society. Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.
2010 The Digital Image, Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.
2009 Multimedia & Digital Society. Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.
2009 The Digital Image, Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.
2008 Multimedia & Digital Society. Teaching Assistant. McMaster University.

Video Sample1

Video Sample2

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Project # 3: Facebook_Defaced

Posted on November 2, 2010 by admin

This series of prints titled Facebook_Defaced is meant to represent myself and how I socialize and connect with people online using Facebook. The three pieces contain elements all of the information I’ve shared online, starting from when I registered an account in early September 2o06, and ending late October 2010.  Using Facebook’s ability to download all of the data you’ve put on their network, I placed all of the Facebook wall posts, comments, and all of the messages I’ve ever sent and received into word clouds.  The clouds contain the 1000 most popular words found on my 4-year old Facebook account and are ranked by frequency.  The number beside the words indicate how many times that word was said or received in a message.

The photo collage contains the 625 photos that I’ve posted on Facebook. The photos look fairly new, as I have only recently been uploading my photos to the network.

The assignment asked for a digital graph – and while these pieces aren’t technically ‘graphs’, I feel that they strongly represent my online, Facebook identity.  They also speak to online privacy issues, as the ability to download received messages may be pervasive.

Print Size: (2) 40 x 18 inches & (1) 32 x 17 inches.

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Project # 2: Broken Reflections

Posted on October 12, 2010 by admin

This self-portrait collage titled Broken Reflections comprises of 13 images which have been edited and shaped in Photoshop. The collage contains film photographs my mother took when I was young as well as recent (digital) photos I have taken of myself. The left side of the collage resembles a broken mirror which is meant to represent an unfortunate death that occurred in my family while I was 4 years old. The other aspects of the collage represent how this has shaped me as a young man – which is up to you to interpret.

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Project # 1 Photos

Posted on September 26, 2010 by admin

These 15 photos have been taken in Hamilton, On. I decided to shoot this project with a Nikon D90 DSLR. I feel most comfortable shooting with this camera than by any other means. I attempted to complete this project by shooting with a Cell-phone. I quickly realized that cell-phone photography is simply not representative of who I am and cannot produce the quality of photos that I am used to. The images are typically grainy, low-resolution, and are unable to reveal the true colour or depth of what I would like to capture. I also enjoy editing photos, and shooting in RAW format gives you much more settings to experiment with.

These photos are meant to represent my new surroundings downtown, which I am still getting used to after living in Westdale for 3 years.

Two musicians play their drums at the James Street North Supercrawl. The art crawl features a lot of unusual art pieces and people.

These rows of mailboxes were dirty and old, some of them broken. Eventually mailboxes like these ones will serve no purpose, as all mail will eventually be sent by digital means.

This Hunter Street tunnel looks scary from the street, but once you’ve passed through the entrance the graffiti really brightens it up. I usually think of graffiti as having no purpose.

I walked through an alleyway and found a bird that looked as if it had died within the past few days. I decided to take a photo as I realized that soon this bird will decompose into nothing. Photography, in this case, serves as a way to capture particular moments in time.

Hamilton has a lot of old buildings that are old and falling apart. Its difficult to imagine that this abandoned building was once bustling with activity.

Doors are interesting objects to take photos of. I liked how the black graffiti jumps off of the white paint and the alarm in the top left corner. The alarm makes me wonder what is behind the door.

I’m not sure anyone actually uses pay-phones anymore. Pay-phones would be much more interesting if they came equipped with all the gadgets that today’s cell-phones have. What would pay-phones be like if we could use them to text our friends, shoot HD video and surf the web? Would they be used more?

According to emblem on the sign, these signs were designed in 1996. For something that is fourteen years old they still seem modern to me. Photography, on the other hand, is always modern because the technology used to produce photos and the mediums used to display them are constantly changing.

The headline in the top right corner reads “Work together to create jobs”. If the City of Hamilton worked together to create jobs, perhaps this shop owner wouldn’t have to cover the front of his store with Newspaper. The comic strips on the top left add subtle humour to this photo.

This novel was probably a terrible read which is why it was left as garbage alongside Hughson Street. Similar to the bird, this novel will eventually blend in with the dirt beneath it.

Steel, like photography, can be timeless. It isn’t going anywhere and it lasts a very long time. These stairs are in the middle of the bush at the end of James Street South.

A wood fence meets concrete bricks. I like the contrast between the clean white and the painted grey.

A full moon shines on a painted moon projected onto the side of a building at the Hamilton Supercrawl.

I don’t take photos that have people in the frame very often. Although this building is in terrible shape, the people on the third floor somehow make it look newer.

Getting a great photo usually results from being in the right place at the right time with a bit of luck. Photos represent a distinct moment in time that will never occur again. I like this clock, but I took the battery out of it because I can’t stand the ticking sound.

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