CAS 100 - Salt Stories

Class contribution to SUPERFUND 265

2008-06-18T12:46:00.000-04:00

http://transition.turbulence.org/Works/superfund/week11.html

final art example of the semester

2007-12-07T11:21:00.000-05:00

http://www.matthewkeeney.com/finished/bills.html

do not send me a .wps or docx

2007-12-07T08:47:00.000-05:00

If .docx or .wps are the defaults for your word processor, please save your document as .RTF (rich-text-format).

week 15: last week of classes

2007-11-30T08:31:00.000-05:00

Sunday 2 December 6PM BLOG POST
HW: POST the following to your blog:

to-do list
point person for each task
draft project proposal to the blog. Each member will post an IDENTICAL, group-authored document. This means you have to find a time to meet over the weekend. This should be a short essay that serves as a script for the presentation you will give in class. It will be the text that you read to the class, including notes about when and where you will present audio visual information. Make sure to indicate who will be presenting each section, keeping in mind that each group member needs to hold equal responsibility for the project. Your proposal should include information from the creative brief, but it will provide more elaborate, complex, and refined answers.

Monday 3 December
NO CLASS - WORK DAY! Take this opportunity to meet with your group members to prepare your presentations for Wednesday.

Wednesday 5 December
HW: Prepare a 5-min excerpt from your presentation of images and other information about your project for the class to give you feedback. This will be graded. ALSO: You will turn in the handout questions from last Friday.
in-class: in-process critiques of your project presentations

Friday 7 December: last day of classes!
HW: Bring WRITING PORTFOLIO:
1- Hard copies (ie physical/paper copies) of essay 1 & 2, BOTH VERSIONS along with all associated ROUGH DRAFTS and other materials that were in your submission packets.
2- Digital copies of essay 1, 2, 3! This can be on a flash drive, CD-R, or emailed to me by the start of class.
Do not give me .docx files, I will not be able to open them. They should be .doc or .txt or .rtf

These materials are being collected to evaluate the CAS 100 program. Everything will be
returned to you, along with essay 3, on our presentation days next week.

in-class: group work day and group meetings with FT

* Group assessment from PDF - LINK
We will do this before the presentations. FHT will bring snacks.

Wednesday 12 December 7:15-9:15 PM PRESENTATIONS for 9:30 section
Thursday 13 December 2:45-4:45 PM PRESENTATIONS for 11:40 section

examples from your classmates

2007-11-28T12:37:00.000-05:00

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE.

The computer graphic of the lake is an eye-catching data visualization from Rachael, Matt, and Justin. It works best for getting information across in a simple, engaging manner, and could be supplemented by another more traditional chart showing more concrete statistics and "hard facts".

The hand-made timeline from Courtney, Tim, and Amy works with use of color and simple drawings.

Earthworks

2007-11-28T09:10:00.000-05:00

http://www.earthworks.org/links.html

Nancy Holt, The Sun Tunnels
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5500934
http://www.clui.org/clui_4_1/ludb/sites/UT3126.html

Walter De Maria, The Lightening Field
http://www.lightningfield.org/

James Turrell, Roden Crater
http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/turrell/clip1.html
http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2001/feb/010208.turrell.html

Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4464074
http://www.robertsmithson.com/

helpful links for WED HW

2007-11-26T12:02:00.000-05:00

Be creative with your data! It's OK to try unusual methods that you might not normally see in statistics or science texts. See the links below for ideas:

http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html
a thorough collection of examples of different kinds of charts, tables, and other data visualization

http://www.neoformix.com/
you can use this person's software apps to make your graphic!

http://infosthetics.com/
a blog about data visualization

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/geo/community_geography/index.html
SU Community Geography site. We looked at a bus shelter map in class.

final project info

2007-11-16T08:56:00.001-05:00

http://docs.google.com/View?docid=d32wwqt_23dz6q94

week 13-14: SF365, thanks, visuals

2007-11-14T15:31:00.000-05:00

homework for Monday 19 November:
Work on material for SF365, which will feature Onondaga Lake on Saturday 17 November. You will need to find a time to meet with your groups to do the following:

HW 1: required for all groups by the beginning of class Monday
Only one person from your group should do this, so there isn't repetition. Make captions!

Post images from Onondaga Lake to the SF365 site. Each group should be posting 3 images. Only one person from your group should do this, so there isn't repetition.
http://transition.turbulence.org/Works/superfund/upload.php
ONONDAGA LAKE ID is NYD986913580

HW 2: extra credit by the beginning of class Monday
Only one of your group members needs to post the newsletter to their blog. Include all the authors' names and works cited list.

Brooke Singer of Superfund 365 writes: I would like to use my weekly SF365 email on this Onondaga site. The email blast goes out to over 100 people including some EPA and Clinton folks. I think it would be great to have it authored by students. The past few weeks I have both used the email blast to describe the place and history of sites as well as conduct interviews or cover press events. Here are some examples of past email reports sent to the mailing list:

http://transition.turbulence.org/Works/superfund/week8.html
http://transition.turbulence.org/Works/superfund/week5.html
http://transition.turbulence.org/Works/superfund/week7.html

Each group will compile information from their essays, editing together the best excerpts to make the finished product. Please check the links to get a sense of the previous reports, and keep in mind the mission and perspective of the organization for whom you are writing. If you haven't checked out the SF365 site, you should do that and discuss with your group. Here is an excerpt that will give you a sense of their point of view:

Without a robust trust fund, Superfund not only translates into a burden for taxpayers but is weakened politically. The program today is more like a Band-Aid than a remedy. The EPA, without financial or political power, is hard pressed to take care of the worst cases of contamination that threaten human health and the environment across the U.S.

I will ask Brooke to choose the best report from each class. The members of this group will receive an extra 6 points on the CONTENT score for essay 2. Everyone who submits will get 3 extra points.

Monday 19 November: in-class work on final project - CHOOSE SITE
in-class: 1-Choose the site with your group. 2-Brainstorm with your group about the project to create a list of issues or topics the project might address, as well as forms it might take.

THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY

Monday 26 November
HW: read KWON Chapter 3: Sitings of Public Art: Integration Versus Intervention and contemplate possibilities for the group project
in-class: quiz on Kwon Chapter 3 and work day on the project. DO NOT MISS CLASS. This quiz cannot be rescheduled for those who are absent.
Your group will narrow down topics for the project. Each group must choose a different "inspiration" project from other groups in the class.

Wednesday 28 November
HW: Create a group-authored VISUAL representation about some information that relates to your project. (Onondaga Lake Park OR Armory Square). See the Superfund 365 site for an example of how an artist has used data visualization (graphs, charts, maps) to present information. For example, if your project is about the lack of public phones in Armory Square, then use the map to indicate the location of existing public phones. If your project is about the the history and future of recreation at Onondaga Lake Park, make a timeline of events or mark all the spots that used to be swimming access points.
in-class: final screening

Friday 30 November
HW: Each person in your group should bring printed copies of an INDIVIDUAL creative brief for their group mates and POST it to the blog.
Don't work on this together. You will share your ideas together in class.
The creative brief will provide short answers to the following questions:

What is the project about?
Describe what FORM the project will take.
Why do you want to work in the location you have chosen?
What is the history of the site?
Why is this site particularly appropriate for the project?
Is this project an integration or an intervention, and why?
Will you get permission to work in the site?
How does the piece disrupt OR fit in with the surroundings?
Name at least one artist project that we have looked at this semester that inspired your project and explain why your project is related.
What are the goals & objectives of the project?
How will you measure success for your project?
Profile the target audience. Who are they? What do they care about? What are their expected reactions?
How do you want your audience to interact with your project?

Urban Video Project

2007-11-12T20:11:00.000-05:00

Blake, Christopher, and Colin from Avalanche Collective
have an event this Thursday!

The Urban Video Project (UVP) will present "Perte de Signal," its sixth volume of outdoor multimedia projections, on Thursday, Nov. 15, from 6–9 p.m. at 444 E. Genesee St. (across from the Fayette Firefighter's Memorial Park). The projections will take place regardless of weather conditions.The screening is part of the fall season of UVP, which features international artists and coincides with the fall evenings of Th3: A City-Wide Art Open, which is held on the third Thursday of each month.

ESSAY 3 : GRADING RUBRIC

2007-11-09T18:31:00.000-05:00

BIG QUESTION I will be asking when I look at your papers:
WHAT SIGNIFICANT CHANGES HAVE YOU MADE SINCE THE FRIDAY DRAFT?

Grading Rubric:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=d32wwqt_21d3cb2r

Reminder about how to format your paper here:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=d32wwqt_20hts4vd&hl=en

Please note: I am asking you to get a revision from someone outside of our class. This can be your dorm mate, your friend, a stranger in the coffee shop. If your family is in town this weekend, get them to read your paper. Your editor will need to WRITE DOWN their questions and comments on the paper.

week 12: final project intro, Tucker, Walker PDF

2007-11-09T17:13:00.000-05:00

Monday 12 November
HW: paper due in Tolley 301 by 4pm SHARP
in-class: screening

Wednesday 14 November
Daniel Tucker of AREA Chicago will speak to our class about his work.
HW: Browse Daniel's website. Read "Inheriting the Grid #1" on how Daniel decided to start the magazine AREA. Write ONE comment and ONE question on a separate piece of paper with your name. I will collect these at the beginning of class for Daniel to address after his talk.

Friday 16 November
HW: Read http://media.walkerart.org/pdf/walker_4c_map.pdf
Think about the projects we have seen and heard about in our class. Designate a project for each of the major categories outlined by the map: convenor, container, connector, catalyst.
in-class: first group work session for the final project

RED ALERT

2007-11-09T10:40:00.001-05:00

Do not discard the Ononondaga Lake essay packet. You will need to turn it in again at the end of the semester.

Submission check list for essay 3 and next week's schedule will be posted later today.

writing exercises

2007-11-09T08:55:00.000-05:00

ABSTRACT ASSERTIONS -> CONCRETE DETAILS
Re-write these sentences so that they include more concrete and detailed language.

* It was a great party; everybody had fun.
* The film was very interesting.
* Social security is not an entitlement.
* He became extraordinarily angry.

WRITING A MORE COMPLEX THESIS
Notice how by the final version of this thesis, it becomes clear that the idea is primarily about the men's roles in film, as compared to the women's roles.

DRAFT:
Women in contemprorary films are represented as being more sensitive than men.

REVISIONS:
Although women cry more readily in contemporary films, the men, by not crying, seem to win the audience's favor.

The complications that fuel the plots in today's romantic comedies arise because women and men express their sensitivity so differently; the resolutions, however, rarely require men to capitulate.

A spate of recent films has witnessed the emergence of a new "womanly" man as hero, and not surprisingly, his tender qualities seem to be the reason he attracts the female love interest.

QUALIFYING OVERSTATED CLAIMS
Re-write these thesis statements:

* Welfare encourages recipients not to work.
* Herbal remedies are better than pharmaceutical ones.

STYLE
What is the difference between these 2 sentences?

DRAFT: The history of Indochina is marked by colonial exploitation as well as international cooperation.
REVISION: The history of Indochina, although marked by colonial exploitation, testifies to the possibilities of international cooperation.

DRAFT: The president's attitude towards military spending is ambiguous.
REVISION: The president's attitude toward military spending is ambivalent.

These examples are from Writing Analytically by Rossenwasser & Stephen

Winning Writing

2007-11-07T17:44:00.000-05:00

Today in class we looked at a good example of STRATEGY 6: attending to the language of your sources, and detailed description of a project. Here are other examples of strong passages from your classmates in different categories:

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PIECE
Don't forget to integrate analysis with this. Ask yourself: what does this DO for the piece, what are the IMPLICATIONS? See bold below.

Soon, slow tinkling music slows the action as Kashmere zooms in on the one violent act that unites them all, the slashing of Valery's ankle. The scene freezes, the tinkling music continues, the picture blurs and Kashmere's narrative with the many questions continues. In his narrative, Brett Kashmere explains his own childhood history as the tinkling bells music plays. The tinkling bells make the atmosphere seem mysterious and dark. It shocks viewers and promotes more questions from the mysterious feelings it evokes, while further enhancing the negative thoughts concerning the hockey violence in the film. JASON WANG

STRATEGY 3: PUT YOUR SOURCES IN CONVERSATION WITH ONE ANOTHER

In a work titled Code 33 police and young people of color came together in order to try and increase understanding between the two, in a relationship that is often marked by violence and misunderstandings due to pre-existing stereotypes (Kester 183). The project brought the two groups together in a series of extended conversations so that the police and youths might be more understanding of each other. In this sense Deller’s project has much of the same intentions as the work in California. Although the original intention of Deller was simply to re-create this historical event in order to present a fair side of the story, the end result became much more. By taking part in the reenactment and working side by side the mine workers and police officers were able to discuss and put to rest any lasting feelings of negativity that might have remained from the conflict. MIKE LEFKO

STRATEGY 4: FIND YOUR OWN ROLE IN THE CONVERSATION. In this short passage, the student author brings her knowledge of pop culture into the essay:

funk serves as the “beacon of youth culture” for the black community, just as Madonna or Molly Ringwald are iconic to white popular culture (Tillotson 1).
and later...
just as funk music sings about controversial topics that appear “sexually threatening” and “culturally intrusive”, Rap music today speaks of violence, drug abuse and female objectification (Piper 133). LAUREN JOFFE

INTRODUCE THE READER TO THE LARGER CONCEPTS

Artists are no longer historians but philosophers as well. They attempt to understand the problems of society and solve them through public forms of artwork, which has completely altered the spectrum and purpose of art. In many cases, the audience actually participates in the formation of the art, becoming subjects instead of just viewers (Kwon 117). BLAIR DUDIK

...Throughout the twentieth century many artists are moving away from that general misconception with new genres of art emerging throughout the century, such as avant-garde, “dialogic”, public and participatory art. These new genres of art have been focusing mainly on the conversation, participation or ideas from the general public to create the definition for the pieces of work. What clearly has arrived is that art is considered in a much wider array of forms then we previously believed. TIM KIANKA

STRATEGY 6: ATTEND CAREFULLY TO LANGUAGE BY QUOTING OR PARAPHRASING

Piper has “been doing pieces the significance and experience of which is defined as completely as possible by the viewer’s reaction and interpretation. Ideally the work has no meaning or independent existence outside of its function as a medium of change” (Kester 69). In other words, there is no real intent with many of Piper’s art projects. The defining aspect of her works depend entirely on the audiences interpretation and reaction. PIERSON TRIMARCHI

drop-in hours for essay feedback

2007-11-07T11:20:00.000-05:00

WED 12:45-5:30
THURS+FRI are open by appointment, please email me

art, antagonism, and strategy #4

2007-11-07T11:15:00.000-05:00

Many of you are writing about why an artist project would be so antagonistic to its audience, and why the artists are so critical of their audience. Consider why and how comedians like Chris Rock or Dave Chappelle make jokes about white people. Consider this quote about comedian Richard Pryor, as the author compares him to Bill Cosby. You may see the original article here:
http://www.popmatters.com/film/features/051215-richardpryor.shtml

But for all of those black performers who sought to make themselves palatable to whites, there were other examples of folk, who poet and Miles Davis biographer Quincy Troupe describes as "unreconstructed"; folk who never sought to remix blackness for white comfort or consumption. While such "unreconstructed-ness" is largely a myth -- we all capitulate to the so-called "white gaze" in one form of another to gain access to institutions we deem important to our well being -- it helped create mythic icons, which became synonymous with not dancing the dance of racial ingratiation. Miles Davis is the most visible example of this.

Think about expanding your thinking about these projects to pop culture that you know: music, movies, comedy, tv.

quote integration & project description exercise

2007-11-07T09:16:00.000-05:00

1- the good: PAYING CAREFUL ATTENTION TO LANGUAGE (strategy 6)
the bad: using generalizing language and evaluative assumptions

When asked to describe his intentions for the film, Kashmere starts by stating that “One intention was to present a revisionist history of Canada-Soviet Summit Series, which is now so ingrained in the national mythology" (Kashmere). The use of the word revisionist is interesting in this context because the issue that Kashmere’s film tackles is not cut and dry. Correlation between violence and hockey can be sensibly argued from both sides of the issue. JORDAN LYNDAKER

FT's comment: This is a good point for analysis, to focus on his language and the use of the word "revisionist". But then your language becomes generalizing ("cut and dry") and you make evaluative assumptions ("sensibly argued") that only serve to weaken your point.

2- HAVE YOU DESCRIBED YOUR PROJECT?

The confection was a simple chocolate bar with almonds enveloped in a mustard yellow wrapper with navy blue and white detailing. The workers of the union designed the wrapper, placing the union’s logo on the right of the old-fashioned paper wrapper. Behind the script name of the candy bar is an American Flag, waving just behind the “We” of “We Got It!.” In the actual packaging, the cardboard is an Irish green with the yellow and red faces of actual union workers. They are holding a giant “We Got It!” banner, and above it reads “Now You Get It! (Sperandio). COURTNEY ALLESSIO

Did she get it right? What other details could she have added? Click HERE to find out.

When you describe your project, describe any visual evidence you have of the piece. Even if it's just one photograph, this is the documentation that represents the piece for the whole world to remember it by, so it holds a very important place and it serves as the only visual evidence about how people know about a project.

If you have the luxury of watching a film or video, make sure to pay attention to the sound, the editing, the voice-over, the music. All these are FORMAL elements, that when described precisely, can help you to pull out interesting observations and analysis. You can use these details as quotes, in the same way that you quote from a book or article.

useful essay 3 links

2007-11-06T16:11:00.000-05:00

I will add to this post as I continue commenting on your blogs. Check back soon for more.

damali ayo
audio piece: Living Flag: LINK to MP3

How does this compare to the YouTube video?
How is the title of the piece connected to her project?

Note that ayo spells her name in all lower case.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Gabriel Gomez-Pena/Coco Fusco

Check out this piece from a show called Radio Diaries. Click on the photo to hear the MP3.
http://radiodiariespodcast.blogspot.com/2007/05/pygmy-in-zoo.html

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Jeremy Deller

He won the Turner Prize, one of the top art prizes in the UK.
Here's is more info from the Tate Britain museum website: LINK

A profile on Deller in The Guardian newspaper: LINK

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Yes Men

Some clips are on-line, but if you are writing about this it would help you to watch the whole movie. Ask me for my copy.

In this interview with Bill Moyers, they address the ethics of their projects: LINK

The Yes Men, like Ayo and Fusco/Gomez-Pena, use INVSIBLE THEATER, a concept developed by Augusto Boal: http://www.communityarts.net/readingroom/archivefiles/1999/12/glossary_of_ter_1.php

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

damali ayo, Adrian Piper , Gabriel Gomez-Pena/Coco Fusco

White people and hip-hop: a radio podcast
http://www.addictedtorace.com/?p=136
This is an interview with the author of a book that's in the SU library collection:
Other people's property : a shadow history of hip-hop in white America - Jason Tanz

another interesting book in the SU library collection:
Why white kids love hip-hop : wankstas, wiggers, wannabes, and the new reality of race in America - Bakari Kitwana

http://www.wiretapmag.org/race/43254/
suggested by Justin Arena

What is white privilege? What does white privilege have to do with reparations?
Please see this:
http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~rjensen/freelance/whiteprivilege.htm

It is linked from here: http://whiteprivilege.com
The NPR story at the top of the blog is a really good example.

Please also see the big project from Brown University, acknowledging their connection to the slave trade. Even though people who go to school and teach at Brown may not be directly descended from slave owners, they still benefit from the fact that this slave-trading family left the money to build their school.
http://www.brown.edu/Research/Slavery_Justice/

What if you consider that this whole country was built on the profits of the slave trade?

Acknowledging the profits American society has made from slavery is happening on a city-wide level as well. It's called the Slavery-Era Disclosure Ordinance:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/62902

Here is an another project all about Chicago's Slavery-Era Disclosure Ordinance made by Keith and Mendi Obadike, who's Ebay project we looked at before:
http://bighouse.northwestern.edu/

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Adrian Piper

Cornered was a video installation, here is documentation on Google Video: http://tinyurl.com/2a8qoj

Dave Chappelle on reparations

2007-11-06T13:49:00.000-05:00

http://www.jibjab.com/view/140957#login_popup

your partners for Wed HW

2007-11-05T08:31:00.000-05:00

* Tim Kianka : Adrian Piper
* Caryn Rothbort : Brett Kashmere

* Courtney Allessio : Grennan & Sperandio
* Nick Taddeo : Adrian Piper

* Jordan Lyndaker : Brett Kashmere
* Cristina Posilovic : Damali Ayo

* Deanna Rose : Damali Ayo
* Michael Lefko : Jeremy Deller

* Max Levitt : Brett Kashmere
* Claire Healey : Haha

* Lauren Glass : Brett Kashmere
* Lauren Joffe : Adrian Piper

* Amy Marisavljevic : Damali Ayo
* Sam Ohashi-White : Jeremy Deller
--------------------------------------------
* Blair Dudik : Coco Fusco & Guillermo Gomez-Pena
* Rachael Datello : The Yes Men

* Alyssa Rogers : Adrian Piper
* Jason Wang : Brett Kashmere

* Justin Arena : Damali Ayo
* Rick Dojan : Brett Kashmere

* Zack Owens : Brett Kashmere
* Matt Conte : Damali Ayo

* Stephanie Musat : Coco Fusco & Guillermo Gomez-Pena
* Pierson Trimarchi : Adrian Piper

week 11: essay 3

2007-11-05T08:20:00.000-05:00

Monday 5 November:
HW: Bring one printed copy of essay 3 to class
Visiting artists Avalanche Collective will speak to our class about their public art projects.

Wednesday 7 November: writing workshop
HW: Bring marked copy of your partner's essay to class. You will be graded on how well you give suggestions to your partner, focusing on content and structure, not just style or grammar tips (though these will help too).

For each quote that the author of the paper (your partner) cites, indicate how the author has used one of the 6 strategies for using resources in Chapter 12. Do this on a separate piece of paper. Write a note about HOW each quote addresses the strategy. If a citation does not address any of the 6, choose one and suggest a way that the author could change the passage.

Friday 9 November: writing workshop
HW: Bring one copy of your revised essay to class. Your essay should be evolving over the course of the week in response to the peer edits and to your own RESEARCH on the art piece.

Monday 12 November:
ESSAY 3 FINAL DUE IN TOLLEY 301 BY 4 PM. 25% of your semester grade.

Remember, you should use TWO of the three course texts and at least TWO outside resources that are journals or books. Websites and videos are allowed in addition to this, but you must have at least 2 print resources.

link to essay 3 criteria

2007-11-01T12:46:00.000-04:00

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=d32wwqt_15gn5m8p

week 10: Kwon and essay 3

2007-10-30T23:23:00.000-04:00

TWO OPTIONS FOR BLOG THIS WEEK!

Each option requires that you read pages 100-120 in Kwon for Monday's class. In this passage, she describes an exhibit called "Culture in Action" in Chicago that featured the following projects:
-Daniel Martinez, VinZula Kara, and the West Side Three-Point Marchers: Consequences of a Gesture and 100 Victories/10,000 Tears
-Simon Grennan and Christopher Sperandio and the Bakery, Confectionary and Tobacco Workers' International Union of America Local No. 552: We Got It!
-Haha and Flood: A Volunteer Network for Active Participation in Healthcare: Flood
-Inigo Manglano-Ovalle and Street-Level Video: Tele Vecindario
-Mark Dion and the Chicago Urban Ecology Action Group: The Chicago Urban Ecology Action Group
-Kate Ericson, Mel Ziegler, and Ogden Court Apartments: Eminent Domain
-Robert Peters and Mushroom Pickers, Ghosts, Frogs and other “Others“: Naming Others: Manufacturing Yourself
I have purposefully not included Suzanne Lacey's Full Circle.

OPTION 1 BLOG, DUE AT 6 pm SUNDAY:
Choose one of these projects and do some brief research so that you have a better idea about it. You may need to find an article in an art journal database or a book in the library. You will need to use an ART database, as you won't have much luck with the history or science databases we used for the last essay. HINT: Kwon also discusses these projects more in her text so you can look into them there.

Then choose a ONE SENTENCE QUOTE from the Kwon reading and use it as a lens for analysis of the project. Remember the strategies we have reviewed from the last Writing Analytically reading. How can you create a conversation between the quote and the project you have chosen? Paraphrase the quote and, if appropriate, use your source to ask a question about the project.

OPTION 2 BLOG, DUE 12 noon THURSDAY:
Attend the Mary Jane Jacob lecture on Tuesday. TAKE NOTES! Write about it in your blog as it relates to a ONE SENTENCE QUOTE from the Kwon reading. You will still need to have the reading completed for Monday's class, but you will have until Thursday to blog about it as it relates to the Tuesday lecture

Monday 29 October:
screening of Couple in a Cage & discussion about "Culture in Action". Bring one question and one comment in your notebook.

Tuesday 30 October 7pm:
Mary Jane Jacob lecture in Arnold M. Grant Auditorium

Wednesday 31 October:
HW: study for Grammar Slammer test
BLOG: Post your subject matter for essay 3 with the following components:
1-CHOOSE the art project your essay will be about
2-TWO questions you have about the project
3-LIST of 4 books or articles (no internet resources) about your subject. You may edit this list later, but for now, you want to investigate the range of possibilities. You don't need to read or print them yet, but you do need to indicate title of the article, journal title, and author.

Thursday 1 November, 12 noon:
OPTION 2 BLOG DUE

Friday 2 November:
BLOG HW: Post an outline for your essay with:
1-TOPIC SENTENCE for each paragraph, in order of appearance. Before you write your topic sentence, make sure you have decided WHAT QUESTION IS THE PARAGRAPH ADDRESSING? Note that each paragraph doesn't need to literally ask a question (you may not have a question mark in sight), nor does it need to literally answer a question, but a question, conundrum, dilemma, or complexity should be at the heart of each paragraph. Can you work with the questions from your last blog entry?
2-2 versions of the THESIS, for beginning and end of your essay. Don't just reword it. HOW WILL IT EVOLVE?
3-ONE QUOTE from 2 of the journals and the 2 textbooks that you plan to use. By this point you should have started reading and reviewing your sources for the essay.

Bunnies, Elephants, Kids

2007-10-29T21:39:00.000-04:00

In class today, Alyssa mentioned the new documentary My Kid Could Paint That. It's a common thing people say when they don't understand the origins of abstract art. Here is the movie trailer about a little girl who's gotten attention for her scribble paintings. LINK

KOMAR and MELAMID are an artist duo interested in questions about what the art world values. They did a piece where they created the "most wanted" paintings for different countries, based on surveys and poll statistics. Here is a link to info about their support of ELEPHANT ART.

And finally, here is a link to the artist who made the transgenic bunny, EDUARDO KAC.

humans on display

2007-10-29T21:13:00.000-04:00

In case you were thinking that the "Couple in a Cage" premise was out of date...
I went to the NY State Fair in early September and made a special visit to the "freak show" booths at the midway. The painted signs outside each stand and the recorded carney voices were the most prominent features. Inside, these human displays had sloppy, effortless exhibits with hazy lighting and covered in dust. Somehow the presentions' nonchalance only served to enhance their offensive premise.

Mary Jane Jacob lecture

2007-10-26T11:59:00.000-04:00

I just learned that Mary Jane Jacob is giving a lecture at 7pm on Tuesday in Grant
Auditorium. She is the curator who chose all the projects in the art show that Kwon writes
about in the reading for Sunday.

If you are able to attend, you may POSTPONE your blog entry to Thursday at 12 noon.
Instead of the original assignment, write about this event as it relates to the reading. If
you decide to do this, you will still need to read for class on Monday.
AND/OR:
Even if you choose to do the regular blog entry for Sunday, you could use this lecture as
a resource for your essay. It could be one of your outside sources, instead of or in
addition to, a book or journal.

Those who can't attend will have their blog entries due at the same time, on Sunday.

This is a really great coincidence that matches perfectly with the reading and essay 3,
so I want to encourage you all to go!

|||||||||||||||||||||||||

Making Space for Art
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
7:00 pm in the Arnold M. Grant Auditorium

Mary Jane Jacob will talk about her projects that encompass artistic, curatorial, public,
and community practices.

Considered a nonconformist among U.S. curators, Jacob has organized such innovative
exhibitions as Places with a Past in Charleston (1991), Culture in Action in
Chicago (1993), Conversations at The Castle in Atlanta (1996), and Evoking History
in Charleston (2001-present). She recently co-edited Buddha Mind in Contemporary
Art (University of California Press, 2004). http://www.maryjanejacob.org/

week 9: CAE, Piper, Ayo, Kashmere

2007-10-17T17:18:00.000-04:00

Sunday 21 October 6 PM BLOG: READ pages 37-46 of "Video and Resistance: Against Documentary" in The Electronic Disturbance by Critical Art Ensemble. (First full paragraph on page 4 to end of page 13 in PDF). LINK to PDF
WRITE: Briefly summarize the authors' (it's an artist group) claims (5 sentences or less). Compare these views to those of Sontag from earlier this semester. LOOK UP and POST an image from one of the projects mentioned in the article: Nanook of the North, Piss Christ, Lumiere Bros., or Birth of a Nation.

Monday 21 October: screening of Jeremy Deller's The Battle of Orgreave and discussion on "Video and Resistance"

Wednesday 23 October: HW: READ Adrian Piper's "Notes on Funk" in Participation 130-134. How does this project compare with artist Damali Ayo's "National Day of Panhandling for Reparations" (check out the YouTube video on her site). How does each project engage the audience in participation? How does each project raise issues about race and racism? We will have a discussion about these questions. WRITE IN YOUR NOTEBOOK: one comment and one ANALYTICAL QUESTION. Note that Piper's work is also discussed in our previous readings from Kester.

Friday 25 October: visiting filmmaker BRETT KASHMERE!
HW: Read a review of his film, Valery's Ankle. LINK

writing workshop: using sources to ask questions

2007-10-17T08:35:00.000-04:00

"Now mining sites and contaminated harbors and river bottoms are an increasingly large part of the Superfund budget. The tax has no connection with these sites. Superfund is the cleanup party of last resort - a government function properly paid for by taxpayers." (Marianne Lamont Horinko, assistant administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/1114/p02s01-usgn.html?related

"A corporation's job is to make money, and when you have an expensive long-term capital investment like cleaning up Superfund sites and no one is standing there asking you to do it, then you don't spend the money on it," said Rena Steinzor, an environmental law professor at the University of Maryland who helped write the Superfund reauthorization amendments in 1986 when she was a congressional staffer.
http://www.publicintegrity.org/Superfund/report.aspx?aid=853

week 8: ESSAY 2 REVISION

2007-10-13T12:38:00.000-04:00

Sunday 14 October 6pm BLOG: Meet with your group to swap the writing feedback and take photos of the lake. POST revision of your paper based on peer feedback and the article from Writing Analytically.

Monday 15 October: Screening of documentary about Onondaga Lake. mid-term instructor evaluations.

Wednesday 17 October: writing workshop. Bring 1 printed copy of the freewriting exercise from Writing Analytically in Chapter 12.

Friday 19 October: ESSAY 2 REVISION DUE IN TOLLEY 301 OFFICE BY 5 PM. Please make sure to include all elements of the portfolio as indicated in the handout I distributed during our writing conferences. Place all materials in a folder or envelope with your name clearly marked on the outside.

mid-term writing conferences

2007-10-08T13:32:00.000-04:00

Meet in Tolley 205. Please be ON TIME so that other people's appointments don't get backed up.

Bring to the meeting:
- at least 1 new resource (book, article, website) that you will be using for your
revision. You can link to websites on your blog but online journals need to be printed.
- the library worksheet about evaluating sources, applied to one of your resources (it should be a JOURNAL article)

TUES
3:15 Jason
4:00 Lauren J.
4:15 Sam
5:00 Courtney
5:15 Claire
5:30 Rick

WED
9:30 Tim
9:45 Deanna
10:00 Nick
10:15 Mike
10:30 Amy
11:00 Caryn
11:15 Cristina
11:30 Rachael
11:45 Matt
12:00 Pierson
12:15 Stephanie
12:30 Alyssa
12:45 Justin
1:00 Max
1:30 Jordan
1:45 Lauren G.
2:30 Zack
3:45 Blair

citations continued

2007-10-04T13:09:00.000-04:00

Use either italics or underlining throughout your essay for the titles of longer works and, only when absolutely necessary, providing emphasis.

How to cite articles from on-line databases LINK

weeks 6-7: library , essay 2

2007-10-01T08:26:00.000-04:00

Monday 1 October: library session about databases
HW: blog about cultural event by 6pm on Sunday the 30th

Wednesday 3 October: in-class review of Kester from last week
I will return the quizzes and we will talk about some art projects.

HW: POST ON YOUR BLOG:

1) Post a narrative synopsis (written paragraph with full sentences) of the Christian Science Monitor article (see link below under essay 2 links). Make it good enough to use in your essay for next Monday.

List the key points you plan to address in your essay. This is not a thesis, it is a synopsis of the article, to which you will respond in later drafts of your work. It is difficult to have good IDEAS about the issues if you haven’t gathered information yet. You can wait to write a thesis after you have done some research.

2) Make a link to at least one on-line resource that you think might be relevant for background information for your paper. Make a hyperlink that you can click. Check Blogger HELP for info on how to do this if you don't know how. In Firefox, the picture-icon in the "compose" function of the "edit posts" will allow you to do it.

4-6 October - SU Human Rights Film Festival - RECOMMENDED, but no longer required

Friday 5 October: Back in the library 046.
HW: Print and bring one peer-reviewed periodical resource for your paper about Onondaga Lake from a DATABASE search (covered on Monday), and bring it to class. Highlight at least two passages that seem notable for your paper.

Monday 8 October: Library 046: evaluating sources
HW: ESSAY 2 DUE - BRING enough COPIES for your group members and FHT.
Make sure you have the right formatting and check MLA style guides!
Sign up for writing conference times.

Wednesday 10 October: writing conferences with Fereshteh
We will not meet as a group. Bring a new reference that you might use in the revision of your paper (book, article, etc) to the meeting, along with the article evaluation sheet from the library. Note changed assignment.

Friday 12 October: No class, Eid
HW: Mark your peer's essay with comments and questions.
Meet with your group over the weekend to review your essays and to get photos if you have not done so already. Discuss how you will print and share the photos.

Sunday 14 October: 6PM BLOG
Post a revision of your paper, based on comments from your group and the article from Writing Analytically (to be distributed). These should be about content, meaning, analysis, and organization, not just spelling and style.

Phobia+Dialogic Art

2007-09-30T22:17:00.000-04:00

Since many of you attended the lecture about Phobia at the library the other day, I thought I'd post the video about a related dialogic art project.

essay 2 links

2007-09-28T09:29:00.000-04:00

Christian Science Monitor article The Christian Science Monitor is a well-respected international newspaper from a U.S. perspective. It includes a daily religious feature, but focuses primarily on secular news coverage.
Superfund 365 - internet art/science project It will feature Onondaga Lake on Day 78. Also with good links.
EPA Superfund site The Environmental Protection Agency is a federal government organization.
Onondaga Lake Partnership Lots of good information here.
Onondaga Lake Park - the county parks website
campaign to restore polluters pay tax

Artists and projects with an environmental focus:
Gardening Superfund Sites
Tiffany Holmes
Ann Rosenthal
Keepers of the Waters - Betsy Damon
Artists Placement Group
California Wash - Helen and Newton Harrison
Lost River Walks - Toronto
Green Museum
Green Arts
Andrea Polli

Cultural Event Blog :: updated list

2007-09-26T13:58:00.000-04:00

I added 2 new possibilities but there are still only 6 things eligible for your blog
entry due Monday 30 September, 6pm.

You must spend at least ONE HOUR at one of the cultural happenings from the list.

You will write a DETAILED synopsis as well as a CRITICAL ANALYSIS, using the methods from your essays (NOTICE AND FOCUS, DEVELOPING AN IDEA, 10 ON 1).

PLAN AHEAD, as I will not accept any excuses for the fact that something came up at the last minute.

Thu 27 Sept, 4 pm
Phobia: Collecting in the History of Fear, Bird Library, Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (1st floor)
A lecture about fear in the U.S. and the Sacco and Venzetti mural at SU.

Sat 29 Sept: Central New York Anti-War Rally in Syracuse
http://www.peacecouncil.net/September29/index.html
1:00 - 2:00 PM Rally at the Everson plaza in downtown Syracuse
2:30 PM March begins to Syracuse University
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Rally at Syracuse University (music at 3:30 pm)
7:30 Evening Panel at Hendricks Chapel (Syracuse University)
Jimmy Massey: pro-soldier, anti-war activist, one of the founding members of Iraq
Veterans Against the War.
Dahlia Wasfi: spent her early childhood in Saddam Hussein's Iraq
Scott Ritter: a chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998

NEW ELIGIBLE ITEM: Faith Ringgold exhibit
Community Folk Art Center, Tue-Fri 10-5, Sat 11-5
Suggested admission is $5. But you can go for free.

NEW ELIGIBLE ITEM: SUNDAY September 30, 2PM, $8-10
Abolitionist's Amble - Onondaga Historical Association.
Take a walk through Syracuse 's abolitionist past including Jerry Rescue Monument

NEW ELIGIBLE ITEM: Write a letter to the editor of The Daily Orange about the Astria
Suparak situation at the Warehouse Gallery (this will also serve as the blog entry)

Homework : Friday the 28th

2007-09-26T13:50:00.000-04:00

Of the artists and projects Kester discusses, find a book in the library and MAKE A COPY of:
• 1 image of an art work that would be classified as dialogic
• 1 image from an art work that would be classified as avant-garde
Also Make a copy of the title page for each book.

Answer the following questions (your words. 5 sentences or less):
- Summarize Kester's argument about art and commodity.
- Why is Chapter 2 called "The Eyes of the Vulgar"?
- What is semantic labor?
- What do Fry, Bell, Greenberg, and Fried, and Melville have to do with the thesis of Kester's book?
- According to the Harrisons, what is "conversational drift"?

Meet in the Electronic Training Center Room 046 (go in front door and downstairs)

The Yes Men and The Warehouse Gallery

2007-09-24T12:56:00.001-04:00

People all over the world are asking:
Why was a Warehouse/SU show about artist group The Yes Men canceled at the last minute?
Why was the curator fired?

The Yes Men LINK
letters of support for The Warehouse LINK

Essay 1 revision

2007-09-21T16:00:00.001-04:00

For Monday, bring your 1st version of the essay along with the new version that incorporates your revisions based on my feedback and peer feedback. AM CLASS: don't forget the extra paragraphs I forgot to collect on WED.

Remember, for this version I'm asking it to be CUT.
It should be no longer than 2.5 pages, single-spaced.

THE BEST PAPERS WILL DEMONSTRATE THAT YOU HAVE USED THE TECHNIQUES FROM THE 2 READINGS I GAVE OUT ABOUT WRITING ANALYTICALLY, and the BLOG LINK ABOUT INTEGRATING QUOTES.

Some things everyone should work on:

-the strongest introductions use a specific example or detail from observations of the website or your field visits to Armory Square
-NOTICE AND FOCUS - use more detail, AVOID GENERALIZATIONS
-10 on 1 - quality is better than quantity
-What is your THESIS? Can you even find it?
-MAKE AN OUTLINE for your paper before rushing in!
-Does each paragraph support the thesis?
-Is the transition from your writing to quotes from Barthes easy for the reader to follow?

The Warehouse Gallery

2007-09-19T23:01:00.000-04:00

Lots of people are talking about changes happening at The Warehouse Gallery LINK

integrating quotations

2007-09-19T08:10:00.000-04:00

Integrate Quotations from Outside Sources - from Dennis G. Jerz, who writes:
Spend fewer words introducing your sources, and devote more words to expressing and developing your own ideas in ways that use shorter quotations, or even just a few words, from your outside sources. LINK to examples and more info.

Quotations of 4 or more lines are considered long, and must be indented in MLA style (2 tabs).

citing sites

2007-09-18T22:19:00.000-04:00

Name of Site. Date of Posting/Revision. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the
site(sometimes found in copyright statements). Date you accessed the site [electronic address].

In-text citation should refer to a simplified version of the site name (Armory Square), and it will have no page number since websites don't have page numbers. Remember that the above is not properly indented because I can't do that on this blog.

MLA in-text citation LINK
MLA works cited for electronic sources LINK

week 4-5: writing revisions, Kester 2

2007-09-17T10:36:00.000-04:00

Mon 17 Sept: SyracYOUse essay 1 due. 1 copy, printed. See assignment outline.
writing workshop: the thesis

Wed 19 Sept:
HW: Read "10 on 1" from Writing Analytically, which was distributed in class. Find a passage from your paper that you would like to revise using the methods outlined in the reading. It could be any paragraph or other section that needs work. Apply one of the "10 on 1" revision strategies to this passage. Bring 4 printed copies to class with your original passage followed by the revision you made. Do not bring copies of the entire essay.

RECOMMENDED EVENT eligible for blog:
Thurs 20 Sept, 12 noon (speakers begin at 3 pm)
Onondaga Lake Park, Liverpool (free shuttles to run from SU)
Roots of Peacemaking: Indigenous Values, Global Crisis
An International Day of Peace at the birthplace of democracy
Haudenosaunee traditional foods, artisans, speakers, music and dancing, plus water ceremony
LINK - http://rootsofpeacemaking.syr.edu or 315-443-3861

Fri 21 Sept:
No HW, work on your paper. Meet at the Sheraton Hotel, 2nd floor. We will be attending a panel at the SU Minority Studies conference.

RECOMMENDED EVENT (not eligible for blog):
Sat 23 Sept: Westcott Street Cultural Fair LINK

Mon 24 Sept: SyracYOUse essay 1 revision

RECOMMENDED EVENT eligible for blog:
Tues 25 Sept, 7:30 PM - Onondaga Land Rights meeting
The Warehouse, Fayette and West St. (Connective Corridor shuttle from SU)
Hear an update on the Onondaga Land Rights Action which will be heard in Federal District Court in Albany on October 11. Speakers: Onondaga Chief Jake Edwards, Tim Coulter, Executive Director of the Montana-based Indian Law Resource Center and one of the lawyers representing the Onondagas in their Land Rights Action and Joan Cope Savage, environmental scientist and member of NOON.

Wed 26 Sept:
READING: KESTER CHAPTER 2 and QUIZ on Kester (intro, ch.1, ch.2)

RECOMMENDED EVENT eligible for blog:
Thu 27 Sept: Phobia: Collecting in the History of Fear
4 pm Bird Library, Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (1st floor)

Fri 28 Sept: Library Visit 1. Meet at the Electronic Training Center, Bird Library.
HW: TBA

RECOMMENDED EVENT eligible for blog:
Sat 29 Sept: Central New York Anti-War Rally in Syracuse. LINK

Sun 30 Sept, 6 pm
BLOG entry due : Cultural Event (please see complete list below)

Cultural Event Blog

2007-09-17T09:34:00.000-04:00

BLOG for Monday 30 September, 6pm: Attend one of the following events and write a synopsis of the event
as well as your critical analysis. PLAN AHEAD, as I will not accept any excuses for the fact that something came up at
the last minute.

Tues 18 Sept, Watson Auditorium
What is Queer Visual Culture? Professor Roger Hallas of SU's English department will discuss what exactly constitutes
queer visual culture and why it has been so critical to LGBT identities and communities.

Wed 19 Sept, Warehouse Auditorium
Stella Betts and David Leven: Lecture on the recent work of Leven Betts Architecture Studio

Thurs 20 Sept, Warehouse Community Classroom, COME ON artist talks
2pm: Juliet Jacobson, artist talk
3pm: Rachel Rampleman, artist talk
You need to stay for the whole lecture, attend one or both

Thurs 20 Sept, The Warehouse Gallery, 5-8 pm
This is an art opening for COME ON: Desire Under The Female Gaze that includes a reception with food and you can take
a guided tour (optional). If you choose this event, please spend at least 1 hour there.

COME ON presents art about sexuality women artists who employ diverse media, including large-scale drawing, video installation,
text work and ephemeral sculpture. COME ON reveals what is not represented in popular culture and provides a counterbalance
to the ubiquitous imagery of sexualized female bodies created for mainstream heterosexual male sensibilities.
http://www.thewarehousegallery.org/

Thurs 20 Sept, 12 noon (speakers begin at 3 pm)
Onondaga Lake Park, Liverpool (free shuttles to run from SU)
Roots of Peacemaking: Indigenous Values, Global Crisis
An International Day of Peace at the birthplace of democracy
Haudenosaunee traditional foods, artisans, speakers, music and dancing, plus water ceremony
http://rootsofpeacemaking.syr.edu or 315-443-3861

Tues 25 Sept, 7:30 PM, The Warehouse Gallery - Onondaga Land Rights meeting
Hear an update on the Onondaga Land Rights Action that will be heard in Federal District Court in Albany on October
11. Speakers: Onondaga Chief Jake Edwards, Tim Coulter, Executive Director of the Montana-based Indian Law
Resource Center and one of the lawyers representing the Onondagas in their Land Rights Action and Joan Cope
Savage, environmental scientist and member of NOON (Neighbors of Onondaga Nation).

Thu 27 Sept, 4 pm
Phobia: Collecting in the History of Fear, Bird Library, Peter Graham Scholarly Commons (1st floor)
A lecture about the Sacco and Venzetti mural at SU and the library archives

Sat 29 Sept: Central New York Anti-War Rally in Syracuse
http://www.peacecouncil.net/September29/index.html
1:00 - 2:00 PM Rally at the Everson plaza in downtown Syracuse
2:30 PM March begins to Syracuse University
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM Rally at Syracuse University (music at 3:30 pm)
7:30 Evening Panel at Hendricks Chapel (Syracuse University)
Jimmy Massey: pro-soldier, anti-war activist, one of the founding members of Iraq Veterans Against the War.
Dahlia Wasfi: spent her early childhood in Saddam Hussein's Iraq
Scott Ritter: a chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998

Barthes citation and your roughs

2007-09-14T15:57:00.000-04:00

Some of you have given me a writing sample for review. If anyone else
has something they'd like me to look at, you have by 6pm on Saturday to
submit by email, and I will do my best to respond in a timely manner.
This would be something like a rough draft, as your essay submitted on
Monday should be a finished, revised piece. Have your friends and dorm
mates read over it for understanding and typos. Even if they haven't
been to Armory Square or visited the website, can they learn something
from your piece?

DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW THE LENGTH (3-4 PAGES)
and formatting requirements from the handout.

Since you will be citing Barthes, you will need to know the information
about the edition of the photocopy I gave you in order to do the MLA
style.

Barthes, Roland. "The Blue Guide." Mythologies. 1957. Trans. Annette
Lavers. 1972. Ed. New York: Hill and Wang, 2001. 74-77.

Armory Square on the internet

2007-09-14T08:36:00.001-04:00

The goal of the first essay assignment is to analyze the contradictions between real places and their representations. The goal is not to critique Armory Square as a place (it's sooo quiet), or to critique the websites for being badly designed or inaccurate (I couldn't find any useful information). To do this, you will need to focus on giving us EVIDENCE:

When you reference the website, quote directly from their images and their copy (written text). Tell me what you are looking at. Is it a picture of a fresh salmon steak? Describe it. Then explain why you think it is on the website and why it's important to your IDEA. You will use formal citations in MLA style to quote a website.

When you reference your visits to Armory Square, specify which street you were on, what building you were standing in front of, what time it was, what kind of people were there, the smells in the air, the sounds of the city, if it was raining and people had umbrellas. Take us there!

Some of you may have discovered that there are other materials about Armory Square on the web and links to other websites. These include:
http://www.armorysquare.com
and
http://www.syracuse.ny.us/armorySquare.asp
and websites for individual businesses, such as the Landmark Theater LINK

You may reference other websites about Armory Square only if you are making a comparison or setting up a contrast. The purpose of this essay is to set up a focused analysis, not a sweeping review.

video interview with Binh Danh

2007-09-14T08:30:00.000-04:00

http://www.kqed.org/arts/people/spark/profile.jsp?id=7660

Citation Style Guide

2007-09-12T10:20:00.001-04:00

You will use the MLA citation style for all essays this semester. LINK

SyracYOUse assignment outline

2007-09-10T13:00:00.000-04:00

The assignment outline: LINK to PDF. This important fact was omitted: essay length = 3-4 pages
It will help to read this again for Wednesday as you review "The Blue Guide" essay, and before you go to Armory Square.

Don't forget the GRAMMAR SLAMMER starts this week!
We will have grammar test in-class in about 7 weeks.

234 Weeks (4.5 years) DEAD

2007-09-09T21:52:00.000-04:00

The New York Times has a photo spread similar to the one appropriated by Binh Danh from the 1969 Life Magazine article. As of 8 September 2007, there were 3,771 Americans dead in the Iraq War, and an estimated 75,000 civilian Iraqi deaths.
LINK to Iraq Body Count
LINK to the New York Times data visualization
LINK to Iraq War Coalition fatalities and HERE

Syracuse is hosting the central New York anti-war rally on Saturday 29 September. LINK

Grammar Slammer schedule

2007-09-04T10:53:00.001-04:00

Details about the Grammar Slammer: LINK HERE
6 weeks beginning 10 September
7 pm in Crouse-Hinds 010 on Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday. Required for all Newhouse students and recommended for others. We will have a test in class after the Grammar Slammer is complete.

Levine and Duchamp

2007-09-02T14:28:00.001-04:00

Sherrie Levine and Marcel Duchamp's Fountain pieces. See more about these artists in the links to the right, under "PEOPLE".

week 3: Kester

2007-08-29T11:10:00.000-04:00

GRAMMAR SLAMMER STARTS THIS WEEK

Make sure you give yourself time to do a site visit to to Armory Square.

BLOG by Sun 9 Sept 6 pm: 2 choices
READ Intro+Chapter 1 from Kester - Conversation Pieces p. 1-49

How does the rhetoric from the Imagining America conference compare to the ideas of community discussed in the Kester article?
OR
Visit the Light Work gallery. Hours are Sun-Fri 10 am - 6 pm and by appointment. Entry is free. Near Bird Library: 316 Waverly Ave, at the corner of Comstock Ave. :::::: How does the Binh Danh exhibit function as a testimony about the Viet Nam war and as a reflection of our current times? How does your impression of this exhibit compare to the views from Sontag? Check out her article on the Abu Ghraib prison photos (below) for extra war-related perspectives.

Mon 10 Sept:
MEET at Light Work gallery.
in-class discussion and writing about Sontag from last week AND
Kester (1 question+1 observation in your notebook)

Wed 12 Sept:
Come prepared to discuss "The Blue Guide" by Barthes , assigned last week (1 questions+1 observation in your notebook)

Fri 14 Sept:
BRING a rough thesis for your essay. Use the methods discussed in the handout from class. BRING notes from your field trip to Armory Square. Do the NOTICE + FOCUS process we did together in class on Monday:
1) What do you NOTICE? Make a list.
2) What do you find most INTERESTING? Rank the top choices.
3) WHY does this observation matter?

week 2: de Duve, Sontag, Barthes (Blue Guide)

2007-08-27T14:22:00.000-04:00

The printed schedule from the syllabus has already changed so please make sure to consult the blog from now on!

BLOG due Mon 3 Sept by 6pm (this is a special extension just for this week)
No class because it's Labor Day, but you still have reading due!

1- READ the excerpt from “Art was a proper name” from Kant after Duchamp by Thierry de Duve, 1996
2- WRITE 2 paragraphs in response to the reading. Post the text to your blog so that I can see that it’s up and running:

Define ART in one sentence. Then discuss a memorable experience you have had with an ART work. Where did you find the piece, and when? How much time did you spend with it? Why was it memorable? How would you describe it to someone who wasn't there? What distinguished it from other art works you have experienced? What kind of emotions did it evoke? What was the artist's intention for the work? Was it successful or not, and why?
Discuss de Duve’s essay in relation to your own thoughts about art.

Wed 5 Sept: READ "The Image-World" from On Photography by Susan Sontag, 1977
OPTIONAL READING: "Regarding the torture of others" by Susan Sontag, 2004
We'll have an in-class discussion about de Duve and Sontag. Come prepared with 1 question and 1 comment for each author.

RECOMMENDED EVENT (take notes, this will give you good material for upcoming assignments)
Thu 6 Sept 6:30 pm : Binh Danh, Vietnamese photographer, Watson Auditorium

Fri 7 Sept: READ “The Blue Guide” by Roland Barthes from Mythologies, 1957
No class today because of the conference, but you still need to do the reading. This reading is the basis for your first essay assignment.

In lieu of class:
* VISIT the Binh Danh exhibit at Light Work.
and/or
* ATTEND one of the panel discussions at the Imagining America Conference that I’ve listed below. Conference attendance for students costs $35 (regular fees are over $100 for the 3-day event), and this provides free food and entry to all the events. If you choose to attend and this is a burden for you, please contact me or Assistant Provost Bobbi Jones at rsjones@syr.edu

Light Work gallery hours are Sun-Fri 10 am - 6 pm and by appointment. Entry is free.
Next to the Bird Library: 316 Waverly Ave, at the corner of Comstock Ave.

7-8 September : IMAGINING AMERICA CONFERENCE OPTIONS
See full conference schedule here: http://imaginingamerica.syr.edu/07.ia-nc.html

FRI 9:45 – 11:15 Community Voices: Do We Really Hear Them? Are We Really Listening? Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel and Conference Center – ADAMS ROOM

FRI 1:15-2:45 Over-the-Rhine: A Model for Student Immersion, Learning, and Social Change - Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel and Conference Center – COMSTOCK A

FRI 3-4:30 Moving Art Into the Public: A Seminar and a Dialogue - Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel and Conference Center – COMSTOCK B

SAT 2:15-345 Negotiating Contradictory Values in Community Arts/Higher Education Partnerships - Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel and Conference Center – COMSTOCK B

week 1: intros, Swanson/Adler, Barthes (Criticism)

2007-08-27T13:48:00.000-04:00

Mon 27 Aug: introductions, blackboard, blog, portraits, student info, books, notebooks

Wed 29 Aug:
1-SET UP your blog http://www.blogger.com
and make sure you can access Blackboard.
2-EMAIL FHT with your blog URL
3-READ and take NOTES:
-“What’s wrong with plagiarism?” by Gunnar Swanson
-the syllabus
-chapters 3 and 12 from How to Read a Book by Charles Adler

Don’t forget to bring your printed readings to class. They should be marked up with notes and underlined or highlighted. Be prepared for a quiz.

Fri 31 Aug:
1-READ and take NOTES:
“Blind and Dumb Criticism” by Roland Barthes from Mythologies. Right-click or control-click on the link to download to the computer. Read it three times. Make notes in your notebook. Come prepared with 1 question and 1 comment about Barthes for the class. We will have a discussion.

Did you email me your blog URL?

2007-08-27T13:21:00.000-04:00

It was great to meet you all today and I look forward to seeing you on WED

Don't forget to send me an e-mail with the website of YOUR blog. Sign up at http://www.blogger.com
For next class, you don't need to post anything, just set up an account. You will need to have a Google/Gmail account to do this. Email me if you have questions.

Make your blog address something relevant like:
http://wordsofwisdomfromcasey.blogspot.com(example)

-------- WHAT ELSE FOR NEXT TIME? --------
DOWNLOAD the articles from the Blackboard site, PRINT them, READ them with lots of notes, and bring them to class.
READ THE SYLLABUS CAREFULLY! We will have a quiz.

buying books

2007-08-26T19:15:00.000-04:00

You are welcome to purchase books on-line or anywhere else. If you choose to do this, I encourage you to place the order right away, at the latest by the end of business (5 pm) on Monday. You MUST choose a delivery option that ensures that your books arrive by Wednesday September 5th.

I will not make allowances for anyone who does not have their books on
time, as you will still be responsible for any assigned readings.

Also keep in mind that sometimes shipping costs make it so that a used
book delivered by mail is not always the bargain it appears to be at
first glance.

Here is the list of titles:

Conversation Pieces: Community and Communication in Modern Art by
Grant H. Kester

Participation edited by Claire Bishop

One Place after Another: Site-Specific Art and Locational Identity by
Miwon Kwon

Greetings from CAS 100!

2007-08-26T19:07:00.000-04:00

HELLO
My name is Fereshteh and I'll be your instructor for CAS 100, the first
year writing seminar. The title of the class is "Salt Stories", which
refers to the old salt industry that once made Syracuse famous. It's a
class about contemporary site-specific and public art practices. If
that means nothing to you, that's ok! We're going to be talking about this
for the next few months so by the end of the year you will know a lot
more. Along the way we will read and write about critical theory,
philosophy, news articles, maps, and a whole assortment of other media.

BOOKS
In addition to writing and getting out to experience the city and art
projects, you will have reading to do. I know that the books haven't
arrived at the bookstore, but it's no problem because we will be reading
articles at first. I'm sure you are all quite busy with settling in to
your new home, but meanwhile please check out the Blackboard site for
our course. There, under READING, I've posted the first articles we will
be reading for class. They are PDFs that you can download and print
out. You don't have to read them yet, but please make sure you can access
Blackboard by the first day of class.

http://blackboard.syr.edu/
USE YOUR REGULAR NETID AND PASSWORD TO SIGN IN

For the first week we will use Blackboard, but once everyone has their blogger account set up we will usually use Blogger for course updates and assignments.

FIRST DAY
What should you bring to class on the first day? Please bring a
notebook (bound, spiral, binder, it's up to you), a writing utensil, and an
open mind.

I'm looking forward to meeting you all soon! Please email me if you
have any questions before Monday.

Take care,
Fereshteh