Monday, February 19, 2018

On Selfies

Selfies are an interesting topic to me because, as I expressed in class, I don't take many! Usually when it's time to pick a profile picture, I have to scroll through many, many pictures on my phone before reaching one that I would like to represent me. That's not to say I never take selfies, I just feel rather vain sharing them. 
To preface this, I don't like attention. I don't like putting myself out there for others to pick apart, and that's not an insecurity, I'm just a private person. I don't talk to a lot of people about the deepest matters of my heart, and I think that selfies can reveal a lot about a person-- stuff that I don't love to put out to the general public. I prefer candid shots, nature shots, shots that show something real about the world. My instagram is full of flowers, nature scene, and pictures of my friends and family. One of my favorite posts on my account, currently, is a series of photos my friend captured of my and my fiance. He wanted to a couple photo and I felt awkward, so it came out to be a series of pictures of me trying to run from the camera. It was candid, it says something that I'm okay with revealing, and that's why I like it. 
I cannot express enough-- I don't have an issue with people taking selfies, it's just not really my thing. Even when I don't look great in a group picture, I would much rather be posing with friends than standing on my own in a photo. Maybe I'm too critical of myself, but I find that sometimes, after I post a selfie, I look back at it and find issue with it. Usually my issue is, "I don't look like that!" I find that selfies, while they help us to look attractive, cater to our best angles and, in my case, that's not realistic. I like dealing in reality and when I know how much time and effort went into taking and choosing the perfect selfie, it ruins the image for me. 
Like I said, it's complicated. 


Emilio Vavarella Studio Visit

It was so interesting to hear from Emilio! He is so young to be as accomplished as he is, and it's impressive to hear the things he has taken away from his experience as a young artist. I thought it fascinating to hear that his inspiration is drawn from fields of theoretical research and philosophy-- in addition to traditional artistic inspiration. I have chosen to share the clip below because I was struck when he mentioned that his original inspiration in high school was drawn from surrealism and Dadaism. We spoke about this topic briefly last week in class, when we briefly discussed Dadaism in relation to nihilistic memes. I shared an article in my last post which talked about the fact that nothing is new, and the nihilism of millennial's humor and memes is reflective of Dadaism. It's fascinating that Emilio originally took inspiration from similar sources!


Google Arts and Culture

I had so much fun with the Google Arts and Culture app. I'm embedding my tweets below, but it made me laugh! Some of the results did bear some resemblance to me, although the two I am sharing first were apparently the closest matches. The first one reminds me of pop art, the second one reminds me of a drawing I could have done in fifth grade. I'll leave it to you to decide which one is a more attractive semblance.


As for the side profile....oh man! I don't know about that! Is that really how I look, Google?

Google Arts and Culture is a fun app, but I can certainly see how people might have issues with the results-- particularly, people who are not of European descent. I don't know which library the app draws from, but there certainly does seem to be far more art representative of European culture. The one thing I can say for sure is that it's a fun app, and not to be taken seriously at all. After leaving class, I got dinner with a friend and she and I had a good bit of fun messing around with the app's capabilities.

Daily Digital Alchemies 2/13 through 2/19/18
Oh, Charlie. Charlie, my dude. His dumb, adorable face lends itself to memes.

A picture of my favorite area of my bedroom. My favorite candle, and my favorite not-so-little-anymore plant. I'm quite proud of him for surviving this long, but I definitely need to re-pot the poor thing.

Honestly I didn't plan on doing this one but I saw Hailey's idea for matching tattoos and I was inspired. Hailey, when we goin'? I'm committing to memes for life.
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#SelfieUnselfie

Selfie:

Unselfie: 

Artist Statement:
I have chosen to share this selfie because it is a rare image of myself that I love, accompanied by a backdrop of one of my favorite places in the world. The shine of light spanning the photo is a crack in the screen, which I have manipulated to work in my favor. My unselfie is a photograph of my happy place, a peaceful spot in my home surrounded by people and things that I love. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Expanded Post:

Selfie:
What is seen: I took this selfie a few weeks ago in Hoboken, right on the waterfront in front of the Manhattan skyline. It's the first selfie that I have taken in a long time that I love, and I use it as the avatar for my professional/personal Gmail account. I believe that it is fairly representative of me, and it's a good picture.

What is unseen: There's also a subtext to this photo that would certainly not be picked up by the average viewer. The selfie is taken on the waterfront, with NYC in the background, but still very much in New Jersey-- which is how I like it. I love Manhattan, but I am glad to have it as the backdrop, and not the forefront, of my life. I can visit whenever I want, but the craziness can stay safely behind me while I focus on my life in the much quieter (but not too quiet) NJ.
Additionally, the light in this selfies is slightly blurred. You see, I have a crack across the front of my phone which, unfortunately, crosses over the front facing camera. It used to be a source of constant frustration to me, because it reminds me that I foolishly shattered my phone. However, this picture is evidence that I'm able to get past the frustration because one of the tenants of my life is that perfection is not only impossible, it's undesirable. By forcing myself to be okay with my camera, by learning to work with the cracks and making the light fall where I want it to--- it's sort of a metaphor for how I live my life. A selfie alone wouldn't reveal that. 


Unselfie:
This dresser is my happy place. It's full of things I love: makeup, jewelry, a stained glass lamp, and photographs of the people I love. I choose to share this unselfie because it's the view I focus on every morning as I get ready for work, looking at my makeup and jewelry and deciding how I will portray myself that day, while also looking at images of the people I love. Getting ready every morning is the most peaceful part of my day.


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Monday, February 12, 2018

Memes and Selfies

I love that this class recognizes the importance of something as seemingly-silly as memes in the overall narrative that is digital culture in the 21st century. Memes are very important because, as I mentioned in class, they're a form of communication that we tend to take for granted. For example, I mentioned The Meme Bible, a gift I bought for my friends (10/10 recc, by the way, buy it immediately #notspon). When I looked through the activity book, I realized that the strangest thing about my absurd purchase, was that my parents would look at it and have no earthly idea what the book was about. The language is English, but it might as well be ancient Greek for the communication barrier. There are many levels to understanding memes, some far below the surface, and that fact is amazing to me.

In another meme-related note, I bought a game for my fiance for Christmas called What Do You Meme?, which is like Cards Against Humanity but with memes. To play, the dealer pulls a meme card which displays a photo, for example:


The players then throw down cards that have phrases on them, to correspond with the photo. The best photo/phrase combination wins. Perhaps this could be played by people with no understanding of memes, but I think that a huge element of the game would be missing. Memes have meta narrative and are best enjoyed when they are understood. 

Make Bank: Memes!

I live for memes, have I mentioned that enough times yet? I love them. I'm fascinated by them. I think they are a fascinating view into the mind of the current world, for better or for worse. My fiance sent me an article this morning from salon.com, regarding the bleak nature of millennial memes-- e.g. eating Tide Pods. The author compares the nihilism and absurdity of millennial humor to Dadaism, a movement that has been around for a century. It's an interesting look into how history repeats itself.

As for my memes:

Submission: 
The Most Fascinating Subject

Submission:
Nosedive (Black Mirror Meme)

Submission:
Nosedive (Black Mirror Meme)


Submission: 
Memes That Meme Themselves

Selfies:

In regard to selfies, selfies are a complicated topic for me. I don't think they're hugely empowering to people, nor do I believe that they suggest a desperate cry for help. I think they're pictures, as we have been taking for years.

Everyone wants to look good in pictures, and selfies allow individuals to choose how they portray themselves to the world. There is no inherent issue in wanting to post a cute, happy, sexy selfie. However, selfies tend to be correlated with vanity, which is another topic altogether. Vanity is a real thing that I believe should be avoided, primarily because it serves no one. To that end, I will include one of my favorite drawings by Charles Allan Gilbert, "All Is Vanity."

A picture speaks a thousand words
Selfies are not the problem. Vanity is the problem. Desiring beauty is not the problem. Being consumed by beauty is the problem. Being confident is not the problem. The desperate need for verification is the problem.

Personally, I don't take many selfies because I think the world is more interesting than my particular face, but I certainly don't think selfies are inherently bad. You do you, friend. The problem was never selfies, the problem is, as it always has been, the meaning beneath the selfie. If taking a selfie makes you feel better about yourself, absolutely do it, but also understand that your worth lies far deeper than what a camera can capture. 


DDAs, 2/6 through 2/12/18

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Sunday, February 4, 2018

Welcome, February!

I am so glad that January is over.

100% me.

Some things that happened in January were cool though, like last week's Twitter chat! I'm so encouraged by the widespread class participation, and by the input of the open network participants. It's always so great to be reminded that our class is bigger than the four walls at Kean.

Something that I especially appreciate about digital art is that it opens up new possibilities. For example, photo editing is so accessible. I don't have to be a master photographer to know how to alter levels in a picture in order to enhance certain elements of the photograph.

Throughout the Twitter chat, I continually thought about DeviantArt and Fan Fiction.net. These two websites are prime examples of how digital art has shaped entire communities. Fan Fiction allows authors to create stories and poems about their favorite characters from T.V. shows, anime, books, or movies.  Deviant Art fosters communities of people who want to share their art, fan based or other, with the world. These two sites enable people to share their creative brilliance with the world, and are major hubs for artists who might not be recognized without the power of the digital world.

Regarding the Re-New-Media-Art project, I find it fascinating to discover fossils from the early days of the internet. Patrice and I discovered Olia Lialina's early e-lit piece, "My Boyfriend Came Back From the War," which shockingly holds up reasonably well today. After reading her biography, it seems she was far beyond her time, especially considering that it was created and posted in 1996. How crazy is that to think about?




Oh, Five Card Flickr. This is a great assignment, but a dreaded one for someone like me, who doesn't enjoy creative writing. That being said, I tried.


Here's the link to my finished work:

http://5card.cogdogblog.com//show.php?id=41448



Tweets (1/29 through 2/5/18)




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Sunday, January 28, 2018

Digital Footprint? Menza menz.

Let me preface all of this with a definition of the Italian (American) slang word, menza menz.


So, this guy defines menza menz as meaning something like "maybe, maybe not." I've always understood it to mean a somewhat non-committal, "what are we gonna do?/there's nothing we can do." Which, either way, is how I feel about the topic of my digital footprint.

Sure, it makes me nervous. Sure, I worry that we will become 1984 and every step will be tracked by the government, and every movement watched. But honestly, what can we do? I like action, I like definitive answers, and right now we don't have one. That means that we have two options: 1) Live off the grid, or 2) accept it. Right now, as far as we know, the things that track us are only doing to to have a profile of the things we buy for advertising purposes. I have nothing to hide, I have no reason to be afraid, so until I have a real reason to be concerned, menza menz. 

That being said, as I mentioned last week, Brett Gaylor's Do Not Track documentary is fascinating to me. Even though I don't feel moved to do anything about the things tracking my life, I like to know that they're there. I like to believe that Google has some supreme purpose for me. And, if not, I hope they enjoy my online purchase history of makeup, books, and clothing. 

--

I chose to annotate the article "How-- and Why-- Apple, Google, and Facebook Follow You Around in Real Life" by DJ Pangburn. Much like Do Not Track documentary, the article talks about all of the different apps that collect location data, and speculates the use for such information. Truly, it is nerve-wracking, knowing that all of our information is laid out there for the makers of apps to use as they please but, again, what can we do? The most interesting discussion is the discussion of the police needing a warrant to access cell phone data which, as I annotated in Hypothesis, is an issue for which I can argue either side. On the one hand, cell phone data can reveal a lot. If you have no reason to feel worried, why would you care if the cops had access? An equally compelling point, on the other hand, is that they should require a warrant, because of privacy rights. 

In regard to the information about Apple, Google, and Facebook tracking your location, I like that the article discusses some ways around this but ultimately, they're unsustainable. You can keep your location off until you need to use your GPS, and then what? Even if you use a GPS that isn't connected to your phone, some company, somewhere, has access to that information. 

All things considered, the content of this article was interesting but we live in a networked world. One way or the other, you can be tracked down. I suppose you can make it easier for people to find you, or more difficult but, as of now, I don't see a way around Big Brother. 

--
Tweet Frequency:
My fiance tweets a lot more than me:





Daily Digital Alchemies-- 1/23/18 through 1/29/18:




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Sunday, January 21, 2018

Back in the saddle!

The time has come to dust off this blog and dive back into NetNarr. It's good to be back in our world, and I'm excited to see what this new semester has to offer. As I mentioned in class, this will be my third time around the block in ENG5085, "New Media Studies," then "Digital Storytelling," and now "Digital Alchemy/Networked Narratives," and each time I have learned something new and exciting about the digital world. I'm especially excited this semester about accompanying new students on their journey.

A word of advice to new students-- this may seem like a lot at first, and it may seem completely weird, but rest assured, you'll fall into the swing of things quickly. A great deal of this class involves making it what you want it to be, which is really cool! If you feel so inclined, check out older posts on this blog to see some of what I put together last year at this time. You'll see that there is nothing to be afraid of.

One of the craziest things I've learned from taking many trips down the Internet rabbit hole is that the internet knows a whole lot about me. It knows my interests, my friends, the products I like, and is able to suggest things that I will, in all likelihood, be interested in pursuing. I'm sure everyone can relate to the feeling of your skin crawling when the product you were just talking about is the first search suggestion on your phone. Or, when you Googled a product you were interested in buying, only to have it show up as an ad on every website for the rest of eternity (or, as an added bonus-- when you look up a gift idea on a shared computer and the ads ruin the surprise....gotta love the World Wide Web).

As you will learn about me this semester, I am fascinated by all things dystopian, and this idea ties in directly with the concept of an all-seeing, all-knowing government using me as a cog in the wheel of consumerism. In fact, Do Not Track reminds me greatly of my favorite books, Feed by M.T. Anderson. In this story of a futuristic Earth, all people have social network data feeds installed into their minds, and live life through the lens of constant communication and advertisements. M.T. Anderson masterfully translates the eerie feeling Google knowing your search query into an entire society, which ends up being terrifying to all involved. After watching Do Not Track, it's horrifying to see how close Feed comes to being reality.

I am so excited that we are going to talk with Brett Gaylor. Do Not Track is fascinating, and terrifying, and I look forward to hearing what he has to impart to us.


Daily Digital Alchemies-- 1/16/18 through 1/22/18:







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Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Dear Avicia...

Just look at the semester we have had!

Do you see me? Do you see yourself? What's your place in the network?

Well, well, NetNarr, it's been a while. I feel almost as if I have been in another world....a mirror world, you might say. Weirder still, I feel another presence, as if someone else has been with me in this class for a month or so. I feel as if they've been watching and learning alongside me.
...
...
...
...
...
What's this?
...
...
...
...
...
A letter? Who would be sending me a letter?
...
...
...
...
...
It's signed from....Avicia? She seems to know a lot about me. This is so weird, maybe my suspicions were right? Maybe someone else has been here all along....in fact, I'm sure she has been. In that case, I suppose I should respond...


Dear Avicia,

I'm so glad you wrote to me. I had a suspicion that I was not along this semester. When I found your letter from the mirror world, I searched further and found your story. Hard as it was for you to come from your home world to earth, I'm glad you did. Us "Earthlings" can use all of the help was can get.

I think it is interesting that you say we are not beyond saving. Some days, it feels as if we are. But, I suppose you are right that goodness, kindness, and justice still exist in this world-- those are the things we need to hold on to.

In this semester, I have read and heard stories very different than my own. I have visited places around the world and seen students just like myself, despite the thousands of miles between us. I have learned that stories have become even stronger, now that we have power of the internet in our hands.

Stories have always been important. From the days when our ancestors etched images into cave walls, we have always known the importance of stories. Even now, in some ways, sharing our stories in our pockets of space in the digital world is not unlike etching them on the walls of a cave, for people to stumble upon, God-knows-when.

This world is full of stories, and people can interpret the same stories in radically different ways. I think that is where some of our problems being. You see, Avicia, our world is so polarized. During this semester, I've gained a deeper understanding of the conflicting stories that surround me. We all value different things, live by different moral codes, and wear blinders to the people around us. We attack those with different opinions, we attack them, we call them names, we make moral judgments-- instead of just listening. We all have agendas, Avicia. Some more powerful than others, some far scarier.

That being said, I think I agree with you, that we are not beyond saving. This semester, I was able to deeply consider the power that we have in the digital world-- the power to tell our stories the way we want them told. We all have a voice, and we are now able to communicate without third-party filters. Gone are the days when other people had to tell our stories. Now, we are the ones with the influence.

In the course of the semester, I saw kids stand up and tell the stories in their hearts, via The Young Writers' Project. I learned about the communities that have formed online to spin stories out of stories, and call it fanfiction. I've listened to professors and students around the world talk about what storytelling means to them, and how the digital world has enhanced our ability to share stories. In the end, this is what digital storytelling means to me. It is the tool we now have to share stories far beyond the bounds of all we once dreamed possible.

I enjoyed the Daily Digital Alchemy assignments because they allowed me to interact on a regular basis with the people in my class (and the other participants) by giving us a creative outlet in which we could communicate. I enjoyed the snippets of work that we shared, and looked forward to participating each week. It was never a burden to look at the @netnarr twitter and see the daily prompts, in fact, I'm pretty sure I'll miss them most of all!

As far as favorite assignments go, I loved when we worked on blackout poetry. It's very interesting to take media that exists and "remix" it into something new.  Here was the blackout poem that I worked on:

I've seen blackout poems online before, but I never made one myself, and I certainly never thought about the idea of them acting as ways of remixing other people's work.

Speaking of "remixing," I loved the conversations we had about memes. Memes make me laugh every day of my life, as you might see from this one DDA I submitted:
Even so, I never thought about the implications of memes. I never considered how they are far more than internet culture, they can be social commentary. Here's an example of one I made regarding slactivism, based on a class discussion:
(Although I suppose "you" made that one, didn't you, Avicia? ;) )

I was also quite proud of the stories I told and altered in the #4iconstory and #altbookcover assignments. The Little Prince is one of my favorite stories, and I was so glad to be able to weave it into my work in this class (albeit in quite a different way than the story was intended!).



Over the semester, I struggled greatly with the audio assignments. Audio is certainly not my forte, but even so, I'm glad to have had the experience of working with it. Now I am able to see how the manipulation of audio can add to the stories we see online. It also led me to the realization that so many of the things I once wrote off as "internet culture" are far greater than just that. Every post, tweet, video, and podcast are part of a greater over arching journey that transcends the individual parts.

I value the co-learners who traveled on this journey alongside us. I am grateful that they took the time to care about the students stepping up into their world. Every class, every blog, and every tweet acted as a support system, an investment, where a person made the decision to take their time and invest in students willing to stand beside them and learn. Because of this kindness, this investment, the story of Digital Storytelling at Kean University will live on, written on the "walls" of the internet forever.

I'm also grateful for alchemy, and the alchemists. Often, students are taught to suppress the creative in favor of the practical. We are taught to embrace subjects for what they are, and not to go beyond that boundary. This class destroyed those boundaries. It met on Wednesday nights, but it also met every single day in the infinite online space of the internet. The internet is a pretty magical place, it's only fitting that we were joined in our class journey by magical alchemists. So Avicia, I guess I have to thank you for joining us in this journey, as well as M, Rebeg, and all of the other alchemists they brought together to refine our stories, as gold might be refined from lead.

Finally, to the alchemists who will travel to this world in the future: get ready for it, all of it. Get ready for the fun, the laughs, the tears, and the struggles. Get ready to collaborate and be a part of something that is far bigger than "just another class at Kean University." Get ready for the best ride. I have walked away from this course with an appreciation for the realm of digital storytelling that is far bigger than I would have ever imagined.

I don't think it's right to say goodbye, because we know better than that. After all, when is a story really over? Even "happily ever after" isn't the end of the story-- just the part of the story we are aware of. So, instead of goodbye, I'll sign off for now. Thanks again for your letter, Avicia.

We've had fun this semester. Here's to all that is to come!
Marissa








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