Luke+Obey's+Page+Fall+2016

= Luke Obey's Page =
 * Fall 2016**

= Assignment #1: =

“Bound By Law” is a comic that analyzes the intersection of Copyright Laws and their infringement on the fine arts and new media. Highlighting the duality between Copyright Laws protecting the work of an artist, while at the same infringing on their creative freedom, this piece brings into question some fundamental characteristics of the art world and forces us to look at it with a fresh perspective. Intrinsically, every piece that the artist chooses to place in their work has a significant value, whether or not it’s acquired legally. Logistically, every piece that has been made by that artist now has a belonging to that artist

This summer, I interned at an advertisement agency in DC which focused on graphic and website design. A big part of the job included representing a company with work that we would design in our offices. I was reminded of this experience when reading “Bound By Law”, as I felt that at my time there I was straddling the line between Copyright and Artistic Integrity. On one hand, I wanted to complete my job to the satisfaction of our clients and of my boss. On the other hand, I was surrounded by endless possibilities for what to create and how to create it. I wished to create something that would be substantial both capitalistically, and artistically. I became aware of the balance that one needs to obtain when being an artist in the world of business, and realized that it’s a near impossible balance to strike. It felt as if there were numerous intentional limitations implemented to make the job harder. This feeling strikes to the crux of my feelings towards Copyright laws.

Copyright laws seem to take the place as the incentivizer in the free market for art. If an artist can create something substantial enough to receive the Copyright, then he/she has succeeded in both monetary and legal terms. This gives incentive to artists to creative influential and original works. However, the necessity for artists being incentivized is questionable, since many artists will state frankly that they create their art for personal gain or to make a statement. I instantly think about Fountain by Duchamp when given this scenario. Duchamp merely repurposed a urinal for a sculpture and named it fountain. There was no economic gain to this, no laws broken, only a statement being made about the current status of the art world.

Overall, I feel as though Copyright laws have proven themselves to be another hurdle for artists to jump through. If there are rules and limitations, art and artists exist to test those and find fault with them. I think this is the best way for artists to be challenged and to innovated. ---

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Assignment #4:

This article interested me initially because it illustrated the changing perception of media and its increasing uses in the early and late 1990’s. As someone who was born and grew up in the millennial generation and as a part of the technological revolution, I have seen many of these changes take place in front of my eyes as well and have felt the same frustration to keep up that the author illustrates. The shift from graphics experts specializing in just still images in programs such as Photoshop and Illustrator to moving ones in After Effect introduced in the 1990’s is similar to the shifting emphasis on gifs and other moving images in today’s world. The subsequent Velvet Revolution sparred by the introduction of After Effects, resulted in a socialization of creative exploration and sharing of information. Much like the spread of the internet, everyone, at every level of education or experience, was able to contribute their part to the world of graphic design. I feel that the more that we advance into the development of technology, the fewer requirements are going to be needed to enter the world of graphic design, and we will reach the point eventually that children will be taught to draw on software such as Photoshop and Illustrater in tandem to using a traditional crayon and paper.

Also, it's important to recognize that this uncertainty of the current technological environment was speculated internally. With the increasing ownership of personal electronics, there's an emerging market of personal technology. These people now have uncertainty and vested interest in the changing graphics market. They consume the technology, they use the software, and they are future consumers of any new technology. As this all becomes more democratized, there will be more people who have input and more people who will be potential producers. I ultimately see this as beneficial, and necessary for the growth as us as a species who are now becoming more and more capable of expressing ourselves. While at one time we would rely on commissioned artists representing the bougeroise, we can now represent ourselves in our own way professionally and coherently.

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In Class Gif



Assignment #6 - Virtual Reality

This project was designed in light of the recent election results. I found inspiration in the successful viral influence that Donald Trump's campaign had and wanted to replicate that by changing every sign visible through the lens of a phone camera into a reflection of the words most commonly associated with the polarizing figure. During this animation, all of the letters fall and rearrange to project these words, in an attempt to reflect how people actually feel about this media mastermind. I sought to imitate the font and spacing of his famous MAGA signs in order to make this animation as authentic as possible.