Creative Practice Showcase
Art That People Step On: Some Photos
Creative Practice Showcase Thirunarayanan Mandayam Osuri
The author of the proposal has conducted research as described below using the method of "focused observation" and will be showcasing the product(s) of such research, that are photographs he has taken of what he calls "Art That People Step On." He has taken pictures of spills, splatter, leaks, and chipped off and weathered surfaces that have formed shapes that resemble art. One his photos is of an image that looks like a bird that was created by rainwater falling on Duck Poop! If this proposal is accepted, he would like to showcase pictures from growing collection of "Art That People Step On." During the proposed session, the author of the proposal will present how he started noticing patterns in areas of paved surfaces that people consider to be “dirty” and tend to step on or walk over. He will also share the link to his social media page where some of works are displayed. The research methods used by the author of the proposal is similar to observation techniques used by primatologists. The author also uses observation to identify patterns, but of a different kind, namely artistic patterns in areas on paved surfaces that to most people look like dirty places that have not been cleaned up. Using focused observation, the author of the proposal scans smudges, spills, leaks chipped off parts of surfaces, and repaired surfaces to identify artistic patterns that are formed.
Movement in Time, Part 2: Motion Analysis in Chinese Martial Art Films and Calligraphy
Creative Practice Showcase Wai Ching Chung, Kimburley Choi
The project works on the visual similarity between the Chinese martial art fighting sequences in motion pictures and the cursive style of Chinese calligraphy to generate calligraphic animation automatically. The author developed a custom software to capture the fighting sequences from a number of selected Chinese martial art films. The software employs the optical flow analysis to interpret and represent the fighting details in each picture frame. The author also digitized all brush stroke information from the famous cursive style Chinese calligraphic text – the One Thousand Characters Classics and maintain in a database. The project implemented a machine learning model to match the fighting sequence details against the spatial configuration of each Chinese character. In the end, the software will select the closest match to display as animation on screen. In the exhibition, the artwork runs in real time to analyze the motion details and generate the live animation of the calligraphic characters in synchronization with the fighting sequences.
Games for Social Creators: Storytelling Games and Activities to Prompt Participant Creativity and a Celebration of Diversity
Creative Practice Showcase Kimberly Dark
This showcase focuses on creative tools to help participants discover their power as social creators. These tools can also be the starting point for creating written or performance work. Specifically, we can use fun, interactive activities that help people learn about each other's different perspectives and practice the skills of empathy, witnessing, and collaborative thinking. Rather than focusing on the writer/performer, these games keep the focus on the gestalt of creative work - which includes audience. These activities can be applied with theatre or writing groups, but also in leadership development, facilitation and team building. They are appropriate for experienced artists and those who don't consider themselves artists at all. In specific, the presenter will provide pedagogy, rationale and an opportunity to practice (both as participant and facilitator). These storytelling prompts - and their variations - focus on "early memories" of personal events like "remembering someone expressing patriotism," "realizing what an immigrant has endured," "being aware of your own race." The prompts offer participants an opportunity for "safe vulnerability" about moments when personal and social constructions meet. Participants will have the opportunity to play and discuss, learn various applications for games connecting people to their abilities as social creators, and facilitation techniques for these activities in a variety of settings. Participants leave with instructions on how to create their own set of "story-cards" from template provided.
