Hunter Fairstone's Project Blog

Wetplate Collodion Images

2008-01-19T15:38:00.000-05:00

Wetplate Collodion Images
7x10 Tintype

8x10 Ambrotype on glass

5x7 Tintype

4x5 Tintype

Battleship Mario

2007-12-10T21:02:00.001-05:00

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The odessa step sequence from Battleship Potemkin redone in mario paint

Videotronics

2007-12-09T06:38:00.001-05:00

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Statement of Intent

Videotronics, is the synthesis of a number of different project ideas all sourcing from the same library of visual material but discarded after changing goals. I was initially inspired by Gene Youngblood’s book Expanded Cinema, I grew fascinated with his now dated theories, particularly his idea of the “videosphere”, a prediction that television and home-video will become an analogous extension of man’s central nervous system. That television is the “third eye” of humanity, a grand surveyor of all human kind. Also I was inspired by Youngblood’s views of “synaesthetic cinema”, an attempt in filmmaking to express human consciousness with harmonic opposites.
The initial idea behind this project was to use Youngblood’s concepts, to create a display of child memory and consciousness, using his theories of relational-conceptualization. I had intended to approach synaesthetic cinema as an aesthetic language of forced conditioning, ostensibly an update in traditional associational form. That idea later evolved into an approach of using a palette of found VHS tapes to address the “third eye” view of television as a reflection of all that is.
In editing, the current direction of Videotronics revealed itself. I felt that my previous ideas were not easily communicable to the audience and I had no intention to privatize the meanings. So instead, I drew from my previous concepts and decided to create a piece where the lack of coherence and thesis becomes a theme in itself.
After narrowing down what footage to use I searched for themes and symbols and edited together as such. Using clips of television static between each edit, I created the illusion of channel surfing. The use of channel surfing captures my intentions of a rapid sweeping view of the state of the world, particularly media culture. Using a cut and paste approach, I verbally reconstructed much of the footage, and looked for humorous and absurd juxtapositions, to create a tangible yet scattered semi-narrative flow.
Most clips originated from VHS tapes purchased at thrift stores, I tried to select tapes that looked worn from use and aged. The majority of the rest of the footage had been taped off cable television and transferred through multiple generations of used VHS tapes. The final edit was fine tuned in final cut pro, though the initial assembly had been put together in a linear VCR to VCR fashion.
I feel that the visual merits of VHS are primarily attributed to nostalgic connections. Using such an aesthetic, I hoped to incite a personal response from the viewer, knowing that anyone who grew up with a VCR would have his or her own set of memories to tag onto my film. The worn copy is in a way an example of synesthesia, an involuntary response of memory invoked by an unrelated stimulus.

2007-11-16T11:25:00.000-05:00

√

Relic

2007-11-09T02:15:00.001-05:00

Aggregated Styrofoam Cups

2007-10-22T14:36:00.001-04:00

Joe Frank's biblesalesman as translated by google image search

2007-10-15T20:32:00.001-04:00

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Here's a short project I did for my youtube class (new media convergence). Excerpt from Joe Frank's bible salesman as translated into google image search.

2007-05-11T13:51:00.000-04:00

2007-05-01T10:18:00.000-04:00

"Every child begins the world again."-Henry David Thoreau

Circuitbending installation updates

2007-05-01T09:32:00.000-04:00

Treatment for Final Installation

I plan on creating a video installation centering on a circuit bent sega genesis. This installation will be a reflection on the state of technology today, concentrating on how antiquated, still functional technological devices fall into disuse. Inspired by Nam June Paik’s fascination with alternate uses of manufactured devices and objects, I will rehouse a sega genesis video game console in an antique electric radiator, which is stylized uncharacteristically of its time period. This will create an anachronism representing unexplored technological potential. The contrast between the modern, yet outmoded genesis, and the ornately styled radiator, which would fill no role outside of decoration if used today; explicates the short life span of devices that are created to only exist in the time period they were created.
By circuit bending the genesis, I am expanding its functionality in a way that explores the possibilities of the circuit, not originally intended in its design. By rewiring points on the circuit through a self-designed patch bay interface, unpredictable glitches affecting pixel size and color in the televised image will occur.
These modifications should not be seen as an improvement, but instead, a demonstration in unexplored potential of a technological device, which would otherwise be forgotten due to its outmoded nature.
I will be designing the patch bay in a manner that will be easily accessible and controllable by any passing observer. I intend to involve the viewer so that they may gain perspective on the root to end, in the genesis’s image generation process. The circuitry of the genesis will be exposed to allow a basic understanding of where the video signal comes from, and the patch bay will be approachable for any viewer to allow for interactivity in the installation.
The video signal will be split into 4 or more televisions of varying size and age, laid out in a circular formation surrounding the genesis. This will create an immersive environment, showcasing electronics from different ages and making the video less easy to ignore.

Ruxpinned! Cutting the ribbon

2007-03-13T13:34:00.001-04:00

2007-03-13T10:22:00.000-04:00

Lets see where this goes. . .