• Explore the psychological and emotional curiosity for and impact of horror art on individuals and society
• Analyze the unique aesthetic qualities of horror art.
• Understand and utilize some basic principles of film and television analysis.

Artifact: People seem to be most curious about something that seems impossible but is happening right in front of their eyes. I think good stories can be told using horror as a genre, but the audience will likely be more in it for the horror. But it is a great question…why are people so attracted to horror when these horror situations would be something no one would want to be a part of? For instance, the movie Halloween became a popular hit amongst film watchers; it’s about a serial killer whom uses a kitchen knife to kill everyone in his path. It’s crazy that people are attracted to this, but it gives people a certain rush when they consider something impossible to be happening. According to author N, Carrol, “It is part of such stories- contrary to our everyday beliefs about the nature of things- that such monsters exist”.  From all this comes the question why horror instead of something else that could be considered impossible? Why aren’t movies about basketball players jumping 200 feet in the air more popular than the horror genre? It seems there is a good portion of our population that likes sports, so why not? Horror developed from early on and has somehow stayed with us. It is very intriguing.

I learned how horror appeals to people in a very unique way. People don’t want to be the ones in the horror movies running from a serial killer but people love to watch it. I think it is the animal in us that causes this. We seem to feed off of danger and fear at times. Horror is perfect for people looking for a cringe.

The curiosity of horror keeps people coming back for more. People wonder, could this happen to me? Another topic that this brings up is that is this excessive bad for society? People become used to the fact of death and this could cause more murders. Horror movies were a topic for discussion among classmates.

• Become familiar with ways in which spirituality influences artists
• Discuss the differences between spirituality and religion
• Examine spirituality as a generative force and a well spring for creativity

Artifact:

I don’t really buy the whole spirituality stuff. I am fine with religion because it allows for people to find something in their lives that they might not possess. “Religious leaders worry that spiritual seekers are making up their own answers to ultimate questions”(1). These people whom seek spiritual tendencies to me are crazy and no religious leader needs worry. I think it is good for people to be in touch with themselves, but when people start saying god has talked to them and such, they should most likely seek help. People can come up with good art when they explore a ‘spiritual’ side to themselves, but I don’t think it is ever relevant to any sort remarkable vision or act.  

This section told me how people use spirituality to develop art. The real question among discussion became the difference between spirituality and religion. I think there is a big difference while some may disagree as someone did in discussion. Religion is a group of people whom all believe the same thing while they usually have a book such as a bible. Spirituality is an individual activity or state of mind that people claim to discover.

I learned that there is a possibility that people discover this spirituality and also that people can create great art through it. People seem to be very creative when they claim to be spritual. Art has become greatly enforced by spirituality.

Artifact:In Steven Pooles article, he plots out the history of gaming. It all started by simply having to move dots around and has now become a big part in kid’s lives. I myself play a lot of video games in my spare time because it relaxes me through the stress of school. I love this assignment because I can relate to it so much. I could ask many questions about this topic of video games. With gaming becoming such a big hit with kids, does the violence affect these kids??? I just bought a new video game called ‘Modern Warfare 2′ and in this game there is a great amount of violence. But what absolutely shocked me was when I stumbled upon a level where you are walking around an airport as a Russian terrorist, while all you do is shoot innocent people. What amazed me about it is that it is so real looking and I kind of played the whole level stunned, wondering how little kids are playing this same stuff.?!?!????? I think some video games get out of hand with the violence. My question is; does this violence matter? Or do kids recognize that it’s only a video game? Because there is NO WAY I would let my kids play that same level that I did.

Not only did I learn much through the history of the gaming world in this section, but also how new technology calls for new art. Art changes with our technology, as does video games and the whole culture! This section of class was most interesting to me because to many great topics and points were brought up throughout the dicussions among class.

As I have grown I have realized how serious it is when kids are playing video games that are extremely violent. It can affect them there whole lives. Becoming used to the idea of violence is dangerous among the new generation of technology and children. I learned that video games can become a second life for people too!

• Become acquainted with copyright as a historic, cultural and economic paradigm and its value and pertinence to creative works.
• Explore the changing nature of copyright in the context of “Remix Culture” and the “Fifth World”
• Examine their own and others values and paradigms of ownership and authorship of cultural media.
• Evaluate the meanings of real and fake and examine their intersection with personal and cultural identity and authenticity.

Artifact:Without any inspirations and influences from the past, we would see no creative reformations. Music artist’s such as Jay-z have the opportunity to take something that was so popular among culture, and flip into their own style. Is this wrong to copy? I really don’t believe so. As long as people know, whats the difference. People would think it is cool BECAUSE the Beatles are the reason for it. If I made some great music in my day, I would love for my music to be passed along for centuries to come; because people would remember me. I think it is great to see artist’s feed off of each other because that’s what forms truly great art. Yet don’t get me wrong, I am totally against a blatant copy of another person’s  material.

The readings stated that there are museums that contain nothing but fake copies of great art. It was said that these pieces that are fake are more expensive becauase they are more durable. This was mind blowing to me. I learned a lot about copying among art.

I always thought that it was illegal to use someone else’s art to make money. I love when music artist’s use other music to develop something new, but when there is a blatant copy like that of these fake copies, I find it wrong. I learned much through the history of copying among this section of my class.

Artifact: I found it most interesting that “in Mannheim, Germany, in 1853 where the marble statue of Venus de Milo- the statue herself – was put on trial, convicted and condemned for nudity.” (37) It was a shock to me at first reading this because I thought nude statues were a big thing back then. Apparently I was wrong. Censorship seems to go back a long ways which brings up questions. Why has censorship of the human body become a common thing throughout history? How come everyone didn’t just walk around naked, why did clothes become a necessary thing? I think the human body is a beautiful thing and should be flourished, not censored.

This artifact helped me understand as to why and where censorship has occured in art. It seems people are drawn to the conflict of nudity and a lot of people out there are against nude art. It has never been a big deal to me, even after this reading.

We all have the same body type so why is it still so painful for someone to look at nude art. Throughout this learning I was thinking as to why people wear clothes in the first place unless its cold. As I stated in the artifact, why did clothes develop into a cultural thing? It seems that nudity can still be considered obscene to people which is hard for me to understand. This artifact did help me learn more about the background behind censorship history.

First looking at the piece I discover different forms of animals, with each animal posing differently on the boat. It is oil on canvas piece and has many exotic colors. I think of war when I look at it because it looks as if it’s a very intense moment and that they are headed somewhere important. I also think the canvas may be trying to portray a message about classes, seeing how there is a monkey paddling and other animals on the boat look like royalty. The whole piece looks like a really crazy dream.

After reading a little about the artist (Jack McLarty), I learned that this piece is a ‘subtle humor that tends to ride into the planes of bold compositions that appear like a psychedelic kaleidoscope of his world of social, political and domestic concerns’. I think this artist likes to explore his beliefs and imagination through his brush. I still don’t know the message of the true thinking’s behind the piece but if I were to guess I would still say that it might be saying something about societal stratification; classes.  Analyzing the art piece after reading a little about the artist for sure did change my first impressions of the piece.

To me the issue raised here is the question of is this rational to base you WHOLE life around a game? This person seems to be completely satisfied with his life in that he lives it through the gaming world. Many questions were developed this week in how people become obsessed with video games. I think that if one is basing their whole life around it, it is a problem. Gaming is not reality. You may be able to perceive the gaming world as a metaphor for life, but it’s not real life. I agree that it can be called a lifestyle but I don’t agree with someone living this lifestyle in that it is unhealthy and somewhat irrational.

As a guy stated in the “You Brain on Videogames” discussion; he ‘wants to be playing a game that (he) wants to play rather than a game that (he) is forced to play’. To me, people who base their whole lives off of video games weren’t satisfied with their lives before. These people used video games as an escape route from their unsatisfying lives. Is this wrong? I’m not sure, but in the positive view these people found something that they love, and seem to enjoy it.

http://www.gamer20.com/features/127

The Next article I stumbled upon was an article that I personally could relate. ‘Modern Warfare 2 sales Skyrocket despite controversy’ is the title. The article is mainly about a level in this game that I have played and talked about in the discussion board. The level brings up so much controversy because you are walking around an airport as a terrorist shooting to kill hundreds of innocent people. The level to me seemed unnecessary. It was shocking to me the possibility that millions of little kids are playing this. The article goes onto explain that sales set a record despite the controversy. It tries to explain that the level isn’t as graphic is the most recent ‘Saw’ movie, but to me, the situation is graphic and almost obscene.

Violence seemed to be a topic in much of the discussion board so I chose this article. Many questions have been raised about violence in videogames. To me, the level in this new game was over the top. I’m not saying I’m totally against it, but it just seemed pointless to portray such violence. These video game companies know darn well that children will be playing this game so why put this level on there? My friends were shocked when I showed them the level, and it takes a lot to shock my friends like that, seeing how we grew up on violence.

As pointed out among the discussion board. The graphics in these video games really attract the customer. Then while a gamer truly feels like they are there, they are put into a violent terrorist situation! The graphics in video games have come a long way but this could be a bad thing seeing how the violence is now starting to feel real.    

http://www.infopackets.com/news/gaming/industry/2009/20091120_modern_warfare_2_sales_skyrocket_despite_controversy.htm

To me spirituality is when one is in touch with a greater power or they just know that power. Being spiritual basically means that you have the ability to connect yourself with the universe. Spirituality seems to allow for one to feel at harmony because they feel that everything in our life is connected together. If I knew what was in store for me after I die, I’m sure I would be a lot more comfortable living my life. Much like religion, spirituality tells someone how it is.

Spirituality and Religion

Spirituality and religion are different. Spirituality is one person’s beliefs through their own person experiences. Religion is a common set of beliefs by a group of people. They both have the same idea but religion is more common mostly because it is easier for on to just believe what others believe. Being spiritual allows for one to be in touch with their inner soul. So religion and spirituality are the same; but different.

Creativity

Being creative is also being unique. If you are creative, you have the ability to make nothing into something. Creative people in our society tend to be successful because capitalism asks for creativity.  The ability to develop new ideas and concepts from original ideas and concepts is what I am getting at here. Creativity involves a human brain thinking outside of the box. Many inventions are developed through this idea of creativity. The unique trait that us humans have seems to be this idea of creativity and it keeps our society developing at a faster and faster pace.

The source of creativity

The source of creativity is the activity of the human mind; the ability to make something new all the time. Without our developed brains we would not have this rare ability to always be making new things. Our technology has been advancing at a faster and faster rate every year because of our ability as a human race to be creative. Whether it be a conscious or unconscious state of mind, human beings have this gift in their minds to be what we call creative.