AP Art: Long Island's Best

The deadline for entry into Long Island's Best High School Artists competition at the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington is coming up March 8 and Devon, Carissa, Kerrin, and Gabby were chosen to represent High School East so make sure you complete and submit the registration form and let's all cheer them on!

AP Art: College Visit from New Hampshire

Today the New Hampshire Institute of Art will be visiting our AP Art class and explaining some of their program and talking about the faculty and facilities.

Media Art: Paperman, the Oscar winning Short Animated Film

This week the Academy Award for Best Short Animated film was awarded to Disney's Paperman which was directed by John Kahrs and produced by Kristina Reed (who was actually kicked out for throwing paper airplanes) with Pixar head John Lasseter as executive producer.  It is a perfect example of a story arch with a clear begining, middle, and end as well as a clear theme and powerful emotional pull.  As we are gearing up to creating our own short animated films think back to the consise clarity that this wonderful film has to help keep you on track!

Photography: Self Portrait with hand writing

In Photography we are working on creating a unique self portrait with hand writing this week like the examples above.  Once you've created the writing sample and scanned it it's time to shoot some selfies so try and make sure they match the mood and statement your trying to make!

Media Art: The Oscars

The 2013 Oscars were handed out on Sunday and the Best Picture went to Argo which also won Best Film Editing and Best Adapted Screenplay with Ang Lee winning Best Director, Quentin Tarantino winning Best Original Screenplay, Daniel Day-Lewis and Jennifer Lawrence winning Best Actor Awards and Christoph Waltz and Anne Hathaway taking away the Supporting Actor Oscars.   Best Documentary went to Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn for their film Searching for Sugar Man and Best Animation went to Pixar's Brave.

Today we'll be wrapping up Hugo, a big Oscar winner last year and you'll be asked to write a critique using the same format which will be due on Friday but take a look at the video clip below for a peak at the author and the inspiration for the film, a real automiton.

Photography: JR and Vik Muniz

We looked at contemporary artists JR and Vik Muniz in photography class this month and today we'll have a quiz reviewing some of what we learned.  Here are two clips to check out from each of the artists to learn a little bit more if you're interested.

Media Arts: Hugo

This week in Media Arts class we are watching the Oscar winning 2011 film Hugo directed by Martin Scorsese based on Brian Selznick's novel The Invention of Hugo Cabret about the last days of film pioneer Georges Méliès life in Paris's Gare Montparnasse railway station.  The film features cameos by characters such as: the guitarist Django Reinhardt, artist Salvador Dalí, and writer James Joyce and goes over the period of time in film history we just discussed in class.  The short video above gives a look at how difficult some of the shots were with a complicated tracking shot which goes around characters through 3 rooms, pretty impressive!

Media Arts Honor Society: MSG Varsity

Today we welcome MSG varsity to class for some basic training in our Photography class and afterschool for our Media Art Honor Society.

Media Art: Georges Méliès

Last week we looked at the innovative director Georges Méliès and his film A Trip to the Moon / Le Voyage dans la lune from 1902 which uses advances in animation, editing and special effects. This week we will look at Martin Scorsese's 2011 Oscar-winning film Hugo which stars Ben Kingsley as Georges Méliès.

Arts Alive Poster Contest

The Long Island Arts Alliance is launching an Arts Alive LI poster contest which is open to students, professionals, and amateurs of all ages from February 4 – May 24, 2013 and the theme is "Arts & Long Island".  The medium is open (drawing, painting, photography, digital, ect.) and the piece should be 34″ x 18″ horizontal or 22″ x 27″ vertical and the details can be found in the link above.  There is no entry fee to participate and winning posters may be viewed by thousands across Long Island, offering recognition to winners as well as cash prizes.

Media Arts: Film History

In media class we began to learn about the history of film including the phenomenon of persistence of vision and the development of a standard 24 Frames Per Second which makes film possible, early predecessors to film such as the camera obscura (Latin; camera for "vaulted chamber/room", obscura for "dark", together "darkened chamber/room") and the zoetrope (Greek taken to mean "active turn" or "wheel of life") and the men who invented the camera: Thomas Edison and William K. Dickson as well as the film projector, The Lumiere Brothers who's first film La Sortie des usines Lumière à Lyon which is displayed above was shown at Paris's Grand Café on December 28, 1895 along with others such as Le Repas de Bébé and later the popular Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat shown below

AP Art: The Concentration

Now that we are working full time on creating a body of work it's important to remeber to look up occasionally to see the big picture of how all the work fits together as a larger piece and makes a point (and hopefully its the point that you are trying to make). Like Hippocrates said:

"Life is short, art long, opportunity fleeting, experience treacherous, judgment difficult."

AP Art: Summer Programs

Last week in Art Honor Society we spoke about some of the different summer workshops that were available for high school students and here are links to 4 of the programs that I recommend and have witnessed.  All of the schools are very different and have pros and cons depending on your personality and interests so look into the details for a better sense and feel free to ask questions if you have any.  The cost ranges from$1000-$4000 depending on food, housing, supplies, college credit, and airfare but many of the programs have need based and art based scholarships as well.

Savannah, GA- Summer at SCAD

Rockport, ME- The Workshops Young Artists Program

NYC- SVA Pre College Program

Chicago, Il- SAIC Summer Institute

Photography: Looking at photographer Vik Muniz

This week we are looking at photographer Vik Muniz and his Oscar nominated film Wasteland.  Above is a video from his TED talk on creativity and here is a link to some examples of his work on Artnet.

Studio Art: The Mona Lisa

Have you ever wondered why Leonardo DaVinci's Mona Lisa is so famous and iconic?  One of the major reason's why is because the painting was stolen in 1911 and none other than Picasso was pulled in by the French police for questioning.  Take a look at the video above for some more clues on why the painting has become such an icon.

P.S. Mr.Needles Loves You

Today is PS I Love You Day at Smithtown East, lets bring the love.

AP Art: Senior Art Show 1 Alejandro

Yesterday was our first senior art show of the year showing off the illustration, graphic novel work, and drawings that Alejandro has put together so far this year.  He has some excellent work and his graphic novel is really intriguing so make sure to check it out while it's up!

Barry McGee in Brooklyn

Artist Barry McGee has installed a new Art in the Streets mural in Brooklyn that is well worth checking out at the Mark Morris Dance Center in Fort Greene next to the new Barclays Center.  McGee is an artist we have looked at as part of PBS's Art 21 series and mixes illustration, cartooning, street art, media art, and a vintage feel such as this show at Cheim Read

Media Art: Film Criticism

In Media Art we were reviewing the basic aspects of film criticism using the BBC television show Sherlock as an example.  We watch A Study In Pink and you were asked to write about the characters, plot, theme, and production design for today and now we will learn some more detailed terminology used in film criticism and the world of film for your next review.

Photography: The Basic Terminology

Last week in Photography class we learned some of The Basic Terminology and tomorrow is our first quiz which is based on those terms.  Below are some of the most important terms but click the link above to review the rest of what we discussed in class and good luck!

Composition- The arrangement of subjects and objects in the frame of your photo.

Focal Point- Where the viewer's eye rests in your photo. 

Exposure- The amount of light needed to make a photograph.

Single Lens Reflex Camera- A camera with a movable mirror and detachable lenses that allows you to see exactly what you will be photographing.

Rule of Thirds- The composition technique that breaks your frame into 9 even squares, and concentrates on keeping your subject outside of the center square, to keep your viewer's eye moving around the composition.

Resolution- The number of pixels per inch in your image. Often referred to in pixels per inch or ppi. A higher number will give you more detail and fineness in your image.

Contrast- The range of difference between the highlights and shadows in your photo. Contrast will add depth and a feeling of 3 dimensionality to your image.

F-Stop- The number defining how large or small your aperture is set to. Smaller numbers (1, 1.4, 2, 2.8) equal a larger opening, whereas larger numbers (22, 32, 45, 64) equal a smaller opening.

Aperture- The opening in the lens that allows light to come through to expose your photo.

Shutter Speed- The amount of time the shutter inside the camera is open to expose your photo.

Studio Art: Acrylic Painting Techniques

In Studio Art class we are now beginning to work on painting using acrylics and here are a few important tips for shading and working with colors that you should see before you begin.  Be sure to arrange you palette using the primary colors like a color wheel and remember the paint drys fast so don't use too much on your palette because its wasteful.  You have one week to create the painting of the skeleton, make sure you stay on schedule and don't fall behind also extra help is Wednesday if you need extra time!

Art Honor Society: PTA Art Auction

Here is a link to a preview of some of the work for tonight's Smithtown East PTA Art Auction from our Smithtown East MSG Varsity page- http://www.msgvarsity.com/s/5lqO.  The show starts tonight at 6:30 with music and the auction begins at 7:30.  A number of art honor society members donated work to the cause (such as Brianne's photograph above) and they are all on display outside of Art room 161 until 2pm today!

Photography: Winter in Smithtown

Our first photography assignment is to create 4 photographs showing what winter is like around Smithtown and the images are due Friday February 1.  The images can be taken using any camera or device and can be delivered via any sharing method such as an SD card, via the iPhone, Instagram using the #NeedlesClass hash tag, or on a flash drive or CD.  The theme is pretty open and with our weather so far this week, it shouldn't be too much of a challenge!

Art Honor Society: PTA Art Auction

This Friday is the Smithtown East art auction featuring work from Art Honor Society members including the images above by Sabrina, Melissa, Clay, and Jess which will be auctioned off live in support of the Smithtown High School PTA. The event Friday 7:30-9pm in the commons with music and previews beginning at 6:30 and it is being catered by Carrabba's (included in the $20 ticket price).  Students donating work can attend for a reduced fee of $10 or if they want to skip the meal they can attend for free. If you have any questions you can email PTA President Debby Eisenson at drdebby727@gmail.com.

Media Art Honor Society: LitReactor's Sci-Fi Writing Challenge

Author Chuck Palahniuk's Lit Reactor is running a contest entitled Teleport Us and the sci-fi writing challenge is open to the public so all you would be novelist and screenwriters should take advantage of the opportunity! According to the Lit Reactor website the short story should be between 1,500 and 4,000 words, explore a utopian/dystopian theme, feature a technology that's scientifically plausible, and feature a non-human character. The submission and reviewing period begins Feb 1 and submissions close on Feb 28 with the top-rated stories will be selected on April 1.  This is a great opportunity to get your work read and be part of a community plus the Lit Reactor always

Semester 2: Welcome new students!

Welcome to the second semester for photography and media art students!  Today well be going over the basics of the class and some of our special projects such as working with MSG Varsity, Instagram, & The Japan Society's Going Global project featured in the video below.  Both classes require a digital data device such as an thumb drive or a SD card and media art students should also get a package of 100 3"x5" white index cards.

AP Art: Etching with guest artist Dan Weldon

The AP Studio Art class recently welcomed guest artist and former Smithtown East teacher Dan Weldon to our class for a Solar Plate Etching workshop and above are some of the varied results from Clay, Devon, and Samantha.  Each student made their own unique etching using different techniques so the class learned a great deal about the process and the possibilities it offers artists.  Now that we have etching under our belts we'll be learning about some different techniques like monotypes, linocut, and serigraphy when we return from testing week.

Bill Plympton's CHEATIN' Animated Feature Film

We looked at a number of Bill Plympton's short animated films in Media Art class this year and even had a chance to speak to director Alexia Anastasio who created the documentary on him Adventures in Plymptoons! but now Bill is at work on his new feature film and he's going to Kickstarter to raise funds so take a look!

Museum: Matisse at the Met

The great French modernist painter Henri Matisse (1869-1954) was one of the titans of the 20th century leading the Fauves or “wild beasts”, befriending his former rival Picasso, and transforming his work into the very simplest, essential shapes and the “Matisse: In Search of True Painting” show currently at the Metropolitan Museum of Art gives some wonderful insight into his work and development.  The New York Times art critic Roberta Smith praised the show because it is "one of the most thrillingly instructive exhibitions about this painter, or painting in general, that you may ever see" and I fully agree which is why I strongly recommend all of my students who are interested in painting see the show before it closes on March 17.  Matisse had a photographer come to the studio and take photographs of his paintings in process along with the models he was drawing from at points so getting to see the master at work step by step is really informative so don't miss out!

Media Arts: The End

Tomorrow is the last day of Media Arts class as well as the final exam which reflects all the things we've (hopefully) learned this semester.  Here's one last art attack from Soul Pancake in the fitting theme of mortality to celebrate the end of our time together!  Best of luck!

Studio Art: Art as Activism

Yesterday we watched two clips from the documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry and today we will be writing a short 2-3 paragraph essay on the nature of art's relationship with politics and social issues.  We have discussed contemporary artists such as Banksy and Shepard Fairey recently who also work in this arena so write a short essay about one of the works and how it illustrates the issue.  Discuss whether or not the work succeeds in making a point and give evidence to your opinion either way.

AP Art: Artist Biographical Films

As the testing week approaches here's a list of a few terrific films on art and artists for inspiration that all happen to be available on Netflix streaming right now along with a few others below that aren't but are worth getting a hold of in helping to keep the creative juices flowing. 

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry

Director: Alison Klayman

This compelling documentary explores three years in the life of celebrated Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei, who uses social media and his art to inspire protests against the state, and suffers government persecution for his actions.

 

Exit Through the Gift Shop

Director: Banksy

Filmmaker Thierry Guetta's project to chronicle the underground world of street art takes a fascinating twist when he meets elusive stencil artist Banksy, who turns the project around to film Guetta while he reinvents himself as a street artist.

 

Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child

Director: Tamra Davis
Controversial, charismatic artist Jean-Michel Basquiat is the subject of this insightful documentary from director Tamra Davis, who has uncovered a never-before-seen interview with the artist conducted before his untimely death at the age of 27.

 

Picasso and Braque Go to the Movies

Director: Arne Glimcher
Director Arne Glimcher (The Mambo Kings) and narrator-producer Martin Scorsese present this art-filled documentary that explores the connection between cinema and the Cubist paintings of Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Extraordinary film clips from Georges Méliès and others offer a cinephile's delight, as interviews with filmmakers, artists and historians, including Scorsese, Chuck Close, and Julian Schnabel, give insightful commentary.
 

And Everything Is Going Fine

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Spalding Gray, known for his radically minimal solo shows staged on equally spare sets, is the focus of this unconventional documentary that compiles rare footage of what amounts to a posthumous monologue by the writer and actor.

 

Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Impassioned Eye

Director: Heinz Bütler
Exploring the life and work of influential French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, this captivating documentary tells the story of a camera-shy photographer whose vision quietly shaped the emerging field of photojournalism. Focusing primarily on the artist's career from the 1940s to the '60s, the film features memorable images of Marilyn Monroe, Henri Matisse, the liberation of Paris and the death of Gandhi.

Waste Land

Director: Lucy Walker, Karen Harley, João Jardim
Renowned artist Vik Muniz embarks on one of the most inspired collaborations of his career, joining creative forces with Brazilian garbage pickers who mine treasure from the trash heaps of Rio de Janeiro's Jardim Gramacho landfill.

Rivers and Tides

Director: Thomas Riedelsheimer
This astonishing documentary from Thomas Riedelsheimer shadows renowned sculptor Andy Goldsworthy as he creates works of art with ice, driftwood, leaves, stone, dirt and snow in open fields, beaches, rivers, creeks and forests. With each new creation, he carefully studies the energetic flow and transitory nature of his work. The film won the Golden Gate Award Grand Prize for Best Documentary at the 2003 San Francisco International Film Festival.

Crumb

Director: Terry Zwigoff
Director Terry Zwigoff spent six years compiling this portrait of the underground cartoonist Robert Crumb, an animation cult hero whose characters Fritz the Cat and Mr. Natural became counterculture icons. Candid interviews with Crumb's friends, family and the artist himself render a compelling profile of a tormented man who transcended a harrowing upbringing. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.

Between the Folds

Director: Vanessa Gould
Filmmaker Vanessa Gould takes you on a provocative odyssey into the mesmerizing world of modern origami, where artists and scientists use the ancient art form to craft works of delicate beauty and to model cutting-edge mathematical theories. Pushing the envelope of origami to include caricatured portraits and elaborate abstract designs, these experts examine how paper folding can reveal the profound connection between art, science and philosophy.

Sketches of Frank Gehry

Director: Sydney Pollack
In this intimate documentary, Sydney Pollack explores the signature style of architect Frank Gehry, whose famous works include the Fish in Barcelona, the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and various residences. Pollack starts with Gehry's original sketches and follows their evolution from a 3D model to a computer-assisted rendition, on to construction and, finally, to the polished finished product.

Helvetica

Director: Gary Hustwit
We use it every day on our computers, we see it on street signs -- and we take it for granted. Now, Gary Hustwit's unique documentary introduces us to Helvetica, a font whose readability has made it the most popular font in the world.
Basquiat

Director: Julian Schnabel

Director Julian Schnabel's biopic won an Independent Spirit Award for its depiction of Jean-Michel Basquiat's meteoric rise in New York's art world, his anguish over his family, and his hatred of a society that both courted and exploited him. In 1981, Basquiat (Jeffrey Wright) was a 19-year-old graffiti artist living on the streets. Eight years later, he was a world-renowned painter -- and the tragic victim of his own addiction.

 

My Architect: A Son's Journey

Director: Nathaniel Kahn

Documentarian Nathaniel Kahn examines the life and career of his father, architect Louis I. Kahn (1901-1974), whose work included the Salk Institute and the Parliament and Capitol Buildings in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Among other surprising facts, the Oscar-nominated film reveals that the elder Kahn died of a heart attack in a Penn Station bathroom, unidentified and broke despite having been one of the century's most influential visionaries.

 

 

 Also worth checking out:

• Pollock
• Frida
• Surviving Picasso
• Art 21: Art in the Twenty-First Century
• The Gates

 

 

 

 

Media Art: Animation

In Media Arts class we have been drawing our 50 page animation and today the 50 drawn pages are due (40 pages of your story and 10 pages which morph your story into your classmates).  After the 50 pages are complete each student needs to scan their index cards (3 at a times is most efficient and make sure to remember to save them to your H drive in a folder) and the use Photoshop to clean up any errors and adjust the brightness, contrast, and levels (all which are found under IMAGE - Adjustments) then crop each image separately and name them alphabetically (a1 a2 a3, ect.)  After your frames are all separated and ready they can be animated in Windows Movie Maker (as well as iMovie and other similar programs).

Art Honor Society: PTA's Art Auction

The Art and Media Art Honor Society will be donating artwork to the Smithtown East PTSA for their upcoming art auction which will take place in the commons on February 1 and will be catered by Carrabba’s, which is included in the $15 ticket price.  The previews begin at 6 pm and the auction is from 7-9:30 pm.

Guest Speaker: Dan Welden

This morning we are welcoming guest artist Dan Welden to our class for a special workshop on solar plate etching.  Dan has been working in printmaking for over 40 years authoring books and films on the subject such as Printmaking In The Sun and participating in countless shows around the world.  He has also worked with a number of well known artists that we've discussed in class ranging from: Robert Dash, Willem de Kooning, Dan Flavin, Esteban Vicente, Kurt Vonnegut, Alfonso Ossorio, Jane Freilicher, David Salle, and Eric Fischl. The workshop runs period 2-5 so make sure your prepared with the drawing that you are going to use, it should be fun!

Extra Credit: MSG Varsity

With just 8 days left of the semester we have one last extra credit assignment for our Smithtown East  MSG Varsity page.  This assignment is in the theme of school spirit- create a gallery of 10 images of your new photos of any school sport, sporting event, school event, club, or school theme and hand them in digitally by next Wednesday January 16th for extra credit.  The images will be uploaded to our MSG Varsity page and viewable online next week!

Media Art: Time to Animate

Today we begin our final hand drawn animation project and above is a short tutorial on the basics (and remember it is more basic then what we are doing).  This week each student should complete 10 frames per day drawn in pencil which will then be inked in marker and by Friday we will have our 50 page animated flipbook complete and ready for digitizing! Below is a great example of a finished example.

AP Art: Etching

Next week we will welcome guest Dan Weldon into class for a solar plate etching workshop so in advance of his visit we will be creating small 5"x7" drawings to potential use with the process.  Traditionally etching often looks something like the image above "Abraham's sacrifice" from Rembrandt but the process was adopted by some abstract artists thanks to its ability to produce unexpected results as well as some photographers thanks to technological advancements.  Students should produce a work due Tuesday in order to create a solar plate etching during our in-school field trip on Wednesday.  Below is a short video showing Dan Weldon's recent workshop in Florence to give you an idea of what to expect from the process, it should be fun.

Media Art: Short Animation

This week in media arts class we will be creating a short black and white hand drawn animation and we'll begin by looking at Simon Tofield's short animations entitled Simon's Cat which are both simple and funny.  They were drawn in much the same style we'll be working in and when creating your own characters and below is an example of Simon drawing the character- look at the simplicity of Simon's Cat, it has all the trademarks of a cat but it something that is very easy to draw repeatedly (the frames are hand-animated in a traditional manner, frame to frame, it usually takes between 12 and 25 drawings to create 1 second of a Simon’s Cat film).  Today you'll begin sketching out ideas for your own character and tomorrow well begin assembling storyboards and character sheets in order to complete the 50 frame animation for Friday next week.

Studio Art: Picture Books

The world of Children's_literature has evolved a great deal even in modern times as demonstrated by example such as: the webstory Inanimate Alice, The book and Flash game Bembo's Zoo, the video above for The Heart and The Bottle and this week we will create our own short children's picture book for the illustration unit of class. Think about what your favorite stories were as a child (take a look at this list of The 50 Best Book for Kids for a refresher) and think about what they had in common and soon well be sketching out your own ideas.  Well begin by working on a classic ourselves "The Farmer and the Dell" and then everyone will develop their own short story with illustrations.

Art Honor Society: Field Trip to the MoMA

We had an amazing Art Honor Society field trip to the MoMA and 5 Pointz today.  Above is a short video of one of my favorite pieces an interactive media piece from Philip Worthington called Shadow Monsters which allows anyone to interact and make a monster with their own body.

Media Art: Animation

In Media Arts class we have been looking at the history of Walt Disney animation studios and PIXAR in order to prepare for our short hand drawn animation.  Friday we'll have a short quiz on the material but check out the short clip above showing the PIXAR animators discussing their student films!

Strictly Students Screenwriting Contest

This year the Strictly Students Festival will hold a Screenwriting Contest sponsored by Final Draft and just as a reminder the due date has been extended to December 21, 2012 because of the recent hurricane the deadline.  The screenplay should be 5-12 pages in standard format and in standard format.  Below are a few great writing tips from a terrific author Neil Gaiman who wrote Coraline  and The Sandman enjoy and best of luck!

Neil Gaiman's "8 Good Writing Practices"

• Write.

• Put one word after another. Find the right word, put it down.

• Finish what you're writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.

• Put it aside. Read it pretending you’ve never read it before. Show it to friends whose opinion you respect and who like the kind of thing that this is.

• Remember: when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.

• Fix it. Remember that, sooner or later, before it ever reaches perfection, you will have to let it go and move on and start to write the next thing. Perfection is like chasing the horizon. Keep moving.

• Laugh at your own jokes.

• The main rule of writing is that if you do it with enough assurance and confidence, you’re allowed to do whatever you like. (That may be a rule for life as well as for writing. But it’s definitely true for writing.) So write your story as it needs to be written. Write it honestly, and tell it as best you can. I'm not sure that there are any other rules. Not ones that matter.

Studio Art: Illustration

This week we will be creating an illustration based on a NY Times article- Hailing a Yellow Cab with an App.  Above is a short time-lapse video showing an example of how to create an illustration but basically it is a piece of art that visually describes or explains a work of writing.  Start by reading the article and then create a few pencil sketches of ideas of how to visually portray the article.  Then create a final drawing, ink it, and color it using marker, color pencils, or watercolor paint.

Media Art: Golden Globe Nominations

Golden Globe Nominations

Best Picture, Drama:

“Argo”
“Django Unchained”
“Life of Pi”
“Lincoln”
“Zero Dark Thirty”

Best Picture, Musical or Comedy:

“The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”

“Les Misérables”

“Moonrise Kindgom”

“Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”

“Silver Linings Playbook”

Best Director:

Ben Affleck, “Argo”

Kathryn Bigelow, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Ang Lee, “Life of Pi”

Steven Spielberg, “Lincoln”

Quentin Tarantino, “Django Unchained”

Best Actress, Drama:

Jessica Chastain, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Marian Cotillard, “Rust and Bone”

Helen Mirren, “Hitchcock”

Naomi Watts, “The Impossible”

Rachel Weisz, “The Deep Blue Sea”

Best Actor, Drama:

Daniel Day-Lewis, “Lincoln”

Richard Gere, “Arbitrage”

John Hawkes, “The Sessions”

Joaquin Phoenix, “The Master”

Denzel Washington, “Flight”

Best Actor, Musical or Comedy:

Jack Black, “Bernie”

Bradley Cooper, “Silver Linings Playbook”

Hugh Jackman, “Les Misérables ”

Ewan MCGregor, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”

Bill Murray, “Hyde Park on Hudson”

Best Actress, Musical or Comedy:

Emily Blunt, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”

Judi Dench, “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”

Jennifer Lawrence, “Silver Linings Playbook”

Maggie Smith, “Quartet”

Meryl Streep, “Hope Springs”

Best Supporting Actress:

Amy Adams, “The Master”

Sally Field, “Lincoln”

Anne Hathaway, “Les Misérables ”

Helen Hunt, “The Sessions”

Nicole Kidman, “The Paperboy”

Best Supporting Actor:

Alan Arkin, “Argo”

Leonardo DiCaprio, “Django Unchained”

Philip Seymour Hoffman, “The Master”

Tommy Lee Jones, “Lincoln”

Christoph Waltz, “Django Unchained”

Best Screenplay:

Mark Boal, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Tony Kushner, “Lincoln”

David O’Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook”

Quentin Tarantino, “Django Unchained”

Chris Terrio, “Argo”

Best Foreign Language Film:

“Amour”

“A Royal Affair”

“The Intouchables”

“Kon-Tiki”

“Rust and Bone”

Best Animated Feature:

“Rise of the Guardians”

“Brave”

“Frankenweenie”

“Hotel Transylvania”

“Wreck-It Ralph”

AP ART: Repetition and Rhythm in Art

The focus for the next AP Art breadth piece will be using repetition and rhythm in Art.  When we talk about repetition and rhythm the names Jackson Pollock and Andy Warhol often arise and for good reason because Pollock's drip paintings are somewhat related to Jazz music and include beautiful rhythms and Warhol is the master of repeating an image for effect but there are many other more subtle ways to include these elements in your work as well. The time-lapse video above is from the Soul Pancake website and shows artist Jeni Yang creating a piece in the theme of 'protection' which incorporates these elements in an interesting and unique way.  What's your unique way of working with repetition and rhythm?  Let's find out and share the results when the pieces are due on Monday!

If you want to check out more from Soul Pancake look at some of their creative activities

Media Art Honor Society: Field Trip 2012

Today in Media Art Honor Society we will be reviewing our trip next week to the MoMA and 5 Pointz in NYC and the current exhibitions which include Edvard Munch: The Scream, Tokyo 1955–1970: A New Avant-Garde, Quay Brothers, and New Photography 2012.  We'll be discussing the specifics and attendance is mandatory for anyone attending the trip which once again leaves at 7:45 next Thursday!

Media Art: Short digital animation

Digital Animation Winter 2012 by VoteNeedles2012 on GoAnimate

Animation Software - Powered by GoAnimate.
This weeks Media Arts assignment is to create your own short digital animation on the GoAnimate.com website. Above is a short demo of how the film works with instructions on the assignment. I'll do a short demonstration in class and go over some of the basics but you can begin by creating a free account and adding me as a contact, my user name is VoteNeedles2012 and the email chunckerthedonut@aol.com.  The animation is going to be due Thursday and it should be 2 minutes long and about 25 frames.

Museum: Regarding Warhol at the Met

I had an opportunnity to see the Regarding Warhol show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Sunday and I would definitly encourage all my students to go and check it out before it closes at the end of the year.  The show looks at Andy Warhol's work and his influence in artists such as: Chuck Close, Keith Haring, Ai Weiwei, Cindy Sherman, Damien Hirst, and Takashi Murakami.  There are some terrific pieces and nearly everyone of my favorite modern artists are included plus it ends of a great not with the cowprint wallpaper room complete with 'silver pillows' giving a pretty authentic taste of the Warhol experience!

Art Honor Society: Field Trip Winter 2012

This year's Media Art Honor Society Winter field trip will be to the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan and 5 Pointz Art Space in Brooklyn


Above is a clip from the work of the Quay Brothers, one of the featured exhibitions at MoMA, their animation is pretty amazing and inspirational. Below is a really interesting time-lapse film of one of the 5 Pointz pieces being painted, it should be a great trip!

Yesterday we had filmmaker Sean Apuzzo and photographer Kate Le Roux visit and speak to classes and the Media Art Honor Society about their work and their experience at SCAD.  They both offered some great advice for students from wide ranging suggestions such as taking advantage of some of the grants an scholorships offered for college to more specific advice such as how to structure a screenplay and the importance of keeping it dynamic in the first 12 pages.

Guest Speaker: Sean Apuzzo

Tomorrow we will welcome two guest speakers, Smithtown alum Sean Apuzzo who is a filmmaker and Kate Le Roux from Australia who is a photographer both of whom are currently finishing up their degrees at SCAD in Savannah.  They will be speaking to the media classes and after school to the Art & Media Art Honor Society about their work and college experience and what they have learned.

Denmark Day

Today we will be welcoming some students from Denmark into our classes and as we are reviewing the artists and styles we learned about in our art history unit I though I'd share some well known art from their home country.  The sculpture below entitled "Boy" is a favorite of mine from artist Ron Mueck and is one of the spotlight works from the ARoS museum in Aarhus.

Here is a piece from which was installed nearby in NY from Danish artist Olafur Eliasson from 2008 where he created 4 New York City Waterfalls (this one under the Brooklyn Bridge) that flowed for a little more than 3 months and were illuminated at night as a public art project.

Internet Privacy in the new millennium

After this week's privacy status hoax on Facebook I thought it was a good time to speak about internet privacy specifically for artists. The nature of privacy and the importance of maintaining your rights to work as an artist has become an increasingly necessary discussion in the new millennium so we will talk about some of basics of copyright, privacy, rights, watermarks, wrongful appropriation, and digital citizenship today in class. At this point everyone should know the how to copyright your images in programs such as Adobe Photoshop but its also important to know some of the details of the agreements that we approve when using programs such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Blogs.  We will begin by reading the two articles and viewing the short video about the hoax posted below then we will have a discussion:

NY Times: Art Is Long; Copyrights Can Even Be Longer

NY Times: How to Muddy Your Tracks on the Internet

Newsy: Facebook Privacy Status Hoax Circulates

Here is a link to a page with some additional resources from the Art-Support group that deals with watermarking and copyright in artworks.

I Heart the Senseless Drawing Robot

I came across this video of a SENSELESS DRAWING BOT which manages to create some pretty interesting street art in a seemingly random way, I think we found our new AP Art mascot!

Studio Art: History

This week we learned about the artist Robert Rauschenberg who is in the news this week as one of his most noted pieces,“Canyon,” a combine with a Bald Eagle attached to a painting is being gifted to the MOMA.  Above is a short video interview with the artist discussing another one of his famous animal combines and here is a link to the New York Times article about the coveted gift: MoMA Gains Treasure

AP Art: The Sketchbook- Robert Dash

For the next 2 weeks AP drawing students will be working intensely in their sketchbooks with a new focus every other day and to begin we will look at East End artist and writer Robert Dash who created the Madoo Conservancy and look specifically at a work from the Heckscher Museum in Huntington entitled Sagaponack (which you can view in the link above).

Media Arts: Video Game Design

This week we will work on video game design and motion graphic in media art class and we'll be entering some of the games we create into the annual Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.  We will begin with a simple program that introduces the basics called Gamestar Mechanic.  A few of our alumni have found interesting and creative jobs in the field of game design so we will look at their work and see what it takes to really create an amazing video game from the art and creative side.

Also for any students that are interested in photography the Photo Forum magazine high school photography contest closes tomorrow!

Studio Art: Exiting through the Gift Shop

As we head into the Thanksgiving break we are taking a look at some clips from the Oscar nominated documentary from Banksy Exit through the Gift Shop which features Mr. Brainwash and Shepard Fairey among others.  Here's a short film with an update on Mr. Brainwash from the opening of one of his more recent shows.

A Midsummer Night's Dream Tonight

Tonight is Smithtown East's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream which features a number of our art and media students in the production so come out and support your classmates and take in a little hometown Shakespeare!

AP Art: Weather

Our final assignment for the first quarter was the theme of 'weather' and while we looked at a number of images taken from our recent Hurricane and Nor'Easter I chose to spotlight Clay's image above of a West coast sunny day with palm trees because it's a gorgeous image and, well..I'd like to be there right now as I sit in our cold classroom with my jacket on!

Studio Art: Art History

Ed Ruscha, Woody, and the World's Hottest Pepper from Park Pictures on Vimeo.
The last assignment of the quarter is a research assignment based on an artist that I will assign to you.  The presentation must include:

• 1 intro page with the artists name, birth (and death) dates, and an image of the artist
• 2 pages of bulleted biography with a link to the references
• 10 pages of the artist work

Here are two short videos about Ed Ruscha, one of the artists we are studing as an inspiration

Ed Ruscha Presentation from Reginald Dankwa on Vimeo.

Media Art: Film production

This week in class we are studing how films are made and we began by screening the TED video above from producer and director James Cameron who's known for creating the two biggest moneymakers in film history Titanic and Avatar. His story is pretty remarkable and inspirational and he ends his talk with a terrific quote-

"Failure is an option but fear is not"

We will also be looking at clips from producer Lynda Obst's documentary based on her book
Hello, He Lied and Other Truths from the Hollywood Trenches which gives insight into the real world of film production and what's involved.  There will be a short test on Friday on the basics so make sure you take notes!

Little Kids Rock

I had an opportunity to attend an awards presentation by the not-for-profit Little Kids Rock program which was started by former teacher David Wells 10 years ago to help restore the arts in public schools and I spoke with Steven Van Zandt of the E Street Band and The Soprano’s who was being awarded the “Big Man” award (named for his band mate Clarence Clemons who passed away last year) for his charitable work in music education.  Steven had a number of interesting things to say about art and music in schools but he made one point which really stuck with me:

"We're the only country in the world which thinks art is a luxury, it's not"

I certainly have seen this thought evident as I've traveled around the country and seen the cuts in arts education nationwide but I think something that can be learned from the unfortunate reality is for artists and educators to remind the public why the arts are important and to understand the impact they have on our culture and our economy. The event featured an array of guests who I spoke with including: Elvis Costello, American Idol winner Kris Allen, Robert Randolph, The Midtown Men (the original cast of The Jersey Boys) and I was also lucky enough to photograph surprise guest Bruce Springsteen and Southside Johnny who joined Steven onstage for a few songs so for the complete interview check out my article on Short & Sweet NYC.

Quarter1 Ends Friday

Quarter 1 ends this Friday so make sure all of your work is in this week because we'll be discussing grades and looking over the grading rubric used for the different classes later in the week. In the Media Arts classes this means we are now at the halfway point because it is a semester class so it is especially important to make sure you are up to date with all of your assignments!

AP Art: Art History Redux

This week the two works from the art history unit are due above is an example of the first which was to take an aspect from one of the artists you studied in class and use it in your own piece this one from Gabby references Duane Michals and the second was to take a piece from one of the artists who uses a different media than you and interpret it in your media (do a famous painting using photography or a photograph as a painting).

Welcome back from the storm!

I hope everyone made it through the Hurricane and Nor'easter without too much trouble so welcome back!  The end of the quarter has been moved to next week on November 16 so there is quite a bit of work to catch up on and below is the run down for the major classes:

• AP Art- Art history visuals test tomorrow, assignment 2 due Tuesday
• Studio Art- Drawing self portraits due on Wednesday
• Media Art- Screenplays due tomorrow, montage films due Wednesday

Hurricane Sandy 2012

With the devastation and power outages from Hurricane Sandy this week we will not have class again until November 7 (and November 9 is the end of the quarter) so for any art and media students who want to work on an extra credit assignment in the meantime create a series on the Hurricane and it's aftermath. 

Photographers should take 4 images and we can montage them like I did with my photos above when we return (or you can use a free app like Pic Stitch or Photoshop.com to do that on the computer or your mobile device and montage like I did above).  Fine artists can craw or paint a scene using any media. If you want to share them now you can post photographs to Instagram and add #NeedlesClass or post them online and tweet or email me the link and I'll take a look and comment this week or else I'll accept them when we return. 

I hope you are all safe and warm, I'm still without heat & power but luckily there's a Starbucks not too far from home!

Smithtown High School East Haunted House 2012

This year's Media & Art Honor Society Haunted House for Smithtown High School East's Spooky Hallways was a big success with lines of kids, teens, and even some adults who wanted to see what was causing all the screaming and experience it first hand.  Below I'll be posting some of the pictures from the night (but they because of the specialized black and strobe lighting they don't do the haunted house justice).  Thanks to Jess, Gabby, Clay spent most of the day organizing club members to pull it together along with Sarah who also brought pizza and Alli who did an amazing job with makeup!  We had over 50 club members working to the event, bringing in supplies, and handing out candy along with a handful of extremely younger siblings who really did a great job so thanks to everyone for all the hard work!

AP Art: Art History Test today

In honor of our test today on the art history unit here's one of our artists, Chinese dissident activist Ai Weiwei, showing off a specialincarnation of Gangnam style.                 

Japan Society: Welcome to my Life

This week we will conclude our Welcome to My Life project on Going Global with the final four images.  Logon and post them by Friday and don't forget to comment on at least one other person from another school!
WEEK ONE – Create a photo collage of the most important places in your community. Comment on other students’ pictures.

WEEK TWO – Create your own photo collage of your personality. Comment on other students’ pictures.

WEEK THREE – Create a photo collage of where you spend your free time. Students will comment on collages.

WEEK FOUR – Students create a collage of their futures using your own photos or internet pictures. Students will comment on collages

Art Honor Society: Haunted House 2012

This year's 'Spooky Hallways' is this Friday October 26 from 3:30-6:30pm and the Art & Media Honor Society has been assembling our annual Haunted House. Elementary students grades K-5 have been invited to participate in fun activities including Halloween themed crafts, spooky storytelling, an obstacle course in addition to our haunted house and this year we ask that you bring 3 non perishable food items (i.e.: corn, peas, gravy, corn muffin mix, stuffing, cranberries, cake mix, or canned fruit)  to support the Thanksgiving Food Drive. Hope to see you there!

Media Art: Screenwriting

Before we begin writing our screenplays in class it's important to write an outline of what is going to happen and in the film world that's called a script breakdown.  The breakdown should include five plotpoints or major things that happen, below is an example of the five plotpoints for the film Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl:

Elizabeth Swann (Keria Knightly) is in love with an orphan named Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) since she rescued him on her father’s ship as a child. She is captured by pirates looking for a magic coin to break an ancient curse. Will sets off with the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) to save her from the evil Captain Barabossa. Will and Jack chase her across the sea, and when they finally rescue her, the evil Pirates have set new sights on Will. Once they return him to the original island of the curse, it’s up to Jack to rescue Will and save his own skin.

So use this method of organising the story and combine it with the screenplay cheatsheet that we used in class and type both up for Wednesday so that we can begin writing our screenplays.