Works Screened_Monday April 21, 2008

How imagery is circulated and viewed was the main theme of the lecture on Monday.
Upon entering the lecture hall, a program called STEW was playing on the screen. Carl Bogner stated that this show is aired on television in the early morning hours between one and five or so on channels 14 and 90. The show combines different images to offer a way for the viewer to become detached or to "pull away" from what they are viewing. The show comments on the idea of broadcast and it even says at one point to, "watch, don't consider."
Works screened in class:
1. "Media Burn", Ant Farm, video, color/sound, 20 min., 1975
2. "Report," Bruce Conner, 16mm, b&w/sound, 13min., 1963-1967

1. The first work viewed was called "Media Burn" which entailed the stacking of television sets at the end of a long runway, and then smashing into them with an old car which had been modified to preserve the safety of those inside. This daredevil act was seen as an "event" by most people and the media. There was a message that the group who put this event together was trying to convey, however the public didn't seem to understand it as much as the reporters did. At one point a reporter said something to the effect of, "this is a direct hit to the media world....or to how media is transmitted and viewed." An interesting piece of information which I found thought provoking was that this "event" was created to destruct the material televisions, however the driver and passenger in the car received all of their information regarding timing and speed from a monitor located inside the car. Therefore, the idea of destructing the television and "stabbing" at media culture was minimized because they were using a screen to view their own information. They were counteracting their own philosophy.
This is how it appeared to me and can be soley considered my opinion.

2. Another work screened was called "Report" which used video clips of President John F. Kennedy and his presidency along with clips of post-war times to convey a message of grief and sorrow regarding President Kennedy's assassination. This film re purposes imagery by progressively moving from the loss to the legacy of President Kennedy.
The motorcade was shown driving down the street with President Kennedy and his wife in the convertible waving at people. Then, as soon as the report of gun shots was played through a sound clip, different images were erratically shown on the screen. These images included attack dogs being pushed back or held back by high-pressure water hoses, soldiers shooting their guns behind a barbed wire fence, and bullets seen impacting sand. Footage of a barbed wire fence was also shown as the audible documentary of the assassination was played. This correlated with the people, "trying to jump over the fence to see what was going on" with real war footage of a barbed wire fence. In addition, clips from a bull fight was shown which simulated the idea of the audience getting what they wanted. In other words, this quite possibly subliminally states that the public wanted resolution and that ultimately they wanted to actually see the death of John F. Kennedy. Lastly, clips from a refrigerator commercial were interjected. The last image seen within the displaying of this commercial is the woman pressing a button that says, "sell." Could this display of imagery suggest that the notion of trying to sell this media to the public was one of the main objectives in this piece. I think that it actually refers to Kennedy and the fact that he was considered the first mass-media president as well as another mass-media prop. He was directly involved with the "selling" of media as he was one of the main sources which supplied media with information.
It all comes back to the program called STEW, which was aforementioned. Maybe the public would be less influenced by media and more prone to make their own decisions if they watched, and didn't consider.