Data Visualization & Escaping Flatlands Blog Post

One notable quote at the beginning of the data visualization video explained that “Every single pixel should testify directly to content.”  This quote sets the tone for the rest of the video and is incredibly relevant.  I thought it was really interesting when the video described how data visualization began almost 6,000 years ago with cartography and also the direct relationship with science was explained as well.  The entire video highlights how important visuals are to the understanding and learning processes, which all humans learn to do from a young age. 

This video made me realize how closely interrelated data and visuals are throughout all aspects of our lives and culture.  Visuals have the ability to translate confusing data into something that is easily understandable.  The video talks about how humans see things to confirm them, which is really accurate.  This clip made me realize how important visuals are for humans to understand and comprehend something.

In my opinion, Escaping Flatlands was unlike any piece that we have read in this class before.  The beginning of the piece was very informational and necessary for the reader; it detailed how we navigate daily through a world with two-dimensionality of endless flatlands of paper and video screen. I am not sure if I am interpreting this correctly but to me this idea seems incredibly relevant considering our how technologically inclined our world has become.  It also explains how to envision information you need to be able to escape the flatland, which I interpret as opening up your mind to new ideas and visualizations.  At the beginning of the piece, it is said that the methods described work to increase the number of dimensions that can be represented on plane surfaces and the amount of information per unit area.  After completing the reading, I think this was definitely accomplished because I now think of dimensions and space in a different way.

The drawings, images, and visuals scattered throughout the piece work very well to prove the point that the text is trying to accomplish.  One particular visual that I found very to be very helpful with my understanding of the concepts was about the toad.  In this visual, it shows what seems to be a three dimensional toad, but then compares it with a two dimensional version of it.  I have never thought of the relationship between dimensions in this regard before, but now that I know this I do not think I will look at a three dimensional image the same again.

Overall, I really enjoyed both the reading and the video for this assignment.  They both were very informative but also interesting and thought provoking.  They were both very appropriate considering we are learning about dimension in class and I think they both contributed to speeding up my understanding of time and dimension.

   

Artist Research Project

My first artist choice would be Jasper Johns, I had never heard of this artist before and his work immediately intrigued me.  His work seems to be mostly abstract and pop-art type pieces, which is interesting to me.  One work of art that I was particularly drawn to of his was Flag, which is basically just an image of an American flag.  However, this image made me think more in depth about what the flag symbolizes and how art can be related to so many things.  Also, I really like how his work makes me really think about what is behind the initial meaning of the work, which I don’t always find myself doing with other artists.

The next artist I would choose is Andy Warhol.  I have prior knowledge of his work, unlike Jasper Johns, but I am still very drawn to his art.  To me, his images stand for so much other than just the literal content of the image and I feel like you could always be finding hidden meanings within the work.  This is very intriguing to me because sometimes I find myself exhausting all possible meanings of the art within a few minutes after looking at it.  Also, I really like Warhol because if you look at his work collectively, it can almost be seen as a timeline of American history.  His Marilyn Monroe and Campbell’s soup pieces are critical to American culture and have definitely made people think of art in a different light than they previously had.

My final artist choice is Hans Hoffman for a few different reasons.  Like Jasper Johns, I had never known about this artist until now.  He is a German abstract painter and I have never seen art like his before.  The color and brush stroke choices he uses in his art is very appealing to me.  After having painted in our art class, I feel as if I can relate to his brush stroke choices and it has definitely broadened my horizons as to how I can paint on my own.  His drawings are also incredibly intricate and so different compared to his paintings.  I really like this contrast within his works and it shows how versatile artists really are.  I feel as if I could spend a lot of time researching his work and still not really be able to cover all of it.