Memento - "On Longing" Quote-Photograph Connections

 "The body is the primary mode of perceiving scale."
I made a video of me attempting to reconcile my organic form with the rectilinear small scale of the box.

 "Capacity of objects to serve as traces of authentic experience."
In Japan, it is an authentic Japanese Christmas "kurisumasu" experience to eat KFC fried chicken. This costume hat held by a friend in Japan reflects this tradition that may be extremely strange to foreigners.

 "The souvenir reduces the public, the monumental, and the three-dimensional into the miniature, that which can be enveloped by the body."
This is a mini block version of Kaminarimon Temple in Japan that condenses the rich cultural and historical heritage of the temple into a small souvenir commodity.

"To have a souvenir of the exotic is to possess both a specimen and a trophy."

I competed in an international showdance competition in Riesa, Germany and received this German flag wristband from Team Germany.  

"The place of origin must remain unavailable in order for desire to be generated."

This adorable bunny pastry was a gift from my suitemate in Japan. She worked at a pastry shop somewhere in town but I had no idea where, no idea why this cute bunny existed, nor why she had brought it to me to try (because of the language barrier).

Masking Tape Shoes

A pair of classic Vans shoes made entirely out of masking tape

Textural detail of the ripped outer canvas on the side.

The difference in texture and thickness of the front wrap on the sole of the shoe.

The detailed sole of the shoe, only partially cut out where the original shoe sole was worn down.

The other shoe sole, not as worn down as the other shoe.

Some process photos:

The process of cutting out the shoe sole involved transferring the pattern with vine charcoal to get the right proportions then cutting out the parts individually.

Taping the detailed cut-out sole to the bottom inside of the shoe. The strip of tape will be used to lift the toe end of the shoe.

This shows the toe part lifted and the front thick wrap of the shoe ready to be attached.

The shoe bottom was stuffed with rolled tape to fill the space between the sole and the insole. One can also see the sides of the top of the shoe ready to be tucked in and attached.

The shoelace holes of the shoe were punched with a hole punch on the shoe and the outer metal circles cut from layers of tape individually then attached separately.  

WOMAN

Women tend to have smoother skin than men, and shaving is a way to accentuate that gender difference. This video shows the designation of "woman" through the process of shaving.

Toccata, Literally Touched

A toccata is a type of musical composition that is meant to exhibit the performer's touch and technique. In Italian it is the feminine version of "touched." Running with these two ideas, I performed the first page of Soviet Armenian composer Aram Khatchaturian's Toccata by touching the page forcefully. The simultaneous thumpy and clacky sounds bring the idea of touch (the central idea of the piece) to the forefront of the mind. It also lends a whole new perspective on the idea of "feeling" the music.

A Balanced Breakfast

No matter how many tries I get at conquering mornings, it's still a huge struggle to balance myself in that tender time between rolling out of bed and grabbing breakfast. When I finally rise out of peaceful slumber to consciousness and the harsh morning light hits, so do all of my responsibilities that I try really hard to juggle. This video aims to literally (and humorously) document an attempt to balance myself in the morning time. Riding a unicycle illustrates this idea and also nods to the concept of literal weight (owed to gravity) and compositional weight, like that in the video itself. The video composition employs asymmetrical balance in the kitchen scene especially, in which all the action takes place to the left where the fridge and counter space (where the cereal is being prepared) until the unicycle finally drops and the morning bowl of cereal is had. Additionally, the low camera angle plays with scale, making the unicycle wheel appear huge for a majority, and therefore a focal point.

Visual Documentation

It is my worst habit: touching my face and hair often, usually without realizing it. By using globs of paint on each of my hands, I was able to have visual documentation of the accumulative nature of repetition. Television-watching during this performance represents a passive activity and passage of time; it also serves as a realistic focal point in my life. I find it rather exciting that my face and actions, rather than the television, serve as the focal point in this performance because unconscious, usually-undocumented scratches and face touches create an asymmetrically-balanced and visually interesting composition between color, energy, and quantity.

Belongings in a Box Grid

All of my belongings that I use in a typical day are packed into a box off to the side of the box grid I create, making an unexpected focal point. The shadows created by the lighting replicate the forms and bring even more attention to the items that collect on the ground. The overall coloring of the whole video is predominantly analogous, unifying the whole. In addition, the concept of the box grid forms lines in a grid pattern that results in an aesthetically-pleasing arrangement of the moving boxes.

Cardboard boxes have many different associations to different people. They can connote moving or they can connote homelessness: with each of these opposite-spectrum associations, the concept of personal possessions and quantity is still central. If this is a diary of all the things that I use in a day, how would the quantity differ if I examined what I use in a week or a year? What would I do differently if I only had one box to fit my life into? The most interesting realization I had through this performance piece was that my life revolves around my belongings. Yet, at the same time there was something liberating about treating them with almost irreverent disregard (except for the socks, of course).




Mom said there was too much damn cereal