Alyssa's Automist Exercise

Alyssa Olson

Response 7&8

All of the squares relate to each other because they are all very simple and straight to the point. I believe that most people would be able to identify the exercise in each square without any previous knowledge. The content of the squares relate to each other because they can all be represented in a visual manner. For example if someone said “banana” you would be able to draw a shape to represent this. Also for the opposite, if someone drew a banana-like shape you would be able to infer that that person wanted you to think of a banana. The theme between each square is very repetitive because regardless if it is a square of shapes or a square of words, they all can be easily represented in both fashions. It is interesting to see that our brains don’t even need all of the information to be able to accurately process what is happening within each square. This is probably due to the large amount of stimulus from the media and other outlets. The aggregate effect of all of these elements is that, as humans living in our current society we only need small amounts of information to form narratives. This may be helpful at times, but also displays the control that the media has on us all.

I could say that majority of the four squares has been influenced by consumerism. A large reason why our society is able to associate words with single images or vice versa is because of consumerism. Advertisers and companies purposely use devices to make us, as the consumer, to recognize their products and brands instantaneously. This seeps into our daily life and as in this exercise when you drew something similar to a Christmas tree, majority of us wrote Christmas as the first word that came to mind. Advertisers bombard us daily with posters, fliers, and commercials, branding almost everywhere we look. Even if we are not consciously paying attention to all of the signals advertisers are putting out there, we still are subconsciously absorbing them. This exercise displayed that what advertisers are doing is working. Even though most of the images or words that we were prompted with for this exercise had no tie to consumerism, we still were able to instantly associate them with something else. This is why when we walk into a store we don’t always buy the least expensive product, but usually the product we want to be associated with because we know that everyone has judgments and pre-disposition towards certain objects and images. This skill-set is directly related to the adverse effect that advertising has on us as a society and there for relates to consumerism.

The only shapes that make direct connections to consumerism or production would be the shape of the two arrows, one pointing up as the other points to the right. This is reminiscent of a financial graph. As the buying and production go steady then the profits go up. The shape that looks like a banana relates to consumerism because we have to go to the store to buy a banana, which directly supports the consumerist society in which we live. Lastly the shape in the bottom right corner that resembles a large pill has a direct connection to consumerism. Our health care system alone is a large supporter of the consumer system and also helps production of medical supplies and prescriptions to thrive. The pill-like shape in its massive size accurately displays the dependency we have on prescription drugs and quick fixes. Majority of our society wants a pill to fix all of their problems and doctors are willing to prescribe this because they not only get perks from the drug companies but then the drug companies thrive giving them a larger profit. This all directly affects the consumerist society in which we live.

World Changing Post #5

World Changing Post #5

The Hidden Vitality of Slums- Page 287

I chose to read this article entitled The Hidden Vitality of Slums because it puts slums in a good light. I have always looked down on slums and believed that they weren’t sufficient enough or healthy to live in. I found this particle article very interesting because it allowed me to realize that the squatters (people who live in slums) are just as motivated as city-goers to make their community as developed as possible.

The slums don’t have an adequate water supply, don’t have toilets and don’t have electricity yet according to the article, “the streets are lively and business is booming.” The fact of the matter is the people here have learned to adapt to living in these circumstances and has used what they had to promote development and rely on each other to grow as a community. When I read this I thought about how the slums are doing exactly what we are doing in big cities but without certain necessities that we may rely on the most.

Some slums are able to continue to grow and grow to the point where they are considered a legal, self-sufficient cities that is comfortable to live in. The article uses the example of Sultanbeyli in Istanbul and how years ago it was a place of squatters but through time, they attracted enough people and developed into city, with permanent homes, 300,000 people and a government.

Steffen, Alex. World Changing: A User's Guider for the 21st Century. New York: Abrams, 2008

Rebecca Tulis

World Changing Post #4

Biodiversity: How much is enough? Page 493

Rebecca Tulis

For my fourth article I chose to read Biodiversity: How much is enough? It talks about the importance of biodiversity and how the loss of certain species can be both detrimental to an ecosystem and our lives. More and more species are becoming extinct and it is very difficult to stop. When I was reading about this problem. I couldn’t help but think about the human species and how we compare. While others are trying to fight through extinction, our population is increasing. I find it interesting how some species need more of each other while others have to fight off overpopulation.

The article also refers to how we as humans have to intervene and save the most threatened habitats. What we do is document and preserve the DNA and use that to make clones. However, the clones don’t always turn out exactly like the original. For instance, the article talked about what would happen if we cloned a songbird and it didn’t have the voice of the typical songbird. Preserving diversity is both beneficial and significant to us because the more diversity, the more we can learn about our environment. Also, if biodiversity were to decrease, our environment may change for the worse affecting the way we live our lives.

After reading this, I couldn’t help but wonder whether or not our intervening and trying to help preserve biodiversity is actually hurting the environment. What were to happen if we were to not interfere and let nature take its course? Would that hurt an ecosystem or only make it stronger in a sense that it has to deal with the extinction and learn to adapt to it? Whether it is good or bad, biodiversity is still extremely important to our planet because extinction is one of the biggest problems we are facing today.

Steffen, Alex. World Changing: A User's Guider for the 21st Century. New York: Abrams, 2008

Weekly Response prompt #7&8: Automatist Exercise

-Hannah Höch, Cut with the Dada Kitchen Knife through the Last Weimar Beer-Belly Cultural Epoch in Germany, 1919, collage of pasted papers, 90x144 cm, Staatliche Museum, Berlin.

Throughout this class, we have been discussing the far reaching tentacles of influence of our capitalist (production driven/ consumer oriented) society. We have contemplated the intense and pervasive nature of consumerism through the perspectives of Leopold, Diamond, Pollan, Lasn, and of course your own experiences and observations.

Although we could choose several points in history (and art history) from which to consider the roots of today's issues and REACTION to those issues, I want you to consider the revolutionary, rebellious nature of Dadaism.

Dadaism (1920s) whose disgust and disillusionment with WWI (its devastating consequences as well as the 'bourgeois' values that, they believed, led to conflict) generated a movement of opposition. Dada rejected categories, labels, and all established "values" (both in the art world as well as broader society). Techniques that were developed during this turbulent, anxious, angry time would (arguably) influence later art movements* which would all have an important role in social commentary. Throughout your response, consider the degree to which Lasn (and perhaps yourself) are influenced by Dadaist priciples. (Definition of Dada below (*) and a quick search on Wikipedia should give you a good background).

Your assignment:
1) Scan your 4 squares
2) Discuss general observations about the nature of what was written/ drawn:
How does the content of each square relate to the others? Is there an interesting repetition of a theme? Is there a narrative implied by the juxtaposition of elements? What is the aggregate effect of the 4 people's contributions?

BE CREATIVE HERE. This is YOUR interpretation, so anything you see/elicit from the image is valid as long as you sufficiently support your statements. Look at the 4 squares as an artist/ poet/ designer/ creative person. Do you see this as an overall composition? Are they chapters in a story? Is it a map? Something else?

3) NOW, I want you to look at your Automatist Exercise and consider Lasn's main arguments: Consumer society, we're all in a cult, we don't think but do what we're told, etc. In a way, this exercise embodied that relationship (I told you to do something, and you all obeyed...) BUT each of your contributions was unique and came from you. In addition, you all knew, (and "agreed"), to go along with the instructions, whereas Lasn argues that you are unaware of your actions/choices being manipulated. So now, the MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION is: How much of the content of your 4 squares could you interpret as being influenced by the broad reaches of CONSUMERISM? Do any of the shapes make concrete reference to production/consumption? How about more abstract associations?

IMPORTANT last notes:
- Remember this week's response is worth double.

- If you want to respond to the prompt visually you may, as long as you include an artist statement addressing how the visual work addresses the questions I've asked.

- You will need to post under "New Post" instead of in the comment section under this prompt. Please title your post: "(your name)'s Automatist Excercise"


* "Dada is the groundwork to abstract art and sound poetry, a starting point for performance art, a prelude to postmodernism, an influence on pop art, a celebration of antiart to be later embraced for anarcho-political uses in the 1960s and the movement that lay the foundation for Surrealism."
—Marc Lowenthal, translator's introduction to Francis Picabia's I Am a Beautiful Monster: Poetry, Prose, And Provocation

Surrealism, (a contemporary of Dadasim which was greatly influenced by Dadaist priciples) is Pure psychic automatism, by which one proposes to express, either verbally, in writing, or by any other manner, the real functioning of thought. Dictation of thought in the absence of all control exercised by reason, outside of all aesthetic and moral preoccupation.

response #6

I think what Lasn means by “unhealthy” of the “American” culture, is that our ways of consuming, and our materialist tendencies are unhealthy to our bodies, mentally, and socially. For instance, due to our tendencies in consuming fast processed food that is high in fat content and our lack of exercise, this lifestyle has become harmful/unhealthy to Americans, thus making America an obese country. Even in consumerism and materialist tendencies, such as in fashion, and the way we perceive ourselves, this standard in our American culture of beauty is unhealthy to the mindset of women and men mentally, as well harmful to our bodies physically by trying to keep up with the latest fads such as with diets and steroids.
One example that I think is still relevant to 2009 is about the automobile industry. Owning a car has been a sign of luxury since its first invention, and the American dream is that everyone will have the comfort and access to owning an automobile. Therefore, since the accessibility of cars and the time they save, American society is experiencing what Lasn quotes as cars “have eroded our sense of village and the vitality of our neighborhoods” (Lasn, 82). In other words, Lasn is stating that American’s lifestyle have changed according to the comfort that cars as the main type of transportation has provided. People still develop relationships with their cars due to the instant mobility it provides, to the social status image that it creates, as well as speed and trust/independence, which almost every young adolescent wants. Also, I do believe that cars are one of the many destructive things that humans have developed that will cause Intergenerational Remote Tyranny to our future generation of cleaning up the pollution that is being caused by automobile emissions everyday.
However, one point that I thought was too generalized was the point he made about how after years of advertising on television that instead of actually fixing the problem of the ecological damage that automobiles are causing, they are promoting a false idea that the automobile company is “eco-friendly.” I thought that this point was too generalized because I believe that because of some of the ecological damages that can be seen, some automobile companies are really trying to promote an eco-friendly automobile product. It still may be that the corporation is still trying to make consumers feel the need to have one to protect the environment, however, technology has improved the way cars are manufactured. For instance, Toyota was one of the first corporations to develop a hybrid vehicle that will use less gas and more battery powered energy to lessen gas emissions into the air. There after the huge success of this idea, almost all other companies are trying to become “eco-friendly” through introducing solar powered to electricity powered automobiles as well.
My family at one point purchased a Hybrid Toyota Prius when it was relevantly new to the market. The sole purpose of purchasing this vehicle was to save money on gas due to the rise in gas prices. I think that it is due to the rise in gas prices that Americans felt the need to actually take action to become eco-friendly in to process of finding a way to lure consumers into buying a vehicle with the illusion that it will save them a considerable amount of money annually. I noticed this over the past ten years when I was younger and gas prices were only about 90 cents per gallon. It was the American dream to own a car and during this time, I remember people bought more and more SUVs and concentrated on buying luxury cars, which used a large amount of gas. However, I think that Americans did not realize the amount of ecological damage we were inflicting onto nature. It wasn’t until that gas prices went against consumer’s supply, demand, and interests that corporations truly started to find other ways of making people buy cars so that their business will not file bankruptcy.

Lasn, Kalle. "Culture Jam: Howe to Reverse America’s Suicidal Consumer Binge-and
Why We Must". New York; Harper, 1999.