The Material Body
Topics in Convergent Media: Body
Dr. Samantha Krukowski

RTF 344M, #07220
RTF 393Q, #07490
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2-5pm
CMB Studio 4B and other locations (TBA)
Spring, 2002

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But what does it mean to be figured?…A figure can be a drawing or any depiction (visual art), but it can also be a metaphor or any description (literary art)…To contain or control the ‘figure’ is no simple matter. Figuration spreads. To figure a thing is to form it, either altering the thing itself—as in carving a stone—or modifying and developing the understanding of a second thing which is being represented by the first—as in carving a stone so that it becomes a generic statue of, say, a stone carver…The ‘figure’ refers to the material form or shape of an object, a property we take to be ‘real’…A suitable example of such a figure…is the round shape of a jar. In order to verify the actuality of this roundness we might touch and trace over the object with our hands; that gesture would supply acceptable evidence of the ‘real’ physical existence of the form. Yet ‘figure’ also refers to something quite immaterial: the forming of an image or theme, such as a figure to be developed in a reading of Stevens’s poem ‘Anecdote of the Jar.’ There is still more. Between the circumscribed, tactile resistance of a well-rounded jar and the expansive thematics of a well-turned and well-read poem, ‘figure’ refers to imaginaries. These are immaterial forms or constructs that have the force of real matter.
--Richard Shiff, “Figuration”, in Critical Terms for Art History, 323.

This is a course designed to help you develop your creative process in and between analog and digital worlds. You will move through a series of readings and exercises designed to help you explore the boundaries, interstices and intersections of virtual and actual production. Of primary importance will be your engagement with your work, your investment in the labor of making it, your dedication to the evolution of your own sensibility, your concern for craft, and your perseverance in completing individual projects while allowing each one to serve as a ground for the next.
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Dr. Samantha Krukowski
o: CMB 4.120A (the closet at the end of the long hallway) / 471.4222
samantha@rasa.net
office hours: by appointment

TA: Kris Swift (RTF) Raver99999@aol.com
GRA: Jeremy Beaudry (Architecture) pictopolis@hotmail.com
Tutors: Niten Kapadia (RTF) niten@mail.utexas.edu, Tray Duncan (RTF) tduncan@mail.utexas.edu
DW: Doug Denny (CS) dhd@actlab.utexas.edu

Things to buy (or get)
(All available in the basement of the Co-op on Guadalupe)

An unlined sketchbook with acid-free paper
Glue (RC 56 or Neutral Ph Adhesive)
Hot glue gun and hot glue sticks
Chip board (or equivalent)
Basswood (not Balsa wood)
Xacto knife and blades, metal ruler with cork underside, self-healing cutting mat (optional: The Chopper)
Good drawing paper (should have some tooth)
Cheap drawing paper (various options)
Graphite pencils in various weights (4B, 2B, HB, H, 2H, 4H)
Drawing media (your choice)
A couple of good erasers
Clear 16mm film leader
Permanent inks in various colors, other materials for direct film work (sandpaper, needle tool, bleach, etc.)
CD-RWs or, better, a portable firewire HD

Materials will vary for each project. Costs are a function of time and materials. The cost of materials can be altered somewhat by decisions you make (i.e.: resource pooling, bulk ordering, alternative methods). Be ready to spend what is required to effectively execute your work.

Things to know

You should be self-motivated to succeed in this course. Work is cumulative. If you are not used to setting your own goals and keeping a fast pace you may have trouble participating and producing work. We are here to help you as you develop ideas, interests and questions. Be prepared to work hard, collaborate with others, stretch your boundaries, share what you learn. Students with no prior background in analog or digital arts are discouraged.

The course has a listserv: bodyspring02@actlab.utexas.edu. Your e-mail address will be added to the listserv after the first week of class. Use this listserv to communicate with us, your fellow students, ask technical questions, contribute ideas, share resources. You are encouraged to go to the Convergent Media web site (www.actlab.utexas.edu) to subscribe to the two other listservs affiliated with the Convergent Media area by clicking on the “listserv” link.

Questions you have and develop may be resolved by practice or by other types of inquiry--theoretical, philosophical, scientific, poetic, etc. There should be times during the semester that you get stuck. You should develop the tools to unstick yourself. If you don’t know what to make, go look at what other people have made. If you don’t know what to say, go read something or watch something or listen to someone interesting. If you are still stuck, in all probability you are not making enough stuff to get yourself moving toward a question you can answer through practice or thought. A motto for the course: Make, make, make. If you show up for help, you will be asked what you are making and for evidence of your efforts and research in the direction of your inquiries.

Your technical ability will increase in proportion to your effort. Hack and be resourceful. There are many, many online tutorials and resources for various programs. Lab facilities are limited which necessitates cooperative scheduling. You may need to use resources in several locations, and finding the right equipment at the right time will probably require initiative on your part.

Readings

Most readings for this class are on reserve at the Architecture Library in Battle Hall. You may wish to purchase some or all of the books. There are additional books on reserve that may be of interest to you. Take advantage of this catered-to-you mini library.
To see the reserve list for this course, go to: http://reserves.lib.utexas.edu/courseindex.asp. The reserve list for this class extends beyond assigned readings.

Grading

Projects 1-7 70%
Documentation and Presentation 30%

A high grade will be assigned to those students who work hard, participate extensively and continuously, demonstrate a clear understanding of the readings and course concepts, and produce work that shows evolution in terms of sensibility, process, craft, scope and final composition / work.

A failing grade will be assigned to any student who does not complete all of the projects, misses more than three class sessions, and / or who misses any part of the Final Review.

Documentation and presentation are both large parts of your participation in the course.

As in any creative class, grading criteria are necessarily subjective. You may not agree with our personal evaluation, but decisions are final and no post-grading negotiation will be permitted. I discourage incompletes.

Work

Projects

# 1 2D-3D / On Forming:
You will be given a xerox copy of a painting. This painting is a ground or landscape that will guide you in the construction of a form. When you complete the model, take multiple photographs from different perspectives and with more or less proximity. Pay particular attention to shadows and interstitial spaces. Materials: basswood, glue.

# 2 3D-2D / On Drawing:
Your constructed form is the model for a series of 12 drawings. These drawings will be, in part, investigations of positive and negative space. Materials: graphite, drawing paper.

# 3 3D-3D / On Building:
Choose six of your drawings. Copy the drawings so they fully occupy 6 squares of the same size. Make a physical cube of the drawings such that each drawing represents a side of the cube. Using FormZ, construct a model that references each drawing in its proper perspectival position (ie top, bottom, side) but that is no longer constrained as a cube. The forms and gestures in the drawings should gain dimension. Print enough views and perspectives of the model to reveal its complexity.

# 4 3D-2D / On Reconfiguring:
Collect and study the photographs of your model, all of your drawings and the stills of your FormZ model. Take note of similarities and differences; see if you can begin to identify a visual or spatial vocabulary that is particular to your work. Scan and convert all of the images into Photoshop documents. Put them in an order that creates a narrative. Number them. Reconfigure the images in Photoshop, in order, and allow each reconfiguration to guide the next. Print the narrative.

# 5 2D-3D-4D /
1. On Kinetics
2. On Sampling and Sequencing
Make a film in Final Cut Pro that activates the image narrative. The film should have sound.

# 6 4D-3D-2D / On Capturing and Re-Forming:
Watch your film and draw to it. Watch and draw until you have isolated 26 distinct characters. Re-draw these characters as an alphabet to which you can continuously refer.

# 7 On Frame and Frequency, Mark and Gesture:
Write a narrative onto one-half roll of clear 16mm film leader using your alphabet. Use whatever materials and /or colors seem appropriate. When you have finished, transfer the film to VHS, and again to mini-DV, and then dump it to Final Cut Pro. Create a three minute final film with sound that is based on the image sets you have developed during the semester.

Documentation

Sketchbook
Keep a sketchbook to record your journey through the course and those things that influence you as you go. This sketchbook should be with you at all times and should be labored over.

Website and CD-ROM
Throughout the semester you will develop a website that documents your work in the course. This site should be designed in such a way that it evokes the character of the work you pursue and complete. You will be given a personal directory on the ACTLab server where you can store your files. Post-dates are the same as project due dates. At the end of the semester this website and its dependent files should be duplicated on a CD-ROM for archival purposes.

Semester presentations
You will be asked often to discuss readings, ideas and the progress of your work with the class and /or visitors.

Final Review
There will be a peer and faculty review of your work on Saturday, May 4 from 9am-6pm. You are required to present your work and be in attendance for the entire day.

Course Calendar

Tuesday, January 15
Introduction

Thursday, January 17
On Documenting
Dreamweaver
Server directories

Friday, January 18
6pm Convergent Media Orientation

Tuesday, January 22
2D-3D / On Forming
#1 distributed
Reading: Bernard Cache, Earth Moves, Chapters 1-2

Thursday, January 24
In-class modeling exercise
Bring chip board, found materials, hot glue and hot glue guns

Tuesday, January 29
#1 due

Thursday, January 31
Reading: Peruse numerous books on drawing on reserve: bring to class 10 important ideas about drawing (typed and copied x? and posted to the listserv)

Tuesday, February 5
3D-2D / On Drawing
#2 distributed
In-class drawing exercise
Bring cheap drawing paper and various drawing media

Thursday, February 7
Reading: Edward Robbins, Why Architects Draw, 2-54, 125-149

Tuesday, February 12
#2 due

Thursday, February 14
Reading: Edwin A. Abbott, Flatland

Saturday, February 16
Trip to Menil Collection, Houston

Tuesday, February 19

3D-3D / On Building
FormZ
#3 distributed

Thursday, February 21
Reading: Maria Luisa Palumbo, New Wombs: Electronic Bodies and Architectural Disorders

Tuesday, February 26
#3 due

Thursday, February 28
3D-2D / On Reconfiguring
Photoshop
#4 distributed

Tuesday, March 5
Work Session

Thursday, March 7
#4 due

Spring Break

Tuesday, March 19
2D-3D-4D / On Kinetics
Final Cut Pro
#5 distributed

Thursday, March 21
2D-3D-4D / On Sampling and Sequencing
Peak
Reading: “Free Music” and “Scriabin’s Prometheus” in Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc (eds.), The Blaue Reiter Almanac

Tuesday, March 26
Work Session

Thursday, March 28
#5 due

Tuesday, April 2
Reading: Georges Perec, Species of Spaces and Other Pieces (handout)

Thursday, April 4
4D-3D-2D / On Capturing and Re-Forming
#6 distributed

Tuesday, April 9
Work Session

Thursday, April 11
#6 due

Tuesday, April 16
On Frame and Frequency, Mark and Gesture
#7 distributed
Reading: Stan Brakhage, Metaphors on Vision

Thursday, April 18
Screening

Tuesday, April 23
Work Session

Thursday, April 25
Work Session

Tuesday, April 30
Work Session

Thursday, May 2
Evaluations and Final Review preparation

Saturday, May 4
#7 and semester’s work due
Final Review, 9am-6pm
Sketchbooks, websites and CD-ROMs due

Faculty Information
To find out more about Samantha Krukowski see: www.rasa.net/samantha

University Speak

Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonest damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.

About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.

About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.