The purpose of this capstone was to organize and pursue the creation of a Dialogue in the Dark exhibition in Cincinnati. Dialogue in the Dark is an organization that, since 1988, has internationally utilized exhibits that allow visitors to be led through an hour long simulation of blindness as lead by a visually impaired guide through four pitch back simulated environments. The purpose of this exhibit is twofold. In an immediate sense it is meant to demonstrate to visitors that those who we often marginalize due to their disabilities are in fact quite capable, effectively serving as a platform to recognize, address, and overcome problems created by perceived "otherness". The larger lessons derive from experiencing a profoundly different reality than is normally accessible in terms of both the specific type of experience and the degree of contrast of realities it poses. Such jarring experiences open a brief window for dialogue.
Drawing from actor-network theory, various principles and techniques from action research, and from fields such as organizational psychology, visual anthropology, and sociology, this capstone contains workable processes and objectives relevant to both the creation of a Cincinnati based Dialogue in the Dark and the framework for a Coalition for Community Action and Cooperation. These processes and objectives are to be constantly ongoing in development, and are only rudimentary in presentation style.
Additionally, this project contains a reflection on both the process of bringing Dialogue in the Dark to Cincinnati thus far, a discussion of post-capstone plans for Dialogue in the Dark, and, in the spirit of demonstrating my BIS inspired work in general, a condensed introduction to my “Theory of Grand Irrationality” and my “Social Pulse Theory”, both of which are central starting points for the grad school experience I am both seeking and planning.
1 page.
This work is part of a graduate project for SPAN 8062, Fall 2013 with Dr. Andrés Pérez-Simón. The seminar was funded by the Taft Research Center.
Live cinema audio/visual improvisation. Brief excerpts from three recent performances - Albright-Knox Art Gallery , Lateral Thinking at 21C Museum/Hotel, Villa Douce, Riems, France
Performance organized in conjunction with Passages, my one-person show at the Weston Art Gallery in Cincinnati.
Suzanna Barnes (violin)
Regan Brown (winds & autoharp)
Zach Larabee (percussion)
David McDonnell (electronics & horns)
Loraine Wible (images)
Charles Woodman (images)
A meditation on the pleasures of observation. Image music and text weave in a multi-layer dance. Images built around a pre-recorded soundtrack.
Text: Jack Kerouac
Music: Michael Fiday
Image: Charles Woodman
Performers: Carla Kihlsteadt, Graeme Jennings (violins)
Narration: Matthias Bassi
One of many attempts on my part to capture the magic motion of Aspen leaves, a fascination deeply embedded in memories of my childhood in Colorado. This footage was shot near Caribou, Colorado. The tape includes three different “episodes” which use a series image treatments and tricks, which further complicate the already complex motion of the leaves. The slow rate of change is such that no causal viewer will ever grasp the true dimensions of the work, beyond the surface image. This is a video which truly needs to contemplated as if it were a painting, installed in a space where it can be subjected to repeated viewing over a long period of time.
