Love in the undergrowth, 2005
An
experimental video which seems to have a story, but does each
viewer find the same meaning? The movies we see at the cinema
have many gaps in meaning which the viewer must complete from
conventions or their own experience. Cinema has such power
that the viewer creates connections between sequences, even when the
connections are random or unintended - this is the famous Kuleshov
effect. I find Lev Manovich's description of the workings of
database cinema very compelling and I find Peter Greenaway's early work
particularly interesting for the often humourous juxtapositions between
narrative and shots/ images. This was my graduation film.
Flash video format.
The Road to Recovery
A new life, through software. 2004
I
travelled regularly along a mostly deserted 3 mile country road
and it became a kind of meditation. I had a busy life and this was a
place where I could reflect and experiment. I would often stop the car
and shoot with still and video cameras. I became aware of Minor White's
expansions of Alfred Stieglitz's idea of equivalence - the theory
of the metaphorical and emotional content of a photograph.
I looked for a way to bring together the experience of travelling the
road and the expressing aspects of my internal life at the time. This
is the result. Made at the end of my second year of my BA. Flash video format.
Collateral Damage
Meet the new war, same as the old war. 2001-2002
Songs,
poems and music about the global war on tourism. Having just arrived
back on Planet Earth, it was a shock to see and experience the paranoia
and jingoism of these years. I think knowing what I didn't want to
see in the world made me more focused and I was more confident
with the digital audio recording process and the use of midi
instruments, so this work is a little more sophisticated. I began
simple manipulation of images and web page development. Completed just
before I started my BA course at University. Flash Audio format.
You Really Need To Get Out More
On losing the plot. 2000-2001
An
eclectic mix of songs, poems and music, written and recorded while
undergoing re-entry into the 'real' world. Lots of confusion,
experimentation and self-doubt. Good for the creative mix. I was having
difficulty re-adjusting to life on Jobseekers allowance. I was getting
into some kind of apocalyptic mode and writing about a dark age
when civil liberties were destroyed and people were locked up in camps
- then along came 9/11. Get in touch with your dark side, in Flash
audio format.
The Master
On leaving a dream. 1999-200
The
Master has galactic ambitions to bring the one true truth to every
sentient being. He's incarnated and re-incarnated millions of times and
sends his representatives everywhere in a fleet of turqouise vans. His
computer asks all the questions. I was empty after 15
years in the Hare Krishna movement, I was seeing too many
conflicts and a desperate shortage of humility.
These songs and poems were my way of waking up again, as though
from a long sleep. The digital recordings were made in New Delhi,
West Bengal and Borehamwood. and are streamed here in Flash audio
format.
I've
used lines of text from an infamous but now deceased Indian
'godman'
- along with a background of image textures and large words from
all the spam emails I get. My hope is that by reading a
decontextualised deconstruction of this person's words, the viewer
may, to a certain extent, become innoculated against this kind of
twaddle. I
made this one with Javascript and I'm still developing this concept for future work. Follow the yellow star...
