Foxcroft Video Installation

Watch

2009-10-14T18:46:00.001-07:00

The Final Installation

2009-10-14T18:21:00.001-07:00

Constructing the Installation

2009-08-09T23:20:00.000-07:00

Inspiration

2009-08-09T23:05:00.000-07:00

Diane Arbus

Cindy Sherman

Nan Goldin

"We've been watching films in order to learn about production and different kinds of film styles. We watched Alice by Jan Svanknaher and Rear Window by Alfred Hitchcock, and our installation references both. The idea of watching someone through a window without them knowing is called voyeurism, and viewers of both our installation and Hitchcock's film are required to participate in voyeruism. Our installation and Alice both play with scale and the child's point of view. In Alice, the audience experiences the world as Alice does; in our project the audience has to crouch down on the floor in order to see into dollhouses." Nikki

"Exact Copy" by Jeremy

2009-08-09T22:29:00.000-07:00

If I had to live with an exact copy of myself, my introverted nature would make it a quiet, peaceful relationship. It would be like two companionable cats. I can get easily annoyed, but I do not like to annoy other people. I have my occasional bad mood, but I'm usually good at telling when someone doesn't want to be talked to. Not that I would have much to say to myself. Me and my exact copy would probably never speak to each other, not even to say, "hi." We would just wave to acknowledge the other's presence.

"Dream House" by Nikki

2009-08-09T22:25:00.000-07:00

My dream house is not necessarily large, but a cozy one or two story on the side of a mountain where there are beautiful winters. I would like to have a balcony and a fire place. I would like to grow herbs and spices somewhere too, however, this might be difficult because it would be cold most of the year.

I would like to live by a small town, but not in it. I would love to have my tattoo shop in that little town. It might get boring but I would have a large, flat screen TV, a lot of video games, and a computer equipped with an amazing graphics card and World of Warcraft.

The living room would be very spacious and I would decorate everything myself. A round glass table would go in the middle of the living room, with the TV on top of it. I would have a large, black, vinyl couch facing the TV and two matching love seats on either side. The walls would be mint colored with black and white trim, black shelving, art on the walls, and black and white checkerboard carpet. There would also be big, open windows with a beautiful view of the mountains.

My bedroom would be white, with a black queen-size canopy bed. There would be black shelves with jade dragons and Chinese masks. There would also be a secret walk-in closet. The closet would be decorated with cherry blossom trees and cranes painted on the walls.

Arranging Furniture

2009-08-04T16:34:00.001-07:00

"One day during our time at Blue Sky we had to pick one of the five dollhouses and decorate them to create a story. The house I choose was in the theme of babies living on their own without parents. A few of the babies were on plates, another one was in a tea cup, and my favorite set-up was a baby in the toilet.

"One observer said that my house looked as though the babies were still in their mothers' womb. Another observer brought up the issue of abortion. I have to say that when I was decorating the house I wasn't really thinking about all that stuff. But know that I think about it, it really kind of symbolizes abortion.

"I don't think Malic really liked the baby in the toilet. But I really thought it was a good idea. I thought everyone would get a good laugh out of it, and they did." Samantha

Around Town

2009-08-04T16:24:00.000-07:00

"Each day Malic gave us questions of the day. One question was if we had super powers what would they be. Jeremy wanted mind control and Malic wanted to fly. He gave us these questions so we could all get to know each other." Samantha

"The most fun day I've had at Blue Sky was going to everyone's homes to film. It was wonderful to see everyone in their environment. Recording video at our homes allowed us to encounter some great individuals and it gave us the chance to experience things about each other that we otherwise would not have. Lunch at Island Park allowed us a chance to understand each other better. Communication is key when holding together a group collaboration." Marissa

"Eventually we agreed to take the camera home for one night and film ourselves in our environment. We filmed anything we pleased, walking around with the camera inside and outside our house. A few of us even filmed after dark or early in the morning. Then, back on campus, we reviewed our footage. We soon noticed distinctive styles." Jeremy

Editing

2009-07-30T14:47:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Jeremy!

2009-07-30T14:41:00.001-07:00

Matt, Ben, Kier, Jeremy, Marissa, Samantha, & a wheat-free cake!

Conceptual Editing

2009-07-30T09:11:00.001-07:00

Group of the Week

2009-07-28T14:20:00.001-07:00

Matt, Malic, Ben, Jeremy

Marissa, Nikki,

& Samantha

Ben, Samantha, Nikki, Malic, Jeremy, Marissa, & Matt

Video in Super 8 in Spray Paint on T-shirts

2009-07-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

design by Matt Clark

Meet the Family

2009-07-28T14:10:00.000-07:00

Collage Details

2009-07-28T13:58:00.000-07:00

Collaborative Collages

2009-07-28T13:04:00.000-07:00

"Where To Get A Little Respect, Concern, and Understanding in This Country" by Marissa

2009-07-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

I miss you. Your comforting feeling. Oh that warm feeling you gave me. I was safe, where does that leave me now? Lost and lonely, thats where. You may not have meant the world to them but that was your worth to me. To them you may have worn age and experience but that is what I loved most about you. I adore that unique quality you held so dear. When I looked at you I saw myself, you helped me recognize the the beauty within. The small things are what I loved most about you. You had your flaws, don't get me wrong, but I only loved you more because of each one. And the way the light hit you in all the right ways made it harder to leave you and the color you have off was not one that spoke of purity but one of acceptance. I want you back. You were mine, my room.

With Love,
Marissa

"Expectations" by Ben

2009-07-13T08:18:00.000-07:00

Expectations my parents wish I could for fill, there is a lot but, for the most part GRADES. They wish I could get straight A grades in high school and I try and pull off passing grades. Sometimes I feel that my more privileged classmates get these great, outstanding, and amazing grades. To be honest most of these people with these great grades are vary rude and uneducated people. Closed minded people are not my favorite people to hang out with, I feel that when your closed minded you tend to fear or hate people or things that are different than you. I'm not saying that my parents are closed minded and want me to be as well, I'm just saying that sometimes my parents expect me to act the way they want me to act and I feel a little closed minded.

"Pop Culture" by Kier

2009-07-13T08:16:00.000-07:00

Propaganda and mainstream mind control has, and always will be, one of the main social control mechanisms along with religion, and politics. In modern American society, pop culture attempts to manipulate and influence the majority of people. However, the "reality" television and mainstream pop culture that is currently infecting popular demand has an inaccurate depiction of the real American society. In theory, the true American culture cannot be defined. There are too many varieties and collections of people in American culture to simply combine them all into one category. America has always been a melting pot of race, religion, culture, and philosophy. The media's depiction of an East Coast New York City neighborhood can never be compared with an East Los Angeles barrio. In order to really embrace the true essence of American culture, one must live and experience it. One must travel to all of the different landscapes and witness all the varieties of people. American culture is all marketed, therefore the media will classify the social class with the most money as the "mainstream pop culture". All of America's money is currently invested in the white suburban districts, predominately in the Midwest. Until the money moves elsewhere, American citizens will keep getting fed with the mindless propaganda on how they should talk, dress, eat and be like these people. Pop culture is a vicious cycle, one that will move on from class to class, and America's capitalistic behavior is what fuels this factor of popular social control.

Around Campus

2009-07-07T20:53:00.000-07:00

"One of our first assignments was to find one shot of movement and film it for 30 seconds. Our limitations were that we could only film on the UD campus and we were not allowed in the shot. We were allowed to create the movement as long as our body was not in the shot. The shot I picked as an extreme close-up of a water sprinkler." Kier

Mind Maps

2009-07-07T20:42:00.000-07:00

"As I entered the first week of Blue Sky, I found myself working in a very diverse community of Resident Artists, Student Artists, and Youth Participants. For the Foxcroft video installation piece, Malic, our group's resident artist, asked us what it means to be a teenager in Ohio. We spent weeks brainstorming ideas and places to film. As each day passed our group became stronger and more confident in our answer to Malic's qestion. As you watch our installation, you will have the find the answer in our dollhouses." Ben

Foxcroft Description

2009-07-01T21:26:00.000-07:00

Foxcroft is a site of tension, transition, and play.

As part of Blue Sky Project 2009, film and video artist Malic Amalya collaborated with a group of Dayton, Ohio youth to create this five channel video installation. Shot in the style of Cinema Verite, the collaborative filmed themselves, their homes and family, and the Dayton region with minimal directoral intrusion. Their footage is projected into five vintage dollhouses and displayed on live sod.

For more information on Blue Sky Project, check out www.blueskydayton.org

Foxcroft logo designed by Matt Clark.