Posts Tagged COFA
Sleep Pattern
Sleep Pattern from ApostrophePong on Vimeo.
We spend almost half of our lifetime on bed and we are not really conscious of it. I have been photographing abandoned mattresses on the streets for quite sometime. The stains, burn, gash and mold that are left on those mattresses exhibit the subliminal imprints of our dreams and memories.
This work was produced as a project for Sound Construction class and video installation assessment in Video Art class for Master of Digital Media at College of Fine Arts, Sydney.
The Final COFA
Finally, I am officially graduated Master of Digital from College of fine Arts, University of New South Wales. No, I did not attend the graduation ceremony and had the Degree mailed to me. It might an honour to be in it but I actually was handed the Bachelor of Arts degree from King Bhumipol. Nothing could really top that. And it was the process of learning that really mattered, not that piece of paper.
What did I get from COFA? It was not the university life. It was the great opportunity to find myself again. After years of living in Australia and not working in a creative job, it nearly killed me. Photography was the major output but the medium was enough for me. I wanted more.
There were ideas I wanted to explore and they helped me realise them. Some were developed from the photography works and some I had in mind for a long time. And I am still very pleased with them today because I believe I did push the boundary, both mine and theirs. To create works without priceless consultants from the tutors there will be somewhat challenging. There are still projects I want explore and do it outside a university wall is definitely another game.
A Morning with Gilbert & George
Gilbert & George Piss Mooning (1996)
Unlike Hollywood celebrities, contemporary iconic art figures rarely visit Australia. I had a glimpse of Gilbert & George in the talk at COFA. I did not know which one was which but it did not really matter because they declared that they were two people and one artist. Fair point.
Unfortunately, just over an hour could not even briefly represent 40 years of the career. And I thought of live tweet but was afraid I’d get lost along the way. So here is some point I caught they made in the morning:
- Even though they didn’t have a studio, at least, they were well dressed from the start of the career. “We are the subject of our art.”
- Singing Sculpture became Drinking Sculpture.
- Shit asks questions, apple doesn’t.
- If your images don’t grab the audience, you lose them.
- An artist doesn’t change the world, the emotion from the viewers from the arts could.
- When they are creating an artwork, everything they see is not the same as normal and it changes back when the work is finished.
- Istanbul is their favourite city because the chaos. Chaos creates tolerance and they depend on it for their works.
- They never look back and believe in new ideas. Society changes but a picture doesn’t.
- No alcohol or food in their house and they only drink outside or a tiny bit when having guests in the house.
- Question
- Q: Do you disagree? (working together)
- A: Oh! That’s a great heterosexual question.
- Later explanation: They don’t use artistic hands, just idea and tools like computers.
- You have to be very organised otherwise you get lost in your archives.
- They are optimistic about the world right now and believe in connecting to world.
- Two pieces of advises:
- Each day, before you get out of the bed, tell yourself “What do I want to tell the world today.”
- Fuck the teachers!
COFA Prize 09
COFA Annual 09 Winners
I have just seen the photo of COFA Annual 09 Awards night when I google my name. This is a good chance to congratulate others of The School of Media Arts who also won prize from the year of their hard work.
Autodesk Storm FX Award for Best 3D CGI Animation
John TurelloAutodesk Storm FX Award for Best 3D CGI Modelling
George Varettas and
Cosmin HrincuAdobe Award for Best Overall Production
Anthony RussellWacom Award for Best Motion Graphics
Toby PedersenWacom People’s Choice Award
Peter ShortComputers Now Award for Best Video
Trinn (‘Pong) SuwannaphaDigital Media World Magazine Honorary Mention Prize
1. Luke Jefferz
2. Tachadol Buppapirak
3. Tom Phillipson
4. Peter Short
5. Beverley Wong
6. Paolo Sta.BarbaraVital Peripheral Supplies Award for Best Illustrative Work
Amelia Turbiarz
There is the full winner list on COFA blog.
And I have to say the best thing of the night was free bubbly.
The Screening
The hard work in the past few months on my short film as the major project for Master of Digital Media at College of Fine Arts is done. Memory of You | Reflection of Me has been viewed on a big screen at Chauvel Cinema and to see it in the environment made me sob. There was not a big cheer, just a small pause before applause.
Unlike other graduates� works, it was not a really entertaining film. Some people walked off in the screening at COFA. I could see why. It was slow and quite long. A nine-and-a-half-minute live action film about depression could hold an attention span in an uncontrollable room at COFA.
However, ultimately, I have told the story and expressed it the way I wanted and it paid off. The film was awarded Computers Now for Best Video at COFA Annual. The prize was very handy for me�a commercial licence of Final Cut Studio.
What is it going from here? Now that the course is finished, I am broke and still living on a dole. I have a casual job at Class Movies for a few weeks. This would help me to duplicate a number of DVDs for the people who helped me on this project (and pay the bills). I will look for film festivals to screen and television channels to broadcast the work. And now I am developing a new project and look for the way to get it funded. Still a long way to go.
Recent Comments