Marina Abramovic consistently challenges and criticises the representation of the female body in Western Culture by pushing mental and physical limits which often puts a her life at a large risk from her intense situations. Art must be Beautiful Artist must be Beautiful is a one hour performance that I think questions the limit of pain endurance when it comes to beauty standards within the Western society. During the performance, she uses two brushes in each her hand whilst repeating the title of her work, and the audience watches as her face gradually conforms from one of a black expression to one of pain.  In watching the video, one senses that the camera has taken the place of a mirror. When I saw a snippet of this film, I felt incredibly uncomfortable from the sounds exerting from the brush hitting her scalp and I think this was incredibly effective because it emphasised the hurt Abramovic was feeling whilst brushing her hair. This inspires me to include homemade sounds that can make the audience feel uneasy to add to the effect I want to show from my work. 

from the book 'Marina Abramović / Kristine Stiles, Klaus Biesenbach, Chrissie Iles' by Stiles, Kristine; Biesenbach, Klaus; Iles, Chrissie.

Joan Jonas used video monitors and mirror to show the delay between real time movements and late representation, a technique to show fragmentation and even to 'disarticulate the body'. Similar to binocular visions, Jonas wanted to show the complexity of space through the temporal delay between herself and its mirror image, and the breadth of occupation her body could overtake. I think that this artwork also represented our loss of certainty with self identity over time and that our expectations of ourselves never meet up to the reality; I also believe it can question whether we have one solid persona throughout our life and if we are different people around different social circles. Her method of displaying her film onto two platforms is interesting to me as it can tell two different narratives and emphasise the concept of duality and fragmentation. I want to try displaying my film onto different platforms through projection onto objects or a body part to emphasise the 'moving body'. 

Gareth Pugh’s collection for A/W 17 is a vigorous expression of female resistance in the form of slick and monolithic garments. The fashion film took place against brutalist and concrete architecture based in London.   Younji Ku and Nick Knight both worked on this film to showcase Pugh's collection surrounding the peak of anarchy within our current world; such as building walls, fighting for territory and putting strict laws on border. 

Younji Ku edits the film by stretching out, cutting up flattening different scenes, and although I do not find this method to be a style I would go for, it suited the film as it follows the strangeness our society has fallen into. Nick knight addresses the panic behind power and how people in higher positions can abuse their privilege and push their limits of control.  In the film, the use of sound is exceptional to me because of its gradual use of crescendo of conflicting sounds, making the viewer's experience uncomfortable, making them feel the same way towards today's political system. 

What was the process of shooting a film for such a large screen?

Nick Knight: First of all, I had to find out from Gareth what he was communicating this season. As always with my work, it’s an exploration of a designer’s mind, trying to express what they are saying through clothes. A large part of the process is working out how your film will play out for the audience and how you can manipulate their mood. Fashion film is a medium that has only been around for 20 years now – and it’s really trying to define itself still; trying to work out what format it’s in, where is it shown, how long it is, etc. One thing that tends to be overlooked is sound, which is a huge part of film. It changes your mood so dramatically and I think it gets slightly missed out from fashion film. So we worked closely with a sound artist called Roly Porter, who was fantastic, and created something fitting for the biggest screen in the UK.-http://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/37426/1/gareth-pugh-and-nick-knight-on-the-future-of-fashion-film-ss18

This is a book published by Peter Cusak, who collected sounds from dangerous places such as Pripyat, the ghost town that previously went through the disaster even Chernobyl. From this research, I learnt how everyday sounds, such as wind blowing, could be seen as eery just by past events that have taken place in the area it was collected. 

by Melati Suryodarmo

The performance was actually created as a protest against the becoming powerless king. It was the time when the king who was Buddhist married a princes from China who was Moslem. And the king has gradually lost his influence to the people, while the wife became more powerful. The whole kingdom was not in a good condition and civil wars happened during that time. The object and action were meant to be symbolic action representing the pressure situation and the critics towards the king. The horse which symbolizing the power, was changed into a bamboo horse, to express the lost power. 

I had been watching this kind of performances since I was a little child. The images and impressions about this traditional ritual performance remain in my memory. Until the time I become curious to know what was the history and the intension behind this performance. 

Lullaby for the ancestors was an effort to bring the performance as far I remember and observed into different context of environment, time and space. It synthesizes element of physical and psychological aspects of the ancient rituals and my own personal vision, which seeks to use the act as a mean of entering a trance, of attaining a state that is free of cultural and genetic connections.-http://www.melatisuryodarmo.com/works_Lullaby-for-the-Ancestors.html

from the book 'Art and the Moving Image' by Pamela M.Lee

Boundaries That Lie is a performance piece that surrounds the idea of limitation of movement of the body.For Suryodarmo, she feels there is little freedom in Europe despite being a society where freedom is seemingly more emphasised. Her work shows that freedom can only be obtained if we are willing to give our all to it, and that it is not something that is given by others. She used rubber bands attached to the iron construction on the wall and used her body as a tool to twist within the installation, acting as loose bondage restricting her limbs. 

Hussein Chalayan's costumes for this production are enhancing, especially the headpiece that appears in the first quarter of the performance. Ramirez's head is covered by a black cone, creating a sense of falseness within he dance, making the audience unsure whether they were watching a dream or a reality. The garments that Wang wore had orange elements that balanced against the grey monolithic set design, and the pattern on the top followed with the geometry of the curtains. Singer Eva Stone wore a grey water like dress that complimented the aesthetic of the whole set, and corresponded with the dance routine as she was lifted and glided limply across the stage. 

25/11

I decided to research performance artists because I feel that their body movements are something I can be inspired by more as I am not a dancer. For example, Marina Abramovics Relation in Space consists of her and Ulay moving towards each other at gradually increasing speeds;this simple action creates an effective representation of body movement as they inevitably collide into one another. I also found that stills from this performance piece was used as influence for a vogue cover, and I find this particularly interesting how fashion photography and be interlinked with performance video. In addition, I took a few video test shoots of movement, and I first started off by collecting small experiments such as my brother holding hands with his girlfriend, or my fingers tapping along the escalator, but I realised that this was too focused on one body part and I wanted to involve the whole anatomy. So I tried to trace my ribs in an attempt as development, but I think that the body alone was not enough so I wanted to use clothing or large fabric to move around in as a way of movement restriction. I used the same material from the Self project and I set up my camera in the garden as an outside location was better due to the wind that often pushed the fabric. I also put On a Dress that was a very similar shade to the fabric as a way to show an extension of the garment, and conceal the actual body as much as possible. I started off by draping the fabric over my crouched body and stepped on the ends to make sure it didn’t fall off. I made sure that I kept the fabric under my feet and that I stepped on them every time I moved forward. The more effective positions was the simpler movements where I bent backwards or when I grabbed onto the sides of the material and twisted. I would like to try falling down with the fabric like Pina’s falling dance as this could create a strong effect when I want to pair it up with more jarring sound during my outcome. 

I also wanted to explore sound of the garment and I did this by rubbing net across my legs and slowly caressing them to create a crinkling effect. I think this method is also good as I can possibly use them in the video when I edit it as pop up windows like the ones in 180 Strand.

 26/11

During the progress tutorial, I showed the two videos that I had prepared over the weekend. From the feedback given, I need to carry on with the movement under the fabric and also think about what kind of sounds I want to use and the atmosphere I want to create. After the tutorial, I went to look for location to film in but many of them were grassy areas which large buildings in the background, and I don’t think this will be as effective because it takes away too much from the actual movement of the body as it clashed with the structure of the buildings. I am also wary about the amount of people that could be in the area that I film. I would like to choose a more brutalist/concrete area such as a car park on the botto floor and the grey monolithic aesthetic can bring out more of the pinkish fabric. 

We also had the movement workshop which made me think about the choreography I will rehearse. Since I am not a dancer,I think this helped me a lot as I realise that repeated simple actions and it’s gradual intensity can also be just as effective. 

27/11

Today we had an adobe premiere pro workshop and this is significant to my project as I will have to edit my video.I learnt  how to add different video transitions at different key frames and also how to put several videos onto one page, which was one of the main features I wanted to include in my final outcome. I also remember how to use colour balance and this can help make my video follow the concept that i want. I think I will try to experiment ore with videos that I already have to play around and get used to the programme. 

I also thought of using plastic sheet to create a semi circular wall around me to retract the movement of the fabric and this will make place in the first half of my film. then, i will do the movement without the plastic sheet and it will represent the sudden gift of freedom to my body. I wanted to use a transparent sheet because it would show the fabric hitting against the wall and this might look interesting. 

I also went to a Sadler Wells dance production Dystopian Dream. Watching this performance was breathtaking and was a better experience than watching choreography on the screen. Some features that i remember most from the film is the use of sound; the soundtrack was a mix between music and whispering, but the used silence a lot, especially during the first ten minutes of the performance. The dancers also interact with video projection onto the set design and this can be something that will influence my video editing. 

28/11

Today i went to choose my locations. The first location was an underground car park as I thought a monolithic and geometrical background would contrast the free silhouettes from the movement of the body. However, the lighting was very poor and the rain had caused a small flood at the back of the car park which was unfortunately where I wanted to film. We then went to Hampstead Garden Suburb where there were a lot of grassy landscapes. Some of the locations were not suitable because of the body background such as architecture of masses of trees, but there was one landscape that suited it most as it was just a long road down the woodlands in Big Wood. I now have a good idea of where to film and if I change my mind, there is also a large landscape in the Heath which is also good as it puts all the focus on the moving body. 

I also used my phone to record sounds when fabric moves against each other and this will be the background sound which will help build the tension during the film. I will use those videos of my hands caressing the material to pop up on screen to create an intense scene. I also started to edit the sounds but this is quite difficult to completely finish without the video, so I will carry it on as soon as the final video is finished.  

29/11 

We had a story board and title sequence workshop today as well as personal tutorials. The story board sequence helped me think deeper about the frames i wanted to show and the sequence of actions that would be filmed the next day. I wanted to start off with a black screen whilst the noise of the fabric would start playing, and then have the video cut to a close up, slowly zooming out to a full body shot of the movement. Gradually, videos of me caressing fabric would start to pop up on the screen, similar to pop ups on the computer, and this would build up to fill the screen until it cuts to black again. I also wanted to show a very short part where the model is still, letting the wind blow the fabric, and then cut to black and have this repeat three times. This was very useful because it also let me move around each frame to see which order would work and help me see the level of loudness the sound would be. We had a title sequence tutorial as well, and this made me think about which point of the film I wanted to show it at, and the sizing as well as the colour. I want the model to interact with the title, letting the fabric move in-between the letters. However, this might not be possible in the amount of time I have and will have to experiment with later on in the course or during the holidays. 

30/11

Filming Day- we started off with a location at Hampstead Heath Extension and although the landscape was an improvement from Wednesday, i felt that a hill would emphasise the height. Therefore, we changed to Alexandra Park and this background was more effective as the balance between the sky and the grass complimented the red sculptural like silhouettes. I filmed a couple of full body videos, as well as many close ups. 

1/11

I first chose an opening scene, and although i wanted to start with a close up, I felt that there was a clip that was more fitting to begin at the start. The model started to dance more aggressively and this suited the build up of the sounds I created. I also made the model stay still more a couple of moments to follow the film plan that i had before, and this worked incredibly well when it would cut to black afterwards. i then used the close ups and also zoomed in onto some videos to create a fast montage until it reaches the last scene. Tomorrow, i will finish he sound editing and put them together. 

2/11

I decided to put two titles, one at the beginning an at the end, to show the narrative progress of the moving image. The most difficult part of this editing process was making sure that the sound was playing when I wanted it to and that the video cuts weren't too abrupt or slow. I mainly followed the story board I made on Thursday, but the ending and the beginning were different as I decided to not start with a black screen and to end with the model holding the fabric in the wind as she leaves the material behind. Another major part of the video is the chinese narration in the background. As I showed theist my mother, she started to speak as if feeling the story of the film, and I recorded her. She also kept in time with the cuts which was very fortunate, and I used this recording among the fabric sounds. i felt that this added a nice touch as it made the video more personal as she was the model .Furthermore, it added moe meaning to the concept by the emotion in her voice.