Mike Diva, an American film director, special effects artist, musician and YouTuber, created this video work in 2016, 5 months before the presidential election. I believe the intended audience was young people who Mike Diva felt connected with, young people on the internet who are somewhat familiar or at least have some interest in Japanese pop culture. However, the video blew-up, and I think it was actually well-received from both pro-Trump and anti-Trump, or completely politically indifferent people.

 

The video is similar to the style of videos that Mike Diva made over the years, a little bit craziness, with strong nihilism vibe. I think the intention is to poke a little fun of the craziness we were facing in reality. However, I also assumed when Mike Diva made it, he did not take Trump’s possibility of actually winning the election seriously at all. Thus he was able to make such free and fun video. While the video first went viral, it was generally being celebrated, except some mainstream news channel mistaken it and took it literally as a celebration and show of affection for Trump. The creator had to go on to social media to clarify that he was in no way seriously showing love for Trump as a candidate.

 

Fast forward, 5 months later, when Trump actually got elected, some people went back to this video and the creator, accusing them to somewhat help boosted the popularity and coolness of Donald Trump. Through this case, we see an interesting shift of public and counterpublic. Before the election result, the public seems to be people who too find the video funny as Trump seemed to be no real danger at all. The counterpublic at that time might be the people who actually loved Trump already, and did not enjoy this sort of goofy and stying of making fun of him. After the election result came out, some of the people in the original public group might become the counterpublic, as they now suspect a level of association that creation like this might have undermined or helped Trump to gain votes from younger generation. As to me, while I have had a sense of odd feeling whenever watching it, my love for this art piece has never change.

 

The piece of art that I chose to analyze is the Pussyhat Project. The Pussyhat Project was started in 2016 by Jayna Zweiman and Krista Suh in response to the rhetoric used toward women and minorities during the 2016 US presidential election campaign. After Trump was elected as president, Krista was planning to go to the Women’s March in DC. Jaynah was unable to attend but wanted to make her voice heard, so the two of them started knitting pink hats for protesters to wear.  They shared the pattern freely and widely through social media and knitting circles, and encouraged people to make hats for themselves and for others as a way to protest and participate. They also hoped to de-stigmatize the word “pussy” after tapes of Trump using the word were surfaced.

The materials used for this was pink yarn and crochet hooks. The pattern was designed to be really easy, but it also used the metaphor of “pussycat ears” to underscore the reference to “pussy.” The pink hats were wildly popular during that march and others in subsequent years.

The public created by this project is the onlookers — people who are watching the protests, news organizations, people watching the news, and politicians. It also creates the counterpublic of women and people supporting women, and specifically those who did not support Trump.

Analyze an existing artwork/project/piece of media (TV show, game, etc) and the systems within which it operates. Try to identify: Who created it? For whom? With what materials and metaphors? With what intention? What impact? On whom? How? Did the artist identify a public or create a counterpublic?

The project I chose is Sayonara Wild Hearts which is an indie game created by Swedish developer Simogo. The game is described as a “pop album video game.” It narrated a story that a heartbroken girl lied on the bed. The heroine that the divine arcana created transformed into a butterfly and she transported the girl to the alternate universe. Then, the girl transformed into a masked heroine. She defeated different foes and collect their pieces of heart. Finally, She then imagines herself as each of her former foes, and proceeds to fight each in turn. Instead of defeating them, she forgives them with a brief kiss. She came back to real world and reconciled with the past. Finally, her broken heart healed. 

The project is under game industry system. The creators made the game for indie gamer and female player mainly. By acting tarot’s characters and playing the story of the hero defeating the enemy, Game developer presents heroinism and encourages girls to face difficulties positively. The foes in the game are the barriers faced in real life. Players defeat all of them and finally forgive them by kiss, which means we need to turn difficulties into motivation. Also, we have to accept our fail and look forward. 

I am not sure about the public and counterpublic for the game. A public the artist identify might be the players who want to see a story line about hero rather than heroine. A counterpublic might be players who support female hero which is opposite to the majority game market.

The artwork I am studying is how to explain pictures to a dead hare by Joseph Beuys.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=984356421694886 

At the beginning of the performance, Beuys locked the door of the gallery’s solo exhibition from the inside, leaving the gallery audience outside. So they can only observe the scene inside through the window. Beuys, whose head was smeared with honey and gold leaf, began explaining the painting to a dead rabbit. He whispers to the dead thing he is holding in his arms, and wanders the corridors, passing from one work to another. Occasionally he would stop and return to the center of the gallery; stepping on a dead fir tree lying on the ground. Three hours later, the onlookers were allowed into the room. Boyce, on the other hand, sat on a stool in the entrance area, with his arms around the hare, his back to the onlookers.

 

Q: Who created it?

A: Joseph Beuys.

 

Q: For whom?

A: Humans in limitation.

 

Q: With what materials and metaphors?

A: The rabbit is the material.

 

Q: With what intention?

A: In many religions, the rabbit has a widespread, ancient, and symbolic meaning. For example, in Greek mythology, it is related to Aphrodite, the god of love; for the Romans and Germanic tribes, it is a strong symbol of fertility; and in Christianity, it is associated with resurrection. The “gold leaf mask” worn by Beuys during the performance also derived such interpretations, such as gold symbolizes the power of the sun, wisdom, and purity, while honey is a symbol of rebirth in Germanic culture.

 

Q: What impact?

A: This piece is meant to remind humans of their limitations.

 

Q： Did the artist identify a public or create a counterpublic?

A: Public. This piece is meant to remind humans of their limitations.

 

 

Analyze an existing artwork/project/piece of media (TV show, game, etc) and the systems within which it operates. Try to identify: Who created it? For whom? With what materials and metaphors? With what intention? What impact? On whom? How? Did the artist identify a public or create a counterpublic?

 

Poster:

I chose to do the “We Can Do It” art poster that was made during World War II. This was a time where men where shipped off to fight the war against Germany and their allies. While the men fought, women took on “male” jobs (ie; defense industries, the civilian service, armed forces). Even after the war, the men returned and wanted their jobs back. Women wanted to work, and continue to work even after the men returned. The poster was created by J. Howard Miller in 1943. It symbolizes that women can work any job without losing their femininity, which the poster shows as a metaphor. The target audience would have been young women that were able to hard labor.

The art piece I chose to analyze is Reynold Reynolds’ piece, Burn. Burn is a short video piece created in 2001, which depicts an ordinary looking middle-aged couple who are casually sitting in their living room while it is on fire. The couple looks to be oblivious or unaware of the fact they are in a burning room.

This piece seems to be created for the average American citizen, based on the fact that Reynolds spent most of his life in America, and the decision to chose middle-aged actors for the piece. The living room that is on fire in the video also looks like a traditional American home in the 1980s.

Reynolds uses the actors, the setting, and the fire to create the metaphor about the obliviousness of Americans to the world around them and also possibly their own country. It could also be a metaphor for the oblivion towards how climate change is affecting the earth itself.

The artist is very clear about identifying the public as all American citizens, and is sending a clear message to them that awareness is required to save ourselves from a burning fire.

“I Still Believe in Our City” art by Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya created in partnership with the NYC Commission on Human Rights. In 2020, as COVID-19 flared through New York City and NYC hospitals saw a spike of nearly 200,000 patients, Asian and Pacific Islanders (APIs) faced an added threat: blame, racism, and xenophobia. The works featured in “I Still Believe in Our City” couple striking visuals with statistics about discrimination API New Yorkers have faced amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The panels include words and phrases uttered in hate, juxtaposed with bright colors, symbolic imagery, and portraits of defiant and proud API New Yorkers standing their ground. Nestling the ugly language in beautiful symbolism is intentional:  API artist Phingbodhipakkiya shows that despite what API New Yorkers have faced, they remain undeterred and steadfast members of New York City’s communities. More than an anti-hate campaign, this public awareness initiative is a testament to the beauty and resilience of API communities. It recognizes everything people lived through in 2020 but also speaks to decades-old anti-Asian biases.

I think the public will be every New Yorker and anti-hate campaign.

 

https://www.nyc.gov/site/cchr/media/pair-believe.page