Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Work Space



My first impression of my desk when I first moved into Willoughby hall in Pratt was very positive. It was the desk that tilts up for studio work. The desk looks awkward if you don't know the function of it because its surface seems way too big when compared to the supporting legs. I wondered why the desk was made in such way, and once I found out the reason, I loved it. I did not expect to have this kind of desk to be my own, and its presence in my room made me feel so much more welcomed to art school. It has only been a month since the school started and all my assignments have been little craft works. I have not had the chance to tilt my desk yet, but I’m looking forward to it.
The gap made between height and width difference of my chair and the desk gives me just enough space for me to fold my laps on the chair and fit into the negative space of the desk. If I lift my laps up just a little, I feel the bottom of the drawer that is attached underneath the desk. I cannot reach the floor when I'm sitting, so if I let down my legs, the gravity makes my knees sore after few hours. I usually like to have my furniture touch at least one side of the walls so little objects like pens and pins wouldn't fall down the edge. It's my precaution to avoid the tedious hide-and-seek when I need those fallen objects.
 I collect many things. Some are stationeries like bookmarks, pens, letter papers, and post-its shaped like a leaf or a thought bubble. Others include stamps, vintage photographs, receipts, and teabag bags. All these collections used to stay on my desk when I had a bigger desk with three shelves over it. However, because my desk is a work table now, I can only put some in the drawer beneath it, or on top of a detached bookshelf, on the side of the desk. I am very conscious of the presence of objects on my desk now so the desk is always ready to tilt its face. I put anything except my computer back to where they belong. It might not be long until I stop this because I used to have messy desks before coming to Willoughby, but I am going to try not to break this habit.

 I don't know who the last user of this desk was, but someone did not think about having a cutting board or thick paper underneath their work when cutting it with an x-acto  knife. The desk has few straight, linear scars. It reminds me of the girl who sat next to me in my second grade classroom. She used to carve out the edges of her wooden desk with an x-acto knife while our teacher wasn't looking. I don't know why she did it, but it became her habit the rest of the year. She kept doing it, and by the end of each class her desk would have a smoother edge, getting lighter as its coated varnish peeled off to show its true self.
 I made a habit involving my desk and that is rubbing my eraser against its surface. When my eraser turns black from clearing charcoal marks, I use my white surfaced desk to clean it. I don't have to look for an extra sheet of white paper to rub against and I find my desk effective and convenient to be the alternative.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jhKHyVLeZCw/TnnpcC6VnmI/AAAAAAAAAB0/u-sBMoGpnL0/s320/Screen+shot+2011-08-24+at+11.06.12+PM.png
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gZyrkdCtDcU/TnnsUzjgpyI/AAAAAAAAAB8/P0tuieTCJ0c/s200/Screen+shot+2011-02-16+at+5.36.24+AM.png
When I was in high school - when I had only one desk for years, in one place, I had books and papers in tall, three stacks. Because I would just toss my last read book on top of the stack, the books were automatically arranged in chronological order and I had the visual record of my reading history. Now my desk only has my imac, a wireless keyboard and a mouse that cover just 1/6 of the desk. It feels naked, showing its white skin quite boldly. Although I want the desk to be clean for my work, now that my desk is clean most of the time, I have fewer visual displays of my recent activities. The desk tells less stories.

However, there is another advantage in cleaning the desk, other than more spacious space for work. As I produce a mess while working and clean my desk, the same thing happens in my brain; I expand my thoughts and make a mess, stretching all the thoughts out, and then clean, refresh my mind. As I repeat the act of making a mess and cleaning the desk, my thoughts expand and reorganize. In so doing, some ideas crystalize while unnecessary things are discarded. The physical act transits to my thoughts and I become more decisive on what I do and gain a better focus. It is as if what I did physically has transitioned into my brain and my mind mimicked the act the same way. It is like the process of baptism where sprinkling of water on the physical body cleanses the soul. 
So far, on my desk, I have cut and arranged pieces of color aid paper and magazines for Light, Color, and Design class, painted my models for 3D design class, wrote emails, read CNN articles, checked on my facebook, skyped, wrote on my diary, ate my meals, made peppermint tea, finished my makeup, read, recorded my daily spendings, watched Korean shows and documentaries, checked my sleep calculator, read others’ blogs, wrote blog posts like this one, listened to music, talked on the phone, took pictures, and checked myself on webcam to see how I outfit looks for the day (since I don’t have a mirror).
 I did not do my drawing assignments on my desk because I had to face the shoes, not the white wall right behind the desk, for direct observation drawing. I have not slept on my desk because I managed my time well and have been sleeping early to not fall asleep on the desk while working late at night... so far. I did not exercise on my desk for obvious reasons. So except for these three activities, all my room activities always have accompanied the desk.
Dorm rooms - little space makes me utilize more of what are already there. 
             Desk is a place that is of my own. No one can use this desk except me because it is organized in a certain way that only I would know, including what is around it: a bookshelf that has teabags on the top shelf and art supplies on the bottom, three different tote bags packed according to what I need on three different days (Monday's drawing class, Tuesday's 3D class, and Wednesday's art history and English class), tangled electronic cords that only I can tell which is which, and so on. Desk is the place only I can approach. It is comfortable place for me, but it is not as approachable for others. For some reason, more than a bed or a chair, a desk has a sense of presence that is stiff and less friendly to the non-owners. It almost feels like a holy relic. That impression might arouse because the desk is the main place where its owner goes to expand and express their potential skills, through the medium of writing, reading, painting, drawing, and thinking. When the desk has a trace of the owner's passion through messy but productive files of work lying on it, that sacredness heightens.
             The desk is used to time out myself from the physical activities. By sitting on the chair and sitting in static posture, I activate my brain to start its cognitive activities instead. The desk is where my lower body finally rests from moving, where I find my spot to be conscious of my state and ongoing thoughts. The first thing I do when I sit on the desk is to draw a deep breath. The desk becomes my site for meditation, and the initiator of reflection on myself.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Kara Walker and Everyday

Kara Walker, Slavery! Slavery! ...(Detail), 1997, Cut Paper and adhesive on wall,
http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/features/finch/finch10-5-07_detail.asp?picnum=1 

To be honest, I am not very familiar with Kara Walker’s subject in her art; discrimination in gender, race, and violence. I have never thought deeply about these issues, although I could have, once while living in America, since I am considered an inferiority in gender and a minority in race. I do not think I have experienced any such prejudices. Although I admire her works in aesthetical aspect and in her way of communication through art, I thought her ideas were out of synch with the times. Ku Klux Klan, gender and race discrimination, and physical violence and murder seemed such an old history, stories in the past, so when I learned of Walker’s works, I thought she was an impulse-provoker and a pessimist. Surely, if people still think that at this time in our society, then the society would not have improved after the Civil War, I thought.
            But how wrong was I. She targeted exactly what I was thinking, only in a surprisingly fresh direction with sincere honesty and care for the subject. Her work was not about dwelling in the past and reliving in it, but everything else but that- about reflecting on it and opening the people’s eyes wider. Before her talk, the art columnist read a quote from Walker, and the quote said, “…I was making a history book, not from a victor’s view, but from the victim’s view.” When I heard that line, I realized right away what Walker was doing with her art. That seems like something everyone who has fallen as the victim in the history want to do. For instance, I have read numerous times about Cold Wars in my American high school, and how many Americans have died and how General McArthur has lead the wars to success. But from what I remember from my Korean elementary and middle school, these wars, especially Korean war, were not about the victory of America and democracy, but about the unforgettable thorn that is deeply embedded in the thousands of years of Vietnamese and Korean history.  Korean schools taught their students that this section in Korean history is the most traumatic and painful past where one nation suffered from separation of families and brothers fighting against each other for the Western countries’ political ideology. So when I saw Walker’s attempt to rewrite the American history in the African American’s stand, I was very touched, and I stayed in awe the rest of her talk. I could not hold my admiration for her effort and care for her own race.
Kara Walker, The Other called Burn speaks for itself,
Cut Paper and adhesive on wall,
http://www.jimandellen.org/feministblog/432.html
            Later when Walker was talking, she said “…it is the environment where only Western Art history is admitted” when she first came into the art industry. So she made art about African Americans, and their history. And her story makes a huge impact, like a gong transferring its sound wave to thousands of miles across, all throughout the globe. How exciting is that? This kind of story telling is something I always think about as well. I want to make something that is true to my blood and race, but I cannot imagine what I could do to make this message not just about me and my own race, and I wonder how I could expand my story to relate to not just other Koreans, but to all other ethnicity as well. 
            So when thinking about sending across my standing as one group of humanity and telling out story, I think walker's topic is relatable to anyone, not just those who make art or read history. We often forget our own history and think it futile at present time. However, each and every day we talk of history, about what we did and when we did, and from those we learn and move forward. Even though our history might not be something grand and newsworthy, or to be written in a book to be everlasting, we can cherish our present moment and let others know how we as an individual live our life. Retelling our story is a remarkable way to be reminded of now and today. Through alliterating our story and listening to others', we mature, not just in critical thinking skills, but in the aspect of cultural development as well. Whether we know it or not, we live by our history. It could be something painful like Walker’s dark time of discrimination against black, and by bring it up, we experience that pain again, but it is a very meaningful and necessary message that we can use. Story telling could be the most rewarding activity we can do, a privilege we have among other animal species, to grow ourselves.  
Kara Walker, Gone, An Historical of a Civil War
as it Occurred Between the Dusky Thighs of
One Young Negress and Her Heart (Detail), 1994,
Cut Paper and adhesive on wall, 13x50 ft.
http://tang.skidmore.edu/index.php/posts/view/19/
Now, in everyday, we are aware of our race and gender, and while we tell our story, some unconscious decisions and feelings evoke us to speak in certain way to defend or reveal our almost habitual thoughts. We try to hide or cover them, or talk about them in an indirect way, like the silhouetted figures that Walker makes. Among Walker’s silhouetted figures, I am attached to this one girl with voluminous dress, who is about to kiss a gentleman-or-not. If I see beneath her dress, I see two little feet with pointy shoes right under her. Who could that be? This is a very scandalous scene and I wonder if the girl knows that there’s someone else who sees her inside. The big tree next to this intimate couple has plentiful leaves to cover all but one branch, but if I look closely, a part of the leaves silhouette looks like a profile of a man hiding in the tree, peeking at this couple. This is the reason why her silhouette figures are very successful. I loved her idea of making her subjects in shadows, or silhouettes to not directly show the stories that could have been too vulgar and too direct to overpower her real messages. If I picture Walker’s work in a real painting with contours and colors, it would have not been as strong as her current work. The figures’ subjectivity is more clearly shown and it was very believable that these figures have lived once upon a time, somewhere we do not really know of. Her literal depiction of black and white, and black figures in white background also suggests the clear distinction of American skin color. This is indirect but very clear to see. Walker’s indirect talking was brilliant.  
            Later when it was Q&A time, someone asked Walker if she feels the strong emotion as the questioner did when she makes her art, and Walker said that she really enjoys the strong anger and powerful feelings that overwhelms her. That’s when I promised myself that I would make something that could touch myself and make me feel something. To make it believable to others, I must believe in my work as well. By the end of Kara Walker’s talk, I gained the eyes to discover the humane things in inhumane things, an honest heart to pound for my instinctive thoughts, and a great story to remember and apply to my everyday life.


Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Response to Species of Spaces and Other Pieces by Georges Perec

1.

  We realize the existence of something only when extraordinary happens to that something, whether "the something" be an object or an event. We are surprised by the result but we neglect to realize that the extraordinary result resulted because there was an underlying, ordinary cause that has been existing "twenty-four hours out of twenty-four, three hundred and sixty-five days a year".
  We are unconsciously living our lives according to how we are accustomed to do. If we pay a little attention, however, we find something special from the mundane daily pattern from there. When we wake up from our "dreamless sleep", we will be the individuals who no longer copy the others. What we were missing are "not the exotic... ...but the endotic"; We will discover some of the crucial things about our lives and ourselves using the tools that were within us from the beginning.
   Observe and question little petty things we see everyday.






2.



|

|

|

...

1 second

2 seconds


3 seconds



................. seconds.











My mind is blinking with the blinking linear bar................|

........... after the last character I typed............| 

.

..


...


....




.....





......






.......







........


How mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnyyyyyyyyyyy
dots did I just pass?


How many s                     p                        a                             c                             e                          s were in between each series of dots?


A

l
i
n
e

blinking after the last letter I typed

is

w




a





i









t






i




n











g




for me to type another one.


It's asking me to write the
                                             next
                                                      one.

I am nervous.
I feel like I am rushed.
The line demands me to type faster.




.
.
...
Then the

                   enter/

                    key

is the breaking thought in between,

a secret
break that I get.
I have the permission to rest a little before I type in my sentence now.

Sometimes that Enter
permits me to rest a lot more than a little.
No one knows whether I took a nap
or pulled my hair out
and counted it
until I found
a string of another inspiration
in between the two Enter's.
My font hasn't changed.
The letters look consistant enough to believe
that I wrote this all in 5 minutes.

                         
                          typing
                              one
        a
         l

            p
      
      h
 a
             
b
        
                  e             
                     t                        
                                        by one.
 I first need to coordinate 
my fingers.
need to know
which finger at which position 
will give me an 
A or a K.



one letter made by
each finger
                                                                                                                         index, middle, ring, and pinky...

each tap
                                                                                   Tap Tap Tap

pushing the blinking line
                                                                                        ...................................|
                   

                           Fingers d    
                   a          e    to the tempo of the rhythm
                                                    n   c
                             
the rhythm that is created by tapping
                              tap tap tap
the fingers leave a trace of their   f o o t s t e p s 

and create a neat line of words                    _____________________   .

a line and then
a paragraph

with precision and care.

the music ends
and as the music ends,
the dance ends.
with the final message deeply embedded in a blogger,
the rhythm of tapping still playing in her head.


who says typing is impersonal?
Who says typing is only technical?

.........

In between those hand made visual and auditory art piece,
                                                             is a temporary performance art
only a blogger can enjoy



2

A vertical blinking bar...........|
gives me another line to write
A horizontal lying bar
gives me a brief second to.  r e s t .


        oh srroy i was in a rsuh,
      sorRy ofr the tpyos.
backspace <- backspace <-


forgot a < . >
and the sentence never ends
leaves the receiver just
h
.
a
.
.
n
.
.
.
g
.
i
.
n
.
g
.

in there
.

Oops,
cannot let That happen...!
*hurriedly going back to leave the finishing touch*



there we go!
:)



3
Hello Hi my name is Alexandria Hollingsworth Stewart. I'm a renowned author who has published Civil war... So in the book I was mentioning about James Fearon, a scholar of civil wars at Stanford University. hHe defines a civil war as "a violent conflict within a country fought by organized groups that aim to take power at the center or in a region, or to change government policin Hironaka further specifies that one side of a civil intensity at which a civil disturbance becomes a civil war is contested by academics. Some political scientists define a civil war as having more than 1000 casualties,while others further specify that at least 100 must come from eacset widely used by scholars of conflict, classifies civil wars as having over 1000 war-related casualties per year of conflict. This rate is a small fraction of the millions killed in the Second Sudanese Civil War and Cambodian Civil War, for example, but excludes several highly publicized conflicts, such as The Troubles of Northern Ireland and the struggle of the African National Congress in Apar0 casualties per year criterion, there were 213 civil wars from 1816 to 1997, 104 of which occurred from 1f one uses the less-stringent 1000 casualties total criterion, there were over 90 civil wars between 1945 and 2007, with 20 ongoing civil.........


what WHat WHAT??


Utilize your space
but not too much
or I'll cHoke.






http://afieldjournal.blogspot.com/
  I usually utilize the margin of the paper when I write on the paper.
For me, the margins of the paper for a reminder or for some ideas I should consider while writing or reading the main note. Those are color coordinated to distinguish from my thoughts to a reference, title to subsections, etc. I also like to include signs or symbols such as a star, diamond, a big parenthesis that goes over few lines of the paper- usually to group one idea. I also doodle for better memorization. So I finish the last line on the page, the paper is completely filled with my colorful writings and drawings. Even though there is many information on the page, it is easy to follow along what I wrote. When I reread my paper, I travel in different directions every time. First time I would skip from titles to subtitles to get the main points. Next would be just a normal reading, where my eyes move in linear fashion, from top to bottom, reading only the main writing. Next I read the main writing, and when I see a side note or a doodle, I follow that, and then come back to the writing. Lastly, I only look at the side notes and doodles and remember what I wrote in the main writing.

  On the other hand, I do much less of coloring, drawing, and putting pictures when I'm writing online. It might be because I don't know the shortcuts to the symbols, but it takes long for me to click on the "insert symbols/picture" icon, choose the ones I like, insert it and keep writing. Putting pictures gives me a huge break from a thought and interrupts my writing. so if necessary, I insert what I need all at the end, when my thoughts won't be distracted. So I can't have doodling as my writing habits when I'm writing blogs. As a result, I read mostly strictly in linear fashion on blogs. Even when I put pictures on the blog, it does not interfere with the lines from the main writing because blogs don't overlay pictures and the writing together.

  However, blogs can give me an almost infinite space if I ask for it. I can maximize my pictures without the restriction of the edges of the paper, and view the picture in a perfect form, without any folded lines or crops. Blogs elongate their space as much as I want it as well. I don't have to flip pages and have that flipping action break the flow of a sentence.

  Blogs are very forgiving of my mistakes too. I am less concerned about making mistakes and having to waste paper when I'm writing. The mistakes are not noticeable once I fix it. Blogs and computer writing do not leave the traces or hints of mistakes. There's no squiggly arrows that throws out a bulk of sentences, no check marks in between two words to add another word, no writing on top of another word... Only the final result matters. Although it is sometimes better to see where I edited, blog gives a forever-clean space and easy corrections.
  A technology, auto-corrections, also plays a crucial role in easy corrections. I always fix my typos or grammatical mistakes almost instantly when I am writing on blog. I cannot ignore the red and green underlines or delay the corrections because the lines keep me distracted. Because the lines indicate my mistakes, I take less time editing online than editing the written paper.

http://www.worldstart.com/easy-auto-correct-additions/
  This urge to fix the typos is one of my habit when I'm writing digitally. One other habit is searching synonyms and words on dictionary. Without having to search it on a separate thesaurus or dictionary, I can find the information I need easily by just right-clicking on the word I want to search. This way I investigate and learn more on the usage and the meanings of words. Resizing the letters and changing the fonts, coloring some of the sentences I want to look over again, relocating or duplicating sentences to other places, are some other writing habits I have while digital writing.  On the contrary, the habits I lost from writing digitally are: putting my signs and drawings on writing, utilizing the margin of the paper, eating or stroking my hair while writing (since my left hand isn't free any more), and erasing and rewriting the same words to correct just my handwriting.

  As I blog, I am more conscious of the public and a greater audience. I imagine some reactions and responses of the readers. I am more conscious of the audience's point of view and try to think from their stand.  I try harder to make my writing as smooth and understandable as possible. The semi-anonymity encourages me to write with confidence. I am challenging myself more, and think harder about the topic of my writing. Some of the famous bloggers I know provide informative, thought provoking, very observational with their surroundings, and enjoyable by many. Blogs serve to further express everyday individuals, like how youtube does with the videos. Blogs are viewed by relatively fewer people than other popular sites such as social networking sites or wikipedia, because the contents may be personal, off to just one subject, not connected by many and not accesible from one person to another, and mainly stands for writing, which not many people do. For these reasons, blogs have to be appealing enough and worthy to be known for people to be seen. Perhaps more like a newspaper, it has to captivate the reader's eyes first and grab onto them further with unique and interesting stories.


  For people who love to let everyone read their writing, or who wants to write but don't have much courage to write, blogs are perfect. Blogs are very open and easily accessible. It is a stage for writing amateurs. It doesn't cost money, no contract is needed to publish your writing, and many ideas are shared through looking at different people's blogs. blogs can be uploaded everywhere any time, and writing is no loner for professionals.

 I am physically more restricted when I am writing on blog. My hands hardly ever leave the keyboard and other than rolling my eyes a little bit for a brief break, my writing posture is static.

Friday, September 9, 2011

Week 1 Talk to Me assignment- What and how do objects talk to human?

<City Ticket> by Mayo Nissen

Mayo Nissens' project, <City Tickets>

The project <City Tickets> by Mayo Nissen is a parking kiosk that also functions as the communication tool between the public and their city department.  The machine prints out a ticket with date, time, and a map with the exact location of the problem, and on it, the citizens report a problem or suggest any city improvement. The citizens will then put the tickets into a mailbox nearby and send directly to the city department without any charge. Furthermore, the tickets have general public announcements, recently fixed issues, and the expected dates for ongoing modifications, so the citizens can recognize the changes in the city.

<City Tickets> is an upgraded version of a parking meter that allows the object and human to interact in two-way communication. Humans ask for a listening ear and the machine gives human exactly that- a ticket to let out what they think about their surroundings. The machine then responds by informing humans the current modification they asked for and reassuring that there is a progress. The machine reacts to the public’s concern to prevent the public’s indifference to city’s infrastructures and public issues; it prevents the community’s “the worst offense and laziness”, or the act of not responding to a problem.
Surely, <City Tickets> is different from the previous parking meter. Aside from the additional functions it has, the emotional exchange is different. With a regular parking meter, there was less communication. It was a passive relationship where the machine asks for coins and I give some to hold my spot. If there were any emotions coming from me, it would be negative. Sometimes it would eat my coin and I’d be frustrated. Sometimes if I don’t come back before it ends its countdown I would get in trouble. In a way, it was a more demanding, strict, and unfriendly. Because it only asks and does not listen to my side, it was a one-way communication. This would be what Paola Antonelli was talking about in her essay, <Talk to Me>. She talked about the Rules of Engagement,” and the fifth axiom of the rules was that inter-humans converse in either complementary or a symmetric relationship.” Conversely, Antonelli worried that object-to-human relationship might not have that same relationship. She claimed that the relationship is “hardly ever symmetrical.” 
Printed Tickets from
NYC <City Tickets> machine
In the case of <City Tickets>, however, a symmetric conversation is possible because there is an equal input from both the human and the machine. To the citizens, <City Tickets> respond to their talk, specifying on certain problems they have already addressed and the exact dates on when the modification will be completed. With the local government, the machine tells how much improvements should be done and exactly how many people want it. The government always asks for the citizen’s input to the city and receives only few responses. With <City Tickets>, the communication is facilitated. As a listener, amplifier, and a messenger, <City Tickets> efficiently holds a symmetric conversation. 
Referring back to Antonelli’s Rules of Engagement, the first axiom of the rules says that any kind of gesture, sign, or behavior of an object can suggest something, hence, “talk” to the person.  The third axiom explains that this is because humans tend to depend on the responder, the object, for a response, and interpret certain sign as a “voice” appealing to them. Equally, <City Tickets> prints out the ticket right on the spot. It readily opens its ear to the person who asked to be heard. The person doesn’t have to ask to be called for a permission to speak or wait for the procedure, and the easy access makes the person feel comfortable about approaching the machine and “talk” to it. 
<City Tickets> explains the guideline and draw out the map for humans. Just as small talks help to bring up the main topic for the conversation, the tickets provide a smooth start for the humans and lessen any misunderstanding or confusion. Just as a step-by-step instruction on GPS is easier to find the direction than a home address alone, the clarity of the subject and the location betters the quality of conversation and this kind and gentle tone of the ticket increases the degree of satisfaction when humans complete telling their story.
Also, by physically holding the ticket, writing their responses out, and sending the tickets through the mailbox, all these steps give person a feeling of accomplishment more than through internet because he has to be physical. According to a study about our memory and physical acitivties' relationship, it said that memories made with physical activities are remembered longer than memories made while standing or sitting. The public's physical activities done with the machine will be remembered more than just filling it out on a computer or on smart devices, and this remembrance increases a feeling of their contribution to the community, and increase their awareness as a citizen of the city. Since <City Tickets> is easily approachable, the public will think the city department and its authorities are not so distanced from them anymore. As <City Tickets> stands on the street, it “tells citizens that the local authorities care them, and that they can trust and be accounted by the authorities.
Its being alongside the street speaks to the public that he’s open to anybody. The suggestion about having city tickets as an application came up and Nissen rejected the idea, as having “city tickets” as a smartphone application would not be able to include people without smartphones or other portable devices. Along with the easy access and more involvement of the community, the citizens become the eyes of the government and evolve further as a democratic society.
Overall, the ticket machine can have a complete communication with the people by accepting their request and giving a chance to let them talk and be heard. It tells the citizens and the local authorities that they can rely on each other. It listens to both side, and responds back with the information that other side has provided.






Talk to Me essay by Paola Antonelli: http://moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2011/talktome/essay/