Questions: Kims Reading

Thesis questions, Kims reading

1. What does zengoitita mean by “optional”? what is a good example of “real”? What is an example of “mediated”?

When Zengoitita speaks about optional I believe he is speaking literally about all of the options we are faced with today. Specifically speaking about the options relating to goods and services. An example given of this would be cereal choices. 60 years ago there were only 4 choices, now the possibilities are endlessly combined. To escape these options would be to experience the real. I believe nature is the best provider of that, if you can escape to a place that is unmediated by people. It is easier to give an example in America however of a natural place mediated. One of these is our very own lido beach. Every day it is combed, de weeded and watched by lifeguards. One is never allowed to see the natural growth that would occur, or the depth of the ocean, or how nasty sand can become when not precisely combed every day. It is real but only in the sense that it is in front of you.

2. What is your constructed identity and lifestyle?

My constructed lifestyle like most Americans is complicated. I have chosen bits and pieces from lifestyles I have taken time to dabble in so far. I surf, kayak, print, vote logically but tends to be republican, want to be an artist/batman home mom (as Jeffery puts it), and southern by birth. Those are the pieces of me that people catch/ are allowed to see. It is a really hard question, because I love being conservative, but my feet want to go on the town sometimes and run around like a wild woman. However I don’t think my feet count, because only my close friends know them.

3. de Zengotita writes, "Some people refuse to accept the fact that reality is becoming indistinguishable from representation in a qualitatively new way." Are you aware of this? Do you think about it? What do you think about it? Or is this a pretty new idea for you? If so, how do you feel about it?

I’m pretty aware of our entire world, real and unreal melding into one blob of insanity. It’s not a new idea; we are bombarded with images all the time. If someone asks me if I know the pyramids I say yes… have I been there, no. Mediation is a blessing and a curse. On one hand my entire thesis is about mediation. Yes, technically it’s about conservation, but the images I draw are mediated to create a perfect environment. No bugs, no snakes, no fog, no sweat. I only show you what I want you to see/edit out because that is how I see these environments. On that side it’s a blessing I can mediate these places I love so much so you can experience them the same way I do.

4. de Zengotita writes," The problem with trying to comprehend the process of mediation is that you can't get outside it." Can you imagine a way to get outside it? If that was your assignment, to get outside of the mediated world/environment, what would you do?

My goal to escape mediation is reoccurring. I escape the mediated world by going into nature. Specifically trying to find someplace untouched by people. That means no signs, no paths, and especially no one telling me what I can’t do. This is generally judged by if I’m out on the water, and I can kayak naked. I have found somewhere unmediated.

1. I think my work has the "whatever" quality to it that de Zengotita describes. Do you agree?

Whatever is not a word I would use to describe your work. I feel like whatever implies a disregard for anything. Your work is in the contemporary art world. It automatically gives another layer… or so it’s assumed. Meaning when I look at your work I’m grasping for a connection to the images. There must be a reason they are on the same page. Art in general will always lack the “whatever” quality at this point.

2. I also think my work plays with the range between the real and fabricated/mediated that de Zengotita describes, and I present that range on a level playing field. Do you agree, or not--and why?

I agree. With your art you have created semi believable environments with Things going on that could happen. They probably would not, but very well could. In all reality you could have taken a picture of a fan man herding pigeons into an oil drilling area. Likely its not, so we try and connect the three images acting as if they are separate. This could just be a strange occurrence such as the bear man suit in the mountains.

3. What else can I/should I do to more successfully describe, in my work, the mediated/optional environment we live in in America?

I still struggle with the idea that you’re actually dealing with mediation. I feel your work is simply mediated because that is how you make your work. Physically showing us choices would speak louder about mediation than giving us multiple unrelated images. We don’t have to choose between them. We can have them all.

4. What is the similarity or difference between the "tone" of de Zengotita's writing/analysis and the "tone" of my drawings?

This question is lost on me. I have only seen two of your pictures in person, and tone is not something I think about for the most part. I cannot give you a response with writing down.