PORTFOLIO
Ashley Wilkins
The Digital Image in Space/Shifting Landscapes Spring 2012 . ARCH 5960 Professor Caludia Bernasconi
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HABITUAL REOCCURENCES
Project 1: The Interior Landscape Daily we do thousands of tasks. Some habitual tasks have become so ingrained in our own persona that we do them subconsciously, with little to no thought about them. The act of doing those tasks blur together without a clear line of when that specific task was done. One cannot remember the exact last time they drank a glass of water, and what was different about it, but instead, when they remember back to drinking water they combine all of the memories and perspectives from every time they have ever drank water. Memory is not a linear track but a collage of different times, viewpoints and perspectives blurred together. This instillation investigates the blurring of the habitual reoccurrences of everyday life as seen through the video artist.
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AMBIGUOUS
Project 2: Shifting Landscapes This piece shows the underlying theme of tension, frustration and miscommunication in the story “Merge” in the Autobahn screenplay. The title, “Ambiguous,” means open to or having several possible meanings. The quote, “I gotta tell ya, I’m lost here,” pertains to being lost in the past, inside of the woman’s story but its second meaning is being lost in the present, driving through the city at the directions of the woman. The tension between the past and the present is apparent. In the video the video artist chose to show simultaneously three sides of the same story; the present, the past and the emotional state. The present being shown in the moment of the actual story, showing the male driving, the flickering of streetlights, and the passing of the world outside the windows. The woman’s recollection of last night’s events begins to invade the drive showing the past in a contrasting view of harsh contrast of black and while. The emotional state of the male begins normal and at ease while slowly becoming more and more frustrated and confused as the woman’s story unfolds from the unknown to the truth. The constant water dripping in the background gives a tense and unnerving feeling as it slowly speeds up to a rhythmic pace. Flashes of green, yellow and red symbolize both the flashes of a spotlight but also the emotional state of the story. A rubber band stretches until it snaps, also showing tension. 04
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MERGE
Project 3: Autobahn - Neil LaBute Throughout Merge, the woman unravels a story, but only through relentless pressure to do so by her husband. This video projection acts as a supplement, subtle in nature. It illustrates the man’s self-torture as he unravels his wife’s story of unfaithfulness. The thread becomes the story line, unraveling. The fallen threads become the truth and the man’s self-agony as he pressures her to continue. The husband is slowly able to put the pieces of the story together and these visuals coincide with the unraveling thread. As they traverse through the city, the woman slowly lets pieces of the truth slip out into the open. In this respect she is truthful, but she takes every opportunity to cause distraction. Each distraction causes the thread to rewind, hiding the truth for just a few moments longer. Images of the road trip interject as distraction happens, while visuals of the past emerge through the thread as the story unravels.
Collaboration with... Dan Radlick & Josh Budiongan - Video/Installation David L. Regal - Director Karen Minard & Brak Little - Actors
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