Cancellation: ePortfolio Workshop.

Dear students.

The College canceled our ePortfolio Workshop on Dec. 2nd due to tech problems in Digication. Please see below for more details.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Bret Eynon" <beynon@lagcc.cuny.edu>
To: (snip)
Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:35:09 -0500
Subject: ePortfolio/Digication Tech Problem
Dear Friends & Colleagues,

As you may know from previous communications (see below), the
Digication ePortfolio system had a significant problem over the
Thanksgiving weekend, during a system-wide upgrade. The technicians
at Digication are working to restore the system. They've assured us
that all portfolios were saved before the upgrade, no data has been
lost, and all extant portfolios will be recovered by early next week.

Between now and next Monday (12/5), to reduce frustration and speed
the recovery process, we're asking all faculty and students to please
avoid using the Digication system. The system is available now, but
it is not fully operative, and some portfolios may temporarily appear
to be fully or partially missing. The system may be fully shut down
at some point during the next 4 days to speed the recovery. While
this is far from ideal, we've concluded that planning to stay off of
the system till Monday is the wisest course of action.

An email will be sent to all students explaining the situation and
offering them this same advice. A notice will be posted on the page
where students log-in to Digication.

While we know that no technological system is ever perfect, the
LaGuardia ePortfolio team is nonetheless deeply unhappy with this
situation, and has strongly expressed its concerns to Digication. The
CEO of Digication has apologized to the College and all users for the
disruption of normal ePortfolio activities at this critical time of
the semester. We add our apologies and our assurances that everything
possible will be done to avoid future problems.

If you have questions about this, please contact our ePortfolio
director, Mercedes del Rosario (mdelrosario@lagcc.cuny.edu or x 5440).
We will keep you posted on the recovery and restoration process.

Best to all,

Bret

Bret Eynon, Ph.D.
Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs
Founding Director, Making Connections National Resource Center
LaGuardia Community College, CUNY
31-10 Thompson Ave., Suite M-414
Long Island City, NY 11101
p) 718-482-5478 f) 718-482-5443
BEynon@lagcc.cuny.edu
http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/ctl


>>> Mercedes Del Rosario 11/29/2011 6:19 PM >>>
Dear all,

Over the Thanksgiving holiday and late this afternoon, we've received
some complaints and error reports about Digication. We've reported all
these problems to Digication and our own IT tech support teams. Rest
assured, that they are tirelessly working on the issues as both teams
are keenly aware of how critical this crunch time is for students to
complete their ePortfolios, and the faculty to collect the assessment
deposits.

We ask for your patience and understanding, and please accept our
apologies for any inconvenience caused by these problems. In the
meantime, please advise your students to back up their work on their
flash drives. Please do not ask them to type directly on the text area
of Digication, so in case the system times out due to slow connection
or some other problem, they won't end up losing their work. We suggest
that they first type their work in Word or any other Office software
and copy and paste it on Digication later on.

We know that this is very frustrating, but we're doing everything we
can to get us over these unfortunate and ill-timed glitches.
Hopefully, the problems will be resolved by tomorrow. If you still
continue to experience tech troubles, please report them to me
immediately. Please be very detailed and specific, i.e., indicate
room, date and time and describe the operation(s) you were doing
(e.g., uploading video, uploading images, uploading assessment
assignments, saving/publishing work, etc.). We need this information
to replicate the operation so the system can track what triggered the
problem.

Thanks for your cooperation.

Mercedes


Mercedes del Rosario, Ed.D.
Project Director
E-Portfolio Initiative
LaGuardia Community College
City University of New York
Rm #: M-403
Phone: 718-482-5440
31-10 Thomson Ave
Long Island City, NYC
http://www.eportfolio.lagcc.cuny.edu/
http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/ctl/home.htm

REMINDER: 2 Papers Due and ePortfolio on Dec. 2.

Dear students in Art-in-New York,

Just a reminder that your papers on David Smith and the 9/11 Memorial, both with MLA citation pages, are due on Friday, Dec. 2nd.

#David Smith was originally due on Nov. 23rd, but the class voted for the "new" deadline.

[THE ePortfolio WORKSHOP WAS CENCELED. READ HERE and HERE. We meet in E227 on Dec. 2] ePortfolio:
Please bring in two jpegs of your drawings, 600x600 to max 1200x1200 in pixel, and the sketchbook [we will draw in class]. Also digital files of your completed papers.

Extra Credit:
I read your writings from our field trip to the United Nations. They are high quality and I decided to take them as Extra Credit, but again, you need to turn in the final in order to receive your Extra Credit. Anyone can still submit this essay [for the Design with the Other 90% Cities exhibition@the UN].

More Info:
Below, you find useful resources for the papers and the final. I already discussed most of them in class, but a few students asked me for suggestions and I thought you also benefit from the extra info. One rule for the final is that you cannot interview classmates and LaGuardia students. Here are the links:

Summary of Writing Assignments from now to the end.

Tips for Two Papers.

Final Project Assignment.

NOTE: I revised the citation section of my syllabus here; students can now
cite "Web 2.0" sources as long as they follow MLA for blog posts,
Facebook comments, and tweets.

Please email me if you have any questions.

Final: Artist Interview

You need to have:

1. Artist Name.
2. Contact Information.
   
3. Website [if the artist has one].
4. At Least 2-3 Photos of the Artist's Work Samples [and of yourself and the artist, if possible]. The photos must be in minimum 600x600 to max 1200x1200 in pixels.

RULES: Please do NOT interview your classmates for the final. You cannot interview LaGuardia students for the final project. Professors and Staff members are good choices.

A few students asked me for sample questions for the final project.

My suggestions would be:

• What is your JOB TITLE? How long have you been doing the job?

• What is your BEST WORK in New York? What inspired it?

• How would you define SUCCESS in New York?

• Do you have any artist MENTOR who significantly influenced you as an artist?

• Do you have any ADVICE for young artists who are starting out?

Please make sure you know what type of art your artist is making. You want to come up with specific questions based on what they create. Please prepare follow-up questions on the spot depending on the answers you receive. It may be better to choose an artist whose work you really like. Please send them a Thank-You note after your interview.

EXTRA INFORMATION on Where to Find NYC Artists:

School of Visual Arts is coming to LaGuardia on Dec. 6th. Room M-230 at 1:00pm. "I would like to meet with a few recent art graduates who are successful in New York"

Pratt MFA Open Studio on Friday, Dec. 9th, 5-9pm. You can meet lots of artists during this free event. "I am an art blogger and would like to interview you for my blog." Free admission.

Hunter MFA Thesis Exhibition Opening on Wed., Dec. 14th. 6-8pm. You can meet many many artists during the opening reception. "I am a CUNY student interested in applying for Hunter in one or two years." This is a CUNY event. Free admission and free food/drink.

City College Open Studio on Dec. 2nd [call the school for details].

Talk to Professors, staff members, or alumni who keep in touch with artists who used to work for LaGuardia or graduated from LaGuardia.

And of course, Facebook, Twitter, and other people's blogs. Please always choose a public space for an initial meeting and go with your classmates, not alone, if you are visiting someone's art studio.

Tips for Papers

Dear students. Below, I am listing useful resources for your academic papers. You are free to start your writing in your own way and do not have to follow those ideas. They are not rules and merely suggestions.

1) David Smith@Whitney.
As I emphasized in class, please check the Glossary that I distributed in WEEK 3. You can find it in the handout folder section "WEEK 3" on blackboard. Vocabs that can be helpful: balance, cubism, nonrepresentational, proportion, rhythm, scale, symmetry/ asymmetry, unity, and volume.

2) The 9/11 Memorial Park.
Three possible ideas where you can start this paper:

a. SQUARE: Why did the designer use a square as a basic design element? You can look up artworks by Kazimir Malevich; he is the first artist of the Non-objective Art Movement. Here is a recent review of his exhibition [note: he is dead]. Squares in his early paintings represent human body:

Malevich's "Black Square" 1913 [left] and "Red Square: Painterly Realism of a Peasant Woman in Two Dimensions" 1915. [right] Oil on canvas. State Russian Museum, St. Petersburg.

b. NAME: How is the use of names effective for the memorial? The 9/11 Memorial Architect Michael Arad talks about the name arrangement here. Please also look up "Vietnam Veterans Memorial" by Maya Lin in Washington D.C. Here is what Lin says about the name arrangement of the Vietnam Memorial.

The Names of the 9/11 Memorial.

c. POOL: What is Reflecting Pool? There are two pools at the 9/11 Memorial Park site. Reflecting Pool is a style of landscape architecture that uses water and pools as part of the design. Well-known examples would be:

• Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington D.C. where all historical speeches, including Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, were delivered.
• Taj Mahal and its Reflecting Pool in India, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Map of Constitution Gardens, Washington, D.C.. 1) Lincoln Memorial; 2) Vietnam War Memorial; 3) World War II Memorial (then-under construction). USGS.

Please check 9/11 basics at "FAQ about 9/11" by the 9/11 Memorial Park website.

Hope this post is helpful. Please email me if you have any questions/suggestions/concerns.

REMINDER: Papers due on DEC. 2nd.

Two Essay Assignments
1) David Smith@Whitney Museum
250 words: one double-spaced page essay, due: Nov. 23 or Dec. 2 (the deadline extension available).
#The class cannot visit this exhibition as a group because the Whitney Museum opens after 1:00PM on Friday. Admission is free with your LaGCC ID.

2) The 9/11 Memorial Park
250 words: one double-spaced page essay, due: Dec. 2 (the deadline extension available).
#If you missed the class trip today, visitor passes are available during Thanksgiving. Reserve a ticket online for your individual visit.

Final Project:
Artist Interview. Essay [and the class voted on Dec. 2nd for no "oral presentation," so NO ORAL]. Do not interview classmates; teachers are okay.
250 words: one double-spaced page essay with 2-3 good photos, due: Dec. 9 (The deadline extension available thru Dec. 16. Post it on blog and email me the word file with a link to the blog post).

NEXT Class: Wednesday, Nov. 23.

We are meeting at 10:00AM at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York on Wednesday, November 23rd. Free Admission, so enter and wait for me inside near the largest entrance. Direction is HERE. The address is:

One Bowling Green
New York, NY 10004

Please bring your Sketchbook, Camera, Student ID, and a Metro Card (if you take subway).

Note about the 9/11 Memorial Park:
As I mentioned in class two weeks ago, most morning visitors are immediate families of people who passed away on September 11, 2001, so I recommend you wear black or something dark although this is just an idea. Please respect the site in any case. Here is a blog report from my painting student who visited the park as part of Beginning Painting.

#The class is meeting on Wednesday due to LaGuardia's "Friday Schedule" that requires us to meet on Wednesday the 23rd, so all of your Wednesday classes at LaGuardia will be canceled on Nov. 23rd.

MLA

How to cite blog posts, Facebook comments, and tweets in academic papers, MLA:

Editor, screen name, author, or compiler name (if available). “Posting Title.” Name of Site. Version number (if available). Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher). Medium of publication. Date of access.

Facebook
Name of Poster (as it appears on the site, i.e. "c.jason.smith"). Web post. Facebook.com. Date posted. Date accessed.

Twitter
Twitter handle (Author, i.e. @BarackObama). Web log post. Twitter.com. Date posted. Web. Date accessed.

[Shared through Community 2.0 by Dr. Jason Smith, LaGaurdia English Department.]

Announcement (Extra Credit 2)

1) EXTRA CREDIT 2: WE MEET IN CLASS AT 9:15AM for the Field Trip on Nov. 18th.
Last week, the class anonymously voted for a documentary video from a community-based art project in Brazil as "something worth following up." Therefore, we as Art-in-New York are visiting a design exhibit on
what the other 90% of the world thinks art is about
at the United Nations this Friday. The National Design Museum is renovating its own building right now, so they rented this space for the show.
Writing about this exhibition will be Extra Credit 2.
Please watch the video and check out the link below for more details:

Praça Cantão, Favela Painting Project [7:21] in the Design with the Other 90% Cities@the UN by Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York. Video from last week's class.

"Design with the Other 90% Cities"@the United Nations by Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York. Website.


2) Two Optional Readings now on blackboard.
Artworks: Money.
The 9/11 Film Script.
#They can be useful for your research papers.


3) Mid-Semester Feedback.
The voting last week took place in a form of an anonymous survey. Here is what some students had to say about the course:

"I want to know more about inspirational artists, artists that faced hardship and fought to succeed."

"A subject that should be followed up is why do people paint what they paint. When someone paints, what inspires the artist or where does the idea come from."

"I want the Professor to make more in-class activities than explaining and lecturing in class."

"What interested me the most in today's class was how artists were influenced by other artists. For instance, probably de Kooning was influenced by Picasso's paintings. The subject that I would like to follow up would be European Art Modernism as well as American Art Modernism."

"What I like most was the analysis of the painters. Use of body human in a[n] abstract way. The video about 9/11 [Memorial Park] and how they created a monument in order to remember a tragedy."

Thank you very much and see you on Friday!

Extra Credit 1 (Optional)

LaGuardia Drawing Marathon in M229 from 5:00PM Saturday, Nov. 19th to 10:00AM Sunday, 20th. Overnight life drawing sessions on campus. Bring your sketchbook. There will be an attendance sheet, so please sign your name at the entrance. No photographing the nude models or talking on a Cell Phone while models are posing. Contact the Visual Arts office for more details. Refreshments will be served overnight, for free. Free Admission and you can come and go anytime.

#There will be Extra Credit 2, which is also Optional.

WEEK 8

There will be a field trip next week on Nov. 18th, but the class is meeting on campus as a regular class. We leave together from LaGCC. Please bring your sketchbook, student ID, and Metro Card. More details TBA via email.


Videos from today's class [The class watched short videos 1-6 below and discussed each one thematically. You can finish watching them all in less than an hour, so email me a one-sentence comment for each video if you missed class this week; please follow the links by clicking the titles]:

1. Picasso in The Metropolitan Museum of Art: A Behind-the-scenes Tour with the Director [12:26]. Performative aspects of Picasso. European Modernism. School of Paris. African Art influences.
2. African Icons by Peter Schjeldahl, the New Yorker [3:00]. Objects of desire for Europeans. Highly priced and auctioned objects. Ritual objects created for ceremonies in African tribes.
3. Audio Guide 400, 401, 402, 403, 404, 405 for "David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy" by the Whitney Museum [total: ~9 mins]. Non-Objective Art. New idea of constructing sculptures in the sculpture tradition. Influences from Cubist paintings.
4. September 11 Memorial Opens in N.Y. [3:33]. Probably the King of "Art in New York." Representing a loss of human bodies. Architecture, design, and a monument. Names. Interactions with communities.
5. Praça Cantão, Favela Painting Project [7:21] in the Design with the Other 90% Cities@the UN by Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York. A possible relationship between art and a community.
6. The Fashion of Arthur McGee [7:05] by the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum. An example of "Artist Interview." Arthur McGee is the first Black Fashion Designer and he talks about how he made his career in the all-white fashion industry.

Optional Reading
"Artworks: Money" will be on blackboard.

Materials for the 9/11 Memorial Park field trip will be on blackboard.

"Design with the Other 90% Cities"@the United Nations by Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in New York.

Arthur McGee Website.

Two Essay Assignments
1) David Smith@Whitney Museum
250 words: one double-spaced page essay, due: Nov. 23 or Dec. 2 (in class).
#The class cannot visit this exhibition as a group because the Whitney Museum opens after 1:00PM on Friday. Admission is free with your LaGCC ID.

2) The 9/11 Memorial Park
250 words: one double-spaced page essay, due: Dec. 2 (in class).
#The class WILL visit this memorial on Wednesday, Nov. 23 as a group (CUNY Friday Schedule). I reserved a group ticket.

Final Project:
Artist Interview. Essay and oral presentation. Details TBA.
250 words: one double-spaced page essay with photos and 2-3 min presentation, due: Dec. 9 (in class).

Extra Credit: TBA.

A Few Notes:
1: This class writes much better on paper than on blog, so I decided to assign more essays in a traditional manner, which can become part of your ePortfolio.

2: There was an in-class survey during the Nov. 11th class regarding the rest of the course contents.

3: The midterm and art projects:
I returned the midterm essays so that you can post revisions on your ePortfolio at a later time. The midterm average is high and I recommend you complete the egg "contemporary" and still life "new york city" art projects, along with MET drawings and explanations on blog, if you have not already. There were students who did not check emails in the beginning of the semester and did not know about the art projects, so I am taking late studio assignments this time. I am providing basic painting materials if your budget is extremely tight, so please email me or schedule an appointment with me for this.

WEEK 7

ePortfolio workshop will be rescheduled at a later time. Midterm grades entered in the Grade Center on blackboard. A Blog post with MET drawings and explanations due before next class.

Email me with questions.