McCloud, take two
Now that we have our fingernails a little dirty with some historical and theoretical digging in McCloud's text, let's continue broadening this definition of "sequential art" proferred in Chapter One and the ideas of "closure" explained in Chapter Three. In particular, McCloud argues that comics demand a heightened interaction between Author and Reader in the creation of meaning. As we've already discussed in class, this interaction isn't exclusive to comics; it's merely more obvious in the graphical format of panels, gutters and sequences of images. We can often point to other texts---ones we might be more willing to call "literature"---that demand more from us as readers.
In your response this week, describe a text or work of art that has in some shape or form demanded your heightened participation as the reader or viewer of that text or work. In other words, choose something that you didn't just read, but that you actively helped create meaning. Pretty much anything is fair game here.
In your response this week, describe a text or work of art that has in some shape or form demanded your heightened participation as the reader or viewer of that text or work. In other words, choose something that you didn't just read, but that you actively helped create meaning. Pretty much anything is fair game here.
posted by Trevor Dodge @ 5:22 PM
6 Comments:
At 8:17 PM,
Anonymous said…
Hello. Ashley here.
Went to see Daniel Duford's show at the Marylhurst Art Gym. If you have not had the opportunity to see it yet, it is certainly worth a viewing. In the first room there are two golums made of clay. The larger room contains charcoal drawings on the walls of the "Sleeping Giant." The character he thought of drawing as a child. In the middle of the room are 20 house like structures with each plane depicting a scene, using colors reminiscent of comic books of yester-year. The installation, while temporary because they are drawn on the walls, demand much attention from the viewer. It would be easy to say that it is all about the comic book however, there are new concerns that come into focus because of the space, the magnitude of the drawings and the other aspects of the installation. Most comics are of a more permanent nature, in books or framed for viewing. Eventually, when the show is over, the "Sleeping Giant" will be covered up. While still there, in the room in spirit, he won't be visible to the viewers that attend future Marylhurst Art Gym shows. Another unexpected surprise from the show were the houses placed strategically on the floor. If you turn the house, you could change the narration. I enjoyed that concept most. The larger than life drawings and the houses, plus the golums made of clay and the little wrestling men made this show a definite must see.
At 5:46 PM,
Anonymous said…
Ashley here.
New book in the library which has definitely hightened my desire to learn more about Graphic Novels. It's called GRAPHIC NOVELS Sotries to change your life by Paul Gravett. ISBN: 978-0-06-082425-9. Some comics it mentions are Sand, which I was surprised that noone brought into the class.
There are so many people creating comics and graphic novels, it's hard to keep everyone straight. Not that anyone has to... right?
At 10:38 PM,
Anonymous said…
Never made it to Daniel Duford's show, but I’ve recently been reading Marshal McLuhan’s “The Media is the Message,” first published in 1967. The book requires reader participation because of the vague quality of the language (along with the subject matter). Phrases like “All media are extensions of some human faculty—psychic or physical” force the reader to make connections between the idea and specific (current) media. McLuhan’s work is effective because of this—the lack of specifics creates a timeless quality, and the ideas are relevant in any media-soaked decade. In connecting this to “Understanding Comics,” McLuhan’s work has a similar effect as an abstracted drawing—the ideas are there, but the specific objects the ideas attached to aren’t entirely given or rendered. The idea becomes more universal. as each reader makes his/her own specific and individual connections.
-Mia Nolting
At 1:26 AM,
Anonymous said…
stephanie wilson....
my friend mike recently had an exhibition entitled, 'las chicas de burque'. it included photographs and drawings representing new mexican cholos and cholas he grew up with in high school.
his work feels like home to me. i don't look at it as exploitation, but rather as familiarity. the photos are of friends, then tattoos drawn on with sharpie (big surprise, given who it's coming from).
i feel that his imagery demands attention and respect. it exhumes pride, much like the cholas i grew and learned from. mostly, the show just makes me miss home (albuquerque).
"I've always seen them as if they demanded respect, and it was a respect they earned outside of mainstream culture," he said. "When I think of beautiful strong women, I think of those cholas I saw in high school." -mike lesage, in an interview with the albuquerque journal tribune
his work brings to light a culture often unfamiliar to many, and like second nature to some.
At 8:53 AM,
Anonymous said…
Something that comes to mind when thinking of viewer participation when viewing visual work is gallery 1988's annual I AM 8-BIT exhibition.
http://www.iam8bit.net/ this exhibition shows work that is inspired by pre-90's video games featured on Atari and Nintendo game systems. It was interesting to see how these artists handled and reworked these familiar characters. I think that in order for the work to be truly successful the artists must assume that the viewer is familiar with these legendary 8-bit characters. I think the work is just enjoyed and understood more by a viewer who grew up with Burger Time and Super Mario Bros. They are intrigued by what changes have taken place and what context these familiar characters are now placed in.
At 10:16 PM,
Anonymous said…
Hey Elliot Here,
This might sound really rediculous but I think Mad Libs fall into this catagory. In fact you have to perticipate to complete the story. I know Mad Libs are "kids stuff" but so are comics! HA! How about Choose your own adventure books. You know, the ones where you read and have to make a decision at a critical point in the book. Your decision Forms the story and eventually the ending. I wonder what happened to those...
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