10 POST: Spaces and Exchanges

SPACES AND EXCHANGES

This notion deals with the act of giving or receiving something in substitution for something else. These exchanges can take several forms: economic, cultural, movement of people ( immigration, student exchanges...) So here we will consider the whole world as a "space" a world which there are global cities which plays the role of communication hub. Nowadays a lot of people go to supermarkets, local shops, online shopping... to buy some things and make some comercial exchanges. 

In order to present this notion I will use as a third document an article by Neil Brooman called My New Life. It appears in September 2007 on BBC news website. It explains us the he suffered from condition know as obsessive branding disorder. 

Over time the exchanges increase creating a global trade. On the article of My New Life Neil Brooman shows a negative aspect of exchanges with the is personal living. He suffer from an brand addiction. He always wanted to go shopping in high street stores or in shopping malls. 

To sum up, Neil Brooman makes us think, through his own story, that if we abuse from exchanging it could have an negative repercussion. But on the other hand, the experience of Neil Brooman can help us to be careful with the abuse of commercial exchanges, because when we buy something we don't think about where did the clothes or food come from or who makes them. 

Globalisation is a huge inequality between countries. 

9 POST: OUTSOURCING / OFFSHORING

OUTSOURCING / OFFSHORING 

Cartoon 1.

On this first cartoon we can see Mitt Romney in a little island representing the Cayman Islands. And we can agree the fact that these Islands are one of the most important tax heaven on the world. In the background of the cartoon we can see mountains that represent Switzerland and in front of these mountains there is an other island called Bermuda. We can agree that these three lands all are important tax heaven.  Then in the left corner of the picture we can see a boat arriving to the Cayman Island where Romney is standing. On the boat there is two passengers and there is also a quote write on the boat that says "Believin' In America" and that is a political slogan of Mitt Romney campaign. He talks to the passengers of the boat who are their voters, then we can see that he explain them the difference between Offshore and Outsource and how it can be useful for having more money because you avoid the taxes or you don't have to pay extras and insurance to the workers.  Between the boat and Romney we can see a chest of money and he is doing a hole in order to bury the chest because because you don't have to pay taxes for your money on the Cayman Islands because they are a tax heaven. We could say that this cartoon is a criticism of Mitt Romney because he uses take heaven in order to become more rich and he is doing campaign in order to become the president of the United States of America. 

Cartoon 2. 

On this second cartoon we can see two characters talking to each other about Offshoring. The man on the left with a blue shirt and a red tie explains to the other what happened when he use to offshore his company. He explains that he had created thousands of jobs but even with that the workers are not satisfied, then the second man at the right with a green shirt asks him what the workers want if they are not satisfied then the left men answers getting paid and the right man says unbelievable. It's a criticism of the American business mans that don't care of the situation of his workers in is companies that are situated abroad where the wages are very low compared with Europe. This technique is called offshoring and it is used by a lot of big companies as Nike in China for instance where there are cases of child labor with is illegal in the rich countries but in the poorest countries it's allowed and still used. 

Conclusion.

To put it in a nutshell, I would say that these two documents can be linked with the notion of " Spaces and exchanges" because the offshoring is the relation with the exploitation of the south by the north or in a other way is the relation between the first world and the third one. And how the developed countries who counted with big multinational companies, that they use the offshoring to pay lower wages and insurances to their workers, workers that haven't the same rights that the european workers and the companies takes advantages of that situation.  

8 POST: INDIVIDUAL DOCUMENT ON THE POWER OF LIFE

THE POWER OF RELATIONSHIPS 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7_50Ekx5d0

To begin with I would say that every relationships that people develop from the most casual to the most intimate serves to become more aware of everything. 

Some relationships may be painful because they help us to learn more about ourselves and our limitations. Every painful relationships helps you to understand that every choice you make helps with what you create in your life. 

It is true that there is painful relationships, but there is also good relationships. 

For instance I have chosen a serie wich I think it is a perfect representation of the power of relationships. 

This serie is called "Red Band Society", created by Margaret Nagel in 2014. This serie is an adaptation of the french serie " Les bracelets rouges". This is about the friendship of six adolescents that live in a hospital. When Jordi arrives to the hospital, because he as cancer. They put i'm in Leo's bedroom they have to shear it. After that they met Emma an anorexic girl, Dash that suffer of cystic fibrosis, Kara that needs a new heart and of cours Charlie, he is in coma he doesn't see anything but he hear everything. Then they create a group of friends "the red band". 

This represent the power of relationships because they all are here to support and help one an other even when they are sad or stress for an operation they support and reassure each other. 

Furthermore, when Jordi arrives to the hospital they need to cut his leg off because of his cancer. He his really scared but his room mate Leo that become his best friend, help's him to get over the stress because he has already suffer from that operation. 

This is why I would say that the power of relationship is very important because it helps you to discover yourself and to overcome you're fears. 

We can link the power of death and the power of friendship, because for example in the video clip of Snoop Lion, we cans see the testimonie of people that face the death around them hang on to life thanks to there relations that help and support in difficult moments. They are all hugging there family or even there friends, it shows how relationships are important in our lives because we all need someone to take us in arms. 

7 POST: THE US GUN CULTURE

THE US GUN CULTURE.

A brady campaign to prevent gun violence (2010)

- To begin with,  I would say that, this poster is part of the Brady campaign to prevent gun violence. It was online in 2010. This picture represents a gun with the US flag called the Stars and Stripes which are actually illustrated on the gun itself. We can see  various figures that represent how many people have been murdered by guns in one year. the figures for all the countries are under 200 except for the USA where there were 9484 gun murders.  In the bottom left corner we can see the logo of the brady campaign, that can enfesise the fact that this picture is part of the Brady campaign. We can also see the sentence "GOD BLESS AMERICA", we can agree the fact that is written in capital letters because is a criticism of a patriotic message that is in opposition with the people that have been murdered by gun in the US. 

Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence : 

 The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence are affiliated American nonprofit organizations that advocate for gun control and against gun violence. Together, they are commonly referred to as the Brady Campaign. They are named after James "Jim" Brady, who was permanently disabled as a result of the Ronald Reagan assassination attempt of 1981, and Sarah Brady, who was a leader within the organization from 1989 until 2012. 

2010 Graphs

-  This is a graphs, publish in 2010. The charts show a comparaison between the top 10 countries on people murder by guns and the developed countries rate by 100.000 people. The aim of these charts is to emphasize the fact that even though the US is on the 26th position in the top ten of the world while in the chart of the right we can see that is on the top of the list. They should reconsider laws that allowed people to wear guns. In my opinion gun murders are in relation with the education system. When we see the graphics, in the developed countries, the US might be seemed as cow-boys shooting around but if we pay close attention in the top 10 countries, we can say that they are not as bad as some other countries. If they carry on as they are now, they will soon reach the top 10.  As a general rule, here in Spain guns are not allowed and moreover there is a civic mentality that stops us from using guns. And thus is shown in the charts with the absence of Spain in them.   

Human Development Index : 

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite statistic (composite index) of life expectancy, education, and per capita incomeindicators, which are used to rank countries into four tiers of human development. A country scores higher HDI when the lifespan is higher, the education level is higher, and the GDP per capita is higher. The HDI was developed by Pakistani economist, Mahbub ul Haq, for the UNDP.

Steve Sack gun lobby and congress 2010 and Dave Grandlund second amendment and NRA 2013

- These two cartoons have been illustrated by two different authors Steve Sack and Dave Grandlund. 

To begin with the first cartoon is created by Steve Sack in 2010. In the background of the cartoon we can see the Capitol in Washington with blood all over the stairs, the blood can represent the violence and gun murderer in the US. In the bottom left corner we can see two mans speaking to each other. The man at the left is a gun lobby and the man at the right represents the congress. So we can imagine that this cartoon is a criticism of corruption between gun lobby and the congress. The lobby man is holding a bag full of money it seems that lobby are powerful and rich. He is offering his bag full of money to the congress man in exchange of a political advantages. 

Secondly the second cartoon is created by Dave Grandlund in 2013. This cartoon is represented in two different ways. In the right there is soldier with a lot of guns and in the left side there is a soldier from the 18th century, both of them are standing like statues. 

In the right we can see how the second amendment works today. As I say the second amendment know a days permits the use of guns for there own security but the people uses it not just for security. 

But the left side represent the second amendment from the founding fathers in the 19th Century that allow gun for security but the people don't uses for other things just security. 

The both represent the Second amendment that allows guns in the US. 

The Second Admendment: 

The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitutionprotects the right of the people to keep and bear arms and was adopted on December 15, 1791, as part of the first ten amendments contained in the Bill of Rights. The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that the right belongs to individuals, while also ruling that the right is not unlimited and does not prohibit all regulation of either firearms or similar devices. State and localgovernments are limited to the same extent as the federal government from infringing this right per the incorporation of the Bill of Rights.

Founding Fathers Of The Of The United States: 

The Founding Fathers of the United States were those of the Thirteen Colonies in North America who led the American Revolution against the Kingdom of Great Britain and contributed to the establishment of the United States of America.

National Rifle Association:

The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for gun rights.

6 POST: TIM BURTON a biography

Tim Burton

Fill in the gaps in this biography of Tim Burton

Tim Burton was born in 1958, in the city of Burbank, California.

He remains without question one of the most original film directors working in Hollywood today.

Indeed, his talent and originality have kept him at the top of the profession where he occupies a very special place, somewhere in the mainstream and the avant-garde, in that region of cinema occupied by artists where worldview is an unconventional that it attains popular appeal.

In 1989, Tim Burton directed the hugely successful Batman which, although his first personal film, was one of the most seen movies of all time and gave him unprecedented fame in Hollywood, considering the originality and adventurousness of his next films (for example Beetlejuice in 1988).

Edward Scissorhands (1990), another hit, saw him at the peak of his artistic powers and established a fruitful working period with the actor Johnny Depp who played in his 2005 film _____________of Roald Dahl’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and who became one of his most esteemed friend since their first film together.

In 1992, Batman Returns was a such more a darker film than the original, a reflection of how much the freedom Tim Burton had won ( as Warner Bros were reputedly unhappy with the final result).

And even for Ed Wood (1994), his loving tribute to the life and work of the legendary ‘Worst Director of All Time’ Edward D. Wood, Jr., was a box-office disaster, it got some of the best critics of Burton’s career.

In fact, Tim Burton is known  both for his dark, quirky-themed mood like Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, or Dark Shadows (2012) and for Blockbuster such as Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Batman, Planet of the Apes, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Alice in Wonderland (2010), one of his most  criticised films, which became the fifth highest-grossing film of all List of highest grossing films.

Burton has directed 18 feature films as of 2014, and has got 12 as of 2012  (among which the very nice stop-motion tale called The  Nightmare Before Christmas in 1993).

All in all, Tim Burton’s films consistently challenge the spectator’s expectations, push forward the techniques of filmmaking and bring to life previously unthinkable characters  (like Edward Scissorhands).

Taken as a whole, his work is based on the confrontation between the fantastic and the realistique, and the consequences of these two worlds intermingling.

Big Fish, Burton’s 2003 effort, is no different. And even if, somehow, it is not really the best.

On the surface, it would appear to have all the characteristics of a classic Burton film: a magic screenplay, fairy-tale characters, flights of imagination, forces of nature ( as well as the supernatural), far-fetched situations and vastly imaginative visual style and imagery. The movie is, in fact, is packed with fanciful episodes that it begins to feel as a loose adaptation of The Odyssey, told from the mouth of an aging character named Ed Bloom, a story-writer  and dreamer who sees the world with beautiful eyes.

5 POST: An art exhibition review

The exhibition name is "Pop Art Myths", it was exhibited at the very famous Thyssen museum in Madrid. If you want to look up for the museum check-out the link: https://www.museothyssen.org/. Then if you want to see it for real this is the venue address: Paseo del Prado 8, 28014 Madrid. The exhibition took place from June 10  to September 14, 2014.

This exhibition, had a lot of different Pop art artists such as Richard Hamilton or Eduardo Paolozzi. The show was exposed for 4 months, but if you’ve missed it you can take a look to the Museo Thyssen's web and do a virtual visit. In this creative process the curator was involved, because he wanted to approche the Pop Art Myths so he recollected some paints in order to show and represent this interesting topic. Then we can say that this was a group show because there where a lot of different paintings from different artists. People from all age used to come to this exhibition, the venue was in a very well known museum. On this show was  showing different concepts of the Pop Art Myths with different categories for instance, collages advertising comics, emblems, myths, portraits, landscapes interiors still lives, urban eroticism...  

The exhibition has a great effect on the viewer, because it permits to discover old panting in a modern way. The younger generations are going to love seeing this modern style and I'm sure they will interest them self into this kind of art because they will be very interested to learn more about it. I thought myself that this exposition was really modern an interesting to see, I would had loved to see it in real because is not the same seeing it in real than with a virtual visit. This exhibition is very interesting I think it helps you to like more painting and it push you to go more to museums. Also it helps you to improve you’re culture knowledge in a funny and artistic way.

The works that I value the most are the historical paintings, because it's a different way to learn more about history, especially when you look at this paintings you want to learn more about it than if you look in a book without pictures. I think that there is nothing missing really but maybe more painting would be great painting from unknown artist to help them to improve their career.

Pop art was a revolutionary movement that broke from the elitism of the avant-garde that came before and knew how to bring art into the spirit of the times. This time was when all the cities were filled with images. On this time Hollywood was a myth-making machine, with all this stars that add been discovered like Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor... These actors quickly became idoles for the general public, many of them are represented on the work of Pop artists.

A lot of British artists where able to combine the media power of the great American idols with there own popular culture, they also created their own myths.  

For instance, Mimmo Rotella had transfigured Elizabeth Taylor in her role as the queen of the Nile, in a majestic décollage of the poster for the film Cleopatra. This décollage was design in 1963.

With this gorgeous poster we can see Elizabeth Taylor represented like the queen of the Nile. This criticizes the society of consumption. 

Therefore I think that this poster, is really pretty, the effect of décollage is really interesting and raise awareness on it. This décollage is an interesting way to criticize the society of consumption. I've choose this picture because I recognized Elizabeth Taylor and directly asked me why they have done that? So I search the reason why and it was really interesting.

  




























Mimmo Rotella, Cleopatra, 1963. Décollage sobre lienzo 134x137cm.
representation of Elizabeth Taylor as the Queen of the Nile. 
Valli art gallery Italy