New York City: A Laboratory of Modern Life
Tuesday and Thursday 6:30-9:20, Instructor: Gabriel Barcia-Colombo email: gabebc.itp@gmail.com

It is the inherent social nature of people and of creativity that makes New York City so important to the arts. Whether it's high-brow or low-brow, high culture, or street culture, New York City remains an important international center for music, film, theater, dance and visual art. This workshop focuses on creating mixed media art inspired by and created for New York City. Over the course of the session, students study the "cultural economy" of the city, through an in depth examination of current New York based photographers, filmmakers, and installation and performance artists. Students will then create four unique pieces of their own, inspired by these artists and energized by the social nature of the city. These pieces take the form of photography, audio art, documentary video, and site specific public installation. Class time is devoted to lectures, guest speakers, field trips and critique. Basic video and audio editing will be covered in lab sessions.

Resources:
ITP Video Help page
itp-video@forums.nyu.edu

Student Blogs Summer 09

Work:
Students should keep an online blog of their individual work created over the summer semester, as well as observations and questions raised in class. This blog must be updated every week with new and fascinating material! Get your free blogs here: Tumblr (very simple blogging) WordPress (preferred)

Assignments:
Each week, students will create a new art assignment. These assignments include photography, audio podcasts, and narrative/documentary pieces and performance art. Assignments will be critiqued in class on the week they are due.

Grading:
Grading will be determined as follows:
Assignments and maintaining online journal/blog 60%
In class participation 10%
Final Project 30%

Class Guidelines/Policy:
Students are expected to come to every class and engage actively in discussion. If for some reason you have to go to a wedding or bar mitzvah or a tornado hits your apartment please let me know before the missed class.
Pay attention during class. Laptops may be used to take notes but not during student presentations. If the laptop situation gets out of control and discussion is suffering I will institute a laptop ban in class.

Class Readings will be distributed online or during class as print outs. These readings include excerpts from "The Warhol Economy," "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" and "Take the F"

Class 1: June 30th

Class Introduction
Photography and New York City: From Weegee to Arbus and On.
In Class /Out of Class Photography assignment

Assignment #1: Capturing the City
Due Class 2: Meet someone new in the city. Interview them and present us with 10 photos that depict their life and relationship to the city itself. These photos can be taken via cellphone, digital camera, polaroid...get creative.

Class 2: July 2nd

Review Assignment #1: Capturing the City
Sounds of the City: Audio Art in New York City
Janet Cardiff's Audio Tours of Central Park, David Byrne's "Playing the City,"

Assignment #2: Tour De Force
Due Class 4, Audio samples due Class 3
In Groups of two create an audio podcast tour of a specific place in New York City.

Read Ian Frazer "Take the F"

Class 3: July 7th

Audio Editing techniques

Review Audio samples from initial recordings.
Assignment: Continue working on Assignment #2

Export and upload final audio tour to your blog.

Class 4: July 9th

Go on Audio Tours.

Assignment: Read Jane Jacobs' "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" Chapter 2

Class 5: July 14th

Discuss Jane Jacobs

Public Art: Christo, Anish Kapoor, Louise Bourgeoise, Olafur Eliasson
Coney Island's Parachute Jump, Dubuffet's Groupe des Quatre Arbes, James Carpenter's Ice Falls

Assignment: Design and prototype a public art installation. Create a model, video or photo montage which illustrates how this art installation would interract with the public. Due Class 7

Class 6: July 16th

Graffiti Subculture: Wildstyle and the Warriors
Zoo York and the central park zoo tunnel.

Assignment: Continue to work on Public Art Installation. Due Next Class

Read Handout from "The Warhol Economy: How Fashion, Art and Music Drive New York City" by Elizabeth Currid

Class 7: July 21st

Review Public Art Installation

Performance Art in the City: Vito Aconci, Marina Abramovic, Tehcning Hseih, Improv Everywhere, Laurie Anderson

Assignment: Create a performance piece designed to be executed in public. Perform and document your piece to be screened in class on Class 9

Class 8 : July 23rd

The Big City in Popular Culture

Sophisticated New York: Film & the Early Days of Big City Celluloid

Chaos and the Urban Jungle: Taxi Driver, French Connection, Midnight Cowboy

Clean & Friendly: The New York of Seinfeld and Friends

Assignment: Read "Scenes From the City: Filmmaking in New York, 1966-2006" by James Sanders

Class 9 : July 28th

Present Performance Pieces

Guest Speaker: Andy Maskin and his New York Walks

Assignment: Create a short film based on or inspired by New York City. Due: Final Class

Class 10 : July 30th

Field Trip: Tennement Museum

Class 11 :August 4th

Screen Dailies for final film project.

Guest Speaker: TBA

Class 12: August 6th

Screen Final Projects.