There is no end. There is no beginning.
There is only the passion of life.
Federico  Fellini.

This week we went through the technology  and resources that we will be using in this workshop. It was an introduction to different free sharing platforms, such as Wetransfer, Flickr, Picasa and Dropbox. Also we mentioned the different video editing software available and their common interface and concept behind.  This workshop offer participants opportunities  to immerse into these platforms on their own pace.

By getting hands on experience, participants familiarized with Dropbox. The workshop will have an account which will be  our bank of images, footage and references. People will have access all the time and participants can upload material to share with the class. It is our common hard drive. Additionally, we introduced different software, such as Wevideo, Audacity and other mobile apps (Awesome Voice Recorder) that participants are encouraged to use from now on under their own pace and needs. At the end of the class everyone should have also created a free Wevideo account. Below it is our main set up for this collaborative workshop using Wevideo:

 At Dropbox, participants uploaded their photos that exchanged during the past week with their classmates.  We had a chance to review some of them as well as heard some of the text from their weather journal. Spring has definitely arrived to NY.
An example of images exchange and text from Olivia Hsieh and Vicky Wang.

Text by Olivia Hsien

Friday, March 18
Partly Cloudy
57° / 34°

It’s a sunny morning. I went to the Kissena Park with my sister for a regular walk.
My soul is uplifted by the fresh smell in the air. Daffodils are always coming out first. I’m glad to hear chirp, chirp on the branches. Spring is not yet green. I hope it’s at the corner although we are getting one to three inches snow this weekend.
Many joggers are running along the lake. Look those ducks are swimming in the lake. I subconsciously recited a famous poem from Su Shi(蘇軾) who is the scholar from Song Dynasty.

蘇軾
竹外桃花三兩枝
春江水暖鴨先知
蔞蒿滿地蘆芽短
正是河豚欲上時

Since my intuitive photo relates to one of scene from the famous poem.
春江水暖鴨先知
Let me translate it colloquially without using the rhyme.

River flows, the ducks at play, the river to pick up messages, ducks are the first to perceive spring is here.

This week we also talked about intention in art making. Look at key samples of risk taking in art such as, the work of John Cage and his chance operations methods and Spalding Gray and his monologues in front of an audience. This class wants to direct our attention to our intuition and make use of it while we experience the world, whether is talking photos, recording videos or writing. We want to embrace the unknown and connect with our primal creative being.

Finally, we went thought some of the clips that participants need to imitate as part of understanding the image making process and make decisions while in the process.
As a part of the methodology of the class, each week 2-3 participants needs to spend some time documenting a class in a medium they choose. It could be writing, video and photos. This week we are sharing a presentation that Jorge Miranda created during this class. To see it click here.  An example of documenting from inside-out. He is a participant but also an observant. He documented the class with humor and grace and expressed what this intensive 3- hour workshop was about.  Thanks to all who attended and participated.

Collective Storytelling Week 2