If Artists Ran the Media

If Artists Ran the Media is a mixed media art show that is currently being exhibited at the C33 Gallery in the 33 East Congress Building on the Columbia College campus. Through a combination of various artistic mediums such as painting, illustration, photography, and video the show seeks to present an artistic answer to many of the recurring troubles that exist in our mainstream media outlets. If Artists Ran the Media hopes that its display depicts how the media could be presented in a more truthful and authentic manner, free from the skewed perspectives of both the liberal and conservative press.

As a depiction of an artistic response to the voice of mainstream media the C33 Gallery show is small yet effective. The show contains a nice selection of pieces which, while some gave me little insight into their alleged message, I found all of the pieces to be at least somewhat appealing to look at. The show provided different pieces of work which tackled a wide variety of different social, political, environmental, and financial issues. The technical skill of the artists was vividly apparent in each distinct piece of art yet some left me feeling cold and unsure regarding the meaning behind the artist's use of images and symbols. For instance, there was one piece of work that basically displayed a bizarre sort of game board. The piece of work depicted this game board as being a sort of representation of the Iraq War. I was unsure at this point about what the artist was trying to say with this piece. Was the work trying to speak about that the horror of Iraq should be played like a game? That the people running the Iraq War don't take it seriously enough? To me it remains a mystery.

More puzzling still was that although the basic purpose of the art show was supposed to be an advocate for a more well rounded approach for the mainstream media I still detected a slant towards the left which was impossible for me to shake off during my initial viewing. One piece in particular was a simple photograph of a police officer towering over a group of people, one of which looked like he had been cracked in the nose and was bleeding quite profusely. What in the world was this photograph trying to communicate? How is this an advocate for truth? Especially considering the context of where this piece of art is displayed. Of course at an art college there would be a picture of an evil symbol of authority standing ominously over a group of bloody, defenseless, and terrified individuals. I wonder what the purpose of the picture could have been, besides seeking to demonize the police.

Like most art exhibits some pieces were simply more effective than others. There were some pieces of work that filled me with a deep sense of wonder which in turn led me to a profound ideas about how the media sometimes seeks to craft the facts in a manner which will serve their interests and not the interests of the truth. Although some pieces were more successful than others the show as a whole got me to think about how the truth is often in the eye of the beholder and is influenced dramatically from where its coming from and who is receiving it. This show will run in the C33 Gallery until February 20th, 2009.

Adam Mohrbacher

01/30/2009

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down: Initial Assignment

Thumbs Up

Gran Torino

Directed by Clint Eastwood

Gran Torino is a new film by director and star Clint Eastwood which seeks to examine an age old theme. Eastwood, who is pushing 80 but still remains a intimidating and powerful screen presence, plays Walt Kowalski, a retired Ford auto worker and Korean War veteren who lives in a now primarily Hmong neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. The film focuses on the issue of wither or not Walt will put aside his racial prejudices when he is forced to help educate and protect his young Hmong neighbors.

Thumbs Down

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Directed by David Fincher

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button features a backwards ticking clock as a symbolic image of the main character's predicament and hits you over the head with the theme of time rushing on with individuals being powerless to stop it. However, during my viewing of the film I was also way to preoccupied with the issue of time than I should have been. I found myself perodically looking down at my watch and wondering just how long Fincher was going to draw this one out. This was especially annoying because the story that was transpiring on screen did not just justify its nearly three hour running time. Fincher has often been critized for being a tad cold and emotionally uninvolving, and sacrificing the heart of the film for technical wizardry. I have been an avid fan of this director for some time now and have passionately enjoyed all of his previous films, except for Alien III which was an absolute stinkbomb. With Button Fincher proves his critics right and he gives the audiences a film that features a lot to admire, (beautiful cinematography, costumes, make-up, and CGI effects), but not a great deal to love or invest yourself in. The film also gives us a strangely blank performance from Brad Pitt in a role that could of had the potential to define his career. What a waste.