Impressive Workload

Summary of week 3

I have started the week with making out what storytelling is to me. After this I have learned even more about storytelling, while having some practice and listen to others about their thoughts around storytelling, when I watched the ds106 Show. I wondered about how deep storytellers are going into their work when they become their hero of the story, which actually scares me a bit. I think I don't like loosing myself in stories, which is part of the story of my life. I have started having my main occupation within in the area of technology and natural science but shifted to become an artist while starting to study the liberal arts. What contrast! I wondered about the attitude of artists a lot and did not get along with them very well. Now it is often the other way around, especially when meeting engineers, who are often dull and arrogant in their rational attitude. Yet, I still do not dare becoming one of those who are vanishing a kind of in their creative activities. Which leads me to another point of this week's ds106 class.

What was really difficult for me this week is creating on demand. I am more used to take my time when creating art and design. Yet I wanted to keep up with the regular students of ds106 and decided to do what they are obliged to do. In the end I did some good artwork but feel as if I am a kind of factory worker.

There were 3 dailycreates I have chosen:

First I made a blue screen with a death message on it. After reviewing the work of other students, which was funny and scary, I was not so sure any more if I really have understood the task. Maybe death is different to me and has to do with silence and even birth, which is why I thought it funny of me using a star in my message like for birth dates, but not a  cross like for death dates.
BlueScreenDailycreate

I also made a drawing about an invention, which is an umbrella for three people. I realized that this may mean protection to me but was not so happy with the fact that the umbrella is carried by a man who reminds me of the dream papa of infants. I even pictured a whole dream family, father-mother-child. This will give me some thoughts.

 

Next I wrote about my biggest fear. I did not really know which this is, but chose to have a big audience is frightening for me, especially concerning the feeling envy.

 

Envy

My biggest fear is having a considerable audience.
The story to overcome this may be a further invention like a coat which protects me from realising people's feelings too much and the same coat would protect me from realising my own feelings too much. This coat has an extra thick layer of material which keeps away envy from the people outside and from realising my own envy from the inside. The coat is able to communicate with me and tells me when he encloses me firmer for protection and when he opens up for communication and relationship if the situation is appropriate. So the coat is my friend I would call him or her Eagle for she would realize the danger of I becoming hurt with her beautiful blue and sharply outlined eyes very early and she would dive to rescue me from what ever is able of making me vanish in a cloud of unfortunate communication considering my creations.

 

I was very fond of the part of the task who asked students to invent a story to overcome their fear. What I wondered about is, that the fear of some is so deep that they not can think out a story to overcome it. Often they know their fear is a story by calling it irrational, yet, they can not go into the story world and try to get rid of their fear.

 

One could think this may be enough for one week, but no, there were many more tasks to do.

 

Having watched a video Kurt Vonnegut and the Shape of Stories, I analysed a little story for children.

I found this interesting but was not declined to do too much work on this. I was deeply impressed when I saw other students did different. I am not sure if I should embed links to the work I mean here. They may feel observed and pushed into public.

 

However, for the following example I had to refer to some links, for it was part of the task. I took artwork of ds106 students from the past and reflected what this stories mean to me and my approach to storytelling. Appreciating Past DS106 Stories

 

There was also a weekly creation to do: Telling Stories with Photos

I chose a series of photographs I did to find out about iso and white balance. I realized when setting them in a row that it seems as if one awakes and tries to find out where she is and what is on. First a hardly noticeable shadowy appearance of something, then a spot out of the window which becomes clearer and colored.

 

I know that regular students of Alan Levine were urged to commend on other students work and really, I was happy to be able to skip this. I love looking at the artwork of fellow students, but I have had so bad experience concerning comments. Either they make me feel misunderstood or the others feel misunderstood in what they've tried to convey with their artwork when I comment. In my past sometimes they even insult me personally and tried to reduce me by saying it is not worth  of taking my creation seriously. Thus "Once bitten, twice shy."

 

My overall view of this week is that it is fun participating in ds106. Yet it also is time consuming and I feel as if do not want to become too much devoted on keeping up with what is demanded. The greater target of ds106 is teaching about storytelling, but he creations themselves may not lead to a greater production like a series of something or a more extensive piece of video or animation, which would be nice for me.