Artist: Eckhaus Latta

Film, 2012-2014

These were videos that all ran from 2-3 min long, and each one highlighted different topics. One that stood out to me capture the beauty of the human body by focusing in on a Chinese exercise routine that was brought over to the US by Chinese (women) factory workers. The unique thing about the video was that all of the woman were in their old age, over 85 if I had to guess, but they were still able to preform all of the steps. These step were burned into their brains from continually doing them on a daily basis, and still with them after they left China. What was most fascinating was that these maneuvers were keeping their bodies youthful, since they were a focus on the body’s blood flow. The thing that kept me want more of the video was the camera person, they honed in on sensual aspect to encapsulate this alluring practice.

 

Artist: John Hatleberg

Baldacchino gem cutting table and gem wunderkammer, 1999-2014

John Hatleberg put together small gems and various other little items to create this tchotchke style experience. The thing that really captured my attention was the table that was used, it kind of resembled a cathedral. What made it unique were these four wooden arms that protruded from each corner of the about three feet high, and bent inward to met one and other in the middle. The entire table was hand carved and crafted, with beautiful paint layout of gold, greens, and blues with floral patterns. The scattered objects on the table were of various things from polaroids, gems, fake birds, and toys cars. It was interesting to see the contrast of the different time periods; one being the table which looked as if it was European design from the late 1800’s, and the other being the objects the were laid out that looked like they were from the 1980’s to present.

 

Artist: Chen Chen & Kai Williams

Moonmilk, 2013

This was a pretty simple object that had tremendous character and was made way more interesting due to the artist touch. What could have been a simple ceramic vase or planter, turned into this multilayered jumble of oozed colors. The method that was taken to create this piece was by layering their excess material from other projects to form the vase. The piece was dynamic, because of all of the layers it seemed to the eye as if it was melting away.

 

Joseph Cavalieri

Silk screen, Jackie O in White, 2014

I saw this piece from a distance and didn’t really think anything of it, but that changed when I got closer. Even when I got close, it didn’t compute to me who was in this portrait, but something about it was luring and my subconscious knew who it was. I stood in front of it for a couple of seconds and then it hit me… this was a portrait of the 35^th presidents wife. She was in a very industrial looking frame made of steel, and there was a light directly behind the surface that emanated through the images. There was a collection of pictures, but one main picture highlighting how fashionable she was. The sounding pictures were different outfits that she wore. What made it most impressive was that all of the images were on stained glass.

 

Robin Reid, Surya Mattu, Phil Groman, and Frederico Zannier

Power Clip prototype 2.0, 2014

I think this was the most interesting and inspirational piece that I saw when attending the MAD. This was a simple design that could/is changing how we charge our electronic devices. At first I was a little confused to what it was, I didn’t realize that there was an exhibit booklet, but with a close observation I figured out what it was. There was this plastic boomerang that was connected to a car battery; silly? Yes. I stood in front of it for at least 5 minutes before seeing that it had a USB connection, then it hit me. You could use this device that connects to your car battery to charge all of your electronic, helpful and simple at the same time. It was very tempting to try it out and see if it worked, but I would surely get kicked out of the museum. I also thought about the voltage that a car battery has and thought that it would blow your device up, but I was sure that it had a power converter; it did. Things like this bring joy to my heart, because it’s a symbol of taking a radical idea and making it into a working practical one.

 

After going to The MAD I was able to pull a lot from the experience. One thing is for certain is that you should always stick to your gut and make something that you believe in, because if you believe in it then others will too. You always have to look around you and see what is really going on, and then put your own creative twist to what you’ve gathered; make it your own. Sometimes you have to dig deep to really feel what is going on around you, but sometimes its right in front of you in plain sight. If you have a crazy idea, or what the average person would call crazy, then you should make it, sensationalism is what moves people. Visiting the exhibit came at the right time, especially with our “accessing water” projects. It allowed me to think a little bit outside of the box to address the worldly issue that we will have in the near future, so something like converting urine into drinkable water doesn’t seem odd at all.