For my first unit writing, I chose to write about a YouTube video. This cultural artifact, is an art tutorial, specifically for watercolor painting. Uploaded on a tremendously well-known video sharing website, I analyzed the artifact as the content that was shared, edited process and the art medium used, alike. I chose this topic, as it was a hobby I picked up the past year, and because the content creator is someone who posts videos I enjoy following. More so, I find the videos are edited well, providing a calm and peaceful setting, upon viewing them. The visual and audio aspects support this. I mentioned the panning of one scene to the next, as well as the lack of voice over, in favor of Soundcloud user-created music inserted as the background music.

Relating to the description of the artifact I chose, I would say a theme associated is serenity. In relation to the calm vibe set by the editing process and video planning, the content lacked any chaotic presence. It appeared to be very laid-back, from the audience’s point-of-view, given the background noise of the film. The music used didn’t apply to a muted recording, but was rather overlayed instead. If there was any noises from, say, outside vehicles or animals, it was cut out of the final product. One of the tropes I identified is the usage of specific colors, all of which were shades of a single color, ranging from the lightest shade, blending into white, to the darkest, as similar to black. The color combination of this particular pigment, combined with the chosen hue itself, contributed to the simplistic, serene vibe of the painting process. This video serves as a metaphor for the editing and painting process; the word the artist uses is, “simple,” although getting to that stage of creating content and reaching a certain artistic level was a process itself, and not instantaneous. With prior experience with this art medium, I know that it is not a talent, but more of a skill when learning to manipulate certain paints and color coordinating different shades of hues. The adaptation to a new tool is not always simple.