1. Media Aesthetics Contextualism in Applied Media Aesthetics

2. Formal Elements Light Color Motion Sound

3. You make aesthetic choices everyday that you don’t even realize.

4. What you wear to school Some things include: Judging the speed of another car by yours Simply saying “I know what I like”

5. No longer limit aesthetics to traditional understanding of “art” It is a formalist analysis

6. Formalist analysis = understanding what the context is within the art

7. Say what?.... No… it’s not an abstract concept. You will use a process to examine a number of media elements and gain your perception of their use

8. Looking at things like light and picture composition… How they interact and our own perceptual reactions to them. First.

9. Second. The media (mainly TV and film) are no longer considered a neutral means of messaging

10. Third. Whereas traditional aesthetics is basically restricted to analysis of existing works of art…

11. Applied media aesthetics serves synthesis as well

12. Fourth. You employ formative evaluation You evaluate the relative communication effectiveness step-by-step while it is in progress

13. Applied Aesthetics Art is part of everyday life; yet is separate from everyday life

14. It is an experience that is… Clarified Intensified Interpreted

15. Looking through the viewfinder of a camera, arranging things on a screen or editing a film all engage you in clarifying, intensifying and interpreting

16. Helpful concept… We focus more on the Form of the message more than its content

17. Contextual Aesthetics What and how we perceive an event is greatly influenced by its context.

18. Contextual Aesthetics Also… demonstrates connection of major aesthetic fields Light, space, time/motion and sound.

19. Contextual Aesthetics Organizes variety of aesthetic element in each field to show relationship with one another

20. Contextual Perception We understand art on a basis of contextualistic aesthetics and our own understanding

21. Contextual Perception includes Our need to stabilize the environment Our tendency towards selective perception The associative process of linking certain elements together in a pattern…. Known as CULTURE

22. Culture is based on SYMBOLS Things that represent something else

23. Aesthetic context The framework in which we have responses to the aesthetic stimuli presented to us

24. The framework includes our own previous experience of the world

25. This is called associative context; our own code we establish that to some extent dictates how you should interpret what you see

26. Associative context is Culture-bound

27. Context is important… We respond to certain stimuli in predictable ways even when we know it’s perceptual manipulation

28. Good example of this Optical Illusions

32. Because humans respond certain, predictable ways…

33. We can predict with reasonable accuracy how people will respond to certain specific aesthetic stimuli in our own art

34. As a creative artist You decide where to place the camera or microphone…

35. Therefore the viewers have no choice but to share your point of view

37. Method: Inductive Rather than analyzing existing elements, we seek the 5 fundamental image elements of TV and film

38. LIGHT

39. Light Visible radiant energy that effects the way the scene is presented by how the viewer sees the light

40. Light Manipulates and articulates the perception of our environment Creates specific feeling

41. Light Reveals surfaces Creates shadows which help to control perception

42. Light Various formats to consider –Cast or attached shadows –The Falloff –Low key light –High key light –Below eye level light

43. Attached shadow Can suggest: Relative location or mood

44. Cast shadow Can suggest: Locale and Mood

45. Falloff Used to determine –The brightness contrast between the light and shadow sides of an object –The rate of change from light to shadow

46. Slow- diffused light, little brightness contrast between the two sides and the attached shadows are transparent Falloff rate of change

47. Fast- big contrast between the light and dark sides without levels in between. Typically has dark, attached shadows

48. Falloff Fast or slow fall off? Think about: the shadows and contrast!!

49. Low-key Lighting Leaves background and part of the scene predominantly dark

50. High Key Lighting Scene has abundance of bright lighting, slow fall-off and a light background

51. Below Eye-Level When the light source strikes from the bottom, the shadows are opposite of their expected position

52. Light Use of light can entail setting the mood, creating emotion or suspense, setting the season or time of day, or distinguishing an atmosphere

53. Structuring the light Example of structures: –Chiaroscuro –Rembrandt –Cameo –Silhouette –Digital

54. Chiaroscuro Single direction for light source Selective lighting Low key Fast fall off

55. Chiaroscuro

56. Rembrandt Selective Low key Fast falloff Dark but not black environment

57. Rembrandt

58. Cameo Directional lights Fast falloff Figure lit but background is black

59. Cameo

60. Silhouette Evenly lit background No shadows but the figures within the image No illumination on figures Seems as though they are “cut outs”

61. Silhouette

62. Digital Edge glows Created by digital means such as special-effects equipment or computer programs Can also be the use of programs to enhance present elements such as contrast or shadows

63. Digital

64. Lighting is the deliberate control of light and shadows to fulfill specific aesthetic objectives relating to outer and inner orientation within the medium

65. Get out a piece of paper… Study the next image, use your notes to describe the use of lighting. Consider things such as the falloff, low or high key use, the structure and shadows. Discuss how the director used the aesthetic element of light to create perception in the aesthetic context of the image.

66. What is the director trying to convey to you? What do you perceive?