When beginning the project, I don't think any of us realised how ambitious it actually was for the four of us to accomplish. Creating an installation is something that none of us have had much experience with, if not at all. Therefore making an installation that was also interactive, was going to be very challenging. 

We had a hard time coming up with a meaning behind the piece, and initially after Rosie had suggested we revise and develop the idea a little more, we over complicated a lot of things. This therefore lead to us wasting time, as we spent a long part at the beginning just sitting together throwing ideas around each other, ending in the idea becoming way more complex than any of us wanted it or meant it to be. This stressed us out a little as well, because at times we would solve one problem, but another would be created as a result and this was very frustrating. At the end of each group meeting we would go away exhausted and with sore heads from thinking so hard! However after we pitched the idea to the entire class, Rosie called us out on just how complicated we had made things and we decided to revert back to the original, more simple idea. 

I found my part of looking into the visual side of the piece very enjoyable and doing research on other artists who have done scientific works of the brain was very interesting and definitely inspiration for future work as well as this piece. It was very fun working out how to film the POV video and we all had a lot of laughs, even through the many failed attempts at getting the style right. This taught me a lot more about the importance of team work, as we had to work very closely in order to achieve the look we wanted - Tom and I basically had to become one person to film and act out the activities seen throughout the video! However near the start, we were all a bit confused about what the visuals would actually be, at one point we looked into showing the  inside the brain itself through After Effects. However I found once we had established that the video had to be simple and general in order to be relatable to the audience, it was easier to develop from there. 

Things to Improve

If we were to do the project again, we should research into materials and creating the model brain a lot earlier than we did. Instead of spending so much time on trying to put a complicated meaning into the piece, we should be more prepared as to how we should carry it out. The fact this was not the case left us feeling very pressured and rushed to get it finished on time and put a lot of stress on Julia to make the brain model, which was not ideal, particularly for her. I think we could have also began doing tests sooner, both technically and visually, to ensure that the piece was definitely going to work like we wanted. I would have liked to have maybe put more tests on the blog as well, to show more development towards the final piece. I also think occasionally communication could have been better (only a few times though as we were generally very good!) as some people would contact each other through private messages instead of the group one and I found myself getting a bit confused at times! 

The Group

I feel we worked very well as a group. The project was very ambitious from the out set, but despite any problem that came up we worked hard to get over anything and come through to achieve the final result. Each of us were in charge of our own area, and while each of us lead their own part, everyone else would or be willing to if asked help out with anything if another pair of hands was required. 

Rosie reviewed the complete contents of the installation (the visuals and sounds controlled by the software and keyboard). This was without the model brain however, as this still requires to be vacuum formed and then assembled to show these contents. 

The photos and video seemed to work well, and I'm happy with this as I suggested to Tom that maybe in the first attempt with the software the randomness and style was too much. Now they are a lot more toned down, to allow the audience to focus on the meaning instead. Rosie suggested that the border (meant to look like an eye) around the completed video was still distracting, but this should be easily solved by retreating the edges of the border back more and quicker. 

Interactivity

Examples of what the MaKey MaKey kit can do

Plan of Action Until Assessment

After the tutorial, Tom and I found Harry as there had been a mix up with the room we wanted to book, and sorted this out so that we have it for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to set up and assemble everything physically.

Monday 

Tuesday and Wednesday

• General set up and tests to make sure everything is working.
• Move completed installation piece to assessment room
• Final test in assessment room

Whenever the frontal lobe of the brain is touched, appropriate colours will appear representing mood and tone of the final piece. When everything is pressed and it forms together, these colours will be overlaid on top of the visual section that involves activities and movement, the frontal and occipital lobes. Therefore I have done some research into what colours represent and the mood that each colour reflects/ communicates to the audience. This is due to western culture as we have assigned the colours to have emotions and feelings, rather than the colours actually having that tone themselves.  

General colour meanings

Black

This is reflective of depression, power, morbidity, illegality, death and night. However it can be associated with elegance and formality as well.

White

Innocence, cleanliness, purity, peace, newness and simplicity are shown by using white. It can also represent physicalities such as ice and snow and give off a cold feeling. 

Red

Red is associated with warmth, love, desire, passion, excitement, speed, strength, energy, determination, boldness and courage. Likewise it can also be associated with danger and anger depending on circumstances.

Orange

Cheerfulness, enthusiasm, creativity and aggression.

Yellow

Yellow is good at grabbing attentions and represents optimism, comfort,  cheerfulness, liveliness, intellect, energy and happiness. It also reflects Summer and the sun/ good weather. Negatively it can be viewed as cowardice, hunger and an overwhelming feeling. 

Pink 

This is associated with love, romance, being caring and femininity.

Green

Nature is a big representative of the colour green. It shows reliability, well-being, freshness, harmony, safety, durability and honesty. 

Blue

Blue is associated with the season of Winter and shows professionalism, peace, loyalty, trust, conservatism, boredom, sadness and coldness.

Purple

Royalty, nobility, elegance, sophistication, mystery, luxury and magic. 

Grey

This is usually represented as dull and uninteresting but can also represent traditionalism, seriousness and conservatism. 

Brown

Brown is associated with the season Autumn and can represent nature, earth, endurance, casual, and being reassuring and genuine. 

Here is a guide to change in tone in colour, ranging from neutral to bright colours and how these represent certain emotions as well. 

After showing Rosie our test version of what the visual section might be like for the final piece she advised that we choose maybe a more simple, general environment to film in as the house chose to practise was too cluttered and 'student-like.' This could distract the viewer from focussing on the simple tasks on screen and also might not be relatable enough as a general location for a wide age range of audience. We discussed the actions of the person, saying that maybe they could be doing something as simple as going shopping, however while this provides a great basis for sounds, this holds many flaws due to the fact we would need to get permission from a local supermarket - something we have tried a few times before and always failed at. It would be good if we could find somewhere that will be happy for us to film with short notice. 

I was thinking about maybe having slightly more general activities done throughout, but less time focussed on each one. For example I found the part where tea is being made in the test to be very long and therefore this could be edited down a bit more. The lost time would then be filled with other actions. 

My Objectives for this week

Things to be improved

Today we ran some indoor test shots by creating a scenario consisting of normal every day activities, using POV perspective. For this we used a Canon 600D for convenience with a 10-22mm lens to achieve a wide angle to gain as much information in the shot as possible - similarly to how your eyes work. 

The way the film begins and ends therefore creates a seamless loop. 

We took different turns being the character whose point of view we see. Tom tried filming it using only himself as one test, but this meant that he couldn't concentrate as well on actions and also could not hold the camera while getting both arm movements in to make it a realistic POV shot. Josh and I took turns being the the character, while Tom would stand behind us or beside, holding the camera roughly where our eyes were. This was a very awkward way to film as there wasn't a lot of room to move and we had to keep very tight to maintain the shot. It was also hard for Tom to judge where our eyes would be looking and our head movements to accurately follow with the camera.