Sunday, August 19, 2018


Art Remix 2
Melissa Grajeda

I couldn't find a big enough photo in any of my magazines, so I decided to search on line. When I was doing some research I looked up over populated areas. This was a pretty good photo (minus the bad print quality). In this photo you can see a huge beautiful river down the middle, but there are so many buildings surrounding it. In my art remix I took away the buildings and added more wildlife. Living in such an urban setting, it's rare to find natural habitats around.


Reimagined Future


Erin Conway’s Media Art Remix

The image I chose to remix was captured by Juan Arredondo for Alma Guillermoprieto’s article The Healing of Colombia, depicting how Colombians are working to come together after their 52-year civil war. In the original image we see a small group of young Colombians with saxophones waiting for their music teacher. The yard around them is over grown, and the buildings behind them are shuttered and uninviting. In my remixed image I imagined what the yard could look like in the future with these creative young students following their passion and paving the way for generations to come. I added an abundance of natural scenery, rehabilitated the shabby buildings, and spruced up their seating area. This is the legacy I imagine these young Colombian’s might want to leave behind for their children to enjoy.
 

Original Image:
Juan Arredondo, The Healing of Colombia, National Geographic, January 2018, p. 75

Saturday, August 18, 2018

Remixed: Environmental Protector

Original Image Citation:
Family Circle Magazine
July 2018
Advertisement for Waterpik





Remixed by Eryn Burke
August 18, 2018



I picked this original image because I saw the boy being a protector. I did not want him to stop the water but rather stop all of the pollution, climate change and man made structures encroaching on their current and future environments. 

We say that these kids are the future, the next generation. I also wanted to show that kids can make a change. They are smart and kind young minds regardless of their age. 

Our environment is losing green space. They are no longer expected but rather a sanctuary when we can find them. We are losing single family homes and small town neighborhoods because of condos and high rises. Animals are endangered and our climate is facing critical issues. People have such an increased level of greed and the desire for more running through their veins. 

This young boy is simply saying stop. Stop taking more than what you need. Stop hurting our environment. Stop hurting the animals instead of helping. Stop taking away our clean rivers, our open fields, our dirt roads and green spaces. 



Mystic river -remix 2 Stephanie Mckay



Original image photographed by Xavi Gordo for EllE magazine August 2018 Issue No. 396
article Sunsport pg 158

Remix entitled Mystic River by Stephanie Mckay 

Nature is mystical and magical to me. I wanted to capture the colors I saw and the tranquil feelings I felt walking along the Mystic river in summertime. During the summer the trees reflect the light of the sun. Along the bottom you can see people enjoying the view about to jump in I wanted to show man in harmony with nature but also the threat man causes in nature because of the pollution as you can see plastic garbage in the upper left corner.  We must be conscious and deliberate with our actions or else the river will overflow due to our destruction of it.  This is a statement about the beauty of nature and our relationship with it. 

Friday, August 17, 2018

Rebirth




The original image here depicts a structure being ravaged by the wildfires in Northern California. While the devastation shown is upsetting, I also feel that it speaks of strength, hope, and opportunity. The fire shape reminds me of two things: first, the outline of Cape Cod, and second, the fist that has come to represent the "Resist" movement. In remixing this image, I wanted to send a message to the people affected by the wildfires that New England is sending well wishes and strength during this frightening time. Therefore, I used brown napkins, tissue paper, and paint to create this piece so that remnants of the fire still peak through the materials. We will never forget the wildfires, but Northern California will harness the power of the Earth and work with it to rebuild both natural and man-made structures, like the tree and the bridge I have outlined, and experience rebirth. My hope is that once the wildfires are extinguished, the people affected will be able to overcome their adversity and hardship to create a place that is stronger than ever before.


Original Image Citation: Kent Porter/The Press Democrat via AP. (2017, October 11). Featured in the Washington Examiner digital magazine in an article entitled "California wildfires force Congress to consider funding reforms" by Josh Siegel. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/california-wildfires-force-congress-to-consider-funding-reforms

Remixed by Allison Russell  

Power Struggle



Artist: Hilary Sugg
Original Image Citation: Carol Guzy. "Power Struggle". Published in National Geographic Magazine (July 2018).


With Puerto Rico still struggling mightily after Hurricane Maria, thousands of the island's inhabitants still lack electricity and other basic amenities. Carol Guzy's photo captures the current needs of the island against the backdrop of what many used to imagine: blue-skied beaches in paradise. For my remix, I took the peaceful skies and built something different around it: a thriving ecosystem and an economy to support even the youngest generation of Puerto Ricans. A plane overhead and bolero hats resting on tree branches symbolize iconic Puerto Rican tourism, coupled with a kite that flies above, emblematic of leisure enjoyed from the center of San Juan to the far-out reaches of Vieques. Next to the mother and daughter reads "Power para los Puertorriquenos", a bilingual message of hope and solidarity for Puerto Ricans in this time of crisis.

Thursday, August 16, 2018

Long Way to Go


The original image is a "Coors Light" add I saw in a magazine. I was immediately struck by the adventurous nature of the add considering it was promoting an insanely generic and far from healthy or natural beer of all things. If anyone were to attempt to cross this bridge after drinking Coors Light, things probably wouldn't end too well. So, in my remix I kept the mountain/bridge image in black and white and then found a watch-head and the word "world" also in black and white. Representing the state our society is in currently in regards to how most people perceive the environment, and the aspect of time and being too busy to care, is reflected in the dark clock, dark mountain, and the dark font of the word "world." Embarking on this journey towards changing our perspective on nature is the girl with the backpack, and the image gets progressively more colorful and full of natural images as it goes into the sky. The words "save the" has some color to help represent the progression of this journey towards a more natural life as well. The overall message of this piece is that we have a long way to go, but it is achievable for everyone to live sustainably and nurture and respect the planet we live on rather than take advantage of it.

Chelsea Kozikis 

Image: Coors Light advertisement
Source: Shape Magazine
Issue Date: June 2018

Sunday, July 29, 2018


Media Art Remix
Melissa Grajeda

I found my original image of London, Uk from the EF tours magazine. (image on the left) Although, at first glance, this seems like a very pretty image. I immediately noticed a lot of buildings and not a lot if open green land. So for my remix version of the original image, I added a lot of images of gras, mountains, clean water (water falls) and even a wind turbine. A lot of these buildings found in the original image on the left, use a lot of energy, electricity and gas. By adding the wind turbine, this helps generate electricity!


Back to Basics




The original image is part of the "Washed Up" project by Alejandro Duran, and I chose it for this project because it is both peaceful and disturbing. While the lines and colors are bold and beautiful, the image depicts a natural scene that is corrupted by manmade junk and pollution on the beach. When you first look at it, it almost looks serene, but I think that is what makes it so powerful. The trash and recycling that litter our beaches are so normal now that they blend into the landscape, and we choose not to see the destruction that we, as humans, cause to beaches, oceans, and wildlife. In my digital art remix, then, I chose to cover all the trash with recycled material depicting the colors of sand. While the "sand" stands in sharp contrast to the blue of the ocean, unlike the original image, it makes a statement that we need to be more active in our efforts to clean up our beaches. Only by recognizing the problem and working to solve it will we make progress. I also added a small yellow heart to represent love of nature and cleanliness as well as two seagulls to symbolize the return of wildlife to a place that is free of trash and other materials that might cause them harm. "Back to Basics" removes the trash and replaces it with the natural beauty that belongs on the beach.


Original Image Citation: Alejandro Duran. "Washed up: Alejandro Duran's site-specific found plastic and trash installations." April 18, 2015. Retrieved from http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/04/washed-up-alejandro-duran/ 

Remixed by Allison Russell

 


The image I chose is an ad for pesticides to use around your home and yard to get rid of mosquitoes and ticks. In the ad you can see the products used to kill off pests. I chose this image because of the harm pesticides can do not only to the environment, but our bodies and wildlife as well.

In my remixed image I decided to display a picnic scene. I covered the pesticide products with vivid pictures of flowers, plants and food. The products are masked, however there is still some evidence of the poison in the background. When pesticides are used on our food, they can have harmful effects on our bodies.

Remixed: Discovering Nature


Original Image Citation:
National Geographic 
February 2014
Artist- Peter Essick
Page 92, part of The Case of Missing Carbon article



Remixed by Eryn Burke
July 28, 2018



I choose the original image because this was an environmental art class and I thought the picture of nature was quite beautiful. I originally had two other images I was going to use, one with children in the grass and the other was polar bears. However I picked this one as I thought with the theme of nature this was a better fit. I was drawn to the movement of the water, the beautiful rocks and then underneath the polar opposite which was hues of green and black. I thought in both images I wanted to be there, touch it. I wanted to feel the slippery rocks, the cold water and the leaf that I imagined felt smooth and wet from rain. 

When I realized the assignment and what we had to do, I thought to myself, I should have gone with a different image. I was unsure on how I would remix this image. Then I saw this image of the girl and she was in the middle of a city street with no nature around her. I wanted to take her to the place I imagined when I saw the original image. So I recreated the mountain and river scene , trying to capture the movement and textures. I changed the sky to a sunset because it felt more cohesive and lively.  The bottom part, I included colors of nature of mainly green, black hues. I colored in some of the picture to pay respect to the beauty of the original leaf.  

I wanted to transport her to nature, to see the dark brown hues of wet muddy soil, the bright blues of the ocean, the various greens of trees, fish and flowers. To play within the mountains and rivers. I immersed her in nature. 

Caring for the Common


The original image comes from Boston Magazine and is followed by an article on how sad and uninviting the iconic Boston Commons has become. One of the oldest spots in Boston, The Commons should be a place full of life and history, but it has become a muddy, unkempt, feces-covered, and dirty place that tourists are feeling more and more disappointed in with every trip. The remix of this image encourages color and life growing back into the common. Some of the remix is left as the original image to represent this regrowing process taking time and care and the buildings were left in the grey are a symbol of what the city and industry has done to the natural environment around it. Immense flowers, blue skies, and greenery is being built up in the image from the bottom to represent the need to revamp the commons and to take better care and consideration in the historical land that surrounds us.

Original Image Citation:
Photograph taken by: Chloe Grinberg
Title of Article: Why is Boston Common so...Common?
Written by: Spencer Buell
Retrieved from: Boston Magazine
Issue Date: June 2018

Remix by: Chelsea Kozikis

Rebirth ( remix of Mathilde Roussel, Lives of Grass by Stephanie Mckay



I chose an image by environmental artist Mathilde Roussel called Lives of Grass. The contrast of the human forms shape in the piece intrigued me.  The figure falling, I interpreted as a fall from grace. at the figure resting I interpreted as innocence, new life sleeping or birth. In my remix I decided to use color and form to illustrate humans disconnection from the natural world. The darker shadow form represents the fight against nature. the color represents the spirit which represents man's wholeness with the earth. The shards of light are the hope, awareness and will to reconnect with nature. 
Original image citation: retrieved from www.mymodernmet.com, Lives of Grass by Mathilde Rousel, Soil, wheat seed, recycled metal and fabric. Brooklyn New York 2010

"Climate Reparations Realized"



When I first saw the image of a drought and wildfire-affected neighborhood, I thought of loved ones living in these areas of environmental danger. What is it like to lose your foundation and roots to the land in a matter of hours? My remix is a vision of hope for this ravaged area: a future eden of regrowth and clean energy, proving our ability to innovate and design for a greener tomorrow. In my image, responsible human activity is coupled with the resilience of new forests and water sources. Communities are built with renewable sources of energy and electricity, with an abundance of green space that fosters both connection and appreciation of the natural landscape. 


Original Image Citation: Drone Aerial Photography. Reuters. "A Case for Climate Reparations". Published in Sierra Club Magazine (2018). 

Remix Artist: Hilary Sugg