teaching — Rachel Leah Cohn

Garfverse

ScratchAfter an in-class workshop with direct drawn-on-film animation, students experimented using both found footage and clear leader. They made two ten second loops, one of each type of 16mm film and documented them as digital videos. Using Premiere Pro, they manipulated the videos to create a 30 second digital animation with sound. Their work considered concepts and principles like rhythm, repetition, speed changes, symmetry/asymmetry, visual chorus vs a visual verse and color changes.

Pictures at an ExhibitionWe collaborated with the Ball State School of Music on a trumpet recital of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” Mussorgsky wanted to represent the experience of walking around the gallery and looking at the images of his friend Viktor Hartman. Each student created an “animated painting” inspired by one of the movements in the piece using keyframing in Premiere Pro. The outcomes were exhibited along with the music during the recital on November 5, 2023.Link to Project Showcase: https://vimeo.com/showcase/10758597

GarfverseStudents created an animatic (an animated storyboard) based on Jim Davis' "Garfield: His Nine Lives." Jim Davis is from Muncie, IN and we have a Garfield Library on campus. Students visited the collection and developed a short story where related to the “Garfield multiverse.” They recorded and edited a multi-layered audio composition in Adobe Audition. They could use any materials they wanted to create their storyboard images.

Some Silly Stories: Breakfast BombshellStudents learn the basics of video and sound editing in Adobe Creative Cloud to create an animatic (an animated storyboard.) We start by playing Surrealist party games to create absurd collaboratively written stories to use as scripts, discussing storyboarding and the narrative use of different camera shots. Students record and edit a multi-layered audio composition inAudition, which includes narration and sound effects. They create a storyboard using multiple methods (digital drawings, collage, drawings on paper, etc.) and combine the audio and images in Premiere to create a video that tells their silly story over time.

Sound MapWe had a day of sound workshops, including exercises in listening and mapping natural soundscapes and developing scores. We also visited the GIS Research and Map Collection to learn about how artists have used maps as a form. Each student developed their own map image, of a real or imagined place. Using Adobe Audition, they designed a multilayered soundscape with several focal points. They combined their image and sounds together using Premiere Pro and animated movement through their map.

Lunch Party - Zine PagesWe will think about performance through the lens of a dinner party, creating scores and sculptural props to investigate the ways in which we construct ourselves for others. Using Judy Chicago's "The Dinner Party" as reference, each student created a place-setting which functioned as a portrait, either of the self or someone else, using any materials. This was their spot at the table. Each student also created a performance score which was compiled into a printed zine. When the Lunch Party took place, the host read out each performance score which everyone collectively performed. After the last score was read and performed, we shared a meal.

Lunch Party Lemons

Lunch Party

Magic LanternA storytelling project based on early cinema techniques. Students were asked to record and edit audio telling a short story and then create illustrations, using silhouettes, drawings on transparencies and their bodies. Using the overhead projector, they performed their stories live and then edited the documentation video. I developed this project in iterations since 2014.

Greenhouse RadioAfter visiting the campus greenhouse together, everyone selected a plant to work from. Students researched and developed a sound composition either for or about their chosen plant. These were abstract or narrative based and could be based on personal experiences, physical observations, or research about properties of the plant or mythology. Students created a sound map, or plan, for their audio and edited using Adobe Audition. Inspired by visiting artist Lindsey French’s Phytovision series, they also created video footage to fit the audio.

Black Hole Blues Te'NIa BakerStudents explored sound design in an assignment connected to astrophysicist Dr. Janna Levin’s visit to Ball State. After participating in a series of workshops around sound mapping and scoring, each person creates a sound device that could simulate a sound they imagine in deep space, which they record using contact (or piezo) microphones. They created a graphic score to use as a map and edit their abstract sound compositions within Adobe Audition. Outcomes were exhibited at the Charles W. Brown Planetarium during the “Dome Party” event, which included performances and poetry readings inspired by Dr. Levin’s research.

Masquerade Grand Prix A Day at the Beach. A compilation of performances based on a field trip to the beach, inspired by the Japanese television show, Masquerade.

Jam Band- SupermarketSpace Research and Time StudioA collaborative project at VCUarts Qatar with Space Research faculty Maysaa Almumim and sound artist, Guillaume Rousere. Students were asked to consider the sounds and images of one location in the city. They created sound devices using found objects, which they recorded using contact microphones and edited into abstract musical compositions in Adobe Audition. Finally, they created a music video for their soundpiece, using projections of video shot on location.

Some Silly StoriesADS 103 4D Foundations A storyboarding/animatic project inspired by Surrealist parlor games, including Exquisite Corpse and Consequences. Students collaboratively wrote silly stories and then illustrated them as storyboards, using any material analog or digital. They combined their images with dialogue, introducing them to Adobe Premiere Pro and Audition.

Flip Book ConcréteADS 103 4D Foundations Inspired by Stan Brakhage and direct film animation, students are asked to create abstract animation frames focusing on mark making. They take their still images and combine them in Premiere Pro to create a moving sequence, which they could manipulate further digitally.

Yadawi Cinema - The FloodA storytelling project based on early cinema techniques. Students were asked to record and edit audio telling a short story and then create illustrations, using silhouettes and drawings on transparencies and their bodies. Using the overhead projector, they performed their stories live and then edited the documentation video.

Jam Band - BeachSpace Research and Time StudioA collaborative project at VCUarts Qatar with Space Research faculty Maysaa Almumim and sound artist, Guillaume Rousere. Students were asked to consider the sounds and images of one location in the city. They created sound devices using found objects, which they recorded using contact microphones and edited into abstract musical compositions in Adobe Audition. Finally, they created a music video for their soundpiece, using projections of video shot on location.

Yadawi Cinema A storytelling project based on early cinema techniques. Students were asked to record and edit audio telling a short story and then create illustrations, using silhouettes and drawings on transparencies and their bodies. Using the overhead projector, they performed their stories live and then edited the documentation video.

Yadawi Cinema - Queen of the MountainsA storytelling project based on early cinema techniques. Students were asked to record and edit audio telling a short story and then create illustrations, using silhouettes and drawings on transparencies and their bodies. Using the overhead projector, they performed their stories live and then edited the documentation video.

Flip Book Concréte - NotebookADS 103 4D Foundations Inspired by Stan Brakhage and direct film animation, students are asked to create abstract animation frames focusing on mark making. They take their still images and combine them in Premiere Pro to create a moving sequence, which they could manipulate further digitally.

Jam Band - Rainstorm at the SheratonSpace Research and Time Studio A collaborative project at VCUarts Qatar with Space Research faculty Maysaa Almumim and sound artist, Guillaume Rousere. Students were asked to consider the sounds and images of one location in the city. They created sound devices using found objects, which they recorded using contact microphones and edited into abstract musical compositions in Adobe Audition. Finally, they created a music video for their soundpiece, using projections of video shot on location.

Jam Band - CornicheSpace Research and Time StudioA collaborative project at VCUarts Qatar with Space Research faculty Maysaa Almumim and sound artist, Guillaume Rousere. Students were asked to consider the sounds and images of one location in the city. They created sound devices using found objects, which they recorded using contact microphones and edited into abstract musical compositions in Adobe Audition. Finally, they created a music video for their soundpiece, using projections of video shot on location.

Some Silly StoriesADS 103 4D Foundations Consequences, or the Exquisite Corpse, is a game played by the Surrealists in which a story or image is collectively assembled. Players each write in turn on a piece of paper, fold it down to conceal and then pass it on to the next player for further contribution. The stories follow a strict structure but are often absurd, silly and playful. Students use this game to create the script and storyboard for a video project. After collectively writing stories in class, each student selects one to develop further. They can use any materials to make their images- drawing, photography, collage, etc. and are asked to pay attention to camera shots and visual details. They combine the images digitally in Premiere Pro and recorded a voiceover, including sound effects and music.

Deep Listening PerformanceADS 103 4D FoundationsIn collaboration with PlySpace Fellows Valerie Skakun and Pat SpadineA Virtual Deep Listening Performance with sound sculptures made from household materials during the COVID-19 stay-at-home order. Each student created an instrument that could make a single sound that was pleasant for them to listen to for 15 minutes which they recorded as video performances. The overall piece was complied, edited and composed by Valerie Skakun and Pat Spadine.

Exquisite Corpse McLovin'Students created a 15’ tall exquisite corpse sculpture originally designed for an Art Parade in April 2020 (canceled due to COVID). They had intended for it to be carried in pieces down the street and assembled on site as a performance.They began from drawings, collectively chose each element and constructed it in teams, using wire, PVC, fabric, paint.Head: Illuminati PigTorso: McLovin’ with TentaclesFeet: Zombie

Some Silly StoriesADS 103 4D Foundations Consequences, or the Exquisite Corpse, is a game played by the Surrealists in which a story or image is collectively assembled. Players each write in turn on a piece of paper, fold it down to conceal and then pass it on to the next player for further contribution. The stories follow a strict structure but are often absurd, silly and playful. Students use this game to create the script and storyboard for a video project. After collectively writing stories in class, each student selects one to develop further. They can use any materials to make their images- drawing, photography, collage, etc. and are asked to pay attention to camera shots and visual details. They combine the images digitally in Premiere Pro and recorded a voiceover, including sound effects and music.

Little DataADS 103 4D Foundations Over one month, students keep a diary, recording personal data of their choosing thinking about their current life situation, patterns, and habits; something that they can tangibly observe. Considering that data as an artistic medium, they create a visualization in any media, including drawing, sculpture, video, animation, textile design/weaving, or wearable art.

Protest GIFSADS 103 4D Foundations Students create an animated GIF "protest sign." They choose a topic that is important to them. They are welcome to google for inspiration, to steal a statement that already exists, or write their own. Their GIF will combine a text statement with a moving image. Using an animation technique called "rotoscoping," they trace over and manipulate stills from a moving image sequence and reconstruct them to create realistic movement.

Protest GIFs- Clean the OceansADS 103 4D Foundations Students create an animated GIF "protest sign." They choose a topic that is important to them. They are welcome to google for inspiration, to steal a statement that already exists, or write their own. Their GIF will combine a text statement with a moving image. Using an animation technique called "rotoscoping," they trace over and manipulate stills from a moving image sequence and reconstruct them to create realistic movement.

Little Data - YouTubeADS 103 4D Foundations Over one month, students keep a diary, recording personal data of their choosing thinking about their current life situation, patterns, and habits; something that they can tangibly observe. Considering that data as an artistic medium, they create a visualization in any media, including drawing, sculpture, video, animation, textile design/weaving, or wearable art.

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