Helvetica Response

I've always been interested in text; I've played around with it in the past, and gone out of my way to include it appealing ways within school assignments that involved digital media. I found that I was able to adjust it to better fit the mood of an image or article - by widening the font or changing spacing between letters - and my peers nearly always agreed with my decisions. The thing that did not register with me over the years is the fact that I've been drawn to use "Arial," which is a modified version of Helvetica.. which is the most widely used font on the face of the earth, mostly for its simplicity and its ability (or lack thereof) to be recognized.

"Helvetica" (the documentary) completely captivated me. Learning about the origins and the reasoning behind the widespread use of Helvetica and other fonts has revamped my understanding of text as a whole. What I was doing with Arial throughout the majority of my high school experience was explained in "Helvetica." The reason that it is so universally accepted is not only because of its readability, but its history; in the late 50's, it completely swept the media and advertising scene, replacing anything previous to it with its crispness and, steadily, its popularity.

A Short Response to Bill Morrison's "Decasia"

Bill Morrison's "Decasia" was incredibly successful at striking chords with not only the film-fanatic inside of me (the processes and ideas behind creating such a movie are unique and controversial), but also with the vast majority of my emotions.

What I mean by this is simple: the combination of nostalgic visuals caused memories to surface and flashbacks to initiate, while simultaneously, the film's score with its varying pitches and moods added depth to the emerging recollections.

Sure, the film had segments that were irritating to not only myself but also viewers around me - people were closing their eyes and even moaning - and it definitely didn't help that the shots that were extended were often the most disturbing or partially hypnotic. But, looking at the audience's reaction in a different light, it's only natural to come to the conclusion that Bill Morrison's intentions were successful; viewers were swept away by both the decaying frames and the fact that they were emotionally overwhelmed and distraught.

Thoughts on "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction"

Walter Benjamin was careful with his words regarding different forms of art, their relations to each other, and their time periods, such as photography and painting; comparing them through the means of an analogy of "magician to surgeon," and pointing out that in the stone ages, drawings of elk on rock walls were considered forms of magic. He elaborates on the value of art and what it has become, and it even what it will become; how it will behave: "Historically, [art] advanced intermittently and in leaps at long intervals, but with accelerated intensity."

I feel as though he is correct in his declaration that art, when reproduced, does not hold the same uniqueness or value that it did when it was to begin with - this is a given, as more of something almost universally means that it becomes less expensive. But when he declares that a replicated piece of art essentially is "less" of a work of art than it used to be, I disagree, and I'll use exotic automobiles as an example; sure, they are called "exotic" because of their rarity, but it's not just that, they are almost universally (once more) of greater intricacy and build quality than anything else on the road. When it comes to reproduced art, it may not have the same net worth or rarity, but it still holds the factor that makes it great art; it doesn't lose its "essence," per say.