Microcosmos, Burroughs and Cage

Microcosmos

Other than the uber-graphic snail copulation scene, I was utterly enchanted by Microcosmos. Growing up, the only "late-night" TV I was ever allowed to watch was on the Discovery Channel. Needless to say, this was right up my alley.

The imagery was whimsical and playful and the soundtrack suited the piece. It took me a few minutes in to realize what I was watching actually was real and not fabricated. I think because we're so accustomed to digital, I had assumed the images of the insects were fake, again adding another layer of amazement to Mircrocosmos. The attention to detail in the film was unreal. The film itself took over three years of shooting and then an additional six months in post-production to edit.

While watching, I was reminded of Disney films of my childhood, particularly "Alice in Wonderland." In one particular scene of the film, Alice becomes smaller than the insects crawling around on the ground. With Microcosmos, we (the audience) are taken back to that moment when insects become life-like and fantastic. Check out the film's trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76R2EKEnoJQ


William S. Burroughs

Okay, so I think like most of the class, I have previously encountered Burroughs. For me, the first time I interacted with him and his work was in my sophmore english class in high school when we did a unit on beat poets. From there, I went on to read "Naked Lunch" and half of "Junkie" (the text was a little intense for my liking at sixteen, I need to try it a second time).

The video itself, for me, was a bit intense. The poems that emerged were also intense, however, I understand that wasn't the purpose of writing them. The goal of the project was to shake things up, simple as that. To play with narrative and text in new ways and experiment language. This, of course I liked.

Although I do not consider myself by any means an artist or writer, I appreciated the way in which new technique was applied to the creation of poetry and language. Via this method, Burroughs invented new words, which he then used in his writing. I wonder if Erin McKean knew about Burrough's experimentation with word play....


Cage

I have been engaged with classical music since I was five so I really appreciated John Cage's prepared piano. In high school, I had a quartet leader who was all about shaking things up. We played "bohemian rhapsody" on our violins and she was always experimenting with new kinds of composing and ways to play our instruments. She would often augment her cello in various ways and now I know her muse.

Cage is relevant for us now because of the omnipresence of remix culture. He was the inventor of the original mash-up. I just wish the video we saw focused more on Cage, his life, his inspirations, and some of the music he has influenced.