Opening Doors You Thought Might be Closed

I made this gif with http://makeagif.com/youtube-to-gif Who knew that creating a gif from a downloaded You Tube video could be so easy? I have been working much too hard at this for the past 3 weeks! Sure, the name of the video editor is on my gif, but the video sequence belongs to The Prisoner series, anyway.

Sappho has been planning an escape route out of the Village. and she thinks she has found one! In the “Once Upon a Time” episode, Number 6 is introduced to the idea of a waste disposal unit! Here he is contemplating the words of Number 2.

Time is running out! The long summer evenings end soon, and Sappho needs to break away from the internet before fall courses begin.

She has bought some Village deck shoes to help her retreat, but after watching the final Prisoner episode, “Fallout”, she is wondering whether life can ever be normal again!

At the recommendation of the Village Philosopher, she has taken out Dostoyevsky’s “The Idiot” and plans to read it in the next 3 weeks. After all, Nureyev had read all of Dostoyevsky!!

Prisoners, ‘idiots’, Village residents, fairy tales, Burgeron Trailer Blues-all have opened doors to the digital arts for Sappho. It has taken a lot of courageous experimentation on her part and a supportive online community which has tweeted and re-tweeted her work, +1 with comments on G+, a few backchannel emails, and WordPress posts w. comments-all bolstering her to find her own voice, and I think now, she has!

Thanking the DS106 community for opening doors and windows!

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Variations on a Theme: “Where Am I?”

Sappho, planning her escape

Sappho is up late at night, midsummer, adding some visuals- moving and not- to her repertoire of working on one of the Prisoner themes of “Where Am I?” She is planning her own escape from the Village while working on her art, but is increasingly under the influence of gifanitus, a Village condition of ‘mutuality’. She is eating well and exercising, hoping to become more ‘unmutual’.

Finally, Sappho also put together a small trailer about Freedom and Prison.

And now, it’s time for bed! BCing you…….

Gender Not An Issue in Bovine

There have been some quizzical faces around Bovine County lately. It’s well known here that the #Burgeron106 family and community are open, tolerant and inviting as a way of life. Things like gender, socio-economic status, political ideology, age, nationality, education, profession, marital status, and even species and state of aliveness (Mama & Little Boo) just aren’t issues with us. This openness to alternative ways of being in the world can cause confusion and misunderstanding for others outside the family who don’t live here, but have just dropped by for an event or an occasional visit.

SuperMoo & Anna Cow

Take for example last week when it was reported that SuperMoo was smitten with Anna Cow. To those of us who know that SuperMoo is a transgender bovine, there is no issue.  She was seen running in the woods last summer and most recently he was head-over-hooves in love with Anna Cow.  While not a big issue for us, it can still be confusing.  What pronoun should be used with a transgender being? Even the human transgender community has yet to come to complete consensus on the matter.

The AP Stylebook, the most widely used by journalists and editors, encourages writers to “use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.

“If that preference is not expressed,” the Stylebook continues, “Use the pronoun consistent with the way the individuals live publicly.”

That’s all well and good if gender identities are clearly visible & identifiable. But in the case of our SuperMoo, whose superhero alter-ego conventions only add to the confusion, we do not see clearly definable gender characteristics.  SuperMoo is on most occasions sporting an androgynous style.

SuperMoo in her #Prisoner106 Village cape (Cape & doll image remixed with permission from Liana Kerr.)

SuperMoo in his #Prisoner106 jacket (Doll image remixed with permission from Liana Kerr)

We acknowledge, understand and empathize with the confusion some are experiencing. Below are a few tips and resources if you’d like to learn more, or simply become more supportive of transgender beings.

Tips & Resources for Allies of Transgender Beings

The following are tips that can be used as you move toward becoming a better ally to transgender beings.

• You can’t tell if someone is transgender just by looking.
• Don’t make assumptions about a transgender being’s sexual orientation.
• If you don’t know what pronouns to use, listen first.
• Don’t ask a transgender being what their “real name” is.
• Respect the terminology a transgender being uses to describe their identity.

• http://www.glaad.org/transgender/allies
• http://www.glaad.org/reference/transgender
• http://gaylife.about.com/od/transgender/f/heorshe.htm
• https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transgender
• http://www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-responds-vanity-fair-cover-featuring-caitlyn-jenner-releases-updated-tip-sheet

GIFfing North American Narratives

The Bovine County Fairy Tale Festival is underway. Our weekly Around The World workshops are a place to learn more about a culture and to build your creative digital muscles.  Participate in a workshop anytime or dip your digital toes into all nine!

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Week 5: North American Narratives & Personal Cyber Infrastructure

North American Fairy Tales

Animated GIF Assignments

RESOURCES:

• North American Indian Fairy Tales:  https://archive.org/details/northamericanin00armogoog
• Canadian Fairy Tales: https://archive.org/details/canadianfairytal00macmuoft
• http://fairytalez.com/region/canadian-fairy-tales/
• Native American Myths: http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/native-american-myths/
• Native American Indian Legends and Folklore (Arranged by tribe):  http://www.native-languages.org/legends.htm
• American Folktales & Stories: http://www.americanfolklore.net/sindex.html
• http://fairytalez.com/region/north-american-folktales/
• Canadian Folklore: http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/canadian-folklore/
• United States Folklore: http://www.americanfolklore.net/ss.html
• American Fairy Tales  Baum, L. Frank
• American Indian Fairy Tales  Larned, William Trowbridge
• The Indian Fairy Book; From the Original Legends  Mathews, Cornelius
• Stories the Iroquois Tell Their Children   Powers, Mabel

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This week’s digital skills workshop: Personal Cyber Infrastructure

To assist festival-goers in further developing their digital literacy skills and establishing a personal digital identity, each week we highlight a different topic being sponsored by the Bank of DS106 Assignment with volunteer support from the Open DS106 community.  This week we offer “Personal Cyber Infrastructure”.

DS106 Animated GIF Assignments

Rather than specifying “assignments” everyone is encouraged to learn more about the topic, Personal Cyber Infrastructure,  by visiting the Open DS106 Syllabus and choosing something to create from an array of animated GIF based digital projects. Each project links to examples of work completed by others.  They also include links to tutorials that can help you learn how to complete the work. By tagging your web related posts (either on the Burgeron Family blog or a personal blog) with both AnimatedGIFAssignments and AnimatedGIFAssignments#### your work will be added to the list of examples.  I found these tips for writing up ds106 Assignments in a blog post most helpful.

The Burgeron family blog is always available for posting. (If you need editor access or help let us know.) Or you can post to your own personal blog. Let us know there’s something new with a tweet tagged with #burgeron106 and posting a quick note at our DS106 Google+ Community.

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EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT….

“The fairy tale makes a universal appeal both to old and young; to the young because it is the natural world in which their fancy delights to range, and to the old because they are conscious again of the spirit of youth as they read such tales to their children and grandchildren over and over again and rejoice in the illusion that after all there is not a great difference of age which separates the generations.

The fairy tale makes this universal appeal because it deals with the elemental in our natures that is the same in every age and in every race. In the Canadian Tales …. gathered from Indian sources, we find the same types of character and scenes of adventure that we do in the tales of the German forests, of Scandinavia, England or France.

There is in us all an instinctive admiration for the adventurous spirit of the fairy tale which challenges the might that is cruel and devastating, and for the good offices of the fairies which help to vindicate the cause of the noble in its conflict with the ignoble, right with wrong.

The origin of the fairy tale is to be traced always to the early stages of civilization, and it is very gratifying to be assured from time to time that man possesses certain natural impulses which spring from an inherent sense of honour, and the desire to redress the wrongs of the world.”
-JOHN GRIER HIBBEN (Link to source)

Read more fairy tales here: http://fairytalez.com/

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We invite you to visit any or all of the  Around the World workshops being held this year at the Bovine County Fairy Tale Festival.

Sappho: Languishing in the Village

Sappho thinks she’s been languishing in the summer heat at the Village a bit too long. Her art and design classes have been instructional, and she has had a few conversations with Number 6 privately in his bungalow and over tea at the Village Bistro. Her vision seems to be tainted now with rose colored glasses. Sappho went to visit Dr. M. in her bungalow to help Sappho with the dilemma of separating illusion from reality and was instructed by Dr M. to contemplate a ‘daily create’ challenge. Dr. M. advised daily contemplation of the following adage ‘Interrupt the flowerbeds and finality will follow’. Sappho was able to transpose nouns in this adage and create a mash-up artwork at the Village Studio to help give her a more expansive view of her changing perspectives during her stay at the Village.  

Sappho compared her artwork with that of some of her compatriots over a midsummer Village dinner and found that her ideas differed vastly. She still could not maintain ‘design integrity’, a seeming requirement for success in Village life. Dr. M. had even created a sample artwork to help the many Village patients who were dealing with multiple realities.

Sappho was still mainly interested in still photography and writing; although, Village preferences favored the mesmerizing gif format. She understood the gif persuasion – especially its hypnotic qualities which left Villagers in the trance-like state so advantageous to Number 2. She decided to rent a penny farthing at the Village rental shop by the beach and take a day trip to the Bovine County Fairy Tale Fest. The question was whether she could actually escape the Village for a spell or not.

Credits

All writing by @janweb3

Mash-up art by @janweb3

Second flower mash-up art by Mariana Funes

Jim Groom glasses and penny- farthing gif by John Johnston

Sappho’s Designs

DS106: Capture/Screenshot a scene from an episode of a TV show or a movie and try to make a poster for that episode or movie. Try to make it cool! Be creative!

Here is my gif from the opening and repeated scenes of ‘The Prisoner’. I used Free Video Cutter to make the gif.

I entitled this gif “Where am I?”

Here are some of the comments I received on G+ for this gif.

Kathy Onarheim

Jul 19, 2015

 It is Awesome!

Nana Lou

 Jul 19, 2015

 Very nice dear. I like the effect you’ve got there of going around-and-around.  Although for those of us with motion sickness issues, I’m feeling awfully dizzy.

janet webster

 Jul 19, 2015

 Yes, very dizzying. Wasn’t exactly what I was going for, but I’ll take what I can get on my first try.

Nana Lou

 Jul 19, 2015

 I have to say you did a great job on this +janet webster .  It looks like something +John Johnston would’ve made.  A smooth GIF that tells a story in more ways than one.  Bravo!

Ronald L

 Jul 19, 2015

 Bravo! Well made.
I kinda recognize the fast style of Mariana’s gifs too in it.

janet webster

 Jul 19, 2015

  Not necessarily intentional 😉

Ronald L

 Jul 19, 2015

 Well that’s how it works, you get influenced without knowing it.

Mariana Funes

Jul 19, 2015

 Cool! Glad you found a way. It is a lovely one. Make sure you add the tags for the assignment when you do your post so you get credit units! +janet webster

Ronald L

 Jul 20, 2015

  What’s this with credit units?

John Johnston

 Jul 20, 2015

 +Nana Lou thank for the compliment. This looks a bit deeper than me:-) I see the repetitive nature of the series, resign and be dammed again and again. nice stuff.

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Still inspired by the above gif made by John Johnston, I took the still images from my  own gif’s clip captured from John Johnston’s blog and made a book-cover or poster for ‘The Prisoner’ series. I wanted to keep the monochromatic scheme of the typewriter and photo still of #6 with the XXXXXXXXXXX across his face. The word ‘Resigned’ is a key word in the themes presented in this series, so I used it as a title instead of “The Prisoner”.

The floating head  (a la John the Baptist) is somewhat unnerving, but I wanted to give that sense in my composition. I also like to build in ambiguity to my compositions.

I don’t have a lot of time to devote to these assignments, and I usually do them late at night, so I look for quick and easy technical solutions to my creative ideas.

Sappho’s Many Moving Parts

My summer holiday at the Village.

Gif Camp on Mondays at the Village Studio.

Introduction to Filming on Tuesdays at the Village Pantheon.

Be Seeing You

Still Photography and Time Travel on Wednesdays at Bungalow # 6.

Poster Making on Thursdays at the Village Rec Hall.

Fridays for Exercise and Workouts Around the Village. Free Day!

Saturday and Sunday: Special Projects TBA

Puffin Fairies Invade The Village

Talk about “Jammers”… The #Burgeron106 Puffin Fairy Flock discovered Dr. M’s teleporting treehouse this week.

They invaded the #Prisoner106 Village

and

declared war on The General.

I hear with the help of the #burgeron106 Special Forces they stole the General’s design secrets for Speed Learn before blowing up that old mainframe computer. NanaLou will be announcing soon her own plans using this technology for the good of all – as it was meant to be.

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Image Resources

• Retro TV (png):  http://drydenart.weebly.com/uploads/8/9/6/1/8961653/old_tv_empty_screen.png
• Images from TV Show & locations:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/retroweb/sets/72157623276677846
• Puffin Images: https://pixabay.com/en/photos/penguin/
• Other modern day Village (Portmeirion) photos:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/coastermadmatt/sets/72157626173293297/

NanaLou’s Digital Fridge

As a kid having your prized #Burgeron106 art projects posted onto NanaLou’s refrigerator meant it was “real” art.  I’ve always been oh so proud of my family’s creative masterpieces –  no matter what their age. But these days things are different. How can a refrigerator magnet attach an audio or video file? Or, heaven forbid, an interactive digital media project?  Ol’ NanaLou has figured it out with my new “digital fridge” that can display any of my family’s art projects. Simply click an image on the fridge door to find out more.

VisualAssignments1442: Storytelling Collage

NOTE: For an optimal user experience, use a computer rather than a mobile device to interact with my digital fridge door.

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The hardest part about making this digital refrigerator door with the image mapper software was (through trial and error) figuring out I needed to make my original image 600px wide.  Anything bigger than that wouldn’t map correctly when it was actually displayed on our blog.

Resources:

• Image mapping software: http://www.ragesw.com/products/mapdesign/download/
• Refrigerator Magnet Font: http://www.1001freefonts.com/alpha_fridge_magnets.font

#Burgeron106 Fridge Magnet

The Trailer of Woe

Oh my…poor Nanalou has been worried sick about her #Burgeron106 family traveling over to the #Prisoner106 village. While they are continuing to travel back and forth (Dr. M’s teleporter appears to still be working.) She’s been preparing herself to distribute missing persons posters around the Bovine County Fairy Tale festival grounds and on-line- just in case they become permanent residents of The Village.

She and SuperMoo have been quite the pair.  While he’s been moooooning over Anna Cow– writing her love songs and all – Nanalou found a song in that old Celtic Lyre song book herself: “The Isle of Mist“.

She’s been changing the lyrics and asked me if I’d help her out by singing her version, “The Trailer of Woes”, when she’s finished.  I agreed and I asked Cousin Ron if he wouldn’t mind making us a quick recording of the melody. It’s been tough to get the timing down, and the written vocal range felt a bit high when I was sitting down to learn it the other morning. I think I should be able to pull it off if I warm up my voice first.

If I ever figure out the guitar chords that might go with this music, I’ve agreed to pass them along to Cousin Ron.  At this point I’ve sort of given up hope on that front. Plucking out the notes on my guitar, as if it were a Lyre, may be all I can do.  I did ask @vivienrolfe of the Headless Inkspots if she could maybe try her hand at a fuller music arrangement.  She was excited by the challenge and even has a few days off to give it a go.

Below are the lyrics NanaLou working with.

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The Trailer of Woe
(New Lyrics by NanaLou, click here to listen to the melody)

Thru trials great and sor-row,
Her grey head now en-shroud,
And her life’s sun is sett-ting
be-hind a dark-some cloud;
Yet still she’s fondly long-ing ___
O would the day were come;
To see your shining faces,
At the Burgeron Trailer home.

‘Tis forty days and more now,
Since from the Trailer you set,
And in The Village waters
Cast forth your fishing net
And though you got a number
To fill your house with store;
You still must ne’er forget thee,
Your trailer home of yore.

All who have ears to hear it,
Or tongues the tale to tell,
Come join with me in singing
The woes that did befell;
How hundreds of our people
From hill and glen were torn,
And far across the ocean
From their loved trailer were borne

Farewell, dear friends and kinsfolk,
Wherever you may roam,
Both young and old, in exile,
Far from your trailer home;
And O, remember NanaLou,
When laid her sirens among;
‘Twas cruel wrong and sorrow
First wak’d her soul to song.

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Update (7-12-15 final version uploaded to SoundCloud)

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Attributions:

• Femme Lyre: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Femme_lyre.jpg
• “The Isle Of Mist” can be found at:  https://archive.org/stream/celticlyrecollec04whyt#page/n3/mode/2up