A POLITICAL ISSUE

Leveling Appalachia

"The legacy of mountain removal mining"

This is a political issue. Researching about this topic made me understand more about how a beautiful picture can have such a brutal effect on peoples lives. Well the image above was taken by a photographer from yales university, an image of moutaintops being removed for coal mining. 

The video below is a video report produced by Chad A. Stevens from yale environmental360 which collaberated with Mediastorm, about practice of mountaintop removal mining which is destroying mountains and streams and covering thousands of streams in southern west Virginia and other states in the United States, it has also affected the quality of the drinking water in the surrounding areas and has caused floods. Many families had lost their homes due to these devastating experiments. Parts of mountains are blown to bits, burning coal is a huge pollution for the environment, has devastating effects on human health and cause birth defects. James Hanson reports that (burning all fossil fuels will destroy the future of the young and the unborn. The fossil fuel that must stop burning is coal, coal is the critical issue. Coal is the main cause of climate change to the atmosphere, it is the dirtiest fossil fuel-air pollution.) There was alot of protesting about this matter and still today. Will they or can they put the moutains and forest back the way it was? No of cause they can't. Many wonderful memories of what was once beautiful now destroyed and taken away from tens of thousands of people.

A PLEA TO THE PRESIDENT OBAMA:

(End mountaintop coal mining)

The Obama administration is being forced into political compromise. It has sacraficed a strong position on mountaintop removal in order to ensure the support of coal-state legislators for climate bill. The political pressures are very real. But this is an approach to coal that defects the purpose of the administration's larger efforts to fight climate change, a sad political bargain that will never get them the change they need on mountaintop removal, coal or the climate.

MY POLITICAL SAY

I think the president should take this matter of mountaintop removal seriously. There are alot of main issues here, coal mining is polluting the environment, climate changes which isn't healthy for all. Water is not drikabe, civilians nearby are worried their homes will be destroyed by flood ,not just by floods but by top of mountains being bombed which will obviously cause an avalanche which will destroy homes below. There are lives at stake here, most people can not afford to move to other environments. I do pity these civilians and the environment I would help protest against the mountaintop removal coal mining. Save the habitat, save the environment, save lives.

Blog3..Stencil artist..Image

Meek is or shell I say was the very first stencil street artist in the early 2000s in Melbourne, Australia. Meek had either retired or changed his tag name to something else, Meek is nowhere to be seen or heard of again. The image's above are some of his first stencil art designs of the street art boom in the early 2thous, Melbourne. Meek still holds the best test of time in terms of crispness and overall design. I chose these image's because they all relate to me in different ways,(first image) I did all through secondary school for shoes and lunch, (second image) relates to me because I aloud to be pushed around like a doll controlled by strings, (last image) fist in front, makes me feel stronger now in life, I have more control of me than ever.

alternative diary scan..photoshop textile..Image

These are scaned pictures from my alternative diary to the computer then loaded on to photoshop to edit afew text in the image's.. above: magazine cut out of a dragon then pasted onto the diary. Below: paper and magazine cut outs then pasted onto the diary to form the Cook island flag. I found this task on photoshop enjoyable, twas fun.

week5..Panoramic photoshop merge..Lens

Photos taken for panoramic photoshop merge.

Merged three of the above photos on photoshop, right of the picture is disorded, photos taken without tripod. To do this task again guess a tripod would be handy if I want my photo's alined straight.

Manifesto..week4..

There are no difference between cultures, our art is our equal against all odds. We find ourselves within art that reflects on true identity like a rose that grew from concrete.

Path is only a continuum, we believe that good ideas come from our culture.

FAMOUS QUOTE FROM TUPAC SHAKUR: We wouldn't ask why a rose that grew from the concrete for having damaged petals; in turn, we would all celebrate its tenacity, we would all love its will to reach the sun, well, we are the roses, this is the concrete and these are my damaged petals, don't ask me why, thank God, and ask me how.

WK5 Photography..Direct..Diffused..Reflector

 Direct light..shallow DOF

Direct light..Deep DOF

Diffused light..Shallow DOF

Diffused light.. Deep DOF

Reflector light.. Deep DOF

BloG4.. Illustration..Mundo

Ray Frendon a comic illustrater and artist from Chicago, united states did this piece on Ren and Stimpy for Nickelodeon as part of a limited edition artist poster set. I have researched on some of his works and like his art work its's somewhat different to what kind of comic art I like, I'm more into fantasy, dark ages, gothic, hero, power, angels and demons and Gods fighting type of comics. 

This image interest me it looks strange, kind of unorthodox. It's another one piece of Ray Frendon's work, It's a collage of his interest I'm guessing. It's Awesome I like.

Portrait idea...fantasy art.. Lens

Gooogle search "fantasy art" image idea for self portraits. 

Fantasy worlds..Lens

Fantasy worlds

Above - forrest, stream, waterfall, animals, castle and high mountains at back.

Below - Historical asian buildings on top of high rock mountains in mist of clouds.

Google image search on fantasy art

Statement.. Lens

Koi Kaukura is my name I am Cook Island born raised in Auckland nz. Been drawing on and off during the years while growing up just didn't take the opportunity earlier to further my education with art due to lack of confidence. I took up art school as a consideration in 2013. I have completed my certificate in visual arts and now am heading towards my diploma.

Amongst many things I have learnt, Photography was one subject I was interested in, why? because of how it was taken and where. There are many, many things I need to learn more about photography I am glad that I have been given this opportunity to learn more during my year now at art school. 

Video art is where I want to head I was inspired by CLINTON WATKINS work on colour frequency. It was a video on digital colour abstract sound frequency. It took me places where I've never been, I felt like an electric energy ran through my veins. I loved that feeling. What I want to do is use my own drawings as an abstact video using sound . 

Landscape using photoshop…IMAGE

Three nz landscapes used in this image using photoshop.

Core skill lens..Wrong Photos

Over exposed

Colour cast Blue

Colour cast Green

Under exposed

Blurd

Frozen Movement..Lens

Deep DOF….Photography..Lens

Shallow DOF… Photography..Lens

Blur Of Isolated Thing..

How I want my blog

I want my blog to be about my own works such as drawings, photography work, video and documentations on work progress.

Researching information about artist's works that inspires me and putting them and their particular works on my blog.

Gallery visits, family, music, friends, school and many other things that I know will come to thought later down the track.

I'm very new to blogs I have never blogged ever. This is quite exciting for me I'm learning as I go along. Reading other peoples blogs actually helps with my blogging. I will get better at this I know it so bear with me reader.  

My inspiration My influencer

Growing up with three sisters in Auckland was a really bad experience for the four of us. Going through everything together and shearing each others thoughts and emotions, comforting each other everyday telling one another that it'll be okay for us one day. Marie the oldest of us four was like a older mentor for us though she was not that older than I she took the roll as the parent for us three younger siblings. 

Growing up was very difficult for the four of us. When we reached a certain age we all went our own separate ways still left with many, many horrible scars from our childhood. Marie found herself helping families with simular problems we went through as children.

Marie graduated her bachelor's for social science at MIT. Becoming a social worker for families and children had always been her dream. She helps with voluntary work for her community, she does her best to keep kids off the streets and stay in school, children in poverty she closely works with.

I chose to write about my sister because she is a huge inspiration to not just me but to many others.  Shes very energetic, strong, friendly, hard working, independent, motivating, helpful, sociable individual. Knowing how busy her schedule is she always has time for her four children. 

After many years of having countless talks with Marie I finally took up art school as a consideration last fall with the help of alot of motivation up lifting tetermination one on ones with sister Marie. I don't think I'll be learning more about what I'm really passionate about if it wasn't for her inspiration.