Tuesday, April 21, 2015

NAC Jackpot Grant App



NAC Grant Application
Artist = Jake Peck                                                                              4/20/15




LOG LIGHT
This project is of “ready-made materials”, some man made and others made by nature itself. Through this project I want to engage the viewer on the topic of technology and nature. Today we see cell phone/receiver towers “dressed” up as trees in efforts to disguise and blend into natural habitats. I want to take this concept and speak to its absurdity and question where is the line between nature and technology, if there is one.

Authorizing Official Name: Jake Peck
Authorizing Official Address: 4529 Chicaroo St. Reno, NV 89511
Phone: 775-789-2964

Primary Contact Name: Jake Peck
            ·  Primary Contact Address 4529 Chicaroo St. Reno, NV 89511  
            ·  Primary Contact Phone 775-789-2964
            ·  Primary Contact Email susejybabdnadog@gmail.com
            ·  Applicant Status artist  
            ·  · Grantee Race white
            ·  · Type of Activity mixed media
            ·  · Discipline electronic sculpture






This projects projected location of display is gallery space as well as a select location in Tahoe for a limited, one night, showing and photograph shoot. The project concists of twenty logs that have lights wired to the logs. The lighting houses will be older style lights from a possible era of 50s, to speak to the industrial boom of America at the time. The lights will be connected to an arduino to control the on and off technicalities of the lights. The arduino will be set to a random pattern to speak to the randomness of nature while the electronics will be fully visable to the viewer to speak to the deep roots electronics have in our human existence. The funding for the project provided by NAC will purchase all electronics such as specific lights to arduinos to wiring and antique light housings.
Our community needs open dialogue surrounding the topic of nature and technology and where the line is drawn between the two, if it is at all. And what the two have in relation to each other or how they harm one another. Too often we use technology for human gain and disregaurd nature, harming animals and habitats for human needs and desires and we rarely see the effects of our distruction through technology. With technology being so advanced we have the ability to use for good or bad and openly talking about the subject would not only raise awareness of the matter but discussion.
Target audience for this project is all, young and old. This topic effects all humans and has no prejudices, for we all live on this planet and if the age of technology takes over without control then are we to see the likes of “Matrix” become our reality? Too much of a good thing is not good and just as harmful as a bad thing. Technology has so many benefits to our community and human race but it is easy to get out of control and the major logging industry has only advanced so far due to its technology.
As a professional artist I feel my knowledge is deeply rooted in this field because I study in the field of agriculture and rely heavily upon technology in order to advance in my work but also at times feel guilty due to my practices of disturbance and waste. Also I’ve worked with a fracking company to learn more of the process, and although I value the outcome, the process is damaging as well the after effects. These experiences has opened my eyes to what we as humans might have wrong in terms of how to treat this earth in relationship with technology. We have advanced so far in the field of technology but I feel we do little with it to benefit nature. With my knowledge in sculpture and electronics, I feel I am able to produce work that will be visually inviting to the viewer, making them ask questions to a piece they become visually interested in.
My project deserves public funding because it serves direct purpose to the public, to open dialougue among our community as well with other cultures. The topic of nature and technology has become nature vs technology and its up to the masses to keep order and bring balance within our race of humans.
I would like to hold an open press conference to bring knowledge to my project and give dates and locations for viewing. A photo shoot of my project is part of my concept too, in order to sell the project to other galleries for viewing in other regions all over the country. The ironic part to the project is I will be using social media technology in order to promote my project to engage viewership and excitement of my project, to spread word and gain attendance.
In order to evaluate the impact of my project I will have surveys at the exit of the gallery, asking individuals for their feedback about the project and what they thought of the project and what they got out of the experience. My goals to open dialogue will be determined if my project engages public discussion of the topic nature and technology, wether it be through local news or just social media sites, that will have to be determined in the process.
Projected Expenses:
-       Arduino Uno Kits (x20)  = $500
-       Wiring  = $200
-       Relays  = $150
-       Prepaired logs  = $400
-       Extras  = $200
NAC Grant Request: $1,000.00 of $1,450.00



Jake Peck
Artist


Tuesday, April 14, 2015





Responding to Heidegger

In response to Heidegger I would like to re-engineer dining lights into nature by forming them to a tree stump. I want the tree stump to speak to the nature side of Heidegger and though it will be a dead remnant of a living tree I think this will allow for the conversation to go both ways in order to speak to the living nature we are overtaking with our technology but also the decomposition of nature which we have over run with technology.  I want the lights to randomly turn on and off through a random set pattern using an arduino. The randomness will speak to the random arrangement of nature and its design, which we do not implicate through our technology. Although the randomness of the patterns of the lights will truly not be “random” due to the set coding done by the arduino, it will have no specific pattern for one to follow and distinguish. The lights will randomly turn on and off from one another and link up from time to time but with no specific agenda. The pairing up will speak to the relationship we as humans have we nature as we tend to be in sync at times by using technology to create solar panels in order to friendly harvest the suns rays as power yet most companies producing solar panels and the construction of such devices rely heavily on coal powered operations, being out of sync with nature.

The Log Light will be installed in a gallery setting but will have the same effects if installed outside in a meadow or in the desert. The log itself will be harvested from the forest in hopes to find a rustic log that shows signs of a stressed nature and the wear of time. The lights which will be attached to both ends of the log will be of a vintage quality, to hopefully hark to the age of Heidegger’s essay but any era will do just as long it is not present day. I feel it is important to have an aged log with dated lights due to the fact of the time period of which Heidegger brought up these issues. His points are still very valid today and still address some major issues we have with technology as we advance further and further into a technology driven land.  I will also be adding on relays to the project in order for the arduino to switch on and off the lights. My hope for the viewer when both lights are off to see a morphed, aged log with lights attached to both ends and question the purpose, as too is so much of Heidegger’s writing questioning the purpose and meaning behind technology and what is to become. I want the viewer to question when the lights might turn back on if they are to turn back on at all and possibly wonder why we rely so heavily on technology. These questions and more I hope to invoke through the viewer and have them contemplate through a viewed experience of my Log Light.