Collaboration, Copyleft and Dispersion: A Lecture with DEXTER SINISTER

September 4th, 2009 by Sydney

Aside from the fucking awesome cool shit- I mean… aspects of fantasy in real life that we find out in the world and post on this blog, we do have a few other interests, believe it or not.  And I would like to hope that the readers of this blog have checked out the main site at least once since it’s been up but I can’t be sure of that.  I don’t know if you’ve noticed this but the URL for this site is fantasyirl.net/blog.  Ever wonder would would happen if the /blog weren’t there?  Were would it take you?

Though the main site, fantasyirl.net, is headquarters of our ongoing project, Fantasy IRL, the official purpose of this blog has always been to act as a place where we can document our work as well as gather, collect and share our many influences, inspirations and interests not only as nerdy fangirls, but as artists.

So, what you’re about to read is my first post in a long time of any real substance! (Be excited) I present to you… *drum roll*… a special rant about collaboration, copyleft and artists/designers Dexter Sinister!

(It should be noted that the piece was originally written for the blog my design class keeps.)

Wednesday afternoon, I attended the lecture of visiting artists David Reinfurt and Stuart Bailey, collectively known as Dexter Sinister, at USC’s Roski Graduate School of Fine Arts. I felt compelled to go, not just because of the extra credit that I was offered from my design professor (though I must admit, it was nice incentive) but more because I was curious to hear the duo speak about their work as a collaborative team.

For the past several months, I’ve been working on my first collaborative project, tentatively called Fantasy IRL, with a fellow Roski student, which investigates fantasy and science fiction fan culture and their members’ methods of finding or enacting their fantasies in-real-life (IRL). I’ve found that people often underestimate the added pressures and responsibilities of working as a collaborative team as opposed to by one’s self and I was interested in observing the ways in which Reinfurt and Bailey interact and work with each other, and in this case, particularly in the public sphere.
They spoke they way their work looks: direct, plain and and well-researched. Their way of speaking was regimented and at times seemed planned, but not in a stiff or unnatural way. When there was a pause in the conversation, one would fluidly pick up where the other left off with plenty of things of his own to say, almost like they had their talk rehearsed down to an art in itself, which I’ve found that many artists do. Though I regret not asking them any questions during the Q&A about their practice as a collaborative team versus their individual practices, I later spoke with Shannon Ebner, artist, professor and head of Roski’s Photography Department, who, having collaborated with Dexter Sinister on a number of occasions herself, was able to further illuminate some of what I was further interested in knowing. From what she said, while working as Dexter Sinister, Reinfurt is more hands on with the actual designing of works and has a small design company of his own. Bailey, though still a designer, is more of the front-of-the-house kind of guy, talking and dealing with galleries, museums and whoever else they need to keep in contact with while making their work. This sort of pragmatic division of labor is something I find most helpful in my own collaborative dealings and processes and one that I hope we can further implicate in mine and my partner’s practices as we continue on with our project.

Aside from the inner working of Dexter Sinister as a team, I was particularly interested in how they deal with mechanical reproduction, copyright (or in their case copyleft), and dispersion of information in their work, all issues that I, as of laterly, have been considering and dealing with in my own artwork as an artist (issues that designers working in today’s world should be concerned with as well). Though photography itself is a form ofmechanical reproduction, the issue has only become more exaggerated with the current digital revolution. And as I have been using more and more digital means to produce my own work, work that also often deals with aspects of the digital age and a movement toward the future and technological singularity, I found their words and interests particularly applicable. Also, having recently become an avid blogger, I’ve had to become more and more aware of copyright laws and ways of legally dispersing information that might otherwise be illegal and it was interested to hear the ways they delt those issues as well. In one of their works in particular, the piece consisted of a copy machine and a number of loose chapters of a book on a table next to it.  Dexter Sinister found a loop hole in the book’s publisher’s copyright laws that allowed them to at any one time let any person make one photo copy of one chapter from the book and keep it without technically doing anything illegal. This also meant that technically the same person over the course of several hours or days could go back into the gallery and copy a different chapter of the book each time until they collected the whole book without ever having to pay for it.  Technically.

Though designers they may be, I’ve come to see, appreciate and respect Dexter Sinister more for their ideas and conceptual work as artists, rather than as designers (thought I must say, I do love the clean simplicity of their visual designs). Not only am I interested in now keeping up with their various publications, such as dot dot dot, but I’m excited to observe the way they will further adapt to the world in which they live and work as it continues to evolve around them, as well as keep track of more future incarnations of Dexter Sinister.

FANIME CON PANEL REVIEW: “HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS,” otherwise known as, “HOW TO STAY IN THE FRIEND ZONE FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE AND MAKE ALREADY AWKWARD SITUATIONS MORE AWKWARD”

June 9th, 2009 by Sydney

On Sunday at this year’s Fanime Con in San Jose, CA, a panel called “How to Talk to Girls” was held.  Three people (two girls and a guy who’s names I didn’t catch since the room was so loud) sat at a table in a large conference room, answering questions and giving advice to audience members.  I wish to God that the panelists gave better (and louder) introductions about themselves because I’m reeeeally curious to know what qualified them to be up there giving the advice they gave.

(If anyone out there knows, please fill me in.)

First of all, they kept encouraging the boys in thow to talk to girlshe room to stick to the “Friend Zone” strategy when trying to obtain a girlfriend.  Picture this: Only a few minutes into the two hour discussion, a boy approaches the microphone that stands at the center of the crowed, musky room and says something like, “So I’ve been in this girl’s friend zone for like six years.  How do I like get out of the friend zone?” The panelists tell him that the Friend Zone isn’t always bad and that he should stick with it while showing more obvious signs that he’s interested in this girl-friend of his.  For example, maybe he should get a little more physical with her, hugging her hello and goodbye or something like that if he doesn’t already, patting her on the back or arm, etc. Seconds later, a group of girls dressed up like Nintendo controllers, who happen to be sitting directly in front of bloggers Senna, Kristy and I, jump up and stomp over to the microphone.  They start squawking about how every boyfriend they have ever had started out in their Friend Zone and that sometimes a guy’s just gotta hang in their until the girl is ready to go out with them.  The panelists nod their heads in what looks like… agreement?  Or maybe they don’t really agree but their “Uh huhs” and “Yeahs” certainly don’t make them sound like they object much to what the Controllers have said.

Moments later, another girl runs up saying that her current boyfriend and her were friends before they took it to a more intimate level.  She goes on to suggest, “You should invite her out, preferably at night so you can light some candles get some mood light going. Then put on some Barry White.” Or was it Barry Manalow.  Shit, I don’t remember.  But it was something along those lines.  I look around the room and the sea of fanboys that surrounds me appear to be absorbing every word these girls say like they’re coming from the mouth of George Lucas himself.  Or Hideo Kojima.  Or whoever it is that they worship.

To my left, Senna is shaking her head and crying, “No! Don’t listen to them! The Friend Zone doesn’t always work!” I then turn to my left and see a frowning Kristy, who let’s out a simple, “Oh God,” from under her breath.  I join in with their cries of concern.  First, a soft “No.” Then louder.  And louder. “No… no… NO!! OH GOD, NO! DON’T DO IT!”  Senna and Kristy join in, “No! It doesn’t always work! It’s not a perfect system! Just be up front about it! If she’s interested, she’ll let you know! Don’t be creepy!” I look up and I see that the Controllers are back sitting in front of us again.  Oh shit! I think the Super Nintendo Controller just shot me the Evil Eye!

Finally, the three of us have had it, or at least Senna and I have.  The two of us get up and wait in the line that’s now formed behind the microphone.  When it’s finally our turn, we let ‘em know what’s good:

“Sorry, guys.  We’re not trying to rain on anyone’s parade but we just thought that you should know that the Friend Zone DOES NOT always work, despite what everyone here has been saying.  You run the risk of freaking the girl out and losing her as a friend by making moves on her out of the blue.  Sometimes the best thing is to just be upfront about it in the beginning.  If she’s into you, she’s into you. If she’s not, let it go.”  The panelists finally start talking a little sense.  “Oh yeah.  Sometimes the girl just isn’t into you, even if you’re her friend first.”  And then Senna says out of wholehearted empathy, “Oh, and also, don’t put video games before your girlfriend.  And don’t be an idiot.  It’s that simple…”  The room chuckled as if that was not a possibility-I mean video games or your girlfriend, come on!  No wonder you are sitting in a panel about how to talk to girls.

Senna and I go back to our seats and let out a sigh of relief, relief that only lasts maybe two seconds as another nervous-looking boy steps up to the microphone. He asks, “What do you do when you’re talking to a girl and it gets awkward?” The panelists’ advice? “Sometimes the best thing to do when a situation gets awkward is to talk about how awkward it is.  Say something like, ‘Hey! This is awkward!’” I almost fall out of my chair.  Are you kidding me? For the next 15 minutes, the panelists reiterate to the group over and over that the best thing to do in an awkward situation is talk about how awkward it is.  Uh, are you kidding me? This isn’t some cutesy Ryan Reynolds romantic comedy!  This is real life!  With real girls! Sure maybe some guys can pull that off but come on! At this point, the three of us have had it.  Holding nothing back, we start shouting, “No! No! Don’t do it! DON’T DO IT!” But alas, our cries fall flat, inaudible and lost among the mumbles of the misguided lost boys and the musings of the “How to Talk to Girls” panelists.  It’s no use.  We keep our mouths shut for the rest of the discussion and eventually leave quietly.

Of course, these were only two situations brought up during the two-hour talk.  I’m sure some advice they gave was at some point helpful to somebody in that room.  But honestly, we can’t really remember much of anything else that was said.  Maybe we mental blocked it.  Who knows? Oh! Except for the first kid to ask a question during the panel.  I don’t remember what he asked, only that it started with, “So me and my girlfriend– ” Before he could finish, some guy in the back cut him off, shouting, “LUCKY.”