Diego Castañeda's 4D Intermedia Blog

 This project was a difficult one for me. I could not figure out how to invert my perspective and end where I began at the same time. So I decided to do a fit check of myself from the perspective of 3 animals and my perspective. The meaning behind this piece was quite simple and it really just was how we look to others. I showed what I looked like in the perspective of an ant, a mouse, a dog and finally my perspective. As it was a short project, my writing will be.  I was unable to upload my videos as they were too big so they are attached in private emails. 

     For this project, I decided to tackle Creeds letters to himself. I scaled his original project down and made them personal to each classmate and professor. I made three personalized pastel papers with the words was, is, and will be on them. The colors were based off of the characteristics and personalities of my classmates as I got to know them this semester and what they liked to surround themselves with. I wanted to provide a space for people to write a short message to themselves in the past, present, and future and then I will finish off the piece by sending the individual books to their rightful owners after some time passes. I played some instrumental piano music and left the room so the authors of their books could have the time with themselves. I thoroughly enjoyed working with pastels and the moving of color too and from a space. I hope those that participated enjoyed it as much as the director. 

      For my Prop and Generosity piece, I wanted to tackle the words of affirmation love language. It was a quite simple piece and I unfortunately forgot to take pictures of the process but hopefully my writing will let your imagination do the rest. I took simple paper and envelopes and wrote three positive affirmations for each of my peers and professor and taped it to the bottom of their chair. The words were affirmations that I had noticed as the semester carried on from their personality or art. I hoped that a simple compliment from a stranger or a not as close friend meant as much to them as they mean to me. After retrieving from the bottom of their chairs we sat on the stairs, in the sun, and read them to ourselves. My hopes and meaning behind my simple act was shown as my peers, from what I could tell, felt touched and seen which is all I could ask for. All in all, words of affirmation whether it be your love language or not can go a long way.

For this assignment, Three of us were put into groups and instructed to find the spot right in the middle of where we lived. We need to create our piece and install it in the center point of our living spaces. I was teamed up with Mia and Diego M, who live in the GLC and Armington. I live in Van Kampen, and the center point was in the parking lot.  Instead of doing our full piece here, we decided to turn the  campus map into a treasure map. Using vinyl to mark an X on the spot, we lead our class on a treasure hunt to the bottom of the river bed. We then constructed a treasure chest out of cardboard, putting our own artistic touches on each piece. The final result was a chest with a "take something leave something" motto. I really enjoyed collaborating with other like minded artists and seeing the thrill of the hunt on my classmates faces.

       For my Ritual Installation, I chose the picnic table overlooking the baseball field outside of Winter. I chose this place because it is one of my favorite places to study as the view is amazing, and it is quiet, but the sounds of life are always amazing. I decided to sit down, for five minutes, five days in a row, and spin a metal ruler on a pencil. While I spun my ruler I listened to some of my most memorable songs over the last five years and reflected and journaled a few sentences about those years post listen. It was a new experience for me, although not creating a piece of art it was an extremely therapeutic and artful task. The pictures below chart the journey of my pencil and journal, some of which was filled and the other, taken away. 

 For the Measuring Histories prompt, I wanted to bring the class along with me to a Castañeda family event. I wanted to bring their taste buds on a journey to every family gathering I enjoyed with my Peruvian side of my family. Lomo Saltado is a Peruvian staple that is found across restaurants whether they are a hole-in-the-wall or a Michelin Starred restaurant, and I wanted to bring the 4D class into my home and let the experience a bit of my childhood. The cooking side of the dish was a little stressful for me just because of a lack of experience cooking Lomo Saltado, although, in the end I was able to piece it together and deliver the dish for my classmates. I really enjoyed this project and the nostalgic process that went into presenting and bringing this to my peers.