Wandering assignment

For my project I decided to "wander" through historic Japantown in San Jose.  San Jose's Japantown is 121 years old and is one of the last three remaining Japantowns in the USA. I decided to create a map based on my sense of smell. I started at the corner of 4th and Jackson and walked to 6th and Jackson and back.

Taqueria Corona smelled of fresh tortillas and corn chips.

Walking down the street, we passed a fresh wood chip pile.

Fresh coffee wafted through the doors of this converted gas station.

Roy's Station- best coffee in town.

This place had a distinctive smell that I realized was a candle they were burning when I entered.

Gifts Kogura, an amazing store that included everything from Cupie Dolls to $1,000.00 Sushi knives. They burn Sandlewood incense to lure customers. 

A place I'd never noticed, Jackson Street Hair and Nails smelled of coconut and tropical lands...

My favorite place in Japantown, The Japanese Market... Even though they sell the best sushi in town, they still smell like fish and inside in one corner, they smell of wasabi.

A box of flowers lined the street...

Amidst the flowers were mint plants.

The best thing I happened upon was a gallery.

It smelled of copper and propane.

Caden loved the fountains and stone sculptures we discovered on entry.

Ken, the owner of the facilities, showed us the gallery. It was the most amazing gem I've found in a long time. They had everything from stone sculptures and ceramic pieces to intricite glass pieces. See me for more information!

 

The tough guy noticed the bar and doubled back.

It smelled of stale booze and cigarette butts.

The sign that led us to the back... If you can't appreciate the art here, well....

Following the light to the bar... Don't worry, I didn't let him go in.

And finally, almost back to our car... It smelled like soy sauce and amazing noodles. 

All in all, Caden and I spent nearly 2 hours wandering a 3 block area. And finally it was nap time.

Wandering

I have decided to wander through San Jose's Japantown and wander the streets of Jackson and Empire following a "map" of scents. In a condensed 5 block period there are many shops with incense, a fish market, coffee shops and many types of restaurants. It's a place I've been to hundreds of times and yet I only visit a few set places.

Layar's weaknesses

There are a few problems that I can see with Augmented Reality programs like Layar so far. The biggest problem for me is the amount of time it takes for images to load on the phone and the amount of battery power one viewing takes. Another big issue I experienced was the inconsistency of the gps from phone to phone. Images were found in places far from where they were placed and each phone viewed them in different locations. I can see this being a big problem if you are doing a locative piece and are relying on information or sound to be experienced in a specific space. The project I was thinking about doing for my final project is reliant on sound and information being viewed in specific locations and at this point it seems this technology is not quite there. Despite its failings, it shows incredible potential. I'm hoping that in the next few years we will see improvement.

Hamlet's Blackberry

William Power's also wrote a book and was interviewed on NPR, it's about how to lead a balanced life in the age of technology, here is a link to the podcast: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128364111

The Shallows

I just started, The Shallows:What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains  by Nicholas Carr. He takes a look at how the internet is affecting our brains by using Neuroscience. So far it's interesting. I'll keep you posted.

There is also an interview with him discussing the book on a podcast: http://blog.thephoenix.com/blogs/phlog/archive/2011/02/25/podcast-william-powers-amp-nicholas-carr-on-the-internet-and-the-state-of-our-braaains.aspx

He also wrote an article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?”

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/6868/

Tiffany Schlain

Tiffany Schlain's: “Yelp With Apologies to Allen Ginsberg's Howl”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UowVsL3dXjM

This is amazing! It's a cry to our current generation to “unplug”.

There is a podcast on KQED's Forum that is an interview with her about her new film “Connected”, which just opened in theaters. Her view about technology and the future seems much less dystopian than so many other artists'. Here is the link for that: http://www.podfeed.net/episode/Tiffany+Shlains+Connected/3147269

Locative Art Project

I am interested in oral histories. The greatest things I have collected from traveling has been sounds and people's stories. I decided to create a family history page for my aunt and uncles. They were raised in the Central Valley; they spent their youths picking cotton and working on dairy farms. There were 5 kids in the family and they moved many times (this collection is only a few places they lived). 

We went to Chowchilla and Gustine to the houses and spots they haunted as youths. I took gps waypoints at each location and documented information as well as took pictures and recorded them telling stories. I created a digital tour in google earth but was frustrated with it's limitations, so I created a webpage with all of the information so I could have more aesthetic control. I also created a postcard with a QR code, which connects the recipient with my link. The QR code postcard is being mailed to my family members to request them to participate in the project. I created a blog as well on the website so they can add their stories.