postarchitec |
Subdivisions, Stripmalls,
& Postmodernism
This was the first video that I shot. It was made to show the influence of the
Postmodern architectural style on select El Paso buildings. This piece, more
than the others, I feel is a catalog of buildings in El Paso which reflect a
particular style. This is the only video which does not focus on one building,
but rather a style. This is important for the feel of the video, we do not connect
with any of the buildings, but than again, I edited the video in such a way
that the viewer does not get the chance to do so. In many ways, the editing
of this particular video mimics the architectural style which inspired it. Here,
we have short segments per building which all reflect the Postmodern influence,
they are similar to the idea of facade which is reiterated all through the video.
These short facades or segments work together as a cohesive whole, taken apart
and viewed separately, they would not function on their own.
The music also reflects,
justly, the Postmodern themes. This piece is not emotional and more accurately
sets up a tone of indifference. The music in this case, holds the images together
in reference to themselves and to the aural Postmodernism of the Primal Scream
music. This music was taken from the soundtrack to the film Trainspotting
and also available on one the Primal Scream albums. The music is detached and
is more a piece of just being rather than having any emotional attachments.
It can be viewed as cold and a bit cynical, but the importance is not in the
feeling of grandiosity or the ethereal dreams of friars and priests. We should
be listening to the music and be caught in the moment as life happens or as
is more often the case, passes by.