Criticism: Accepted

Part 2:

A) One of the reasons I chose to bring the sticker is because I still have it: I dont have very many things. My room isnt decorated, I pride myself on being able to move by simply throwing all of my stuff into the back seat of a Honda, and I regularly purge and simplify.

So when I look in my backpack and rediscover this sticker, I am reminded of how much joy it brings me and how I dont want to forget the attitude of the guy who made it. His name was Randall, he was an MFA student at UCSD, and the sticker is a token of his personality. He was self effacing, but surprisingly confident enough to do the things that made him happy - He built a skateboarding ramp in his studio; he created a comic strip that figured prominently in his thesis....

The Reich book was chosen simply because its the most insightful work of nonfiction i've ever read. A typical readthrough of this book will explain to you the appeal of yoga, that posture is telling, the connection between hyptertension and the inability to enjoy sex (a chief reason for what pharmaceutical ads refer to as 'ED' or frigidity), how psychological attitudes express themselves in the physique, and some theories for the mass psychology of fascism.

Lastly, the Sketchbook was chosen because it is a unconscious diary ( the best kind ) of the most uncertain period of my life. The drawings, notes, reminders, book recommendations, phone numbers, and even nonsense comprise a very compelling profile.

B + C) If you didn't have the 'Weepies" sticker in front of you, I could best classify it as "underground advertisement." Of course, the appeal of an underground advertisement, like a punk band sticker, is that it is somehow nuanced and personal enough to have the hardcore authenticity that Madison avenue is eager to appropriate. You realize that it wasn't a marketing department that birthed the item, but someone very likely within the group or entity. In fact, when I look at the sticker, I see the personality of its creator....a compelling personality that pervades the comic strip and has yet to be derived or commoditized.

Content wise, the sticker is a play on a Wheaties box: Rather than success, the brand image is one of failure and despair. It sticker stands as a 1 frame comic that showcases less the character involved and more the sensibility of its creator: As in, this is not garfield's lust for lasagna, but the sense of humor of the man behind him. Noticeably, the sticker is unstuck...because I'm saving it and unwilling to slap it on the back of a street sign (as would probably more benefit the creator). BTW: http://www.kleemanandmike.com/

As for the Reich book, of particular interest is how it departs from Freud and inner circle of psychoanalysis (of which Reich was a part before being excommunicated for his work - I'm not sure if i just invoked Galileo). While traditional psychoanalysis functioned mostly on the subconscious and manifestations in the relationship with the analyst, Reich's work is interesting for its attempt to see the work of the psyche manifest itself in the body and its attitudes. Though the work speaks with authority, a rational skeptic wont see it as a Bible, but as a source from which certain pieces ring very true.

Or principal interest in the book is society's attitude towards sexuality. From the reading, we can infer much about the Germany that Reich grew up in, and see why the 60s counterculture movement embraced him and his work. Unfortunately for the counterculture, there must have been a misunderstanding as in my opinion Reich was not espousing free love and free sex, but the development of individuals who are not locked in combat with themselves.

In fact, i believe this self-acceptance, and lack of dissonance is what is so compelling about the book. I admire it for its humanity and i think i would like to think that i chose it because its a line of thought that seems to have all of our best interests at heart.

The sketchbook is compelling as an assemblage. There are drawings, writings, newspaper clippings, movie tickets, flyers, gifts, and basically anything that could have come my way at the time. As its creator, I can use it as a memory aid...I assume for anyone else it could be a look into my personality or a sign of the times. I think its primary value is as a document with a place; with context. One page would be confusing, but the sum of every page takes form.

If anything of mine were to survive into the future, I hope that it would be one of my sketchbooks and in particular this one. This is not because they put my best foot forward in any way, but because they are quite real and legitimate in the sense that any student of history could appreciate (they border on embarrassing). I have photo album's of my Grandpa during the war, from about the same age, and to contrast: I don't really shoot photographs of myself, but i think that this book could be a worthy substitute.

D)

The Sticker - I dont know how to make a sticker. I want to make a sticker. What would my sticker be? Do i even have anything to advertise?

The Book - I dont know why, after his early career, this guy went on trying to seed clouds and create orgone boxes. I would like to find out why he became so 'disreputable' and see if I agree. I also dont know if the lab from which i took this book knows if its missing. It meant a lot to me, and so I justified stealing it with the fact that it was sitting unread is some dank corner of the college, but i wonder if someone misses it.

The Sketchbook - I wonder how someone besides me really percieves it. I wonder if lack of conscious authorship can really yield anything? I wonder if i could user test my sketchbook? I wonder if anyone would even be interested? (i like this)

Part 3:

Similarities - I think these are all personal works, or at least reflect the personality of their authors. Actually, i think at the VERY least they have a real vantage point, a real viewpoint, and i find that compelling. They are oriented and unashamed while at the same time avoiding narcissism because they have a literal purpose aside from communicating the author.

Area of interest/questions - Receding into the background while still being seen, playfulness, insight, humor, humanism