Kurosh ValaNejad

"The Night Journey" and "Flower" are in Peru

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:50:39 -0800

The Night Journey and Flower are included in the exhibit VIDEO GAMES: Tales of Play, Adventures of the Unexpected Centro Fundación Telefónica, Lima, Peru; July 23rd - October 4th, 2009

"Fly with the Cage" Art Exhibit

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:57:00 -0800

My computer animation, When Summer Falls, will be screened at the Fly with the Cage Art show, July 10 – 26, 2009 If you can’t fly out of the cage, just fly with the cage. – Sufi Proverb Phantom Galleries LA, Miracle Mile, 5412 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA

"The Cat and the Coup" in Artillery Magazine

Fri, 29 May 2009 11:10:16 -0800

"The package starts with Peter Brinson's documentary videogame about U.S.-Iran relations; art director Kurosh ValaNejad, a Spacialist in the virtual sciences, discusses a game design that takes on psychology, history, conservatorship, and orthogonal math." Carrie Paterson, Worlds of Science, Artillery magazine, May/June 2009 Moving Forward by Looking Back: Documentary Videogame Illuminated by Persian Miniatures by Kurosh ValaNejad The Cat and the Coup embraces the nature of videogames as participatory media to tell a dramatic biographical story of Dr. Mohammed Mossadegh, Prime Minister of Iran. Mossadegh was democratically elected in 1951 and overthrown the night of August 19, 1953 by a U.S.-engineered coup d’état. The documentary game focuses on an aspect of warfare that has little presence in videogame history - covert military interventions carried out by the Central Intelligence Agency - while implicating its players in the result.

Anonymous or Synonymous

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:05:25 -0800

Why did Al Jazeera obscure the face of Baitullah Mehsud, Waziristan’s Taliban commander, with a white glow rather than the conventional pixilation or black box approach? From FRONTLINE’s The War Briefing Certainly they are aware that this veiling method is historically used in Persian miniatures to obscure the face of the Prophet Mohammad. From, The Ascension of Muhammad, from Haft Awrang by Jami, 1556-65, Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.. One of the many versions of the veiled Prophet’s mystical journey.

Butte Discovered in the Uncanny Valley

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 12:54:57 -0800

Performance within the Uncanny Valley only seems believable on virtual characters with creepy body-language, like zombies in horror flicks. But there is another set of mannerisms that may prove as successful on hyper-realistic models and that is the chaotic jerks associated with seizure disorders, like epilepsy, and tic disorders, like Tourrette syndrome. The difference being that this class of expressions can generate sympathy in the audience, rather than revulsion which is typically associated with this phenomenon. Judge for yourself by making the trek to the Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach to see Call Me Ishmael by Daniel Joseph Martinez. This sculpture that looks just like its creator, uses hydraulics to mimic everything from small spasms to violent seizures, and includes an eye-roll that gave me a strong urge to hold him so he would stop hurting himself.

Art is ...

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 21:07:37 -0800

... contemplating Nature to divine its Spirit.

Shahre Farang

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:48:27 -0800

An Ancient Persian Device of Wonder These pictures were grabbed from a short clip about Iran's Film Museum. And to learn more about Iran's film history check out: Iran, A Cinematic Revolution.

Rapid Prototyping Workshop

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 07:24:31 -0800

Instructors: Kurosh ValaNejad (CTIN) and Ann Page (FA) Day and Time: Friday, Nov. 7th, 2008, 1-4:00p.m As part of the workshop, we will be printing up to 8 small (3"x3"x3") models (4 from Fine Art and 4 from the Cinema school.) Let me know if you have something you would like printed (especially if it's for a class project) . I will work with you to prepare your models for the printer. I may also use your models in the workshop, to describe the process for preparing virtual models for the 3D printer.

Truth Invaders

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:43:22 -0800

Truth Invaders is a new game by Jeremy Bernstein Some of you may remember Jeremy from his work with Chris Swain at the Game Innovation Lab. He worked on both Immune Attack v1.0 and The Redistricting Game.

Craving Body Heat? Chew some gum.

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:14:16 -0800

Dentyne "Face Time" Advert, 2008 Is this a reaction to facebook,and it's derivatives?

XBox Commercials

Sun, 28 Sep 2008 10:47:59 -0800

Live Your Moment Campaign Movies Lego, Batman Rock Band 2 Jump In Campaign Never Aired (I flintched in sync with the cab driver!?) Jumping the Rope And the Hilarious Life is Short

Sketch Theatre

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 13:29:31 -0800

http://www.sketchtheatre.com/

3D Motion Holograms at Gnomon Gallery

Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:56:55 -0800

The pieces are printed in the amazing form of RabbitHoles state-of-the-art digital motion holograms, which display 1280 frames of full-color, 3D imagery with up to seven seconds of fluid and seamless animation on a completely flat surface. Here's an example. Click to see it move! The Hide by Taron Closing Party for the show is this Wedn, Sept 17th, 6 - 10pm Gnomon Gallery 1015 N Cahuenga Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038

"Powers of Ten"

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 15:44:56 -0800

Making Strange: Rooftop Sci-Fi at the Westin Bonaventure Aug 14, 21, and 28, 2008 Thursdays at dusk To celebrate the recent launch of Afterall 18, please join us for a three-week rooftop series of sci-fi inspired films and artists videos screened atop the landmark Westin Bonaventure Hotel and Suites in Downtown Los Angeles. All outdoor screenings are FREE and begin at dusk. In the high season of summer blockbusters, this series presents low-fi cult features and artist videos that use elements of science fiction to cast new light on earthly struggles and everyday phenomena. The title refers to the artistic concept of ostranenie, or defamiliarization, through which known things are made to appear strange, heightening one�s perception of the familiar. Outer space is used as a metaphor for psychological inner space, post-apocalyptic futures and interplanetary utopias are imagined through the quotidian lens of social progress, and android life illuminates human dysfunction on Earth. Thursday, August 14 Powers of Ten (Charles and Ray Eames, 1977, 9 min.) Solyaris (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1972, 163 min.) Thursday, August 21 Ascension of the Demonoids (George Kuchar, 1985, 46 min.) Sins of the Fleshapoids (Mike Kuchar, 1965, 43 min.) Thursday, August 28 Double Lunar Dogs (Joan Jonas, 1984, 24 min.) Space is the Place (John Coney, 1974, 82 min.) Westin Bonaventure Hotel and Suites 404 South Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90071 Screenings will be held on the Plaza Pool Deck, 4th floor. Blankets and pillows are encouraged, as seating will be limited. Street parking, or City National Garage (on Flower Street), $10 with validation. Hotel valet, $25. For programming updates, please consult our website: www.afterall.org/events You can also reach us at losangeles@afterall.org or +1 661 253 7722. This event is made possible with generous support from the Westin Bonaventure Hotel and Suites, Los Angeles, and additional support from the Eames Office, LLC.

Virtuelle Mauer/Reconstructing the Wall

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:34:11 -0800

In the interactive art project “Virtuelle Mauer/ReConstructing the Wall” the artist team T+T (Tamiko Thiel and Teresa Reuter) have created a virtual reconstruction of a section of the Berlin Wall, from the former border crossing Heinrich-Heine-Straße up to the Engelbecken/Adalbertstraße. Visitors are invited to explore this immersive 3D virtual space, experiencing what it meant to live "in the shadow of the Wall." The world premiere is August 13th in Berlin The US premiere on November 9th in Seattle.