Monday, May 2, 2011

The Barnstormers

The Barnstormers - Apostrophe from David Ellis on Vimeo.



Daily from David Ellis on Vimeo.



In my Asian American studies class we learned about a group called the Barnstormers. I thought they were pretty cool so I thought I would share a couple of their videos. They are time stop videos of them just non-stop painting. The Barnstormers, is a New-York/Tokyo-based artist group. In exhibition they usually find a large open space. Then the space is basically just used for experimental art and they videotape the whole thing. Their work is temporary because it gets painting over and over and what you are left with is one image upon layers and layers of images it is the videos that capture everything. This is also the reason for why these videos are what is exhibited. One of the barnstormers exhibits usually occupy room with a video projector. Through video projection on its four surrounding walls, the box-shaped, room becomes a virtual theater.
David Ellis the one who started the Barnstormers is originally from North Carolina spent his time painting abandoned tobacco barns in his hometown. He started inviting people from around the US to come and paint with him. Nothing more just paint. That's were the barnstormers came to life. Today David Ellis lives in Brooklyn and the group that is constantly changing in members and numbers continues to paint. Each group member has their own style often falling under the umbrella or urban and pop-art.
I think it is cool to find a group that was solely found on the idea of just coming together and painting in a creative experimental space.

15 comments:

  1. I enjoy seeing how artists create their final pieces. It almost looks like it could be a stop-motion video.

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  2. A very cool concept indeed. Again, having that community to share and ignite creativity is a great resource.

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  3. I really enjoyed watching the second video. I like the painted design at around 3:00 and goes till about 4:00. Great clips!

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  4. I love time-lapse cameras! I swear they can make anything look cool.

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  5. This is awesome stuff, I like knowing how pieces are created, which is kind of a strange thing because now the piece might not be just the painting but potentially the video itself was the overall goal.

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  6. These videos really make me want to see the collaborators' solo work.

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  7. the concept seems like it would be really fun group to participate in and a great way to meet other artists. I wonder if this same concept of group art work would be if the media was changed.

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  8. Those videos are awesome. I was so transfixed.

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  9. I really enjoyed that second video, very interesting stuff!

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  10. cool video. i love the concept.

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  11. I loved the video. I felt that I would have a hard time parting with a piece I just created to just paint over it, but I guess that's something they obviously don't think about. Thanks for sharing!

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  12. Very cool videos! So creative and captivating.

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  13. Hmm I wonder what my work in process would look like on video...cool post!

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  14. Seeing how an artist does his or her work is always so inspirational.

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  15. i agree with shanna. time-lapse photography makes everything look awesome. the actual paintings are really awe-inspiring. i feel like a faux artist after watching these videos, haha. thanks for sharing!

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