The Infinity Box

It's the expressive tool of the Cultural Anthropologist. It's public, being less than 4 feet from the street. It's safe to paint on it with any intention; it's on private property. Because its interior is mirrored, one can stick their head inside to experience infinite reflections - a meaning making tool. It sits on a lazy susan (spins) without restriction. Culturally derived anthropological questions will be formulated. A polaroid camera and pinhole photographs will be used to document & contribute to an archive focusing on 'The Infinity Box's" transformation over time.

Preparation

My son's [COVID] Spring semester unravelling was the essential indicator that it was time to take his education (he entered 9th grade the Fall 2020) into my own hands. I was going to introduce him to Physics, Algebra II / Trig, and Cultural Anthropology, while his mother was going to coach literature in the context of various 'ologies'. Although I'm a traditional textbook individual, I gravitate towards creating & experimenting with projects that are hands on, requiring serious effort.

I was working on a 3'x3'x3' mirrored cube, "The Infinity Box" when I began to consider curriculum, textbooks, and appropriate projects. Bottom line, I wanted my son to experiment with sculpture, publically visible painting styles & intention(s). And, I wanted him to utilize the values of pinhole & polaroid photography & its methods.

Developing visual solutions for the timeless withstanding of ideas.

My son and I designed and built an outdoor structure to relocate our old woodworking shop (Jasper's Studio) that is transforming into a darkroom. My son chose the footprint, dimensions, and pitch of the roof. We started only knowing where to pour footers and that 4'x4' posts were going to support the structure's normal force. My son wanted to use rebar and I wanted to repurpose the glass from an old coffee table. We just started building, finishing in three weeks.

Freedom

Each class students create, using varied media, work that isn't graded or critiqued; the only judges they have are themselves. I'v found when students exercise creative freedom, discourse between students develops with substance and depth.

The Darkroom

My creative drives previously were wound up with film based photography; I loved to play in the darkroom. It's magic! I wanted to expose my son to its brilliance. In theory, this was a solid idea, alternative classroom. My son made 2 pinhole cameras (one round & one rectangular). Although he satisfied his darkroom assignments, he never caught the bug. I thought I would reflame my interests - they smoldered.

Developing visual solutions for the timeless withstanding of ideas.

Mid-summer I knew I was going to be teaching online courses at WNMU. I'm not a fan or advocate of using ZOOM as the primary way to receive a lecture. I needed to have the freedom to be animated, to have access to the excitment of working out a problem on a large board. I built a 4'x8' whiteboard using plywood and dry erase paint. My bedroom had transformed into a lecture hall.

Anthropology

It's the most relevant and palpable of the social sciences. We completed all assignments with the exception of reading Kottak's, "Assault on Paradise." Video archiving transformed into creating an "archive" for public consumption.