Digital Story Title:

“Northern Virginia: A History of Changes by Those Who Call It Home”

Brief description:

Northern Virginia has grown and changed tremendously in the past 50 years.  The region morphed from being just a rural suburb of Washington DC into a dense and economically independent region in a relatively short amount of time.  This project explores the changes that have occurred, including population growth, transportation, and economic changes, through the words of long-time residents.  These residents have witnessed first-hand the dramatic changes that have taken place, and through their words this project demonstrates the recent history of change that defines today’s Northern Virginia.

Main goal(s):

Having just moved to the Northern Virginia area in September, I was instantly struck by the density of the region.  Looking into this defining factor of the area, I found that this population growth had really only occurred in the past 50 years or so.  Once just a suburb of Washington DC area, Northern Virginia now holds its own in terms of population, economics, and character.  I wanted to explore the reasons behind the change by finding long-term residents that could give me first-hand accounts of the changes that they experienced.

As an “outsider” to the region, I wanted to avoid telling this story through my own perceptions of the region.  Therefore, my project is narrated entirely by long-time residents, whose experiences with the region are far more compelling than my own.  I want this story to resonate with the people that have lived through the changes, but also with shorter-term residents who found Northern Virginia to be a desirable place to live.

In addition to presenting a historical change, I also want to be able to show how “normal” people can be invaluable resources in presenting public history by compiling a digital story that is almost entirely oral history based.  So often we look to the so-called experts as our authority on history, but I find that in the case of something like regional growth the actual residents living through the changes can actually tell us more.

Who is your intended audience?

People interested in local history; meant to present oral history for popular use of local history.

Digital Storytelling
CTCH 792/HIST 615

Summary Form
Due: April 1

Digital Story Title:

Understanding Sonata Form: A Case Study

Brief description:

Using musical excerpts, live performance, interactive components, and comedic dialogue, this video explores sonata form using the first movement of Dittersdorf’s “Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra in E Major” as a case study.

Main goal(s):

Encouraging active listening, interpretive imagination, and an understanding of sonata form, one of the most ubiquitous classical forms of the nineteenth and twentieth century.

Who is your intended audience? (e.g., colleagues, historians, art historians, the general public, high school history students, middle school music students, art students. . . )

My intended audience is uninitiated classical music listeners over the age of 14.

Digital Story Title:
Painting Anthropology: An archaeological dig into the working mind of a painter.

Brief description:
This video is an attempt to establish a visual link between the artist and the viewer into the working mind of a studio painter.  The research for this project includes:

• A three week documentary session in the studio of a working painter
• Neurasthetics (art as an extension of the functions of the brain) in order to explain and understand the aesthetic experiences of how the artist formulates her synesthetic imagery.
• Synesthesia is (the intercorrelation of the four modes of human consciousness: thought, intuition, emotion, and sensation) is explained throughout the video as it unfolds in the imagery.
• Teaching methods in the new millennium
• Art 21 Blog

Main goal(s):

The goal of this video is to show the viewer how the artist synesthetically creates imagery in her work by establishing metaphorical (a thought about a thought) links between earth objects (pods, leaves. seeds) and situations in the her life using color, sound, and visual imagery.

Intended Audience

My intended audience is colleagues, historians, art historians, and the general public, high school history students, middle school music students, art students and anyone interested in art and how it is made.