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After exploring the site "My Boyfriend Came Back from the War" made in 1996 by Olia Lialina, what do you think the piece is about? How does is challenge expectations about web design and linear narrative?
http://www.teleportacia.org/war/
14 comments:
I think this site is about the uncertainty that is likely to be evident when a loved one returns from being gone for so long, especially in a situation such as war. The reason behind my thinking is from the number of questions in the narrative, with one leading to multiple, as well as it's organization. Initially, the piece gives you the idea it will still be linear but that changes throughout, just as exceptions regarding changes after returning from war may. The site itself is unique and to me one of the major differences in design is the continuous addition of options when usually all are present on a web page and also remain there after navigating the site.
I found that this piece was unique in that it challenged the existing expectations of a linear narrative. This particular narrative jumps from topic to topic without a clear story line that would flow from beginning, middle, and end. I chose to interpret the text in the piece as individual thoughts of the characters, rather than trying to make sense of it as a linear narrative. The quote "no one here can love me, or understand me" could possibly be seen as a thought the boyfriend had while he was off at war. Another example of this could be when the narrative says "Everyone wants to come back" referring to the other people he may have been off to war with. I think that the website itself is different in that it tells a story rather than hold a particular function, as so many websites do today. For example, Facebook and other social media sites are created for people to stay connected, while others are meant for shopping and other activities. Clicking the text to make the rest of the story appear reminded me of turning the pages in a book. The artist may have done this to keep viewers actively engaged.
The piece had some very confusing aspects to it but some how they all seem to be connected. It jumped around a lot as you would click on the different phrases, words or pictures. It seemed that the couple argues about how the girlfriend had spent her time while the boyfriend was at war. Although throughout the design their seemed to be a resolution among the two, where they talk about marriage, there was still that underlying thought of distrust and uncertainty from the beginning of the piece. The elements of this piece ultimately showed a bit of a pattern as the boxes got smaller and smaller so that you were able to follow a path that almost seemed to be random. You would click on one word then another and they would complete each other even if you continued to click. This definitely kept me on my toes as a viewer because I wasn't exactly sure where I needed to click next and what the next click would reveal. It almost seems like the artist put in a couple different scenarios at one time and depending on which word or phrase was clicked first would result in a different interpretation of the piece.
The piece was strong and provocative, but confusing in some manners with it's ambiguity. We never discover why there is a flashing picture of a window, perhaps it was the window the woman would look out waiting for him to return? Maybe it's flashing so ominously because there is such a strong, negative emotional attachment. The artist also keeps the two people in the bottom corner a mystery. Are they herself and her boyfriend? Her boyfriend at war? Either way, the two figures have been very deliberately separated from the portrait of the artist. The piece opens with "where are you? i can't see you" as if they are lost in darkness. When the author continues with the theme of killing and forgiving, at first I thought perhaps the soldier is having trouble forgiving himself for killing while at war. Then it says "he was my neighbor...forgive me" Perhaps the girlfriend cheated on the boyfriend while he was away, and is asking for forgiveness. "Everyone wants to come back" and "my mother told me you could change" are positioned next to each other in the boxes. This seems to be the dialogue of the soldier wishing to recover his former life, and the girlfriend realizing that he is not the same man that left for war. She asks him if he saw tigers there. This seems to be an exaggeratedly exotic question, as if he went off to tour India instead of battle in war. It's a question that a child would ask if they were to discover someone had been to a far off land. Adding more to the idea of their separation, when the supposed male dialogue says "I keep your photo here" the image shown is a hole. Perhaps this is how he now views his girlfriend, either because the war left him shellshocked and he cannot forget, or maybe because she was unfaithful to him. Either way, the hole suggests a bullet through their relationship. The repeated portraits, the repeated clocks, the constant questions all show time passing and her trying to break through but it's not happening. The segment ends with her saying she'll help him, but it's been a struggle to help so far. Then we learn of a promise made the last time the two were together. The separated words "DO YOU LIKE MY NEW DRESS?" and dress ending in white alludes to a wedding. This is where the girlfriend's mind is, promises and weddings and dresses. The 20th century fox gives the idea that it's the opening to a movie, a new life, a show to the girlfriend. But below this dialogue is another, "Salute!" it says. The man's thoughts are far from a wedding, distant promises have been replaced by words of military service. "Will you marry me?" Is met with "maybe another time." Her boyfriend came back from the war, and he did not come back to receive her. This piece is very somber because it is the artist documenting this sad time of her life. She had envisioned herself with him, being married, starting a new, loving life together. She waited for him, though there is a suggestion that maybe not faithfully awaited. She was faced with disappointment upon his return, and even more so when she realized she couldn't help him the way she thought she could. The site challenges web design and linear narrative because it moves you around the screen. Instead of taking you to a different page, it juxtaposes dialogue in a way that makes more impact and reveals deeper meaning. The artist chose what parts of the page she wanted you to see and when. It's strange, you can move the lines around like puzzle pieces. The artist must have done this on purpose. Perhaps the stagnant picture of the window is supposed to help the viewer see the lines as pieces of a window into the artist's life.
I found this piece somewhat unsettling, as it shows a fragmented conversation that seems to convey the raw emotion behind the words better than it does a comprehensible dialogue. There is no set order in which the viewer reads through the phrases, which are often tense and perpetually right on the verge of bringing the story together. Although it's not easy to understand, there appear to be a few key plot points that the creator is pushing us to notice. These are the soldier's return from war, the discovery of his partner's affair, and their plans to get married. Depending on the order in which the viewer discovers the phrases, they could interpret the story a number of ways. For instance, it could be seen as a couple overcoming a past affair and getting married, or adultery ruining a couple's engagement.
In a way, the nonlinear structure could be considered a better method of relaying a somewhat cliché story idea (infidelity while the soldier is at war.) Rather than following what would likely be a predictable path to the resolution, the audience instead has to discover the fragments of the narrative that lead them to their own conclusion.
In addition, the website is structured in a way that keeps the audience intrigued. Clicking on a phrase could lead to another phrase, or a picture, or both. This unpredictability, combined with the content itself, makes for an engaging piece of interactive storytelling.
This piece is made in the same style of another piece I have interacted with before, so when I began looking at this site I understood the idea behind it. The want to make the work interactive is such a wonderful way to think about art to me. When I view a painting or sculpture, I am interpreting what I see, but no matter how much I move or wiggle I will not cause the art to change. The ability to create a work that not only allows the viewer to interact, but requires it is wonderful to me. It gives each viewer a different and personal experience. I clicked as far as I could every time, but someone else may have stopped halfway through a box. Our experiences would be very different because the other would not have viewed the entire work.It also means that next time I go to clicking through the story I can do it in a different order - creating a new story. Maybe the second time I click through I only click the boxes that reveal the affair, or only the boxes that the couple choose to marry, or maybe I learn about the fair before he leaves for war, I have created a very different story from the full. This piece would be uninteresting to me if all the text was shown at one time in defending rows on the left side of the page. There would be such a crucial element missing - the interaction of the viewer. In terms of web design, it means understanding the importance of placement - for instance the pane like set up of the boxes next to the sketch of the window. The story is obviously fragmented, so placing the boxes in a proper place for them to flow together but still allow for a story to be told. This type of art would require very careful design to make the story truly have the extra emotional element it needs.
The way my story read was of a woman unsure of her situation with this man returning home from war. Her affairs were exposed, along with his anger as she tells/begs him not to kill the men. Theres the idea that change happens though - he couldn't kill a man, but was that before the war? The affairs were long ago. Time can and has changed. But not enough that she has forgotten their talk before he left, and a marriage is settled upon.
I was a little confused at first. I wasn't sure where to click and actually thought the website hadn't fully loaded until I clicked on one of the images. It definitely has an ambiguous feel to it...as though you are navigating through her emotions while she experienced the war. She portrays thoughts going through her head while this man is was away, the confusion and anger. I did think that by making the piece interactive to the viewer, it kept our attention. Once you click on a certain text it felt as though it was leading you deeper into her mind and her emotions. What I enjoyed most was that each person can experience the piece in a different way. This woman is very unsure of the future she has with this man and has many questions that will slowly resurface once he is back from the war.
I honestly did not like the experience of this site, mostly because it reminded me of the brain of someone with schizophrenia. The un-sequenced links made everything so jumbled up that I couldn't tell what was really going on except it sounded like someone was arguing with another voice in their head. I did look at this site on my phone, so there may have been a different experience if you go through it on a computer, but from what I saw, it didn't make much sense to me and gave me a very uneasy feeling.
Until I read Ashlee's comment, I thought the web page was just the two images. After exploring more, I had a similar reaction. One aspect that stuck out to me was the use of monochrome, showing that someone is in a dark place and really giving a more dismal feel to the site. I clicked around some more and it was almost eerie in a way. I felt lost and confused. I really didn't know what was going on with the site, which I think was the point. It was supposed to convey the feeling of loneliness and depression, which can be a side effect of post-traumatic stress. I think the artist really wanted to make people understand this through interaction with the website.
I thought this was very confusing at first with out knowing what was happening. My first time goin through it I didn't even pay attention to the story or what was happening because I was so focused on trying to understand why my computer was freaking out. But after the initial shock wore off and I restarted I was able to really look at what I think it was trying to say. I think the non linear navigation through th site adds to the confusion but I believe this is important for the overall piece with the experience of being confused with coming home after missing time with others and being out of your element that a person at war would become accustomed to.
I was very thrown off at first. I thought maybe I had clicked on a broken link. I thought the web design was very unique though and it was representative of confusion a person experiences when coming home from war or if people spend time apart. The color scheme and images left me feeling depressed and sad. I also thought the windows and text was pretty cool and something I have never seen before. Overall, I liked this webpage because it is so unique and personal.
BY MITCH: "My Boyfriend Came Back From the War" Blog Prompt
I thought this website was put together in a simple yet complex way. In this sense coming home from war is a simple yet complex thing. When one is coming home from war they are excited to see their loved ones again and believe that all will be the same as it had been before they had left. Unfortunately this is not the case, because most soldiers have changed in some sense from their previous state and so have their loved ones. Life goes on when you are away from war and we adapt to the new norm, rather it is the loved ones dealing with the absence of the soldier or the soldier dealing with the environment of war. I found this website design accurately portrayed the unique challenges that are faced by both parties. It gave me the sense of confusion about questions that I did not truly understand, while in the similar sense the receiver could not understand the questions. Its like watching two gears that used to work well and mesh well with each other, fight against each other when they are slightly misaligned from their previous state. I thought this website was going to be quite simple at first until digging further in. It gave the observer the choice of which path to take by creating multiple paths at once with different outcomes. This avenue of approach kept me on my toes and encouraged me to keep clicking to find out more about the story.
Posted by Mitchell A. Blackgrove
BY MATT: "My Boyfriend Came Back From the War" Blog Prompt
At first when I got through the first time I had trouble understanding all the dialogue because there were many different directions the conversation was going. There were many open ended questions and at first I couldn't follow the direction the story was trying to take me. When I went through the second time I picked the story up better and understood a little more what the story was about. I found the story quite weird honestly and how it was told was confusing. The images did tell a pretty cool visual story so even though the words and questions didn't all connect in my head at first.
Posted by Matt Taulane
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