Artist Statement
A Love Letter to New York City is an homage to a place approximately 740 miles away from our current residence in Chicago. Filmed from a first-person perspective, the clips are accompanied by a narration of a journal entry I wrote and voiced by myself as well. The video in terms of meaning reflects an admiration for a destination I grew fond of. I go on a journey to find what the reasons are for this unresolved yet tenacious love. I traveled many hours, spent a lot of money, and walked thousands of steps, yet the viewer gets to indulge in a glimpse of my experience in three fast minutes.
For my editing preferences, I wanted it to feel like a lost archive tape found after many years. I recorded my voice and added an effect to muffle it and give the illusion of a vintage-esque recording. I also edited the videos to have a grainy effect. Despite my efforts to “age” my video, the results of the content itself is only possible by current technology. Such as photographs mummify time, the mobility of cameras can capture moments and make them immortal. It almost felt like I was shooting a commercial for the iPhone camera. The ability to take my phone out and press record at any designated time allowed me to create a piece transcendent of time.
There is an intimacy which is exuded from the video, bridging the viewer into my line of sight and emotions. As Galloway states in “Origins of the First-Person Shooter”, “Video games and films are influencing and incorporating each other in novel ways”. The video game aesthetic within cinema can aid in functioning the first-person perspective as more than a way of seeing and go beyond to adapt bodily motions. To demonstrate this, I have a few examples. The blur of the Christmas tree in the airport on the 00:04 mark is how my real eyesight felt after waking up from an early flight. Starting at 00:22, I show my legs and boots, indicating myself as the person with the perspective. From then on, I begin showing pans and tilts which shows the mobility of my body as well.
Due to my short stature, all the videos were really recorded from my point of view. Yet, I can take the viewer to the undergrounds of Manhattan as well as the rooftops of high altitudes. Despite the intimacy and personalization I feel resonates with the piece, there is something to be said about my consumption of the city and thus the “control” society of the present day. While I may have felt an impression of freedom and individuality, I am simultaneously being watched by the surveillance throughout the streets, museums, restaurants, and buildings in New York. I am also consuming that which is given to me as a choice, yet at the end, I see the trip as an incentive and a symbol of motivation to work even more for the end result.