http://paulshortt.com Paul Shortt Sat, 09 Feb 2013 19:00:08 +0000 http://paulshortt.com en http://paulshortt.com/Pay-For-An-Audience-5-Star-Ratings http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Pay-For-An-Audience-5-Star-Ratings Sat, 09 Feb 2013 19:00:08 +0000 Paul Shortt 3770832 <img src="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770832/WEB_1_NEW.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770832/WEB_1_NEW_o.jpg" data-mid="26504269" border="0" align="left"/>5 Star Ratings: Mechanical Turk Reviews, 2012, 50 pages, edition of 250. 5 Star Ratings is a collection of 500-word art reviews of my artist website, each produced by users of Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, which enables micro forms of paid labor called HITS (Human Intelligence Tasks). Workers on Mechanical Turk were paid $5 dollars to review my website and write about the work. With this project I’m interested in starting discussions and asking questions about how technology and the Internet have changed the way artists construct their identities. What does it mean when we can all create our own press? What value does crowdsourced press have both to the general public and to artists? What is the current state of art journalism? Below is every review I've received thus far: Review #1 Some of your motivation for your unique style becomes more apparent as one views your adaptation to the video short. This understanding is only deepened when your educational influences are unveiled in the details of your Curriculum Vitae. New Media is definitely what I would have categorized the majority of you work as. You claimed expertise in a variety of types of paintings but this does not seem to stand out in your work, this could be perhaps your more modern sculpture and video projects really stand out among your other completed works. The first two sculptures on your very well laid out website, “Please Do Not Climb” and “Time Out Zone” have a very inorganic feel to them. These works are most definitely insoluble and give the impression of permanency and official and domineering nature pervades these works. Time Out Zone in particular caught my interest because of the contradictory nature of the commands. The only way these actions could be potentially pulled off is if someone is being put in this position by a figure of authority such as a New York City Police Officer. This theme is of inorganic oppressive pieces continues with the mirrored pillory installation. While you appear to be smiling and happy in several of the pictures and the video the piece itself conveys the feelings of an age of oppression. I know this is a knit-picky comment but the first photo of this installation I think really detracts from the validity of the statement this piece is making. This photo shows you within the pillory but the female photographer is completely visible. This makes the installation seem more of a tourist attraction or an interactive spectacle rather than perhaps a commentary upon the way shopping and commerce enslave humanity to the principles of currency. Also, the holes for the hands are much larger than they would have been upon a traditional pillory. The hand holes on this piece are circular where traditionally they would have been more of a diamond or rhombus shaped to prevent the withdraw of the hand back though the pillory itself. Your free poster piece is a very original idea in the style of John Cage’s 4:33. This idea is quintessentially “new media” and breathes a puff of life into “modern art.” I think most importantly it challenges what we think of as true art and encourages us to embrace the beauty which is all around us and can be found me proper diligence and methods are used. This is what modern are means to me, something which reaches beyond the fundamental notion of the art itself and begins to interact in the remainder of the world in such a way as to actually enhance the experience. I want to include a few comments; first the ball sack was bazaar. Second, I have not included very many comments on your videos at all because I am particular put off by this type of media. I apologize for this and am encouraged by your work. Review #2 The artwork available for viewing on Paul Shortt’s website is simply amazing. It combines a very modern style of art with a more interactive feel for the audience. For example, one piece of art, entitled “Corner Sign,” is located on the corner of two walls and directs viewers to “Put your hands behind your back. Then put your head down.” The result is a time-out style piece of art for adults. Similarly, another piece of art, entitled “ROFL CON,” directs people to “Roll on the floor laughing.” The images on Shortt’s website illustrate the fun that adults have doing this activity; a man can be clearly seen joyfully laughing and rolling on the carpet. Similarly, numerous other pieces make the simple things more sophisticated. His website discusses the “Modern Greetings,” which is a manual featuring “alternative ways to greet people.” These creative ideas for adults to say hello and connect with others will, at the very least, bring a smile to your face when witnessing them and when imagining them happening in everyday life. These alternative greetings include a side bump, a butt bump, a cell phone rub, a squat jump, and a snapping technique called “Yeah…snap.” Each photograph of the aforementioned newly suggested modern greetings shows audience members taking part in Shortt’s show. This interactive element clearly keeps things interesting, as evidenced by the looks of happiness and enjoyment on each audience member’s face. Almost all of the audience members are laughing, but at a minimum smiling. These images provide a snippet of the pleasure the audience had, and simultaneously reinforces the youthful ideas that Shortt seems to want to impart on his viewers. Shortt’s video, “It’s Simple, But Complicated,” illustrates the difficulties one man has while trying to be patriotic and fly an American flag. Although he comes prepared with a ladder, the flagpole is over twice as high as his ladder can reach. Ultimately, the man ends up disassembling the flagpole so that he is able to physically move the flag up to its appropriate place at the very top. This video may serve as a metaphor that sometimes trying to do the right thing is not as easy as it may seem. This ultimately expresses something much deeper than what is superficially obvious. Shortt also details his interactions with visitors at his first art show in Chicago. He designed the classic hand buzzers—used to surprise and literally shock people as they unknowingly shake hands with you—to say, “Paul Shortt shocks Chicago, 2011 Free Hand buzzer.” As he went around shaking each of the guests’ hands, he would give them the hand buzzer to keep—after shocking them, of course. The buzzing continued as guests began to shock other unsuspecting guests. Shortt’s young-at-heart guests seemed to have truly enjoyed this gag, likely something they hadn’t experienced (or even thought about) in many years. These pieces bring a youthful side back to adulthood, which can often become so monotonous and often too serious. These playful pieces of art bring a more enjoyable feel than a regular trip to an art museum or for a showing at an art gallery; they allow the viewers to actually get involved, feel, live, and appreciate the art. Viewing his website brought a smile to my face and brightened up my day, as well as making me hopeful that someday I’ll be able to attend one of Shortt’s showings and view his jovial, seemingly-simple-but-simultaneously-complicated artwork in person. Review #3 Art can be defined in many ways such as a sensible recreation of beautiful objects or sensible recreation of thoughts and opinions. Of course the thoughts and opinions of the artist do not always match up with those of the art appreciator. Paul’s art with its very unique creative aspect of thoughts and opinions can be considered as one of those thought provoking arts. People these days are swamped by beautiful creations, however, those that quirk ones perspective are few and far between. For instance the art piece titled ‘Seeking Good Conversation’ appears as a simple idea where in a mobile phone is represented as the object, however, the message is not as simple as the title or the object. In my humble opinion perhaps Paul wants to depict the loneliness faced by most people these days and what they are truly after, however, they are left with only this object and the desire to do so in the end. Another equally thought provoking art piece is the one titled ‘Modern Greetings’. This art piece in my opinion shows the other side of relationships these days and that which is centered on sexual fantasies. The idea of shaking a ladies breast as a way to greet her while she is actually not happy about it indicates the need for the man to be in control and his only desire is to treat a woman as a sexual object. Furthermore some of Paul’s art like those of many great abstract modern day artists leave the art appreciator baffled more than convinced of the purpose for the art piece. One such piece for me lies in the one titled ‘Three-Hour Tour’. What does Paul mean by showing two people’s backs walking in what looks like a lobby of some sort with a few plants and lots of lights and doors? If someone enquired for my opinion I would definitely be lost for words. Perhaps a good idea when showing of these pieces of art would also be a brief description of the artist’s opinion or perhaps even some clues as to what the objects in the picture represent. Of course some art pieces have a comical side to it or even more some make a political statement. For example the art piece titled ‘Certificates’ shows the title as a 7 SECOND AWARD meaning that it should take me the viewer probably 7 seconds or less to appreciate this art and in turn the artist thanks me for taking the time to view it. This cannot be achieved for no art show can be appreciated in 7 seconds making this art piece a bit comical. And of course the one titled ‘Strap-on Ball sacks’ again attempts to ridicule the sexual fantasies of human beings. As far as making a political statement the art piece titled ‘Resist’ appears to portray this aspect. The different colors of papers used with messages on them could show the varying degrees of getting the pink slip for instance or MOU signed between two countries by their respective delegates, but finally serving no other true purpose. In sum Paul’s art with his varied pieces from those described above and others titled as follows ‘Please Do not Climb’; Corner Piece’; Pillory for Market Place Mall’; ‘Free Poster’; ‘Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago’; ‘ROFL CON’; ‘Calvinball; ‘Missed Connections; ‘Interactive signs’; ‘Collaborations’; ‘Nimby’s’; PSI Paul Shortt Invitational; and ‘Reference Letters for Dating' all portray a deeper message that can be not only baffling, but also stir ones senses to think about it. Review #4 Complicated Simplicity: The saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words” may be a tad cliché. However, after reviewing the artwork that is spotlighted on Paul Shortt's website, this popular idiom rang truer than ever before. Not only does this art possess a clear artistic vision, it draws out the satirical simplicity of contemporary life and allows its viewers to interact. With an emphasis on realism and modernity, the artwork that Paul Shortt features is nothing less of outstanding. In particular, I was taken aback by the featured work entitled, “Corner Piece”, which is an image of a black folded plaque, one side reading, “Put your hands behind your back” and the other, “Then put your head down”. The caption states that, “This sign directs the participant into time out, while the sign is conforming to the space.” Immediately following the caption there is a picture of a woman making use of the sign. While I understand the artist's intention for this piece, I was able to gain my own unique interpretation. The artwork by itself is as powerful, if not more powerful, standing alone. Primarily, my interpretation of the piece made me reflect on law enforcement. I pictured a cop telling someone to put their hands behind their back and then to subsequently put their head down. Obviously, police officers do not usually tell their suspects to put their head down. Therefore, I took these words as a statement about the shame that is imbedded in nonconformity. I always see criminal suspects lower their heads. This piece spoke to me, acknowledging the disgrace, which is inherent in violating the law. I was ecstatic that I was able to gain my own interpretation of the artwork. After all, art is an individual expression and should always be unique to the individual who creates it as well as the individual who interprets it. This, in my opinion, is the nature of true artwork: that it can be interpreted and reinterpreted countless times without losing its intensity. Moreover, much of the art that is featured on Mr. Shortt's website speaks volumes concerning life as we have come to know it. From the photograph entitled, “ROFL CON”, which makes a play on new-age text lingo, to the piece called, “Seeking Good Conversation”, which simply depicts a person holding a cell phone, this artwork is both modern and uncomplicated. For a beginning art enthusiast, uncomplicated artwork is sought after. There is no pretense, no pomp and no arrogance in the art that Paul Shortt displays and this is certainly appreciated. For, one is better able to discern the deeper meaning behind an artistic piece when the artists themselves are not seeking to complicate the concept. What's more, many of the artistic representations that Paul Shortt presents are interactive. Not only are the viewers allowed to interpret the art intellectually, they are often asked to physically participating in the art's action. For instance, the piece “ROFL CON” allows viewers to roll around on the red carpet that the text lingo is printed on. This makes for a more entertaining involvement with the artwork and, undoubtedly, leaves viewers feeling personally related to the piece itself. In reference to interactive and entertaining art, the piece called “Strap-on Ball sacks” is hilarious. The name speaks for itself. There are images that show random people, women and men, wearing colorful strap-on testicles. I never knew that raw artistic photography could be so humorous. There is a vast array of interpretations, which can be concluded from this piece alone, and as wonderful as it is to interpret art, I must admit that I would love to get the opportunity to wear those strap-on ball sacks. They look like a lot a fun. In retrospect, the artist deemed certain artistic videos, “It's Simple but Complicated” and I have found that these words actually convey the nature of Paul Shortt's entire art collection. Much like the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words”-- which, as a hackneyed phrase, has greater depth than initially realized-- Paul Shortt's art compilation is fairly simple and yet, possesses a more intricate plot than first perceived. After reviewing the artwork that is spotlighted on Paul Shortt's website, one is able to grasp the very value and significance of complicated simplicity. Review #5 First, thank you, Paul Shortt, for the opportunity given to visit the website and go for a journey filled with artistic pleasure. Leave alone the rewards for venturing in to the journey, the pleasant surprises given here is the real worth. The attracted features are many and the most interesting ones for me are here. The ROFL CON concept is a visual treat and as said many people are vying on line to present themselves, few succeed, and Paul Shortt looks moving in the right direction and it looks like that he will have the last laugh. The three-hour tour in a hospital evoked the thoughts of a stay in a hospital in me. Paul Shortt, sharing his views with the patients and his experience encountered upon during the visit brought out the feel of compassion, which also founds a place in the heart of this budding artist. Therefore, money alone cannot fill once lives and little kind-heartedness to the unfortunates who are bundled in a hospital with chronic illness like cancer is quite impressive. As I more dwell upon his character part, I fear I may live out his artistic talents. Pillory for Market Place pictures are imaginative and the glass is innovatively placed to bring its property of reflection for projecting an artistic imaginations. In the Celia and Willet –Wandell Sculpture Park, the signboard with “Please Do not Climb on the Sculpture” finds its place with a Gentleman and he is valiantly trying to keep in a strategic position but in vain. A nice idea done with a good taste and evokes laughter in the minds of the viewers. However, it is use as good sitting space for two to watch Television is a nice ending to it. Modern Greetings tries to take out the boredom in life and tries to give a last handshake the method of “handshakes” to greet others. New methods tries methods like hitting with the mobiles, touch of different parts of the body, Reference Letter for Dating is a like a climax in a play and an ongoing project. How he is going to choose a letter is not overtly said and I feel it may be like a lottery system and chosen letter writer is a lucky one to participate in an art show. Missed connections bring in the reader the love lost in the midst of one’s life. It happens in lives, our eyes turns moist, and a read, never to miss by any reader of this website. The interactive sign is a nice guide for doing activity exercise for toddlers within a time span. The maiden show of Paul Shortt shocks Chicago with his classic hand buzzer gag emulate his talent in the start of his career itself and looks like he has never looked back. Collaborations is the real example of Paul Shortt is a different artist, as artist mostly perform single, and here his collaborative roles with other artists like Jason Dixon in Emily Roysdon's show Ecstatic Resistance bring out his uniqueness. As, I make a temporary stop here and await many more artistic ecstasies in the days ahead. Review #6 Firstly, the modern feeling surrounding this artwork combined with the humor just completely drew my attention into the artwork on the Paul Shortt website. There is an instant attraction to the piece “Please Do No Climb” as the simplicity of the structure in the first picture fools you before you see the reasoning for the leveling of the steps in the second picture. Then of course, how can one not be drawn instantly to the pure blatant piece entitled “Strap-On Ball sacks” – in my opinion, a winner from the beginning with a title that couldn’t possibly resist a click. Here is where your funny bone gets a workout and you see the ability to create smiles from art. One has to remember that art is never just to be considered the works of Picasso or Matisse, but can be any form that expresses the ideas, feelings, thoughts and downright enthusiasm of an artist for a subject which is definitely what one sees on this website. The interactivity of Paul Shortt’s art displayed here is something that also makes this collection of photos worth viewing. For instance, on the website, having “Resist” whereby he has created a poster listing a trove of ridiculous actions such as ‘push and shove’ and ‘fidget, burp, fart’ followed by the temptation to not resist at all, Shortt invites the public to take these posters and allows you to see his interest in where you will put his art. Not only does he express his desire to know, he asks you to show him. Take and picture and email it his way. Fantastic. And of course, Shortt invites everyone and allows everyone to enjoy his art. The ‘Modern Greetings’ booklet shows us the new alternatives to just shaking hands – who knew there were so many out there! And as one will see when viewing the pictures associated with this, there are many people taking advantage of the ‘double-whack’, ‘side bump’ and one of my favorites, the ‘cellphone rub’. And the bravery of the artist here just strikes the heart completely with ‘Seeking Good Conversations’. We all dream of having hilarious conversations with random strangers but who has the guts to try giving the inevitable chance of getting a bunch of crazies! Paul Shortt allowed his number to be left all around town just to have random people call him so he could express and convey the words from some conversations through different materials. In essence, Shortt manages to find a new way to both tantalize our brains, our thoughts and basically our views of everyday and not so everyday things. One must look at each of the collections on the website along with those highlighted above. It is hard to stand out in a world where so many people want to be and want to do the same thing but Shortt has accomplished quite a feat here. I laughed, I smiled, I did a quick double take (e.g. ball sacks!) but all round, I enjoyed this art. Review #7 While I am not an art connoisseur I enjoyed looking at all the various forms of art that Paul Shortt created. Particularly I liked the different types of mediums that were used and how interactive the works were. I think we've all been in the situation where we've walked into a museum surrounded by beautiful works of art only to be told not to touch. The Paul Shortt pieces actually encourage the audience to take part in art. The “corner piece” made me laugh a bit because I can definitely see myself walking up to the piece and doing exactly as it instructs me to do. I found the ROFL rug humorous because it invites you to actually do what we text so many types a day. It's pretty ridiculous when you look at it that way. What I encountered time and time again was that most of the works were basic and simple such as the “Free Poster” work. It is, as it states, just a free poster but in actuality it became something more and an actual piece of art by itself. That is the magic of art that it takes on a life of its' own and sometimes goes beyond what the artist intended. One of the pieces that I liked the most was the “Please Do not climb” sculpture. From far away it seems to say “Please Climb” which of course would draw me towards it, ready to do its' bidding. Upon closer inspection it really says, “Please do not climb” which would leave me in a predicament because at this point I would want to climb it even more. My favorite piece is the Missed Connections piece. Out of curiosity I have clicked on the craigslist link only to find a world of people who are desperate to find that one person that made them feel something for that moment in time. I loved that those ads were re read and placed in the settings that those people wrote about. I could have sat here and watched hours of that footage. I think that it touched me because most times we assume that we don't matter to many people when it reality it may be that we've changed someone’s life without even knowing it. I would say most of Paul Shotts art is “tongue in cheek” so to speak, like the certificate that states, “I was totally impressed by the depth of our random exchange.” It is seemingly absolutely random from the step sculpture to the ROFL rug but what all the pieces have in common is that they invite an audience to interact with art in a way that is non threatening. Once that initial hesitation is over, the audience can then use the art to see the banal in a different light. Many times we walk through life just going through the motions without actually noticing anything around us. I think Paul Shortts art encourages people to experience the world by being an active participant in it. Review #8 When I first visited the website, I was quite confused, as it wasn't what I was expecting. When I hear the word "art" I think of these overly complex, beautiful, striking, cerebral paintings. I forget that art comes in so many forms, all of them linked by a sense of creativity, expression and, most importantly, freedom. These various projects all contain those qualities, and they're unique, something I've never seen before in terms of art and creativity. There's a sense of humor to many of them, and in others, a carefree and spontaneity to them, and all of them feel so simple and easy on the surface. It's not until I took the time to process what I was seeing and reading that I realized that if you go below the surface of what's been created, you get to the heart of the inspiration and message. The piece called Seeking Good Conversation was the first one I watched. I thought it was a creative way to speak to new people, to delve into many people's lives and interact with people in a convenient way, especially in a world where we're all rushing around, stressing out over silly things. There's something intriguing about the idea of just leaving flyers asking people to converse with you, getting to know strangers while still being anonymous. The videos depicting a few of the texts were brilliant, too, not just in their execution, but also the messages themselves. They were short and basic, not giving away any information, but about something that almost everyone relates to. It shows how connected we are, even as strangers, that we all feel so used to our environment and lifestyle that we don't stop and think about it until texting with a stranger, realizing how automatic life has become. A good example of the humor I mentioned at the beginning is in Modern Greetings. It's an interactive piece that gets people to greet in more unusual, awkward and funny ways than the traditional hand shaking. I found it to be funny, and also something that I'd imagine is a good icebreaker. Handshakes themselves can feel awkward even though they're the norm, so why not do something more unusual to take away the formality of it? I thought this was a very interesting piece for that reason, and that was the thought that came to my mind as I was reading through it. My favorite piece, though, was the one titled Interactive Signs. It, too, seems so simple, and is simple, but that's the brilliance of it; it takes something so simple to get people to break their mundane habits and routines, to make their day just a little bit different. All in all, I loved viewing the artwork I've seen. It's opened my eyes to how art doesn't always have to be riddled in metaphors and concepts that no-one but the artist and some experts will understand or relate to, and how it isn't just something that caters to the mind, but also to the heart and body; something that reminds me to break the monotony, break away from the stress and routine, and do something different. Most importantly, it reminds me to live. That's what this art is all about, to me. It's about life itself, and that is the greatest form of art. Review #9 The art on paulshortt.com is witty and comical. Most of the images require just enough thinking to engage you and then once your study the image for a moment, the punch line hits and you begin to laugh. The site is set up in a contemporary, simple design that makes it very user-friendly and easy to navigate through. As a user, there aren’t flash videos or major distractions that are pulling you in multiple directions and making things complicated. It’s very obvious that the focus is on the art. Whether you are looking at a man rolling on the floor laughing, literally, or a free poster that is a little underwhelming but funny, you get the sense that the humor and the art on the website has its own personality. It’s not generic humor or specific to a demographic, its niche humor and will resonate with specific people. The artwork is quite good, most shots are filled with color and there is a certain amount of unpredictability from one shot to the next. You can’t tell if you will soon be looking at a half naked man or a half naked man with a strap-on ball sack attached to his body. The images are often fun and inviting. For example, Calvinball is some sort of experiment that has been captured with photography, yet the images are enjoyable because the people depicted in Calvinball look like they are genuinely having a fun go of it. You can’t help but wonder what the heck they are talking about. There are some funny videos on the site too. The videos are mixed in on the menu and they are a nice complement to some of the funny artwork. Seeking Good Conversation is a sad clip that features the texting habits of a married woman who is missing her husband who has been deployed. Pretty sad when you think about it. When you’re husband is deployed in another country, you probably begin to hone your texting skills, if you are even lucky enough to text him. It’s a very interesting contrast when you view the video in the context of the material surrounding it. The content is, for the most part, very light. Aside from the rare sad story about deployed husbands the site is good for some laughs. Modern Greetings is a funny section that makes you wonder why our greetings are so rudimentary and simple. What if they were a bit different? A bit more complicated? The images are filled with colorful people, again, all smiling and enjoying their experiment. On a whole, the artwork on the site is vibrant has vitality, makes you think and ultimately makes you smile or laugh. It’s very modern and most of the images are humorous. Overall, the artwork is enjoyable to view. The people included in the shots all look they are having an enjoyable time and that creates a pleasant overall tone on the website and artwork. It’s not somber at all. It resonates because it is in many ways unique and uplifting. Its just people having fun with words, art and life. Review #10 I love your work; I find it has both comical and serious aspects to it. I especially love the “modern greeting” manual; it is a fun and interactive art piece that illustrates the fact that the people of today do not make great efforts to meet new people, in fun and interesting ways but when we make that extra effort we makes friends we will never forget. I find the Nimby’s collection to be truly inspiring because the signs are placed in a manner to prove to people that big malls and building don’t need to go in every empty lot we find, sometimes thing’s just need to stay open, vacant, or abandoned. The interactive signs are the best; I would love to post things like this around my school campus I think a lot of people would have a lot of fun participating in fun silly activities such as these. The signs, if anything would give people a laugh and spread smiles throughout the campus like wildfire and it would be a good conversation starter for everyone. Strap on ball sacks?? I think laughed for a solid 5 minutes just thinking about it and then another 10 scrolling through the photos! Truly a comical subject, I think a few people I k now need a pair of those! This gives new meaning to the phrase “grow a pair!” Although I think I would have made them not as long but twice as big, to make it even more comical, trying to watch your models try and walk with balls the size of softballs in-between their legs!! You have some great art although I am not such a fan of the car breakdown scene, I feel that it is too posed and doesn’t really illustrate anything other than you are flipping off the world, which I guess could just be the whole meaning of the piece, which in that case it’s good, but I feel like there isn’t enough emotion in the video clip and it just looked super posed to me, and fake. Now if you were to come to a screeching stop and maybe even overshoot the camera screen a little bit and fling your car door open and look like you are yelling at the top of your lungs (maybe spit a little) and then furiously throw yourself about whilst flipping the world off I think it would be a lot better piece. I love the huge no parking nice, I think they should all be installed everywhere there is no parking signs because sometimes those things are so small I miss them!!! And then I end up with a ticket when I come back out to my car, and then I am just so pissed cause the sign in literally 6inchs and hidden behind a bush. I hope my input is what you are looking for I find your art very unique, and pretty inspiring. Some pieces make me think about the situation you are trying to illustrate and others make me laugh. Review# 11 Honestly, I was confused when the artwork of Paul Shortt appeared on the screen. I guess I am your typical thinking human that assumes art is supposed to be beautiful paintings or magnificent sculptures. Paul Shortts art is not beautiful paintings or sculptures. However, art comes in all forms of expression. The art portrayed on the site shows the freedom he has for expression. What one person may think is not art; he makes it become art to the human eye. The work on the site is refreshing because the artist seems to see that what a person does in everyday life as art. As a result, viewing his work becomes humorous, entertaining, and quite delightful. There is a piece entitled “Corner Piece” on his site. I found this amusing because that is what I see when people view art. I don’t want to reveal what the piece stated. Moving forward, art is a form of expression that allows an artist to explore in all shapes and forms. Do I feel Paul Shortt shows expression in his art? The answer is yes. He finds the simplest things and turns it into art. I love the piece entitled “ Do Not Climb”. We see these signs in places all the time. Does everyone listen to those signs? Some people are going to climb despite what the sign says. The artwork makes me think visually in my head. As a result, I started to paint an image of a scene. Another piece that I found entertaining is “Modern Greeting”. The artist shows different ways a person can greet each other. As I was viewing the images, I found myself bursting into laughter. The cell phone rub should be a greeting with the way people are constantly on their phones. The greetings seem awkward, which in everyday life, greetings can be just that way. A piece that I found truly thought provoking was “Three Hour Tour”. This art caused me not to laugh but to actually think about places that are shown in the piece. Do I avoid places that are freely open to the public? Does my persona change when I am in places such as a hospital or graveyard? The image of the two people walking down the hall in the hospital even provoked thinking in your head by the way the hands were clasped behind the man on the left. Finally, I want to say I truly appreciated Paul’s artwork. There are people out in the world that will tell you that what Paul does is not art. That leads many other people that express themselves like Paul to give up on what they love. Paul is a true artist that shows appreciation for everything that is around. Furthermore, the piece “Three Hour Tour” made me want to get out and visit those places even if I do not need to go. Due to that fact, I thank you Paul. You are a true visual artist that promotes the need for truly expressing yourself and appreciating art just as it should be. Art is creative expression. Review # 12 His skills as an artist are evident in his technical handling of each original painting he created including his understanding of color, texture and medium to achieve a feeling and look that represented the layered imagination of young children. He s able to tell a story on canvas from a collection of references and sketches that developed into an expansive body of work that continues to sell in the juvenile wall decor market. I can see he is professional, hard working, and extremely talented. It was a joy to see the artwork on the web site. The work was beautiful and his attitude seems very positive. I would work with this artist. Paul Shortt is a true inspiration. His ability to handle multiple complex transactions; his work ethic that won't quit; his understanding of business processes and cultural styles in many foreign countries; and his ability to operate both strategically and tactically are the business skills and qualities, which first come to mind when I think of Paul. In a very uncomplicated way he solves the unsolvable problems and avoids the stress in critical artistic situations as a master. We can easily see that his knowledge is so widespread and he can use all of it in a magnificent way, which only he can do. He not only has truly beautiful works in many different styles, but I believe he is a truly lovely person to boot! I often show his works to other artists as examples of how to make they're own arts accessible to most everyone. He is a true inspiration with his artistic motivation and productivity, talents for business. Paul is a true professional in art and business, combining his unique and exquisite talent with a hard-working ethic that reaches far beyond the canvas. Oh my, he can also write, speak and move people with his beautiful, passionate persona. OK, and then, his work also sells. A gallery owners' dream! I love his work. Paul is a unique talent. I have seen the work that he has done for a number of his commercial clients, and it is exceptional. He has the uncommon ability to adapt his output to the environment and sensibility of each of his client's venues. Moreover, Paul's work as a fine artist is extraordinary. His work is outstanding. It is imaginative, original and innovative. He is professional and responsible, yet still highly creative. I highly recommend him and his work. When you go to his website and see the images of tiles, prints and posters, ranging from elegantly subtle to explosive, but… you haven’t really experienced the work of Paul. I encourage everyone to visit an event or gallery in which you can get your hands on a piece of Paul’s work, and purchase it. Not just because it is yummy for the soul, not because it will enhance your home or office, not because if you gift it, you will feel twice the joy… because this man is a master. Former President John F. Kennedy stated, "I see little of more importance to the future of our country and of civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist. If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his/her vision wherever it takes him/her." You can be part of that freedom. Like the invitation from the Louve”, …at once immense and intimate, I invite you to discover the work of Paul Shortt. Review #13 I have to admit that every time I get a chance to see the work of a new up-and-coming artist or aspiring visionary, a sense of excitement and anticipation takes over and lets me stranded somewhere between hope and despair. Why? Because, I've seen so many wonderkids that could have reached the top but alas, an almost even amount that just blew there chance and eventually moved on to something else. When I came across Paul Shortt or P. S. as he proclaimed himself, I got a bit of both: the moment you land on his name-bearing page, you get a sample of what he' s all about. I loved the 'still of form' video, that portrays a man being denied access to a car. A video is bound to be added, which I eagerly await to see if it will only enhance the plot portrayed by the picture or spoil the whole thing together. I say this because his work wreaks all over of these two elements. As in the first picture, you see a man attempting to enter a car, we can only imagine in order to do something, to 'get places', thus we get the resounding light motive of hope, only for him to be denied that, giving you a sense of desperation. Next, a very slick named exhibit, the 'Please do not climb' one, only contributes to this pattern. You see a man aspiring to climb over steps, those of adversity, painted in white all over, that is solicited to cease. One of my favorites, less expressive in appearance but full of meaning in essence, is the 'Certificates' section, that just represents a kind of gateway to the artists soul, if you'll excuse the big words. Here, he provides a subtle take on his work all together, what he basically says is that he doesn't take himself seriously and before you jump the proverbial boat, hear me out. You might think that' s a bad thing but it' s not, you see so many artists being pretentious and overly complex, that as a viewer you really can' t relate to any of their work and can' t come to appreciate what might actually be very good. What P. S. offers is this, the chance for you, the viewer to take him seriously and I cant’s speak for others, but I did. It' s a kind of trick, or if you believe in magic, it' s what makes the difference between something ordinary and something great, you can' t teach it or learn it, you either have it or you don' t. That vibe you instill in others, to be a part of what you did. P. S. manages that and, in my book, that' s the promise of greatness. If he will fulfill his potential or not, is up to him. But from where I' m sitting, it just can' t look any brighter for him and especially his art. Looking forward to see his story unfold. Review #14 Ah, to write about Paul Shortt and his eclecticism style art. Here is what I did in preparing for this assignment. I first viewed Paul’s Blog, including his funny video, or was it serious? Then I scrolled through much of his collection of art, comfortably nestled in cyber art space at PaulShortt.com. Next, I went to Wikipedia and found the official definition of eclecticism. So it turns out that eclecticism is conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories in particular cases. Well, that according to the Wiki. But it describes well what I find on Paul’s site. Funky, quirky and downright cool in scope and intention. Now with my cup of Yogi Kava Tea, and again back at the Mac, I’m once again toying with the different art work at the site and feel compelled to comment, as I sit and ponder on this unseasonably warm Seattle evening. So what is it about Paul’s art? Left Brain? Right brain? Who knows, but pretty cool stuff, left or right. As Sinatra once said, “Flying to high in the sky, is my idea of nothing to do…” First the early work, this is the stuff that makes me bubble. I really enjoy it and like it when someone, an artist, or anyone for that matter, causes “people” who are in a social coma, or self induced form of a kind of hypnotic state, to stop and ponder their own existence. How about the “Mechanically Move Your Body Up The Stairs Like A Machine?” Exactly, very cool, I like it Paul. I liked the “God Save Shortt,” portrait and could not help but think right away of “Bueller,” Ferris Bueller that is, “Save Ferris.” Very cool stuff. In fact, we can all learn a lot from “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” if reflects the same ideas as “Paul Shortt’s Day Off.” Shortt, Shortt, anyone? Anyone? Anyone? This idea that we are more than the social cog in the wheel that public school and the daily grind of work has made so many of us into. I did the corporate thing for 22 years, now I grow my hair and drink tea. Very cool, huh. “Resist” is a rather favorite of mine, in the shortt, I mean short time I’ve been an official visitor at PaulShortt.com. It sums it all up, yes? Especially the last line, “Never follow Directions.” Has anyone ever read Thoreau? Also, Modern Greetings looks fun, and offers the same witty twist on accepted convention. What is this handshake thing anyway, and who started it? Maybe we could all just do the knuckle bump? “Nimby’s” is clever art. Seeking Good conversation is interesting. Missed Connections is creative. Keep up the innovative and creative work, Paul. Hey, if you don’t, who will? If I could sum up all the work at PaulShortt.com, it would be to “Never Follow Rules.” Peace, my friend from sunny and warm Seattle. Review #15 To me a lot of the works feel incomplete. Unfortunately I think this also give them an air of amateurishness, almost like someone decided they like art, or maybe that art is "easy", and they wanted to try it out for themselves. Ultimately the execution in a lot of the projects falls short and feels like the works are trying too hard. The videos are one place that, in my opinion, definitely needs work. For "Please Do Not Climb", I don't think the best way to demonstrate how the piece is meant to work in a public space should have been done by having the artist drag it around a park, put it down, step on it, look at it, etc., then pick it back up and drag it to the next location. Another thing I don't like, about any of the videos, is that, even though they're in fast-forward, they still feel incredibly long. I even skipped to different parts because they felt like they were dragging out these needless tasks. "It's Simple, But Complicated" has a good concept, which I feel might have been better demonstrated with more examples. The first video is okay, but the work feels forced. It also feels campy, and with the music I can't help but feel like, "Is the artist mocking people who actually watch this, sitting around and thinking, 'Haha! Anyone will think something is art if you simply call it such.'" The second video... I had so much secondhand-embarrassment. I understand that instead of being a breakdown of a car it was instead the breakdown of a driver, but it felt SO. FORCED. The piece I liked the most, I think, was "Corner Piece". Only one person, maybe two, can interact with the work at any time, which makes it feel very intimate. Added intimacy also comes from the actions the participants are told to perform. I interpreted the placing of hands behind the back and bowing of the head, as an almost religious act. Whether out of reverence for the piece, or because the piece requires a sort of subjugation from the viewer. Another thing I liked, although I don't know if I would call it art, was "Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago". Being a little familiar with the advertising/marketing business, I can say this kind of thinking fits in perfectly with that industry and they would really appreciate the idea put forth by the artist in an attempt to get his name out, recognized, and remembered. "Pillory for Market Place Mall" was interesting, because it forces viewers to look at themselves and their surrounding in a different way, also while confronting this person who is shackled. Obviously the shackling could be a metaphor for how people are so tied into consumerism and feeling like the things they buy make them the person they are, and I think such a literal approach was the best way to reach people and actually make them think about their lives in regards to how they treat material goods. I was disappointed with "Calvin Ball". There was no artist's statement, so I didn't understand exactly what was trying to be accomplished, and I could only assume it was another attempt to bring the public into a work and to get them to interact with it. Maybe if the photos had been more well-done I could have appreciate it more, but like I said in the beginning, many of the pieces feel unfinished and this was one of them. Review #16 Paul Shortt’s work is most of all fun! (Check it out at Paulshortt.com.) I have already looked up ‘fun’ in the thesaurus, as I know I’ll be using it quite a lot. And the ghost of my high school English teacher is looming over my shoulder muttering about using one descriptive word more that once or twice in a paper ;) But come on, anybody who uses Calvin and Hobbes as an inspiration? What other word are you going to use? His work runs from performance art, to video, to more traditional forms. All of it has a strange sense of familiarity to it, making it accessible to the general public. But it holds layers of deeper meaning for those who take the time to consider. For Calvinball, the inspiration is the game from Calvin and Hobbes, wherein one is allowed to make up any rules one wants to the game, or indeed to change the game itself. Mr. Shortt’s merry (yup, thesaurus time) work invited participants off the street to come in and play the game with their choice of various sports equipment, making up their own rules. The work ROFL CON takes the common texting phrase and places it in type upon a red carpet, allowing anyone who feels the need to roll on the floor laughing. (One assumes if an act of ROFLMAO occurred, Mr. Shortt would find some incredibly creative use for the outcome.) Another work involved placing a mirrored version of the 18th century pillory in a shopping mall. Yes, you can find deeper meanings in the fact that the pillory reflects back the image of anyone looking at the person in the pillory. And I’m sure the shopping mall placement is on purpose. But I can’t help but remember the childhood trips to Williamsburg, VA and everyone laughing and taking pictures at the re-creation of the town pillory outside the Capitol building. His work Certificates uses official looking paper to offer awards for taking seven seconds to complete the minimum amount of time to view an art piece, or for staying the appropriate distance from a work in the gallery. My favorite is Best Conversation in an Art Gallery Setting (subtitled I Was Totally Impressed by the Depth of Our Random Exchange). One hope Mr. Shortt’s use of memes in his work means he recognizes the tiny Fry that popped into my head saying “Shut up and take my money!” I want one of each of these certificates! Although I could just settle for a copy of his work Free Poster. Deciding on color would be difficult. But I really feel we could come to some agreement on price. His work is many things. Sometimes he says exactly what he means. Free Poster means, well, free poster. Sometimes he seems to be contradictory. Please Do Not Climb on the Sculpture is a sculpture in the shape of stairs. His work contains both a childlike joy and a serious social commentary. It welcomes everyone. But on the whole, I’d have to say it was amusing, boisterous, convivial and entertaining! (And it’s fun too!!!!) Review #17 Paul Shortt is a Midwest-based Artist focusing primarily, at least according to his portfolio, on art that is based in performance, interaction and/or installation. His works cover a variety of mediums and experiences, engaging an incredibly diverse audience based upon the particular piece, location and nature of the art. He has certainly begun to amass a decently impressive portfolio, although some pieces definitely stand out above the rest. First up is his newest body of work, entitled “Please NO Photos.” This piece utilizes a “no photo” icon as an easily moved installation piece. Shortt takes the sign around Illinois, installing it in a variety of locations and photographing it. The piece is not particularly engaging, and it seems that the quality of construction and creation is not as great as many of his other pieces. The piece has the potential, however, to spark some very interesting conversations about freedom, photography, art and more. Next up is the “Please Do Not Climb” piece. This piece consists of a bench, which appears to say “Please Climb Sculpture” from a distance but says, “Please do not climb on the sculpture” when viewed up close. This piece is nicely constructed and sparks great conversation about the nature of sculpture and fine art. Corner Piece is another interactive piece, which instructs viewers to “Put your hands behind your back” and “Then put your head down.” This causes the viewer to essentially put him or herself in a time out. Again, this piece is a great commentary on the state of the art world. Both pieces were shown in galleries but have an interactive feel that is often lacking in the world of fine arts. Shortt has several installation-based pieces that are innovative and powerful. First up is the “Missed Connections” project. In this project, Shortt was able to utilize missed connection advertisements from Craigslist. He took the text of the ads and added it to objects such as cakes, cds and notes in books. The objects were then placed back into their natural environment, waiting to be discovered. The piece focused on the power of making new, human connections in the lonely world of online dating. The piece had a great message behind it and was well installed. Another great installation piece was the pillory in the Market Place Mall. In this piece, Shortt created a mirrored pillory that he installed in the Market Place Mall. The piece was simple at first glance, but is heavy on further glances. When you watch whoever is in the pillory, you are distracted by the fact that your own reflection is clearly visible in the pillory. The piece sparks interesting thoughts and conversations about social interactions, perceptions and much more. Last but not least, Shortt places great emphasis upon performative pieces. One piece was entitled “Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago.” In this piece, at a gallery opening Shortt wandered around with a buzzer in hand. Every time he shook hands with someone he shocked them and then passed the buzzer along to “spread the buzz.” While it is hard to tell the true nature of a performance piece from a portfolio, this piece seems to be well thought out and planned. It seems fun and successful. Review #18 Paul Shortt's artworks are thought provoking pieces that explore the everyday human interaction. They are deeply reflective of the society at large, with much attention being paid to the details of everyday life. They mostly revolve around the way people communicate, and have in some ways been used as a tool to promote communication as well. Their frank nature opens up room for conversations that extend into important areas and topics not usually covered in everyday exchanges. Apart from sharing his personal thoughts, Shortt's works also tend to include the perspectives of others, so that they cover a wider range of human outlooks. This can be seen from the 'Three-Hour Tour' piece. In this way, the works are enhanced by the addition of societal value. The works offer a refreshing perspective of life in general. Shortt's ideas are original and non-conventional, and to a certain extent, unorthodox. They are daring and flashy, highlighting the artist's desire to express himself. A good example of such artworks is 'Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago', an effective and daring way to seek attention while passing on a message. Despite the 'shock value' it carries, the underlying idea is still communicated across, and the essence of the artwork is not diminished. While the pieces of artwork are mostly simple in design, they carry a deep meaning and bring across the creator's message succinctly. Often embellished with bright and cheerful colors, these attractive pieces of work brighten up the places they decorate, while communicating a profound message. Clutter-free and to-the-point, their message is not obscured by fanciful designs and accents. The collection of colorful posters in 'Free Poster' is one such example. However, while it is often good to leave artworks nonrepresentational and open to interpretation by the viewers, at times some pieces seemed a little too abstract to be fully appreciated. An example would be 'It's Simple, But Complicated', where the pieces may be construed, or perhaps misconstrued, as making of a political statement, or just one on the human behavior or life struggles at large. 'Pillory for Market Place Mall' is another piece where the underlying meaning is not immediately made obvious. Much of the content of the art pieces is written in a straightforward and candid manner. This was especially evident in the piece 'The Business of Selling Yourself'. The application of such a technique on a medium meant to be spread around allows each recipient to carry this little piece of artwork around with him or her. Each artwork comes with an apt title that brings across its meaning in a concise manner. They encourage the viewer to ponder more deeply about the subject, thereby engaging the viewer at a deeper level. Most of the time, they also serve to help tie up the significance of the whole piece of artwork, such as in the piece 'Resist'. To sum things up, Shortt's artworks offer an innovate outlook to the interactions and practices in everyday life. Each piece is unique and original, so viewers are kept in suspense as to what the next creation will be. Review #19 While examining artwork by Paul Shortt, I found myself trying to see every angle of what I was witnessing. These art projects, which include photo projects, videos, and art pieces, are both deep and conceptually appealing. They combine a level of novelty, entertainment, and reflection in a way that reminds me why art is such an important part of a culture. Although the projects vary quite a bit, they all seem to take complex and emotional concepts and present them with unique simplicity. One of the things I found most interesting in Shortt’s art is the way he uses himself in his projects. In fact, it seems as though Shortt himself is an integral part of the art. I don’t simply mean that he used himself to present the art, as many artists do. On a deeper level, he becomes the art. On the section of the website entitled “The Business of Selling Yourself,” Paul Shortt presents a business card in which he presents some very intimate personal faults of his. The fact that he actually used this card as his official business card for a time in order to communicate his point caught me by surprise. It’s easy to see that communicating messages through artwork is more important to Shortt than appearing cool and flawless. The art projects that feature physical manifestations of cultural concepts are very entertaining. One of Shortt’s pieces, a large red rug with the words “Rolling On the Floor Laughing,” takes a popular cultural expression and presents it in a way in which visitors can actually perform the action. The humorous thing about this piece is that people use the term “ROFL” all the time in texting or Internet chat, but they never actually perform the action that it signifies. This art piece gives people the unique opportunity to actually carry out the action. This piece is amusing and interesting in its simplicity, and the option of interaction increases its appeal. I was especially impressed by several video projects that convey deeper cultural concepts. The videos from “It’s Simple, but Complicated,” are mind-blowingly straightforward and correct in their presentation of cultural problems. I found the presentation of road rage in the second video particularly amusing as Shortt parked on the side of the road giving the finger in every direction and honking the car’s horn. The best thing in my opinion about this particular project was the simplicity with which the concepts were conveyed. The videos did not have any special effects or eye-catching props, but they captured a certain sentiment in a way that really makes you think a little harder. The “Please Do Not Climb on the Sculpture” bleachers are a very visually and conceptually appealing piece. The simple, white bleachers convey a message that asks the viewer to climb on the sculpture, but when approached the viewer will find that the message is actually the opposite. This is another piece that is both interesting and interactive. These and other art works that Paul Shortt presents on his website offer a great example of interesting and meaningful art. Review #20 I quite like the art on your website. I love how you convey photography as art. I really like the "Please NO Photos" photos. I think that the huge sign is creative and really abstract in a sense. It looks like the sign is edited on with a program such as Photoshop, but it isn't and that is what I really like about this "album". I also like the "Please Do Not Climb". You explain it beautifully and your photos are just amazing. You make good use of the lighting. I really enjoy your art. This is probably the best art I have seen in a long while. You have such a great quality camera. I enjoyed looking at the "Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago" page. All of the pictures on that page are amazing. I really admire the last two pictures. I love how it is focused on some hand buzzers while fuzzy on others. Your art is very fun and lively, as I observed in the "Calvinball - Paul Shortt" page. Everyone looks happy and that is a true art that you can only capture on camera. I really enjoyed looking at the "Missed Connections" page. I felt myself fill up with joy suddenly. I like these kinds of things. It is sweet and sincere art. I liked the "How to Be Narcissistic" section on your art page. It is funny how you can capture art with art. I watched a bit of the video and it seemed fun. I thought that all of them were good artists. I liked the creative "Corner Piece". It was hilarious and it was pretty to look at. I almost "Rolf’s" when I looked at the "ROFL CON" page. I thought it was a creative page. I liked the concept of the rug and the photo is crystal clear and beautiful. The photographs make you kind of want to buy it in a sense. The people look so happy while laughing and rolling on the floor. On the "Pillory for Market Place" album, I liked the pictures you took. The pillory was quite creative and it is always a great idea to take pictures when you find something interesting. I think you captured the meaning for the pillory and, to me, it's just to have fun with it. I enjoyed reading your free poster. It seems really upbeat and impersonal, in a way. Nowadays, I think most of us can relate to that. You chose a nice variety of words and I respect you for that. I chuckled a bit when I saw the Certificates. I enjoyed looking at "Modern Greetings". I may use some of those in the near future! I enjoyed looking at your early works also. I liked the one where you took a sign and placed it in a weird place and had people demonstrate it. I thought that was funny and had a little chuckle. I liked "Nimby's". Some of the signs just made me laugh. I think that is a great thing. Art should make people feel something and your art were done exactly that. I liked all of the photos that I have seen today. Thank you for letting me views your modern art. Review #21 Hi Paul, I thought I’d 1st go through and pick out some of this pretty cool whirly bird contemporary kind of art that you do so well and comment on the ones that seem to interest me the most. So here goes, to make it easy I picked “please no photos” as a launching point for making some comments on your “outside the box” kind of clever art. I like the camera icon and the locations that you picked, in “please no photos” and wanted to share with you what I’m thinking. Like the other art on your site this one pays homage to the way people get into a sort of trance in life. What I mean to say is that when something is out of place, or out of the ordinary people become quickly confused. The question then becomes how quickly do they realize that this is actually a form of art, and not an assault on their reality. From there I strolled over to “how to be narcissistic” and found yet more clever art. I really like how this particular art tests everything we know about the ego. Is narcissism just an ego gone awry? Are we born with narcissism? Do we learn narcissism? Are government officials more prone to narcissism? Can babies be narcissistic? Does narcissism have a cure? I suppose the uniqueness of your art addresses some of these questions; or rather does the art fly in the face of abject narcissism. But, it’s all good because maybe I’m just over thinking your art, because at the end of the day it’s just simple fun. And I hope that I don’t sound narcissistic by saying these things. My next stop on my journey through Paul short.com was to go to “it’s simple, but complicated” and watch a few entertaining videos. So I must say Paul, your video on a breakdown on the side of the road should certainly be considered for some type of award. I mean come on, this is really funny stuff. For me personally, I would say if you have not already put this on YouTube, then you certainly should. This is the kind of stuff that viral videos are made of On YouTube. The 1st thing that I thought of when watching this video was how absurd road rage really is in today’s world. So what I mean is if there is no one else around how can you really express road rage. Finally Paul, to keep it light I went to ROFL CON and got a few chuckles. The ROFL CON piece is a true testament to our human nature. What I mean to say is that at the end of the day no matter how bad the economy is, or how severe peak oil is, or how corrupt the bankers are, one thing is for sure, and that is we can still laugh. That’s it for now Paul, but I’ll continue to keep an eye on your website for more unique, interesting, and inspiring art. Keep up the good work my friend, Peace! Review 22 I am not an artist. I appreciate art that is interesting, attractive or thought provoking. I think that Paul Shortt’s site is filled with images that are at least one or two of these. I enjoyed perusing them. It was entertaining to try to see what the point of the photograph was or why the photo was taken. It was thought provoking and made me want to look at everything on the page. The way that the artist shares himself with his likeness and personal insights into his personality make the work all that much more compelling. I also enjoyed that there were other contributors to the artwork. It is interesting to try to find the connections between the captions and the photos, seeing what the photographer had in mind when taking or displaying the picture. Some of the ones I found most interesting are the pictures in staged series photos like Calvin Ball. It was fun to see how the game evolved, the expressions on the faces of the subjects and how the game affected the players. Another I found unique and engaging was How to Be Narcissistic, which I enjoyed. It showed everyday people finding humor and truth by awarding themselves for their attributes. It was fun to see the expressions on their faces while they were displaying their awards. This was an unclose and personal collection that was entertaining to examine. I also thought that Missed Connections was appealing and sad at the same time. Portraits of Me By Others were out of the ordinary because many other people contributed to the artwork. It was fascinating to see how others interpreted the same face, the color choices they made and what details obviously stuck out to them. I liked that there were drawings, passages, computer images and even a sculpture. Different mediums make exhibits come alive. I found Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago to be very amusing. Each of these different installments brings something personal and insightful to the collection of photographs. This site isn’t what I typically think of when I think of art. Art brings to my mind images from galleries and museums like the Louvre and Metropolitan Museum of Art. It doesn’t have to be and this artist shows that. Art can be as simple as paint splashed on a canvas or as involved as the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. That is the beauty of art; it’s capacity to be simply entertaining. Sometimes this escapes people and this is one of the intriguing things about these works. They show that simple expressions, situations and projects can be made into art. I feel that the artwork on this site will make people interested. It compels one to continue exploring. The artist captures different objects, people and situations in a humorous or fascinating way. Art is subjective in that it can be anything and about anything. This series of works shows that an artist can make art out of everyday occurrences and make them into something people want to see. Review #23 Paul Shortt, a UIUC graduate, has been up to no good. He has been notoriously taking enlarged no photograph icons across the great state of Illinois and photographing them. He took it in front of a beautiful tribunal in the lush spring bloom, he took it in front of the Champaign county Correctional Centre, he took it in front of the iconic UIUC statue, he took it front of what seems to be a veritably disbanded mining facility and silo, he took it in front of the Champaign county courthouse, a place which in the great depression saw the sanctioning of warrants for arrests and seizures of ignoble outlaws and looting hooligans like Dillinger, Mad dog, and the great Alfonso Capone. Oh what a pain is this Paul ‘the beard’ Shortt. In How to be Narcissistic, a workshop and performance as a part of The Speakeasy programm, he attempts to capture the essence of the program. They awarded themselves for being that they are and owing who they are. In an attempt to capture the sense of owing one’s own self, and the innate desire to be and want more than that is ostensible they succeeded in a fun and jocund fashion. In his other works like Please do not climb, corner piece, ROFL CON, It’s simple but complicated and free posters he attempts to perpetrate simple actions with larger, more convoluted and intricate connotations, often insinuating and mocking the charade that are the modern times. Be it the simple act of tombering an escalade or doing something because some sign in the corner of some room asks it. Be with giving the bird to perfect strangers on the highway or manhandling the flag, or be it handing out posters for free that say they’ve been handed out for free, these simple acts seems to invoke much deeper and far reflecting glares in the enigma that is the spirit. He even attempts to shock Chicago in both the literal and the figurative sense. He shocks them by installing a mirrored pillory in the Market place mall in Chicago, and he also shocks them with minor electrocutions at his very own exhibition. Seems like in both his attempts he’s trying to emulate something, is it the rapport of the human kind for ‘’an eye, for an eye’’ approach where we’ve come from beheading criminals in public on the pillories and now electrocuting them relatively discretely, or is it just a puerile jibe, who knows? He seeks a good conversation and erects seemingly nonchalant insignia in midst of just anywhere, he takes a three-hour tour and gives out certificates, he even devises modern greeting. In his own way, our Paul Shortt is saying more than he is saying; all we have to do is stop, look and see. It’s not rubbernecking, as Elvis would see, it’s just the philosophy. Review #24 Paul Shortt’s art is original and contemporary and invokes conscious feelings and impressions of life and customs for the average citizen. Shortt is able to take a simple structure or truth from everyday life and turn it into a thought-provoking and sometimes humorous depiction. The art displays his strong sense of realism and humor in every piece documented on film. Gazing a Paul Shortt’s art helps one to perceive the innate style and artistry evident in modern life. The vivid photographs stir a sense of realism and curiosity in every picture that can be sensed by the individual. The artwork is inspiring and makes one consider the intricate designs and patterns of daily life in which they reside. Shortt’s art even challenges boundaries of what is considered proper conduct. In “Modern Greetings”, Shortt explores the various ways that individuals could choose to greet each other from fairly acceptable to hilariously absurd methods. In “Please No Photo” Shortt clearly takes a photograph of an area despite the warning, and the viewer can clearly observe the resulting image for him or herself. In “Please Do Not Climb”, Shortt invites an individual to sit down on the sculpture, but upon closer inspection the inscription forbids one to do so in the same instant. It is the same type of renegade abandon and rhetorical questioning that one can find embedded in daily life within American society that is flawlessly captured in Shortt’s art. In “Corner Piece” and “Pillory for Marketplace Mall”, Shortt explores the restraints that societal expectations have placed upon individuals. These works do well by representing the barriers that obstruct an individual’s freedom which are sometimes self-imposed. “The Narcissist” is also a collection of photographs in which individuals at a workshop identify and celebrate their egotistical tendencies. Shortt shares his insight into the matter by adding humor and acceptance into the project, and the self-description each member wrote is undeniably truthful for many others. “Free Poster” is one of my favorites because it simply reminds people that nothing in life worth owning is really free of charge. It is because of the uniqueness and the utter realism of the art that makes them modern masterpieces. Each image is gifted with an underlying message that penetrates the subconscious and the centers of high favor within people. What makes his art special is that some of the features of the art that are viewed in Shortt’s colorful collection can actually be found in life when one pays closer attention. Shortt’s art possesses a metaphorical sense of individuality, community, and rebellious humor poised against societal standards and restrictions. The messages implied with each image are reflective of the emotions and inquiries that people often possess in secret. The artwork promotes the essence of a human culture that is both hidden and obvious, and this rare combination creates a unique experience for the viewer. Some of the messages implied are simple to understand, while others are more thought-provoking and lead to a deeper examination of What Is. It is without a doubt that Paul Shortt’s art indeed leaves a “p.s.” in one’s mind long after the image passes. I would recommend this collection to every modern artist or general appreciator of art to discover the scope of a man’s insights into how the world is perceived through his eyes and others. Every piece of Paul Shortt’s artwork is especially designed to make a striking statement. The simple truths implied within each work speak first to the mind and then fuse in the soul. The art pinpoints the issues in an unconventional light and beckons each person to make a meaningful connection within themselves. Both seasoned collectors and the ordinary person can appreciate the raw essence of Shortt’s artwork and its sheer originality. The conventional works of Paul Shortt will truly carve out a sector of the human psyche that is not found in historical art and is much appreciated in the modern world where the real message is often obscured. ---A.Austin Review #25 What first captured my interest at Paulshortt.com was Modern Greetings - a contemporary manual featuring alternative ways to greet people. My thoughts on this interesting twist to accepted social convention is that it could be a standard protocol for attendees at keynote speeches. Perhaps companies like Apple Inc. or Google, or Amazon could incorporate Paul’s ideas of Modern Greetings - a contemporary manual featuring alternative ways to greet people into their corporate culture? I wonder if they would go for the idea? Can we send them the manual and see where it goes? These companies all pride themselves on thinking outside the box. Ugh, just a thought. Maybe I did not look deep enough into Paulshortt.com, but how can I get this manual? I mean this could go viral. Mostly because it is so much fun, especially the Butt Bump and the Cell phone Rub. It looks like really fun stuff, Paul - I like it! Another clever project I wanted to comment on is the Missed Connections Project where you use personal ads from the “missed connections” section of Craigslist to create handmade, text-based objects. Craigslist has become such a staple in today’s world that this piece really makes sense. I have a feeling that there is lying dormant within the Craigslist mutli-verse many more Paulshortt.com projects. They are just screaming to be uncovered. Now my favorite Paulshortt.com art has to be “The Business of Selling Yourself,” with its quirkiness and funny twist to the “Getting to know you” approach to life. So, my first question is to ask if this is copyrighted? Can I use this? But in all seriousness, or maybe not, I can’t help but image what an attractive woman would think when reading this as she was walking away from you. What I would give to be there. How do we sell ourselves to others? This art is cool because it causes us to examine ourselves and again accepted social convention. It’s all about turning accepted social convention on it’s ear, if I am reading your website and your art correctly. I like what you do, and it inspires me to come up with my own art that fly’s in the face of accepted social convention. Honorable mention has to go to “It's Simple, But Complicated” because it is simple, but complicated. As with the idea of tinkering with accepted social convention, “It's Simple, But Complicated” tinkers with complicated cultural meanings. If I’m getting the main theme of the idea of tinkering with complicated cultural meanings right, then I really like the whole concept. The breakdown of sorts on the side of the road is a true work of art and should garner critical acclaim. I will enjoy watching for the next projects as they unfold in real time at Paulshortt.com. The only thing standing in the way of mind-bending art is the limits of the imagination. Paul, I’m convinced that your imagination literally has no limits, and if it does you are finding ways to break the imagination barrier every single day. Review #26 This art brings a strange irony and a graceful satire to common dilemmas and nostalgias with which we can all identify. Our search for connection, the challenge of finding it in a fast-paced world that is more interested in stock prices than straight-up conversation—all find a quiet, dignified voice in the photography of Paul Shortt. Many of his projects are a series—a set of photos that all portray a similar lostness, or, in the rarer case, sparks of connectivity, of belonging, of home. Other projects are adventures in creativity, such as hilarious new ways to say hello, all captured on candid film with their laughing executors. The overriding message seems to be the penultimate quest of the human soul—to find a place, to belong in it, to know oneself and find others that will understand. At times we make of ourselves a spectacle, as seen in the “Pillory for Market Place Mall” series, and at times we simply reminisce on the people who created and shaped us, and the remaining symbols of themselves they left behind, such as “The Car My Father Gave Me.” At other points, Paul Shortt invites his participants to take time, to explore themselves. He allows them to find out who they are, and, perhaps more importantly, allows them to come away from the drudgery of their daily life and make a sally into the realm of the undignified, but connected, life he offers. Shortt also makes occasional forays into political and social commentary, as in the “Please NO Photos” set. Additionally, there are also pieces the ways we comfort ourselves, and how we can break out into a more realistic truth. For example, how do you present yourself in a favorable light? You might not realize what rose-colored glasses you wear for the mirror until you see Paul take them off in “The Business of Selling Yourself.” A major advantage of Shortt's work is his willingness to explore and expose his own flawed qualities in his art. The casual viewer will laugh at the joke, but if you look a moment too long you will turn away after your chuckle and wonder, “Am I like that? If I was really honest with myself... what would I see?” When viewing all Shortt's photos, I find myself knowing their subjects, including the artist himself. I realize that the greatest moments of belonging, of connectedness, are sparked when we let go of the rushing pace of our lives, and even let our dignity slip through our fingers a little. When we look a little deeper into his art, we grasp the irony of our efforts to keep it together. Real life is something for which we must make time. Paul Shortt understands the human condition, and has the imagination to explore its limits, its influence, and its expression. I rather envy his participants the insights gained into themselves as they dredged up their most cherished comfort zones to throw in the artistic fire. Review #27 This collection of art work is simply one of the more unique collections I have seen in some time. While much of the work seems to be somewhat random and without purpose, observing it closely reveals just the opposite. Paul Shortt shows off a great amount of skill in his ability to articulate daily life into an artistic creation. He demonstrates a great ability to deliver creative images through an unusual light. The quirkiness and individuality displayed through his artistic vision is certainly distinct and distinguishes Shortt from his peers. If you enjoy viewing unique displays of art and have a creative side yourself, Shortt’s work will certainly stand out and may just inspire you beyond your wildest dreams. With a great mixture of randomness, humor and a serious tone as well, Shortt’s work has a little something for everyone to enjoy. You will enjoy seeing cool displays of activities that will make you set down and think about just what you are looking at. Shortt goes into great depth in certain portions of his work, for example, he has videos that display him doing what would seem to be simple tasks, however he points out the small complications and cultural meanings that can often accompany such activities. Whether it be raising the American Flag or simply driving on the freeway, you will see these actions in a new light thanks to Shortt and his creativity. Enjoy every moment to because this type of work is rare and hard to track down in your day to day life. While enjoying this outstanding collection, you will notice that Shortt also displays a sentimental side of his work as well. He has a series of videos that go into length in regards to his personal relationship with his father. He takes us through his journey of connection with his father and gives details of their relationship and how their bond has been ultimately established. Especially interesting, Shortt dives into an unlikely connection between his career as an artist, and how it is surprisingly similar to his father’s life long work as a car mechanic. He is able to tell us that story in a way that many of us could probably relate to and one that may strike a chord with a lot of people. This ability to make such a sentimental connection is emotional and leads us all into a journey of thought about our own personal relationships with our loved ones, and how often times things may not just be what they seem. Overall, Shortt’s wide variety of work ads up to a magnificent artistic collection that is inspiring, emotional, amusing, and many other complementary words that just do not come to mind at the moment. His many valuable pieces of work serve as a great view for anyone who enjoys art in general, as I would recommend this art and give it great reviews. If you want to take a moment of reflection and give the world a look from a different point of view than your accustomed to, you should check out Paul Shortt’s work and experience its many different facets. Review #28 This is absolutely crazy! I mean where you get such weird ideas! I love each piece of your art gallery, be it the “No Photo” one or the “Seeking Good Conversation” one. But the one that I simply fall in love with is your “Free Poster”! A pure crazy and genius piece of work! I am planning to adopt this theory at my work place. I mean, giving free poster to each of my employees with a handmade certificate, I mean definitely there would be a little variation from your masterpiece. In fact, I am running short of words to describe this amazing piece of work. And I also admire the art piece called the “Roll on the floor laughing”. I am sure this must have been one of the most entertained workshops. This seems to be a perfect stress buster! I have seen a few workshops in the similar line but none as innovative as this one. I also admire the art piece called “Conversation Card”. This pretty much impressed me. I mean, rarely any one would have thought to create a bonding in such uncomfortable places like hospital! May be the same thing can also be carried out in places where the natural calamity occurred in near past! This also indicates a psychology of people at different places and different situations. The other brilliant piece of work of yours or may be I would be more correct if I say the best piece of work of yours is; “The Business of Selling Yourself”. I am simply amazed with the core idea of getting the opinion from strangers with such a unique and insane way! There can’t be a better and honest way of selling yourself. I know, sometimes you must have attracted a risk of getting rude and nasty communication but all is fair in the name of art. I personally would like to answer you for this piece of art! Now, on the negative side there are a certain piece of works that did not get much attention from me or may be I did not understand the depth of those arts. Pillory for market place mall is one such thing. I have seen this before! There is no second opinion that, every single crowd in the mall would like to take a click with this! But what des not impress me much is; this is a lesser creativity in this. I have seen similar things at in a museum at India and in some stage acts! Now, after seeing this much of art, I also take look at your earlier works and the concept of mechanically move your body as fascinating as your current works. That simply indicates that you keep a consistence tab on your creativity. I really hope to see much more such creative arts on your site! And the last word of my review is borrowed from the tagline of your art blog “Shortage”; “Where funds are low and creativity is high”! I don’t know about the low fund status but yes the creativity is extremely high!” Keep the level up! Review #29 Art is an abstract way for expressing inner self. Photography is one of the most known art, as music and painting are. Paul Shortt’s art combines many styles of photography, styles which, being combined, define a new style, original and very authentic. There are lots of creative ideas, simple and also complicated. All the photos express different emotions and thoughts and they are made in very different ways. A very good example is “Modern Greetings” series, which expresses joy and the pleasure of meeting new people in a different manner, instead of shaking hands and other common styles of greeting someone. A hospital tour might represent a type of art, especially when it is reproduced through photography. Each man might see a different thing in a photo and it can transmit everyone different feelings, thoughts and maybe old memories. Contemporary Farewells consists in new ways of saying goodbye. They’re different and absolutely authentic. Everything can be art, from painting and music to any action that has a special meaning. It can express whatever someone wants to express, because it can have a large variety of meanings and it can be represented in a lot of different ways. There are also many feelings and ideas that can be expressed this way. All the work that can be found on Paul Shortt’s website is a different species of art. Workshops like “How to be narcissistic” is an authentic collaboration between people and it was carefully prepared by Rhiannon Birdsall and Paul Shortt, as well. It was attentively organized, having all details spick and span, from picking egotistic statements to the red carpet and awards. “Please NO Photos” work combines the fun with an ordinary idea of “don’t take any photos” sign, which can be found in many locations. The result of this combination is an original idea. All the photos are made in a professional way, having all the details very clear and a great focus. The “Literally and Physically” work is a very authentic, interesting and complex idea. All the participants rolled on the “Rolling on the floor laughing” red carpet, as an entertaining part of this series. The “Please climb sculpture”/”Please do not climb on the sculpture” is a very interesting and tricky idea and so is the Corner Piece, which is a very funny project for all the participants. “Nimby’s” series is a very original way for entertainment, with signs like “Just looking”, “I’m Fine Thanks” and many others, which are funny not only for the participants, but for every person who sees them. Having all these kinds of arts in a perfect combination, the result consists of a very impressive, authentic and new art. With all three photography, workshops and sculpture in some cases, Paul Shortt’s creations combine entertainment with ordinary things, like the series with the signs placed in front of some buildings. And so another style of art has been created, a new and fresh one, which will develop and improve. Review #30 The artwork of Paul Shortt is a combination of humor, social commentary, and a small touch of the Conceptual Art movement of the 1960's. Shortt's work ranges from mediums to photography, installation, and performance art. Shortt's work is mostly reminiscent of the Fluxus art movement of the 1960s as well as the art "happenings" of Alan Kaprow. Shortt breaks down the fourth wall present in so many gallery installations today, and he heavily involves the audience, making them extremely integral to the works that he presents to the public. Examples of this are the piece "Three-Hour Tour" and "Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago," both of which require the active participation of the audience to ensure that the pieces are completed per his original vision. At the same time, both of these pieces involve a sense of humor in art not seen since either John Baldessari or even Andy Warhol. In "Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago," the artist shocks audience members with the age-old gag of the hand buzzer, but then also provide the audience member with their own buzzer, allowing them to become a part of the work and also part of the artist as well. However, while Shortt does use humor a great deal in his work, there are also pieces that show a human side to the artist, and allow audience members a glimpse into him as a person. In the piece "The Car My Father Gave Me," Shortt explores the similarities between his father's profession as a car mechanic, as well as his own profession as an artist. Shortt explores not only his interpersonal relationship with his father, but also the larger issue of the artist as a creator, manipulating pieces of every day to make a greater, better machine. As a whole, Shortt's works aim to analyze societal issues, either through the way we interact with each other as a society, or the rules that have been arbitrarily established and followed for what we call "polite social behavior." Shortt is constantly attempting to not only analyze these behaviors, but challenge them and their veracity, like he does in his piece "it's Simple, But Complicated" in which simple tasks with larger implications are performed by the artist. Also, the piece "Contemporary Farewells" is a good example of analyzing societal behaviors, in which the artist proposes new way to say farewell from social situations. These proposed methods are sometimes a simple commentary on society today (in which the two parties simple look at their cell phones and walk away) or a method called "The Shoulder Bow," which seems silly but could easily been used as a method to bid farewell fifty years from now. Overall, Paul Shortt presents the art world and the larger world as a whole with a humorous, gentle nudge to the ribs view of the way society carries itself. Shortt's sense of humor is kind enough to not be cruel or alienate the common man, making him one of the more accessible artists that is creating work today. Review #31 Shortt’s Shots Paul Shortt is a photographer from Kansas City who has been in shows across the country, from Seattle to New York City. He received his BFA in Painting from the Kansas City Art Institute, and is now working on his MFA in New Media from U of I Urbana-Champaign. With an esoteric mix of photography, sculpture and print media, he continues to explore new ways of expression through the arts. The first gallery that caught my eye was “The Car My Father Gave Me.” As I used to work on cars with my father, this title certainly plucked at the heart strings. This is a set of videos relating the various cars that Paul and his father have shared or owned over the years. It clearly meant a lot to him, and it means a lot to me too, as I identify with it closely. The next gallery that I HAD to take a look at is Calvinball. For those who don’t recognize the term, Calvinball was a game mentioned repeatedly in the Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. The rules changed every time it showed up, but it was always clearly a blast for Calvin and his stuffed tiger Hobbes. I was very curious to see how Paul would go about bringing this sport to life, and loved the collection. Playing the sport with people who came in off the street, this was a wonderful example of interactive art bringing something from the printed page to life. I really wish I had been there that night. Nimby’s is a very interesting collection of photos with different signs in each. Starting with a sign stating “I’m Fine Thanks” in front of a broken fence, the collection continues on through various signs Paul has placed to try to draw attention or get people to think. My favorite was Big Box Potential, which has the word Potential printed on a cardboard box sign in front of an empty big box store. What a wonderful, hopeful message in front of a type of store that often draws ire from the communities around it. In counterpoint to that hope, Generic Empty House Sign simply states Empty House in a dry lawn, with an arrow pointing to the house. This is certainly a poignant message and commentary on the housing crisis. Missed Connections is another great contemporary collection. In this one, Paul takes personal ads modeled after the “missed connections” section on Craigslist and uses them to create handmade text-based pieces. From a sheet cake with an ad written on it, to a beautiful handwritten note in a book in a bookstore (the missed connection in this case mentions Barnes and Noble, so where is it more appropriate to place it?), the collection covers a huge variety of media and locations. My absolute favorite in this case was the piece written in mustard on a Jimmy John’s sandwich and wrapper. If you are reaching out to someone you saw in a sandwich shop, nothing can be more appropriate than this. With a wide variety of media and some amazing creativity, Paul Shortt reaches out to all of his audience members in one way or another. His art shows an active imagination and a real love for connecting with people. If you have the opportunity, I highly suggest browsing his site, or if possible, making it to one of his shows. There is sure to be something there for every taste. Review #32 "Please NO Photos" is a work of both photographs, and film media. There is a large, maybe six foot diameter picture of a camera with a red line through it, which, on the face of a picture, seems to be added by digital design. When a man, Paul himself, presumably, walks on-screen to take away the image which instruct the viewer not to take a picture, which is, in fact, an object the artist is photographing in various public areas. The fact that the courthouse and police station are in use seems to be political, but there is nothing else to let the viewer know how the artist feels about court or police. The total lack of direction is a bit unnerving, and leaves the viewer having to think, something we don't always automatically do. Supposedly raising the cultural awareness banner and shaking it about, Paul has a series of videos of himself doing simple yet poignant acts involving culturally relevant activities. In one such video, he is on a ladder attempting to unstuck an American flag which won't comply with his wish for it to fly at full mast. The music playing in the back ground is an accordion, lending a sort of frenetic air to his inability to raise the flag, and seems to underscore the viewer's own (mounting) anxiety as the pole leans all the way over and Paul raises it while the pole is about three feet off the ground. Strange, but strangely true. The artist allows his audience into his private space, he seems to want to show them his failures, and just how lovely failure can be. At the very same time, the boundary of what is relevant and acceptable is being pushed in videos in which the artist simply gets out of his car and gives the wide, corn-eating world, the bird. Is it a comment on driving? Consumerism in America? Loneliness? Anger and depression? Paul has been good enough to leave that to us to decide, for now. There are pieces of art that are supposed to be taken away by the audience and photographed when installed at new locations. The posters, some, only have words on them, and point out that, to change social convention, all the viewer has to do is laugh out loud, hum, or chew with food in their mouth. Most of Paul Shortt's work is of the sort that is tongue in cheek asking its audience if it can laugh at itself, because, indeed, Paul seems readily able to laugh at himself. Review #33 Sometimes life can be taken to seriously. There is no enjoyment out of the things you see around you. Paul Shortt makes me appreciate the artistry that he sees in everyday life. Art is supposed to enrich our lives. It is supposed to make us laugh, cry, and ponder. Art gives us a way to be creative and express ourselves. Paul Shortt does this and more. Glancing at Paul's art, a person may question is this really art. That is what I like about Mr. Shortt. He makes us stop and think about it. It is art. My hair can be art. My car can be art. Furthermore, he gets you involved in his art. The work entitled Literally and Physically were quite enjoyable because it made me think. One of the pictures said "please do not climb the sculpture". I automatically thought this is exactly what you see on some art displays or statues. However, people still go ahead and climb despite the warning. Paul turned that common warning into art. The piece entitled "rolling on the floor" had me thinking also because most times that is a figure of speech. However, he turned it into an interactive piece of art. I was really rolling on the floor when i saw the picture with the words "Put Your Hands Behind Your Back. Then Put Your Head Down". When you visit art galleries often times that is what you see as people ponder over the work of art. So Paul created art of what he sees people doing as they view artistic creations. I find this gratifying. People often feel creative but there work is not the typical elaborate paintings of what many think is supposed to be art. Mr.Shortt brings about a place that allows people to appreciate the fact that anything around you can be art. It is all how you view it. Art means something different to every single person. Another thing I truly value in Paul Shortt is that his art is not expensive. Many times people will give up on their dreams of becoming an artist because they feel they cannot afford the supplies or lessons. However, Mr.Shortt shows you how to take value in everything that is around you. If you open up a can of food, make something out of it once you are done. Do not let people make you think you cannot create art because you don’t have the art pencils or paint to make elaborate drawings. Drawings are not all there is when it comes to art. Mr.Shortt is opening doors for those who see beauty and creativity in the simplest of things. Paul’s art is like creating a history of common occurrences of everyday life. You can look back on his art after years and say to yourself I remember doing that or seeing things of that nature. Therefore, take the time to not just glance at Paul Shortts art, but to look deeply and ponder over it. His art will surely make you laugh, possibly cry, and think. Paul Shortt is truly an artist that shows value in everything. Review #34 I love the art on your website. It's very fun, modern and almost like a blog with pictures. A lot of the pictures also have the bonus of coming with a positive message behind it. Make someone’s day better is a great thing. The new ways of saying goodbye under "Contemporary Farewells" are hilarious. I could see those becoming a new trend. I might even have to try some of them out myself sometime. The photos and videos under "The Car My Father Gave Me" are very beautiful. It has great sentiment and also tells a story at the same time, which I really liked. Very Creative and lovely to say the least. The Please NO Photos symbol and pictures are hilarious. It is a very creative symbol and the places it is put make it even better. I wish I could see one of those around somewhere sometime. I bet they do the trick pretty well. How To Be Narcissistic is awesome. I love how the people make their own awards for themselves. The Literally and Physically pictures are cool. I have never seen anything like that, but very much enjoyed it. It's Simple, But Complicated was one of my favorites. The videos remind me so much of something I would do. They were hilarious, and look like something you would see on TV. Printed Participations were really cool. A lot of the pictures look like something that you would see going around Facebook and other popular social networking sites. They were very creative. Paul Shorrt Shocks Chicago looks like a ton of fun. I would love to have been there are participated in that. The Three-Hour Tour is probably one of my favorites. That is such a creative and wonderful idea. I hope this one especially gains popularity. Calvin Ball pictures came out wonderful. I love how many of them are motion shots and it almost makes the viewer feel like they are really there playing. Modern Greetings looks like a load of fun, and the people participating in the pictures look like they are very much enjoying themselves as well. I really liked Nimby's pictures too. They would for sure lighten the mood for anyone who saw them. PSI Paul Shortt Invitational pictures turned out great. Just looking at the pictures makes you wish you were there to watch it live in person. The Seeking Good Conversation pictures are wonderful. I love how you spoke to random strangers and left the messages around town. Very cool and I think goes great with the Missed Connections pictures. I would love to see one of those laying somewhere. It would be awesome. The Business of Selling Yourself pictures literally had me laughing out loud. I love the sense of humor in them and love the idea. Collaborations are beautiful pictures. The handwritten messages could really brighten someone’s day. All in all, your art is great. It is creative, funny, and has an awesome message behind it. I would not mind seeing more of it in the future. Review #35 I think that at first look, this "art" might not be appreciated by a lot of people. I think that it would be quickly dismissed as "out there" or "off the wall." But I think that it is more like an opinion. When you peel back the layers you find a very creative and talented individual. He may not be using his talents in the best manner for all to see, however. Art interpretation is very personal of course and many times all in the eye of the beholder. I would encourage people to look deeper and not be dismissive. That said, my favorite works of art were: The 7 second award. This is a classic for those who have ever spent the afternoon or even days sitting at an art show hoping for someone to appreciate your work, only to have them give it a quick glance and move on. I love this award! The three hour tour. This hospital tour probably was very profound for those who took it. As a hospital volunteer, I would hope that the next tour could include some interaction. The patients would love to have someone just to listen for a little while to their stories. This would mean so much--perhaps the next tour. The free poster. People love this kind of stuff. How could this not be a success? And in any color that you want! I also liked Paul shocks Chicago. This puts an interesting and interactive spin on an art show. Other pieces that I really liked were the Literally and physically things. I loved the corner piece and the Please Do Not Climb on Sculpture. That piece alone, I thought was brilliant! I also liked the Collaborations. The Thank you notes were my very favorite piece. Something so simple and so needed were very moving. I would hope this would inspire others to do the same. Missed connections was another piece that was so poignant. I don't know how anyone couldn't have been moved by those. And how clever to display them in that manner. I didn't care for Calvinball. I think this is a display of a talent wasted. It was humorous for awhile, but the creativity could have been used in another way. From the early works, I liked the interactive signs. I am sure people got enjoyment from those. I liked the exit and mechanical. I didn't like the strap-on balls. I know that was early work, but I think it should be left out. I didn't feel that it served a point. It also might be considered vulgar by some. Business of Selling Yourself was an interesting concept, but (pardon the pun) I think Paul was selling himself short. He is talented and probably not an asshole! I think that Paul is maybe not using his talents in the best way. In order to reach a larger audience, he might want to consider a few more conventional pieces. I know that he may think that this would not suit him. And I would not want him to totally do that. I think that if he could mix in the contemporary theater with a few more conventional pieces, he could "speak" to a wider audience. Finally, in the No Photos Please section, I had a love/hate relationship with this. I loved the pictures from Chicago. I think that they were very cleverly done. But, being a native of downstate Illinois, it broke my heart to see in Allerton Park my beloved Foo Dog Garden with a red circle. The sunsinger with the red circle also was not my favorite! All in all I think that Paul has a lot of talent and creativity. Again, my suggestion would be to try and work in a few more conventional pieces to get people in the door and then he could put out his expressive pieces. There are all kinds of art and all kinds of people. I would think the goal would be to reach a kind of middle ground to share with as many people as possible. Good luck with your endeavors! Review #36 Paul Shortt is an eclectic visual artist and his work has much pizzazz and flair. Take for example his “No Photos Collection”. This interesting array of images shows individuals in various setups and different backgrounds, with an ominous “no photography” sign. What immediately stands out is the clarity of the pictures, followed by the interesting backdrops of where the photos were taken. The photos snapped on 14th street in New York City were very striking, particularly a photo of Paul Shortt leaving a store with a “no photo” sign leaning up against a structure. It is the colors and the staging that jumps out at you. The other image that is compelling is the “no photo” sign right underneath a statue in front of a building. There are layers of depth and the black and red colors pop out up against the dull shade of the building. The images speak for themselves and play on the notion as Paul Shortt states the “no photos” symbol implies a prohibition on photography and questions the constant surveillance of public spaces.” Additional photos such as the symbol in front of the Champaign County Courthouse and manufacturing plant invoke a subtle social message as well. Contemporary Farewells is an intriguing collection of abstract and humorous images on the Paul Shortt website. The idea behind the photos is to push the envelope of non-conventional ways people can say goodbye. An example of an outrageous and funny way to say goodbye is The Backwards Clasp. This technique has two individuals facing backwards and moving towards each other until their hands meet. Although not practical, it is definitely witty and clever. The other method of saying goodbye that pokes fun at the culture of today is The Cell Phone Bow. You have two individuals, staring at their cell phones, then look up at each other and back down on their cell phones. The images are in the form of silhouettes and done in black in white, which make the visuals very gripping. The Car My Father Gave Me is a more introspective look into the father son relationship that Paul Shortt has with his own father. His father’s account of owning Mustangs and other cars is simply amazing. Conversely, the second video shows the cars that Paul Shortt has owned. In addition, there is another video of Paul Shortt’s father giving a tutorial on how to drive a stick shift to Paul at the age of 30. How To Be Narcissistic highlights images indicative of a very common characteristic, vanity. The first image tells the story, as we see 2 young ladies holding a cell phone in a coffee shop. It sounds ordinary until you look closely at the level of focus and pure joy they have tapping on their phones. There is some cultural irony here as we live in a day and age where cell phones are a necessity. The next images are of handwritten messages on paper that blatantly embrace the meaning of self-arrogance and high-mindedness. Paul Shortt’s photos do several things; they tell a story and have a message. His work embodies a combination of everyday people, inanimate objects and more importantly the message he wants to get across. Review #37 P.S. is an artist who isn't afraid of defining himself but at the same time isn't afraid of change. In one phrase I would describe his art as "the lie that comes from truth." In his artistic venture of shocking Chicago we learn that people may need a shock to gather attention. Yet is it something one would want if it took a 'shock' to gather it? I was impressed and taken by P.S. artwork especially it's contrast. Between 'The Business of Selling Yourself' and 'How to be Narcissistic' we can truly see his intentions. Art is art and one can interpret it as we wish, perhaps I'm defining myself rather than his art...but then again that's his power. When he sells himself he sells his baggage but once it was public it no longer belonged to him...he changed. Concerning narcissism we witnessed a few people praising themselves in self-awarded certificates. Would promoting yourself in such a positive way take away from your persona until you don't belong to yourself and must reinvent? To become an individual and not a brand. This is what P.S. is and what he is not. What we are is what he represents, the moment you know is...is when we slip away. It may seem a bit funny or irrational to believe that our personality dies once it touches the mouths of others but it does. Our soul dies when it interpreted by others, we do not know how to make others live but ourselves. Is it our society? Is it this American Capitalist system that has the audacity to preach 'sharing is caring' but when we grow up it praises competition. We no longer know how to care for one another but rather hurt. We know this, that is why we can never be what others believe we are...even if it is 'we' who insinuated their perceptions of us. P.S. is in search for the core of people, the experience evident in such works as 'Seeking Good Conversations' or his 'Invitational' pieces. I would imagine that people only are who they are at that present moment and no other time because time transforms. An experience with a person can only happen once as his art suggests...it is what makes it important, precious. I would wager that none of us know how to make a friend anymore. It used to be easy as children...we had to have a pair of sneakers or a scooter and we had a friend. What happened to that ease of childhood? How did we loose it? P.S. goes to show us the extent we must go to to find a friend. Can a conversation be sparked? A friendship be discussed? Can strangers become friends? Is it a gimmick now, has it lost its honesty? The kinds of question that aroused in my mind due to P.S. boldness. To embrace P.S. is to embrace the truth that lingers in all of us but to understand him is to realize that no one knows who we are...not even ourselves. Review #38 "The Please No Photos piece is eye catching, being the first thing you see when visiting paulshortt.com. Checking it out further it was actually for a good cause, its a vocal piece that lets people know we do not want to be monitored on a twenty four seven basis. Also found his earlier works to be really enjoyable. Especially the photos of the ball sack thongs, they were hilarious! Paul Shortt your works are hilarious, I also enjoyed seeing the ""contemporary farewells"" just something to get people laughing, who knows maybe even trying a few for a friendly laugh. I myself have been performing the cellphone bow for years now. This is where you approach your friend while looking down at your phone, look up at your friend and then back down at your phone again. My friend danny does the interesting point, this one is where you point your finger straight out and wave your hand back and forth, except i never reciprocated with the whole waving back part and doing it as well. If you have at least twenty five minutes you can gain from a good laugh if you watch the video that follows in the end of contemporary farewells. This is a soap box performance of Contemporary farewells as part of Hillyer Art Spaces Soapbox performing art series in Washington D.C.. The next most interesting thing to catch my eye was the missed connections section. I thought this could be really funny in reference to the craigslist add for missed connections. when I read on I realized he was reflecting on the lonlieness and disconnection in online dating. I couldn't help but watch the video and I'm glad I did it seems to be a parody on people rereading craigslist add with a video circling the area of where it could have supposedly been for example ""Thursday mall red lobster man dining alone"" LOL is all I can say watch this under missed connections! This artist is very literal so I checked out literally and physically. The picture of the carpet makes me feel like you could sell that. That's art people can get use out of and joy through. I really enjoyed it and I want to order one now ROFL! In how to be narcissistic people were given a choice of name tags describing a specific narcissistic trait such as, ""I take advantage of other people to achieve my own goals"" and then proceeded to post 5 photos to a social networking cite with egotistical statements such as Me! me! me! on them and created an award for themselves and even gave speeches in a short video at the end this was very entertaining! Still I would have to say I enjoyed the missed connections section the best and even posted the video to my facebook page for my friends to see because I know they would appreciate it too! Its always nice to find a new artist who can see the world in a similar light but also in so many varieties of it." Review #39 Some people believe that art is a passive pursuit; painters create artwork and people simply view and admire it as it hangs in a gallery. Others believe that art is an active experience and involves the community in its very creation. Paul Shortt is one of the latter. This manifests itself even in the fact that I am writing this review. You see, to Paul even his reviews are part of innovative artwork. Let me explain. The reviews that Paul is currently receiving are solicited. Traditionally, artists held an exhibition, invited reviewers and then held their breath hoping that they would receive favorable press. They had little or no control. Paul Shortt is specifically requesting reviews in as part of a project (yes, an art project) to question and discuss how technology has changed the way artists see themselves. Are artists, businesses, indeed even members of the public, affected by the fact that anyone can now write website reviews that can be seen worldwide? Let's take a restaurant as an example. If you've had a great meal, or a disappointing experience when dining out, you can tell the world via the many websites that specialize in restaurant reviews. You can lie; you can be honest; you are free to say exactly what you want. But can these reviews make or break a business? Can they make or break an artist? What are these reviews saying to the general public? Is this giving us an unnatural power or is it for the common good? Are we defined by the number of Facebook friends we have? Does our number of Twitter followers really reflect our popularity? How relevant are our Pinterest boards? Looking at Paul's website and his previous works, it seems that every aspect of life can come under his creative scrutiny. This being said, when Paul embarked on the review project he purposely removed some of his works from his website in order to manipulate - to some extent - the opinions that would-be reviewers would have. Paul’s project began as a reaction to recent press reports that question online reviews on major websites. Who are these people? Exactly why are they motivated to write reviews? What rewards do they receive for their efforts? Paul’s experiment involves soliciting reviews from the general public, not from professional art reviewers. This gives them much the same validity as an average diner reviewing a restaurant as opposed to a professional food critic. Paul has collated the reviews he has received to date into a book and this will become the starting point of his project, opening up the subject of online reviews for debate. When Paul has requested reviews, he has asked the writers to go to his website and ‘write 500 words about the art you see’. I am one of the reviewers attracted to this project. Yet, you might argue, I am not in fact writing about Paul’s artwork. Am I or not? Isn’t Paul’s review project as valid a piece of artwork as his 'Modern Greetings' project where people greet each other not with a handshake but new and unconventional greetings? I believe so. Review #40 REVIEW OF PAUL SHORTT’S WORKS DISPLAYED AT HIS WEBSITE Reviewer’s Notes: You have my express permission to edit the content so the review fits better on your website, but you can not add anything or remove text that would alter the nature or context of the subject matter. After the review, there are some suggestions for future projects and some, rather irrelevant, commentary. I wrote this on MS Word and I'll email you that file with my comments later tonight. Actually even though the somewhat crappy review is complete, it's still a work in progress. I've been very busy and just couldn't write all that I wanted but you will get my comments via email. Review I don’t know a lot about Paul Shortt or his work as an artist. In-fact I don’t know much about art either. I do know the masters somewhat and I listen to few classical pieces, know a little Shakespeare but not even, I guess, a fraction of what is required to actually write about art. I just stumbled across Paul as one often does on the internet, those threads intersect, and when requested to review his works, I agreed despite the fact that I know next to nothing about performance art which I think what his niche is. Since I was specifically asked to review the work on his website, I might as well do this by numbers. First up is “Please No Photos”, a series of photographs that pokes gentle fun at overzealous surveillance and how photography is being discouraged in public places. The way it’s shown at the first page on the website, it’s seemingly supposed to be a big thing, some sort of a big work but it’s the blandest of Paul’s works. The photos are lackluster, the message is just lost in lame fun really. But further down the page, the series continues with photos taken in Illinois, and I think these photos are nice, more suited to the theme. The lack of people actually moves the satire center stage and I liked them. Impressive photographs. Contemporary Farewells, New ways of saying goodbye. Meh. How To Be Narcissistic is a drab look at irony and people's perception of themselves and how they want to be perceived. It’s tame and it’s a social exercise but I hate these fucking things where you collaborate for fuck’s sake. As you may very well know, we’re all snowflakes here, unique in our personal bubbles. We are entitled to praise for thinking, we deserve praise for taking out the trash, we deserve praise for saving a fucking baby. But I did like the second video where people are presenting each other with certificates. The Car My Father Gave me is the most effective and personal work. Deeply touching. I loved the videos where his father shows off his cars photo by photo, hypnotic. He has a good, honest voice. I would have loved to see his father in the gear shift video though instead of just the voiceover. Literally and Physically is impressive. I love the "Please Do Not Climb On The Sculpture" piece. Reminds of a lot of art and projects today that you’re supposed to get in that perfect skew that the artist intended. I think Paul’s kinda reaching with ROFL CON and his internet allegory. Corner Piece is disturbing. I conformity disturbing in general so… It's Simple, But Complicated. The breakdown video is kinda dumb but "Fly the Flag" is awesome, trying to rescue something he loves that just wants to sink to the bottom of the mud. Printed Participations. I loved "resist", find such work or statement profound. Also "Art Certificates", playful, yes, but also something the viewer can connect with. Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago. More pffftzzz than bzzzzz. Three-Hour Tour. Another of my favorites. I love how the participants interact with such a horridly living place and how that space affects their perception of each other and their experience. Nice. This gives us a glimpse into Paul’s true genius here, when he succeeds in bringing out what he wants in his subjects. Modern Greetings. A look at how detached we have become from each other and our humanity that we do invent these social norms to add spice to our interaction. I guess it’s alright. Nimby's. Commentary on spaces. I really don’t see the point. PSI Paul Shortt Invitational. Now there should’ve been a video here. But the people seem to be having fun in the photos so it must’ve been. But I do like the idea of unique performances daily. Seeking Good Conversation. Interesting observation here. Random conversations with strangers, utter social isolation. Second video...awesome… I've lived in the same small town and known the same people for so long, I've forgotten how to make friends. Missed Connections. Best of the bunch. The video makes you so sad for the people depicted and for yourself. There is nothing worse than the thought of a missed opportunity because for most us, it’s not who you could have fucked, it’s who you didn’t love. True, the grass is always greener but it’s gotta be better than the pile of crap you ended up in. Right? And the video conveys that feeling perfectly. The Business of Selling Yourself. Hilarious first photo, made me LOL. But he’s, again, kinda reaching. Does sell himself short sometimes. Collaborations. The thanks notes are nice in a regular way. The double projector video is absolute crap. I mean what the fuck? Probably ruined some perfectly good projectors, it's just art for art's sake. Art should have a tangible meaning, first to the artist and then to the viewer and that's where they make the connection. Second video is crap as well. Art should make you think about the subject or what the artist draws your attention to, it shouldn't puzzle you about its own meaning. But then, fuck do I know. So what else can I say about Paul… He seems humble, has an honest, likeable face and a great personality, you can’t help but like him. And I guess the same can be said about his work. When it’s good, it’s very good and even the crappy pieces look like gold from a distance. [the review ends here] ******************** I'm gonna take a guess that you're a true artist, because no asshole could ever pay someone to write an honest review. I was high when I went to your website too look at the full work and take my notes. I was a bit high then and had these really fucking brilliant ideas about a review but forgot to include them in my notes and eventually forgot those fucking brilliant ideas, that’s why the crappy review above. I do like what you do and there is a lot of stuff I can relate to. The father I wish I had instead of some guy so busy making money and a career, I only got to see him for ten minutes every weekend and even then, only to know what a disappointment I was. And this was when I was eight or seven. And then that Review #41 The first two words that came to mind after casually viewing Paul Shortt’s website were urban and unique. After viewing each category which includes a set of photos, I found an intricate storyline for each subject heading that the photos were displayed under. For example Shortt’s earlier works; photos that were taken between 2006-2009, display task and actions. The set of photos shows two subjects going through what appear to be everyday ordinary routines in a rather comical manner. Their normal routines are being tested with a new routine which breaks their normal habits. This is a perfect example of subjective art because as I’m viewing it, I’m not finding myself thinking more about daily routines that I go through rather than actually appreciating the series. This set certainly evokes the thinking process on a personal level for me. I feel like the Strap-on Ballsacks could be quite controversial and I’m wondering if it did indeed cause any controversy. I do however, love the genius shot of the girl standing on the edge of a water fountain wearing a gold strap-on ballsack as a jet of water blasts past her leg. I think the effect could have looked more real if she would have changed her angle slightly. The background architecture in the shot gives the photo a European feel. Both of these early set of photos confirm my first thought process of urban and unique. It seems Shortt does indeed like pushing the subject material as seen in his series of No Photos Please. This collection of photos was taken in NYC according to the description. I was at first confused while looking at the photos because I was under the impression that no photography was supposed to be taking in these locations. However, after a closer look I see that a statement and a point is being applied. Regardless I thought the shot of the two police officers was quite ballsy. I love the interaction between the actual photo and the individuals. I think the statement would have been much more powerful if the photos were actually taken at locations that blatantly say photos restricted. How to be Narcissistic is my favorite set. As with almost all the works on Shortt’s website, this set of photos evokes the thought process and in this case I found it to be quite powerful on a personal level. I found myself thinking about my own level of narcissism as well as wondering about the people in the photos. I think the message of How to be Narcissistic is subtly brilliant. Narcissism is never a good thing but in this case I found the photos to show a different story. It’s alright to appreciate yourself and your best qualities. We might need to step aside from time to time and reflect on some of the awesome traits that we have as individuals. I’ve never actually considered making an award for myself and while that might make me feel good about myself I can totally see how an outsider might totally get the narcissistic vibe about me. I think the message of this set besides appreciating yourself is boldly declaring your appreciation to the world, regardless of what someone else might think. There are quite a few other set of works that Paul Shortt has on his website. I found the ones that I wrote about to be the most interesting. On an end note, I love the city of Chicago. I was delighted to see a title with the word Chicago in it. Shortt’s first art gallery in Chicago added a twist by using a hand buzzer gag when he shook hands with someone and passing it along from person to person. First of all that sounds like a joke I would pull off. It’s also a great way to break the ice and the crowd at the gallery already probably appreciates art so it would have been interesting to see their initial reactions through photos. Review #42 "Amazing, thought provoking and real! When viewing the webpage I wasn't sure what to expect and didn't have the highest of expectations but after reviewing the photos, looking through them, feeling them, and going back to do it again just for the fun of it I can honestly say I have a wonderful new artist to add to my list of favorites! The art that has been created ranges from hearty nostalgia to a modern day take on city living and the laws that govern it! Looking through the projects it becomes clear that the level of imagination and wisdom put into these works of art are not just a fleeting thing for Paul Shortt. Some of the works took literal approaches at finding new ways of how we live life, from handshakes to manners that are dictated by day to day etiquette there is a whole new look on them after perusing these projects. The simplicity in the projects while still making you think extremely complex was absolutely mesmerizing; Every piece of art is clearly thought out and executed with perfection. I truly value the once in a life time experience that so many of these projects offered as well as the general ambiance that comes from viewing this art. Each collection is just as powerful and thought provoking as the last while always maintaing a clear air of humor, fun and wit. To understand the journey that four separate people could possibly take while randomly touring a hospital through pictures and caption is phenomenal. Very rarely these days does original art make you still feel as though it belongs in galleries. I am truly anxious and excited to be able to see where the art continues to go. The inventive use of everyday objects to convey messages are captivating. Simple things that so many take for granted, or don't ever give a second thought to like missed connections and photo signs have been morphed into this great 'live' art of sorts to truly make you think. I'm envious of the performance nights, and audience participation that is so clearly documented and seen in so many of the photos; however living through captions brings you there as well which is quite a feat for artistry these days. Variations of nearly every art form are repeated on a near daily basis and yet Paul Shortts work is completely new and enlightening to see. Projects full of brash unbiased honesty and an overwhelming sense of self confidence even when not being about self or confidence lead me to believe that this work will continue to prove wonderful. Viewing this art will remind of you of the simple treasure of everyday life, you may be compelled to look back frequently and should not be ashamed if perhaps you cry while viewing some of these projects. My emotions personally ran the gambit while going over all the clever and intoxicating videos and art provided. I am eager to see more of this art, and can't wait to share with those I know who need perhaps a second glance at how beautiful this life is and can be." Review #43 I don’t know very much about art, and even less about Paul Shortt, but I came across his website, and I was really touched by the emotion, and occasional cynical humor. I decided to view some of his other work and it was interesting to see how he came about. I’m going to review his website specifically, collection by collection, because each offered an interesting perspective in their own way. First offered up is “Please No Photos”, he described it as “As part of the 8th annual street festival Art In Odd Places I walked along 14th Street in New York City holding an enlarged seven-foot “no photos” symbol that implies a prohibition on photography and questions the constant surveillance of public spaces.” It’s an interesting idea, and it was well done. He had people hold the sculpture and have their picture taken with it “subverting the act the sculpture implies”. I saw this as a reference juxtaposing current society with a dystopia similar to that portrayed in the famous novel 1984, given that so much of the world is more concerned with their individual rights, that they’d be willing to ignore the larger issues of mass security and privacy. While one may not be comfortable having a stranger photograph them in a public space in general, it’s much more accepted if they are able to hold a sculpture, or pose next to it. This is where I saw cynicism and humor most specifically in his work, and the fact that you can almost see his attitude in the very first collection is something to admire in a young artist. The next collection we get to view is “Contemporary Farewells: New Ways of Saying Good Bye”. This was kind of a silly collection, but nothing that really jumped out except for “The Cell Phone Bye”. It may just be my own personal experiences, but it makes me sad that so many people so have lost touch with one another and they hide so much behind their own personal electronics. I think the collection is meant to be silly, and many of the images made me giggle, but that one evoke a bit of sadness. We as a society are losing touch with one another, and focusing so much on our electronics, that it’s become a difficulty to have personal face-to-face discussions. The next collection is called “How to be Narcissistic”. It was similar to many that you’ll see as ice breakers for a new job or even a college class. It wasn’t too far out of the ordinary or out of the box, but still rather interesting to see people portraying themselves as how they’d like to be seen, as opposed to how they are. The collection titled “The Car My Father Gave Me” nearly made me cry. The video portrays his father going through images of the car, and it touches on the very sentimental family feelings. I loved it, and watched the video three times. It was sweet and clear that his father cared a lot about him and about the car. It was the most personal of the collections, and the most well done. It would have been nice to see his father in the video, but it was well done. “Literally and Physically” is the next collection, and it’s an array of sculptures. “Please Don’t Climb On the Sculpture” is a fun perspective piece, and the ROFL carpet is interesting and it’s fun to see what everyone would look like if they did roll on the floor laughing every time they typed it. “It’s Simple, But Complicated” is an interesting look on the tasks that many people take as being simple but have deeper cultural meanings. They are worth the watch, but don’t go as deep into the implications as they could. “Printed Participation” is kind of meh to be honest, but still worth looking through. It wasn’t anything I hadn’t seen or expected to see before. “Paul Shortt Shocks Chicago” is where he tricks people with those hand shockers that have his name on it and gives them to the people who he shocked. Also, kind of meh, but I hope it went well, as there wasn’t much information beyond the concept on the website. “Three Hour Tour” was a wall of text but worth the read. I don’t want to spoil it, but I think readers would like it. This is followed by “Modern Greetings” which is the inverse of “Contemporary Farewells” the pictures were kind of silly and people looked like they were having fun, but it wasn’t really deep, meaningful or emotional. “Nimby’s” was a collection of images that were a little interesting, but mostly kind of fell into the ‘it’s been done’ category. It wasn’t bad, and it was kind of fun, but it wasn’t really fresh or new or personal. It was rather thought evoking though. The next collection was the “Paul Short Invitational”. The images were fun, but it would have been nice if there were videos instead of just still photographs. “Seeking Good Conversation” had several good videos. It was a thought provoking section. It reminded me of how hard it is to get to know people and make friends as an adult and really have interesting conversations, instead of mindless drabble. “Missed Connections” was interesting. He read and placed ads from the Missed Connections sections of Craigslist in the places they happened to create new connections. I put this in the same paragraph as “seeking good conversation” because I think they could go together as a collection. The artist is trying to help people have good conversations with their own missed connections, and it evoked a lot of the same feelings. “The Business of Selling Yourself” is a cynical look on dating and even getting hired. It’s silly and interesting and definitely worth the read/watch. “Collaborations” is the last collection. The images are kind of funny, the video was awesome, and it’s really great to look through. In conclusion, Paul Shortt is an artist with a lot of potential who doesn’t often stray into the emotional, but when he does it’s a fantastic site. He can and will do a lot with his future and he’s definitely worth checking out. Review #44 When I first looked over Paul Shortt’s site I wasn’t quite sure how I felt. It’s so often hit or miss as to whether an artist’s works will click with an individual – it’s like blind dating, but entirely for aesthetics instead of sex. My first impressions were of the “Please No Photos” collection. I immediately wanted to dislike this “artist”, because anyone can hold an out-of-the-ordinary item in public and take pictures with it. As I continued to move temporally backwards through the pieces, however, instead of seeing what I viewed as more laziness, I saw a succession of different approaches, art that isn’t just spectacle and a camera, art that doesn’t necessarily get framed, or is even purchasable. That’s when I started to think that my initial impressions warranted further rumination. As it turns out, I found myself enjoying a tremendous number of the projects Shortt has captained over the years. Rather than allow his artistic endeavors to remain passive experiences, Shortt’s works frequently engage the viewer directly, actively, and often physically. Also, as it turns out, he actually seems to put a great deal of thought into the reasoning behind his pieces. For example, the initial “No Photos Please” collection that so dismayed me originally, was seen through a new light when accompanied by the artist’s discussion of the event with another artist. Though it’s still not my favorite, I can at least appreciate the thought that went behind the symbol, and it’s relationship to the medium used. Another thing that won me over was his enthusiasm and honesty. Though I don’t believe Americans need lessons in narcissism, it doesn’t mean it should be wiped from existence- and the idea of a controlled burst of it, almost like a dose of medicine, was quite the idea. It could be a partial reflection of Shortt himself, as his business card project and letters of reference hint at a twisted narcissist residing in his brain. Further pushing this was the use of awards in different projects. Whether arbitrarily awarded and potentially insulting, or self-created, self awarded affirmations, the awards both point out how we seem to be capable or throwing praise at just about any action, all it takes is a piece of paper with a little bit of gold foil to validate the victory. I’m tempted to make myself an award for writing this review. The “It’s simple but complicated” series was a huge disappointment in that there wasn’t more of it. Though the flag one seems to hit one on the head with it’s message, the fact is that the videos are short, enjoyable, and offer the opportunity for more thought if allowed. The kernel of this idea was one of my favorites, but has yet to reach the robustness of some of his other projects. My favorite visual, physical piece was the piece of art that was never meant to be a piece of art – the “free poster”. I want one quite badly – the 24 by 36, because you really have to embrace it. I love the accompanying “Resist” poster as well – but it lacks a directive about nose-picking (a personally favored indulgence of mine against society’s norms). The cherry on top, however, is discovering that this review for which I’ve been recruited , is actually part of a project by Shortt. He’s made an art project out of paying others to talk about his art. It could probably be argued that this connects directly to those strings of skewed narcissism witnessed in other pieces. It could also be argued that this is another example of laziness in a project. It could also be argued that this is awesome, avante garde, etc. Art is about arguing after all. It’s also a ballsy move to pay a stranger money to say whatever they want about his art. I’d have to say that after taking everything in, I’ll probably be looking at this site again, even if I don’t get paid for it. By the way, under the “collaborations” you’ve spelled back and forth “back and fourth” under the video entitled “Making the Wind”. Keep arting. Review #45 Paul Shortt’s art is immediately human. It speaks to commonalities in all of us (narcissism, a desire for privacy, and memory) and therefore very accessible. However, this immediacy and accessibility occasionally render his works slightly pedestrian. When successful Shortt’s work stands out as decidedly stark and moving. Shortt’s website has an “About Me” section that briefly details his professional history, but his collection entitled “The Business of Selling Yourself” is much more effective in detailing the person behind the art. On a displayed business card, Shortt reveals aspects of his personality most people would hide and ignore. He’s selfish, bad with money, condescending, and a sex addict who is potentially bad in bed. These confessions were intended to be cathartic and productive, but regardless of his intention, they give context to the art that Shortt creates. This is ego-less art that aims for honesty over style. Aesthetically, Shortt’s business card is ugly and this can be said of many of his other pieces. The photography and videography is flat and documentarian, but this only serves to emphasize the emotional quality of the work. Shortt isn’t attempting to forge a style, but rather expound upon personal issues that matter to him. The most effective of Shortt’s pieces is a series entitled “Please No Photos.” He took to the streets of New York City to visually express dissatisfaction with the pervasive surveillance that exists in the modern city. Using an enormous no photography sculpture, Shortt photographed pedestrians holding the sign in different public areas of the city. In addition, he places the sculpture next to buildings, in parks, and other common areas. The results are superb, with the sculpture appearing as part UFO part 2D object in our very 3D world. This juxtaposition pulls this real location and person into the world of google maps and government satellites, further emphasizing ubiquitous surveillance. Perhaps the most elegant series is “Contemporary Farewells,” which present monochromatic explanations of alternative and humorous ways of saying goodbye. The pieces have a simple, paper-cut look, with silhouettes of people performing the above-mentioned gestures. They involve absurd and laughable exchanges of muscle hugs, twists and turns, cell phones, and pointing. This series is much less serious than Shortt’s other works, but the presentation is right on. Where Shortt loses me is in the realm of performance art. A quick disclaimer: I do not like performance art. Regardless of this fact, I think the visual and live presentations of the work are lacking in many ways. For example, in performing “Contemporary Farewells,” pairs of Shortt’s friends awkwardly act out the different humorous farewells. The actions are seemingly unrehearsed and strange to watch. Most problematic is the fact that the aesthetic cohesion of the printed work is completely absent in the performance. Instead of recreating the high contrast, monochromatic look of the original series, the normally dressed actors are set against a busy gallery backdrop. This lack of attention to detail could simply be irrelevant in Shortt’s eyes, but for me it creates a distracting disconnect in the live performance of his pieces Review #46 The lumberjack look of multi-media manipulator, Paul Shortt, doesn’t seem to fit the image of this quirky, comedian, photographer, poet, installation and performance artist. Reviewing his website filled with his galley of photographs and videos of himself and participants is not unlike watching “The Truman Show” where everything in Shortt’s life is recorded and shared with the internet world. Even his reviews are commissioned from Amazon Mechanical Turk for $5.00 for 500 words, which in my book makes him one of the high rollers on the website. That is to say he’s not cheap but generous; and judging from his work he is also quite self-effacing and humorous. People have written about his “No photos allowed” installation piece but I quite frankly enjoyed the inventive posters he created on “modern greetings.” Those who are interested in novel social ideas should take a look at these suggestions, even if just for a laugh. Perhaps that is the most refreshing angle of Shortt’s work is the lack of seriousness and the full emphasis on playfulness. His museum pieces in “Literally and Physically” is interactive and designed for adults and children alike. For Shortt, there is a child is everyone and it is absolutely necessary to have hands on experience with his work. People touch and handle each other in some exhibits; others might climb stairs and hear the creator of the piece laughing on a recording while you are encouraged to do what the rug tells you, which is “Roll on the Floor Laughing.” One video is watching Shortt attempt to raise a flag on a pole. The piece is called “Simple but Complicated” a just under three minute film showing Paul’s feeble attempt at raising a flag. This is reminiscent of Andy Warhol’s recording 24 hours of the outside of the Empire State Building. It seems sort of meaningless yet like most things on Youtube one just watches it because you want to be entertained. You’re hoping that maybe the video of Paul’s car break down is just the thing that will pick you up. There is a funny, cuteness about Shortt that reminds you of a handsome Seth Rogan with his curly hair and scruffy beard. You can imagine him picking up women with a “missed connection” message written on a huge birthday cake. He has lots of great ideas, clever images and is literate! To Paul Shortt’s credit, he’s not just some spaced out guy on an ego trip but a real artist. Born in 1981, this 31-year-old BFA graduate of Kansas City Art Institute takes his work seriously. He is currently studying for his MFA in New Media at the University of Illinois in which he expects to receive this year in 2013. It will be interesting to see how Shortt develops and evolves as an artist. He’s talented and savvy and knows how to connect with an audience. With many artists going in for shocking performance art, Shortt seemed comfortable with his PG-13 rating, and should be. Review #47 As a photographer and someone who has been drawing with charcoal and pastels since she was seven, I thought that it would be wonderful to review someone’s art website – and be able to make a few buck while doing it! It was definitely an eye-opening experience about what I have been considering art. I never really thought of something like a video of someone showing picture after picture of cars that they have owned art. I’m not entirely certain that I still consider some of the works on this website art, but I can say that I am highly impressed by Paul Short’s work. I think that he has a lot of interesting points to make, and that he comes up with some creative ways to make those points. That being said, I was very amused by the “Contemporary Good-Byes page” and “How to be Narcissistic” pages. Although I don’t necessarily consider the latter art, because it seems more like just a workshop to me, I think that it says a lot about self-esteem. I also think that you can tell a lot about a person by the products that they come up with in this workshop. People who have really low self-esteems would have an issue with this workshop, and people who have really high self-esteems would come out with totally different results (such as longer lists, longer speeches, etc.) The “Contemporary Good-Byes” project was very amusing to me – especially the video with examples of the good-byes. I think that the book would be very interesting to own, and would be something amusing to share with friends. I think one of the most interesting things that he is doing is these reviews. I think that it is very interesting that he is soliciting his own reviews as a way to show the differences in how artists create press for themselves. It is a bold statement – insinuating that artists can create their own good press by picking and choosing the reviews made by others or writing their own reviews under a different name. However, Paul Short is including even bad reviews in his book and on his web page, so it seems to me that this project is less about creating his own favorable press and more about the point that he is making by doing the project. This says a lot of me about his intent to make the points that he is trying to portray in his works. I think that Paul Short has a lot to say about the human condition, and that he is trying to find new and interesting ways to get those points across; however, I am unsure about the terming of some of his works as “art.” With his “Please No Photos” project, it felt to me that a lot of the pictures were just snap shots – something that anyone could snap away with a point-and-shoot camera. Some of the pictures seemed very similar to tourist pictures. As a photographer, this kind of bugged me, because I spent a long time learning how to create art with my camera; however, I think that his finding a “different” way to discuss this aspect of the human condition was very interesting. I don’t know, for sure, what I would call some of his work, but I think it is a genius way to discuss some points that should be made. Bravo! Review #48 When I first thought of reviewing an art website, I imagined it would be a boring task. I expected to see a website filled with paintings that were priced too high and a needy sales pitch. I was pleasantly surprised when I viewed Paul Shortt's website. It was visually appealing and had different content such as videos, pictures and hilarious commentary. At first I was a little confused as to where the paintings were. When I was clicking on the links, I realized this was a much more developed art website. I truly laughed when I was looking over the "How to be Narcissistic" project. It was a project which I'm sure made the artists think about their good qualities but to the viewer it was hilarious. The artists drew self portraits and wrote things like "nice rack" on their best qualities list. There were badges with narcisstic qualities like "I use other people for my own personal gain." I loved that, it was a humorous play on personality flaws that we all have but almost never admit. The work seems lighthearted and fun to me. I enjoyed the website because of the randomness of projects. I feel I will visit this website in the future just to see the new projects and commentary. It feels to me like Paul Shortt's work is an example of how art and beauty can be found anywhere, from people on the street to a hilarious sign on a stairwell. I felt uplifted after viewing his website. It was fun, new and went far beyond my expectations. I liked the commentary and projects that were unexpected and clever. I liked how there were videos included in the different projects. They were high quality and ran smoothly. I was half way expecting it to freeze my crappy, college student budget computer, but it didn't. I liked the mix of humor and seriousness in the projects as well. I loved the carpet that said "Roll on the Floor Laughing" it was a true example of the unexpected and untraditional art pieces that Paul Shortt creates. The art work is different and stands out from the rest of the crowd. When someone says they are an artist, I usually think of random colors and lines that make no sense to me. The kind of art found on eBay that seems like it took a half hour to make and is being sold for hundreds or thousands. His art is different, a play on the random and humorous art we experience day to day in life. Overall my impressions of Paul Shortt's website are positive. I enjoy the sense of humor he expresses in his artwork and art projects. The quality of his work are eminent and profound. I thoroughly enjoyed the content on his website and plan to visit it again in the future. I was never a big art fan, but the artwork here is different and appealing, more-so then his peers in the art industry. Review #49 Paul Short is an artist with a slight nod to the absurd. Which is okay, everyone needs to be slightly absurd. In “Contemporary Farewells”, Paul shows ways to say good-bye ranging from what might be considered almost a fraternity styled backup maneuver involving clasping of hands to a maneuver styled to look like the Statue of Liberty. Anyone looking at this might think that they are looking at two people from the same club bidding each other adios, but instead these are ways that Paul seems to think would be a more likely acceptable way to say, “Aloha” for almost anyone, from the five year old looking to its playmate with an imaginary baby, to the two teenagers engaging in avoiding the finality by looking at their phones. “Modern Greetings “is not a nod to the process of handshaking, but rather an alternative to handshaking. Ways to greet include: “The double whack,” which is similar to paddy cake-paddy cake, but entirely not as it is done with hands backwards. “Shaky Hands” is somewhat non-gender specific and involves too much closeness for most hetro-sexual males. “Side Bump” seems to be homage to O’Hare International Airport and what happens when a traveler is late and running against the crowd. “But Bump” is similar to a move perfected in a New York City apartment kitchen. Apparently, the people who are doing “The Cellphone Rub” are not sending data to each other’s phones as much as they are greeting one another. Cats have been known to do such things with their faces. “The Extended Armpit” is not testing each other’s deodorants ability to “cut it” but is a happy hello to your fellow human. All things considered a very funny unique bit of art on display. In “How to be Narcissistic”, Paul shows a performance art workshop of sorts, people clamber together to celebrate and wallow in the awesomeness that is themselves. Included in this are instances of people listing their best qualities, making what can only be thought of as admissions of greatness and drawing self-portraits and taking pictures of themselves. This culminates into making awards for themselves and is concluded with a “Grand Exit”. Funny and frivolous, in all actuality, a function that should be attended by every individual at some time or another and cherished and remembered by all by framing the resulting “Award for Awesomeness” and sticking it in a place in an office where all can peer upon it’s grandness and ponder. Last but not least, “Please No Photo’s” is a wonderful work of sign art and the ability of the average human being to not give a rip about what the sign says. It also engages minds in almost a teeter totter of lonesome wonder as it tries to come to grips with the idea of photo’s being taken of a sign that says, clearly, “No Photo’s”. Somewhat like a bowl of plastic fruit it begs to question its own existence. Photos of the “No photo” logo are taken in various places throughout a city and in places where photos would be most certainly taken. A favorite photo for most fans would have to be the Japanese tourist, taking a photo, of the “No Photo” logo. Review #50 A lot of Paul Shortt’s work is about connections between people. Shortt's series "Missed Connections" instantly caught my attention because of the way it takes existing narratives and puts a twist on them. By transposing these short, often one-sided dialogues from the Craigslist website to the location from which they originated, Shortt offers a chance for the missed connection to take hold. As a viewer, I connect with these pieces because they offer hope at the same time as they are beautifully hopeless. There is something absurd about seeing these narratives jump from the computer screen to the physical world, and the absurdity makes me pause and think about the separation between the online realm and the everyday, and how the two can merge. “The Car My Father Gave Me” is another piece about connection. In the first video, “My Fathers Cars,” we see the worn hands of a mechanic flip through photos of various cars he has owned. His informality in presentation and speech really enhances the piece, I feel, because it lends a certain authenticity that we would not get if he simply narrated a slideshow of the images. We begin to really feel the connection between father and son in the videos “Mine” and “Learning to Drive a Stick Shift.” This series gives a real sense of a son trying to understand his relationship with his father. Rather than directly approaching the topic, father and son engage in activities of sharing information and knowledge, which, I suppose, act as proxy for sharing love. “Printed Participations” toes the line of absurdity when it addresses the connection between the artist or maker and the audience. Inherent in the work is the act of a viewer acquiring the piece and deciding what to do with it. I like the idea of viewer participation. It engages and excites the viewer because they get a chance for their action to become part of a work of art. This series also begs the question of “What is art?” which is always a nice question to drive yourself crazy with. “Pay For An Audience: Five Star Ratings” (which I can only assume I am now a part of by writing this) is about a different sort of connection, between a buyer and seller. By paying viewers to write a review of his art, Shortt is playing with the idea of commodification. What is the value of a purchased reaction? Can you be certain that these reviews are honest and true? What effect does the money have on what the reviewer will write? Like “Printed Participations,” an interaction between the artist and someone else becomes the work of art. As a participant, I am in the unique position to be observing this piece while I am a part of it. If I were to start typing nonsense or inflammatory remarks, would my review be printed? Would it have any value? I didn’t read any of the other reviews. I wonder what they have to say about it. Review # 51 I have to admit that I’m not the most savvy or knowledgeable person when it comes to art. There are some artist names and works that I’ve seen and heard about while watching TV, such as Rembrandt, Gough and Picasso. I’ve also draw sketches occasionally in my free time so I am familiar with some simple techniques such as shading and cross hatching. With that out of the way, when I came across Paul Shortt’s art website, it was not what I was expecting. My first impression of Paul Shortt’s art was that it was just a bunch of random photographs and if this was art, well then anyone could do this. There didn’t seem to be much thought put into the stuff on the website. I watched his breakdown video under the “It’s Simple, But Complicated,” category and it just looked like a ticked off lunatic flipping people off. Who was he flipping off, anyway? There were no other cars on the road or people in the video. Maybe it was his subtle way off saying ‘fuck you,’ to the world for screwing him over so many times. I even glanced through the “5 Star Ratings” art reviews to try to get some perspective, but it all felt fake and manufactured knowing that these people wouldn’t have give this website one look if they weren’t being paid to do so. On the other hand, the same could be said for me. A bit frustrated and confused with what I had seen so far, I decided would come back to it another day. After browsing through the website and not really understanding how the content on it could be categorized as art, I considered that maybe I was viewing these pieces from the wrong point of view. I didn’t consider his works “art” because I didn’t see anything technically pleasing or aesthetically appealing. However, after mulling over my thoughts and looking through more of his work, I came to the conclusion that his art had a social aspect to it. I think Paul Shortt’s art looks to connect people emotionally and socially and when I interpreted his works in that manner I was able to understand how earlier reviewers could classify these projects as art. One piece that resonated particularly with me was under “The Car My Father Gave Me.” I particularly enjoyed the video where Paul Shortt’s father is going through all the cars he had owned throughout his lifetime. I particularly liked how the video was shot with the close-up of the pictures of the cars and the most you can see of Paul Shortt’s father is his left hand. As I watched the video, I felt as though I was right beside Paul Shortt’s father as he described the story behind each car he had owned. It was as if I was living through part of his life as he detailed all those vehicles. Another piece I enjoyed looking through and did a great job of capturing emotional and social connections was “Modern Greetings.” It was interesting to see people try out these goofy and whimsical ways of addressing one another. The greetings brought a bit of lightheartedness to the act of welcoming a person and, at least I feel, refines the age old tradition of the handshake. Overall, I am glad I decided to take this assignment on and feel that it empowers the average person to go out there and create their own art. Review #52 Paul Shortt First of all I must confess I know next to nothing about art, especially modern experiential or installation art. Having said this I will be approaching this review and critique of Paul Shortt’s work as any layman or member of the public would. I will be using common sense, my opinions and relating my interpretation which should be relevant to most people. Having looked at Paul’s portfolio of work at http:http://paulshortt.com/, I must say I wasn’t that impressed at first. All of his current work appears to be abstract and incoherent ideas expressed in physical manifestations, such as actions, signs, etc. There’s a sense that he’s being too clever and trying very hard, but the overall effect is negligible. Whether this is a fair comment or not I’m also not qualified to determine. Without being overly critical, it didn’t help that the people and objects featured in his recent work didn’t seem that interesting, the shots taken seem to be rushed and not very well done in terms of angles, lighting, etc. I’m not expecting professional photography as such, but with cluttered and rushed photos of his recent work Paul’s not really doing himself much justice. At this point I was about to give up, there was no way I’d be able to write 500 words on something that just wasn’t that appealing and interesting to me. Just out of curiosity, however, I looked through Paul’s CV and also clicked on his “early work” link. I’m very glad I gave Paul and his website a couple more minutes of my time and attention, because the quality of his earlier work, in terms of ideas, concepts and humour was just far more superior and a real revelation. Paul only featured two earlier pieces of work. The first one is interactive signs, which can be described as experiential art as people follow directions of strategically placed signs with matching font, look and feel and context to its immediate surroundings. The second piece is strap-on ballsacks, which is funny and also has the potential to shock. The idea is to make people think about sexuality and gender, in very public places rather than in an environment in private where most people are more comfortable with. Consistent with both pieces of work, and also extending to his more recent work but far less focused, are the ideas that people should try to experience their everyday environment in a different way (interactive signs) and notions of power and masculinity (strap-on ballsacks). Perhaps I’m being unfair when I say his recent work has lost focus, but in comparison to his earlier work somewhere along the line the simplicity of idea and message has been lost. If I may be so bold, I’d suggest Paul re-examine his earlier work and focus on the clarity of idea, simplified messaging and tidy execution in his future work. Perhaps I just don’t get his newer stuff, and to be fair after examining his earlier work in detail and then coming back to his recent work, everything sort of started to make a little bit more sense, but not much. Maybe we just need to spend more time with it before we start to appreciate the subtleties and meaning of his recent work. I just don’t know. Review #53 My initial and overall impression of Paul Shortt's work is that it falls into what most people would consider 'modern art'. Whether or not Paul accepts that term is unclear but there is a certain post modern feel to much of the installations and projects detailed on his website. That was my initial impression, however, it was not my sole impression. I didn't feel like the work was uninteresting or unengaging. I would say my deeper impression was that Paul is somebody fascinated with the human condition and how we need to relate to the world around us. He does have areas where he focuses on introspective ideas, notably the portraits (although this is not strictly art by Paul, it is presented on his site) and The Car My Father Gave Me. 'Please No Photos' brings into question the public reaction to something that symbolizes privacy. In a culture where everything is constantly uploaded to social networking sites, the 'no pictures' symbol is no longer seen as just an establishment rule, it could, theoretically be seen, as a direct attack on the way many perceive their own personal freedom. 'Modern Greetings' is perhaps the most typical work by Paul as it seems to incorporate many of his ideas into one project. The project deals with modern communication, social structures, and a certain degree of humor and participation. The photographs depict what appears to be quite an enjoyable event whereby participants perform inventive ways to greet as substitute for the norm. I think this focuses on two things: the relevance our communications have to our every day lives and how people react to stepping outside of their comfort zone. 'Missed Connections' is particularly interesting as I feel that it touches upon quite a distinct issue that almost everybody can relate to. The process of finding love, or even just general companionship, in the modern age can feel somewhat restricted and inaccessible, due to intense social structures and the pace at which many live. This project takes the online ad and puts it actually in the location (via a physical format) that the ad is referencing. This confronts passersby with the loneliness that can exist outside of a normally sterile location (such as starbucks) and the type of thoughts and needs that can be found in a truthful place (such as craigslist). It's confrontational, but makes quite a profound point. In conclusion, I think Paul's greatest attribute is that he never does the same thing twice - he has a theme to his work that incorporates thoughts of sadness, isolation and humor, but the projects individually manage to convey a new message each time. The other good thing about his work is that he enjoys outsider participation, this is typically a good sign that the artist has a need to connect artistically with those around them. I think that he's quite adept at zoning in on the essence of his work in the way that it is presented on the website - there isn't too much in the way of written text, he instead prefers to focus on the right images to convey the art. The old cliche that goes a picture is worth a thousand words is certainly true and it is testament to Paul's ability to relate on an artistic level that he opts to use images over text. Review #54 First and foremost, I am writing a review of Paul Shortt's work for Amazon's Mechanical Turk. I am being paid $5 to review this work, but the only reason I am even mentioning this fact is because this artist has made a work of art out of a collection of reviews of his work that he received from Amazon Mturk. So I am going to review this piece of work. It is titled "Pay For An Audience: 5 Star Ratings" What an interesting concept. The title itself isn't necessarily indicative of what an artist paying for reviews will receive - for example, there are a few submissions where paid crowd-sourced reviewers did not actually give a 5-star review and called his work amateurish and some people who were not impressed with his website, but overall, I believe that the idea of the work is to show that any artist can pay for maximum favorable reviews and propel themselves as groundbreaking top-tier artists regardless of talent, ability, or skill. The other art featured on Paul's website are typical art pieces: some are more impressive than others, sets of pictures focusing on topics that may or may not invoke any sort of emotion in the audience. I personally believe it is almost artistically-criminal to pay for favorable reviews in this manner - but in all actuality, its a small scale version of the exactly same mass media induced version of artists that have been picked and chosen by the media elite and chance and happenstance of breaking out in a sea of nearly infinite artists. So Paul has done what is nearly impossible to do with a much larger budget: create an exhibit, create a buzz, and create a brand new concept in one single swoop. Make a splash, make an impact, make a new piece of art that has never been done before. Brilliant! It has been months since I've seen an original piece of art such as this. Art itself is problematic in this day and age. Photoshop isn't even a luxutry anymore, free versions of it are all over the place online and for a cell phone and Adobe themselves recently gave away the entire CS2. Part of the problem in the day and age we live in is that way too many people have access to high-end DSLR cameras and go out snapping shots and believe that they're professionals. Part of the problem is that we live in the era of Instagram filters making everybody who owns a smartphone or iPod a wannabe artist. And part of the problem is that crowd-sourced paid reviewers are commonplace in this day and age. By drawing attention to these matters, Paul has created a work of art in itself. A powerful statement to the modern artist of the year 2013, and an original idea that brings forth the existence of this very writing. Bravo to Paul, I believe that the future will bring forth many successful concepts and purity that art demands in order to exist as anything more than commercial intellectual property... and how ironic that I base this statement off of his concept-art piece that is the exact opposite of this. Review #55 The exhibition title “How To Be Narcissistic: A Workshop and Performance ” seems to be an appropriate title for the art show laid out on artist Paul Shortt’s website. From the very start, I loved the work. The works were unique in composition and a very interesting look at the “self” and outside perception of that self. The more I saw and read supplemented my enjoyment of the exhibit when I was able to put it in the context of exhibitionism and voyeurism. Contemporary media has inundated us with the minutia of everyday life of our peers. We are encouraged through Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and many others to share our faces, feelings, and actions. Then there are the interactive reality shows, which push individuals to live together in a proscribed setting in order to film whatever action results. The individuals on these shows are showcasing their lives as theater for a captive television audience. But then, because there is an audience, the reality stars change their behaviors and raise the level of exhibitionism. Additionally, this exhibit prompts a discussion of surveillance and voyeurism, prompting a critique of the “Big Brother” style security found in today’s airports, buses, city streets and stores. The title “How To Be Narcissistic: A Workshop and Performance ” juxtaposes the relative safety of a workshop and forces us to consider if such exhibition on a public stage is necessarily innocent and is perhaps a very dangerous force. The more I saw and read supplemented my enjoyment of the exhibit when I was able to put it in the context of exhibitionism and voyeurism. This show made me question the idea of a static “artist” and “viewer” and consider that art can be a dynamic collaboration between the two. The expectations and preconceived notions that the participant or “narcissist” brings when they enter the room impact the art to the point that it changes its meaning. Conceptual art is art in which the idea of the work takes precedence over traditional aesthetics. A renaissance art scholar would look at some of Shortt’s work and definitely not call it art, however it is still art because an artist is a person who makes the viewer think about a concept or idea or wrestle with something they had never considered before. His art falls into this category of conceptual art and I think he does a magnificent job in making the viewer think. Beyond that I found the photographs on the website not incredibly aesthetically pleasurable, but rather more of a record of an event, which was much more journalistic, in a sense. The type of activity plus these journalistic type photos drew out the comparison to Facebook even more for me. I imagine it was incredibly worthwhile to be present at this exhibition/activity and would give the viewer a very different conception of the art. The difference between reading a friend’s description of a vacation and “Liking” it on Facebook is similarly very different from actually physically sitting down, having a drink with that friend, looking through physical photos and chatting about the trip. Overall, I enjoyed looking through Shortt’s art and will keep tabs on his art and work in the future. Review #56 Paul Shortt’s art is a contemporary look at the world around us. I find the way that he portrays and plays with life twisted and inspiring. I find myself nodding in agreement with and chuckling to myself about the way he pokes and prods social stigmas and cultural phenomena. A few of his projects really stick with me. I’d like to explore my thoughts and reactions further. The project that made the biggest impression on me is the one I am participating in as I type. It’s called “5 Star Ratings”. Paul explores the idea of buying your audience. In this piece, he pays participants $5 to write a brief review of his art. Though Paul doesn’t ask the participant to respond in any particular way, participants (myself included) are inclined to point out positive aspects in order to please our employer. Paul then goes further to ask: Do we really ever know if art is any good? If a good audience can be bought, is the actual art even relevant to the success of an artist? Another project I liked was “Literally and Physically”. In this installation, Paul explores different phenomena from everyday life and invites the viewer to physically participate in it. My favorite piece from the installation was the ROFL carpet. Those who use the “Rolling on Floor Laughing” abbreviation (obviously) do not physically roll on the floor while they laugh, And, if my experience is like most, in reality, they probably barely chuckle. Paul’s carpet invites the viewer to physically roll and laugh on the carpet. The irony and sheer hilarity of doing such an oddball thing would be fun and make a great memory. It would also introduce the question of: How much do we just “go through the motions”? I also really enjoyed “Missed Connections”. On occasion, I like to read the missed connections section on Craigslist. Some people are so desperate for love. I believe that Paul really delves into the idea that if you had really missed a “connection”, there is more you could do to see that person again. Paul writes with mustard, icing, and lipstick in his ironic “search for love”, while the actual lovebirds took only the time to write a short, discrete, and, often, poorly-worded “shout out” to their “soulmate”. His pieces reach out to the loneliness and desperation of online dating, while simultaneously romanticizing them by exaggerating their importance and portraying them with nice scripts and colors. What I really appreciate about Paul’s art is that it wasn’t what I expected and it asked me questions I will never know the answers to. It really pushes the envelope on the classic and most substantial question in the art world: Really. What is art? What does it look like? Paul has reminded me just how diverse the art world is and that a clever mind is just as beautiful as the most intricate painting. I appreciate that Paul’s enchanting take on the world makes my view of the life just a little lighter. Review #57 Paul Shortt’s art website is full of surprises. I really loved his concepts and art categories. Specifically when it comes to enjoying life this website is just another example. I was wondering why an art person is willing to pay 5 dollars to someone who will write 500 good words about his website. But after I saw so many reviews and passed some time on the website I just got amazed that it could mean so much. Paul’s ideas are quite real and made in actual time frame that if you try to imagine each and every concept you will get involved in them for hours. I myself passed much time looking his “Early Work” section where each and every activity has been designed to create some special fun out of daily routing objects and still they look so unique. We can just think how much fun we can have doing these activities. He has tried to bring people’s attention towards his simple concept and I think those are really working. His art work just looks impossible to imagine in easy way. I honestly think I could never be able to do this much work and still be able to get so much success and attention. When I saw Paul’s CV I got amazed by seeing that what artist can achieve in his life? His exhibitions, photos, ideas, performances, public projects are just awesome. He has also got excellent teaching experience and so I think a means for earning money. Paul’s professional experience is just great. His audio/video assistance for many projects is his real efforts to actual industry, and I hope he can bring yet more fruitful results in industry. His press and publication contribution is also among which I loved much. I honestly think that this is Paul’s just beginning. If his work and career path just continues in this way, then I am sure in coming time we will see another Picasso or Shakespeare coming out of us. His blog “shorttage.blogspot.in” seems rolling very high with his concepts, work, photos and reviews. Paul’s views towards art seems very vast and beyond many of our understanding. In reality I am just trying to review a tip of an iceberg. One more time I just got kept watching his work called “Strap on BallSacks”. I just can’t imagine how he could make this possible in public place. Just shocking and real bravo. Paul’s website is a “modern art”. One more project I liked which is “The Business of Selling Yourself”. It is just amazing and gives clear impression of his mind and out of box thinking. Still I think I must get more and more into Paul’s website to enjoy more of his projects and how he is making all these things work. It a great deal. Hat’s off to Paul’s Art skills. I think Paul is not just an artist or a photographer or comedian or performer he is mixture of all those and coming out as a different and unique human brain. I think Paul has put true efforts and real interest into his work and his website is proof of it. Great work and keep it up! Review #58 Paul Shortt seems to be an eclectic artist. His style appears to be very modern – he uses what he sees around him and transforms it into something that can be appreciated by more than just the standard passerby. Even if the art does not capture you at first, you find yourself enticed and clicking to view the next photo, the next set of whatever it is that he has managed to create. His art is not just the typical pencil or brush to paper; it is more interactive, bringing in people and objects to put his artwork on display. He may not be an artist to be recognized through the ages (“not a modern day Picasso”), but he certainly has the potential to make himself known in the modern day art scene. Although you are not sure what message he is always trying to bring on, it entices the viewer and leaves them with an odd sense of thought. You wonder who these people are, what part they are meant to play in the artwork and if they are meant to be a part or if they were just in the right place at the right time. My personal favorite section was the “Missed Connections.” It brought a weird twist to people trying to connect with others – instead of the typical match.com or craigslist personal ads. Within that collection, my favorite had to have been the cake with the message on it. The chances of that person ever actually seeing that message on display are scarce, but there is still something that captures you into it. Maybe they will see it, maybe those two will connect, maybe there will be a happily ever after in what holds the potential to be an oddly romantic tale. The other one that had me smiling was the “Literally and Physically” collection. It was amusing to see how someone could take something, such as the bleacher stand, and give it two different “meanings” based on how the viewer sees them, either to step on the sculpture, or avoid it all together. I know I would be one who saw the “Please Climb Sculpture” part of it first and test the theory out, just to find that I was sorely mistaken. All of Shortt's pieces have a weird vibe to them, but they still have the capability to make you stop, look and consider what it is that he is trying to say with his art. Sometimes it seems as if you have to hunt down the meaning, other times it is laid out for you “Roll on the floor laughing.” I find Paul Shortt to be an interesting artist, and the fact that he is using Amazon's Mechanical Turk program to gain a little insight, even though he is paying for such criticism, shows a weird sense of boldness amidst all the creative aspects he shows. He has an exceptionally creative mind and has discovered his outlet to portray that creativeness to the world – through art, in its own way; with ladders, sculptures, big “no photo” signs. It's a nice break from just walking around a boring museum. Review #59 Paul Shortt is a contemporary artist from the Midwestern United States. His work involves quite a few different types of media and frequently involves healthy doses of humor and interactivity. His website shows quite a few examples of the different types of works that he has been involved in, which I will attempt to describe. The first link was actually to reviews of his work written by Mechanical Turk workers. Since this is what I'm doing now, I didn't read them, so as to avoid unintentional plagiarism and form my own opinion. The next link I looked at, “Please No Photos” showed pictures of him carrying around a large sculpture of the crossed out circle, aka the “international no symbol”, in public places. This was meant to suggest “no photos”, when, of course, his intention was to take a picture of the person holding the symbol. This piece is a commentary on the lack of privacy in contemporary society. I definitely enjoyed the humor, irony, and metacommentary of these two pieces. Paul has too many examples of his works up for me to comment on all of them, so I proceeded to skim through the rest, and will write on the ones that caught my attention. The next work I really liked was “Literally and Physically”, where Paul created works that the audience was invited to interact with, often in humorous and ironic ways. There is a set of bleachers that tells you to sit on it, but then tells you not to as you inspect it closer. Two related items meant to comment on the vapidness of internet communication included a rug that encouraged you to roll and laugh, or ROFL, on it, and a LOL microphone that included voice samples of the artist laughing. The next section that caught my eye was the sadly incomplete “It's Simple, But Complicated”. This was a series of actions that were physically simple to perform, but had larger cultural implications. One video shows him struggling mightily to raise the American flag to the full height of the flagpole. The contrast between the simplicity and the meaning of the action (as well as between the expected and actual difficulty of the raising process) was quite humorous and thought-provoking. I would have liked to see more exploration of this particular idea. The next set of works involved more audience participation, this time with printed cards and posters. It included a set of certificate “awards” satirizing the often pretentious art world. The facetious diplomas thanked audience members for completing the “minimum time” spent viewing a work, as well as for a momentary random conversation, and for enjoying the complimentary food. This was a funny work, if not the most profound work on the site. I looked at a few other works that explored interpersonal interactions in the modern age. One work took “missed connection” ads and recontextualized them in different ways in order to comment on the disconnection and lack of empathy in certain facets of modern life. Another work exploring a similar theme involved the idea of marketing oneself detracted from the usual context of resumes and work. Paul created and distributed an extreme self-deprecating business card and used it as his official card for a number of years. He also gathered a series of “reference letters” for dating from friends, which he collected for a future work. Overall, I thought this was an interesting portfolio. Some of the ideas were too similar or did not make sense to me, but I liked it overall. The use of humor and self-deprecation was a welcome change from the often pretentious world of contemporary art. I would like to see some of the more unique works in here explored more and taken further. I'm glad I spent some time looking at Paul's works. Review #60 This is my review of the art on the website of Paul Shortt, a guy I have never heard of before, perhaps because i am somewhat art-illiterate, or because the guy might be too unique on his own to be widely know. Anyways, the young artist finished his BFA studies on Kansas City art Institute just about four years ago, and still he was able to participate on numerous group shows. While still studying, he has his signature written under many pieces worth mentioning and reviewing. Paul Shortt, in quite a few years of doing what you apparently love the most, you achieved interesting things. While I do not possess an expert eye for art, I am fond of interesting things and I do have sense fondness for uniqueness. So i tried to maintain my focus in a whole on his artistic portfolio and began to evaluate my feelings and thoughts, feeling more or less impressed with what I saw. So I went through numerous of his pictures and videos. Many of the pieces seen there look pretty much decent, while few others really stand out. There is not lack of humor there - right in the beginning, Please No Photo collection shows that. Shots of various indivudals or groups of people in the streets contain big no-photo icon covering quite a big part of photos. Interesting idea, pointing at the chance some people just did not want to approve the photo later and even the great shot is made for nothing. Another example for laughs can be found at The Business of Selling Yourself.. really nice business card, haha! From this and other works of Paul, I can see he focuses his artistic works on various connection between people, after his exploration of daily life. To me, perhaps because of my lack of artistic feel, they seem quite weird :) But i admit, they make a person think and feel. There is a specific message in each one of them. At first one may feel these pieces of work are arranged just like that, without a purpose, but no, nothing is random, you just need to take a closer look. There is a sophisticated message presented there, sometimes polished and sometimes not, delivered to a "consumer" through metaphorical artistic expressions. The author, trying to made a perfectly surprising delivery, does not hesitate to even use his very personal details, as in aforementioned Business Of Selling Yourself. These pieces of art are filled with delicate and bitter sarcasm. I will tell you what I like the most about the work of Paul Shortt. It is the fact he really does not use high amount of funds to do his work. It is because he uses quite simple yet very cool and effective ideas to make something out of nothing. with low budget, he is always able to create something of high value. This guy really uses his mind and can see there is so much around him he can use for his work. I find this really amazing. Review # 61 The modern art of Paul Short takes a radically different approach to most contemporary forms of art. Having a diverse background in many styles of mixed media, Paul uses a mixture of performance, abstract, sculpture, drawn, painted, and created forms with a constant background layer of photography which binds all forms of his work into a story. With each new inspiration stemming from people, social interaction and image breaking, Paul uses his art to break free from the social expectations, and introduce new and interesting expressions. Using his photographic examples of signs placed in various scenes, he takes an image that might not be memorable to the average person, and turns it into a story which raises more questions than answers. For example, his piece “I’m Fine Thanks, 2010” takes a look at a landscape scene with a white wooden fence that has a break in it. Ordinarily, this would be accepted as some sort of standard farmland entropy, not adding any concern to the observer about the broken fence. However, in this case, three words are able to raise a myriad of questions such as “who is fine?” “What happened that would leave them not so fine?” “Was it something to do with the fence?” “If they are fine, but the fence is not fine, did someone else end up not so fine as a result of the incident which un-fined the fence?” It’s very thought provoking with only a minor adjustment to the landscape. There are also some extremely funny works that take a humorous approach to everyday occurrences. My favorite example is “Contemporary Farewells” which shows how people might greet or say goodbye to one another in lieu of a formal handshake. The best example which blends modern society to these ridiculous greetings is called “The cell phone bow” in which both parties, engaged in their individual cell phones glance up at one another to make temporary eye contact before returning to their phones again. This shows the contrast between the standard bow in which two people will be facing up, maintaining eye contact at first, then bow slightly for a moment and return to their upward position. It’s extremely funny to think that this has actually become a common practice despite the clearly inverted pattern from centuries past. Paul also uses a number of videos to add perspective to what seems like a routine occurrence in our day to day lives. The first in one series entitled “It’s Simple, But Complicated” takes a look at someone raising an American flag up a pole. He encounters a number of issues which he rather interestingly overcomes in the most complicated way possible. The video is done in a rather vaudevillian style with fast motion, and a light and humorous music in the background, but in contrast, shows the importance to the individual in making sure the task gets finished, because it must have a strong significance to him. The second is also very funny because the actor has a roadside breakdown, which seems straightforward until you realize that it is not an automotive breakdown as you would expect. In fact, he has a mental breakdown in this short, which is a wonderful use of irony. All in all, the work done by Paul Short is creative, funny, interesting and thought provoking. He is truly a free thinker, and artist and a philosopher who uses various forms of expression rather than verbal communication to convey new ideas, social commentary and humor. Review #62 Paul Shortt is an artist currently pursuing his MFA in New Media at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. His current focus is performance and experiential art. His works in a very contemporary style have much irreverence for what is sometimes deemed art. They bring up the constant question faced by performance art, exactly what is art? Is this it? Or is it something altogether different? Shortt’s works have an interactive style with the audience. In Please No Photos a large red no symbol is placed in places where photos are often taken. People can interact with the photos and then also take photos with the symbols. It is a contradictory act. Literally and Physically also has an interactive aspect. Roll on the Floor Laughing is a large red carpet with the words placed in a way as if the words also follow the instructions. The audience can participate in this act. Corner Piece instructs to put hands behind your back and then put your head down. The participant then might experience whatever feelings that position invokes in them. Does the context of an object give it meaning? If an object has text does it make it more than a rug? How does the experience of rolling and possibly laughing on a red rug change the experience? Does it make a rug into a piece of art? Shortt is certainly not the first contemporary artist to use text art, but his simple demands encourage interaction. Some of his pieces seem to be a stretch to call art at all. Missed Connections is a project that uses text from craigslist ads. Shortt created items and put them in the original location of the described encounter. He filmed the locations while people read the ads. It is a reminder of the loneliness of people. This piece in my opinion is less successful than some of his other works. It takes usually entertaining text and makes it more mundane by his focus. The Car My Father Gave Me is a series of videos focusing on his father showing pictures of cars and interacting with cars. The cars are not interesting or well photographed. It is more a video enumeration. He claims it is about his relationship with his father and thus masculinity. Frankly I think it could be better. It is not well executed. Modern Greetings is a short manual of alternatives to shaking hands. The piece is more than just the manual but also is the performance. He had an experience where people volunteered to participate to get the manual. Some of the greetings include a cellphone rub and butt bump. He successfully got the participants to perform the greetings. The photos indicate that people really enjoyed these greetings. Perhaps they have more varied meanings than just hello. Another piece by Shortt is Pay for an Audience: 5 star Ratings. This article is for this piece. It is yet another way for the observer to be a part of the art. In this way Shortt is successful he draws the observer in and then participate. Overall Paul Shortt is a successfully encourages interaction with his performance art. His pieces that are less interactive are less successful. 5 Star Ratings: Mechanical Turk Reviews, 2012, 50 pages, edition of 250. 5 Star Ratings is a collection of 500-word art reviews of my artist website, each produced... http://paulshortt.com/Collaborations http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Collaborations Sat, 17 Nov 2012 10:19:13 +0000 Paul Shortt 216855 <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Grad Shot WEB_9.jpg" width="670" height="364" width_o="2048" height_o="1114" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Grad Shot WEB_9_o.jpg" data-mid="27132251" border="0" align="left"/> In collaboration with Sam Scharf at Hilyer Art Space performances we created thank you ribbons to thank the audience. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Ribbons 1 web.jpg" width="670" height="981" width_o="2048" height_o="3000" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Ribbons 1 web_o.jpg" data-mid="27132202" border="0" align="left"/> The Ribbons say "I Trusted The Artists, Sam Scharf and Paul Shortt, August 17th, 2012" and were given to the audience for participating in our collaborative performances. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Participants and Ribbons 5.jpg" width="670" height="458" width_o="2048" height_o="1400" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/Participants and Ribbons 5_o.jpg" data-mid="27132143" border="0" align="left"/> Performing with My Barbarian <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/TITO AND PAUL MY BARBARIAN.jpg" width="670" height="749" width_o="2048" height_o="2292" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/TITO AND PAUL MY BARBARIAN_o.jpg" data-mid="928775" border="0" align="left"/> Jason Dixion and I performing with My Barbarian as part of Emily Roysdon's show Ecstatic Resistance. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/PAUL SHORTT AND MY BARBARIAN 1.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/PAUL SHORTT AND MY BARBARIAN 1_o.jpg" data-mid="8291599" border="0" align="left"/> We worked collaboratively on a performance called "The Broke People's Baroque People's Theater" which incorporated each of the performers own works into the piece. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/THE SEASONS smaller.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/THE SEASONS smaller_o.jpg" data-mid="8450683" border="0" align="left"/> Thanks Thanks, <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/THANKS_1.jpg" width="670" height="455" width_o="1875" height_o="1275" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/216855/THANKS_1_o.jpg" data-mid="928776" border="0" align="left"/> A collobrative project with the artist Robert Heishman where we gave thank you cards to various people who have shown us kindness. In collaboration with Sam Scharf at Hilyer Art Space performances we created thank you ribbons to thank the audience. The Ribbons say "I Trusted The Artists,... http://paulshortt.com/Contemporary-Farewells http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Contemporary-Farewells Thu, 30 Aug 2012 14:14:11 +0000 Paul Shortt 3999845 New ways of saying goodbye. <img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Screen shot 2012-08-30 at 2.12.24 PM.png" width="670" height="439" width_o="1304" height_o="855" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Screen shot 2012-08-30 at 2.12.24 PM_o.png" data-mid="20928778" border="0" align="left"/> Contemporary Farewells book, 2012 <img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Backwards Clasp- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="448" width_o="1263" height_o="845" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Backwards Clasp- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928171" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Cellphone Bow Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="438" width_o="1351" height_o="885" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Cellphone Bow Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928173" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Double Covered- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="425" width_o="1366" height_o="868" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Double Covered- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928182" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Ear Bow Bug Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="424" width_o="1343" height_o="850" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Ear Bow Bug Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928185" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Holster Swoop.jpg" width="670" height="440" width_o="1334" height_o="878" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Holster Swoop_o.jpg" data-mid="20928188" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Imaingary Baby Bye.jpg" width="670" height="434" width_o="1335" height_o="866" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Imaingary Baby Bye_o.jpg" data-mid="20928191" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Interesting Point- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="450" width_o="1301" height_o="874" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Interesting Point- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928193" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Liberty Lock- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="447" width_o="1304" height_o="871" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Liberty Lock- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928196" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Muscle Hug- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="435" width_o="1337" height_o="869" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Muscle Hug- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928198" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Raised Palms.jpg" width="670" height="440" width_o="1301" height_o="856" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Raised Palms_o.jpg" data-mid="20928203" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Shoulder Bow- Paul Shortt.jpg" width="670" height="433" width_o="1330" height_o="861" src_o="http://payload84.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3999845/Shoulder Bow- Paul Shortt_o.jpg" data-mid="20928207" border="0" align="left"/> Here is video of the first performance of Contemporary Farewells as part of Hillyer Art Spaces Soapbox Performance Art Series in Washington D.C. New ways of saying goodbye. Contemporary Farewells book, 2012 Here is video of the first performance of Contemporary Farewells as part of Hillyer Art Spaces... http://paulshortt.com/Literally-and-Physically http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Literally-and-Physically Sat, 11 Aug 2012 14:34:00 +0000 Paul Shortt 2286662 In this series viewers are invited to literally and physically use their bodies to activate the works. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Crit Install website.jpg" width="670" height="411" width_o="2048" height_o="1259" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Crit Install website_o.jpg" data-mid="11643615" border="0" align="left"/> Please Do Not Climb On The Sculpture <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Please Climb Sculpture Website.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Please Climb Sculpture Website_o.jpg" data-mid="11584120" border="0" align="left"/> Please Do Not Climb On The Sculpture, Bleachers, 2011 This piece is made to read "Please Climb Sculpture" from far away, and when you get up close to reveal that it says "Please Do Not Climb On The Sculpture". <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Please do not website.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Please do not website_o.jpg" data-mid="11602240" border="0" align="left"/> The piece both denies you from sitting, while half inviting you to sit down. In this video I attempt to find my place in public art by moving my sculpture around a local sculpture garden. ROFL CON <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/547983_343990292327011_493008213_n.jpg" width="658" height="698" width_o="658" height_o="698" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/547983_343990292327011_493008213_n_o.jpg" data-mid="20362780" border="0" align="left"/> This is a hand-cut carpet that takes the phrase roll on the floor laughing, which is often used in text messages and online and recreates it as a site for performing the act of rolling on the floor laughing. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/ROFL CON 2 website.jpg" width="670" height="953" width_o="2048" height_o="2914" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/ROFL CON 2 website_o.jpg" data-mid="11472758" border="0" align="left"/> ROFL CON, 2011, 12ft x 5ft handcut letters into carpet Making the carpet red is a play on rolling out the red carpet for entertainers. I think of the internet as a place for entertainment and stardom of sorts. Many people are presenting themselves online, and everyone wants attention. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/ROFL CON detail for website.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/ROFL CON detail for website_o.jpg" data-mid="11601376" border="0" align="left"/> ROFL CON, 2011 (Detail) <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/557474_329552830437424_158984367494272_897725_1065856088_n.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="850" height_o="567" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/557474_329552830437424_158984367494272_897725_1065856088_n_o.jpg" data-mid="20362774" border="0" align="left"/> Participants rolling on the carpet. (image courtesy of Fictilus) Corner Piece <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Time Out Corner2 website.jpg" width="670" height="1004" width_o="2048" height_o="3071" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Time Out Corner2 website_o.jpg" data-mid="11602255" border="0" align="left"/> Corner Piece, 2011, Plastic sign conforming to the corner, and directing you to do the same. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Time Out Zone Website.jpg" width="670" height="417" width_o="2048" height_o="1276" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Time Out Zone Website_o.jpg" data-mid="11602283" border="0" align="left"/> Corner Piece, 2011, <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/put and paticipant.jpg" width="670" height="632" width_o="670" height_o="632" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/put and paticipant_o.jpg" data-mid="20362742" border="0" align="left"/> LOL Megaphone <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/LOL 1 website.jpg" width="670" height="1025" width_o="2048" height_o="3133" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/LOL 1 website_o.jpg" data-mid="11584057" border="0" align="left"/> LOL Megaphone, 2011, Megaphone with Flash Drive playing sound of the artist laughing out loud. <img src="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Install 2 website.jpg" width="670" height="447" width_o="2048" height_o="1366" src_o="http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2286662/Install 2 website_o.jpg" data-mid="11583346" border="0" align="left"/> In this series viewers are invited to literally and physically use their bodies to activate the works. Please Do Not Climb On The Sculpture Please Do Not... http://paulshortt.com/Printed-Participations http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Printed-Participations Sat, 11 Aug 2012 13:51:55 +0000 Paul Shortt 3900049 The printed projects below all feature interactions with the viewer. These works address social etiquette and societal norms as well as those of the art world. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/artsplosia-14.jpg" width="670" height="536" width_o="1600" height_o="1280" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/artsplosia-14_o.jpg" data-mid="20360480" border="0" align="left"/> Resist, 201, silk-screen on construction paper, 18 x 24" Resist is a free take away poster exploring the fine line that exists in social etiquette being playful and becoming aggressive and extreme. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/table cropped.jpg" width="670" height="370" width_o="2048" height_o="1132" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/table cropped_o.jpg" data-mid="20360493" border="0" align="left"/> For the past few years this work existed in a few different iterations, with this silk-screen print being the final version. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/Resist poster.jpg" width="670" height="920" width_o="1979" height_o="2720" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/Resist poster_o.jpg" data-mid="20360535" border="0" align="left"/> The poster became a road map for future work, addressing the boundaries that exists within social conventions while also offering an interaction for the viewer. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/Back text.jpg" width="670" height="454" width_o="2048" height_o="1389" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/Back text_o.jpg" data-mid="20360613" border="0" align="left"/> Viewers were asked on the back of the poster to send me an image of where and how they displayed the work. Art Certificates This work awards viewers for looking and interacting at artwork at galleries. They are meant to be playful and fun, poking fun at our interactions with art. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/7 SECOND AWARD.jpg" width="670" height="517" width_o="1651" height_o="1275" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/7 SECOND AWARD_o.jpg" data-mid="20361421" border="0" align="left"/> 7 Second Award, 2010, 8 1/2 x 11" Viewers are encouraged to purchase the works at the opening, and present the work to other viewers or hold onto the work for their collection. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/BEST CONVERSATION.jpg" width="670" height="517" width_o="1651" height_o="1275" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/BEST CONVERSATION_o.jpg" data-mid="20361627" border="0" align="left"/> Best Conversation Award, 2010, 8 x 1/2 x 11 <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/QUALITY FOOD AWARD.jpg" width="670" height="517" width_o="1651" height_o="1275" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/QUALITY FOOD AWARD_o.jpg" data-mid="20361739" border="0" align="left"/> Quality Food Award, 2010, 8 1/2 x 11" <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/15 SECONDS AWARD.jpg" width="670" height="535" width_o="2048" height_o="1637" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/15 SECONDS AWARD_o.jpg" data-mid="20361462" border="0" align="left"/> 15 Second Award, 2010, 8 1/2 x 11" Free Poster When I presented Resist at a show in Chicago everyone liked the free poster sign I made to advertise it so much that it became its own piece. Sold in an edition of 120 prints, or free individually. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/smaller small orange.jpg" width="670" height="992" width_o="2048" height_o="3034" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/smaller small orange_o.jpg" data-mid="20361855" border="0" align="left"/> Free Poster, 2011, 18 x 24" The work comes in two sizes. The first 18 X 24". <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/3.jpg" width="670" height="508" width_o="670" height_o="508" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/3_o.jpg" data-mid="20362119" border="0" align="left"/> Viewers picking out their favorite colors. <img src="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/smaller 2 big yellow.jpg" width="670" height="875" width_o="670" height_o="875" src_o="http://payload80.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3900049/smaller 2 big yellow_o.jpg" data-mid="20362102" border="0" align="left"/> Free Poster, 2011, 24 x 36" The second size was 24 x 36" to take the absurdity one step further. The printed projects below all feature interactions with the viewer. These works address social etiquette and societal norms as well as those of the art world. ... http://paulshortt.com/The-Car-My-Father-Gave-Me http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/The-Car-My-Father-Gave-Me Fri, 27 Jul 2012 08:57:30 +0000 Paul Shortt 3770855 The Car My Father Gave Me is a series of videos and performances about my relationship with my father, cars and masculinity. My Fathers Cars, 2012 This video attempts to list and every car my father has owned, in contrast to those he has given me in the video below. Mine, 2012 Learning to Drive a Stick Shift, 2012 This is a sound piece of my father teaching me to drive a stick shift transmission at 30 years old. Performance at Hillyer Art Space in DC. The Car My Father Gave Me is about my relationship with my father, cars and masculinity. The performance takes the form of a Powerpoint, exploring the work I do as an artist with that of the work of my father, a car mechanic. <img src="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770855/Photo Feb 05- 9 05 11 PM.jpg" width="670" height="525" width_o="1284" height_o="1008" src_o="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770855/Photo Feb 05- 9 05 11 PM_o.jpg" data-mid="19907557" border="0" align="left"/> The piece relies on facts about my relationship with my father, told in a concrete way, with images of cars I’ve owned, my father’s cars, and family photos. As an artist I’ve always felt that what I do is very different from what my father does as a mechanic and car enthusiast, but recently I’ve begun to see that how we make and recreate is very similar. <img src="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770855/Screen shot 2012-07-27 at 10.09.54 AM.png" width="670" height="437" width_o="1314" height_o="859" src_o="http://payload73.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3770855/Screen shot 2012-07-27 at 10.09.54 AM_o.png" data-mid="19907669" border="0" align="left"/> Through the performance of this piece I’m attempting to understand this complex relationship with my father, while also exploring traditional roles of masculinity. The Car My Father Gave Me is a series of videos and performances about my relationship with my father, cars and masculinity. My Fathers Cars, 2012 This video... http://paulshortt.com/Please-No-Photos http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Please-No-Photos Wed, 16 May 2012 19:38:34 +0000 Paul Shortt 3420589 <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Please No Photos close up.jpg" width="670" height="550" width_o="1052" height_o="864" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Please No Photos close up_o.jpg" data-mid="22406440" border="0" align="left"/> Please No Photos: NYC As part of the 8th annual street festival Art In Odd Places I walked along 14th Street in New York City holding an enlarged seven-foot “no photos” symbol that implies a prohibition on photography and questions the constant surveillance of public spaces. I invited pedestrians to have their photo taken with the sculpture, thereby subverting the act the sculpture denies. <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/AFTER_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/AFTER_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22402955" border="0" align="left"/> Here is a recent interview about my performance :http://www.artinoddplaces.org/blog/after-aiop-model-artists-steve-rossi-and-paul-shortt-discuss-their-experiences/ <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/BEFORE_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/BEFORE_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22402965" border="0" align="left"/> Here's a short video of my performance. <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Brooklyn 2_website.jpg" width="670" height="1107" width_o="2048" height_o="3386" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Brooklyn 2_website_o.jpg" data-mid="22402972" border="0" align="left"/> <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/E 14st Closer.jpg" width="670" height="1004" width_o="2048" height_o="3071" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/E 14st Closer_o.jpg" data-mid="22402981" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/E 14th St.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/E 14th St_o.jpg" data-mid="22402997" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME AND THE CITY_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="1005" width_o="2048" height_o="3072" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME AND THE CITY_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22403083" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME AND THE POLICE_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="472" width_o="2048" height_o="1443" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME AND THE POLICE_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22403099" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME CARRYING.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/ME CARRYING_o.jpg" data-mid="22403118" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/PAPER BREAK_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/PAPER BREAK_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22403124" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/photo of another_website_smaller.jpg" width="670" height="420" width_o="2048" height_o="1284" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/photo of another_website_smaller_o.jpg" data-mid="22403141" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/photo of no photo us_website.jpg" width="670" height="519" width_o="2048" height_o="1586" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/photo of no photo us_website_o.jpg" data-mid="22403206" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/recycle_website.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/recycle_website_o.jpg" data-mid="22403233" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Sidewalk.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Sidewalk_o.jpg" data-mid="22403242" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/UNION SQUARE PARK_WEBSITE.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/UNION SQUARE PARK_WEBSITE_o.jpg" data-mid="22403299" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Giving Button.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Giving Button_o.jpg" data-mid="22403325" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Me Taking.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Me Taking_o.jpg" data-mid="22403337" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Papaya Dog.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Papaya Dog_o.jpg" data-mid="22403350" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Rain.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Rain_o.jpg" data-mid="22403363" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Talking .jpg" width="670" height="1004" width_o="2048" height_o="3071" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Web_Talking _o.jpg" data-mid="22403382" border="0" align="left"/> Please No Photos: Illinois Image Breakdown, 2012 <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Allerton Park.jpg" width="670" height="436" width_o="2048" height_o="1335" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Allerton Park_o.jpg" data-mid="17602058" border="0" align="left"/> This is a new body of work where I've been taking an enlarged no photos icon and taking it to various locations around Illinois and photographing it. <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/POLICE FINAL.jpg" width="670" height="469" width_o="2048" height_o="1434" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/POLICE FINAL_o.jpg" data-mid="17602237" border="0" align="left"/> <img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Alma.jpg" width="670" height="468" width_o="2048" height_o="1432" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Alma_o.jpg" data-mid="17602077" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Industrial working.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Industrial working_o.jpg" data-mid="17602203" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Courthouse.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Courthouse_o.jpg" data-mid="17602112" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Farm.jpg" width="670" height="439" width_o="2048" height_o="1342" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Farm_o.jpg" data-mid="17602154" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Final ALLERTON.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Final ALLERTON_o.jpg" data-mid="17602179" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Mall Wall.jpg" width="670" height="442" width_o="2048" height_o="1354" src_o="http://payload56.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3420589/Mall Wall_o.jpg" data-mid="17602222" border="0" align="left"/> Please No Photos: NYC As part of the 8th annual street festival Art In Odd Places I walked along 14th Street in New York City holding an enlarged seven-foot “no... http://paulshortt.com/How-To-Be-Narcissistic http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/How-To-Be-Narcissistic Wed, 16 May 2012 01:39:10 +0000 Paul Shortt 3413773 How To Be Narcissistic: A Workshop and Performance Top 5 Qualities About Yourself <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Top 5.jpg" width="670" height="1008" width_o="2048" height_o="3083" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Top 5_o.jpg" data-mid="23701529" border="0" align="left"/> As part of the performance art show Approach at the Lexington Art League in Lexington, KY. I was invited to present the second workshop of my narcissism project: How to Be Narcissistic. The event is structured around Discussion, Exercises and Praise. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/_MG_9877 web.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/_MG_9877 web_o.jpg" data-mid="23701402" border="0" align="left"/> Draw Yourself <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4574.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4574_o.jpg" data-mid="23701435" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4607.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4607_o.jpg" data-mid="23701472" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4575.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4575_o.jpg" data-mid="23701439" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4578.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4578_o.jpg" data-mid="23701444" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4599.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4599_o.jpg" data-mid="23701446" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4600.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4600_o.jpg" data-mid="23701454" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4603.jpg" width="670" height="1005" width_o="2048" height_o="3072" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4603_o.jpg" data-mid="23701463" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4606.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4606_o.jpg" data-mid="23701467" border="0" align="left"/> Post 5 Photos of Yourself on Facebook <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4627.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4627_o.jpg" data-mid="23701479" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4628.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4628_o.jpg" data-mid="23701487" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4634.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/IMG_4634_o.jpg" data-mid="23701495" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/ NEW Post 5 Photos on Facebook .jpg" width="670" height="338" width_o="2048" height_o="1033" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/ NEW Post 5 Photos on Facebook _o.jpg" data-mid="23701376" border="0" align="left"/> Award Yourself <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 1.jpg" width="670" height="502" width_o="2048" height_o="1536" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 1_o.jpg" data-mid="23701410" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 2.jpg" width="670" height="502" width_o="2048" height_o="1536" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 2_o.jpg" data-mid="23701413" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 3.jpg" width="670" height="502" width_o="2048" height_o="1536" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Double Award 3_o.jpg" data-mid="23701416" border="0" align="left"/> This video is from the praise section where participants create an award for themselves, and write a speech for someone to present that award to them. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/narcissism at the speak easy.jpg" width="670" height="490" width_o="2048" height_o="1498" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/narcissism at the speak easy_o.jpg" data-mid="17567118" border="0" align="left"/> How To Be Narcissistic: A Workshop and Performance was originally presented in collaboration with Rhiannon Birdsall as part of The Speakeasy, in Kansas City, MO. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Pick Your Symptom.jpg" width="670" height="444" width_o="2048" height_o="1357" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Pick Your Symptom_o.jpg" data-mid="17567224" border="0" align="left"/> Choose Your Condition: The event started with everyone picking a name tag that best described their narcissism. From that point the conversations started. We discussed our intent to bring the ego and self into an art event that was largely community based socially engaged art. Then moving into a larger cultural discussion about narcissisms role in culture, and careers. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Facebook 2.jpg" width="670" height="378" width_o="2048" height_o="1155" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Facebook 2_o.jpg" data-mid="17566837" border="0" align="left"/> Upload Five Images of Yourself with egotistic statements. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Facebook Update Photos.jpg" width="670" height="1005" width_o="2048" height_o="3072" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Facebook Update Photos_o.jpg" data-mid="17566878" border="0" align="left"/> MAKE YOUR OWN AWARD: <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Awesomeness.jpg" width="670" height="1005" width_o="2048" height_o="3072" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Awesomeness_o.jpg" data-mid="17566528" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/In Showing UP.jpg" width="670" height="1004" width_o="2048" height_o="3071" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/In Showing UP_o.jpg" data-mid="17567001" border="0" align="left"/> <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/For lots.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/For lots_o.jpg" data-mid="17566939" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Pierree award.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Pierree award_o.jpg" data-mid="17567238" border="0" align="left"/> Participants created their own awards and speeches which were then presented to them. <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Making Certificates.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Making Certificates_o.jpg" data-mid="17567020" border="0" align="left"/> A GRAND EXIT: <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/The Grand Exit.jpg" width="670" height="860" width_o="2048" height_o="2629" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/The Grand Exit_o.jpg" data-mid="17567249" border="0" align="left"/> Make a Grand Exit <img src="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Clayton and Pierre.jpg" width="670" height="392" width_o="2048" height_o="1200" src_o="http://payload55.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/3413773/Clayton and Pierre_o.jpg" data-mid="17566766" border="0" align="left"/> Pierre showing off his hand drawn movie posters. How To Be Narcissistic: A Workshop and Performance Top 5 Qualities About Yourself As part of the performance art show Approach at the Lexington Art League in... http://paulshortt.com/Paul-Shortt-Shocks-Chicago http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/Paul-Shortt-Shocks-Chicago Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:25:05 +0000 Paul Shortt 2520179 <img src="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/Paul shortt shocks chigaog.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/Paul shortt shocks chigaog_o.jpg" data-mid="12716623" border="0" align="left"/> On the occasion of my first art show in Chicago I walked around the gallery shaking hands with people and shocking them with a classic hand buzzer gag. After I would shock them I would give them the hand buzzer to carry on the gag. As the opening progressed every few minutes I would here the sounds of the hand buzzers going off as those who had been gagged by the buzzers passed it on. <img src="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/_MG_1993.jpg" width="670" height="547" width_o="2048" height_o="1673" src_o="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/_MG_1993_o.jpg" data-mid="12716574" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/buzzers.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/buzzers_o.jpg" data-mid="12716598" border="0" align="left"/><img src="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/shock chi.jpg" width="670" height="446" width_o="2048" height_o="1365" src_o="http://payload11.cargocollective.com/1/0/18694/2520179/shock chi_o.jpg" data-mid="12716640" border="0" align="left"/> On the occasion of my first art show in Chicago I walked around the gallery shaking hands with people and shocking them with a classic hand buzzer gag. After I... http://paulshortt.com/It-s-Simple-But-Complicated http://paulshortt.com/following/paulshortt.com/It-s-Simple-But-Complicated Fri, 22 Apr 2011 22:26:18 +0000 Paul Shortt 1299194 This is a series of videos where I attempt to do simple actions which have larger more complicated cultural meanings. In the first in this series Fly the Flag I attempt to get the American flag to fly at full mast but encounter numerous pitfalls and setbacks. In this video I have a breakdown of sorts on the side of the road. This body of work is still in progress. This is a series of videos where I attempt to do simple actions which have larger more complicated cultural meanings. In the first in this series Fly the Flag I...