Tag Archives: Temple Contemporary

New Temple Contemporary Videos!

Mass Incarceration, Dan Berger, Nicole Van Cleve

Here are the freshly edited Temple Contemporary videos I did. They are the full talks by Nicole Martorano Van Cleve and Dan Berger at the event “Mass Incarceration in America: Advocacy, Art and Academy” on Nov. 29, 2012. Informational and inspirational. Enjoy.

Dr. Van Cleve’s video: https://vimeo.com/57418386

Dr. Berger’s video: https://vimeo.com/57429725

You can see the 13-minute video highlights here or read more about the event here, “Mass Incarceration in America: Advocacy, Art and Academy” on Nov. 29, 2012…

Videos by Me for You! Fall 2012

Videos 2012, Fall, Ponder Tree, Michelle-Yamasaki

Happy New Years to you! I wish you the very best for 2013. In this post I wanted to share all of the videos I shot and edited or just edited this fall of 2012. I had fun doing all five videos, put a lot of care and dedication into them and I would love for you to see them and tell me what you think!

My first and biggest project was “Deep Roots II – Days and Nights on the Farm“. This 25 minute documentary is about the art installation by Meei Ling Ng and farm festival that took place at one of Weavers Way’s farms and it focuses on the use of art on farms to spread the message of the importance of local urban farming and being conscious of how to support your community through collaboration…

Here is the short 5 minute version… or below you can watch the full awesome 25 minute video! For more about this, click here.

The following three projects I edited were done for my work study job with Temple Contemporary, the art gallery in the Tyler School of Art at Temple University. The first one was “Pittsburgh’s Greatest Living Artist: Jon Rubin“. Jon Rubin is not your ordinary artist and I truly enjoyed learning about his work which ranged from Cinematography to political theater to a Waffle Shop with a talk show, unheard of… https://vimeo.com/53122861

The second video I edited for them was “Candy Class with Franklin Fountain“. This was a very cool event where you learned how to make old fashion candy, with antique molds and more. There was also a fun musical introduction by spoon player Mark Alexander. https://vimeo.com/55114619

And the final video I edited for Temple Contemporary was “Mass Incarceration in America“. This 13 minute video squeezed the best snippets of nationally renowned scholar speakers of a day long event that lasted from early in the morning to about six in the afternoon. Believe me, they say very good and important things about the current carceral state and its eroding effects on urban communities, the economy and democracy. https://vimeo.com/55699650

And finally… just in time for Christmas Eve, I finished the new music video for the brand new song Jeremy Dean Harrison wrote called “Light“. Here is a quote from a blog post that talks about this song and video: “The imagery that Michelle presents throughout the video is both appropriate and thought provoking. Jeremy’s lyrics are deep and meaningful, once again calling for people to make a change in this world by BEING the change.” See the full blog post here.

… I put a lot of care, time and effort into these videos and it means a lot to me when people take the time to see them. It also means a lot to me when someone takes the time to tell me what they thought in a comment below the video or a “like”… or if you share it, it is so greatly appreciated.

And because the work I do is special to me, it is important for me to take the time to share with people who I feel would appreciate it… people who would be excited to see my progress… people who I not only want to share my work with, but people who I also want to hear from. I may not get the chance to ask you personally how you are or what you are up to, but please feel free to share with how you are and any of your work! I am also excited to see what is special to you and see you progress and would love to support you. It is all about connecting the dots…

Carpe Diem! (like Miss Holly Bliss says)

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Video Treats from Temple Contemporary and I

Happy New Years to all! I wish you all the very best! Times may get tough but stay strong, the universe is filled with surprises. In this post I would like to tell you about three of my latest video works.

Image from the Temple Contemporary Newsletter sent out December 2012. Happy Holidays!

Image from the Temple Contemporary Newsletter sent out December 2012. Happy Holidays!

This past fall 2012 semester, I worked for Temple Contemporary, which is the art gallery that is in the Tyler School of Art at Temple University. I was one of the video editors and it was a pleasure working for them because the events they host are actually really interesting. You can check out the full newsletter that Temple Contemporary sent out on December 2012 here, where you can see the three videos I edited featured there. Below are the videos for you to sit back, relax and enjoy!

The first video I edited was Pittsburgh’s Greatest Living Artist: Jon Rubin.


Jon Rubin creates interventions into public life that reinvent social and political conditions, creating new platforms for agency, participation and exchange. Rubin visited Temple Contemporary on September 18, 2012 for a discussion about his most recent works, including “HERETHEREHERE”, “The Speech of the Swans” and The Waffle Shop. Rubin will be coming back to Temple Contemporary in the Spring as we research new models of non-exhibition-based curating for galleries.

The second video I edited was Candy Class with Franklin Fountain.


Employing some of their vast collection of confectionery tools, curiosities, and candies, Ryan, Eric and Davina began with an illustrated lecture on industrial arts of Philadelphia’s confectionery past. This was followed by a hands-on workshop including a taffy pull and casting clear candy from their collection of antique candy molds. This  make-and-take workshop began with a musical introduction by spoon-player Mark Alexander.

And the third and final video I edited for them this semester was Mass Incarceration in America.


Through conversations and lectures led by nationally renowned scholars, the purpose of this teach-in was to share with the general public the impact of criminalization and the ways in which our carceral state erodes our urban communities, our economy and our democracy.

Enjoy!

Quick Update!

Hello everyone! The past few weeks have been very busy and filled with great news. If you have been checking in to my Ponder Tree Facebook page, then you will be up to date with my news, so I encourage you to like it if you haven’t yet!

  • Editing in progress: Deep Roots II – Days and Nights on the Farm (Meei Ling)
  • Birthday gift from Jeremy by Miss Holly Bliss!
  • Editing video for Temple Contemporary (Temple University’s Art Gallery)

First of all, “Deep Roots II – Days and Nights on the Farm” on October 6th and 7th were amazing. (See “Deep Roots I” here.)”Deep Roots II” was a multi-media art installation by Meei Ling in collaboration with Weavers Way’s Mort Brooks Memorial Farm and their Farm Festival and in conjunction with the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours(POST) and lighting designer Jackson Kay. The key messages of this event were to raise awareness and appreciation for the farmer and for the gifts of nature and the danger that they’re in, such as bees. Also a key theme was collaboration.

I am passionate about all of these messages but collaboration, I feel, was what made this event so amazing. Meei Ling collaborated with many people… from light designer Jackson Kay to Farmer Rick, farm educators to high school students, Anna the director of POST to photographer Sang Cun and myself, the videographer. This amazing collaboration resulted in a great turn out of people, an amazing art installation that everyone enjoyed and learned from, many became interested about becoming a part of Weavers Way Co-op

and we met new friends while eating and enjoying music. It would have been impossible if it wasn’t for everyone collaborating in the name of something they believe in…

Secondly, Jeremy got me one of the most amazing gifts ever… A portrait of me by Miss Holly Bliss! She did an absolutely amazing job and I will soon be sharing photos of it. It is a collage full of such meaningful things that Jeremy and I share. Thank you to the both of you…

And Finally, I have started working for Temple Contemporary (Temple University’s Art Gallery) editing the videos of their weekly events. So you’ll get to see what cool things take place there and you might even want to attend some of their events afterwards…

That is all for now, and following this post I’ll share some images of the news I have told you about! Thank you and stay tuned!