New Work: The Real World: Pittsburgh

Finally, right? I just wrapped up my newest digital collage titled, The Real World: Pittsburgh. Click on the image below to see more detailed shots on my website.

The first thing I think about when I see it is that it’s a Wild Mess! It really is like a glimpse into my mind—a colorful chaotic mess of comedy and drama. The second thing I love is that the balcony of the church seems to dissect the picture plane in half. While the two worlds of on stage and backstage collide all over the composition (the actors and the cameramen are all over the place), the balcony acts like a line separating the production of lights that you never see on television, and the main action occurring on the floor. It’s almost like a horizon line separating heaven and hell. Reality television as hell? Perhaps.

Some of my thoughts going into this project was to capture the production of reality television shows that we, the viewer on one side of the television, never get a chance to see. I was inspired by an episode of MTV’s The Real World: Seattle in which one cast mate, Irene, shared with a friend on the phone some of her problems with the reality TV experience.

One of her problems were the lights on the ceiling, which never turned off. At this moment, the camera panned up and for the first time, I, an avid Real World watcher at the time, saw some of the guts of the show that never existed to me. I had never thought that the show was ‘fake’ until I saw those lights. In terms of The Real World: Pittsburgh, I’m really excited that the bright lights and the windows of the converted church really pop and are just as visually present as the people.

Another fun part of the project was simply constructing the space and decorating it. I was obsessed with Real World houses when I was a young chap. In fact, I took a joke architecture class at this high school pre-college program and convinced the teacher that our final project should be constructing a real world house, complete with a 3-D model. I took it way seriously and I still have the 3-D model. I’ll photograph it and put it up when I get a chance.

Anyway, I imagined that in Pittsburgh, MTV would definitely set up shop on Mt. Washington. It’s far enough from the college kid scenes like the South Side or Oakland, but right off the Incline that takes the cast to a handful of clubs at Station Square. Then I thought that every house had a theme that related to the city. While Pittsburgh has the Steelers (I placed Gold and Black wherever I could without being tacky) and is known for all that metal, I think it’s also a growing place for Art. With the Andy Warhol Museum, the Carnegie International, tons of small galleries and of course my alma mater, Carnegie Mellon University, I thought I would decorate the house with prominent pieces of art. In fact, all the art is from Carnegie Mellon alumni, including Andy Warhol, John Currin, Ryan McGinness, and none other than Jeffrey Augustine Songco.

I included the typical Real World features, like a crazy couch, a fish tank, a pool table, and a Jacuzzi. I loved the red curtains as solutions for doors, since I remember reading somewhere that the Real World houses never have doors.

Another big issue for me was to make sure the space felt like it was constantly being filmed. I included cameras all over the place, not just being held by the crew, but also above doorframes and on various walls. The idea of documentation needed to be clear, yet still blend in with the environment, so the cameras are subtle visible details.

Who knows what the cast is fighting about. I knew I wanted a brawl but I did not have any specific storyline for this scene. I think that’s a fun way to allow interpretation for the viewer. Well, that’s that! Enjoy!