Believing that one thing was real only if it corresponded with others, Ray Johnson highlighted the connections between himself and famous artists such as Marcel Duchamp. The ways the two artists thought and how they shaped their lives corresponded like two elements in Johnson's collages. My study of Johnson through the lens of Duchamp allows me to discuss two highly intellectual and creative artists. I address the few direct interactions between Johnson and Duchamp as well as their mutual acquaintances who served as conduits of information, particularly in Johnson's direction. This dissertation focuses on Johnson's creative engagement with Duchamp and begins to explicate the depth and richness of that interchange. Each chapter focuses on several key works by Johnson, ranging from some of his earliest collages to what was perhaps the last work he completed. Through these works I explore the correspondences between the two artists outside of their individual works, with each chapter looking at one major theme including language, the viewer, performance, and identity. I outline the relationship between Duchamp and Johnson, using the selected collages to demonstrate how the synergy of the two artists is manifested in Johnson's work. My work sheds light on the enigmatic Johnson who has only very recently come under critical and historical investigation. By looking at Duchamp from this unique perspective I am also contributing to our understanding of one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century. Most artists after Duchamp felt that they worked in his shadow but Johnson's relationship to the elder artist was different. He seems to have understood Duchamp better than almost anyone and therefore was able to selectively choose his inheritance--defining himself alongside and against Duchamp. / text

This report is a chronicle of my research and design practice at The University of Texas at Austin in pursuit of the MFA in Design. It traces my interest in visual narrative, specifically in the component relationships evident in a close study of comics as they relate to questions of dimensionality and form. Key elements in this trajectory include the application of humor, sequential illustration, paper engineering and the adaptation of texts to works of visual and dimensional narrative. Along with a documentation of my working methods and experience, an appropriately distilled version of my extensive study of literature, comics, diorama, and pop-up books can be found in the following pages. / text

It was the best of cities, it was the worst of cities, it was a place of giddying boom, it was a place of economic despair, it was a utopia, it was a dystopic no-topia, it was the world centre of fantasies, and the world centre of nightmares, a town where some struck it rich while others lost themselves in their desires for wealth, in short, the place was so far unlike the present place, that some of the noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only. This thesis is constructed of fragmented stories but not in the classic sense as there is no over-arching narrative, no beginning, middle and end, no synthetic conclusion. Rather this thesis is similar to Los Angeles itself; it is a multi-faceted exploration of competing themes that have birthed a city of fictions, a centre of fantasy, a place that shapes our collective memories, even for those of us who grew up in far-off places. Los Angeles has searched for a down-town core, a collective identity, a dominant narrative and these attempts are explored through different themes – the story of film noir, the development of the Los Angeles Aqueduct, the redevelopment of Bunker Hill, the violence and upheavals of the riots. I have explored how the city has tried to re-brand itself, Through these prisms, and how these attempts have shaped its development and history. It is said that Los Angeles has an architecture of absence, with its superficiality and lack of depth, and as a visual metaphor, this can represent the giddy changes happening in the field of architecture, where hyper-realism trumps facts. This idea of Los Angeles as a mirror should not surprise: it has long been a world centre for myth-making, an epicenter of fiction, cinema, architecture, et cetera, spewing out seductive, grotesquely exaggerated reflections of North America itself.

Objective: Over the past several decades, increase in SSB consumption has coincided with increasing rates of obesity. This study evaluated the association between SSB consumption and BMI. Methods: FFQ data from NHANES 2003-2004 was used to examine 100% orange juice, sugar-sweetened fruit drinks, soft drinks, and other beverage consumption frequency vs. mean BMI. ANOVA, relative risk, and linear regression analyses were done. Results: ANOVA found significant differences in mean BMI across consumption frequencies for orange juice (p=.001), sugar-sweetened fruit drinks (p<.001), and soft drinks (p<.001). Increased risk of being obese was associated with increasing consumption frequency for orange juice (RR=1.282), sugar-sweetened fruit drinks (RR=1.417), and soft drinks (RR=1.749). Multiple linear regression found significant positive associations between mean BMI and sugar-sweetened fruit drinks (b=.056, p=.004) and soft drinks (b=.134, p=.001). Conclusion: This study found that mean BMI was positively associated with certain beverage consumption frequency (sugar-sweetened fruit drinks, soft drinks consumed during summer, soft drinks consumed during rest of year), but not others (100% orange juice). Fewer significant results were found when confounding variables were controlled. Drinking soft drinks or sugar-sweetened fruit drinks increased the risk of obesity more than drinking natural fruit juices.

This paper will look back on the work of Equipo Cronica, who worked between 1964--1980, to reveal a production of art that centered on issues of originality and value that were grounded in attempts at social activism and a redefinition of the role of art vis-a-vis society. To achieve their goals, I will argue and describe how the two man team of artists used serialism, objectivity, hybridity, appropriation of mass media iconography and techniques, and parody to produce something that was neither an art object nor an ordinary object, but an object of criticism. The historical relevancy of such an art lies in its claims of participating in a political critique of the culture industry controlled by the oppressive Franco regime, and its wary outlook on the rapid modernization of Spain into the neo-capitalist state it is today within the multinational world order. / The relevance of such an examination lies in how their intentions to create a new relationship between art and society is still pertinent today in modern Spain. Since the death of Franco in 1975 there has been a feeling in Spain that the eyes of the world have been on its new democracy, leading to a campaign, led until recently by the Socialist government, to prove Spain is a modern state that has recuperated from 40 years of isolation. It has tried to demonstrate that it is progressive, not only economically and technologically, but culturally. Over the last twenty years a veritable culture industry has boomed in Spain which has been generously backed by its federal and regional governments. As Spain zealously and rapidly finds its place in the globalized multinational world order, I will demonstrate that the issues of identity pertinent to Equipo Cronica, and the tactics they used to address it, can still contribute a critical position to present-day discussions.

This paper aims to describe how religion teachers in Swedish schools teach concerning questions about life issues and popular culture. To research the teachers' didactic approach to these issues, didactics has been defined with three educational questions: what, how and why. The essay focuses on teachers' effective implementation of teaching on life issues and popular culture, which we used a theory of offering meaningfulness describing what subject matter that may be imparted to the students. An offer of meaningfulness can be pursued and can be made visible in the context of what and how performs the teaching and also in the context where the teacher planned the teaching elements. The method that the paper has used is the interviews of four different active religious educators in Stockholm and Uppsala area. These interviews were conducted at every teacher’s workplace. The interviews were recorded and we used a semi- structured interview guide, which has been created to ensure that the important issues for the survey answered. The results show that religion teachers are experiencing a shortage of time, when planning the teaching elements of life issues teaching on life issues and popular culture. The results also show that when students receive instructions in the subjects concerning life issues and popular culture, it is usually in relation to the other world religions. In the discussion, our results were partially consistent with previous studies in the field of life issues and popular culture. The interviewed teachers created different offer of meaningfulness that the students could impart in their creation of answers to the questions of life.

This paper puts forward a new approach to the revitalization of vacant and neglected buildings and spaces by introducing the use of temporary pop-up environments. The initial research establishes groundwork for pop-up environments and temporary use, while pointing to their potential. Records from specialists, Florian Haydn, Robert Temel, and Philipp Oswalt, exhibit various types of temporary uses and interim strategies. Strategies are displayed in their selection of sites and operation. These strategic approaches will support transitioning space and present interim projects, which have the prospect of utilizing space as a secondary means, while a more primary use of space is in development. The case studies will demonstrate the temporary use strategies and social factors, which may establish new meaning to facilitate change. By presenting possibilities of repurposing through temporary and interim uses, there is the opportunity for renewal and averting the dependence on massive (re)development, sustaining a city’s heritage.

Chapter 1: Formation and Early Beginnings of music in la Movida-In the first chapter I am writing about how the early development of la Movida runs very much alongside political initiatives to stimulate cultural development in Madrid. Specifically I am writing about how popular songs and musicians at the time translated these messages of regional pride and identity that was being heavily stimulated by the government into a way that the general public could understand and support. Citing specific song lyrics and early bands of la Movida, I also track the years leading up to 1975 and how music has long been used in Spain as a political tool. Chapter 2: The peak commercialization of Movida music and its slow dissolve-In the second chapter I explore the height of la Movida's popularity, namely in the form of full-blown institutional support surrounding concerts, radio stations, publications and music marketing. I then explore the question of authenticity surrounding la Movida and whether or not its development was ever really "authentic" because of the long period of political involvement. I also shift the idea that la Movida musicians and music just suddenly stopped being produced to one that favors a more gradual expansion of the music into the world that changed its form over time. This chapter focuses heavily on how outside influences and increased dialogue with the rest of the world led to a perspective that heavily favored a classic Spanish capital over a highly regional one. Chapter 3: Traces and reception of la Movida in Madrid today-In the third chapter I will focus more pointedly on the interviews I have conducted, most of which maintain the viewpoint that "nothing of la Movida exists in Spain today." I will examine the influences music of la Movida has had on contemporary music, as well as the role of current exhibitions focusing on the music and art scene of la Movida. This chapter is primarily an exploration into where the place Movida music exists in contemporary history.

Mitt exemanesarbete består av ett antal låtar och musikproduktioner som jag har gjort mestadels under 2012-2013. Målet med musikproduktionerna har varit att, under rådande förutsättningar inom dom olika projekten, skapa musik vars enda egentliga syfte har varit att beröra den potentiella lyssnaren.I min text har jag lagt fokus på att undersöka hur resultatet har påverkats av att med olika produktionsmetoder arbeta med tempo. Jag har och är framförallt nyfiken på hur maskingenererat tempo, som i texten kommer benämnas som click eller clicktrack, påverkar slutresultatet av en musikproduktion.I två av mina produktioner har jag jobbat med tempo på flera olika sätt. Målet varje gång med dessa produktioner har varit att fånga låtens känsla så bra som möjligt. Anledning till att jag har gjort om produktionerna har varit för att jag inte har varit nöjd och har därav provat en ny arbetsmetod. Jag har därmed funnit det intressant att analysera dom olika versionerna av samma låt för att se om jag kan hitta nyckeln till varför jag har blivit nöjd med en produktion och missnöjd med en annan produktion av samma låt.Min personliga uppfattning är att clicktrack ofta används oreflekterat i inspelningssituationer inom pop och rockgenren och att det starkt påverkar hur musik från dessa genrer ofta låter idag. Jag ställer mig frågan, om det har blivit norm att använda clicktrack i inspelnings situationer. / <p>Bilaga: 1 CD</p>

This thesis analyzes Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari&#039 / s &quot / faciality&quot / , which is not handled in a Deleuzian sense. The opposition between pop philosophy and the face has been studied in order to draw Deleuzian as well as non Deleuzian connections between pop philosophy, literature, theather, painting and advertising. Since Deleuze calls philosophy as the &quot / art of surfaces&quot / , each concept has been taken as a surface to walk on. Not only the author of this thesis but also the face itself takes a walk on &quot / a thousand plateaus&quot / , breaks into pop philosophy and reverses Deleuzian concepts such as &quot / difference&quot / and &quot / repetition&quot / . Deleuzian concepts and non Deleuzian concepts face each other &quot / in/on&quot / faciality. Gilles Deleuze, Felix Guattari, Lewis Carroll, Herman Melville, Antonin Artaud, Francis Bacon, Nikolai Gogol, Edmond Rostand, Carlo Collodi, Franz Kafka, Oscar Wilde, Guiseppe Arcimbolde and Commedia dell&#039 / Arte shed light on this thesis in order to reveal the faciality in &quot / faciality&quot / .