We are the Redundant Chickens. Why redundant chickens? Well, mostly because it came up on a name generating website. But it means more to us now. I think. Either way, it’s mysterious and we liked the sound of it, so we decided to roll with it.
Today, my partner Matthew Winters and myself took a journey across campus to explore some of our favorite spots. We came back with some pretty exciting stuff.
This first image was taken in front of Mackinac Hall with the prominent Amaranth sculpture, created by Cyril Lixenberg. The description of the piece from GVSU’s online gallery says that this piece “does not represent anything concrete but is an aesthetic reflection of material, process, and creative mental engagement.” Not really sure I would go that far, but it is definitely interesting to look at and catches the eye. On the left you can see the original image, and on the right is the image that I adjusted by playing with the highlights and shadows and adding a vignette.
Here we have an untitled piece by the sculpting legend James Clover, located right next to Mackinac Hall. This 1991 piece made from painted steel is topped with the head of a bird, making it the perfect fit for our group. To modify this image, I increased the warmth of the image with white balance and lowered the saturation to create a classic, nostalgic look.
Here we have a staple of GV’s North campus, the Rock. It is not technically an art piece so it has no official name, but it gets painted over all the time by frats and sororities and you really can’t miss it. For this image, I increased the contrast and brought down the shadows to create a more balanced, pleasant look.
Our final landmark was GV’s famous blue bridge. Did you know that if you jump in the middle of the bridge, you can feel a profound wobble? It’s a bit sketchy and I’d rather not be on it when it collapses, but it is a very beautiful part of the campus. I modified this image by increasing the contrast, pumping up the saturation, bringing the highlights down to capture the sky, and cranking the sharpening.
Here we have my individual photo in front of yet another piece by James Clover. This one is basically the same as his other one, but it is much bigger and has a star instead of a bird head. Behind and to the right of this piece you can see Lake Superior Hall where I have almost all of my film classes. I walk by this thing every day, so it is pretty tough to miss, and there is something about it’s height and how precariously the star on top appears to be balanced that I really like. In Photoshop, I played around with the exposure and raised the shadows, and I also added a vignette and a subtle yellow glow behind the star.
Here we have our first meme, Hadouken, based off the famous move from the Street Fighter games. It’s pretty self explanatory, but if it helps, you can imagine a ball of pure energy erupting from my palms.
Next we have Quidditching, based off the favorite sport of the beloved wizard Harry Potter. Unfortunately we couldn’t find any real broomsticks, but we made do with what we had.
Finally, we have Vadering. Here, Matthew is using his force powers to choke me, emulating the actions of our favorite Sith lord. Another great meme.
If you want more of our journey, head on over to #redundantchickens on Twitter!
Currently, the demonic Garfield memes are my favorite. If you visit r/imsorryjon on Reddit, I swear you will not be disappointed. They are incredibly dark and horrifying, and yet the very nature of their existence is hilarious because of how ridiculous it is. The pictures above were drawn by a guy named William Burke, he is the originator of this meme and since these came out it has gotten extremely popular. This is one of the Internet’s stranger memes, but it is a part of why I love the Internet so much. It can take things that you would normally believe to be completely unfunny and turn them into hilarious works of art that evolve with the creativity of the masses. It is like having a running joke with your friends, except it is a running joke with million of people, many of whom are talented artists who can produce masterpieces such as the ones above.
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This infographic shows the annual sums of private donations that Grand Valley’s Foundation has received since 2007. This page is really interesting because I never knew before how much the university relied on private donations. I vaguely knew that alumni donations were valuable, but because it is a public university and we are all paying absurd tuition, I would not have expected such a need for this money. I am glad that it exists and it is great for scholarships, but I was unaware nonetheless.
Also, I can’t help but wonder what was going on in 2008 and 2010. They either had some very generous donors or some pretty great fundraising staff. I might have to do a little more research on that one.
Just a few days ago I had the chance to capture a selfie with the wonderful Mr. and Mrs. Haas. I am a freshman this year, so I only got in one year under their leadership, but being around him and his wife is very inspiring and I am glad that I got the chance. Seeing them leave makes me think more about the fact that in just a few years I’ll be out of here too, and considering how fast this first year went, that is coming up pretty quick. I love my professors, I love the campus and my friends, everything about this place is great, and I’m gonna miss it like crazy. Becoming a Laker for a Lifetime is a sad thing to think about, but I know that a lot of good will come of it and I will walk away with connections that really will last a lifetime, so I cannot complain.
If you find yourself wanting more, make sure to check out my partner Matthew’s blog at
https://themichiefofmatthew.wordpress.com/!
Josh's Journey 