2008 by Sarah Schnurr

Generative art assignment using ContextFree.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr
Final project, an animated compilation of digital images, claymation and hand-drawn work with the musical assistance of the Beatles.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr
The ‘Guts And Gore’ video, although obviously too tame considering the small number of candy bars I received in response. Created with hand-felted figure, pins, raspberry iced tea mix.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr
A detailed (but jumbled) account of one mundane life as the neighborhood babysitter.

Paul has a love affair with ketchup. He eats it on everything and anything. Last month, after I doused his sandwich in ketchup, just the way he likes it, he told me that he wasn’t allowed to have it for a while, because it was making him sick. He tells me “ I have aspid reflex disease, or something.” As bad as I felt that he would have to break things off with his favorite condiment, I was glad I wouldn’t have to open a brand new bottle each week. It seems now that he’s willing to take the pain in order to properly enjoy his after-school snack.
On a typical afternoon I leave my house for work at exactly 3:23, armed with the necessary equipment: three Advil, a comfortable pair of sneakers and “the patience of a saint.” I walk to the end of my street, where I am greeted by the rumbling of a school bus engine, the squeal of tires and the sound of children, talking excitedly about their new boyfriend’s cooties or the premiere of High School Musical. These are the sounds of my afternoon, like nails on a chalkboard; the stuff of nightmares. Paul steps off the bus first, and, as is his custom, flings his backpack into my arms and takes off down the block at breakneck speed. Julia steps off next, two brown streaks stand out in her strawberry blonde hair, which she has dyed in an attempt to look more grown-up. I ask her how school was, although I can already predict her answer. “Boring.” What did she learn today? “Nothing.” When I ask her about her friends, however, she begins her tale of elementary school drama. “Hanna tattled on Leah for talking, but Hanna was, like, talking more. And there’s this new boy, Jason…” I laugh, imagining Julia and her “boyfriend” holding pinkies in the hallway and going on dates in the cafeteria.
It’s four-thirty, an hour left until Denise comes home from work. Paul is scheming on the phone and Julia is putting on a Hannah Montana concert, singing into a hair brush at the top of her lungs. When Paul asks me if he can go for a bike ride with his friends, I tell him it’s fine as long as he waits for me to see that his room is clean and under the condition that he brings the safety cell phone. I start down the hallway to check his room when I hear the back door slam close. Paul’s gone, and sure enough, his room’s still untidy and the cell phone is sitting on the kitchen table, which is Paul’s way of exerting his independence. When Julia sees that Paul has disobeyed me, she immediately calls her mom to rat him out. I hear Denise on the other line, exasperated, saying “Yes, Julia. Okay, Julia. I’ll deal with it, Julia. GOODBYE, JULIA!” Julia smirks, and dances around the house singing “Paul’s grounded! Paul’s grounded!”
When we arrive at their house, a fight breaks out between Paul and Julia over who should take the dogs out, and the name-calling ensues. “Loser” and “idiot” are their favorite insults, but I step in when they start with names like “retard,” and “Nazi.” I try to explain to them that it’s inappropriate to say these things, but I know they won’t take me seriously. In fact, Paul informs me, I’m an idiot, and he would like a ham and cheese sandwich with ketchup, please.
After Paul is fed and has started his homework (“But it’s so easy…can’t I do it later?”), I portion out a snack for Julia. Her mom has asked me to keep an eye on what Julia eats, and if I can, force-feed her some fruit. I put three cookies on a plate for her and bring her an apple, but she suddenly remembers she’s deathly allergic to apples and, would I please give her more cookies instead? I leave the room for a minute, and when I come back, Julia is MIA. I hear scurrying from the snack-closet and when I open up the door Julia is sitting on the floor, her mouth stuffed. When I ask her what she’s eating, she tells me “a Tic-tac!,” although it’s clear to me by the chocolate smudges on her face that she’s found something to replace her un-eaten apple.
Denise walks in the door shortly after, gossiping on the phone with one of her friends from work. I wave hello, and Denise immediately says goodbye to her friend and fills me in on the latest office gossip. She asks for my opinion on the new outfit she bought, and I stick around for ten more minutes, finishing up Julia’s braids and watching Paul play video games. When I finally leave, it’s a half an hour since Denise got home. I walk back down the street to my house, twenty dollars in my pocket. But instead of contemplating the new jeans I could buy with my small salary, I find myself trying to think up ways to help Paul with long division, or where I can find a Zac Effron poster for Julia’s birthday.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr

Animation project completed entirely on Adobe Photoshop. Construction/deconstruction of a city and house, building a forest.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr

Compilation of random video/audio. Repetition of images was the main focus, specifically the camel/llama.

2008 by Sarah Schnurr

An accurate introduction video featuring the first three people I met at school, and an account of their misled first impressions.