Emmys 2011: Take 2

I like to think of myself as a amateur connoisseur of television. I ingest half-hour sitcoms like candy, and marathon through seasons of hour-long dramas like there’s no tomorrow. And, as a consequence, I love it when my favorite shows head off to an awards ceremony. The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards, held on the blistering hot LA night of September 18, were possibly the most bipolar awards show in years. And while they could have made for an enjoyable night, I spent most of the time cringing for all of the awkward comedy and repeat winners.

The night started off on a musical note. Host Jane Lynch began an extensive song and dance number under the premise that all of the people working in television are housed in the same building together. Lynch wandered in to multiple different sets of popular shows, such as “Mad Men”, and “The Big Bang Theory”. The comedy was only moderately funny, and mostly just seemed like the writers were pulling jokes from the record books. Nothing felt new or original to the show.

Host Jane Lynch couldn't quite save the show

Then we headed into the comedy category, after a brief original musical introduction by “The Emmytones”, a group of television actors who looked awkward while singing, but adorable once they were just standing there, grinning stupidly. Right off the bat, “Modern Family” took home the first three trophies of the night. Which, given the overabundance of nominations the show received this year, was pretty much expected. The real surprise of the night was the Academy finally recognizing “Friday Night Lights”, possibly one of the most underrated shows of all time. In a move that can only make fans and critics happy, the final season of the acclaimed show won for Best Writing of a Drama Series (Jason Katims) and Best Lead Actor in a Drama (Kyle Chandler). Although fans are undoubtedly miffed at the snub of Connie Britton for Best Leading Actress in a Drama, they should still go away happy to be able to call their beloved show as “Emmy award winning”.

The Best Supporting Comedy Actress nominees await their fate

The highlight of the night was the presentation of Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy. Instead of the nominees staying in their chairs, briefly acknowledging the camera in their faces, all of the nominees climbed up on stage, similar to a Miss America pageant. And when surprise winner Melissa McCarthy from “Mike & Molly” was crowned victor of this year’s race, she was literally crowned. Complete with roses and an tiara, McCarthy gave a tearful speech that I found adorable and endearing. I’ve enjoyed her work since “Gilmore Girls”, but have yet to check out “Mike & Molly”. But considering the heavyweights in the category, she must be doing something right.

But, at the end of the day, predictability won over the competition. “Mad Men” continued into its fourth straight win in the Best Drama category, while “Modern Family” got its second consecutive win for Best Comedy. It sort of felt like I was just watching the recorded version of last year’s ceremony. The same people were on the stage at the end of the night. I’m all for the Academy celebrating the excellence of their peers, but only if we reevaluate every once and awhile what “the best” is. Overall, the night took me on an emotional roller coaster, and by the end, I just wanted off.

Emmys 2011

Host Jane Lynch couldn't quite save the night

Modern Family once again reigned over the Comedy category

I like to think of myself as a amateur connoisseur of television. I ingest half-hour sitcoms like candy, and marathon through seasons of hour-long dramas like I’ve got nothing better to do with my time. And, as a consequence, I love it when my favorite shows head off to an awards ceremony. The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards, held on the blistering hot LA night of September 18, were possibly the most bipolar awards I’ve seen in years. And while they could have made for an enjoyable night, I spent most of the time cringing for all of the awkward comedy and repeat winners.

The night started off on a fairly flat note. Host Jane Lynch began an extensive song and dance number under the premise that all of the people working in television live in the same building together. Lynch wandered in to multiple different sets of popular shows, such as Mad Men, and The Big Bang Theory. The comedy was only moderately funny, and mostly just seemed like a pile of jokes were flung against the wall, and nothing completely stuck. Once the pre-taped portion was over, Lynch came out singing with dancers in a choreographed routine that could barely hold my interest.

Then we headed into the comedy category, after a brief original musical introduction by “The Emmytones”, a group of television actors who looked awkward while singing, but adorable once they were just standing there. (I blame the silly grins of Community’s Joel McHale and Chuck’s Zachary Levi for the most part.) Right off the bat, Modern Family took home the first three trophies of the night. Which, given the history of the show, was pretty much expected. The real surprise of the night was Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (the voters for these particular awards) finally recognizing Friday Night Lights, possibly one of the most underrated shows of all time. In a move that can only make fans and critics happy, the final season of the critically acclaimed show won for Best Writing of a Drama Series (Jason Katims) and Best Lead Actor in a Drama (Kyle Chandler). Although fans are undoubtedly miffed at the snub of Connie Britton for Best Leading Actress in a Drama, they should still go away happy to be able to call their beloved show as “Emmy award winning”.

The highlight of the night for myself was the presentation of Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy. Instead of the nominees staying in their chairs, acknowledging the camera in their face for reaction shots, all of the nominees climbed up on stage, ala a Miss America pageant. (Special kudos to Tina Fey, who attempted to kiss her 30 Rock costar,  a faux disgruntled Jack McBrayer.) And when surprise winner Melissa McCarthy from Mike & Molly was crowned victor of this year’s race, she literally was crowned. Complete with roses and an tiara, McCarthy gave a tearful speech that I found adorable and endearing. I’ve enjoyed her work since Gilmore Girls, but have yet to check out Mike & Molly. But considering the heavyweights in the category, she must be doing something right.

But, at the end of the day, predictability won over the competition. Mad Men continued into its fourth straight win in the Best Drama category, while Modern Family got its second consecutive win for Best Comedy. It sort of felt like I was just watching the recorded version of last year’s ceremony. The same people were on the stage at the end of the night, and the same speeches were made. I’m all for the Academy celebrating the excellence of their peers, but only if we change up every once and awhile what “the best” is. Overall, the night took me on an emotional roller coaster, and by the end, I just wanted off.

Here's a complete list of the 2011 Emmy winners.

Dwelling

"Escape" by Heather Boaz

Dwelling, a new art exhibition located at Columbia’s C33 gallery, is a new look into the ways that we process different aspects of space, memory, and home. The show looks to play on the places that we seek refuge in, both physically and mentally. It looks at the places that we dwell in the most, and forces you to put yourself inside of the artwork to invoke different emotions. Thirteen artists have put their work together to show the sequence of emotions going through the interior and exterior of the places in which we dwell, and also uses the relationships between people and places to draw the audience in.

The show begins in the exterior sections, and takes a look at the material concepts of home and the space around the home. One of the most noticeable pieces is “Escape” by Heather Boaz. It features a window frame, with a long chain of bed sheets knotted together hanging from it. The title of the work allows the audience to create their own narrative for the piece, but with all the same feeling of needing to escape their dwellings.

The other piece that Boaz shows in the collection is one of the most simple, but also one of the most striking. “Defense” shows a doorknob being held back by a wooden chair. While the piece is simplistic, it conjures a different image and narrative to everyone who looks at it; a definite feat for something so minimal.

Just about all of the pieces in Dwelling lack the image of a person in the artwork. This gives the audience plenty of opportunities to fit themselves into the scenarios and works presented. “Memory Archive” by Anna Katherine Peters is a perfect example of this. The wall of Polaroid photographs focuses on specific places in and around a home, with never a human in sight. The spectator is about to fit themselves into the pictures perfectly, without being overwhelmed with senses. Many objects appear in the photographs, but all with a specific purpose; to let the viewer conjure up their own assumptions and memories of the space, even if they’re not familiar with the atmosphere.

"Memory Archive" by Anna Katherine Peters

The interior and exterior sides of the exhibition are connected by the largest piece of artwork. “Corrugated Roof” by Ginny Huo has three large pieces of paper folded accordion-style hanging from the ceiling, giving the appearance of a narrative between the emotional and physical sides of the exhibition.

Dwelling feels quite emotional when you walk in. The lighting is dim, and the placards are somewhat hard to read because of it. You have to get up close and personal with the pieces in order to completely understand some of them. One video even had headphones, which let you fully experience the sound of a suburban neighborhood, a definite dwelling for most who look at it.

Altogether, Dwelling is an interesting look at the places in which we dwell in, both mentally and physically. It is open until October 19, and definitely should be looked at if you’re in the area.

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