City in flux city in flux animations : http://bethanyminshallartblog.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/cityinflux%20animation Initial ideas Night photography. time waits for no man. Weather. Road marking. Animals, foxes birds rats pets. Reclaimed by nature. Parkour. Rebuild. money. Abandoned places. Society. Traffic lights. Jobs. Transformation. Bricks. Clouds. Maps. People. Homes. Roads. Movement. Alteration. Mutate. Mobility. Transport. Exchange. Transition. Ebb + flow. Aging. Christchurch. Walking. People make a city but are so small with in it. Sounds of the city. Colours. Concrete jungle. Maturing. Developing. Growing. Structures. Reconstruct. Remake. Reconstitute. Restore. Recreate. Re-establish. Erode. Decompose. Decay. Corrode. Unrest. Instability. Turbulence. Precariousness. Abandoned city’s. Arial views. Mapping the growth. Expansion. Repeat. Replay. Cranes. Found items. Skips. Building sights. Metropolis
Research This is a selection of work from sleepy city a collection of photographs of the city that you would never see from high above the streets to far below them. The artists believes that by putting the effort in to photograph these almost deserted places he can capture the true nature of the city “As night descends we creep out to explore the city and her secrets.”I like these photographs with there strong use of contrast to show a beautiful yet decrepit side of the city focusing on night photography he manages to capture the whole essence of the city with out focusing on the people with in. Traveling across the world he tries to capture one body of work using his unique style in different city’s he captures what is similar between them all
Artist research : Audrey Anderson i like this work as in a simplistic way it captures snapshot of peoples life in the city using a mixture of watercolours, collage and ink they have captured small details of peoples life’s that everyone can relate to I think this shows the community aspect of the city and the sense that a city is not a city with out people.
Christchurch shopping center there metal crates are surounded by concrete making them stand out in the new city.
One example of rebirth of a city is Christchurch in new Zealand after being struck by an earthquake in February 2011 the country is beginning to rebuild its second largest city. There is much debate weather to rebuild the city as it was keeping the history or weather they should modernise the city, keeping it competitive with other places in the county. they began the build with the things central to the city clearing the roads creating a temporary shopping district out of shipping containers so that they economy could continue as best as possible despite this many people were still forced to find work else where. Another of the priorities was to build a church as money was low and the work force was busy on other building they did this by creating a card board church using thick cardboard tubes instead of metal and brick as many of the existing churches and community centres were destroyed this gave the community a focal point. Although the city is damaged they are finding less traditional building techniques to being life back to the city creating an unusual and unique vision. city’s are constantly in a state of unrest as new buildings go up old ones come down , buildings are repurposed or restructured the question is always asked do we improve the city or keep it the same
i feel the uniqueness of a city is what makes it interesting draws me to visit to explore with things chancing so quickly in the world i fear the individuality of a city could be lost. how ever i belive the repourposing and restructure of the city is equily important to keep it living and poeple living with in it.
one example of a city the could not repurpose and continue to grow once one thing changed is Bodie, California. this gold mining town grew rapidly but once the gold rush was over it became a ghost town as the people with in it could no longer support them self ’s they left there lives behind and much of what they owned to travel to somewhere that could provided them with a better life . this is a grate example that the people are what makes a city live.
artist research : Armand Fernandez
Armand Fernandez Uses everyday objects found in the city to create beautiful sculptures and art work using ready made objects in his compositions it gives a unique insight into the city and peoples lives I like his simplistic style using repeating objects close together so you are able to see the small differences between these supposable uniform objects. Armand’s work focused on the mass produced aspects of society, choosing to use trash in much of his work , showing the effects of mass production and the waste created as time passes.
Nights of China, 1976 Theme : Accumulations of Real Objects Hard and Soft I like the way Armand uses hard and soft objects in combination distorting there original use and creating interesting compositions . his work reminds me of the waste of society because his sculpture looks as if it is at a waste dump. disregarded and left to decay. Petits Dechets Bourgeois
primary research : photographing the city
For this research I decided to focus on waste and decay in the city in all its forms from old signs, to things humans disregard and signs of weathering and fading.
Primary research : Photographing the city For this research I went around the city to explore the different architecture and buildings form different eras. I was drawn towards building that with many windows I feel they gave a soul to the city quietly looking down on the streets as people continued with there lives , they are always there but very rarely noticed I decided to focus this shoot on the variety of windows in the city form simple to lavish. Once I began looking I was surprised how many windows there were something we take for granted in everyday life but with out them the world we see would be very different.
having looked into windows i then looked though opther inages i have take in diffeent citys and came accross these photographs of london even though its a diffrent city i get the same feeling from the windows in these images as i do from todays shoot.
More primary research photographs looking in to the city looking at society ; the people , the rules The city has many ways on controlling peoples behaviour and attitude whether thought written signs and rules or policing and other services . These influences are most obvious in city centres. With signs dictating are behaviour everywhere. These are just a few examples.
this is a collection of images showing form and shape in the city form tiles to seats everything in the city is designed to be beautiful and practical. I have focused on the beauty of these objects the symmetry and shape.
research : Tony Cragg Tony Cragg is observed for his use of many different materials I am interested in the work from his earlier career in particular his use of found objects organising them to create symmetry and order . I like how he takes obscure objects from our lives with little correlation to each other and combines them into geometric shapes creating almost a function to the pieces disregarded by others. He uses a intelligence about the found objects remodelling them in to quirky and interesting forms and images
Menschenmenge mixed media
Stack, 1975 Mixed media, 200 x 200 x 200 cm
primary research : photography shoot
i love this image from my shoot i feel it shows the continuous re-development of the city the clean white against the scaffolding. It makes me wonder are they just rebuilding the building or altering the structure.
artist research : Satoshi Araki
Hyper-Detailed Miniature Dioramas of Street Scenes Satoshi Araki is a Japanese artist that creates miniature versions of decaying cityscapes . his work is incredibly detailed on such a small scale . focusing on mainly direlect builings he creates realistic scene down to the trash on the road and fading posters on the wall.
what makes a city ?
Not every city is the same but they share the same features this allows us to create a recognisable city with unique form or on distant planets or realities Whether the city is realistic Or in a whole new world Or created within a human city using bits of familiar sights Pixar have managed to create a recognisable city with out just bricks and roads. i am beginning to understand lots od things make up a city but not all of them make a city a city . many things like jobs and waste come along with a city but they are not what make it.
Primary research : Leeds trip This week I headed to the closest city to me Leeds, the main aim of this trip was to created a selection of primary research by photographing the city. I also used this opportunity to view the local art gallery’s in search of inspiration. These are a collection on the images I tooi got the train from Huddersfield to Leeds while waiting for thetrain I noticed the tracks and thought about how if I did not have access to use this I would have no easy way to get to the city. Transport is deeply important to city bringing people in and out of the area keeping it flowing and progressing.As it was a new area to me I needed to use signs and maps to find my way around and thought about the importance of clear signs in the city, this led on to me looking for any examples of letters and fonts in the city as everyone means something useful to someone if not me .
Another aim for my trip was to look at windows in the city. Something so simple but I feel is so important to the city . I was looking out for a variety of shapes and styles to try and collect a body of work focused on these simples objects
Images from other city’s I have been to around the world much bigger city then I am used to but still they have the same basic things , places of work , places to relax and people. Another thing iv noticed in all the city’s iv been to, there is always a green space. To contrast against the slick buildings and grey concrete they are usually also man built. I feel its important to keep nature in the city. It beings a level of calm to the busy streets and allows you a place to escape.
New zealand : Christchurch
This image is a grate example of re birth and re growth of a city constantly changing and growing chirstchuch is rebuilding and reinventing itself after the earthquake. they are taking this disaster and using it to modernism the city making it flow better as well as look up to date.
Melbourne
london
research :The little people project
The little people project is a collection of images of little models used in the city often amusing they are used to make political statements. There size makes them almost non existence in the city I like this idea of being lost and insignificant in the city yet still making such a powerful message
Artist research : James Gulliver Hancock James Gulliver Hancock has attempted to draw every building in new york city , I like his simplistic style and use on bold colours to create interesting recognisable colours in his own style i might try drawing some of the building around me for my city in flux project.
artist research : clet Abraham French artist Clet Abraham adds his own imagination in to every day signs with brilliant results his playful attitude to rules of the city make the boring things around us more fun for everyone
I feel his work fits in well with what I am trying to do with the city around me I also want to take ordinary rules of the city that everybody follows and make them fun and playful.
experimentation
I scanned this image into Photoshop and once adding to an image of railings that I took in Huddersfield town centre I faded the edges giving the impression that the hammock is hanging from the railings I like the humour in this image as its not where you would normally choose to sleep I think I can further develop this idea y adding the drawing to places of high traffic or people I felt like this drawing looked as if the character was waiting for something so I added her to a crowd of people waiting at the lights to cross . I then added a filter of “noise� to distort the image and try and give a sense of the traffic driving past the people. Next focusing on the idea on people living in there own world and not noticing others around them I used iris focus to focus on my character and blur out the people around her. I feel this gives much more emphasis to the character and amply represents how I feel while waiting at traffic lights.
Photo-shoot using my hand draw items in unusual places I tried to create the look or rule breaking i.e. the character sleeping in the hammock between railings. I feel all of these images work well for my project I especially like the colours deer in the grass but I don’t think it focuses enough on the city and the key aspects of my project.
artist research :Simon Faithfull
I love Simon Faithfull simplistic drawings of the city’s and the things in it . his main aim is to attempt to explore and understand the planet as a sculptural object. I like this view that the world is an object with tings moving though it this is similar to how I am attempting to depict the city for my project
Liu Bolin : artist research
Liu Bolin has become famous worldwide for painting his entire body to match the scenery behind this creates the illusion when photographed that he is not there I have been lokoing into his work due to its link to anonymity in the city and how beautifully the photographs have been done the use of colour to combine the figure with the background is something i had not thought about and feel in order to make my charecter stand out i will need to leave a small boarder around the line to give it contrast from the background.
research : Branding Some examples of anonymous branding , using simplistic designs and minimal lines to create a recognizable yet hidden brand the way this designer has embhasised anonimity is by backing out the font gaps so that the letters are still recognisable but almost hiding , also by literally covering the text making the audience descover what it says them self i think these are intresting way to represent anonimity
development : Calvin aged 8 this week i have been developing my characters so see which one i want to use in my city in flux project . This is my development of Calvin aged 8 , he loves to play cricket , read about the universe and eat pancakes , I have chosen to give him scruffy hair and put him in dungarees to try and depict his age also this is how I imagine him looking. A sweet boy in search of knowledge.
Idea development After spending the last few weeks experimenting and developing with characters I don’t feel any of that truly depict the feelings I want to get across in my project however the basic faceless character I have been experimenting with I feel accurately gets across the feeling of anonymity and going un noticed in the city, he could be the person you walk past of the member of staff that serves you in the shop. I think I am going to develop my project further using this faceless nameless character that to me represents everyone in the city. I am trying to highlight anonymity in my project. I plan to look into ways to make my character more anonymous I want to leave my characters as a plain and exaggerated version of the human figure.
to check the proportion of my character i have laid each drawing over each other lowing the opacity so i can see them all as one unit.
using photoshop this is my attempt to show how my images would look
behind the scenes
some behind the scene shots from my project research i have been attempting to create animations using a mock scene and small characters replacing and photographing them in each stage of movement i used a small stack of books to stabilize the camera with the aim to make the images as stable at possible even with this there is some small movement from image to image.
evaluation
After completing some test animation using the sequences I created I feel the most successful is the character on the step - the other animations I have created seem not to link with the background effectively feeling unconformable and unrealistic to counteract this I am going to attempt to make the character to react more fluidly and realistically with the scene . I also intend to move from hand drawn characters cut out and placed in place to piecing the images together in the computer using Photoshop , illustrator and after effects . To develop my clip more I plan to create a more detailed story trying to more effectively depict the feeling of anonymity and emphasize the feeling of small and insignificant in a big world. Problem : as I have begun to develop my project I have found that the paper is to thin meaning it doesn’t stand alone and becomes see through when placed Solution - I want to keep the original photography style trying by trying to keep away from computers I plan to create a mock scene to photograph inside allowing me to control light and the scene more effectively this will give a more ridged look to the characters and eliminate the previous problems. I have done a few tests animations inside and like the look of them I think this will be an effective way of doing the photographs I know plan to develop my story boards to create a longer animation and more effectively link it to the city .
story board this is my story board for my film i have done this to show me the direction that the characters are moving and how they will move around the scene.
this week i have been looking to to colours for my characters to further exaggerate anonymity
I feel that the white character represents anonymity the best as he is a paper character white would leave him totally invisible if he wasn’t cut out and placed n the city this best represents those unnoticed people in the city
these are a collection of some of the sequences i have created for motions i will need in my final animtion this are the main actions i want my charecter to do and i will add extra images where needed
practice these are some images for a animation relating to city in flux that i decided not to take further i felt the images did not create a realistic look and the character looked separated from the images more then i would like
some behind the scenes shots relating to my sleep animation .
evaluation For the last few week I have been trying animate my paper character in to photographs this stop motion technique is time consuming and I feel that the character does not gel effectively with his surroundings. Therefore I have begun to draw the characters out in illustrator using Photoshop to give the cut out feel and effect before uploading to after effects to place in my time line this technique gives me more control over the look of the character as I no longer need to scan images in . I am also able to control size and proportion easier having the images next to each other on screen the more I use this technique they quicker I am getting and I am much happier with the outcomes them before I plan to complete my whole film in this style
music research i am looking in to a selection of music to link with my piece i want somethings with a strong rhythem to represent the flow of the city. these songs might not directly say something about anonimity but it is the feeling i get from these songs, “Flight Of The Crow” “Needle In The Dark” “Cos we’re bullets and we’re fired from shotguns flying “You may find that the gate has been locked through birthdays and new years, When we come back down to what we really are Yeah we’re rolling stones but the moss keeps growing Retrace the footprints off the path that’s been lost round our hearts and our eyes and our ears, It’s like trying to find a needle in the dark” Cos we’re bullets and we’re fired from shotguns flying through birthdays and new years, Yeah we’re rolling stones but the moss keeps growing round our hearts and our eyes and our ears.”
experimentation with line and anonymity with my character, i wanted to test what effect changing the type of line would have on my character . i also wanted to distort the face in many different ways to see if i could give a better representation of anonymity though all my experimenting i always return to the faceless character . its simplicity and its ability to be anybody i feel is the most effective look i can go for in my project
Some images from a photo-shoot that I will use in my final piece
screen grabs from different stages of production
As my project grew it became increasingly complicated I try to keep my layers in a neat order as to avoid and unnecessary confusion and mistakes.
characters
This is an image of some of the many characters i created for my project all different sizes and positions before i moved on to creating the charecter on the computer in illustrator and photoshop
Final piece evaluation this is the final animation that i have created for a brief linked to the city in flux meet Tom a faceless figure, he’s the star of this film. using the city as his own personal play ground small and unnoticed the city is fun but dangerous for someone his size i wanted to try and represent anonymity in this film focusing on faceless people in the city. I think this film came out well it is almost exactly what I had planned in my head and I feel it gets across the feeling of anonymity successfully I also think the flow of the character’s movement is smooth and accurately gets across his personality on a whole I am happy with my film if I had more time I would have liked to make the film longer maybe develop the story line so the character has more chance to explore the city. I am especially happy with the music used in this film . the initial song I picked was slow and did not accurately fit with the transition of the film I layered the music up combining the beginning and end of the song to create a more dramatic atmosphere that adds rhythm to the film. i have re edited my film i have speed it up in order to make the story flow better , i still think it needs speeding up further if i am going to use it in my show reel but i will do this when i produce my showreel . over all i am happy with this final piece as it if my first piece of animation i have produced and the fact i had to hand drawn each frame of the character movements reminds me that although it is not perfect i still impressed myself with what i was able to produce. next time i produce a hand drawn animation i now know some tips such as drawing the figures and simple as possible and using illustrator, also i have learnt how to organise my after effect composition and layers one thing i wish i had done was use moving footage in the background however when i did attempt this the instability of the film detracted from the simple animation which is the focal point of the animation.
brief
Earth Artifact
Over the next few weeks you are required to submit creative proposals through to finished design work/animation for a new version of the ‘Golden Record’ entitled, ‘Earth Artifact’. This does not have to be a slavish reproduction of the original golden record, but could be a more contemporary version, which should be reflected in the content and the format/media channel of your choice. You should document all stages of the research and design process, which should demonstrate a critical understanding of the design challenge. You should be inventive and demonstrate your ingenuity in solving this creative challenge. It is important you generate several creative solutions, taking one justified idea forward to a final solution.
voyager facts
The Voyager Golden Records are phonograph records which were included aboard both Voyager spacecraft, which were launched in 1977. They contain sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth, and are intended for any intelligent extraterrestrial life form, or for future humans, who may find them. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. Sagan and his associates assembled 116 images and a variety of natural sounds, such as those made by surf, wind, thunder and animals (including the songs of birds and whales). To this they added musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 ancient and modern languages, and printed messages from US president Jimmy Carter and U.N.Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim. Voyager : to the final frontier fouled by the instinct to explore and represents the golden age of space exploration. The golden image was a snap shot of humanity to show a independent race what earth was about . the voyager took off in 1977 , Elvis had just died , jimmy carter was the new president , apple company ad just been founded it was an time of change and exploration . there was a high interest in sifi films which created further excitement about space exploration of the solar system. The technology was lacking and most space crafts struggled to pass mars because of the gravitational pull of the sun and other planets. The problem they had to solve was the 3 body problem how to plot the trajectory of a small object when it is being influence by gravity while travelling though space in 1961 Micheal Minovitch (25 ) used the 70/90 computer at his university the fastest computer at the time costing the university 1.000 dollars per hour. running scenarios he solved the problem by using earths gravity they were able to sling shot the space crafts further the before.the point of the Voyager crafts was not the golden records , there is such a small chance that they will ever be discovered the reason for the record was primarily to raise interest and therefor money for the project.
this is the clearest image of Mercury ever taken. this is an intresting example of views they were trying to capure with the voyerger crafts
views of earth taken by satellites., i think these are really exciting as they are a niew of the earth and its inhabitants that we would not see without satellites.
what is a golden record? The Voyager Golden Records are phonograph records which were included aboard both Voyager spacecraft, which were launched in 1977. They contain sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth, and are intended for any intelligent extraterrestrial life form, or for future humans, who may find them.The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. Sagan and his associates assembled 116 images and a variety of natural sounds, such as those made by surf, wind, thunder and animals (including the songs of birds and whales). To this they added musical selections from different cultures and eras, spoken greetings in 55 ancient and modern languages, and printed messages from US president Jimmy Carter and U.N.Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim. Voyager 1 was launched in 1977 earthartifact animations http://bethanyminshallartblog.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/earthartifact%20animations
stories about earth and creation from diffrent cultures In the beginning there was no sky, no sea, no earth and no Gods. There was only darkness, only Te Kore, the Nothingness. The very beginning was made from nothing. From this nothingness, the primal parents of the Māori came, Papatuanuku, the Earth mother, and Ranginui, the Sky father.Papatuanuku and Ranginui came together, embracing in the darkness, and had 70 male children. These offspring became the gods of the Māori. However, the children of Papatuanuku and Ranginui were locked in their parents embrace, in eternal darkness, and yearned to see some light. They eventually decided that their parents should be separated, and had a meeting to decide what should be done.They considered for a long time - should Rangi and Papa be killed? Or shall they be forced to separate?Finally, Tumatauenga, the god of War, said “Let us kill our parents”. However, Tane-Mahuta, the god of man and forests, and all which inhabits the forests, thought that Rangi and Papa should be separated. He thought that Ranginui should go up above, to the sky, and that Papatuanuku should should go below, to dwell on earth. All the children, including Tu, the God of War, agreed with Tane.Tawhiri Matea, the god of winds and storms was the only child who did not wish for his parents to be separated. He feared that his kingdom would be overthrown. One by one the children tried to separate their parents. Rongomatane, the god and father of cultivated foods, tried without success. Haumia Tiketike, god of uncultivated food also tried. Then it was the turn of Tangaroa, the god of the sea, and Tumatauenga, the god of war, but neither Tangaroa nor Tumatauenga could separate their parents.Lastly Tane-Mahuta rose. Strong as the kauri tree, he placed his shoulders against his mother Papatuanuku and his feet against his father Ranginui, and he pushed hard, for a very long time, straining and heaving all the while. Rangi and Papa cried in pain, asking their sons” why do you wish to destroy our love?”After a long time Tane finally managed to separate Rangi and Papa, and for the first time the children saw the light of day (ao Marama) come streaming in. Once this happened, Tawhiri Matea, the god of winds and storms, and who had been against the separation of his parents, left for the sky to join his father.The turbulent winds and storms on earth are caused by Tawhiri Matea, in revenge for this brother’s acts. Now that the separation of Papatuanuku and Ranginui was complete, and there was a sky and an earth. However, there was just one missing element, and Tane decided to create a female. From an area named Kura-waka Tane took some clay, and modeled it into a woman. He then breathed life into it, and created Hine-ahu-one the earth formed maiden.Tane and Hine had a beautiful daughter called Hinetitama. When Hinetitama grew, she had daughters to Tane. One day Hinetitama asked Tane who her father was, and on discovering that Tane was the father of her children, she fled with shame into the night, to a place called Rarohenga, the underworld. From then on she became known as Hine-nui-te-po, the goddess of the night.
i find this sotry really intresting it shows an understanding iof the earth from a diffrent view point to my own and think the visuals in the story would be really intresting to animate
research
amazing arial photography of new york taken by by Vincent Laforet these are the times of shots i would reproduce for my first idea this hight angle where by you know what the image is but is is so chaotic and small it puts in perspecive size in comparison to the voyagers journey
experimentation quick 2 minuit test with text and shape in illustrator using some facts iv colected
Research Land Art.
Richard Long South Bank Circle 1991 Delabole slate displayed: 100 x 1997 x 1997 mm Presented by Janet Wolfson de Botton 1996 Richard Lon
Land art is made directly in the landscape, sculpting the land into earthworks or making structures using natural materials found in the landscape such as rocks or twigsLand art was part of the wider conceptual art movement in the 1960s and 1970s. The most famous land art work is Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty of 1970, an earthwork built out into the Great Salt Lake in the USA. Though some artists such as Smithson used mechanical earth-moving equipment to make their artworks, other artists made minimal and temporary interventions in the landscape such asRichard Long who simply walked up and down until he had made a mark in the earth. Land art was usually documented in artworks using photographs and maps which the artist could exhibit in a gallery. Land artists also made land art in the gallery by bringing in material from the landscape and using it to create installations.
wwf
Earth has lost half of its wildlife in the past 40 years, says WWF The number of wild animals on Earth has halved in the past 40 years, according to a new analysis. “We have lost one half of the animal population and knowing this is driven by human consumption, this is clearly a call to arms and we must act now,” said Mike Barratt, director of science and policy at WWF.
Artist research
Dino Tomic, a talented Croatian tattoo artist in Norway, i like his strinking use of colour and ink. i would like to use this chaotic yet beautiful style that he has which somewhat mimics the eatch
For this project I have decided to look in to facts about humans and earth . after competed a collection of research about the world as a whole I find myself repeatedly drawn towards facts , as in a world so complicated the only was to accurately represent it is though facts here is a collection of facts I have gathered but I will continue to find facts as I continue though the project I want to try and depict the facts in a interesting way. I will also focus on creating a hand made feel adding a very human tutch to my project with Imperfections and character. Facts: 50% of our dna shared with a banana Its impossible to sneeze with your eyes open 60,000 miles of blood vessels We are about 70 percent water homosapiens You nose can remember 50,000 different scents The lifespan of a tastebuds is ten days The brain can read up to 1,000 words per minuet Your eyeballs are 3 ½ % salt Adults have 32 teeth Children grow faster in springtime The human skull is made up of 26 different bones Our entire body function stop when we sneeze Unique fingerprints The body has about 5.6 liters of blood Our heart beats around 100,000 times a day World population 7.2 billion
experimentation fact : the body has about 5.6 liters of blood
using my title fact humans our odd i have created some layouts using a variety of different line techniques this last version is my favorite because although it has more unusual lines i feel its still clear to understand
i have then done some experimentation into line i want my animation to have a rougher feel them the initial character were producing i feel these work better i will know develop looking at line in turms of composition of the facts
experimentation of a very simplistic character to use in my animation to help represent the facts
fact : on adverage adults have 32 teeth
on average adults have 32 teeth this is a graphic i will now attempt to animate in after effects
illistrator experimentation using drawings from sketch book as inspiration
experiments with letter forms using stamps
assesment of my work
After completing my final piece I am quite pleased with the outcome however if I had more time I would have created a more visual representation of the facts I chose I wanted to keep a simple graphic style to my animation but feel they could more accurately represent the facts . as I am still learning the software I think this animation pushed me to learn more techniques and I now feel much more confident on after effect and with in illustrator I will continue to develop my efficiency in these software and work towards creating my own style i began my final piece by explaning what i was aiming to do with my message on the voyerger i felt this was important becuase the voyerger had a set plan of what it wanted and aimed to achive and i felt my project should have a direction too . i wanted to add a space like music to my final piece something that create a sence of being adrift but also created an inpending disaster , i feel my music does this with its soft tones but drums in the background , i was trying to represent what my voyerger message would experience when it was sent into space. . i have kept the simple typewriter style to my font as i wanted to combine the old and the new old people the style and the new being the softwear i my final piece to feel like it could have been reaseased at any time giveing it that more universal feeling. i have used a ripped paper style in the background of my facts to mimic my own style that i use in my sketch book i wanted to keep what i felt was working in my sketch book running though my project .
modernism and post modernism form follows function
brief Part 1 Research into Modernism and Post Modernism generating a body of work that explores the origins and philosophy of the movements. Your visual work should be an expression of the movement and not a pastiche. You should aim to convey the essential nature of the movement. You will need to understand the social, industrial and political concerns which influence both movements. Part 2 You are to submit designs for a show reel, which should be based on your personal and original visual research. This should form a show reel of your years work. You should produce: Design concepts Storyboards Animation show reel Copy Title: New Visual Language Issue 1 Sub heading: Form follows Function - an exploration of Modernism and Post Modernism Date Size 1080x720p h264 mov/mp4 Requirements: • Body of original visual research based upon Modernism / Post Modernism • Show reel • Design sensibilities • Appropriate typography
artist research Kurt Schwitters 1887 – 1948 , German painter, sculptor and typographer and writer. He worked in genres and media such as; Dada , constructivism, surrealism , poetry , sounds, graphic design and installation art He most famous for his collage work although his early work seemed to be more influenced by cubism and expressionism. However when the political views in Germany became more liberal he became less influenced by these movements schwitters work became increasingly modernist in spirit. With less overtly political influence his work morphed into a cleaner style indicative of modernism
Russian constructivism originated in Russia in 1919 Constructivism wasn’t directly an art movement as much as it was a trend it has a strong influence on modern art movements such as Bauhaus, it signifies a group of artists who sought to extend the formal language of abstract are into a practical design they wanted to make are a practise for social purposes this movement had an impact on practically all aspects of life. They wanted to create a style of art which reflected society’s need for order and understanding following ww1
Cezanne began to repetitively paint mont sainte victoire and with each painting he began to simplify the landscape making the sections look blocked and cubed
Les damoiselles d’Avignon 1907 By Pablo Picasso Is seen as the painting that sparked cubism Picasso painted it in 1907 how ever is was not exhibited until 1916 where it was still not well recived. This shows how revolutionary cubism was . The womans bodys are manly and chunky with sharpe , angular shapes with awkward positioning and layout much different to modernism
By 1910 Picasso and George Braque had developed cubism into an entirely new means of expression in the initial stage , known as analytical cubism Picasso tired to depict different view points of an object simultaneously rather then providing a limited mimicked reproduction of the subject matter , this is indicative of the post modernist mind view
Once analytical cubism became normalised they then moved on to creating synthetic cubism experimenting with collage. Real pieces of paper replaced painted flat depictions of paper. This is a great example of postmodernist pushing the boundaries and ignoring modernist thinking
pop art is considered to be an art movement that proceeds post-modernism and are some of the earliest products of post-modernism. It is a movement that emerged in the mid 1950s in Britain pop art presented a challenge to traditional fine art by including imagery from popular culture such as news , advertising, hollywood movies ect one of the key artists is Roy Liechtenstein Roy Lichtenstein was born in 1923 Lichtenstein’s emphasis on methods of mechanical reproduction - particularly through his signature use of Ben-Day dots - highlighted one of the central lessons of Pop art, that all forms of communication, all messages, are filtered through codes or languages. Arguably, he learned his
appreciation of the value of codes from his early work, which drew on an eclectic range of modern painting. This appreciation may also have later encouraged him to make work inspired by masterpieces of modern art; in these works he argued that high art and popular art were no different: both rely on code Roy Lichtenstein – Whaam! 1963. was based on an image of ‘All American Men of War’ was seen in comics throughout the 1960’s. It is a good example of pop art at that time. Modernist critics were horrified by the pop artists’ use of such ‘low’ subject matter and by their apparently uncritical treatment of it. In fact pop both took art into new areas of subject matter and developed new ways of presenting it in art and can be seen as one of the first manifestations of postmodernism.
Early animation - daffy duck duck amuck 1953 this animation is noted for predating post – modernism and yet having a lot of the aspects that postmodernists aimed to conveyit has a Heavy use of irony ,Parody and Double coding .other aspects that make it profoundly postmodern are the discussion with the audienc. the presence of the authers handthe identity of the charecter is fludid and controled by the animaton “ can you make up your mind” -speaking directly to audience/ animator talking to the audience about the conventions of animtion continuelly changing the context of where the charecter operates and who the charecter is it also draws attention to the medium of film itself in many ways its breaking the forth wall breaking the 4th wall
Fantasmagoric 1908 - first animation - emile cohl this is a very good example why you can say animation is postmodernistwith aspects such as seeing the artist hand this is important in post modernism as a way of showing process behind the artwork. the animtaor is dilibretly trying to draw attention to himself showing an ironic self awearness common in postmodernism they want people to know that is is a preformance they want u to know they are there. the fluidity of the scnees morph into one another it another clear example of postmodernism the entire film is a flow of changing context continuelly morphing these aspects make it endicitve of post modernism Cohl - memeber of the incoherents > not about making a formal statement - its about laughter and fluidity
Disney and postmodernism Disney and pixar films use a lot of postmodernist ideas . there use of intertextuality subtle reference to other things they also link there new works to aspects of there older work ie with in pixar movies the use of a113 this sublet placement of a number though out there films is fun and quirky but also a self contious quotation of previous work a113 : is a injoke that pixar use in every one of there films as you can see in this image . it relates to the room in which the main producers met and thus they aim to put it in every film
they also aim to parody or play homage to films where ever they can
so depending on your life experience and age you will recognise diffrent quotations that are embedded with in the film this allows every viewer to access the film on a different level making it interesting for all how ever if your not awear of the context you can still enjoy the story. They don’t strictly stick to mimicking other films they play around with what we are expecting changing small details within the quotation . it is a kind of fiction with in a fiction you know that the film is a film and a impossible place yet because there is relatable objects and scenarios it draws you into it more
examples of Breaking the forth wall in advertising
BBC World – “See Both Sides of the Story”
Seat Belts Save
Lay’s – “Our Potatoes Are Grown Close Than You May Think”
examples of Comics and breakng the forth wall Some characters have been known to ‘break the fourth wall’ by speaking to, or about, the audience. Not only do they talk to the reader, but they (usually) know that they are fictional creations in a story. On occasion, this may be a vehicle for dramatic irony. Deadpool, the most well known example of this phenomenon, has been known to refer to his own history in issue format, lean on the panel borders, and see or touch his thought boxes and word balloons.The fourth wall can also be reinforced by a character saying that, i.e., ‘this isn’t a movie, you know’.
breaking the forth wall in literature
A literary term often utilized in theatre to describe the imaginary barrier between the actors and audience , separating real world and fantasy breaking the forth wall is sometimes observed in literature when a character directly speaks to the audience one example of this is Miranda heart : Is It Just Me” by Miranda Hart. It follows the style of her BBC sitcom, “Miranda”, and she refers to the reader as ‘My dear reader chum’ or MDRC for short. The book was great and SUCH FUN
breaking the forthwall in animation breaking the forthwall in animation is so common its become senonomus with the genre here are a few example of my favorites the lion king : Pumbaa: And I got downhearted... Timon: How did you feel!? Pumbaa: Every time that I— Timon: (slaps hands over Pumbaa’s mouth) PUMBAA! (looks at the fourth wall) Not in front of the kids! Pumbaa: (also looks) Oh! Sorry. Simba: (also looks, with a perplexed expression on his face)
Danger Mouse the episode “The Good, The Bad And The Motionless.” Penfold is frozen in time as DM battles his evil alter ego: D.M.: Good grief, Penfold, I can hardly...oh, I forgot. You’re in suspended animation. (to us) Probably the animator’s tea break
· A planned but unproduced finale episode of The Angry Beavers had Norbert explain to Daggett that they were really cartoon characters who were now facing cancellation. Although the episode was never animated, parts of the audio recording can be found floating around online.
post modernism and the modern fairy tale post modernism and the modern fairy tale heavily reliant on irony intertexuality simulacra – the real as semblance of reality ( eg a theme park hyper real ( deliberately burring of boundary between fancy and reality temporal distortion ( non linear narratives ) Absence of innovation .. the repetition of popular culture chaos absence of binary opposites of good and evil Inside refrences in shrek When Tinkerbell falls on Donkey and he says “I can fly” and people around including three little pigs, go say “He can fly, he can fly” it is referencing Disney’s Peter Pan movie. - When Donkey is flying he says “You might have seen a house fly, a super fly, but I bet you’ve never seen a Donkey fly.” This is a reference to Disney’s Dumbo. - When Shrek crosses the bridge to the Castle and says, “That’ll do, Donkey, that´ll do” he is referencing the movieBabe. - Fiona singing to blue bird is a reference to SnowWhite and the Seven Dwarfs. - Princess Fiona fighting the Merry Men is a lengthy reference to The Matrix. - Transformation scene at the end strongly references Beauty and the Beast. - Gingerbread Man at the end with a crutch (and one leg) saying, “God bless you everone” is a reference to little Timmy in A Christmas Carol.
The 4th wall where fantasy is broken by reality here is a quick list of films and shows that break the 4th wall its such a common thing now a days that it can be found in most shows
Films that use it:
Wolf of wall street George of the jungle Space jam Fight club Goggles Aeroplane Annie hall emperors new grove Waynes world Monty python and the holy grail Kiss kiss bang bang Space balls Amile
TV :
House of cards Malcolm in the middle Boston legal “that’s all folks” Loony toones Fresh prince
Intertextuality Pulp fiction : Homager by breaking bad where jessy collects hammer then crowbar then sledge hammer Watchman has many cultural references even the costume that knight owl wears is influenced by batman this might be a reference to the over crowded style of the genre also in the Vietnam scene there is reference to apocalypse now with the helicopter, camera angles and stark orange sky’s Toy story 2 quick break down of opening sequence reference’s , i remember watching this film as a kid and completely loving the story as i have grown i have noticed more and more cultural reverences here are a few The writing at the beginning is indicative of star wars along with much in this opening sequence when buzz is flying through the cave on the planets surface this could be a reference to star wars pod racing nearer the end of this sequence when buzz jumps over zurg its a reference to Luke sky-walker and darth Vader a similarity that follows though out the film. During the opening sequence buzz says “ there seems to be no intelligent life anywhere” this is mimicking of toy story 1 when buzz is primarily introduced Other references though out the film are gold-finger - Mr potato head throws hat into door just as odd job does. Jurrasic park - when rexs chases car after falling out of it in als toy barn he is viewed through the wing mirror the same shot can be seen in jurasic park Also Woodys show intro is a mimic of Roy Rogers cowboy intro
experimentation
plan after researching into modernism and postmodernism i am draw towards to idea of breaking the 4th wall and communicating directly with the audience because of this for my showreel i plan to have a character introduce my work by communicating directly to camera . phrases that my character could say : “hello and welcome to my show reel” ( in the style of a game show host) “oi you watch my show reel” “ hey check this out” “pssst watch carefully”
deciding on a quote i have been having trouble decided on what phrase my character should say so i have asked around for other peoples opinions “hello and welcome to my show reel” ( in the style of a game show host) - 6 “oi you watch my show reel” - 9 “ hey check this out” - 5 “pssst watch carefully” - 2 many people like “hello and welcome to my show reel” in the style of a game show host however i don’t think it will effectively get across the 4th wall humor that interests me. i prefer “oi you watch my show reel” and so do many other people i feel because of its humor and direct approach because of this “oi you watch my show reel” is the phrases i am going to progress with
development after looking through my sketch book , the idea that stands out to me is “ hello and welcome to my show reel”
i feel this idea has the most direction and the most promise. from this point i have been creating some characters i wanted to create a news reporter style person to introduce my showreel.
i have decided to go with the second character as i think his look is more modern. i want to have the words “ hello and welcome to my show reel.” coming from my character i want to move the mouth in a stop motion style i don’t want it to be perfect for each letter spoken more of a general depiction of speech i feel like this is more post-modernist and considering the time frame would be something i can complete to a high standard. i want my animation to be a hand drawn stop motion.i will not be cleaning up any of the image i want to alow them to have the rough organic feel that is consistant in my sketchbook.
i have been working on line formations for the stop motion and even though i still need more these are the few i have created so far . i want to keep them simple and on the whole the extremes of lip shapes.
i have been experimenting with hand drawn letters that can go into my animation.
experimentation with my character
layout working out the layout of where my letters will go is important as it will need to look correct once the letters come to a stand still but will also need to flow when they are moving this week i have been considering a variety of layouts i still don’t feel i have found the final layout yet the middle and last composition i feel work
experimentation with colour . i feel that against the hand drawn pencil mark , muted subtle colours will be the most effective and in-keeping with the style im aiming for
experimentation with hand drawn font and colour ,
This week I have been experimenting with my concept for introducing my showreel , I have been trying to keep the quick free ideas and style from my sketch book and even though this animation has come out closely to how I wanted I don’t feel it works , with roughness doesn’t feel as intentional as I wanted. This is a quick test I have created and I feel it links better to my style and the quick generation of ideas. Because of how difficult I am finding linking my showreel to moodernism and post modernism I have tried obvious reactions to what modernism and postmodernism are but these ideas do not translate to a showreel I would be happy to produce. I have tried breaking the 4th wall and talking directly to the audience but this is also missing my style and due to show reels being as short and as to the point as possible I feel what ever I am producing to respond to the brief does not add to my showreel but detract from my work.
To me postmodernism is the rejection of rules and the rejection of perfect grids and font , because of this I am now going to create my showreel quickly sticking with my style of working using hand drawn fonts keeping the cuts quick and the work my own style to me this is what post modernism is, doing things the way you want to because there is no right or wrong way Comments on post modernism “It means license to do whatever you fancy and advice not to take anything you do too seriously. It means the speed at which things change” Zygmunt Bauman, Intimations of Postmodernity, 1992.
experimentation with ideas from my sketchbook
experimentation having experimented with some of the ideas in my sketchbook is want to combine the hand drawn quick style i have with the swiping motion from a previous test so this week i have been experimenting with layout and line for my title page.
this is the layout i have decided to use . i like this one because of its use of symmetry combined with hand drawn font. i feel that this is a good combination between modernism layout out and post modern design. primarily i like this layout because it is my own style which is what i am trying to represent in my show reel. i have left my name in the middle smaller to create some symetry i feel that because it is in the center of the page and your eye is drawn from “ a new visual language” to “ form follows function” it will still grab the attention of the viewer but in a less drastic way as the main title of the project.
i have also been experimenting with the line i will use to reveal the text
also experimenting with colour and line i this the plain black and white design works best as it is simple and clear to read which is important to me as the text will be moving , but also having dyslexia i struggle to read perfect fonts and find more usual shapes with strong outlines easier to differentiate between thus clearer.
below is a quick visual representation of how i want my text in the title to reveal itself starting with the main title and working my way down though the design the bar will sweep across the reveal the first line it will then go back across the text to its starting paint and reveal the next line.
background i wanted to add a background to my show reel. as i feel it would be to plain and graphic with out some texture. which is not the way i work in my sketch book. a look of the pages in my sketchbook have paint scraped on the background to try and reproduce this i have used lines in illustrator . i this this will look good in the background of my show reel, but i will lower the opacity so that it does not detract from my work just gives a subtle level of texture to my work.
this is a screen grab of my showreel with the background in place i like the look of it and the colour
this is how i am placing the clips in my showreel as all my clips and different sizes and shapes i am changing them all to the same size i have tried to make the clips as large as possible while keeping uniformity. i like the face that boarder of the clip doesn’t reach the corner and allows some of the background the show as it reminds me of pages from my sketch book.
production : clips
this is the collection of clips i am using in my show reel, some of the clips i have edited to be quicker , or changed the size or order , this will alow me to create my showreel quickly and on instinct with is the way i work in my sketchbook i feel by doing this i will be able to produce the organic personal style that i am aiming for
final piece evaluation my final show reel for modernism and post-modernism - a new visual language i have used clips form though out the year to show a broad area of techniques and software , each of these softwear i have learnt for the first time this year . i have used sections form both my city in flux and from earth artefact however because i wanted to keep my showreel short and snappy i have cut up my other final pieces and intermingled them with other clips of work. this helps keep a fast flow to my film and represent the amount of work i have done this year. due to a small problem where i smashed my data stick i lost the original file for my show reel i had to be creative when adding in extra details and the sound despite this i think my show reel is effective and shows of the best parts of my work in a organic and fast paced way. i believe i have successfully followed my style i set out in my sketchbook with out directly mimicking it and i have been able to drag it in to a digital way with out loosing what makes it interesting. if i had more time for this project i would have liked to create more work to put in my showreel as i feel at the moment it doesnt show everythign i wanted to but i have been selective in keeping what ifeel to be the important bits which is what a showreel should be.