Professional Practice

R O S I E

M I L E S

P R O F E S S I ON A L P R AC T I C E

C ON T E N T S

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T H E

2 3 G R A ND MA’ S

5 B E G I NNI NG

6 C HAOT I C A

F I N A L

24 OUTC OME

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9 F R AC TA L S

P R E

HOU S E

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T H E

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1 4 P R O G R E S S I ON 1 9 P HOTO S HO OT

S E L F

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3 2 S OC I A L ME DI A

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I N T H E B E G I NNI NG I began this Illustration degree with no real plan for where it was going to take me after I graduated, but I knew it was something I enjoyed and so that was important to me. Throughout the three years, much like my fellow course mates, I have been on a journey self-discovery. Through investigation and experimentation I have come a long way during this time. Hand rendered techniques were always second choice as my love of the Adobe Software meant that a digital approach was often the case. In second year, looking to scientific research to fuel themes and Info Graphic responses was a pathway that suited me greatly. The joining of the artistic and the academic worlds and the shown success of this became something that fascinated me. I was essentially allowing my inner ‘nerd’ to be unleashed into my practice.

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C HAOT I C A The real game changer came during the second year animation project when I discovered newly developed and almost entirely unheard of software called Chaotica that specialised in creating fractal art. Fractal art is a digital art medium that uses geometry and recursion to create beautiful visuals. When I first started using this software it was so new I would often have to email its creator for help with various glitches or missing tools and options. The animation application was operated blind; you could not see what you had created until the final render. Trials were essential and I was reliant on my math and data; the spreadsheets I made for calculation becoming critical for each project. The lack of online guidance or tutorials and continuous use of trial and error meant I was truly thrown in the deep end. But consequently, while the software was evolving and drastically improving its ease of control and overall potential, I was already at a much higher level of understanding.

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F R AC TA L S By the time I reached third year, the ease with which I was able to use the software allowed me to once again have more artistic control over what I was creating. The processes involved have become as fluid to me as a pen in my hand is to paper, in fact, probably more so. I genuinely enjoy making fractals, and I have been able to continue challenging myself throughout third year using these skills I’ve developed.

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P R E MA J O R P R OJ E C T My pre ma jor project saw me use fractal animation,sound and the initial ideas of projection to experiment with inducing an emotion on to a viewer. The particular emotion I focused on was fear, so I brought my own personal fear to the table: thunderstorms. I recreated all the aspects of my fear, and then when I played back the final piece on a larger scale in a dark room, allowing the element of detachment from reality, it was successfully triggering fear instincts in myself, and those I knew who also had this fear.

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B LO G S PMP - http://fractalanimation.tumblr.com/ FMP - http://fractalprojection.tumblr.com/

MA J O R P R OJ E C T My I wasn’t sure what I wanted to create during my Ma jor Project but I knew that I wanted it to try to carry along the themes of my Pre Ma jor which I identified as fractal animation, sound, emotion and projection. Initial ideas consisted of an animation designed to directly accompany music, either in a music video style format or part of the visuals displayed at music events usually displayed behind or beside the main feature (A DJ, singer or band etc). The fractals would be animated to move and ‘dance’ in rhythm with the music. However my tutors were less than enthusiastic about this idea as I was told I focus too much on the technical side of things. This actually meant I was back to the drawing board because the technical elements would have had to remain, not just the backbone, but the entire skeleton to this idea. Almost solid concentration on the data and timing behind the animation would be necessary to ensure it kept rhythm. My development work, although involving an enormous amount of skill, time and effort, would have largely consisted of numbers, tables and calculations; not something they particularly look forward to seeing on an Illustration degree. So a new concept with a more visually experimental route of development was needed.

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P R O G R E S S I ON I did eventually find this route, but not in a way I could ever had predicted. What started out as a huge set back actually turned out to be the main inspiration for my work and the direction it lead me in. I was unfortunate enough to have two grandparents pass away during the crucial developmental stages of the project. There was a huge length of time where no work was completed and I became very behind. Time management was then crucial, and while initially sticking to the most enjoyable elements, I created fractal after fractal, stills full of pattern, shape and texture experimenting with new techniques and graph manipulation. During this process I discovered something very important; my images were unintentionally reflecting my emotions. They had become quite dark in both colour and vibe and something more than just decorative. I grabbed hold of this and immediately started my research into portraying and expressing emotion through visuals. This took me almost directly to the world of abstract art and looking into colour theory, shape, lighting and texture and I started using what I learnt to deliberately represent these different feelings. One of the fractals, shown to the right, I purposely created blind using only freehand mouse movements to alter the iterator axis’ or graphs (rather than inputted numbers).

These mouse movements also reflected how I was feeling.

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P HOTO S HO OT Thinking about where I could take this idea within the moving image side of things, I began research into Video Art, Processing Art and projection. Through my research I came across a group of photographs where images had been projected onto models and wanted to try something similar. As the fractals being projected were personal to my emotions and me, I felt it was right to be in them myself. Though having to control and focus the camera and the projector manually while running around using self-timer was quite challenging, I managed to get a few shots I was happy with. But after reflecting on them, I wasn’t entirely sure they were what I was looking for.

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LO S S The photograph I named ‘Loss’, shown to the right, was probably the only one with a serious enough feel to it, but I had an idea that could bring the exact level of seriousness I wanted, taking the personal element to a whole new level.

I was painfully aware that the ma jority of the feelings and emotions behind my fractals are in reaction to the deaths of my Nanny and Grandma; so I took it directly there.

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G R A ND MA’ S HOU S E I went to Grandma’s empty home for the first time since her death. I had been purposely avoiding going there in fear it may make things worse for myself, but I did it. I had continued creating fractal stills and started to make animations, using the speed and characteristics of their movement to continue portraying emotion. The plan was to project these fractals of loss and grief onto areas or objects in my Grandma’s home that define her, or my memory of her; collections of photographs, ornaments, books etc. I did this, but the real success came when I stepped back to a larger view of her room with a larger projection. The fractal animation now affected the lighting actually created an atmosphere within the room. The sense of scale and space really opened up the visual and I knew this was what I was looking for when I just stopped and took in the view in person.

It had successfully triggered an emotional response in myself on an instinctive, involuntary level. Her room and her bed was one of the two places I ever saw her within the past few years, the other was her chair in the living room, so I created and captured a similar visual there. I spent the time to set up the scenes and purposefully placed precious and symbolic items within shot.

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F I N A L

OUTCOME

The final piece is a video collage of so many different meanings and symbols that represent and, more importantly, illustrate the grief of my Grandma’s death.

The chosen projection was the animated version of the fractal I created using “freehand” and “method art” techniques giving a whole other dimension to it. The repetitiveness of the clip of the bed, then to the chair and back to the bed again represents how Grandma spent her last few years. The particular placements of the precious and memory-associated objects within the scene were to help the viewer get a sense of Grandma’s character and personality, alongside my own personal connection with them. The use of colour theory and lighting continuously at play with even the timing of the video, being two and a half minutes long, with not actually a lot physically happening or changing, symbolising the last few years of Grandma’s life. I chose to play the exact music played at the end of my Grandma’s funeral; ‘Unforgettable’ played by Charlie Kunz; it was a clear choice.

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DI S P L AY Intended for viewing by the public as artist expression, this video would be found within a gallery space ready for the hungry eyes of interpretation. A brief description or explanation to be given next to the display but not too much as the visual needs to be given the chance to speak for itself.

R E F L E C T I ON Looking back at this project as a whole, I am extremely proud of what I have achieved. After a huge set back I managed to take what happened and turn it into something creative. The whole process of it all actually benefitted me in such a way that I couldn’t have predicted. I feel I created a good steady body of work showing technical skill, progression, experimentation and development, all coming together into one final piece, through a journey of reflection and decision making.

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T H E

C A R E E R

Being completely honest, I am no longer looking to make a career out of Illustration, for over a year and a half now I have had my heart set on joining the RAF after university. However, if I were to create a full time career out of my work, I would interestingly go back to the initial idea I had for my Ma jor Project and seriously look into the world of a VJ (or ‘Visual Jockey’), who’s role is to create and design all the visual elements at music events or venues. I would also look into projection mapping as a possible step forward with this too, adding another dimension could be very interesting and an exciting chance to learn more software.

Alothough I do not wish to create a full time career out of illustration, I feel I have truly found something I am passionate about through this degree and I wish to continue with this venture even if it is not my main focus.

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P OT E N T I A L The stills created during the development of my projects have already created quite a lot of interest within the general public. Their success on social media such as Instagram and tumblr prove they are well-liked visuals. Among friends and family the popular request is one or a set of my stills, professionally printed on 30cm by 30cm acrylic. The shine of the acrylic helps the look of light within the fractals to remain as true as on screen and often I adjust the hue of them on Adobe Photoshop so that the colours match the decoration of the room it is due to be displayed in.

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P R OMOT I ON

I have a website (http://rosiejane.me shown to to the right) and physical portfolio to easily display my work to potentially interested parties and I have created a name and identity to be recognised by: RosieJane.

S OC I A L

ME DI A

In this generation, the use of online social media is key to success within the illustration industry. Instagram, Tumblr, Facebook etc. all play a huge role in the advertising and marketing of work. Also, through online resources, you can now take one image and turn it into all different types of products such as clothing, crockery and even home furnishings; plenty to be experimented with. This opens doorways to online shops and market stalls for example. All this potential commercial merchandising of my fractals is easily acheivable alongside a career in the RAF, and something I would genuinely enjoy doing.

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