How had digital editing helped the artists to present narrative in their work?

A2 Graphics Design Essay How had digital editing helped the artists to present narrative in their work?

Jason Chan

How had digital editing helped the artists to present narrative in their work?

Inside this essay, I am going to explore the use of digital edits through the work of different artists, in order to find out how they have helped to present narrative in their work. I will be looking at how the use of digital edits could affect the representation of the story behind the work, such as the use of materials, adjusts of colours, photo manipulation, illustrations and movements etc.

This question will be answered by focusing on the three artists - Nancy Liang, Fabienne Rivory and Vincent Bourilhon, due to how they had contain both similarities and differences between the use of techniques.

Before analysing how digital edits had helped on presenting narrative, I believe that it is important to understand the history and ways of using this skill through the changes of technology. Although there are already a 25 years age to the program of Photoshop, there are actually fake photos which had been taken in the 1917, using the invention of cameras - the bottom photo had been used to represent a narrative of fairy, produce by Elise Wright and Frances Griffiths. This suggest that human had been trying to produce photo edits, in order to show imagination that could happen in reality.

“Is it real, or is it Photoshop?” - in recent, there are times which we cannot make a decision on rather what we are seeing is the truth or not, due to the growth of software such as Photoshop. There are so many ways to produce by using Photoshop, no matter by simply combining different photographs into one image, applying hand techniques into another photo, or even turning hand drawings into an animation that move across the page. By having the use of computers, it allows the artist to present narratives and ideas through digital edits, without needing real photos of the story that had actually happen.

The reasons why I had chosen these three artists (Liang, Rivory and Bourilhon), are due to how they had contain different process and outcomes, while they are all trying to show a narrative in their work. The first artist, Nancy Liang had use digital edits to make her own pencil sketches to manipulate into a higher quality illustration or moving image, which had produced with the use of collages and textures. This had shown how digital edits had helped to develop a hand art piece into a digital design. I had then chosen the second artist, Fabienne Rivory as a compare, since her work has a more clear use of separation between different sources, which can directly be recognize by the audience. Also, the strong contrast between the use of hand technique and photo background, had show a different style compare to certain artists. After these two artist, I have decided to focus on a third artist - who only uses photo manipulation as a focus, which shows a strong differences to the other two artist’s work.

In order to see how digital edit had been used to represent the artist’s narrative, I am going to compare and see the similarities and differences between the three artist’s work. The first two artist which I will be focusing on, are Nancy Liang and Fabienne Rivory.

Nancy Liang, “an artist who explores whimsy and magic in mundane and other moments”, is an illustrator who is now based at Sydney. I found out that her art work are mainly base on the theme about society, cultural and personal narratives. And due to how she focus her drawings on landscape, most of her works contain different locations as a background, all showing narratives of the situation. “I begin with sketches first.” Nancy produce her work by using digital edits and illustrations, but all of her work are started with her hand pencil sketches. These had become a guide which are followed through developing the illustrations and collages. However, due to the differences between the hand and digital, there are often changes decided “Sometimes my final work will not look exactly like my sketches — a few things may be missing or changed.”, which I believe could had help to show a more creative form by using digital edits. And example of this (shown below) is how she had turn the car sketch into a flying ship, directly applying a fantasy theme into the city environment.

“There isn’t a single element in her animations that doesn’t begin as a physical drawing or object.” By looking at the texture and line style, the audiences can clearly understand how the artist had cut papers and create the features such as the trees and building, which creates layers over the page. The details are drawn by pencil, since it contains special marks across the shades and lights. However, by using the techniques of digital edits, it even develops the styles to a further distances, which turns her work in to a narrative which moves and changes. “The Internet loves GIFs, and so do we. But many of those bite-sized bits of animation are decidedly digital, created entirely in the computer.” This had suggested how the use of artist hand work had shown her own style to present the narrative, while the digital edits had then help to improve the presentation of work.

This attracts the attention of audiences who specially like digital art, compare to just hand drawings.

By looking at the image above, due to the textures and patterns which are digitally applied over the surfaces of the sketches, it makes the style of the buildings to look related to out time period. The trees and mountains which had been included in most of her art work, had makes the place feel close to nature, such as villages which are near to the forest; I think that the digital edits had help her to apply the environment of the location with the same style to the design, making the whole piece to look balance.. As a narrative piece, the wide roads with no cars around, had suggested either if the time is late at night (which people are slept instead of driving), or suggesting that the location is rare to be visit this had been edited by the use of digital edits, in order to represent the different scale and height inside the digital piece. This had been presented by placing only a single shade of colours over the road with less amount of details, which the artist had try to make the space to be as clean as possible. By using these spaces with a grey scale tone, it suggest a possibility that if any issue happen in the location, nobody will be able to help except of the characters who live inside the town. “Hey depict scenes of midnight contemplation as well as magic of a subtler flavour� - as she is always presenting her narrative by focusing at night time, the use of shadows are drawn in most of the work, and these pencil sketches are blend into the page by using digital manipulation.

On the other hand, the artist Fabienne Rivory creates narrative work that contains a clear use of hand and digital techniques, which the process could be quite similar to Nancy Liang’s work, but the outcome shows a huge visual differences.

Fabienne Rivory produce digital work by following the aim of “exploring the relation between photography and painting, real world and fantasy, memory and reality.� On the above image, it shows a strong separation between the use of two sources, including the grey scale photography and the blue water colour pattern. The use of digital edit had help the artist to combine the two sources together, as the two materials doesn’t match together in the reality. The black and white photograph had been digitally edited as the background surface, which is separate in to three different types of geography including land, ocean and the sky. These use of digital skills are complete different then using collage when producing hand work, since the use of digital can create more smoother merges between different medium. in This composition suggest how the narrative happens in the reality world. Although the use of grey scale makes it difficult to recognize the environment, it still shows the details of nature out to the audiences, specially for the use of clouds. Inside the photo, there are only two characters, which are both children - the way how they are chasing a ball shape object had suggest how they are playing at this location.

As an narrative piece, the grey scale makes the audiences to feel that the characters are enjoying their childhood, and the audiences might remember back to their own memories of playing with their friends or family - just like the ideas of the quote: “Memories of childhood were the dreams that stayed with you after you woke.”, said by Julian Barnes. On the other hand if the photograph is edited into a colourful scheme, it will represent a stronger idea of narrative in now days or the future.

The use of the blue water colour/ink pattern had been combined over the sea and children by using the technique of overlap, which reminds the audiences about the cause of drowning and soak by the sea wave.

This works better by the use of digital edit, as wet materials could directly damage the photography in real life. As the surface of the page, the artist had adjust it in to a square size background - the use of digital cropping turns the narrative into a window view, which affects how the audiences would read the piece. By looking at the layout of the square size page, water texture is directly splitting the page at the middle - which creates a rule of three composition. “Things are said to hide inside mirrors. Images of past events may be contained in infinitely trapped light waves. Mirrors are also considered by some to be linked to the spirit world.” - the artist had created a symmetry background, by applying the sky as the ground surface. This makes the use of mirrored sky to be separated from the land, which shows an idea of parallel universe and the possibilities of things which are happening from the childhood. This again shows how digital edit had developed the idea further, as it is impossible to take these kind of background photographs in reality.

Both of the artist had uses a combination of digital editing and hand work, which are combined together by using digital manipulation. These use of multi media makes their digital work to contain a similar style.

However, the use of styles makes the two piece to look completely different. This is due to how Nancy Liang is focusing on the details of lines, created by pencil marks; and oppositely, Fabienne uses a wide use of watercolor paint and ink instead. Also, the way sources are combined together are not the same, since the pieces by Liang are joined together with paper cuttings - this makes each of the sources she use to look separated on the surface. On the other hand, the combining ways of Fabienne’s work are more focus on blending and smoothing, created by using the effects in Photoshop.

This shows how the two artists had both uses digital edits to finalise and present their work, but all the sources from Nancy’s work are more base on hand done.

After the two artist who combines hand techniques with the use of digital edit, the third artist which I will look at is Vincent Bourilhon - a photographer who uses digital manipulation to produce his work. As a narrative artist, Bourilhon’s work represents similar ideas of dream and fantasy compare to the other two artist. The photographs which had been produce by Vincent, are created by using photography and digital manipulation, exploring his creative imagination by using his own photographs.“Through graphics and digital retouching, he managed to build an imaginary world, very cinematic, on the border between dreams and reality.” - the use of digital manipulation had allow him to create the set of photos which are outside our reality, by using the sources and objects which we use everyday.

When looking at the photo above which he has produced, I see how the adjustment of lighting and colours is one of the main part which he uses to develop from the original view. The use of colors in the background image represent the elements of nature, since these blend of colors on the sky would only happen when the sun raise or set. Also, the artist had then used digital edit to adjust the brightness and contrast over the photograph, in order to create a focus inside the composition. The colours had also been change in order to makes the audiences to feel a cheerful and comfortable feeling.

These all suggest how digital edit had help the artist to present the photograph in a correct colour style.

“I love fantasizing, I love inventing and creating.” - the use of photo manipulation had been used to combine the sources across the page, including the use of human actions and the balloons which applies a further feeling of cheerful and imagination over the page. The artist had adjusted the use of colours between each of the photo sources, which blends all the sources to the same colour scheme and group them into a warm temperature. “Warm colors often add “personality” to a space, they are perfect for adding interest to bland rooms and balance well with neutral colors.” - this definition of warm colours had been strongly represented through the use of warm light which juxtapose to the blue sky, presented on the page with beautiful shades of tones.

The composition of this outcome had been spread across the whole page, included a clear and effective use of foreground and background. By looking at the scales of the different elements, the environment had been shown as the largest source over the page, showing a strong juxtaposition of size to the character. This shows the audience how us, human is only a small part of the world.

Another object which had been important on the page are the balloons around the sky - by having these in the environment, it guides the audiences ideas to a cheerful and positive story, since balloons are used in celebrations and party. This makes the narrative piece represent a happy emotion.

As a conclusion, the use of digital techniques from the other two artist, Vincent Bourilhon’s work definitely contain a larger amount of digital use through their work, where as Nancy Liang and Fabienne Rivory’s work contain less use of digital but more combination of hand skills.

However without digital edits, the narratives of Nancy Liang would not be able to move on the page, which will definitely be affecting the reader’s understanding. The use of still image could become less interesting compare to the use of GIFs, such as the changing of lights and movements of the animals, which represent the main focus of the artwork. ” Liang’s work captures moments from larger stories “ - these scenes which are presented on the internet becomes a way to inform the audiences just like reading a story, while all the details of movement affects what the narrative is saying. It builds further thoughts about the situation, while audience can more easily remember what had happen due to the movements of the GIF.

The quote - “Life is in a perpetual spontaneous movement and free. The art of all arts is to capture a 3dimensional contextual moment.” said by Philippe Benichou, had suggested how the records of movement shows a better reality to where the audiences are living in. There for, the use of digital editing had clearly help the way to represent Nancy’s narrative. This had a connection to the use of digital editing, since products and software can now allow human to capture movements that had happen in life, this is why moving images are now created by the artists.

On the other hand, if the artist Fabienne Rivory decide to use hand collage to combined the elements of her photographs, it would be very difficult to show a similar effect as the digital edit. No matter if it is the use of overlap, transparent or photo manipulation, it will affect the visual outcome, which changes how the audiences might view the design.. Also, the photo surface are likely to be destroy by the use of wet ink, which the features will turn into blurry. There for, the use of digital manipulation is suitable to represent the narratives about dream and memories, while presenting the piece by using outcomes that contains a higher use of quality then hand, which refer back to the idea of how “digital photography has turned a world of possibilities into reality.”

And due to how Vincent Bourilhon had produced his narrative by completely using digital edits, it had helped to build up the overall atmosphere over the work. His aim of creating work about “building an imaginary world on the border between dreams and reality”, had been presented as a success, by using the illusion and colour shades which strongly changes its original photography.

This had suggested that digital edits had directly helped him through the process of creation by using his imagination, and the outcome are also reflecting his own discipline over the audience’s sight. This had suggested how these three artist’s work had been developed by the use of digital editing, and the designs will definitely look different if they are produced by hand techniques. And at the end, these use of digital manipulation will allow the audiences to understand the artist’s ideas, as there are a larger amount of accuracy and possibilities by using digital edits.

Bibliography About digital edit, http://www.signvideo.com/dig-edsoftwr-rtcl.htm Digital edit, definition, http://dictionary.reverso.net/englishdefinition/digital%20editing Artist, Nancy Liang, http://cargocollective.com/nliang Article, Nancy Liang, http://womenin3dprinting.com/2015/05/09/nanc y-liang-think-deeply-about-where-value-comes-from/ Interview, Nancy Liang, http://www.brwnpaperbag.com/how-did-you-dothat-nancy-liang/ Interview, Nancy Liang, http://beautifuldecay.com/2015/02/10/nancyliangs-subtly-magical-hand-drawn-gifs/

Hiroshima project, Nancy Liang, http://www.sbs.com.au/hiroshima/ Quote about Nancy Liang, “There isn’t a single element in her animations that doesn’t begin as a physical drawing or object.”, http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/05/handm ade-kraft-paper-animations-by-nancy-liang/ History, Photoshop, http://www.creativebloq.com/adobe/history -photoshop-12052724 Quotes about Childhood, Sarah Addison, “Don’t you wish you could take a single childhood memory and blow it up into a bubble and live inside it forever?”, http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/566 874.Sarah_Addison_Allen

Bibliography Quotes, Photoshop, http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/pho toshop Artist, Fabienne Rivory (Labokoff), http://cargocollective.com/labokoff Article, Fabienne Rivory, http://www.lanciatrendvisions.com/en/article/fil m-and-paintbrush-in-digital-project-labokoff-byfabienne-rivory Parallel universe and mirror, http://beforeitsnews.com/beyondscience/2012/03/mirrors-parallel-universes-in-thelooking-glass-1929039.html Quotes about Childhood, Julian Barnes,“Memories of childhood were the dreams that stayed with you after you woke.”, http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1462.J ulian_Barnes Photo manipulation, quote - “Is it real, or is it Photoshop?”, “With today’s technology, we can literally do anything we want with images.”,http://www.astropix.com/HTML/J_DIGIT/ETHICS .HTM

Bibliography Quote about movement, “Life is in a perpetual spontaneous movement and free. The art of all arts is to capture a 3-dimensional contextual moment., http://www.artquotes.com/getquotes.php?catid=198#.Vmugy_krKhd Artist, Vincent Bourilhon, http://www.vincentbourilhon.com/ Interview, Vicent Bourilhon, https://vimeo.com/67512183 Quote, Vicent Bourilhon, “If we can express ourselves, we should do that.”, http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/vincentbourilhon-surreal-photography Warm colours quote, “Warm colors often add “personality” to a space, they are perfect for adding interest to bland rooms and balance well with neutral colors.”, http://budgetdecorating.about.com/od/Decorati ngColorPattern/a/Decorating-With-A-Warm-ColorScheme.htm