Hmmmm...

Movies such as A Christmas Carol and Beowulf both use CG to create a sense of realism for the characters. As I look at these animated films, I see a high level of detail and polish. I also see films that try too hard to imitate live action. It's truly amazing what technology can do now, being able to replicate nature on screen without using real people. My question, though, is what is the point? Why try so hard to reproduce Nature when you can go beyond it? Animated movies like Up and Kung Fu Panda are believable, but rather than try to reproduce every detail seen in reality, the filmmakers exaggerated elements. Instead of opting for photorealism, Up and Kung Fu Panda go for a more abstract hyperrealism. Both films seem realistic and are believable, but you can tell that they are deliberately separate from reality. They're meant to be animation rather than real. The biggest weakness of A Christmas Carol and Beowulf is that they almost possess the negative traits of the uncanny valley.

30 days of Night

The comic series 30 Days of Night, which is written by Steve Niles and illustrated by Ben Templesmith, became a success after being released. The art style for the comic is interesting because there are no "realistic" renderings of figures or backgrounds. Instead, Templesmith's stylized version of reality builds up the eerie atmosphere that the story calls for. The plot of the story centers around a town in Alaska where a town literally experiences thirty days without sunlight. Once vampires close in on them from the darkness, a group of people must somehow survive the thirty days before a glimpse of daylight.

The movie adaptation of 30 Days of Night came out in 2007 and stars Josh Hartnett and Melissa George. I think the film did the comic enough justice, especially it captured the atmosphere perfectly. Like the comic, the vampires were something to be feared. I think this film helps reinvigorate the vampire genre because it actually makes them something to fear instead of something to love like Twilight.

A Review

The recent post on Cartoon Brew shows an independent animated film, by Paul Fierlinger, called My Dog Tulip, that will be distributed in the US. A brief synopsis of the film is a lonely old man becomes best friends with his dog, who seems an unlikely companion. They share a connection that is unspoken but felt. Although many people may not relate to having just a dog as a friend, most people can relate to the occasional feeling of loneliness.

As I looked at the trailer, which can be found on Cartoon Brew, I was intrigued about the art style used. The color and design of the backgrounds was relatively subdued, making the main characters pop forward with emphasis. The color palette is light, almost with a watercolor finish. As far as the animation goes, the style is not too naturalistic. The movement is inconsistent with reality, but works because it uses animation for the sake of exaggeration rather than using the medium as a means to duplicating Nature. Based on the trailer, the characters are so believable because their emotions seem genuine rather than artificial.

Review of Corpse Bride

I recently re-watched Corpse Bride after many years. After reviewing the film a few times, I have picked up on new things that I didn't consciously think about when it first came out. The film was directed by Mike Johnson and Tim Burton, the latter of which produced 1993's A Nightmare Before Christmas. Honestly, I expected a lot from Corpse Bride based on the success of its predecessor. Although the film, to me, didn't leave as much of an impact on me as did A Nightmare Before Christmas, I still believe it is a good animated movie.

The animation looks polished but still retains the charm of stop-motion's slight rawness. The art style of the film is spectacular, using juxtaposing elements to emphasize the story. For example, the protagonist Victor lives in Victorian town, where the color scheme is deliberately cold, in order to convey oppression and conformity. On the other hand, once Victor enters the realm of the dead, the color scheme changes to vibrant colors, representing life and liberation.

A Return to Form...

Disney's The Princess and the Frog came out in theaters on December 10, 2009 with much anticipation. Before being released, critics were curious to see how audiences would react. If you already don't know, this film is a return to traditional hand-drawn animation for Disney after many years of CG. There has been this misconception that the artform was dead and that only CG was the future. The common reasoning behind this was that audiences were no longer interested in seeing hand-drawn animation after the success of 3-D.

After the string of successes from Pixar and others whose films happened to be in 3D, some people studying the business model came to the conclusion that only the implementation of 3D would be viable financially and that hand-drawn was a thing of the past. Thankfully, big names like John Lasseter believe that story and character are the most important thing regardless of the medium used to get those points across. Films are successful because audiences care about the characters, not the equipment used to make the movie.

Color

Red represents passion and aggression. It can also mean danger or blood. Blue represents calmness but can also represent depression. Are their truth to these sayings? Are there universal meaning represented by color alone? Some would say that if classroom walls were red, students were more prone to get into fights or be likely to talk. Classroom walls with subdued colors are thought to be conducive to educational productivity.

What contributes to this? I believe that society programs such thoughts into us but there may be some truth to much of this. For example, it is believed by some that we are afraid of the dark because our stone-age ancestors had to be wary of big predators at night.

Album Art...

Album art is something that I've started to pay more attention to after being more conscious of design. There's something intriguing about having to create a work of art around the idea of somebody else's work of art-music. The OK Computer's album cover above was done by Stanley Donwood, who created a synthesis of text and collage elements into the design. The color palette is generally cool, with a small touch of red-orange somewhere off-center. The subjects in the collage seem to be urban environments, with the obvious road making its way throughout the composition.

Listening to Radiohead's music from time to time, I think this album cover art fits perfectly with their message, especially for this album. OK Computer is not necessarily a concept album but has a common theme of alienation and paranoia in modern society. The overall design of the album's cover seems to show a world going so fast in a gloomy atmosphere. The album is not depressing but is rather enlightening about how some people feel about in today's world.

Charles Bargue

Art training shifted a lot in the early 20th century toward a more experimental approach, emphasizing the path toward abstracting reality rather than duplicating it. Instead of having classical ateliers or workshops, more art universities emerged, in which the latter became loyal to the ideals of Modernism. As I've scanned some art-related forums, I have realized that there are a good number of people who wish for a return of classical art training in the Western sense. This includes drawing from plaster casts and going through the rigorous process of learning to draw and paint realistically from Nature.

One website that advocates a return to classical artistic training is the Art Renewal Center, or ARC for short, and their website is at www.artrenewal.org. As I've browsed through the website I noticed that they seem to dismiss Modern art. Despite this, I still love certain aspects of the website, such as the great collection of paintings from academic artists of the late-19th century. I also love the prospect of classical ateliers having a resurgence in popularity. I'm all for that.

The book that I recommend, which I found on the website, is Charles Bargue Drawing Course. This text shows drawings made by Bargue himself, which are meant to be copied by art students exactly the way they are. This kind of academic training, where a student would copy from a master's drawings, was common a century ago. I think it's great practice for honing one's draftsmanship skills, as well as becoming a better observer.

Pushing the Limit

When making a design or work of art, how do you know when to stop? As I have looked at many artists' work, past and present, I realize that a lot of them do many variations of the same thing. They label the work number nine, or number ten-all different versions of the same idea. I know we have done many versions of one design in this class alone, but I never realized that great artists did the same thing. The principle is the same. Picasso ocassionally did variations of his works, which resulted in innovation.

How do you know when you've gone too far though? I think the answer to that question is that it is more of an intuitive feeling. Playing it safe can work well when producing another variation of an original, rather than continuing to work on the same canvas or other surface. There's something about detaching oneself from something they've been working on for days, and starting fresh.

Pixar?

For anybody wanting to get into Pixar Studios, you should really visit Spline Doctors. This site features great interviews from the top people working there. These interviews offer great insight into what it takes to work there. One example is an interview with Ricky Nierva, production designer for the film UP, who talks about portfolio reviews. According to Ricky, when submitting anything such as drawings, polish and good draftsmanship is great to have but ideas are the priority. One can have well-polished drawings but the ideas can be uninspired. For more of the interview, go to Spline Doctors.

Ricky makes a good point about portfolio pieces that I believe every student should keep in mind. It's important for someone to have the technical skills to execute and embellish their ideas, but the ideas always come first. Ideally a person should both have well-polished craft and inspiration so that they will not be limited.

Sculpting

As someone going into animation, and who occasionally paints from time to time, I have always wanted to break out of my comfort zone and tried my hand at making sculpts. Every time I see one, I imagine myself literally bringing something in the 3rd dimension rather in a make-believe space. When sculpting something, your creation is in the round, as opposed to the illusion of depth created by paintings.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=10

Above is a link to sculptures that I've found on ConceptArt.org. These are not necessarily meant to be fine art pieces, but rather intended for the entertainment industry. To be honest, if I were going to make a sculpture, it would most likely be within the realm of the fantastic, instead of being created for gallery spaces. I've always wondered how certain characters were brought to life in movies and games alike. For animated films, sculptures were made of the characters to give the animators a better idea of what they looked like from all angles. In films, sculpts were embellished with paint and other textures to make them real enough for the screen.

MUTO

I was shown this video by a good friend a while back and I always like to come back to it. This is an short animated film called Muto, done by Blu, and is one of those animated shorts that can be read into in different ways. It isn't necessarily meant to be a linear narrative at all but rather leaves the viewer to make his or her own interpretations of the animation's meaning.
Apart from what the short means, I simply marvel at the skill it takes to make this in the first place. Having to take a picture at every frame of these wall paintings can be tedious, not to mention the process of actually making every drawing and erasing.

Muto has opened my mind to the possibilities of where animation can go. One doesn't always have to make a stop-motion background or produce it on the computer. Instead, we can use different surfaces and mediums to keep the art of animation fresh. Everyday environments become a canvas for movement.

Kseniya Simonva

Above is a video that shows artist Kseniya Simonva using sand as a medium. Apparently, this is for a talent contest, which may very well dissuade some art enthusiasts who are purists in the sense that the artist would never be on reality television. Aside from that, I could be wrong, and accept the art for what it is and forget the circumstances that make for its creation.

Unlike a lot of ambiguous fine art pieces, this work seems to work as a narrative, more in line with animation. Simonva lets the audience observe individual images for an instance, then quickly manipulates the current image into another one. Transitions are smooth, and the skill is undeniable. The audience reaction is interesting to observe, since quite a few of them are in tears. This shows that Simonva is not merely doing this for show, but genuinely wants to tell a story. The music may seem a bit much, but it complements the act nonetheless. The biggest criticism I have is that it seems over-dramatic in some parts, and that kind of detracts away from the piece. Other than that, it was enjoyable to watch.

Halo Concept Art

http://www.bungie.net/projects/halo/asset_thumb_viewer.aspx?at=51&cc=25
http://halo.bungie.org/conceptart/

I wanted to analyze the inital drawings that inspired the Halo franchise. From what I've seen on the page, this concept work, which was down by Bungie artist Shikai Wang, is not too far from the final realization of the game. If you're familiar with the franchise,and look at the Elites, you will see that their initial designs haven't changed much as well as the Grunts' designs. Of course, you have noticeable alterations of the suits, but overall, the structure of these characters have remained the same. There are also certain alien characters that were either not included or were altered into the designs they are now in the games.

It's interesting looking at some of the potential looks for the Master Chief. You can tell they went through a lot of drafts to get his design just right. The Marines also went through several drafts from the looks of it. In all honesty, I wish they would have included some of the thrown out alien characters and vehicles, but there always comes a point where the creators must decide what to include and what not to and that's the whole point of the concept stage.

John Cage on a Bus...

I was first introduced to John Cage's 4 minutes 33 seconds last year in Mr. Edward's N100 class. To be honest, I didn't know what to think. Obviously, my first reaction was amusement, since the very idea seemed like a mockery of music. I considered it, and am still struggling to come to any conclusions of what I really think of the work. The idea is clever and presents the nature of silence as music, including any ambient noise. The concept almost runs parallel to the act of taking a found object out of context and calling it art.

The video shown above features a man performing Cage's famous composition. It would have been interesting to be on that bus the moment he announced his performance. I'm sure the people who were unfamiliar with Cage's work were expecting to hear at least "something" conventional. Although you don't see facial reactions, you can almost see the puzzled expressions as the silence continues, only to be interrupted by sirens in the distance and new passengers coming aboard.

Performance Art

This performance art piece done quite a while back. As you can see, the video shows a girl cutting her hair in a public space, while onlookers watch in bewilderment. While watching myself, I had to laugh, not at the girl cutting her hair, but at the peoples' reactions. It's interesting to guess what goes through a person's mind when something out of the ordinary happens right in front of them. Society places certain expectations on situations, and when those expectations are broken, some people don't know what to think.

I think it's great that she did this performance. It obviously goes against what is normal. Many people will not consider this art because it doesn't involve difficult craft skills or technique. There are no evident aspects of design or composition in the act. However, the purpose of art is not strictly for "beauty". Art also asks questions and forces others to do the same.

Comics

Marko Djurdjevic has been a concept artist for Marvel for many years. I recently discovered this man’s work by browsing the web for anything relating to comics. Boy, I was not disappointed! The moment I saw his paintings, I was inspired by the energy his characters convey. His figures are designed in such a way that they are not standing still, just like Frazetta’s illustrations. The strength of his characters lie in the fluidity in form, as well as the force in which they move. Even though his works are static, they give the illusion of movement, as if they were animated.

Even his sketches are exemplary, containing the same energy as the finished work. The only difference is that the initial sketches are raw.

Alex Ross

Alex Ross has been an artist I have admired for quite some time, but since I am heavily studying art, I have discovered new aspects in his work. If you are unfamiliar with Ross, he is one of the top illustrators for Marvel, producing polished works that are so vivid. He mostly uses watercolor, adding additional polish with airbrush layers toward the end of each work.

The strength of Ross’s work is the realism they contain. Each character that he creates retains a personal element to them, as if they were real people. His illustrations are believable, almost diving into hyperrealism, in the sense that they aspire to something higher than photorealism into a lucid fantasy.

There is a notable disadvantage to Ross’s work that is a direct consequence of the advantages. The biggest knock against Ross is that his work is sometimes static. His sense of acute realism can sometimes stifle any sense of movement in his pictures. Below is a link to his website.

Infinite canvas

A friend of mine introduced me to the work of Scott McCloud, for which I am immensely grateful. I re-watched a lecture of his many times, and it can be found through this link.

The part of his presentation that struck me most was his talk of unconventional narratives. He mentions circular narratives and parallel narratives rather than the standard left to right comic layout. This blew my mind because I never really appreciated the possibilities that can be taken with this. What if there was a comic that had a layout like a spider-web? The sky’s the limit in this respect.

What I would mainly be concerned about when designing such layouts for comics is practicality. Would readers like experiencing such unorthodox comic layouts? The danger of breaking the mold too much would be that it would be too distracting and focus too much attention away from the story, which is the most important part of comics.

Slinkachu

If you stop by any Barnes and Noble, you should check out the Arts section. There was a book I came across that featured the work of Slinkachu. The book is called Little People in the City and offers a glimpse into the world of this particular artist. I didn't read the book very extensively, but I did get a lot out of it.

Slinkachu's work is fascinating because he creates miniatures that are smaller than a fly. The miniatures are generally people, living their day-to-day lives in a much bigger universe. As I flipped through the pages, I imagined what it would be like to be that small. Would I get eaten by spiders or other small predators? There was actually a picture of a small human with a rifle, killing a fly. The fly was shown dead on its back with the miniature human aiming the rifle.

I don't think you have to necessarily have to be interested in art in order to appreciate this work. Some people already feel small in the universe, why not observe from an even smaller scale?

Drawingboards

In my N240 class, we had to do an exercise in teams, where we all took the same set of storyboard drawings and rearranged them to tell different story ideas. I found this to be a great way of brainstorming different possibilities within constraints. Upon first doing the activity, I was under the impression that there was a very limited number of possible storylines that can be derived from the drawings. It turns out that the mind can come up with truly crazy ideas from very ordinary looking storyboards. For example, a car driving on a road can actually be a car driving upside down through a futuristic highway. Of course, the number of different story ideas can be dictated by a person's imagination as well as the number of drawings present.

Logos

Creating an effective logo is more difficult than most people imagine. When some people see the Nike symbol or Adidas, they say that they can easily do the same thing. Some equate being able to easily replicate the logo as being competent enough to coming up with effective logos. Ironically, creating such logos can be the hardest thing to do. Trying to conceive a design so minimalistic and memorable to the public is more a mental process than a technical process. The artist must take into account the psychological aspects of design, and consider different avenues to take that would best sell a brand and represent a company’s values.

Beatles Rock Band animation

The animation for Beatles Rock Band is stunning. Every movement takes you back to the time of Beatlemania, whether it be the mop-tops shaking their heads, or the screaming fans at Shea Stadium. I loved the transition between the Fabs' concert era and their more "experimental era" of music. They show the Beatles going up an elevator, with their dress changing to more colorful Sgt. Pepper uniforms. Once "I am the Walrus" plays, more CG elements are added in, which really give a different dimension to the piece.

The 2D animation at the beginning of the short is great and I think a lot of that has to do with the appeal of the character designs. The Fab Four look like themselves, but are slightly caricatured to give them a fresh look. All the characters are stylized, and the result is very appealing.

Keeping a Sketchpad Handy

I often find myself thinking up great ideas when I’m bored. For example, if I’m in math class, I come up with random story ideas or character concepts that I wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. Most of this happens when I’m not too conscious of creating anything relevant to art. Perhaps this is because we often think too much about creating and that rarely yields any good results. Whether you are a graphic designer, painter, or musician, forced work seldom leads to your greatest ideas. One should actively seek out things that inspire them but there's a difference between actively looking and trying too hard.

Where does inspiration come from?

I find it curious when people say that you should let inspiration happen naturally. I understand what they mean, but the sentiment behind it seems rather passive. One can always seek inspiration, simply by visiting museums or walking in the park. Hanging out with family and friends will suffice as well. The thing about any endeavor in the arts is that life is the main facilitator of creativity. Our experiences, who we meet, what we ate-all of these feed into our library of inspiration. The negative aspect of letting inspiration occur naturally is that people don’t actively seek out different experiences in life. They believe that a light bulb will occur when they sit down in front of a sketchpad.

Purpose of Found Objects

Is a spoon a work of art? How about a telephone? I used to think these were ridiculous questions, but if you think about it, they're worth asking. Taking a telephone and sticking it on a wall, with the intention of the phone being "art", makes it art because it takes it out of its context. The purpose for that phone is no longer to call someone or receive calls. As an art piece, the phone becomes an object of observation and close scrutiny. The meaning changed. You can say the same thing about traditional artwork. A painting is no longer a work of art if you strip it of its purpose. For example, if a painting is no longer considered "art" by society, its "meaning" changes as well. The painting can be used to get someone's attention by throwing it at a person's head. This act would make the painting a medium of violence and communication. Of course, I wouldn't recommend doing this since you might end up with a bloody nose.

Avatar

I really want to see this movie. Some of my friends say it's going to be mediocre at best, but in my opinion, they're approaching it from a plot point of view. Looking at the trailer, it looks like any blockbuster action movie, with the exception that there is significant innovation in terms of CG in this film. Critics of the film point out how predictable it looks based on one viewing of the trailer, which is understandable. I won't reveal exactly how predictable it is, since you can check out the trailer through this link.

I've come to accept that some movies are meant to be more "serious" in nature, in a sense that the filmmakers spent a lot of time creating a compelling story. Other movies are just for pure entertainment sake, an example being the Transformer series. People shouldn't necessarily go in with the attitude that every movie should be fine art. Knowing what kind of movie you're going to watch will make the experience more enjoyable.

Design Skills

I am used to hearing that drawing exactly what you see builds a foundation for an artist. "Traditional" drawing skills require an accurate rendering of what's in front of you. A common mentality is that one should have a good understanding of the mechanics of drawing before they move into abstraction. You know how the saying goes, "Don't break the rules until you learn them". Is realism really the foundation though? I find that an artist having solid ground from which to take liberties with future work is basic design sensibilities. If you take any image and break it down into abstract forms of line, color and form, you can essentially see the "structure" of the picture without the detail. The essence of any composition is the design. Once a person can understand basic design principles, he or she is that much closer to progressing as an artist rather than simply drawing what they see.

IMA

I went to the Indianapolis Museum of Art recently and noticed a blank canvas on the wall in the Contemporary Art exhibit. I considered the piece at first, but the piece left me cold. I don't have a problem with found objects being art, since I can appreciate the difference between its former meaning and current one, as well as looking at the object in a new light. However, when I'm confronted with a blank canvas, which is meant to actually be a painting, I become skeptical. I guess this is because I already have a set criteria for paintings such as design and composition. Once I read the description, I can appreciate the work better. I guess with paintings, I expect to feel moved, rather than forced to read a description about what the artwork means. This goes for any work of art though.

Design in Nature?

This topic is not about religion, since I don't associate with any form of organized religion. That being said, I can still appreciate the make-up of everything around us. I am still amazed when I look at the wings of butterflies, noting the symmetry of the design. Every detail is mirrored on the other wing, as if a craftsman painstakingly applied work to it. You can see the same thing generally in human faces, with a sense of symmetry. Of course, there are slight distortions in which one eye may be lower than the other as a result of genetics. All of this design is the result of information, or DNA, which to me seems like the unspoken artist of the universe.

Character Art

It's great seeing characters in animated films and video games fully expressed and realized, but how do they get to that point? Concept artists initially conceive ideas about how such characters should look and what their personalities are like.

From experience, I found that there are several effective ways to creating characters for animated films or video game art. One method is to observe animals and anthropomorphize the bodily features. Giving "animalistic" characters human features gives the intended audience a chance to connect with them better. Of course, you should realize that you do not always have to do this. Just remember that when creating concepts, you should keep in mind what kind of creature your making as well as how the personality is recognizable to an audience. If you look at any animated film or video game, you will see how the characters have human-like qualities. While giving the characters human features, an artist should also play with shape and form, experimenting with different aspects that would best convey that creature's characteristics.

Another way to conceptualize characters is to caricacture the faces of ordinary people. You can even do this by looking into a mirror and distorting your own face on paper. It's also fun playing with wardrobe, turning a t-shirt into a pirate's costume or some kind of medieval garb.

Analyzing Hokusai

It wasn't until recently that I really began to appreciate the work of Katsushika Hokusai, one of the greatest artists to emerge in Japan during the 19th century. I would go even further and say that he is among the greatest artists in history. Not only was he influential to the development of Japanese art, he also greatly influenced the West, inspiring the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists.

My recent appreciation of Hokusai mainly has to do with the graphic quality of his work. His pictures convey great depth despite the deliberate flatness of forms. What gives his prints such vitality are his elegant lines and bold colors. He wasn't interested in getting too meticulous with detail, but rather focusing on delicate line quality.

The picture at the top is Hokusai's magnum opus, The Great Wave Off Kanagawa, derived from his 36 Views of Mount Fuji.

Fantasia

As a kid, I was enthralled with the Disney movies, to the point of wearing out the tapes. In fact, I watched these films so much, my parents would sometimes "lose" several videos so that they can watch something else on television. Despite my love of Disney films, I never really understood Fantasia. The first time I watched it, I felt a bit detached since there was a lack of dialogue. What drove the whole film was music and pure animation.

As an aspiring animator looking back now, I can now appreciate Fantasia as a masterpiece. Everything about the film is iconic, from the dancing hippo to the army of brooms overwhelming Mickey. The music complemented the visuals immensely, reinforcing how the characters were feeling on screen. If there ever was a perfect artform, this film would be it. Fantasia has everything from painting, acting, animation, and music. In my opinion, the possibilities of art synthesis were explored here and are just the beginning.

Sculpture

What do you like better sculpting or painting? Being a painter, I have a natural bias towards painting, since I've been doing it longer. That being said, I am still in awe of anyone who can create in the 3rd dimension. The biggest disadvantage of painting is that the overall image is flat, unless dramatically raised textures are applied. With sculpture, there is no illusion of space, since the sculpture itself really does encompass an area. Instead of conveying form with color and shade, sculptors do so with mass and volume.

The other advantage sculpture has is that you can feel the work when encouraged, whereas you are generally discouraged to touch the surface of paintings. Having this tactile experience with a work can bring the audience closer to a work of art. I can see how some people feel detached from the paintings they see in the galleries, since they cannot go inside their worlds or feel the textures. With sculpture, when allowed, a person can touch the surface of the work, feeling the same thing the sculptor felt upon completion of the piece. Such an experience can give a person a better glimpse into the mind of the artist.

Fooood!!!

I never really paid too much attention to the way food was cooked or presented. I just ate without thought, regardless of whether or not I cooked the food in the first place. To me, food was just fuel, whose primary destination was my stomach. Recently though I have been admiring the skill it takes to cook really well, including the ability to make any meal as presentable as possible. This art requires design skills that can match a painter's. Not only does a cook have to meticulously bring ingredients together in harmony, he or she also has to compose the meal on a platter so that it entices the hungry customer even more.

Fear

Artistic procrastination is something that I am very familiar with and I think a lot of it has to do with fear. I often find myself coming up with grandiose ideas, but these ideas never manifest themselves. This mostly has to do with perfectionism and the fear of messing up a canvas or whatever surface I'm working on. This is probably true with most artists, not just me. The antidote to perfectionism is the realization that it is human nature to mess up. Making mistakes is what allows us to grow not only as artists but as people.

Motion

Modern society moves at such a quick speed that we rarely get a chance to stop and catch our breath. When we take a moment to pause and observe mundane tasks such as a person sipping a cup of coffee, we get to better appreciate what we're seeing. I often see things through an animator's lens. Everything we see on television is a series of still images spaced and timed so that you are under the illusion that these images move together seamlessly in real time. It's fun to sometimes imagine the world as an infinite canvas on which motion paths are the paint strokes. In other words, try to picture a basketball player in motion. Imagine his or her movement, spaced relative to position and speed. What you would see on the canvas would be a confident stroke of red as an aggressive player makes their way towards the rim. A dejected player on the losing team would be a couple strokes of blue, slowly moving toward the bench.

Immersion

How much immersion do audiences want in our culture? Ever since Morton Heilig conceived the Sensorama , technology has progressed to the point of allowing fantasy to traverse the boundaries of reality. I have observed that many clamor over 3-D because it invites them into the world they see on screen. They see characters pop out of the curved screen, perhaps even reaching towards them. IMAX is a playground for this mentality, engulfing the audience in this fantastic illusion called entertainment. All of this is great, but to what extent will it go. Virtual reality perhaps? I believe that it may reach a point in the future when the audience will be able to walk alongside the movie's characters, and perhaps even decide the outcome of the stories they see. This may seem a bit far-fetched, maybe unrealistic, but is it?

Even if this does happen, I want to go back to question I originally asked. In my opinion, I think audiences will always want to relinquish some control to the entertainers and storytellers. Regardless of the new plateaus technology reaches in terms of immersion, audiences will always want to sit back and relax once and a while.

Power of Story

The design of stories has always fascinated me when I was a kid, even though I rarely contemplated too much about them. I would be so caught up in the characters instead of paying attention to story construction. Anytime I read, I would imagine I was the characters in the books, whether they were pirates or cowboys. After reading A Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler and Hero With a Thousand Faces by John Campbell, I find myself analyzing a bit deeper, scrutinizing plot and theme. These two authors showed me that all stories are universal constructs that mirror human desires. Regardless of such barriers as geography and time, stories tell us something about the human mind and what we strive for when we dream.

When I deconstruct a story, I try to look for subtleties. In my opinion, a good story doesn't stress the theme too much, but instead quietly reinforces it with the characters' actions as well as the consequences of those actions. What I've observed most is that the people reading do not necessarily have to share the same experiences as the characters in the book in order to relate. Readers relate to the characters because of human traits like greed, love, or loneliness. One doesn't have to travel to Mordor in order to feel these things.
Despite the fact that I am not an author, I still study story to become a better animator. The act of storytelling is essential to the craft of animation, even if no words are used. Story is the driving force behind film and animation. Without a compelling story to tell, no amount of animation can save that.

All Mixed Up

Mixed media is art which an artist uses one or more creative mediums. For example, one can use bees wax, acrylic, and newspaper all in the same work. This form of creating can free a person up, allowing them to incorporate different textures and effects into their work. Sometimes, the incompatibility of certain mediums can result in intriguing outcomes on whatever surface the artist uses. Below is a link to mixed media artist Jazz Green. His work deals with textures and color more than refinement.


On the other end of the spectrum are mixed media artists who are more meticulous in their methods. An example of this is Gottfried Helnwein. He deals a lot with controversial topics, attempting to delve into the deep psychological aspects of art. Here is a link to one of his mixed media pieces.

http://www.helnwein.com/kuenstler/exhibitions/artikel_3604.html

Computers=Art?

I had an interesting conversation with a fellow artist a few weeks back and we talked the merits of the computer as an artistic medium. During the discussion, I was intrigued to discover that my friend didn't consider anything made by the computer art. This eventually led me to the realization that there are a good number of creative people who do not consider computer-made art real art. I mean art with a fine capital A. Computer art isn't ART?

Once I heard this opinion, we engaged in a VERY long conversation about it. The rationale of most artists who are against the computer as a medium suggest that it is merely a machine that detaches the creator form the subject. They see the computer as an oppressor of creative freedom, something that takes away the tactile relationship between an artist's hands with the paint and canvas.

I could definitely understand where she was coming from in this respect. As an artist myself, I enjoy using the computer for vector or raster art, but there are times when I do yearn for the traditional tools of paint and brush. I often crave for that intimate contact with the surface of the canvas or the muddiness of the oil paint. Nothing can replace the feeling of applying pigment in thick impasto onto the canvas, smelling the distinct aroma of the different paints.

That being said, the computer is still a legitimate medium. As a matter of fact, I'll go as far as to say that the computer is just as viable a medium as paints. To me the product is the most important thing to me, regardless of the fact that I consider the process to be crucial. In the end, the audience will only see the end-product, not the process. In my opinion any tool you can use to practice craft and ultimately create art is irrelevant.

Sandro Cluezo

http://n201designissuesindigitalmedia.blogspot.com/

Cluezo's character designs are relatively simplistic and the results are stunning. His way with breaking down forms into simple shapes is something to be in awe of, especially how he communicates so much without being too detailed. If you take a minute to look at one of his characters you'll see how rich they are in their conception. Negating detail, color, and shade, the essence of the form is expressed completely.

A great animator once said that superb character design has a recognizable sillhouette. This is true, especially when you see the character in shadow. When you look at Micky Mouse's sillhouette for example, you can clearly recognize who the character is. And by recognizing Micky Mouse, images of his movement and personality illuminate within your mind, perhaps reminding you of your childhood.

As an aspiring animator myself, I often find myself struggling to create a character with great appeal. Most of this has to do with a mental block that says that whatever I'm drawing has to be very detailed. What I've learned is that great character design often involves minimalistic execution, in the sense that anything superfluous is eliminated. Only lines or forms that are necessary for the most impact are included in the composition.

Frank Frazetta vs. Boris Vallejo

As someone very interested in concept art and illustration, I find myself constantly debating who my favorite artist is. I do know that some of my favorite illustrators are in the fantasy art field, and who else has had more of an influence on fantasy art than Frank Frazetta? Now if you are unfamiliar with Frazetta, you can click on the the following link to check out his work: http://frankfrazetta.org/

Fantasy art as a genre of painting can include anything from sci-fi art for book covers to action-adventure illustration. Frazetta was considered one the masters in his day, creating vivid pictures with compelling artistry. What I admire most about his paintings is not only his impeccable draftsmanship, but the movement he conveys in his compositions. The strength of Frazetta's design skills lie in his ability to accentuate certain elements of a picture that are necessary and neglecting unnecessary details.

This brings up one of my other favorite artists, Boris Vallejo. In the fantasy art arena, Vallejo is another giant. Like Frazetta, his work represents the human figure flawlessly, almost reminiscent of the Old Masters. The main difference between the two revolves around execution. Frazetta's work is more general and spontaneous, while Vallejo's work is meticulously detailed. Each style has merits and I love them both, but I have to give a nod to Frazetta. I say this because Vallejo's detail-oriented style can sometimes be his biggest weakness, resulting in static pictures. Here is a link to Vallejo's site, where you can make your choice of whose style you prefer: http://vallejo.ural.net/

Defending Bouguereau

The late-19th century was a pivotal era in the history of art. This period ushered in the Academic Painters, Impressionists, and Post-Impressionists. The latter two groups are considered pioneers whereas the first category of artists are relegated to general obscurity. I say this because the term "academic painting" was and still is considered derogatory. If you are unfamiliar with academic painting, it is basically an art style that is conventional in nature and generally adheres to strict classical ideals. In a nutshell, the Academic Painters represented tradition and the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists sought change.

William Adolphe Bouguereau was a French academic painter, whose works reflected a long tradition of Western style painting. He wanted to keep the art of the Renaissance alive, citing Titian, an Old Master, as inspiration. The problem was, although he was popular among his contemporaries for creating realistic paintings with a fine polish, he would become ignored throughout the 20th century once Modernism took over. The preference for the "new" would be the end of him for a long time.

There's no doubt that Modernism introduced many compelling works for us to enjoy today. Despite the positive aspects that this period brought, the negative ideas revolved around seeing tradition as being useless. When it comes to Bouguereau, critics assaulted his works because they deemed them "too pretty" or "too polished". Other critics today say that many of his paintings look like something you would see on a Hallmark card, cute and cheesy. Another one of the biggest knocks on Bouguereau is that he was a master craftsman with no substance. He could paint with the best of them but he had nothing to say. Here's a link to some of his work so you can get an idea of where they're coming from: http://www.artrenewal.org/museum/b/Bouguereau_William/bio1.asp

Although such critics make arguable points, I feel the need to defend the strengths Bouguereau did possess. Viewing his paintings from our current time in history can indeed make his work seem a bit sentimental and dated. However, his ability to compose figures for the most impact is second to none, not to mention he was a virtuoso with color. When you gaze at some of his portraits, he does idealize certain aspects of a person, even if it doesn't reflect the misfortunes they face in life. He doesn't paint realism, which is why many critics do not appreciate him. Instead of painting what he sees, he tries to convey the unapparent beauty that remains obscured. This comes across as sentimentality but I think it is just another way to make art. In my opinion, some people make art to express beauty unseen, while others capture the hard reality of the subject. Bouguereau accomplished the former.

Painting in Darkness

The art of painting is generally thought of as a profession for those who can see clearly. Artists value their eyes as much as they do their lives. However, what happens when you can't see? I stumbled on this website http://bramblitt.net/ , where such an artist creates breathtaking work without the ability to see his subjects. When I saw his gallery of paintings my jaw dropped. His sense of design reflects the tactile relationship he has with the canvas and paints. The fact that he cannot see what he is painting makes the feat that much more remarkable.

This brings up many questions. Does an artist need to see in order to effectively convey what they need to on canvas? I think not. All a painter needs is an imagination and the willingness to express that vision rather than constantly depending on the subject matter in front of you. The only drawback I see to this is that the person creating the works will not be able to fully appreciate them. In the end, no one but the audience will be able to actually see the paintings. This in of itself requires a certain selflessness, with the mentality of contributing something that can inspire the world.