Research into topic ideas.

http://news.sky.com/story/1632947/moscows-young-homeless-seek-refuge-in-sewers - sky news , by John Sparks- Russian correspondents.

Russian refugees and the homeless are living within the sewers below the city of moscow.

Artist- Nick O

 image by Nick O. 

I really like this illustration. It has a very dark tone that is really emphasised can communicated well throughout the image. The red skull face of the main character, the blue hands reaching up tied around by a noose. Shape in this image plays a fundamental role. Squares within the body of the main character, the shapes of the arms as well. There are rectangles in the legs and arms and triangle shapes make up the feet. The composition of the image is good, I really like how the rope is used as a line of sight to uncover different elements of the image , and how it interacts with different elements of the image.  There is also a line of sight from the main figures shoulders to the head and across, this gives an idea of the direction they are going in , and what too. When looking at the picture you slowly realise the it is a noose and you follow the rope round and then you see the hole story behind the image, a hang man dragging his victims off to be hung.

Using subtil textures within the shapes helps to show the tone and values , and I think it looks better then flat shapes however are flat shapes bolder? 

Development of shape artwork.

 Using cut paper has given me a good idea of how the shapes will work as solid shapes.
These shapes here work well and, but the lines are very thin and I would like to fit details within them ,so I will have to work out how to make the wider and still have the lines within them.

Cut paper could be a way forward, but I could add more detailed vectors in with illustrator.

 I really like this pattern and I can see the potential of how it can work in a space. I could make the lines thicker and the white space smaller , this could allow me to add detail.





















This Idea could work nicely with some more development, could be really interesting.

Development of shape artwork.

I have started off by doing so initial thumbnail sketches. I am trying to create patterns out of the tunnel idea that could exist within the image. I am trying to keep the patterns simple and geometric. The geometric patterns I think will be easier to create vectors out of but, I ideally I would like the patterns complicated but the shapes used within them simple.

I need to get a better idea of the scale and also the how that pattern will work in the space given. I really need to make sure I stick to the size and dimensions given.

Research into topic idea.

People living in underground tunnels in New York.

Research into topic idea.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1326187/Las-Vegas-tunnel-people-How-1-000-people-live-shimmering-strip.html - by  unknow daily mail reporter. images y Austin Hargrave.

Research into topic idea.

http://www.chinasmack.com/2010/pictures/mongolian-homeless-living-underground-in-sewers.html - Mongolian's homeless living underground in sewers.By Fauna.

Again people living under the city in sewer tunnels. Mongolia. Images by Ifeng:

 

Research into topic ideas.

http://www.boredpanda.com/underground-sewer-life-bruce-lee-bucharest/ - Life under the streets: Drugs addicts and orphans in romania find homes in the city sewers. , image by Radu Ciorniciuc.

 These are a selection of images from this artical that demonstrate how people live with in the tunnles.

Final 3D gif.

 

Things I am happy with:

• The overall look, still keeps in line with the theme and the mood of the series.
• The techniques has worked well again and using the light box to light the structure had worked very well, as the tones and shades are even throughout.
•  The links between the flying man monster to the tiny fly man monster that flys around the head on a sperate layer.
• The approach to the 3Dness. The different layers that here photographed manually works better then if they had been place on digitally I think.
• How the gif rebuilds and deconstruction it's self. This became a common movement throughout most of the gifs.
• The difference in textures , they don't look muddle up or too overpowering.    

Things I want to improve if I was to do this again:

• If I had given myself more time I would have added more flying man monsters around the edge , may have made it more interesting?

Overall I am happy with my gifs and have really enjoyed the process of making them a lot as I feel that I have been much more experimental with materials and worked to a bigger scale too. Also I have been less worried about the outcome and focused more on the development. I have come out of my comfort zone for this project as well, I usually don't create work like this , but I think that this has payed off because I am really happy with the work I have made and will continue this technique.

Test frames for 3d gif.

 For the 3D gif I used a very similar technique to that of the hand drawn gif. Printing ink on acitate. However what I did differently was I made textures in the acitate ,let them dry then removed some of the ink with water to create circles in them which got bigger the more layers I added in.  

I played around with different angles to see how it changed the effect , but for the continuity I think it would be hard to get the angle every time, could make the image very shaky. Also I don't think that it is a clear as the top image, it is hard to see the photocopy details.

 I have also tried out different photocopies on different layers which look good and have the potential to work to. It is just trying to work out a way in which they can all connect together in the gif to tell some kind of narrative. 

Artist - Ben Jones.

I really like this piece by Ben firstly because of the techniques used, the mixture of print and collage works really well and creates a great aesthetic.  The texture of the printing ink and the photocopy add to the image and gives an idea the hand crafted process. The collage aswell fits together but not perfectly and I think that this really works , it has a jagged sharp feel to it. Sinister as well I think.  The composition of the image too is good because the black background and the white foreground contrast well and the focus point is shown as though looking through a key hole framing it .The cats lead up to the man holing the doll and there are two windows aether side of the head which act kind of act a a frame too. I really like this style and it creats a dark and sinister mood to the image as well as having a strong aesthetic.      

Final hand drawn gif.

 

Things I am happy with;

• The techniques I find is very effective. I like how you can see the brush strokes and the textures they create. And using acitate as a base allowed me to be much more playful and experimental with the ink.
• How the different sections of the images disappear and reappear. I is very interesting to watch and I like how it goes to the face to a decaying face. 
• I quite like the jitteryness of each frame I think that it suites the style of the techniques. rough, messy and playful.
• How the ink helps the different compensates become a sequence. I all happens and created y the ink.
• Black and white add a darker mood to the piece and I think that I want to keep the a theme throughout the rest of my gifs , it will help the work as a series and keep the cold mood to it. 
• Still carries on the theme of decay.

Thing I would improve if I was to do this again:

• I would make the meaning behind it more clear. the face, is soposed to decay into the face behind the ink. If I had changed the angle of the painted in face to match that of the photocopy, this connection would have been made clearer. 
• Making sure the frames had the same brightness and tines in them , this is slightly inconsistent throughout. 

Roughs for composition piece.

 These are some of the roughs I drew for the composition picture. I made the mistake of drawing the roughs too big , I found it easier later on to draw the roughs as thumb nails. I was able to get down more ideas and develop it quicker.  

 I have found it really hard to compose these idea in a way that is interesting and clear.Trying to add depth into the image was also hard. I really need to work more on my composition more. 

Line of sight.

The line of sight controls the direction in which the viewers eye moves in and around the image. line of sight can be a strong and subtle within an image, but it's key is that it leads the viewers eye so that they feel the things that we want the to feel and see as key features of the image. Having a line of sight in the image can also create movement and rhythm within the image too, it also connects objects and helps to tell the narrative.

 There can be many different ones of sight within one image , especially if the scene that artist is trying to depict is hectic. But they are all specifically places in order for the picture to be viewed how the artist wants. i really need to consider this more in my work and now i have got a better understanding of the concept of line of sight , I have a better idea of how to use it to good effect. 

Tests for hand drawn Gif.

  For my hand draw Gif I wanted to apporch drawing in a slightly different way other then just drawing. for these mock ups I used printing ink on a ink tray and played around with creating images and textures in the ink. Printing ink is really good for this process because it doesn't dry too fast and it means I can take more time in making the frames.  

 I Try using the new print techniques over photocopy, and it works well but I just wonder, the tray is very hard to work on and I just think that if the photocopy was under something like acitate I could do a lot more with it?  

 This face one I like the best I think because I really like the way it is swallowed up by the black, could be a good metaphor for something? By the face being human makes it relatible and could make the viewer more interested in what is happening.    

Final digital gif.

 

Things I am happy with:

• Norbert lives!!!
• The overall look. I am really glad that I chose to used collage to make this image. It looks effective it follows the central theme of my project which I taking and appropriating decaying decaying or dead parts of the human body.
• I also like how the wings move and isolate in sequence with each other, the free movements looks better. But also how the left hand wing touched the eye to make it open, I think that it a good interaction between the different composition.  
• The feet/toes movements looks okay, makes Norbert look content and happy.
• I character its self (Norbert), it has a sweet movements, but it isn't too cute. after showing one person the character they said, he is a bit cute but at the same time freaky as hell. 

Things to improve on if I was to do this again:

• I think the toes movements could flow better. It is jittery and needs to slow down a bit.
• I could have added a background, It could have just been a simple dulled down texture? However I think that compositionally the white background pulls all the focus onto the character. 

Artist: ABVH.

- image by ABVH.












I really like this gif by ABVH because it is an original and interesting , the artist is showing there opinion on our relationship with technology. Having human charging points is quite humours and having it taken out on the street I think makes the viewer think about it realistically, it helps turn the idea into a reality.The colour sceem is the similar throughout which links all the elements of the image together but compositionally lining and spacing the different chargers and the people into three make the image easy to read and allows for the people to move differently to each other without making the image look messy and unorganised.  The aesthetic of mixing painted image with photography is not that original as it is present in most street art but going one up from this and making it into a GIF adds a new element but also brings it to life and makes it look real.

Artist- Thierry van hasselt.

- image by Thierry van hasselt.

I really like this piece by this artist firstly because of the techniques he has used. I'm not sure how the image was created but I really like the effect. The sweeping and blotted textures within the faces adds character and  the dark mood the piece. It looks like a very spontaneous technique, quickly put together , but there is some thought into the composition. You firstly see the head on the left then you follow the connection and you see the second head. It is really eary and spooky. choosing the have black around the point of focus pulls all the concentration onto that part, but keeping the colours used in the focus point similar to that of the background makes all the elements of the image appear connected.        

1st digital gif test.

  This is a test for my digital gif.  I am glad that I made the basis of the create manually by collage. I think if I did it digitally it would loose detail and not look as good and well connected. The blinking of the eye works well, it looks effective and the speed between each blink is good. It was a challenge to get that right and have continuous flow between each movement , but I think that it works. The wings however still look very static in there movement. I don't like the way it al moves as one , I think that it would look better if they were to move more independently, separated from each other. They need to move more. I need to work out how I am going to do this on Photoshop with the free transform tool? I might also be nice if the toes were to move too, only slightly , could make the body look less static too?

Character development and ideas.

 I am so happy with how these A2 test piece have turned out! All the mixed organs and body parts really look good together and connect together well. The human head I think makes the image more relatible and more sinister. Because the image is so detailed you really have to look and this is when you see the hidden details like the baby. The viewer has to unpick the image and find there won interpretation, I like this idea.





This image was done on velvet cartridge paper , so it had a nice rough texture and has a slight creamy colour. I was interesting and challenging  to work on. The look of the paper sutites the mood of the work but the colour didn't match the colour of the photocopy so it look odd. this is why I chose to cover the whole paper in ink so the colours match better.I think this worked well however I prefer the white background more I think it creates more contrast in the colours.    

This is Norbert! I think he has a lot of character. He is creepy but sight kind looking. He has one big foot because he is really clumsy and tiny wings because he can fly a but but he is not very well. he looks a bit like a duck which I think is funny and the shape of him is clean and rounded.  I really want to do more of these and try and create more characters like Norbert , but I need to start thinking about how to animate them?

Character experiments and ideas.

These experiments are made out of photocopies of  human body parts and organs. I also added ink and paper cuts into this. These where really fun experiments to do and they look like a really exciting idea!

I then went onto create these fly's which I really like, they can definitely be developed further. Doing larger scale ones with different body parts?
Changing the scale of the wings?
Different sizes of body and mixing up the parts?
Play around with the ink heads more.
Maybe make them more human? this could make them more relatible an sinister.  

Composition.

 Things I am happy with:                                             

• I really like the narrative behind the image and how all the key features of the image are incorporated together. 
• The lay out is okay, it flows. You look at the women the you follow here hair down to the waves and then to the sinking ship. 
• The colours used also relate to the narrative within the image and the black background really brings out and heightens the main features of the image.
• Using different textures and inks worked well too , good colours and I think that this helped the composition slightly.  

Thing I want to improve: 

• The composition is okay but there isn't really much depth at all. I used the rule of thirds to compose the main features which work well but I could have put in more waves and made the boat smaller. This could have added more depth.
• The colours of the waves could have got darker the further back they go too. More structure would have looked better, more pattern and continuity. 

During this task I have really struggled with composition, It is harder then I thought to create , but I can see the advantages and how it can improve an image. I need to practice this more because it is a vital skill. 

Collage and ephemera.

I found this task challenging, I was hard to composed all of the different elements of the A3 sheet. I took the images from a book which had lots of different medical etchings in of body organs and I took other elements form news papers. The body elements where easy ish to put together but the hard part was the text. I could have done this much better. It is hard to read and I may have been better placed along the top or bottom of the page. The character though I am fairly happy with and working into the etchings with gouache as it gives the image more tone and shade. But this piece would have been greatly improved I think if I had worked on the composition more.

3D and Lens.

•  I chose this image as my final one. 
• Things I am happy with:
• I like how the texture of the background links into the texture of the shapes on the creature.
•  taking the photo in black and white was a good decision because it has allowed the focus to shift onto the finer details in the image.
• I like how the costume fits onto the body, there are parts where it is really obvious it is a human but then it blend fairly well into the bird head and wings.
• Things I can improve:
• I could have put more detail onto the neck of the creature.
• I could have put more thought into the background.
• The beak on the animal could have much clearer, I could have photographed it from the side instead of the front. Making it out of white paper may have made it clearer also instead of black.

• This was my second favourite image , I like composition in this one, how the lines on the fence and the railing lead the eye to the focus of the image. 
• But the wellys wreck the image , I think it takes the illusion away a bit.  If the image was cut off at the bottom then I think it will make the image better.