I was looking on thisiscolossal.com a few weeks back and from looking at many forms of art, I somehow stumbled upon the website of Becky and Joe. Becky and Joe do many animations; some are 2D and some are puppets.
I first started watching their short films because of the creepy, yet consequently mesmerizing "Don't Hug Me I'm Scared" series. These animations look innocent and cute at first, with a Sesame St. and playhouse atmosphere, but the plots take a morbid and freaky turn later on. My favorite of the series is the first one, as it seems to kind of make fun of other shorts that teach children to be creative use their imagination. I just crack up at 00:58 every time for some reason.
The real reason I started talking about this website is because of one of their animations, "Tallest Heights" looks a lot like one we saw in class. It is 2D animation that is colorful, busy, and scratchy that plays along to a song created by a guy who goes by Delicate Steve. I do not remember the animation that we saw in class was called, but this looks very similar to what we saw.
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Grid on Instagram
A few days ago, I saw the work of an artist whose art looks very similar to our recent grid project.
The artist Eric Daigh used pins to create these gigantic portraits. His technique is very similar to a few students in the class who also used pushpins. His art is incredible and instead of 30 x 30 his are probably 100 x 100 or more!
The artist Eric Daigh used pins to create these gigantic portraits. His technique is very similar to a few students in the class who also used pushpins. His art is incredible and instead of 30 x 30 his are probably 100 x 100 or more!
Grid Project
I decided to do my grid project on "Nighthawks" by Edward Hopper. I was torn between this painting and one of Van Gogh's sunflowers. I chose this one because it reminded me of home. I live very close to Chicago, and I would often go to the Art Institute of Chicago and see this painting on its walls.
This piece also kind of reflects myself because like the people in the painting, I tend to be a nighthawk and stay up past the normal hours of living. In fact, I created most of this grid project after midnight each day over spring break. It took me around three days (at least five hours a day) to complete this.
My work station
I decided to use hole punched paint samples because I could capture the exquisite colors of the painting with ease, as I did not have to do any cutting. If I had to cut out each unit of the grid, it probably would have taken double the time.
Close up The grid
The grid is 30 x 54 units, for a total of 1620 punched holes. I had to draw a grid on top of my reference to be more exact. For each square, I picked the most represented color and matched it as best I could with the paint samples. I did not have all the perfect colors, but I tried my best. Some colors I had no match or I ran out of, so I had to make another trip to the hardware store.
Comparison
The final product is not a perfect match, but it still looks really cool. The best way to see it is on a slight angle and further away. you could also be a little closer to it and take off your glasses. Overall, it was a really laborious, but fun project. I think I might want to do another. Maybe Van Gogh's sunflowers this time :)
The final product
I decided to use hole punched paint samples because I could capture the exquisite colors of the painting with ease, as I did not have to do any cutting. If I had to cut out each unit of the grid, it probably would have taken double the time.
Close up The grid
The grid is 30 x 54 units, for a total of 1620 punched holes. I had to draw a grid on top of my reference to be more exact. For each square, I picked the most represented color and matched it as best I could with the paint samples. I did not have all the perfect colors, but I tried my best. Some colors I had no match or I ran out of, so I had to make another trip to the hardware store.
The final product is not a perfect match, but it still looks really cool. The best way to see it is on a slight angle and further away. you could also be a little closer to it and take off your glasses. Overall, it was a really laborious, but fun project. I think I might want to do another. Maybe Van Gogh's sunflowers this time :)
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Gaming
I do not consider myself a "gamer," but I love video games! My first portable "video game" ever was a tamagotchi in elementary school. I was so addicted to my digital pet, and I loved feeding and playing games with him to make him happy. I would constantly play until the batteries ran out. Over the years, I kept getting the new additions, so I probably had around three of them.
Before that, I loved to play computer games. There were some that I played from a disk and some online. Some of my favorite games were Pajama Sam, Put-Put Saves the Zoo, Nancy Drew, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The Nancy Drew game was the one on Shadow Ranch and it was very challenging. I do not think I ever completed it. Harry Potter was my all-time favorite computer game. I loved the movies, and the game was pretty much as awesome. I played it all the time and I completed it thrice.
I soon moved on to Nintendo video games when I got my Nintendo DS. It was my first real video game, as my family did not have a gameboy, gamecube, or xbox. I was also addicted to this. I loved playing Animal Crossing, Nintendogs, Mario Kart, and Super Mario Bros. This is when I discovered Mario and I fell in love. We soon got a Wii and I played all the Mario games. Super Mario Galaxy was my favorite. I also liked the Super Mario Bros. for the Wii, but my siblings and I would always yell and blame each other for dying, so my mom got mad and told us not to play it.
When I was in elementary school, I also had a ton of Webkinz and would always play online. Club Penguin was also a large part of my online life. I actually paid to be a member. I have no idea why; it is really not that fun. I also played a lot of online games on the Disney website. They had games for Zack and Cody, Lizzie McGuire, and other shows I liked. Later on, Disney also came out with Toontown, which I loved to play. I did not want to be a member though, so I played until I cannot get anywhere without being a member.
When my little brother got older, he got an xbox one. I played Forza Horizon, a racing game, with him and enjoyed it, but I don't really play it that often. Now, I do not play video games at all because I brought non with me. I still like them, but they aren't as fun as they used to be.
Before that, I loved to play computer games. There were some that I played from a disk and some online. Some of my favorite games were Pajama Sam, Put-Put Saves the Zoo, Nancy Drew, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The Nancy Drew game was the one on Shadow Ranch and it was very challenging. I do not think I ever completed it. Harry Potter was my all-time favorite computer game. I loved the movies, and the game was pretty much as awesome. I played it all the time and I completed it thrice.
I soon moved on to Nintendo video games when I got my Nintendo DS. It was my first real video game, as my family did not have a gameboy, gamecube, or xbox. I was also addicted to this. I loved playing Animal Crossing, Nintendogs, Mario Kart, and Super Mario Bros. This is when I discovered Mario and I fell in love. We soon got a Wii and I played all the Mario games. Super Mario Galaxy was my favorite. I also liked the Super Mario Bros. for the Wii, but my siblings and I would always yell and blame each other for dying, so my mom got mad and told us not to play it.
When I was in elementary school, I also had a ton of Webkinz and would always play online. Club Penguin was also a large part of my online life. I actually paid to be a member. I have no idea why; it is really not that fun. I also played a lot of online games on the Disney website. They had games for Zack and Cody, Lizzie McGuire, and other shows I liked. Later on, Disney also came out with Toontown, which I loved to play. I did not want to be a member though, so I played until I cannot get anywhere without being a member.
When my little brother got older, he got an xbox one. I played Forza Horizon, a racing game, with him and enjoyed it, but I don't really play it that often. Now, I do not play video games at all because I brought non with me. I still like them, but they aren't as fun as they used to be.
Spring Dance Concert
On Friday, February 20th, I attended the Spring Dance Concert. It was surprisingly really good. I had no idea that the dancers of UT had such talent. Santiago Echeverry's video dance was in the first performance: Theme and Variation...with a twist. This dance was really cool. It combined older and classic music and dance with a newer feel. The video playing in the back as well as the beat in the background of the music added the "twist" with modern technology and art. The video playing in the back was projected onto the dancers and you could see their gridded "reflection" on them.
The rest of the program was very good. I especially liked the one with the pointed-toe ballet dancers because I haven't seen a ballet in such a long time. I never really saw much of the artistic side of the University of Tampa, but I have to say that after I saw this program, I realized how talented of a school we are.
The rest of the program was very good. I especially liked the one with the pointed-toe ballet dancers because I haven't seen a ballet in such a long time. I never really saw much of the artistic side of the University of Tampa, but I have to say that after I saw this program, I realized how talented of a school we are.
Saturday, March 14, 2015
FLIPITY BOOK
I hope George R. R. Martin does not get mad at me for decontextualizing one of his great works: A Feast For Crows (from the Game of Thrones series.) I love his books, but he can be a little bit murderous in his stories, as he kills off practically everyone. This flip book is a tribute to him.
I decided to start off with the viewer traveling though space because it looks awesome and it shows a lot of movement. I needed to move the story along, so an abstract green blob hatched from his egg on some distant planet and decided to go on an adventure. He became a rocket and a fish, which our old friend George R. R. Martin, the sadist (as it points out in the end), decided to destroy. When I created this flip book, it was completely random and was the result of no planning, so I guess my mind and subconscious took over. I suppose they were saying that although you could feel free and make anything of yourself, you could die any minute; even more so if your life was in the hands of George R. R. Martin, the sadist. However, I still remain optimistic because alas, all men must die, so one should not always fret over this universal truth. Don't worry, be happy.
Mark J. Stock
I thought Mark Stock's work was really cool. There were a lot of abstract smokey and wavy elements in his work that makes the pieces captivating. One of his videos, called WAVE, was really neat, and it reminded me of the grid projects we have to do. In the video, single colored squares and rectangles fuze into a wave that looks like paint is being mixed.It is similar to the grid project because each unit is one color and is combined with other units to create a greater work of art. The video is almost trippy and is hypnotizing to look at. Being a longer video (13 minutes) it would be perfect as a computer screen saver or on a TV in a fancy waiting room.
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