animation research

I looked at some animator's work to get some inspiration on how I could go about doing my drawn animations:

Avish Khebrehzadeh

http://avishkz.com/newsite/video.html

I really like the simplicity of her work, the way the background is unchanging, the focus is just on the dog and the owner. The rough drawing of the figures gives the animation quite an emotive feel to it. I think I want to use quite loose line work for my animations.

Florence Miailhe

https://www.onf.ca/film/conte_de_quartier

I love the beginning of this animation, the disappearance of the painted leaves into the street view is so effective, and beautifully done. It seems like it would be relatively simple to achieve as well as it just lots of painted dots being moved around. I would like to learn how you would go about having the background still while also having moving elements as a part of it. I also like that it is a painted animation, it makes it seem very fast paced as it moves into the figures as the paint work varies each time.

Koji Yamamura

https://www.nfb.ca/film/muybridges_strings/making_of/muybridges_strings_making_of

I watched this video of Yamamura's way of working, I like how it is quite lo-fi and each drawing doesn't slide seamlessly into each other - it is a bit disjointed and can tell they are all separate drawings, it gives the animation a very handmade, personal feel to it.
Really like that parts of it are quick ink drawings, it makes me feel better about trying to do an animation, that it doesn't have to be really refined and exact, there can be a bit of looseness to it. 

http://vimeo.com/67751676

I watched another one of his films, which is quite different but still has the looseness to it that I really like. It is so fast moving, you can't concentrate on any single part. I also like how it is white on a black background, it makes it very dynamic. I might try and use a similar style on my work, I can imagine it working quite well if I wanted to show some explosions or something similar. 

OUIL503 - a creative response

3 briefs I am interested in maybe taking on:

PENGUIN DESIGN AWARD

http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/penguindesignaward/index.php

I love looking at book cover design, I feel it is a really good skill to be able to capture the themes and the feel of the book just from the cover, while also making it eye-catching in a book shop. I'm very interested in narrative illustration, and so this is a way into that, while also being able to learn how to manipulate my work to fit a format I am not used to working with - a book cover.

PROPERCORN

http://www.ycn.org/awards/ycn-student-awards/2014-15-ycn-student-awards/briefs/propercorn

Have admired the 'Propercorn' packaging when seeing it in shops, I love the hand-drawn quality, it makes it quite a unique, memorable packaging. I like the idea of taking illustration off the paper and into an environment, like for a shop window design. I've never done anything like that, so it would be an interesting challenge. 

FOLIO SOCIETY (House of Illustration)

http://competitions.houseofillustration.org.uk/book-illustration-competition-2015/how-to-enter/

Again it would be the chance to work with narrative, which I am very interested in, and for this I would actually be taking elements from the text to work from and illustrate. I have looked at the Folio Society a lot and really love their illustrated books so it would be exciting to have the chance to be a part of it. 

peer review of work so far

5 things I have gained from my work and how it will impact on my practise:

• having to do time limited tasks meant I was thinking quickly about compositions, some didn't turn out too well but some were quite successful. Working under pressure means I can't over think the images which can sometimes be a good thing.
• because I wasn't working with a strict concept it meant I could be a lot more experimental and loose with my work, as I am still not clear on the direction I will go into so I can be quite open with my work.
• I worked a lot more with texture during the tasks which became the main way I brought in mood and atmosphere into the images, so will definitely consider it more in the future.
• we were limited to using only collage and line for the tasks which I wasn't use to, it meant I thought more about how I could create an image I liked and try out techniques I hadn't tried before.
• I found I discovered some methods that I think are really effective through being limited with materials and having a set amount of images to create. So I will try to limit how I work in everyday practise as it has proved to be quite effective. 

5 things I intend to explore further through my visual journal and why:

• the collage work I did went down well, the feedback I got said I managed to be really expressive with my textures and mark making, and captured the feelings of the books so I will continue to work in this way.
• I want to consider colour more in my images, see how I can draw attention to things and create different moods. I've worked mostly in black and white so far but I think I can explore colour schemes more to create dark and sinister images.
• I want to start being more refined with my image making, it has been quite messy so far but I want to use more clear cut edges when drawing the machinery to give them more of a mechanical feel.
• I need to use more relevant motifs, not just to windmill as that only relates to one book. I like the textures I have created, I just need to apply it to other ideas.
• I don't feel I have though enough about composition, I want to play around more with the foreground, mid ground, background; because that will aid in manipulating how the viewer sees my images.

Themes I intend to explore further through my visual journal and how I plan to explore them visually:

• cities; intimidating buildings and absence of nature is a common theme throughout dystopian literature. Especially in 1984 where the city is in a constant state of war so all the houses are poorly built except for the buildings of the state which tower over everyone.
• technology; corruption of manmade technology is a big part in Orwell's novels, the utopian idea of moving towards something better with new technologies - like the windmill - but it becomes the tool which those in power use to manipulate and control the people. 
• surveillance; important theme in dystopia, the idea of those in power always knowing what people are doing so that they can control their actions and not allow for any individual actions. 
• bleak; as well as themes I want to explore atmospheres that fit with the books, like bleak landscapes that provoke quite dark, dreary imagery.
• oppressive; there is a constant feeling of being oppressed by those in charge, visually I could try creating quite intense images using harsh mark making and textures. 

How these themes relate to the research of my chosen author:

Orwell was around during WW2 so experienced the harsh lifestyle during wartime Britain, he also fought in the Spanish Civil War where he experienced the oppression from the communist state and the manipulation of the press. 
He also lived in Yorkshire with the working class so to gain an understanding of their lifestyle and the poverty in which they lived. 

Research activities I will undertake in order to explore these themes and how they will inform my work:

• read parts of 1984 again, so to find quotes that might inspire some visual imagery, get more of an idea of the mood
• I created some successful work using the photocopier where I inverted the positive and negative so I will do more of that
• Leeds has a lot of tall, bleak looking buildings so I will go out and do some observational drawings of them
• also take my camera out with me and document anything that relates to the moods and themes I am looking at
• look at oner practitioners who work in styles I am interested in or with similar themes

the intangible

We've now moved into the intangible, where we had to think about the atmospheres and moods surrounding our author and their work, and then how we can try and depict those feelings.
For Orwell I felt the books have quite a scary atmosphere - where the people are powerless against the state, atmosphere of decay with gritty landscapes. 

I started off just playing around with mark making and texture, to try and get across these atmospheres

I then used the photocopier and inverted the positive and negative which came out with some really interesting results

I really like the look of the flat paint, it makes it look quite smokey in some cases

We then went about creating 12 images that convey our particular atmospheres while also including some or all of our motifs

I'm pleased with how these came out. I got really into the thick, rough application of paint (which I used a make-shift palette knife, which I felt works quite well), it gives the images dark atmosphere, with the dark colours it makes it rather ominous. 
I think they would work better if I still had the thick brushstrokes but with sharper lines for the windmill, to give it more of the mechanical feel like in my collage work earlier. At the moment it all seems a bit messy and unclear. 
I only stuck with the one motif for these because I really like the structure of the windmill, I think it works well in these images. But I think I should try bring in some other aspects so that I'm not just working from one text.

the tangible

We made a directory of lines, three different pens, three different lines, three different strengths, so that when it came to drawing with the lines we could really explore our line work.

we then created more composed images using the 3 motifs with 3 different types of line

Although I don't feel these composition are at all strong, it was interesting to see how we can simulate depth - foreground, mid-ground and background - just using different lines. 

We then moved onto collage work, still with the same motifs. 16 images of the motifs using collage and line:

I'm pleased with how this turned out, I spent a lot of time with the collage. A few of them aren't very thought out but I think I experimented well with my materials. I particularly like the ones in monochrome.

I made these using an ink pad and sectioning off bits with tracing paper, for the layers. I think the ink gives it a really interesting, gritty texture which fits well with the books I'm looking at. And the bright, white areas are so harsh against the background, it makes it look very mechanical. It would be even more effective if the background was darker, for more of a contrast. I really enjoyed this method, I will definitely be trying out more of it.
In my critique it was suggested that I play around more with my composition, which I agree with, as they are just straight on without much thought gone into them.

themes and motifs

- themes i looked at
- 3 motifs i chose
- why i chose them/what they represent

Themes that I feel run through both George Orwell's life and writings:
 - revolution
 - war
 - dystopia
 - poverty
 - power
 - corruption
 - surveillance
 - technology
 - psychology
 - politics
 - injustice
 - language
 - education

we then had to pick a theme, and then find three motifs/symbols that fit well with that theme and are still relevant to the author.
I was tied between technology and surveillance. Technology is important because there is the constant theme of it being corrupted by those in power:

- the windmill in Animal Farm was initially meant to symbolise the animals being able to fend for themselves and prove they don't need the humans. But it is the start of the pigs turing into the humans, it represents the pigs manipulation of the other animals; for their own gain. 
It ends up being used for commercial use which the animals promised they would never use it for at the beginning. It represents the enormous modernisation projects undertaken in Russia after the revolution. 

- cameras, microphones, telescreens are used to spy on all the people, they are not allowed to read or have any individual thoughts or education other than what the state provides. And those who deviate are tortured until they comply. 

So for my 3 motifs I chose:

I chose the gun because weapons are a common motif throughout the books, used as a form of persuasion and violence. Also because war is a prominent theme throughout. 

I feel these three are very recognisable structures, and are bold so will be able to play quite a lot with their forms but still keep my work relevant. 

pecha kucha

link to pecha kucha:

http://issuu.com/astridweguelin/docs/orwell_pecha_kucha/0

OUIL504 - PROCESS AND PRODUCTION

We were set a summer brief to research into 3 authors, then choose one of those authors to focus more into. I chose:

- Aldus Huxley
wrote Brave New World, which is a book I love. He depicts dystopian worlds that look at the bad consequences of consumerism in a word of mass media, mood altering drugs and psychological manipulation.





- George Orwell
wrote 1984 and Animal Farm. Also deals with theme of dystopia but in a world of war and constant surveillance. Totalitarian societies that do not allow for individualism. 








- Haruki Murakami

wrote Norwegian Woods; haven't read his books but am aware of the themes he often looks at - loneliness, alienation, surrealism. 









I chose George Orwell. He wrote two of my favourite books, dystopian novels are my favourite genre to read so would really enjoy trying to depict themes involved in his books.

After doing some background research into Orwell I became intrigued by his life; he uses his own life experiences so much for inspiration for his writings. For example:

 - He fought in the Spanish Civil War for the Communists, and experienced first hand how they continually altered the press for their own benefit (when Orwell was a great believer in truth in language) he became very anti-stalinist. The theme of distorting press is one of the main themes in 1984.
 - He wrote an essay about the class differences in Britain 'The Road to Wigan Pier', for which he went and lived up north in Yorkshire for months so that he could write from his own experiences and give an accurate depiction.
 - When writing the essay 'Down and Out in Paris and London' he experienced living homeless and under the breadline so that he could properly research the poverty occurring in these two places.

Orwell also deals a lot with Soviet Russia and the corruption of Communism in his novels which I am very interested in. I did a lot of work about Soviet Russia last year for CoP but looking at it as a very utopian idea, before it went wrong - looking at all the striking art work that came out of the revolution. But with Orwell's work it would be viewing the topic from a very different perspective, when Communism went wrong after Stalin came into rule and made Russia a totalitarian state, brought in the cult of personality and lost all the initial principles of Communism.

Animal Farm looks at the journey Stalin, Lenin, Trotsky and Russia went through to become a Communist state and see where it went wrong, and how life was afterwards. But all depicted through the use of animals.

1984 looks at life under totalitarian rule, an exaggerated version of what Russia was like perhaps. Where the people are powerless against those in charge, they live in constant state of war and poverty, and nothing they do is private - individual thought is not permitted.

I think Orwell deals with some really interesting and graphic issues that would be fun to depict - there are a lot of strong, rather depressing themes and atmospheres running through the novels.