layers

The process of lining up and layering images...

positive thoughts

A minor or major distraction from what I am doing, I am working on my assignment but the dangers of looking for info on the web is that I keep on getting distracted when I'm searching and I end up going off on a complete tangent. So I came across a blog and then I realised I had not written mine for the week.

I went to oxford last monday to look at the murals in the Oxford Union library by William Morris and other Pre-Raphaelite painters. Unfortunately I could not get a very good photo of his mural, but of some of the others. They depict scenes from Mort d'Arthur. The ceiling is also painted by Morris, although the initial design was lost because the plaster was not adequately prepared and Morris returned in 1875 to paint the design which is currently decorates the vaulted ceiling.





SO... back to work! My inspirational quotes for the moment...

I am succesful at fininshing what I start - Julia Fraser

Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it! Action has magic, power and grace. - Goethe

New model for paper doll

I have been trying to think of ways of making the paperdoll more flexible and have made a new model. Its a bit time consuming putting her bits all together in the right place, but i am definitely happier. So this weekend is probably going to involve making more characters or objects, with my story in mind... which you'll have to wait and see... For now, a sneak preview of the new look paper dolly...

Paper Doll

It is amazing how when you start doing something that is absorbing, time seems to fold up like a fan. I was sitting here, trying to figure out how to use iMovie and suddenly three hours have past. I have something to show for the time at least. I made a little paper doll, I suppose she is sort of a representation of me. Anyway the aim was to animate her, a little easier i thought than jumping in and building a 3d character and set. I am still figuring out how to get the walking properly and i have some ideas for refining her design so that she can move better. I also need to work out how to make this software do what i want it to do and refine me story a bit, plan it better.... and all that stuff. But the rewarding part i think is these tiny bits that you get right when you're trying things out, that is the fun part too and i did not want to bog down the process with all that stuff.



What is it about then? well it started with the idea of animating her posting a letter, and i have some footage of that...to be included later. Fran gave me this diary with all sorts of pictures of the sea and boats... which Al posted all the way here, although i had not expected him to, it was supposed to be stashed with all the other boxes and stuff that Mum and Dad are storing for me. Anyway, so this diary travelled by surface mail (ship) all the way here. I have being sorting through all of my stuff, trying to get myself organised and I saved a number of the images before getting rid of the diary. So I have all these images of boats and the sea and, they linked in with what I wanted to do, I thought they could be a vessels to transport my messages. They also connect with my other water images in a way. The idea I suppose is to represent the connection, or the desired connection with home and my roots.

indian ocean

Things seem to be getting back to some kind of normality, that is, I seem to have both the time and the focus to post something. I'm adding to the previous water footage with this video of the Indian ocean taken at the heads at Knysna in April this year. As i mentioned before about wanting to catalogue my images and video, well, its a kind of start. I have heaps of water, so i thought it was an easy enough one to start with, until i figure out exactly what i want to do with it all. I waas browsing around on Youtube and came across some really inspiring animations, some of them really short... I'll add the links at the below.

what a great day
sand on glass animation

I am working on preparing images of the sand sculpture I made in near Plettenburg bay, its slow progress because my computer is playing up, but I keep plodding on. Hopefully i will be able to buy a new machine next month, so it should go better then. Here is a sneak preview of what I'm working on....
Yesterday we went to some artists studios as part of a Open house studio event in the Richmond area. It was a lovely day and has given me the necessary inspiration i was hoping for. I want to mount some of my work, print some of my photographs and try and show my work somehow. Also, as we were taking a break, sitting on the bank of the river, I noticed some interesting, beautiful junk floating down the river. I have take quite a number of short videos in a similar way, keeping the camera as still as possible and focusing on something particular (in this case as in many - moving water) I am working on ideas for putting it all together, but for now, just this...

Life Drawing

Creative process

I managed to finish my assignments in time, and now i am trying to pull my creative process into exactly that... a process, rather than scattered bits that are extremely unmanageable. I have these ideas buzzing around but to many and too split up to work out what to do and where to start. I was trying to figure out a way, i wrote down all the themes i have been working with lately (the last 2 years - since being here). Then I started writing down themes and media explored in the past, since i started at unisa in 1999. All of this to try and find a common strain and decide on something, one theme to work with. Still a bit blank about it though, i don't know what i actually want to say or make. The thing is i have heaps of photos and video footage that i have taken over the past 2 years, that i want to use, but because i was not following one specific intention it does not really fit together. Chatting to Al about, i realise that half of the problem is that it is all over the place, and not categorized at all. So that could be a starting point, just to go through it all and make a catalogue. I can give it a go.

I have been toying with the idea of an animation based on a story by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, from Women who run with the Wolves called the wolf's eyelash... it kind of seemed to fit my situation of coming to London, (in the story a girl goes into the woods) Maybe i will get into this a bit more later, but getting to my image for the day, its a wood scene.

That's all for tonight... i am going to a life drawing class tomorrow, so hopefully that will help get me flowing again, i am really looking forward to it.

i'm back...

I have been working on some things... as I keep saying but never posting. I have an idea for an animation and did a rough start sketch to get into the process... I am enjoying it but realise that i have heaps to learn. I set up my camera on a tripod and starting drawing. I want to refine the images and possibly work in a different media. But for now as a sketch its a start.



More images of my paintings and drawings to follow shortly!

blue monday

apparently today is the most depressing day of the year, i did not notice but there is even a site to help people cope with the blues. well it is freezing but its okay. Going to do some studying/writing tonight, so 'll keep it short. Pic is a sketch of ideas for a painting.

painting in progress... the second part

Tonight i painted...over another painting that i don't like anymore as i usually do. This one joins to the other one i included earlier on. I will be working on them together now so i am looking forward to see what i have in mind will actually turn out like. Anyway it is late now so that's it for the day. Thanks for your comments guys!

painting in progress

I am working on with the idea of embedding images into pattern like forms...like the drawing, where the pattern is created by the reflections and this section is of a painting i have been working on which was inspired by a little box that i received a gift in.