QUICK TEST FOR A SQUONK CREATURE

My Grandfather, on the deck of a merchant navy ship, remembers his trauma from WW1 and uses drawing as way to cope. Later, a person in the present day contemplates one of my grandfather's pictures and reflects on the nature of art, time and memory. "I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky, And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by... I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life, To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife; And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover, And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over." Sea-Fever by By John Masefield

Wellbeing tips! My extract from an animation project for a local health centre. It was interesting to see colleagues different versions of the brief. I learnt a lot. Thanks to the brilliant voiceover artist.

Thank you for all the views and likes for this animation. Please check out my website: https://mikezef1.wixsite.com/mikonimator This animation is macabre and playful. Created in the Materials Workshop from spare wood. Thinking a lot about how 2D and 3D interrelate and by analogy mathematically 3D to 4D... (see "Flatland" by Edwin Abbott). Was also doing an evening class in Meisner Technique developing an awareness of the interaction between characters... maybe taken a bit literally here! A few other concepts in the back of my mind were: Plato's "Symposium" and the notion of humans being split into two, seeking their other half and becoming whole, particularly the slightly comical ideas described by Aristophanes. Carl Jung's ideas about the Animas and Animus. The Yin Yang symbol. There is also the notion that we are a sum of parts, bones, organs, limbs, ideas forging our sense of a unique self and identity. One viewer on here provided feedback referring to the game and Science Fantasy world of Warhammer 40,000 and some lines from its literature: "From the moment I understood the weakness of my flesh, it disgusted me. I craved the strength and certainty of steel. I aspired to the purity of the blessed machine. Your kind cling to your flesh as if it will not decay and fail you. One day the crude biomass you call a temple will wither and you will beg my kind to save you. But I am already saved. For the Machine is Immortal."- (Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus). According to wikipedia in the realm of Warhammer 40,000 "Humans fear artificial intelligence and creating or protecting an artificial intelligence (or 'abominable intelligence' ) is a capital offence (although most 'crimes' such as petty theft or adjusting machinery are also capital offences in the Imperium). This comes from the Dune novels. As in the Dune setting, the prohibition on artificial intelligence was passed after an ancient war against malevolent androids." There is an element of AI and creation of life theme to the animation, the two boards are like bones fusing and then the wool wrapping around is like some synthetic flesh from which the eyeballs somewhat grotesquely pop out. Reminds me of a scene from the movie "The Fifth Element" where the character Leeloo is re-created, woven together with strands. https://youtu.be/8-uvOpMyPgI?si=KepaHMQWRM-AjWKJ Once I get better at CGI I might revisit this theme in a different way... Other possible unconscious influences I can identify are: Pink Floyd's "The Division Bell" album cover sculptures by Storm Thorgerson. "Guernica" by Picasso with it's stark white figures.

A hand made hand, experimenting with Claymation, stop motion. #synedoche #annecyfestival @annecyfestival

Examples of work using MAYA 3D software as part of my University for the Creative Arts studies. Understanding the basics of timing, movement, modelling and lighting. My website: https://mikezef1.wixsite.com/mikonimator More sophisticated work to follow as I learn more... I did an upbeat synth track to provide a robot sci-fi feel... Regarding approaches to CGI, these lines are something to keep in mind as I continue my work: "As United Productions of America (UPA) did in the immediate post-war period with their use of reduced or limited animation to challenge the aesthetic and socio-cultural orthodoxies of the Disney output, so have independent artists in the CGI era worked to once more 'individualise' CGI environments to distinguish them from their 'professional' aesthetic." Wells, P. (2002) "Animation: genre and authorship". London: Wallflower pp.13-14

An animation project to a 'character motivation' remit, that was specifically a character with a clear motive exiting a room through a door within 30 seconds (not including titles/credits). It was a good, intense exercise, there's lots I changed along the way and much I would do differently next time! It brought into focus many of the techniques I've learnt about animation in the last 3 months. This was all done by myself including preliminary observational work, sketches, storyboards, acting out movement/expressions and responding to advice from tutors. Hand drawn sketches were then interpreted into TVPaint Animation software. I particularly enjoyed putting together the sound elements in Adobe Audition which helped emphasise the sense of timing. I enjoyed adding colour too but would approach this process very differently next time. I would also double the amount of allocated time it took me to make it.

Movement in stillness, Stillness in movement. "In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces. The month of Janu-ary is named for Janus. Janus presided over the beginning and ending of conflict, and hence war and peace." (wikipedia) The style was inspired by a book featuring sketches by Renaissance artists "Florentine Drawings of the Sixteenth Century" by Nicholas Turner. Took lines and forms from rotating a clay sculpture I'd made previously (see earlier posts). Less is more, particularly with the later part of the rotation. I kept removing distracting lines and textures to try and get a flow and consistency throughout the piece. Some of the marks worked well in single frames but maintaining the feeling throughout the animation from one frame to the next was challenging and is probably one of the distinctions between sketching and animating. It's not just about making marks but how those marks relate to previous and subsequent frames in time, like notes in a composition. How the parts contribute to the whole. This is a challenging approach and technique which I will hopefully develop further. The music was a quick after thought I cobbled together to hopefully evoke a bit of atmosphere... #renaissance #renaissanceart #sepia #renaissancesketches #renaissancedrawings #leonardodavinci #michelangelo #botticelli #ambience #animation #rotatinghead #janus #twoheadsbetterthanone #farnhamanimation #publicexhibition2024

The process of creation seemed to be a theme in this straight ahead animation, made up as I went along. You create something, let it fly, hope it connects with someone and start the next one. This was more an exploration of stop motion technique, this time in a proper studio with good lighting. Very grateful to Farnham Animation to use these facilities. Apparently this type of modelling clay is becoming a rare commodity these days.