5 portraits

Portraits for our next project. Which to choose...

Artist post- Pascal Dombis

Pascal Dombis is a digital artist living and working in Paris. He first received a degree in Engineering from Insa University in Lyon, and later became interested in using computers for producing artwork while taking a digital art class at Boston Museum School. His work is famous for reproducing simple patterns using computers and algorithms, and inputting these patterns until new and unpredictable forms emerge.

"Artisana II" (2000-2008)

Through his process and the actual images he produces, Dombis tries to create a paradox between chaos and order. Although the pattern and the rule he applies to it may be simple at the beginning, repeating it to excess results in new images that can't be predicted by the programs he uses. This is supposed to be representational of the chaos and order that coexist in today's world. 

"Right Rong" (2011)

While the message behind his work is a little high for me, I do think Dombis achieves his idea of creating something new from simple patterns and rules. A lot of his work has a symmetry to it that hints at the rules and algorithms governing his process, but at the same time the images have an energy to them that I wouldn't expect from something that is based so heavily in algorithms, math, and logic. It's an interesting application of something I wouldn't first think of crossing over with the art world.

Interviews with Dombis and information on his work were found on his website.

Art Event #1- Gabiela Bulisova's "Time Zone"

Gabriela Bulisova is a documentary photographer and multimedia artist from Washington, DC. Her work examines individuals who are underrepresented around the world and in the US. On February 20th, she visited St. Mary's to present her film "Time Zone", which was a collaborative piece made with Lashonia Etheridge-Bey. Lashonia, raised in one of the most violent parts of DC, was imprisoned for half of her life for a double murder. After being paroled December 2011, she and Gabriela worked together on "Time Zone" to document her and her family's struggles while she tried to reenter society. 

Gabriela became interested in the justice system and prison after being asked to explore the topic of "war". Having often seen the issue through a universal viewpoint, she decided to look at it on a more individual level. Seeing individuals trying to reenter society after incarceration then inspired her to document these people's struggles. Before presenting her film, she addressed the many challenges a person recently released has to face- their family may have been living years without that individual present, their home and possessions may have been taken away, and their chances of employment are minimal at best with their criminal record. With all of these odds stacked against them, the individual is at a constant "war" trying to reestablish their place in society without returning to crime. 

The movie following Lashonia presented an in-depth understanding of her struggles, and the tensions still present in her family after her imprisonment. I found Lashonia herself to also be very insightful and open about her own situation- she addressed what led to her committing her crime, although the factors of family life and environment were no excuse for her actions. She additionally said that the current system may be flawed, but individuals who have committed crimes still need some form of punishment. Gabriela clearly made a careful decision in picking her subjects for her photographs and documentaries- the stories she focuses on defy the typical stereotypes of people who have been imprisoned. The viewer is then forced to examine the people in her work as human beings, and not simply as criminals. 

Gabriela's photographs from "Time Zone" and her other work can be seen on her website.

Artist post- Emily Carroll

Emily Carroll studied animation at Sheridan College. After she graduated, she moved to Vancouver, British Columbia to work in the television animation industry. She maintains several different online galleries to showcase work inspired by video games, books, and fashion. She additionally has her own website, which has her original comics and miscellaneous illustrations.

From "Gaming Flickr Set"

"My Horns Shimmer Red" Comic

I first fell in love with her comics, which she uses to tell all sorts of stories. A few of them are strange and disjointed dream journals. Others, like Anu-Anulan and Yir's Daughter have a folktale or mythological feel to them. A good deal of them are also pretty macabre- Out of Skin ranks as one of my favorites, but can also give me a good case of the willies. 

Panel from "Out of Skin"

This aside, I think her comics are fantastic. She has a very distinct style, and the stories she tells are compelling (despite being a bit scary). Additionally, many of her comics are also done in a way that they can only be fully enjoyed by looking at them on the web. "The Three Snake Leaves" and "Margot's Room" involve pointing and clicking different parts of the comic to progress through the story. In "The Prince and the Sea", Carroll takes advantage of having to scroll through a web-page by using color to guide the viewer's eye through the page. 

The digital techniques she uses in her work are not very complicated, but I think Carroll uses them in combination with her artistic skill and storytelling very expertly. The changing panels and the interactive nature of her comics add to the stories without being overdone. They make her comics webcomics, instead of just being comics you can find on the web.

The interactive first panel of "Margot's Room"

Color Correction

In-class activity on color corrections.

First we worked on a picture of a mushroom:

Mushroom before

Mushroom after

And then we did a chicken.

Chicken before

Chicken after

Later, I did my own touch-up on a random old photograph I found on the internet*. Here is the original:

And here is the edited version:

 *I just googled "old photos". This was after googling "weird photos" and "bad photos". Don't ever do this; you stumble upon some scary things.

Collage project- "Tulip"

Following the experimental scan project, I needed to make a collage using a bunch of different scans. I thought I would make something based off of this song- I immediately thought of it when I saw the image I used to make the hair. Everything (eventually) came together after that. The original photoshop file probably has a bajillion layers because of all the cutting and pasting I did. After that, I did some additions with the brush tool to refine things a bit.

I'm not sure how well this actually fits the song. Apart from the fact that there are no actual tulips used in the image, I was told the woman looks more contemplative than drowned... but it was still fun to do.

Experimental Scans

For this assignment, I had to find unique ways to use a scanner. I started by grabbing a bunch of shiny objects around my apartment, and then tried to move them around while they were being scanned.

Bracelet

CD

CD again

Dragon pendant

My glasses... and my hand

Compact mirror cover and a bit of my fingers

Compact mirror

Scarf

Necklace

Scarf, moved differently over the scanner