things-for-uni

[things-for-uni]

tutorial - set up and recording internal audio using BlackHole and Audacity

[things-for-uni]

27.

like this! think the intertwining could be clearer - sort of reads like bouncing

but sparks are a lot more legible, was definitely worth harsher editing/ collaging approach.

can lead into diptych drifting apart format now if needed.

[things-for-uni]

25.

more legible, maybe need to actually manipulate/cut source photo to make this fully readable?

nice loop though, movement is more obvious when played as a loop - maybe just need to allow for time to get your eye in? and be extra clear when that isn't possible?

is this a massive waste of time? need to plan so can make sections more deliberately and save time.

[things-for-uni]

24.

same problem as previous experiment, sparks not tracking, need to make source images darker

also, easier to see movement when seen from further away - case for frame in frame animation? or just make action smaller?

[things-for-uni]

23.

sparks track a little better now but is pretty marginal - maybe need better source images? or need to edit more harshly?

introductory shot? one spark on own then meets/reunites with the other?

[things-for-uni]

22.

i like the idea - but eye can't track the sparks - too much else going on.

even if image looks empty, cumulative effect of the other sparks adds up when animated together

[things-for-uni]

20.

useful flare boil - not really giving anything though?? I like the effect and I think it's an interesting idea as a test but where would I really use it in the animation?

consider creating rotating flare? line up the split lens flare bits and see if that would look cool?

but again, what for - slightly animating for the sake of it - need more purpose in my experiments

[things-for-uni]

18.

I enjoy this!

consider is is too rapid? particularly at the beginning? definitely too rapid - maybe throughout the whole thing. kind of hard to tell pace because I know what I'm looking at and what I'm expecting versus audience who won't. don't want it to flash past so quickly that it doesn't make any sense.

maybe look at kepko and forever to see what sort of pace they use for that?

also, pan from stars to tree and then begin zoom? or just keep like this...

[things-for-uni]

15.

really like this - starting to use photographs to animate with rather than to just create rattling scrolling ones

prefer slower rate - how to combine with faster rate in a way that doesn't feel jerky?

easy end point - is this the full start point for the whole thing?

consider making looping animation?

consider reversing this - panning from stars into trees and then through into rattling flare zoom sequence

really like colour - definitely keep animation in colour

[things-for-uni]

14.

crop definitely more satisfying - immersed more in the image

do i lose nostalgia idea? - don't see it as a photograph in the same way as when frame in frame.

how to link full frame animation with frame in frame animation?

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13.

I like this sequence! - also have created a useful start, middle, and end point to cut into and link to

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12.

like moving through thicket - helps tie images together and emphasises zoom more than just changing scale of dot

i like the black and white? but maybe not for this project :(

explore this approach - create links between photo sequences, not just boils?

[things-for-uni]

10.

scrolling through good, quite like rapid frames - especially when it latches onto a sequence

end flare doesn't shrink enough to be worth doing. try holding on big flare for longer instead?

colour works well - is this worth printing and scanning and animating again? will it lose flash?

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04 - Charlotte Ager

Throughout Charlotte Ager’s talk, the overarching focus of her work seemed to be trying to figure out a visual language that communicated effectively for her. It was really interesting to see her switch between drawings which experimented with shape and form using only line, or atmosphere and colour using tone. I think there’s definitely something to be said for splitting up the different elements of an image to allow you to interrogate them more thoroughly - it’s something I now want to give a go in my own work.

Interestingly, while I liked the finished work Charlotte presented in her talk, it was the work in her sketchbooks that she let us explore afterwards that caught my attention the most. I’ve included below two of my favourite pictures from these sketchbooks. I love the building of layers of texture in both images, as well as the use of colour, smudging, and tone to create a dreamlike scene. They’ve both made me want to explore using chalks more, a medium I seem to keep forgetting about for some reason. These drawings just go to show that sometimes work without the pressure to be ‘finished’ or presented in any way can be the most interesting.

(two photos I took of pages from Charlotte’s sketchbook)

(my notes from the talk)

(top pictures credit to Charlotte Ager (@charlotte.ager on Instagram) bottom picture is mine)

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03 - Oliver Macdonald Oulds

The thing that stuck out immediately for me at Oliver Macdonald Oulds’ talk was his use of colour in his work. He draws colour out of the greyest scenes - the wintry park round the corner from the bookshop where he works, for example. The way Oliver emphasises the colours which already exist within a landscape breathes life into the scenes he creates, giving warmth and feeling to his work. This was most clear in his work from memory, like the drawing below. It makes sense in a way to use colours both detached and linked to reality when drawing a memory which is itself based in reality but also ephemeral and intangible. Having been introduced to the idea of working from memory, I’m keen to give it a go myself as a way of capturing my own experiences that I didn’t think to record at the time.

As well as his approach to colour, Oliver’s approach to drawing from observation, particularly interacting with his subjects, stuck with me. He told us of how during his residency in Jamaica he would use drawing as a means to get to know people, which in turn would inform his drawings of them. One of my favourite examples of this was his portrait of the Trevor Scott, a fisherman he met whittling down canes for traps. As he described it the process of making the drawing seemed more collaborative - they both talked as they worked, and the distinction between observed and observer didn’t seem so obvious anymore. One of the best bits about the talk was that Oliver had a story about everyone he had drawn - you felt he got to know his subjects and as a result, his drawings feel like a celebration of the people in them.

(drawing from memory of the view from the kitchen of Oliver’s old flat)

“Trevor Scott, the fisherman, cutting canes to make traps for the new fishing season. He told me that being on the water was only a small part of his job as a fisherman. Jamaica, 2019.” - Oliver Macdonad Oulds

(my notes from the talk)

(top two images credit to Oliver Macdonald Oulds (@olliemacdonaldoulds on Instagram), other image is mine)

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02 - Laura Fitton

Having done some really challenging but exciting workshops with Laura Fitton during the ‘Human Groups’ project it was really cool to see her own practice in her talk.

To be honest, this talk was a bit of a revelation for me. Before seeing Laura’s work I had never really properly come across reportage illustration - I had always seen illustration as something created after the fact rather than in the moment at the scene. I particularly liked Laura’s documents of protests as they demonstrate best the way she actively puts herself in the path of the news in order to capture it. The sketches I’ve included (2nd down) are just that - sketches, but their immediacy is exciting: they make you feel like she’s just managed to snap up a moment, unique to her eyes, and get it down on paper, in a way that seems more personal than a photograph.

Laura’s work revealed to me the potential of illustration as a form of journalism - the perfect excuse to get out into the thick of things and unusual places. Another example of this that she showed us during her talk was her trip to a massive power plant in Hartlepool (top picture) - somewhere you’d never normally get access to. Because of this her illustrations are fascinating - they draw attention to places and people often just out of range for the searchlight of traditional media.

I was also really inspired by Laura’s work for sort of selfish-sounding reason: I really liked how she seemed to remember her experiences with a depth and richness which must’ve got there by the way she processes what she sees through drawing. I think the act of drawing forces you to observe and be present in your own life, making your days seem fuller and the world around you more interesting. I loved this Tuesday talk because Laura showed how illustration and reportage can be a means to explore and enjoy the world, capture it, and then communicate it back to everyone who didn’t get to catch that moment.

(sketches of a power plant in Hartlepool)

(sketches from a protest)

(my notes from the talk)

(top two images credit to Laura Fitton, bottom picture is mine)

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01 - Joey Yu

In her talk, Joey Yu took us through her work, showing her progress from her work at Kingston to her most recent projects as a freelance illustrator. She told the story behind each piece she showed, pin-pointing where she was in developing her practice at the time; listening to her you really got a sense of how she built on her skills from one image to another. As well as her illustration, Joey showed some examples of live drawings she did (rolling portraits of people at parties or events (which I didn’t even know was a thing but looked awesome and is definitely something I would like to try)) as well as some of her animation. It was interesting to see how her practice translated from static to moving images, simplifying, but still retaining its character.

Alongside all this, Joey wove in some of the key lessons she’d learnt over the years. A couple of my favourites were:

- Focus on the subjects that interest you and people will come to you. You have the power to shape your own practice

- ‘tend to your creativity like a gardener’; mistakes happen, but sometimes weeds are beautiful; give your plants space and time to grow, don’t burn out

and, in response to the question ‘what advice would you give yourself going into your first year at Kingston?’

- Use the resources available to you - the facilities, yes, but most importantly your peers; collaborate as much as possible and use all the creative brains around you to expand your own.

Using the image below as an example, Joey also offered some insight into how she deals with difficult situations for drawing. Rocking about on the boat wasn’t the ideal environment, so she made quick line sketches there and then as well as colour notes, which she then worked off back on dry land to create her final image.

In addition to this, Joey’s presentation was visually wonderful. Her hand-drawn titles on the slides and careful use of colour throughout just went to show how a presentation can be visually engaging and become an extension of your practice within itself.

(a drawing part from observation, part from memory)

(my notes from the talk)

(a sketch I did while sitting in my friends’ kitchen, inspired by the way Joey Yu uses observational drawing as a way of recording her own experiences)

(top image credit: Joey Yu (@itsjoeyyu on Instagram), other images are my own)