visuals

I've been doing some research into pattern and shape recognition, and while I've only scraped the surface it's provided me with a starting point for some work. What I really like about this is the light shining through the cutouts to create a new pattern on the sheet below. Combining small triangles to make a big triangle, then using that to create a new pattern with light and shadow.
I need to be careful with my use of cut-outs though as they've been done so many times before, but I really like the way they can give actual physical depth to an image. This is something I should focus on, as giving my images depth and perspective would work perfectly for AIWS....

Some more Air today, taken from Tom Penny's section in Menikmati. Apparently they put a different song to his part on the DVD release, but this is from the og VHS edition. Enjoy.

Tune - What is the look of....

Thinking about AIWS, as well as affecting your visual perception it also seems to me that it would affect your perception of reality - "Am I really seing this? Is that dog really the size of a horse?" With this in mind, I've been looking at artists, illustrators and designers who play on this. My starting point was the book Tangible, which centres on multi-media work that is a mix of 3D and 2D, flat and spatial. I can't really explain it very well so here's the blurb;

Manifesting creative visions into material objects and spaces is one of the most prominent developments in contemporary design today. Tangible documents how designers are using the stylistic means of graphic design to implement their ideas spatially to create three-dimensional designs, objects and orchestrated spaces. The examples in this book show the unprecedented use of materials and innovative ideas – graphics morph into spatial sculptures, the intangible is made visual through handmade craftsmanship, physical experiences, visual environments and staged spatial installations such as art installations, interiors and architecture as well as urban interventions.

This work is super insiring and relevant to me, as it's all about giving a 2D image depth , perspective, and scale, or on the other hand making a 3D situation 2D. Another good book for this sort of work is Lemon Poppy Seed. The work makes you question it - is it real? Which elements are flat and which are 3D?


The image above , by containerPLUS is a good example of what I'm talking about - taking something real - a book, and making it into something unreal. This also plays on issues of scale, and to a lesser extent perspective. My work normally involves working into photography, and I think this will work quite well for this project as a photograph is the closest we can get to capturing visual reality, and to then work into it and mess it around distorts that reality. Am I making sense? Not sure....

Optical Madness!

Some images and a video taken from a book I found in the library.... Basically there's a piece of acetate with patterns printed on it, which you move over other patterns... It's all very Op-Art and it makes my eyes go funny. And something classy from France.

Agreed

I sent off my Learning Agreement today, which I am really happy with. I think it offers me a lot of opportunity to really explore the subject without being too broad, and in really focusing on AIWS it gives me a really solid visual foundation for the project. My synopsis of study;

For EMP I plan to produce a body of work which will be based on quotes, excerpts, ideas, themes and concepts I come across whilst researching into visual perception, with specific reference to Alice In Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS). AIWS, also known as Todd's syndrome, is a disorienting neurological condition which affects human perception. The most prominent and often most disturbing symptom is that of altered body image: the sufferer will find that they are confused as to the size and shape of parts of (or all of) their body. The sufferer may also 'see' objects with the wrong size or shape and/or finds that perspective is incorrect. This can mean that people, cars, buildings, etc. look smaller or larger than they should be, or that distances look incorrect; for example a corridor may appear to be very long, or the ground may appear too close. (wikipedia.com)
My final illustrations and images will be presented in a context that is dictated by the direction that the project is led through extensive research, and the images themselves. For example, this context could be a book, an arts/illustration magazine, a science magazine or an exhibition in a gallery or museum.
My final outcomes will be underpinned by in-depth research, as I strongly believe that the research should determine the content and the look of the finished articles, the context they are placed in and the audience that will receive them. For the images, I intend to study texts that relate to visual perception and AIWS, and from these initial sources other writings, images or concepts will make themselves clear and new directions may be taken. For me to be able to respond to the sources accurately and in an informed way, I must understand what I’m reading so in-depth research into all aspects of perception will be an important side to my work. I will respond to relevant quotes, passages or ideas visually, taking my conclusions and findings from the work then moving on. This will result in a process-led project which will be related to the scientific themes by my methodical approach to working and the dissection of each piece of information. My outcomes will be defined by this experimental approach. Also in keeping with the subject matter, I intend to take a scientific, analytical approach to image-making by thoroughly exploring materials and content, keeping track of failures and successes along the way.
Visual perception and AIWS is a particularly interesting and inspiring subject, and one that offers me many and varied visual references. These will enable me to build a body of work to be put in my portfolio, and that will lead me into the professional worlds of illustration and design. The subject matter also offers me the creative opportunity to explore different ways of working, through ideas of scale, perspective and dimension.

In doing this project, I would like to inform and inspire people to take an interest in the subject of my work. At the same time, I would like to continue the development of my style and hone my skills and working practice by combining my main interests of art, design and science.

More Hip Hop today, classic Comm Sense with Primo.... The 6th Sense

Worms

Todays track - The Blast

Anyway on with business. I got a bit sidetracked this week, and started thinking around AIWS and into Visual Perception, and this led to how we perceive reality, which took me to Plato's Allegory of the Cave and then into how we perceive movement etc etc... Basically a big can of worms has been opened and I need to make sure I don't confuse myself with too much info. I also need to make sure I stay away from the obvious side of visual perception, i.e. optical illusions as they've all been done before and it would result in my work being quite shallow. Nevertheless, they are worth researching.


Above is my square version of the Kanizsa Triangle which is a prime example of 'unconscious inference'. This optical illusion relies on the brain making assumptions based on previous experiences, i.e. a white square is clearly visible in the picture even though there isn't one drawn.
Really interesting stuff, but a bit mind boggling so I'll let Wiki explain;

Hermann von Helmholtz is often credited with the first study of visual perception in modern times. Helmholtz examined the human eye and concluded that it was, optically, rather poor. The poor quality information gathered via the eye seemed to him to make vision impossible. He therefore concluded that vision could only be the result of some form of unconscious inferences: a matter of making assumptions and conclusions from incomplete data, based on previous experiences.

Inference requires prior experience of the world: examples of well-known assumptions, based on visual experience, are:

• light comes from above
• objects are normally not viewed from below
• faces are seen (and recognized) upright.

Anyway I think I need to just focus on AIWS, and then if any of this other visual perception research comes into the work later on then great but for now I need to just focus on one aspect and work from there.

Thinks

In order to get my personality into my work for this project I started by thinking about what and who I am, and what I like. I then flipped my thinking, and wondered what it might be like if I wasn't able to do any of these things? For example I love being in the outdoors, but if I had a condition called Agoraphobia I would be afraid of leaving the house... This led to me thinking about strange disorders and I came across this list.

I then went through the list, thinking about which disorders had the most and best opportunities to explore them visually. While quite a few of them were interesting, weird and funny there was one that instantly stood out -Alice In Wonderland Syndrome, or AIWS. From Wiki;
"Alice in Wonderland syndrome is a disorienting neurological condition which affects human perception. The most prominent and often most disturbing symptom is that of altered body image: the sufferer will find that they are confused as to the size and shape of parts of (or all of) their body." Sufferers may also see "objects with the wrong size or shape and/or finds that perspective is incorrect. This can mean that people, cars, buildings, etc. look smaller or larger than they should be, or that distances look incorrect; for example a corridor may appear to be very long, or the ground may appear too close."
This all sounds very weird, and very visual. This is perfect for me as in order to not make the mistakes I made during NP, I need to start creating imagery right from the get-go and by choosing a really visual topic I'm giving myself the best possible start...

With every blog post I'm going to try and put up a link to the tunes that I'm feeling that day, so for today we're going to Phillies finest - No Great Pretender

NP Assessment

We got some feedback on Negotiated Practice this week, and talked about our ideas for EMP - basically I need to put more of myself into my work to give it some life, and to help me get enthusiastic about what I'm doing I need to just relax and enjoy it. It was mentioned that my work for Negotiated Practice wasn't as successful as it could've been because I was thinking too far ahead, concentrating on what I'm doing when this course finishes instead of what I'm doing now, and I think this is a fair comment. I also need to think very carefully about presenting my work, and the materials that I use in my finished product, whatever that may be...
So food for thought, and some good feedback that made sense to me and that I can build on to improve my work, and my marks for this project.