Monday, August 30, 2010

Solo Play

Here, I am doing the one thing that gave me great joy a long, LONG time ago. It was alot more difficult than I remember, but still extremely fun.






Group Play





I decided to get together with a couple of friends to play video games. Like always, the fun came from the intense competition that came from pitting our skills against each other. This kind of play was a huge part of my childhood. Coming from a competitive family, even video games could cause intense rivalry.


My Favorite Games

Classic Games:

Checkers
Chess
Sorry
Scrabble
Operation
Connect Four
Taboo
Uno

The reason why the majority of these games are favorites of mine is because they require strategy. I love playing games that put your wits to the test. Checker, chess, and Connect Four requires you to think about every move you and your opponent makes. There is a rush to be had when trying to out-strategize someone. With games like Scrabble, it challenges your vocabulary skills. A very educational game, in my opinion. All in all, I love games that employs my intellect.


Video Games:

Mass Effect
Legend of Dragoon
Mario series
Ghost Recon/any tactical military game
Max Payne
Tetris
Donkey Kong series
Star Fox
Pokemon

Most video games I love speaks to many things that I find interesting. Mass Effect, Legend of Dragoon, Pokemon, etc. are all fantasy/ scifi games that offers a deeply intellectual story with a vast universe to explore. The reason why I love video games in general is because they allow me to go on adventures and be part of a fantastic world from beginning to end.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Play History

Thinking back on my childhood, I fondly remember the days where my activities were often dictated by my imagination. I was in love with playing, and doing so made the day for me. Though much of my play time was by myself, it never really made a difference in the amount of fun I would have. As I stated earlier, my imagination would often lead on adventures. In this stage of innocence, I would try to replicate what I see my favorite heroes do on television or become curious as to where and how they do the things they do. So needless to say, I would don a cape and try to fly or create swords out of legos to battle monsters. Often times my curiosity would end in a messy or potentially unpleasant outcome, such as putting an egg or a bag of chips in the microwave. Looking back on the things I did as a child, it was all pretty silly. I would not dare do half the things I did when I was younger. But I see this as mirroring my art in a sense that the best of times came from when I had no obligations or standards to guide me, only the love of what I am doing.
Going to art school I completely respect and cherish all that I learned. On the other hand, I felt a loss of passion and creativity simply because none of my creation was born out of personal interest but out of the need to get a grade. Art is indeed subjective. But instead of viewing the artwork on the technical aspect of it, the work has to conform to the tastes and sensibilities of the teacher. As an artist, one's work should not be stifled by anyone else's approval or lack thereof. The lot of artists, including myself, have fallen victim to this. I think that is why I am so passionate about my BFA show this year. I am doing a project because I think it is fun. I am not creating an artwork to touch a person's soul or to provide commentary on our crumbling society, but because I just find the subject matter very interesting.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Ideas for the Fall

The primary idea I have for Dynamic Imaging would be a journey. On this journey one would make his or her way from the world of the physical to that of the metaphysical. This particular idea would go towards my BFA project. The animation I am currently working on has a scene in which the hero must travel to the realm of the spirits to save a little girl's soul from being devoured.


My second idea is more steeped in mythology. I would like to bring to fruition a world unlike our own. This world would be an amalgamation of fantastical Greek lore and technological advancement. In this short animation, I would like to give the audience a glimpse of a world whose existence mirrors that of Metropolis. This is a world where the Gods live in highly advanced buildings on the upper level of the city while mere mortals try to survive on the "blue collar" level. Of course, those who perish end up in the slums.

Another idea just came to me.......Hide and Seek of DEATH!!! In a dense city, an unknown number of individuals play a secret game. A game that involves players trying to make back to base before they are it. Of course, "it" means death.

Speaking of the world, I also want to show the evolution of life. Not life as we know it, but one full of wondrous mysticism and fictional characters of different cultures and myths.