Introduction
The explorations project was my opportunity to explore something new and unique. In all three classes, I had the chance to explore a topic or subject that I was unfamiliar with but curious to learn more about. Many of the productions in this unit differ greatly from my previous works as a result.
Lyrical Essay
In English, I wrote what is called a “Lyrical Essay” which combines the non-fiction essay style with poetry. In reality, it could be anything that the author wants it to be, which is what makes it so unique to each individual person.
I knew that I wanted to make something informative yet mysterious in nature, which is why I chose to write about liminal spaces. These are places such as train stations, airports, even hallways that are void of people, often invoking senses of fear, nostalgia, or familiarity.
The process did not take long–once I had found my sources and drafted the 3 page piece, it was essentially done.
You can view the lyrical essay here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/14bnoTXkry15nF5JbQWShurFgHeoJED_AVP6Qd_QJknA/edit
Explorations Production
The main focus of the explorations unit was the digital production. This did not have to necessarily be an Animation project (since i am an Animation student) but rather any form of art that demonstrates artistic growth and learning. With that being said, I decided that I wanted to create a 3D render using the program Blender. I had minimal experience with Blender so I thought this would be a great opportunity to get a head start with 3D modeling for next year. Specifically, I modeled a modern house from an isometric perspective (where all 3 dimensions are equally visible)
To begin the project, I first did some research on YouTube to act as a starting base that I could work off of. Eventually, I came across a tutorial that looked like what I had in mind–isometric, minimal, but aesthetic. Some elements of my house were pulled from the tutorial but the overall design was my unique idea.
After the research phase was done, I opened Blender and began modeling the house, referencing the tutorial for certain parts. I mainly used the transform (translate, rotate, scale) functions and the extrude tool. I also used the array and bevel modifiers extensively to repeat objects (like the planks) and add a smooth finish to the model. This was the longest and most tedious part of the project as mostly everything was modeled from scratch.
Once the modeling phase was done, I moved on to adding materials. I did not have much experience with this compared to modeling, but it wasn’t that bad in the end. Creating materials was very simple for the most part, except when it came to the glass and water. These required the use of shader graphs which involved connecting various nodes together to produce a realistic reflective surface. I mostly followed the tutorial for these materials and it worked out in the end.
The final step was lighting. This was a very short phase, as I only tweaked some small things about the sun such as angle, size, and position. Additionally, I added some area lights in the bottom floor to light it up and give it an orange glow.
I then rendered the product out and put it into Photoshop for some final tweaks. I utilized the Camera Raw Filter to change certain values such as exposure, hue, brightness, and other qualities. Finally, I added a colored background behind the house to finish it off.
The final product is shown below:
I thoroughly enjoyed making this render and I feel that my skills have leveled up once more as I now know some basic 3D modeling and texturing. I am glad I chose to learn Blender for my Explorations project and I hope to continue to improve upon my skills as a 3D artist next year.
Experimental Music
I was also challenged to produce a song using virtual instruments. For this project, I decided to use Logic Pro X (instead of Pro Tools) because I was familiar with it and the workflow would be a lot faster. The style I went for in my composition was very energetic and upbeat, similar to what I listened to when I was younger. It can best be described as a combination of melodic dubstep and future bass. I pulled inspiration from the artist Virtual Riot, especially with the chord progression.
I am satisfied with the piece I produced for this project, although I know I could have done a lot more if I had more time. For example, the drops are very short because I didn’t know what to do for the b sections. However, given it was made in a few days, I’d say it is passable.