Emily Brooks @emilybrooksart - Tumblr Blog

Started designing pages for my Srendi Vashtar zine and of course wanted to begin with the easiest.

Sprinkling nutmeg in the ritual scene.

Sredni Vashtar Poster

For my poster I wanted to show the intermingling themes of reality and fantasy. To create this effect I used collage, weaving two images together (one of a ferret, one of a shrine) to mimic storytelling. I used red and yellow as they are often used in shrines; also we used them in our rendition of the play through lighting and props.

Christmas Card Design

Performance Project - Sredni Vashtar by H.H.Munro

This new project has had a great start, here are some process images of the set design team making a mini staging set. I felt like this was a very important stage in the design process, because due to it we are all visually on the same page. This makes it easier when discussing ideas - we can address the set and go from there.

Our team work has been progressing well and we have begun to allocate roles, I am focusing on the domestic interior - it’s an area that hasn’t had a lot of interest. However, this sets the scene for who Mrs DeRopp as a character is, she would as a Victorian lady been classed by the way she presented her household. As we know she already has maids so it’s clear that she is fairly middle class, therefore you would expect her house to represent that. Yet, I’m considering how to make her respectability deteriorate through the look and feel of the interior.

For instance, how would a stack of dirty plates on the kitchen table make her appear to the audience? Can she not control her staff? Is she a messy, unorganised person? Or do the staff fear her enough to make every inch of the house spotlessly clean. This is something to consider while making props.

The Desert - Final Video and Crit

This was the video which I showed at the crit, it was well received - I discussed some of the issues I had with filming and editing. For instance, I planned to do a few long shots however due to how small my set was I couldn’t pan out enough as it would show the ends of my set. Overall, as I was filming it became clear that I had spent so much time on the puppet but had let myself down on the set. This however did make me become more creative with the filming and editing which I enjoyed.

To overcome the lack of long shots we discussed using a green screen app which would give the appearance of a vast desert. I also mentioned how I was looking forward to making some GIFs from the video.

Despite feeling it was short enough, when re-watching it I felt like it rambled a bit. I feel like a few more quick shots would speed it up and make the story flow better.

#Vimeo #stopanimation #puppetry

The Making Of

Here, is the puppet almost finished. Originally, I planned to use cotton wool as the body, but was concerned that it would look to cloud like. This was an effect I wasn’t looking for, I wanted something soft but not fluffy - so I turned to wool. I feel like it gave the look I was going for and also covered the polystyrene ball really well. I added arms and legs after this.

‘Narratives of the Unconscious’

A couple of sketchbook pages.

Puppetry exhibition at Hove Museum

I visited Hove Museum to specifically look at their puppets and hopefully give me some inspiration into the making of my own puppet for ‘Narratives of the Unconscious’. It really was worth the visit and gave me some insights into my project.

Firstly, I was struggling with the idea of how to ‘animate’ the face of my puppet with changeable expressions. I quickly realised while walking through the exhibition that puppets faces don’t really move (duh). This was an obvious point which I had forgotten, that my puppet’s emotional capability will be judged on how successful their body language is. Combined with my own camera angles, editing and use of sound. Therefore, I will be focusing on making the puppet capable of movement - rather than just emotional intensity of the face.

I am going to utilise my GIF making skills to substitute for the lack of facial movement, possible doing close ups where the face will be reconstructed with clay and formed into a new emotion.

Also, I was interested in the use of set design, as this will apply in the Performance Project and this one. I was surprised to learn that a lot can be done with a little set - as it’s fairly easy to set the scene for the audience, as the main focus is on the character itself.

#personal

Puppetry exhibition at Hove Museum

Optical illusions and shadow puppets. To be able to interact with these pieces gave them much more relevance and gravitas, in relation to their importance in the birth of cinema. It also reminded me of our 360 video workshop, the concept that movement occurs around one immovable point.

#personal

Trip to The Tate - ‘Red Star Over Russia’ exhibition.

This exhibition wasn’t something I would usually visit, however I’m really glad that I did. My knowledge on political and propaganda art is sparse and this was a good visual education - I also learnt some things that I would be interested in for my own work.

Image 1 USSR in Construction Issue 7-8, 11-12.

This collection of magazine/spreads utilises a sense of contrast which I find interesting and would like to apply to my own book making/designing. In the top right image, the left spread of military in ordered lines contrasts the natural free-form pattern of flowers of the right. This technique presents a visual metaphor between pages which I think communicates how regime is unnatural amongst other connotations.

Image 4 Concertina Book

This book consisted of photo-manipulation, montage and collage. While being simple in design it highlighted how well the form of book was chosen. The concertina style really compliments the sprawl of black and white imagery.

Image 5 Fedor Antonov 1904-1994. Let’s Rebuild Stalingrad! (TASS window poster No. 698) 1943 Stencil of paper.

This hand stencilled was particularly impressive as many peopled worked on them, the synchronicity between them is clear on the poster. I was drawn mainly to the face, it was emotive and telling while the cool blues indicate the cold and desolation.

Image 6-7

On closer inspection you could see that he poster was back with pages of Russian writing (possibly newspaper) this is most likely to help it keep its structure. But, it was one of those happy accidents making it seem like there was something behind the face of the poster literally and metaphorically.

#personal

Heroes and Villains

Square format poster.

#heroes and villains

Heroes and Villains

3/3 of my trio.

#heroes and villains

Heroes and Villains

2/3 of my trio.

#heroes and villains

Heroes and Villains

1/3 of my trio.

#heroes and villains

Quick edit of sketchbook page over monoprint.

#heroes and villains

Unedited scans from monoprinting yesterday, the text is taken from a book called Cheap amusements: working women and leisure in turn-of-the-century New York - this book has been valuable in my understanding of 1940s Coney Island. I chose one quote “Clams, Hot Corn and Chowder” on account of its banality; however, many patrons would remember Coney Island from its food.

While the other quote “Linear visual study in American class structure”, is referring to the geography of Coney Island. On one end of the boardwalk were cheaper amusements and was largely associated with “miscreants”, late night dance halls and promiscuity. As you moved across the board walk the tone was elevated from the ‘Steeplechase’, ‘Luna Park’ to the more middle class ‘Dreamland’ (which interestingly was the least popular out of the three). Giving the boardwalk a “linear visual study” of class.

I really enjoy the look of the monoprints, I focused on the colour pink while utilising overprinting. I used newsprint to create a used and mottled effect to the paper. It also picks up any little mistake in the inking which I wanted. I used stencils to create them, however I discovered that when inking over computer printed ink that it holds the shape - this creates a ghosting effect over the letters which weren’t cut out. (This can be seen in image 2,3,4)

#heroes and villains

A confusing scanner fault.

#heroes and villains

Trending Blogs

Recently Viewed Blogs

Emily Brooks