Tuesday, February 7, 2012

The Impossible Feats of Stop Motion

To start with a disclaimer, the following post is written by my good-girl self.

As I started watching this animation, all I could think was 'How did this guy get away with it? Its broad daylight and he is working with graffiti that stands three-stories tall.' Although I am sure this is not what the artist hoped viewers would take away from the piece, he can rest assured that these thoughts were heavily outweighed by the emotional response that always happens whenever I view a stop motion piece.

Street art is genre in its own right because not only are the pieces unique in their images and ideas, but the surroundings of the piece work in symphony with the paintings. The textures of the surfaces, such as worn cement and brick, can give life to simple images. Often painting are done on top of each other, adding even more to the piece along with a strong sense of craftsmanship. As you will see, part of the captivation can lie in faint effect that a paint trail can leave behind; you can literally see when the character has been.

Blu is an Italian street artist who creates large-scale painting on the sides of buildings. One of his most famous pieces that has gone viral in the Age of the Internet is Muto, a stop motion animation that transforms still graffiti paintings in living creates, able to accomplishes feats impossible by man. It is evident in the character's way of transformation that the artist has a sort of fascination with surfaces and how they can make up objects. Boxes multiply into an elaborate honeycomb design, spewing out into the streets of Buenos Aires.

Blu not only uses the surface textures of these South American buildings, but he really integrates the 3D environment when the character interacts with paper. Biting and tearing at the pieces, it is hard to not imagine how all of these was accomplished. Taken still by still, the seven minute and forty second long piece would have taken months to complete.

SIDE BAR: These two were probably my favorite, and deserve to be shared.







No comments:

Post a Comment