because all media are new12-minute read When we mean to build, We first survey the plot, then draw the model … This is not a software manual Now, no one questions that digital modeling, rendering, and animation depend on practical knowledge of software. When starting a class in digital modeling, students’ first assumption is that they are there to… read more »
16-minute read Puppets The movements of animals may be compared with those of automatic puppets, which are set going on the occasion of a tiny movement; the levers are released, and strike the twisted strings against one another; or with the toy wagon. For the child mounts on it and moves it straight forward, and… read more »
25-minute read, but video content doubles engagement Introduction The fine arts have “traditionally” been divided into painting, sculpture, and architecture. But these classifications are the exception in the long span of history. After the development of easel painting in the Renaissance, the L‘Ecole des Beaux-Arts (School of Fine Arts) in France codified these categories as a curriculum… read more »
15-minute read Light and material Still or single-frame rendering treats the output from the program much like a still photograph. If you’ve ever set yourself up for a photo shoot, you know several things already about setting this up in modeling software. The amount and direction of light, control of the background, and where you place your camera… read more »
30-minute read Light and material … all material in nature — it being, as I said before, the mountains and the streams and the air and we — are made of light which has been spent. And this crumpled mass called material casts a shadow. And the shadow belongs to light. So light is really… read more »
17-minute read Modeling software offers categorically distinct bases for modeling: Polygons (sometimes known as Polys) and NURBS (which, if you’re curious, stands for Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines — a purely algorithmic term you’ll never have to remember). Maya includes a special modification of these called Subdivision Surfaces (or Subdivs for short). Many paths to (almost) the same… read more »
18-minute read The Idea of a Model: Forms and Primitives Picasso’s “art is the lie that makes us realize the truth” statement is based on a fairly ancient idea. Making art, we have argued elsewhere, is fundamentally an act of modeling. Merriam-Webster defines modeling as an act of designing or imitating forms, an act of shaping,… read more »
40-minute read Digital modeling can be thought of as a visual language. In that capacity, it functions in the same manner as any traditional art form. As with other media, modeling can be used for narrative, expressive, or purely formal purposes. So we’re covering what appears to be an intimidating boatload of visual art theory… read more »