Image Essay # 12

For this image essay, I will talk about dynamics. For an image to be dynamic, it has to be energetic, vigorous, and forceful; creating or suggesting change or motion. Dynamic images usually make the works more interesting to look at. An image with some curvilinear shapes could also make it more dynamic because the curvilinear shapes would cause the viewer’s eyes to change direction easily. The change in motion will make the eyes move around the image more and that is good to keep a good rhythm throughout the work so the eye does not stay focused at just one particular point. In the image that I am showing, there seems to be a lot of motion that keeps the eyes moving around. The circular shapes create the movement. Another thing that the image shows is the very colorful colors used in the image. There is a good mix of bright colors from the middle going towards the right hand side and some darker colors on the left hand side. I think the colors too help move the viewer’s eyes around the image. The combination of the color and the curves makes the image seem very energetic and forceful, which is good for being a dynamic piece.

Image Essay # 11

For this image essay, I will talk about figure. A figure is the primary or positive shape in a design; a shape, which is noticeably separated from the surrounding ground, or negative shape. The figure is the dominant, advancing shape in a figure ground relationship. In the image that I am showing, the figure is the gentleman that is smoking a cigarette in a bar type environment. The man is the most dominant object in the image; the other subordinate objects are the cigarette and the glass of wine or juice sitting on top of the table. The figure is easily separated from the background by the smoke towards the top of the image and in shoulder region of the man, there seems to be a yellow glow that separated him from merging in with the background of the room. The figure of the man’s hands is separated from the counter top by using shadows to keep it from also merging in with the table. The background seems to have a blue tone to it and that is a little darker that the skin tone of the man and that also makes it easier to distinguish him from the background.

Image Essay # 10

For this image essay, I will talk about texture. Texture is the surface quality of a two dimensional shape or a three dimensional volume. Everything that we see tends to have a texture on it. Some objects may be simple and have just one texture and some other objects may be a little more complex and have more than just one texture. Texture is not only something to look at, but we can feel texture and how different each texture may feel from one to another. In my image that I am showing, there only seems to be two different types of textures. In the image, it shows an up close shot of an elephant’s head area. The textures that I see are the skin of the elephant, which we can see has a little variety of color. The other texture that I see on the elephant is the wrinkles all over the face of it, and mainly near the mouth area and the trunk of the elephant. There can be dominance with texture as well. In this image, it seems as though the wrinkles may be more dominant than that of the skin. Also, from the image it may seem like the texture of the wrinkles and the skin may have a feeling of being rough.

Image Essay # 9

For this image essay, I will talk about symmetrical balance. Symmetrical balance is a form of balance that is created when shapes are mirrored on either side of an axis, as in a composition that is vertically divided down the center. Images that contain symmetrical balance is easy to spot because of the fact that an image is mirrored. It would be easy to see if something is not right. Anything not the same on one side would throw off the balance of the image of symmetry. In the image that I am showing, the image seems to be of a fish and bubbles and some other objects being mirrored in a vertical way. The left and right side are similar, but they are just flipped. The image also contains figure ground reversal, where on the left hand side there is a black fish on the white background and on the right hand side there is a white fish on a black background. The figure ground reversal makes the symmetrical balance a little easier to see. It also makes the image a bit more interesting to look at. An image with symmetrical balance has to have both sides similar to each other or else it will not look right.

Image Essay # 8

For this image essay, I will talk about contrast. Contrast is the degree of difference between compositional parts or between one image and another. Contrast is created when two or more forces operate in opposition. High contrast tends to be eye catching, and is often used to create dynamic, highly readable images. Contrast can change an image dramatically. If an image were to have high contrast, it can be used to heighten a dramatic scene. In the image that I am showing, there is a separation with the sky. The high contrast area from the center down creates sort of a dark feeling. The low contrast on the top blue sky makes the feeling completely different. It seems happy and light on the top, while the bottom is dark and gloomy. The high contrast part of the image seems to catch the viewer’s eyes more so than the low contrast. The high contrast area seems to make the eyes wander around in that area to see if they can make anything out, and in the image it is a little difficult to see what the silhouettes are exactly. Having high and low contrast can make an image more dynamic and make it better for the viewer to look at.

Image Essay # 7

For this image essay, I will talk about figure ground reversal. Figure ground reversal is an arrangement in which positive and negative shapes alternatively command attention. It is also known as positive and negative interchange. We have talked about this in one of our assignments where we had to choose a word and make the figure ground reversal in the image. Most images that have figure ground reversal are in black and white, to show the positive and negative colors. An artist by the name of M.C. Escher does a few works that contain figure ground reversal. The image that I am showing is one of his works. In the image, we see black and white lines across the top, bottom, and sides with the center containing no stripping. The top half of the image is white and the bottom image is black. In the top white half, the artist creates his bird shapes using black and the birds are also going, from top to bottom, more detailed to less detailed. In the bottom half of the image, Escher creates his fish shapes using white, since the background is already black. The fish are, from top to bottom, going from less detailed to more detailed, which is opposite from the top.

Image Essay # 6

For this image essay, I will talk about curvilinear shapes. A curvilinear shape is a shape whose contour is dominated by curves and flowing lines. Images with shapes that contain the curves create a more dynamic image. The curves in the shapes tend to create motion or a change in the motion if the viewer follows the curved lines. Having the curves creates a rhythm for the viewer to follow. In the image I am showing, the whole center of focus of the piece is the white shape that is full of curves. The white piece creates a very dynamic flow, and the viewer’s eyes tend to follow the line as it curves into different directions. It creates almost a maze type of effect, and the viewer would most likely try to find the beginning of the image and try to follow it around to see if there is an end. The curvilinear shapes keep the viewer’s eyes moving at all times which is a good thing to do. The artist would not want the viewer’s eyes to stay in one place and not notice the rest of the image. It also creates layers and shadows are apparent, and that gives it a good indication of depth.

Image Essay # 5

For this image essay, I will talk about rhythm. Rhythm in an image is very important. Rhythm is the movement or variation characterized by the regular recurrence and the patterned, recurring alternations of contrasting elements. An image that has a good rhythm gives the viewer’s eyes to move around the image and look around. A person creating a good art piece would not want their viewer’s eyes to stay in one spot, unless that is the intent. The viewer’s eyes must make its way around the image to be able to see what the artist is doing. In my image that I found, there is a lot of circular motion that moves the viewer’s eyes around. It seems to start from the lower right hand side of the image and moves toward the top left and then over to the smaller circles on the top right. In the beginning there are also two rectangular shapes that help the eye move towards the top left side of the image. Even if that is not the way everyone sees the movement, the circular shapes create sort of an explosive feel. That makes the viewer’s eyes to move around the image instead of just staying in one particular area.

Blog Entry # 5

For this blog assignment, we are to blog about an artist in our major. From what I had to choose, I chose Dave McKean.

1. Dave McKean has contributed a lot for digital arts by showing off different styles of images for a lot of mainstream things which includes CD covers, book covers, graphic novels, and also short comics.

2.Dave has illustrated a lot of different comics and other forms of media. The fact that he uses a lot of different forms of media makes him stand out. He does paintings, line-art, photography, digital manipulation, and typography. He uses his many talents to make himself known, and to put it oout in the publice for people to see.

3.What impresses me the most about this artist is even though he failed to find work as a comic artist, he met a few people and started to do work with them and became popular. He got something out of failing and that is good to see. Failing is not always a bad thing, it just opens up more oportunities. I also like some of his works he did for the comic book series called "The Dreaming." A lot of his works seem surreal and that gives it a freaky but interesting feel to the works.

4. In one of his works for the comic book "The Dreaming," he had an image with a face with buildings on top and bottom. The face seems to be the most dominant object in the image. It is the biggest and it is easilty distinguished. From the face he seems to have made some skyscrapers rise up from the top of the head and that sort of makes the buildings subordinate to the face. In another work of his from his tarot series, he had one titled "Space" and the human figure is the most dominant object and it looks as thought it is in torment and stressed. The form is dominant compared to the little human figure hanging on the side and also the birds in the sky.

5. In most of Dave's works he seems to manipulate the human forms. In some images there is a normal head, but the body that is attatched is manipulated and sometimes distorted to make the image more interesting.

6. After seeing some of his works, I think that he works with a lot of abstract ideas. I like working more with abstract ideas as well and it seems that most of the digital manipulations he does on his works make it very interesting. Also, the fact that a lot of mainstream media use his works makes it even more interesting.

Image Essay # 4

For this image essay, I will talk about focal point. The focal point of an image is a singular point or area of points that attract the most attention; having the most visual weight in a composition. The focal point draws the viewer’s eye to the object or image that the person who is creating the image has created. In the image that I have found, the focal point of the image is pretty easy to find. The focal point is pretty much directly in the center of the image. The work seems to be a painting and the object in the center is sphere shaped and seems to be on to of whatever is in the background of the image. The background seems to be composed of brush strokes of different colors. The colors that are mainly used in the image are orange, yellow, green, and black. All of the colors in the background used in the brush strokes seem to merge into the center of the image. That is exactly where the sphere is and the brush strokes help move the viewer’s eyes to the center. The flow of the brush strokes helps a great deal to get the viewer to the center of the image.

Image Essay # 3

For this image essay, I will talk about definition. We had the word definition come up a lot during different lectures and assignments. Definition is the degree to a shape is distinguished from both the ground area and from other shapes within the design. Clearly defined shapes tend to advance while blurred shapes tend to recede. In the image shown, there is a background that is mostly green with some yellows and white and in the foreground there is a massive object that is pink. The pink object has some shapes that look like eggs. The egg shaped objects look somewhat metallic and gives off a reflection of the background and of other parts of the object that is below. The definition used to define the separate objects is clearly used well. The use of the reflection of different things off the egg shaped object and shadows separate the object from the background. The image also shows that the egg shaped objects in the front are crisper and is more defines. The egg shaped objects toward the back seem to recede into the background and tends to blur a bit with the background, which makes this image a pretty good representation of definition.

Image Essay # 2

This week, we have talked about broken pattern. Broken pattern is a point at which a perceptual structure of a pattern is broken, then becoming an area of focus. Broken pattern is also a part of the six principles of Gestalt. Having repetition and broken repetition helps a composition flow better. In the image that I am showing, it has a building with several windows. All of the windows are pretty much the same. The eleven windows all have glass around them and in the center there is a square hole that does not contain glass. The one exceptional window, which breaks the pattern of the glassed windows, contains no glass and is partly covered up by a cardboard or wood looking board. Having a broken pattern from the glassless window makes that the area of focus. The viewer tends to shift their focus to the window without the glass because it is different from the rest of the windows. When a viewer sees something different from the rest of the image, they will usually turn their focus in that direction. That can be very useful for the person who is trying to show someone what they want the viewer to look at.