Pen Tool Assignment

by Rose Davidson

Portraits

A collection of friends, the famous, and those who are never forgotten.

Georg Nees

     Georg Nees was born in Nuremberg, Germany in 1926.  He began programming computers in the late 1950s, and was interested in particular how computer programs and algorithms could create art.  Nees wrote programs that would be used by a flat-bed pen plotter that could take the algorithms and draw out his ideas.  He was one of three artists (known collectively as the 3Ns) --Nees, Frieder Nake, and A. Michael Noll -- to start programming art using a computer, and all 3Ns debuted their works in three small art shows in 1965.  Nees was the first of the three, thus he became the first person to publicly exhibit his digital art in an art show.  

"Schotter" by Georg Nees

     In one of Nees' works, "Schotter", visually expresses order and sequence gradually being broken down into chaos and disarray.  To explain it shortly, Nees created this work by telling the program how many rows and columns there are, how many squares go into each row, and how severe the squares in each row are randomly angled.

"Sculpture" by Georg Nees

     In another work, "Sculpture”, Nees created the first computer-programmed sculpture.  He was able to program the sequence and run it through a Stochastic Script Machine.  In his program, Nees outlined the dimensions of each rectangle and it's placement in the sculpture, as well as the overall dimensions of the sculpture itself.

     I believe that Nees' art is interesting because he took the idea of creativity and limited it to the bounds of computer science, where randomness is actually pseudorandom and where objects must be precisely placed.  Initially, his art, along with most other digital art, was not seen as such because he did not draw his work directly by hand.  However, as the definition of art began to expand as modern artists became increasingly innovative.  Without his contributions, the definition of art would not be the same as it is today.

Celebrity Mashup

Nicolas Cage and Adrien Brody

To create this glorious celebrity mashup, a combination of Photoshop tools were used. I used the spot healing brush tool, the healing brush tool, and the blur tool to smooth out Nic's skin. To add Nic's third eye, I used the patch tool on both sides eyes. I also lightened up the jaw with the dodge tool to add Adrien's mouth and used the burn tool around Adrien's eyebrows to add depth. I changed Nic's third eye color with the color replacement tool and finally added Adrien's hair using Free-Transform. Voila!

Photoshop Image Adjustments

Before

After

This is an old family photo showing me (in the pink!), my older sister, and three of my younger cousins. The water and the bright sun added tons of overexposure and hid some details, so I adjusted these using levels and the shadows/highlights window. I also brightened the photo up and used the Replace Color tool on some of the water to get a cool blue effect behind the focus.

Before

After

This is another, older photo of my sister and cousin. I altered the levels a bit to remove the strong green effect over the photo. I also adjusted some shadows in the shadows/highlights window, so more details would show through. It's remarkable how much hidden information a photo carries in the shadows, especially in older photos such as these. I also had a little fun by intensifying the red hues on Mr. Magneto's helmet and Miss Viking's sweet wheels.

Technology Log (Attempt At Avoiding Technology)

Saturday, January 26th 2013

10:15 - Received a call

10:20 - Checked Blackboard on laptop

10:30 - Checked e-mail 

11:30 - Went to brunch and swiped OneCard

12:15 - Went to Daily Grind with friends, purchased food with OneCard

12:20 to 12:30 - Texted on phone

12:20 - Went to Library, used computer to check e-mail and submit my radio show time schedule

12:45 - Opened QA door with OneCard, put food in refrigerator

12:50 - Went upstairs to friend's room and watched a movie on her laptop

2:40 - Used OneCard to enter Monty's Mac Lab

2:40 - Used iMac to work on collage

3:30 to 3:45 - Texted on phone

3:45 - Left Monty, used OneCard to Enter QA

3:50 to 4:35 - Made a call and checked Facebook simultaneously

5:00 - Went to dinner, swiped OneCard

6:00 - Went back to QA, used OneCard

6:15 - Used my phone to look at music chords to play my instrument

7:00 - Went upstairs to friends' room, played videogames

8:00 to 9:30 - Did some homework using an e-book on my laptop

9:30 to 10:30 - Watched a few episodes of my favorite show on my laptop

10:30 to 11:00 - Checked Facebook

11:00 - Set alarm for tomorrow

11:00 to 11:45 - Received a call

As you can see, technology is unavoidable, especially on a campus where having a OneCard is a necessity, and when all of your classes require for you to use a computer. To avoid checking my phone constantly, I put a piece of tape over the front and wrote "don't check!". Without that reminder, I probably would have checked it dozens of times. However, I did not go so far as to ignore my friends when they reached out to me by text or by calling me. I also caved into Facebook twice that day as well.

Kazuki Takamatsu

"Alone" by Kazuki Takamatsu, 2010 Contemporary artist Kazuki Takamatsu creates breathtaking forms by employing both modern graphic design and traditional painting. Glowing in a pitch-black abyss, Takamatsu's figures are mysterious and ethereal as they interact with the environment, other people, and objects around them. They are almost always surrounded by a hazy fog, however, they are not still. They are arranged in dynamic poses which seem like a freeze-framed moment in time. The process behind each piece is arduous, to say in the slightest. Takamatsu uses Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) to create and arrange his figures on a plane, then carefully hand paints the work using gouache (watercolors and white opaque pigments) and acrylic.

"Defense Instinct" by Kazuki Takamatsu, 2009

In an interview with Hi-Fructose Magazine, Takamatsu says that he attempts to "describe each character as well-known and average". However, I feel that his characters go beyond humdrum and can be largely symbolic. Despite lacking facial features (some are even veiled or wear masks), the figures convey emotion through the way they interact and are posed. For example, the maternal figure in "Defense Instinct" has a gas-mask on, which hides her facial expression, yet she looks down upon the child and grips him tightly to her chest, which conveys a feeling of intimacy and protective steadfastness.

"Exploitation" by Kazuki Takamatsu, 2011 

The combination of CGI and painting should not be seen as 'cheating', as the compositions and placing of each detail is all Takamatsu's. However, when browsing through Takamatsu's work, the most pivotal question I kept asking myself was 'Why?' Why does Takamatsu take the time to paint each of the figures when he could print out his CGI work? Perhaps he finds significance in paint medium, or simply chooses to demonstrate his skill in tricking the eye. Overall, I find Takamatsu's work to be quite innovative and impressive. He addresses raw human emotion and feeling through his cutting-edge technique.