HUM 203: The World in Motion, Animation in Theory and Practice

Assignment 1

Assignment 2

Final project

Art v Arteest is a humorous animation seen through the eyes of an animator. Over the course of the film we observe the short relationship between one creation named Art and its creator the Arteest(the viewer). I illustrated the animation using Adobe Photo shop and edited in music using Windows Movie Maker. Although devastatingly arduous, I feel the end result was worth the effort. I made this film because I have always found the relationship between the creator and his or her creation to be very interesting. By nature, great creations are timeless. In other words, the piece is applicable to many points of view. As a result, the creator hardly has a direct say in how the piece is interpreted by different points of view. In my own experience, more often then not, the new life of the creation adopts is not what artist expects, or wants, the piece to become. A very good example is Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven, an epic song which, due to its extreme popularity and over playing, likely makes Jimmy Page get squeamish at the mention of its name.

I feel this process is directly linked to what it means to be animated. Successfully animating something, by definition gives it its own life. Art v Arteest is an interpretation of this very process. After being conceived, Art becomes curious and confused as he observes himself and his surroundings. Almost immediately something new presents itself, an indiscriminate dot. After a tentative interaction, Art becomes frightened by the dot. With time and some encouragement, Art embraces his visitor and stumbles upon his own infinite potential. Using his new skills he continues to create his own world as he sees fit. However, as the ideas of Art and the Arteest contradict, Art separates himself completely from his creator. Through this animation, Art conveys what it means to be, and become, animated. And the relationship between Art and the Arteest depicts a cycle which is universal to all successful creations and their creators.