- AUTOMA 1 fine sec. XIX, Collezione F. M. R., Fontanellato di Parma - ARCIMBOLDO Il fuoco,1566 - AUTOMA Organetto con automi, dettaglio, Germania XIX secolo
OpenEnded Group comprises of two digital artist - Marc Dowie & Paul Kaiser, (Shelley Eshkar was part of the group till 2014). Their artworks consists a wide variety of forms and disciplines, including dance, music, installation, film, and public art. “Pedestrian”, 2002, is an animated thirteen minutes video loop that is projected on a concrete floor of an
exhibition
space combining with the pavements surfaces that people walk on.
Image Courtesy of Google.
This creates an Trompe-l'œilillusionof a city. The city has people that captures the daily movements of the people. At first, it may look normal, however i notice that the people are very sturdy and robotic. However, these point enable them to see effects of a hyper real dream.
How did they do it? Using attached and recording cameras, they used 8 people movements and compile it into a data. Then, they manipulated the data and combined or insert into 3D models human figures called “bipeds”. “”Bipeds” are covered with digital renderings of skin, clothing and hairs. This means the individual notions is similar to the real human movement. Their work is accompanied with the soundtrack of urban noises by musician Terence Pender. My group feels that this work provides an arena to reconsider and question technology for digital environment.
Image Courtesy of Google.
When i read on how this animation was made, it reminded me of CG animations which was used on making of Cold-play’s music video, ‘Adventure of a Lifetime”. Similar to the bipeds, they use body and face system, and virtual camera, concept design characters allows Imaginarium studio and production company, transforming the Cold-play members into chimp characters. They also use special make-up that are reflective which enable light to be captured. That way, the light is readable allowing computers to render the apes.
Coldplay is actually puppeteering ape avatars = People action were used for information to be passed on the bipeds.
The information are computed on a skeleton = similar to the use of bipeds in “Pedestrian” that copies the actions of the 8 people they recorded.
This proves that the artist were able to find a new era of motion capture technology. i feel this technology enables animators a better platform to create more natural look in their characters movements and actions.
