Contextual Studies Presentation (WIP)

Some ideas and information I have put into a scribd document to reference while in my contextual studies class.

It's still very rough but some constructive criticism would still be helpful.
There's currently no quotes, no bibliography and no real structure.
I also fear I may be pushing my biased opinions upon the reader, i'm trying not to.

This is for our essay that is due to be handed in on December.

Why a Modern Movie by Servare on Scribd

Franz Kline Artist Study

This is my Artist study of Franz Kline and his work.
I have been set a task to research Mr Kline, study his work and create a city based on said work.

Kline was born in Pennsylvania in 1910, initially he worked figuratively by painting real world scenery such as landscapes and cityscapes but then started to find his own style, in the late 1940's Kline abandoned figurative drawings and painted in Lines that share similarities to that of Cubism.

Kline is recorded to have worked with "fluid, and dynamic" lines that were "non-representative" of what he was painting, he also gained the nickname "The black and white man" after his first one-man show in 1950 at the Egan Gallery.

Kline is reported as being "the most important artist of the Abstract Expressionist movement" according to art critics but his work is so abstract that critics cannot tell what some of his art represents and Kline would often refuse to give explanations or meanings to his work.

Perhaps i should try and come up with my own interpretations of his work, or at least look at what the critics agree on.

Abstractism is not an art stye i am accustomed to, nor one i practice in my spare time but i refuse to believe that this will hinder me or my work during this project, Kline worked with large fluids strokes which means i will have to adapt that into a city design.

Franz Kline with thumbnails

Franz Kline is my new "Collaboration" buddy in this project, taking his work and style and turning it into a city that is inspired by his work, I will be doing a write up on the artist soon but for now here's a quick summary:

Born in Pennsylvania in 1910, Franz Kline took part in the Abstract Expressionist movement of the 1940s, as such his paintings are Abstract in style, looking at some of his work I made some quick designs.
Franz Work:

My current thumbnails:

24/10/16 photoshop class

In class we were given one object and one animal and tasked with combining the two in as many ways as we can think of, this is what i came up with:

1, 2 and 3 point perspective drawing

Here are some 1, 2 and 3 point  perspective drawings:

Alien film review

(Figure 1) ALIEN movie poster [Poster]

Released in 1979 ALIEN (see fig 1) Directed by Ridley Scott(see fig2) scared thousands of viewers by placing them aboard the 'Starship Nostromo', a commercial ship on it's way back to earth, the crew intersects a distress signal which is where things turn sour, every crew member ends up being killed by an alien and the female protagonist escapes with her life... and a cat.

The film uses long sequences and close-ups to convey a sense of realism and terror, having the camera focus on a door or hallway that at first has nothing in it worries the audience, it adds suspense as the audience wonders "why? what's going to happen? where's the monster?", the shot will linger just enough to make some people lean forward wondering what it is they are missing in this shot before throwing a jump-scare at them.

(Figure 2) Ridley Scott [Photograph]

Speaking of jump-scares, they are used to good effect in this film, while in this day and age they may seem telegraphed and obvious we need to remember that at the time of filming it was not the norm, you can thank Scott for making it more mainstream in the medium. "No film I have seen in the last year or so, excluding perhaps The Deer Hunter, emanates so strong a whiff of palpable, nerve-straining shock." (Dareck Malcolm, 1979) this quote from 1979 shows the reaction the film had at the time with the audience.

It is common knowledge that H.R Giger worked with Scott to create the art for the film, everything from the alien to the derelict ship was designed by Giger, at the time many considered Giger's work to be too much for the general public but Scott insisted on bringing Giger on and eventually won the argument.
The alien is based on Gigers work "Necronom IV"(see fig 3)

(Figure 3) Necronom IV [Painting]

It is not the first Survival Horror film however, as Roger Ebert put it: "At its most fundamental level, 'Alien' is a movie about things that can jump out of the dark and kill you. It shares a kinship with the shark in 'Jaws,' (1975) Michael Myers in 'Halloween,' (1979) and assorted spiders, snakes, tarantulas and stalkers. Its most obvious influence is Howard Hawks' 'The Thing' (1951), which was also about a team in an isolated outpost who discover a long-dormant alien, bring it inside, and are picked off one by one as it haunts the corridors. Look at that movie, and you see 'Alien' in embryo." (2003) Ebert compares the film to others such as Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975), John Carpenter's Halloween (1979) and Howards Hawks' The Thing (1951) to help readers get a better understanding of the antagonist and where Ridley Scott may have gotten inspiration from.

The film is a must watch for anyone who loves a good, well paced survival horror.
And remember: "In space, no one can hear you scream" (Ridley Scott 1979)

Bibliography:

• Alien (1979) [Film] Ridley Scott.
• Alien Movie Review, Rodger Ebert (2003) [Website] http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-alien-1979 [Accessed 22/10/16]
• Audio Commentary on the making of Alien (2012) [Blue-ray Special feature] Ridley Scott & Crew.
• Darek Malcolm's Alien review from 1979 (2009) [Website archive] https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/oct/13/derek-malcolm-alien-review [Accessed 22/10/16]
• Halloween (1979) [Film] John Carpenter.
• H.R Giger's Website [Website] http://www.hrgiger.com/ [Acessed 22/10/16]
• Jaws (1975) [Film] Steven Spielberg.
• The Thing (1951) [Film] Howard Hawks.

Illustrations:

• (Figure 1) ALIEN movie poster [Poster] (1979)
• (Figure 3) Necronom IV [Painting] (1976)
• (Figure 2) Ridley Scott [Photograph] (Date unknown)

Invisible Cities Reflective Statement

Upon taking on this project I was not expecting to have quite so much to do, having to juggle multiple classes and their respective homework is never easy but like diving into deep water you either learn to swim or end up drowning, I like to think I have learned to swim, for the most part that is.
While much of the project was relearning basics there are a few things I have gained from this project in particular, the work on concept art has given me a better understanding of work ethic and how projects start in the business world.

I have also learned quite a few new things about photoshop, while I have been using it for some time I have never delved into the colour editing side of things or masks for that matter, this will definitely be something I can learn more of and would like to.

The work has left me with mixed feelings, I feel proud that I could even remotely keep up with such large amounts of work but at the same time the work I have made is not up to my personal standards, juggling quantity over quality is a difficult thing to master as amazing detail is not always what is required, sometimes you need to just let a piece be fluid and maybe a bit abstract.

What will I be taking away from this as a lesson? Well I would say that the biggest lesson here is to speed up, I have been far too slow in my work but it's not due to laziness, I have a hurdle I need to cross involving learning disabilities, I cannot let something like that control my life or my work. Excuses won't cut it in the real world.