Repurposing vintage Halloween images from the nineteenth century carries a sense of history and tradition into this modern age.
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Friday, October 16, 2020
Monday, September 17, 2018
My Creative Process - Hawaiian Shirts Revisited
This article is about remixing archived images from online open collections at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) and the State Library of New South Wales to create quick first draft print designs for contemporary Hawaiian shirts.
In my opinion the editing of a single image from an outside source is often ineffective in making a new personal, design or artistic statement, unless it is edited so much that the original is unrecognizable.
There are exceptions of course. Marcel Duchamp's 'LHOOQ' was an effective parody at the time and within the context that it was produced. Duchamp's addition of a moustache and beard to a rough copy of the Mona Lisa was interpreted as an attack on traditional art and of the bourgeoisie that worshipped it. In effect, an art attack!
When creating any artwork, I prefer to adapt as much of the original works as possible in an attempt to make the new image truly mine. Perhaps there is also a lingering concern at the back of my mind of copyright infringement, even though the open online resources I'm using for this project are free of copyright. Old habits die hard.
With this concern in mind I searched for separate images that might work together from the online open archives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) and The State Library of New South Wales. My goal was to produce a first draft for a print design loosely defined as a 'Hawaiian shirt' or contemporary Aloha shirt design.
This design theme was the driving force behind my search. I'd done a reasonable amount of prior research and was surprised at how versatile contemporary Hawaiian shirt imagery is. Waves, surfers and coconut trees are not the only images found in these iconic designs. So I decided I could be quite flexible in my own image choices too, as long as the general feel was one of the outdoors, nature, water etc.
I first found a potential backdrop to overlay other images on, from the MET collection:
With the Japanese influence that has helped shaped Hawaii this felt like a reasonable start. I experimented with some basic repeats so that the overall feel of the adapted backdrop was one that could be printed on lengths of fabric.
I also found a series of bird drawings at the online open collection of the State Library of NSW. One of the drawings matched well colour-wise: I isolated and cut the bird from its background and placed it so that the branch it was perching on looked as though it was sticking out of the backdrop water.
In my opinion the editing of a single image from an outside source is often ineffective in making a new personal, design or artistic statement, unless it is edited so much that the original is unrecognizable.
There are exceptions of course. Marcel Duchamp's 'LHOOQ' was an effective parody at the time and within the context that it was produced. Duchamp's addition of a moustache and beard to a rough copy of the Mona Lisa was interpreted as an attack on traditional art and of the bourgeoisie that worshipped it. In effect, an art attack!
With this concern in mind I searched for separate images that might work together from the online open archives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) and The State Library of New South Wales. My goal was to produce a first draft for a print design loosely defined as a 'Hawaiian shirt' or contemporary Aloha shirt design.
This design theme was the driving force behind my search. I'd done a reasonable amount of prior research and was surprised at how versatile contemporary Hawaiian shirt imagery is. Waves, surfers and coconut trees are not the only images found in these iconic designs. So I decided I could be quite flexible in my own image choices too, as long as the general feel was one of the outdoors, nature, water etc.
I first found a potential backdrop to overlay other images on, from the MET collection:With the Japanese influence that has helped shaped Hawaii this felt like a reasonable start. I experimented with some basic repeats so that the overall feel of the adapted backdrop was one that could be printed on lengths of fabric.
I also found a series of bird drawings at the online open collection of the State Library of NSW. One of the drawings matched well colour-wise: I isolated and cut the bird from its background and placed it so that the branch it was perching on looked as though it was sticking out of the backdrop water.
With a bit of rough editing I made a simple, first draft that I may develop further, or not:
#MADEWITHSLNSW
Sunday, September 2, 2018
MET CCO Works for Remix and Reuse
In 2017, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art released 375,000 digital works for remix and re-use online via CC0. The statement issued by Creative Commons regarding this states, "CC0 allows anyone to use, re-use, and remix a work without restriction. This announcement will shape the future of public domain images online and underscores the Met’s leadership role as one of the most important open museum collections in the world."
I personally welcome the move as an opportunity to re-energize some beautiful, hidden gems from by-gone eras. I will be writing about my creative process in future posts as I explore ways to breathe new life into some of the newly available MET images.
Here are three samples of my recent adaptations in progress, to get an idea of what I'm talking about.
In each of these samples I have taken MET tapestry panels, cropped and placed them in mirror repeat. This repeat format is the easiest to manage as the edges naturally join perfectly with their opposing selves. Other repeat formats, such as square and half-drop repeats require a lot more manipulation to get seamless joints with the original panel edges.
Although mirror repeat is the easiest format to use it's not always the most suitable. In the middle sample I have shown, you can see a 'push me pull you' horse, with two heads. Although I quite like this quirk the market I'm aiming for may not. Despite its faults the mirror format does give an immediate idea for creating continuously repeating designs, such as those used for printing lengths of fabric, paper etc.
I've also played around with the original colors, giving them a bit more vibrancy and definition.
So, from identifying the MET tapestry panels from their CCO image collection, I've started to develop ideas which could lead, eventually, to some repeating, printed textile designs. Stay tuned for updates.
I personally welcome the move as an opportunity to re-energize some beautiful, hidden gems from by-gone eras. I will be writing about my creative process in future posts as I explore ways to breathe new life into some of the newly available MET images.
Here are three samples of my recent adaptations in progress, to get an idea of what I'm talking about.
In each of these samples I have taken MET tapestry panels, cropped and placed them in mirror repeat. This repeat format is the easiest to manage as the edges naturally join perfectly with their opposing selves. Other repeat formats, such as square and half-drop repeats require a lot more manipulation to get seamless joints with the original panel edges.
Although mirror repeat is the easiest format to use it's not always the most suitable. In the middle sample I have shown, you can see a 'push me pull you' horse, with two heads. Although I quite like this quirk the market I'm aiming for may not. Despite its faults the mirror format does give an immediate idea for creating continuously repeating designs, such as those used for printing lengths of fabric, paper etc.
I've also played around with the original colors, giving them a bit more vibrancy and definition.
So, from identifying the MET tapestry panels from their CCO image collection, I've started to develop ideas which could lead, eventually, to some repeating, printed textile designs. Stay tuned for updates.
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Happy Halloween - 'Cracked' T-Shirt
Halloween is coming. Are you ready? Over the years Castaway Characters have put together a few 'scary' faces. We thought they'd make fun Halloween T-shirts and treats. Here's one from the Monster Makeover series. Find more about this and others by clicking below.
Happy Halloween!
Happy Halloween T T-Shirt by CastawayCharacters
Browse more Halloween T-Shirts
Saturday, September 10, 2016
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Life is a Hologram
Creating the feeling of movement in a single screenshot is not easy. Holograms attempt to create this illusion. In the production of holograms the same image is shown from different viewpoints. Consequently it is not the subject that moves but the viewing perspective. We all have different views on the same subjects.
Life is a hologram.
Life is a hologram.
Friday, June 24, 2016
Castaway Characters - 100% Original!
Just like the man says - we are "Original"! A casual pose from Joe in a screenshot from another short stop-motion animation.
Animation Stills 1 - Vamp Dog
With the characters' movements being quite flexible, it seemed a natural progression to make some short stop-motion films. Here's a screenshot from one of the earlier films - Vamp-Dog - (Bread Tags for Eternity).
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Shy on Valentine's Day? Say 'I Love You' with a mug!
Find out who the shy character is on this Valentine's Day gift mug by clicking on the image.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Mixed Media Moda Model.
Recycling occurs in the fashion business, season after season. Often the materials used, as well as the design resources, are a combination of old and new. On the fashion trashwalk today we see a refreshing blend of old and new in terms of both style and materials. Our model is sporting a white Colgate cap atop a fine example of firmly sculpted facial hair. The mood reminds us of a bygone era, perhaps a reflection of the stiff, portly character Dr Watson from the 1930s Sherlock Holmes films or a friendly station master from an Enid Blyton novel. Personally I think a touch of colour would bring this look firmly into the twenty first century, but then there's nothing wrong with a bit of nostalgia, now and then.
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