Painting to Video

Egg on Toast from elliott francis on Vimeo.

I chose artist Alexa Meade’s “Egg on Toast” for this project. Alexa has developed a sensational technique where she actually paints her subjects and then photographs them, creating an end product that looks like an oil painting.

I am discovering through this class that I hold a fascination for Anthropomorphism, a device in literature which gives inanimate objects humanistic qualities. The stars of Alexa’s painting are the common elements of breakfast…eggs over easy…sausage…and toast. When I viewed Meade’s painting, I felt as if I was witnessing a final presentation, which got my creative juices flowing. What might the process of being prepared be like for the egg, sausage and toast?

My presentation contains the following camera shots and moves:

Shots:

Close Up - :02 - :04

Medium Close up - :09

Extreme Close Up - :16

Medium Two Shot - :23 (kettle and pot)

High Angle - :48

Rule of Thirds – 1:02

Moves:

Zoom Out - :06

Zoom In - :12

Pedestal Up - :19

Trucking left - :43

Pan Right – 1:09

Women and Bicycles

Women and Bicycles Final from elliott francis on Vimeo.

Narrated by WABA outreach coordinator, Nelle Pierson, this short explains WABA's Women and Bicycles initiative which advocates bicycling among women in Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Produced by Arnetia Francis, Bianca Lipford, and Marissa Da Silva.

Diversity Project

Diversity Project

 

 

Okay, I admit it. When we were assigned this project I let out a silent groan. The prospect of yet ANOTHER assignment tethered to someone I didn't know was way outside of my comfort zone. But, that's exactly what this lesson was designed to do...to encourage me to reach beyond what's familiar and comfortable. And I'm glad I did, or I might never have gotten to know Sarah, my project partner, who is pictured here. As Sarah and I talked and got to know one another, we realized that we had SOME things in common. We are both from New York, albeit different parts. I'm from the South Bronx...she's from Long Island; she's a freshmen, just beginning her journey into adulthood; I am in the autumn of life and could easily be her mother; she wants to be a doctor and loves helping people ( and I bet she's really smart); I'm the creative type who hopes to affect the world in a way that leaves it a bit better than I found it.

 

 

 

 

Sarah invited me to visit her Chemistry class. That day, they were finding the effect of cooking on the Vitamin C content of Bell Pepper. I'd never even considered this, although cooking is a favorite pastime of mine. When I compared  experiencing Sarah's "cooking" to my personal understanding of the act, I found some similarities. To begin with, the lab she works in is somewhat like a kitchen:

 Protective gear is needed, although most times I only need an apron and oven mitts:

 

 

 

She cooks, chops and mixes just like I do:

All in all, I enjoyed watching Sarah in action...and didn't feel as out of place in a lab as I thought I might be. In fact I didn't feel out of place at all. I met Moira, Sarah's classmate, who's obviously a returning student like me:

 

 

 

 

 

And I have a new friend named Sarah!

Photo Essay

Week 14



Alexa Meade

 

http://alexameade.com/ 

Twenty-six year old Washington DC born artist, Alexa Meade, graduated from Vassar College in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. She had never attended art school nor had she ever taken any advanced painting courses. In August of 2008, Alexa began to experiment with painting on non-traditional objects. Nine months later, she had developed a technique for painting on people and unveiled her “Reverse Trompe L’Oeil” in October of 2009. Trompe L’Oiel (French for “deceive the eye”) is an art technique that involves realistic imagery in order to create the optical illusion that the depicted subjects are three dimensional.

The idea for Meade’s work originated from her fascination with how the sun cast moving shadows. She began to experiment with painting shadows onto moving people, and discovered that the visual effect still worked even if people moved from their original light source. Meade once said "I paint representational portraits directly on top of the people I am representing. The models are transformed into embodiments of the artist's interpretation of their essence. When captured on film, the living, breathing people underneath the paint disappear, overshadowed by the masks of themselves.”

Alexa’s technique is certainly innovative. She applies acrylic paint to people, objects and walls in broad brushstrokes that resemble the brushwork of paintings. Then she photographs them…resulting in a picture that resembles an oil painting. Alexa describes this technique as "painting a portrait of somebody on top of him/herself.”

Alexa’s work is rapidly gaining critical acclaim in the portraiture genre – domestically as well as internationally . Christian Furr, a world renowned painter, selected Meade for an exhibit at the Saatchi Gallery in London. Of Meade’s art, Furr says, “People are fascinated by playing with viewpoints, and she's taking it one step further than trompe l'oeil.”

 Meade has a notable online following also. I’d keep an eye on Alexa Meade…she’s bound to become a legend.

http://alexameade.com/

Self Portrait

 

 

 

 

9/11 left an indelible impression on my life. I'll never forget that infamous day. For this picture, after erasing the background I used Black and White on my face...and adjusted the image brightness on the background (Brightness =26 Contrast = 14)

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used different adjustments on each of the six masks here. Starting top right (and moving clockwise): I used drop shadow, dissolve /opacity 93%,  bottom right: drop shadow, inner glow, bevel emboss. Bottom middle: hue = +27, saturation= +39, Lightness= 16, Bottom left: pinlight and contour, top left: fill= 67% , top middle: luminosity, contrast=52, brightness=68.

 

Imagine being able to see through a wall! For the background or "wall" effect, I used filter/texture/sandstone. On the eyes, I used Filter/Distort/Diffuse Glow (Graininess=6,Glow Amount=12, Clear Amount=12).



Website Review

Week 11

 

 

Lincoln

 

http://www.thelincolnmovie.com

 

 

I, like so many others, am eagerly awaiting the release of Steven Spielberg's feature film, Lincoln. The Home page of the website created for the movie sports a black and white picture of a pensive Abraham Lincoln (played by Daniel Day Lewis) leaning into the frame, pulling the audience's focus to the trailer video on the page. Although Lincoln is not really looking at the video, the angle at which he leans emphasizes the point we are expected to look at. The use of black and white instead of color instantly leads us to believe that we are indeed looking at the sixteenth president. Also, we assume that the top of Lincoln's head as well as the rest of his body extend beyond the frame.



The links are situated in a column to the left of Roman numerals. As you click on a link, a picture from the film appears under the corresponding numeral. This gives the audience the impression of moving from one act to another. Most of the pictures move in and out. I am especially impressed with the manner in which the cast of actors is revealed. As one clicks on "cast" in the "About" section, a list of the principal actors appears. As you click on each name, a current picture of the actor moves in and out respectively.


The Gallery contains thumbprints of scenes from the film, which of course become enlarged as they're clicked on. These pictures are, for the most part, closeups cropped in such as way as to suggest that the subjects extend beyond the frame. (This is a re-ocurring theme). Under the Gallery link is a link entitled "Cast and Characters." When you click on this link, a list of principal actors accompanied by their character names appears. Click on each name and now each actor appears in character. The actors are always in black and white; however, the shots from the movie are in color, although somewhat muted.


This site is easy to navigate and very informative...right down to headshots of the crew and production notes. It is also a good example of content driven media.






 

 

Photo Word Review

Week 10

 

                Neesha's Pic for Portrait:

             



               Human beings are remarkable. You'd never guess from this picture that less than a year ago my neighbor, Kevin, lost the love of his life, Terry, to cancer.

Week 9

                                     Neesha's Pic for Negative Space:

 

This Mardi Gras mask is surrounded by negative space that I intend to manipulate in photo shop.(This is Hurricane Sandy week and I'm learning photo shop, so let's consider this one a work in progress.)