Artistic Process and in all seriousness...Animation

I've been asked what kind of "Blog" Paperclip Hashbrown is. For the most part, it is an Art and Animation blog. Eventually, I'll be posting more of my Bunny Le Foo Concept Art and Production Art here in the coming weeks. 

However, since I am a full-service Creative Individual, I like to discuss other aspects of the Arts here from time to time. So, I suppose the official answer is...

Paperclip Hashbrown is a Celebration of all that is Creative. 

How's that? 

I'm now eligible to host my own swaps on Swapbot, so look for those in the coming weeks. 

Anyhoo, this post is about the Artistic Process, or rather, my own journey toward the wide realm of life on the creative horizon. 

I have always been a Creative person; I remember writing and illustrating my own comics as a child. My primary artistic focus for many years was Music. I was in the band throughout Middle and High School; eventually I went on to earn a Bachelor's Degree in Music Performance and Business. 

The Cartooning side of me was always there, skipping alongside Mr. Music and happy to get any chance at all to be noticed. I drew editorial cartoons for my high school newspaper and did some light cartooning here and there during my Undergrad studies, but focused primarily on my musical studies. 

I never really thought I could pursue an Artistic career, because I always felt like my drawing skills weren't up to par. I struggled with proportion, form and color. My drawings were good, but they weren't great.

Then came the day I had an epiphany. 

I was watching a documentary on Walt Disney ( imagine that...Kat watching anything "Disney" related ), and realized that I could do anything I wanted to, if I just worked hard and believed in myself.

Walt Disney started with the odds stacked against him. However, he was a genius, an idea man, a leader and had a can-do no-quitting attitude. Thanks to those qualities, Animation took its rightful place as a true art form, and we now have a rich and full Animation History. 

Unfortunately, there are those who believe Animation ( especially Computer Animation) is not serious art. I disagree wholeheartedly. Anyone who looks at the drawings of the Nine Old Men, Glen Keane, Andreas Deja, and the many Imagineering portfolios would agree that Animation is the most serious lighthearted business on the planet.

Animation is much harder than it seems. It's not just drawing a bunch of pictures and making them move. Animators have to wear many hats; we must be artists, actors, comedians, cinematographers, directors and writers. Our actors and actresses don't just show up and get ready; we have to create them from top to bottom. We have to draw every part of our films ( characters, backgrounds etc ), otherwise the audience would be staring at a blank canvas. The same Computer based Animation and Art. Most of those 3D films began with a team of concept artists and a ton of sketches. 

My own process with these storyboards and animatic has been a bit complex. Drawing takes me longer than others. For one, I am a perfectionist, and two, I have a bit of a problem with perspective. I tend to get stuck in self-edit mode, which is something I've had to get out of. Sometimes it's easier for me to just jump in and animate something using the straight-ahead method than it is for me to follow a plan. That's just how my creative mind works. And then of course, life interjects into our creative endeavors from time to time. Sometimes I have to put the boards aside to take care of family and family related issues.

 I've just been following the inspiration of Walt Disney and have kept plugging away, drawing by drawing. It's been a long, hard road, but I've almost made it to my destination.