Damian Gascoigne

Damian Gascoigne's lecture was a wonderful experience, very funny but also very insightful. One of the biggest points he made which struck a chord with the work i am trying to achieve in the studio was the notion that most computer generated animation looks the same and this practice

is just ridicules. so many different stories, different characters and worlds all with the same aesthetic.

There are no suggestive marks or human intervention; no imagination or expression. when he showed some of his animation it was clearly hand made at the initial begginings, in terms of the way environments characters and ideas looked but then was compiled on a computer in a very unobtrusive manner. The computer was used to compliment and cut corners in the fabrication of the animations but they didn't make him a subordinate to the machine, and certainly didn't remove anything from the aesthetic. Even with regards to his 3d animation, he stressed that the machine must not lead the aesthetic. when he showed us the 3d imagery he was working on this was very evident.

Damian refereed to himself as a visual magpie, forever drawing inspiration from every thing around himself, photos, sketches and foun

d imagery. It was very apparent that this process had a direct influence on his professional practice. The outcome of a brief could have been answered prior to him knowing about it due to the amount of pictures and ideas he churns out.

Damian receives many commercial jobs and is quite prolific and successful working with quite large clients, but he stated that this was to fund his real love which is fine art. It was very refreshing to here someone talk about his art in such an honest down to earth manner, when he talked of his fine art he was very ernest which seemed quite far removed from the stereotypical "fine art" artist. It was nice to see someone like this could be seen to have viable real art exhibited in a gallery, his art was which is just an honest reflection of himself, his personal diary, which i felt was very admirable.

Another of Damiens loves, the work of 1950s illustrators.

Ryohei Yanagihara was one of his favorites, his illustrations ooze with character even the inanimate objects just seem to be bubbling with life