Clare Smith
‘STILL LIFE’
A 3d/2d computer animation
(NB: Work-In-Progress)
‘Still life’ is an animated vignette from the series ‘The Ruby Glass Vase’.
As a child I had a fascination for a small iridescent ruby glass vase that was one of the few ornaments in the family home, or rather one of the few ornaments that wasn’t a religious icon. In my family of eleven children, material concerns were way down the priorities list. So for me the small vase flashed like a gem, a lighthouse beacon. It stood there - on the mantle piece, on the sideboard, on the bureau - watching the family grow, laugh, cry.
In ‘The Ruby Glass Vase’ series, the vase is used as a device for recalling significant incidents and memories from my childhood. I have always associated the vase with my mother: a small understated treasure. ‘The Ruby Glass Vase’ is concerned with giving visibility to my mother’s story.
‘Still life’ recalls one of my earliest memories, one that was witnessed by the ruby glass vase. It is one that I have never spoken of till now. It is linked to a phone call.
The ‘Still Life” installation is located by the hotel payphone.Anthony Head - Software Developer,
Practising artist and interactive designer,
Lecturer : Digital Technologies Design, Bath School of
Art and Design
- ‘Only hints of what is known but unrevealed are
passed on, “just between you and me”.’ – Michel de
Certeau
Artist’s profileMy work primarily involves 3d computer imaging and
animation. Memory and place are themes that I find I
keep revisiting. A key attraction of working in 3d for
me is the opportunity that it offers for the
exploration of texturing and lighting. By blending the
analogue and digital, using traditional 2d imaging
techniques and the scanning of ‘found objects,’ I
create images that I then apply to 3d computer
generated objects, as static or dynamic texture maps.
Image maps are also often applied as light or shadow
maps. This approach opens up vast possibilities for
the creation of new and exciting hybrid art forms.’
Claire lectures in Multimedia and Graphic Design at La
Trobe Unversity, Australia. She is currently Artist in
Residence at Bath Spa University College.IMAGES: 3d images are from the ‘ Xmas beetles & The
Walnut Tree’ series
Participating artists