Tim Hawkinson is an artist who truly inspires. The Los Angeles based artist creates complex, whimsical sculptures with simple mechanics and basic materials. One of his most notable pieces is the art-world-renowned "Uberorgan", a giant football field sized, fully-automated bagpipe, cleverly constructed with plastic sheeting and pieces of electrical hardware.
Origami Skunk The Skunk is a model by Nick Robinson. Due to the use of a sink fold I rate this model's level low intermediate. If you're new to origami, be prepared to encounter some difficulties.
This seven-part tutorial series presents an overview of the techniques needed to model a human head using the Blender 3D modeling application. First, you'll set up the primary edgeloops and then move on piece by piece from there. Upon completion you should come away with some good strategies to model your own heads. Whether you're new to the Blender Foundation's popular open-source 3D computer graphics application or are a seasoned digital artist merely on the lookout for new tips and tricks,...
Michael LaFosse, origami artist, created this series of video folding lessons to teach you how to craft a variety of polar animals, using just square pieces of paper. Wildlife from both North and South Poles are represented, and you can even learn how to fold their glacial habitat. The individual videos are separated into various degrees of origami skill. Just beginning? Try folding an iceberg or a cute penguin first. If you're ready to challenge yourself a little, the intermediate lessons in...
Scrabble Bingo of the Day: CABRESTA [n/pl.] A cabresta (also cabestro or cabresto) is simply a lasso, a rope formed with a running noose that's used on ranches and Western plains for catching horse and cattle. Cabresta comes from the Spanish word halter, which refers to the headgear used for leading or tying up livestock and other animals. But halter also used to mean to hang someone by roped noose, which could be how it became popular as a term for a noosed lasso.
HOOSGOW 64 points (14 points without the bingo) Definition: a jail [n]
YANQUIS 68 points (18 points without the bingo) Definition: United States citizens [n/pl.]
ANIMATED FEATURE: Thanks to Tom Berger for another animated movie review!
Yeah it's... that's a good movie there Thanks to Tom Berger for another animated movie review!
DVice posts six of the world's most powerful telescopes and, man, they are HUGE. Check it out. The Keck I and Keck II
Thanks to Russell Brand, we now all know what Katy Perry looks like underneath all of that makeup. Unfortunately, the photograph that Brand posted to Twitter isn't very flattering for Perry. In fact, it's one of the most atrocious looking pics of Katy Perry ever!
In this tutorial, you'll see the complete workflow for modeling a pup tent in a style that was popular during the 1800s in North America. This is a two-part tutorial, and in this part one you'll see how to use the Cloth simulator for the tarp of the tent, and also how to create the framing, stakes, knots, and ropes. The second and final part of the Pup Tent tutorial looks at applying procedural textures for the different aspects of the tent and shows how to use a paint application to extract ...
This three-part series presents a look at the various forces in DOPs and how they work. This tutorial covers all the major forces except for the vortex, bouyancy and fluid forces. It covers both basic aspects and some more advanced techniques (animated masks, using RBD object position to drive a magnet force).
This tutorial offers a look at using point clouds in shading, and the pcopen, pciterate, and pcimport nodes in VOPs. It also gives a further example of a POP network. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this free video tutorial. For more information, including detailed instructions, take a look.
This four-part tutorial series presents a look at how to combine traditional keyframe animation with DOPs simulation. This first part contains an overview of how DOPs differs from SOPs and how to examine DOPs data using the Details View. It then looks at the RBDKeyFrameActive node as a method for combining keyframe and simulation animation. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself wi...
An introduction to building a surface shader in VOPs that combines an image texture with procedural shading. This is a rather longer set of videos than normal as it is a complete walk through of creating a shader. The videos are in total are roughly an hour long. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this free video tutorial. ...
A tutorial covering a classic rigid body simulation of ball crashing through a wall of bricks. The first two parts cover building a (procedural) brick wall, and the final two parts cover converting it into a RBD simulation. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this free video tutorial. For more information, including detailed...
DRUM! Magazine — the leading magazine for drummers and percussionists worldwide — has announced the biggest drumming event ever to take place in Northern California. On Friday, August 13, drummers will descend on the San Jose Repertory Theatre in the heart of Silicon Valley to witness three of the world’s most exciting drummers — extreme drumming sensation Marco Minnemann, Tower Of Power funk master David Garibaldi, and former Mars Volta wunderkind Thomas Pridgen — for an evening of mind-blow...
I usually do step-by-step drawing tutorials, but I found drybrush technique to be fascinating and possibly superior to pencil drawing. Pencils are limited tools because they can only be applied with a point of some sort (with the exception of a graphite stick), while paintbrushes allow artists to think in terms of shapes instead of lines. If you look around the room that you are currently in, I guarantee you that you will not see anything that resembles an edge that a pencil gives you; the wo...
Whether you're new to Autodesk's popular 3D modeling program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this free video tutorial. For more information, including detailed instructions, take a look. Model and rig a stylized dragon character in Blender 2.5 - Part 1 of 11.
This nine-part series presents an exhaustive overview of how to create a realistic 3D model of a Porsche 911 GT3 RS in Blender 2.5. Whether you're new to the Blender Foundation's popular 3D modeling program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acquainting yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this free video tutorial. For more information, including detailed instructions, take a look. Create a 3D model of a Porsche 911 GT3 RS in Blender 2.5 - Part 1...
Yes, that's Elvis Presley. Yes, that's a pencil tip. Yes, that's simply...insane. The Telegraph shares more work from the incredible Dalton Ghetti. Miss the last post? Check it out.
In this how-to video, you will learn how to write a rap song. First, make sure it comes from within you. Writing rap is like poetry. Most rap songs consist of a 16 bar verse with about an 8 bar chorus. It is really about how you feel. Make sure your rhymes are both deep and tight. Flow is very important. This is the general structure of a rap song. It must sound good. Dig deep down to find the best expression. Do not just duplicate what other peoples are saying. Start off slow and stick to a ...
Sometimes you will need a hammer to put together the stretchers for your canvas. Learn how to stretch and prepare a canvas for painting from a professional artist in this free video. Prepare a canvas for painting - Part 1 of 16.
Although most religions have inspired a variety of art, Buddhism seems to have a special relationship with the arts. Something about the endless circle of birth and rebirth seems to intrigue the minds of artists. Of course even if the art is not directly related to Buddhism, the Buddha has always been a fan of art. The Buddha has been quoted several times speaking about art, and most of his sayings are truly profound:
There’s nothing like a great horror movie to really get the adrenaline pumping during the Halloween season. I don't know about you, but the sight of blood dripping into a pool of even more blood creeps me out, so you can imagine my reaction to harrowing creatures that go bump in the night and rip people's faces off. It's intense, but I love it.
The visual beauty of images on Google+ means that it's not just a great place for photographers to shine, but also serves as a befitting promotional space for web comic artists. Below, 7 talented individuals who have utilized the Google+ platform.
If you're into entomology, then you probably recognize the name E.L. Trouvelot. After all, he was the person responsible for the outbreak of invasive gypsy moths in North America, which are now one of the most destructive foliage-eating pests in the United States.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to cartoonify yourself? Your friends? Your dog? Well now you can get animated with MacPhun's newly released Cartoonatic+ app available in the App Store for the price of $0.99.
How do you show that you love your job? You get "sleeved", like photographer Dabe Alan who has lined his arms with tattoos of all his favorite things in life, with the help of Toledo-based tattoo artist Tony Touch. Every time Dabe visits Toledo, he gets another photography-related graphic etched into his skin showing the "evolution of the camera." Now that's devotion.
Just as Smule's ocarina app yields the gentle sounds of a woodwind instrument by simply blowing into an iPhone, Squeal promises to emit theremin-esque noises from the iPad with easy fingerplay. Developed as a collaboration between Hong Kong musician/producer/composer Gaybird Leung and interactive designer Henry Chu, the musical app is a work-in-progress for Henry's ongoing experimental music project Digital Hug.
"Mind Your Step" is a gargantuan street illusion staged in Stockholm's most public square, Sergels torg. Created by artist Erik Johansson, the illusion will be up until June 12th, so swing by if you happen to be in Sweden. Erik has documented his entire creative process here, including this great little tutorial on how to create your own optical illusion.
Beauty is a fine line between art and science for Pe Lang, a Swiss sculptor living and working in both Berlin and Zurich. The autodidact artist specializes in graceful, hand-built kinetic sculptures made of magnetic, electrical and mechanical devices, all of which are elegant and completely mesmerizing. "Positioning Systems - Falling Objects" is one of his newest contraptions, which feels like a mix of home waterfall fountains, mechanical metronomes and a busy manufacturing plant.
Human anatomy is something every physician must undergo as a medical student. Some move on to become great doctors, some move on to become great artists, helping to better educate students and improve upon many illustrated representations of the human body since the days of medieval medicine. But thankfully, you don't have to be in the medical profession to enjoy the beautiful art of the human body created for teaching purposes.
Following in the footsteps of great historical figures is a great way to learn about them. Michael Wood famously did so in the 1980's for his PBS documentary and book In The Footsteps of Alexander The Great. This March, UK-based marketing director Chris Worth completed a similar endeavor—not by tracing the path of a real-life emperor or explorer, but a humble video game character. One known simply as "The Courier".
The challenge of creating garments with unconventional materials has become an all too familiar gimmick for most first year students at fashion schools. The end result is more often than not a catwalk of garbage bags, zip ties, plastic bottles and cans, assembled into a menagerie of mediocrity. Enter Jum Nakao. But while the Japanese-Brasilian artist/fashion designer does use an unconventional and impractical material (paper) for his collection "A Costura do Invisivel"(translation: "Sewing th...
First, I have to apologize—this is really old news. But when it comes to Nele Azevedo's Minimum Monument project, it's well worth digging into the archives. It's one of the most amazing street art installations I've ever seen.
Nintendo's Wii Remote came close, but never has a video game peripheral garnered such adoration from the hacker community than the Kinect.
Browsing and displaying your music library on the iPad is a cinch with Apple's iPod app. But by no means would it be considered exciting. Thankfully, there's another option for sorting and playing your iTunes library. It's a unique iPad-only application for those of us who want something more visually stimulating, something otherworldly—something galactic.
It's more addictive than Angry Birds, perhaps as relaxing as transcendental meditation, and satisfyingly simpler than GarageBand. It's Otomata, a newly programmed generative sequencer designed by Batuhan Bozkurt, a Turkish sound artist, computer programmer, and performer. But really, it's best described as an audio/visual music toy that anybody can play online—with beautiful results.
