Using media such as film, our aim is to create a short video that in some way links to the bear ravine and Dudley Zoo.
Dudley Zoo Facts:
The Dudley Zoological Society was founded in 1935, Dudley Zoo opened to the public in May 1937, Constructed over 40 acres within a 200-acre densely-wooded site which includes an 11th Century castle, A team of Modernist architects designed the zoo, unique example of early Modernism in the UK, The structures have stood the test of time and seventy five years on Dudley Zoo has the worlds largest single collection of Tectons, which in 2009 received World Monument Status, twelve listed buildings, erected in 1937 by Berthold Lubetkin's Tecton Group, the limestone of Castle Hill is composed of a 420 million-year-old prehistoric seabed.
Berthold Lubetkin:
Berthhold was a Russian architect, who created modernist designs. Berthhold moved to London in 1931, were he set up the architectural practice 'Tecton'. One of the groups first projects was the gorilla house in London Zoo. After completion, they set out to design another structure for the zoo; a penguin pool. Their success lead them to design a range of other structures at Dudley Zoo & Whipsnade Zoo. Berthold Lubetkin once said: “I have the unfashionable conviction that the proper concern of architecture is more than self-display. It is a thesis, a declaration, a statement of the social aims of the age.
London Zoo
London Zoo, Gorilla House Structure
London Zoo, The Penguin Pool
London Zoo, The Penguin Pool
Whipsnade Zoo
Whipsnade Zoo
Whipsnade Zoo, Shelter Overlooking Elephant House
Kiosk and shelter, Whipsnade Zoo
Elephant House, Whipsnade Zoo
Dudley Zoo:
Bear Ravine, Dudley Zoo
Bear Ravine, Dudley Zoo
Bear Ravine, Dudley Zoo
Bear Ravine, Dudley Zoo
Other Dudley Zoo Structures:
Lion & Tiger Enclosure
Asiatic Black Bear Enclosure
Penguin Pool
Ideas:
Idea One:
Create a scene using a range of materials such as clay, plasticine & play-dough (play-doh) etc. I aim to show a stop animation video showing how the bear ravine has changed over the years. The video will be footage from when it was first built and how it is today. I want to show the process of decaying, rotting, colour change, loose paint chipping etc.
Idea Two:
I had the idea of how could the zoo be more exciting, and I thought of adding a second structure that focuses on the bear ravine. Although this is not realistic, I thought that this idea would be a good way for the viewer to see and feel what it's like to be an animal. The first part of the idea was to create a small model structure with nature inside it; trees, grass, wild life etc. However the project needs to be a video, so the model structure would be documented and following on would be a video of how it would look inside the place IF it was real. In order to show this in a final piece, I would place the modelled structure next to the video. I was thinking that I could place some small camera's onto myself or a friend, and also have someone filming from behind and other angles. I would then go to a nearby forest, find a deserted part of it and do the filming there, this way the viewer could see how an animal feels and how instincts etc are needed throughout. I find this idea hard to explain, but easier to show. It's basicly a video to show how it would look and feel inside the structure if it was real. It's also a way to get the viewers to think about how animals act and how the human is different in their position, how they would feel if it was them; scared, nervous, excited, paranoia etc.
Final Idea:
I Chose to re-create the bear ravine at Dudley Zoo using clay and other materials that create a realistic output. My idea was to use stop animation to show how the bear ravine was constructed from nothing, and how the landscape looked before; Although I had to use my imagination because I couldn't find any blueprints or images from before it was built. I used materials such as artificial grass, stones / pebbles and included parts of nature; plants, clipping from fir-trees etc. I began with creating a similar landscape from pictures I had taken and found. I also used the pictures to get a rough scale of how big the model would be. I have created 2 versions of the finished video; one played as normal while the other is reversed. The reason for this is because I couldn't make up my mind on which one to choose because they both had an interesting view to them. At the end of the video after rendering it, I found out that a problem kept happening which pix-elated the images, although I didn't really intend for this to happen, I think it somehow expresses how the bear ravine is not usualy noticed or left out and forgotten.
Final Videos:
Normal
Reversed
Conclusion:
I thought the idea of introducing stop animation into the project was a good overall idea, however there are some parts that I would of preferred to turn out better. For example, the lighting keeps changing at some points of the video which may become distracting for the audience, and the slight movement of the camera which effects the overall animation. I thought some parts of the video did have a realistic approach towards them but some materials (such as the artificial grass) did appear a little too fake. Overall I'm proud with the final outcome because I haven't really explored the use of clay before and there were some problems I had to navigate past, such as the clay sometimes drying out to fast so it was hard to add additional amounts onto it. I have learnt some new techniques from the experience and look forward to using stop animation and other similar media in the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment