to come along in quite some time, and both had a profound impact on the art
scene. As both were derived from the developing technologies of the day,
the initial forms of each suffered from many problems, primary among them
issues of consistency and permanence. Although these problems were resolved
as technology evolved, full acceptance of the media took a long time. Both
acrylics and photography are still looked down upon in certain art circles
as inferior media. But that controversy is about to pale before those being
created by the latest new medium: the computer.
Although computer art is relatively new, it has already created problems
and controversy that are likely to exceed those created by the introduction
of acrylics or even photography. For example, in a computer-generated 2D
image what is the actual art? Is it the electronic file, or is output from
that file? Or is the output a print? And so on. The majority of such issues
are market-based questions and as such are important to the artist as
marketer, but also are irrelevant to the artist as creator.
Ralph Mayer in his artist's bible, THE ARTIST'S HANDBOOK OF MATERIALS AND
TECHNIQUES, says: "No movements or schools of art began as a result of the
discovery of new materials or inventions of new techniques. Rather, when
new ideas and aesthetic departures arose, they created a demand for new
technical methods that could express them in a more appropriate and fluent
manner..." This sounds great, but my own experience is that things are far
more interrelated than that. In accordance with Mayer, Impressionism was an
aesthetic departure which embraced the reductionism of scientific thought,
by focusing in on specific aspects of the traditional painting process: the
use of light or color for example. But it was just as much a reaction to
the invention of photography (a new tool/material/medium), as it was simply
an aesthetic departure.
More specifically, I find that artistic expression is more the result of
the interaction of artist and materials as it is the concrescence of an
independent idea. Sculpture is one of my first loves, and many of my pieces
begin simply as play with different materials. The results of that play
directly evoke feelings and concepts that lead to the final sculpture. Two
of my favorite materials, fiberglass and polyurethane foam, are relatively
recent inventions, and the properties of those materials contribute
directly to the sculptures I create with them. In a sense, I would not have
thought to create those specific sculptures without seeing what those
specific materials do. And so, in a far more dynamic way the interaction
between artist and computer is now giving rise to an enormous array of new
art forms, using and combining 2D & 3D imagery, animation, sound or
whatever aspects of multimedia spectrum the artist chooses.
Some artists immediately take to new tools or media while others eschew
them. This is an outcome of the elitism that is inherent in (and necessary
to) the art market, but happily not in art itself; there seems to be plenty
of room for expression in the art world. The key term here is artist's
tool, and as is said: "use the right tool for the job." If one is creating
a mural on the bottom of a swimming pool, it may be wise to put away the
watercolors. Likewise, an image best suited to oil on canvas would probably
best not be created with a computer. Of course, as you read that last line
there was probably some artist in SOHO dipping his CPU in paint and rolling
it across a stretched canvas. All right, so that was me in Connecticut. And
it did make an interesting textural pattern... but I digress.
So, Dave Stevenson, art director at Del Rey Books, decided that a
computer-generated piece would make a good cover for Larry Niven's THE
RINGWORLD THRONE. Dave knew that I dabbled with 3D computer programs, and
I was very pleased to receive the assignment. It is still a bold move to
use computer art, and from the artist's perspective, it is always a joy to
work with someone willing to experiment. After reading and discussing the
manuscript with Dave, I created some sketches based on a more symbolic or
surreal approach to the book, rather than a literal rendering of a specific
scene.
The chosen concept incorporated an element from the manuscript, the
floating city, into a surreal depiction of the Ringworld ring. The actual
creation of the final piece involved mapping various painted and
photo-manipulated textures onto models sculpted with a 3D program. Lighting
sources and a camera were placed in the scene, and a high-resolution
rendering was made from the virtual camera's point of view. That rendering
was output to a 4x5 transparency for color separation.
One interesting thing about the 3D programs is that once a virtual scene is
made, it is extremely easy to move a camera or any other aspect of the
model over a timeline to create an animation (with multiple renderings).
This is exactly what I did with the Ringworld Throne model. I also have an
interest in creating electronic music, so by integrating some simple
animations and music, I was able create a short promotional QuickTime movie
for the book. Being able to combine a variety of interests (painting,
sculpture, animation and music) in a single project was pure joy!
This sort of thing opens up enormous possibilities for the artist. Although
the interface for 3D programs are at present somewhat awkward, one can see
that in the very near future the would-be sculptor will simply don a pair
of glasses and gloves and model virtual objects in space. Computer-aided
manufacture could then produce an edition of the sculpted object, or the
object could itself be animated by shape and/or texture and displayed in a
virtual gallery. The variations are endless. Taking my own tack, I have
just produced a limited edition print from one of my paintings: "Song of
Cecilia." Although the painting is actually painted on canvas in oil on
acrylic, its structure was designed in a 3D program. On completion of the
painting, the textures in it were scanned and re-applied to the objects in
the original computer model, allowing the creation of 3D scene animations.
I am currently working on the creation of an interactive CD-ROM as a
companion to the art print, which will enable the viewer to explore the
environment of the painting and listen to music composed specifically for
the piece. Again, what fun it is to combine the various media!
--Copyright 1996 by Barclay Shaw
BarclayArt@aol.com
Q & A===================================================================
Q: What info do you have on Jack Chalker's books? Is there stuff on the
Internet?
A: We have quite a few sample chapters from Chalker's books on our Web
site, http://www.randomhouse.com/delrey/ (also on our gopherspace,
gopher://gopher.panix.com:70/00/DRB/); we've done a Chalker bibliography in
the DRIN (http://www.randomhouse.com/delrey/drindex/). Check the summaries
at the address above to find the exact isue. Also, he has a Web site
(http://www.greyware.com/authors/jack_l_chalker) and a reader has a Well
World site (http://www.netnet.net/users/gbuntin/dawell.html).
Q: How many _Worldwar_ books is Harry Turtledove planning?
A: The third book, WORLDWAR: UPSETTING THE BALANCE, is out now in hardcover
(sporting Albert Einstein, Dwight Eisenhower, and Benito Mussolini on the
* Message split, to be continued *
... Расстрелять за недостатком улик.
--- GoldED 2.50+
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Msg : 139 of 271
From : Serge Berezhnoy 2:5030/27.194 .pд 05 .юн 96 11:46
To : All
Subj : [part 3] Del Rey Internet Newsletter, June
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.Newsgroups: ru.sf.news
.Subject: [part 3] Del Rey Internet Newsletter, June
.Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 11:46:04 +0000
.X-Newsreader: GoldED 2.50+
* Continuation 2 of a split message *
cover). It will be released as a paperback in late November-early
December, at about the same time as the fourth and final book, WORLDWAR:
STRIKING THE BALANCE hits in hardcover. For the finale, Harry Turtledove
has pulled some real rabbits out of the hat, including a classic red
herring and a couple of real, hold-your-breath dramatic scenes.
Q: I've been following the DRIN since the first issue and look forward to
it every month. I miss two sections from the "old days": IMHO, which
lent a sense of reality to the publishing business, and Q & A, which
used to include questions other than those about release dates of
upcoming books. I can sense the time pressures in an editor's
life--getting books published and sold is obviously far more important
than filling the public in on the details of the business--but it would
be nice to see, once again, even an occasional column in the DRIN with a
view on where the SF and fantasy markets are headed, especially when
that direction is changing!
A: I wish we still had IMHOs and more Q&As, too. The IMHOs stopped because
I ran out of things to say (at the same time as I ran out of time to write
them!), and no one else around here wanted to take over. I offered the
space to anyone from the sf-reader community who wanted to submit articles,
but no one was interested, apparently. So here I go again: The DRIN is
looking for articles by readers about SF/F--anything well reasoned and
interesting, other than reviews of particular books. The pay is
nonexistent, but if you've ever wanted to reach thousands of interested
SF/F readers all over the electronic world, here's your soapbox. I did it
for two years and tried to teach readers what I know about SF/F publishing
and the book business in general, plus took a few education breaks to rant
and rave over various things. I dare some of you to tell us what _you_
know!
Ellen Key Harris
Editor, Del Rey Books
Director of Online Projects, Ballantine Books
delrey@randomhouse.com |DEL|
===================================================================|REY|
[The Del Rey Internet Newsletter is copyright 1996 by Del Rey Books,
except for the IN DEPTH section, which is copyright by the author.
The DRIN may be reproduced only in its entirety, and not for profit.]
... Оставь меня, старушка, я в печали...
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Msg : 140 of 271
From : Sergey Lukianenko 2:5083/22.22 .он 03 .юн 96 10:32
To : Serge Berezhnoy
Subj : Hу, .окид, погоди!
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.TID: FastEcho 1.45 777
Hello!
Мой модем имел честь пpинять слова от Serge Berezhnoy господинy Pavel
Viaznikov:
>> ЗЫ. Чой-то они... не того. Эта контора - эта контра - начала было
>> отличную серию. Я подписался на 2 экз.! А потом - Лук-ко
>> задерживают, тебе вот глупости говорят, да еще печатают то, что я
>> дома держать не хочу и не желаю - "Галактическую полицию" и паче
>> того - "Ветры Империи"... :(
SB> Уже месяц, как Геворкян разорялся насчет сигналов Лукьяненко и
SB> Лазарчука. А сейчас вообще говорят, что "Локид" на все лето
SB> сворачивает издание книг :( Hа практике это может означать, что они
SB> совсем отвалят от фантастики -- доработают то, что уже взято, и
SB> адью...
Модеpатоp, можно я выматеpюсь? Хотя бы yстно?.. Вот, полегчало...
"Локид" - волынит. (Блин, они не забыли, что в начале сентябpя с ними
