OUAN401 - Context of Practice:
Upon watching both Jiri Trnka's "The Hand" 1968 (or Ruka in Czech) and Zagreb Film's Ersatz 1961 (or Surogat in Croatian although being a Yugoslavian short), I noticed that although from the same time period and both being Eastern European, they were completely different in terms of what message they were trying to achieve and portray about life at that particular time in history.
For instance, Ruka, as I touched on in an earlier blog post carried the metaphor of a controlling government around with it during every second of that animation. The government loomed over the sculptor and invaded every aspect of his life - his home, his career and even his funeral! In fact, the Hand was indeed the protagonist; the animation's title proves this. Through watching this, I understood that political life in late 60s Czechoslovakia was not very pleasant and the animation itself deemed the government as very sinister and suffocating to the point of death in this case.
Zagreb Film's Surogat however shed a completely different light on Croatian life and although the two countries are hardly poles apart, life seemed a little less strenuous and daunting in this animation. Unlike Ruka, this animation is incredibly colourful, fun, humourous and intends to make us laugh. It shows us a carefree lifestyle as the main character spends his day chasing women on the beach and having a picnic rather than trying to escape the wrath of an "omnipotent" and God-like hand that has the power of controlling one's life entirely.
In fact, that's rather the case in Surogat: the protagonist has complete control over his life. The way he blows random objects up as if they were balloons into anything he desires signifies that having material possessions and enjoying life the way you want to in Croatia at the time was probably not as difficult as it would have been in Czechoslovakia. While artists in the now reformed Czech Republic lived through the Censorship of the Arts - meaning the government could pass judgement as to whether or not a piece was suitable for public viewing - meant that in a sense, the government did have complete control over what you did. Politically speaking, the Hand is protest against a communist government.
In terms of target audience, I imagine that with some sexual references, Ersatz would've been aimed at everyone as it had a fun and friendly atmosphere and rather that having a rant at the way the state or country is governed, it seems more of a celebration of freedom on Yugoslavias part. However absurd and unlikely the animation seems at first, after a while you begin to understand the message and begin to enjoy it. You feel empathy for the protagonist when he is rejected by the woman for a "better looking" man. We understand that although he is lonely and upset that he cannot find love, he doesn't really care because in light of it all, he still has his freedom.
Ruka however is probably aimed at an older audience as it seems far too sinister to show a young child. Although I thoroughly enjoyed this animation, I was a little frightened at first due to the dark lighting and gloomy setting. The character's over-sized beak-like nose and blackened eyes were a little daunting also. So, with such muted colour and lack of humour in comparison to Ersatz, I do not think it would be suitable for a young audience. With the message of politics, a young audience would not understand let alone find this half as entertaining as the aforementioned.
Tuesday, 15 October 2013
Sunday, 13 October 2013
OUAN401 - Context of Practice - Fraktur, Universum and Times New Roman (Graphic Design - Typography)
OUAN401 - Context of Practice:
Along with our animation lecture regarding Ruka, I also found something very particular in terms of the graphic design section of the presentation. The political comparison and influence of three completely different fonts (Universum, Fraktur and Times New Roman) was remarkable!
My favourite in terms of look and appeal personally was Fraktur. As soon as I set eyes on it (I'd seen it many times before and failed to find out its name) I thought it was the most beautiful font I'd ever seen. The reason for this would have to be that although to look at, at first, it seems a very elegant and noble font, after a while of studying each individual letter, each hooked, beak-like serif, we become slightly afraid of it due to the sharpness of the letters in contrast with the sleekness and curvature we see at first glance.
Fraktur includes all 26 letters of the Latin alphabet with the Germanic "S Sharp" and "Umlauts". The word Fraktur translates loosely as "Gothic" and is deemed appropriate as it's roots as a font stem back to the time of the Goths, Huns, and so forth. Likewise, Times New Roman is also named very much after its historical development as a typeface as it derives from Roman scriptures and carvings found on stone.
Both of the above being serif fonts, rather bold, striking and noticeable; Universum is very much different compared to afore mentioned. Universum was created in 1925 by Herbert Bayer (Bauhaus). A sans serif typeface in it's own right with full-bodied letters and a very uniform and similar-looking feel to it, this font was created to do exactly what it's name suggests - become universal. Although this font never got released, unlike the other two fonts' jobs (to be a political letterhead associated with one country almost!), this typeface was created solely to unify everyone and promote equality: a view that may have been needed at such a critical time in politics and history alike.
Along with our animation lecture regarding Ruka, I also found something very particular in terms of the graphic design section of the presentation. The political comparison and influence of three completely different fonts (Universum, Fraktur and Times New Roman) was remarkable!
My favourite in terms of look and appeal personally was Fraktur. As soon as I set eyes on it (I'd seen it many times before and failed to find out its name) I thought it was the most beautiful font I'd ever seen. The reason for this would have to be that although to look at, at first, it seems a very elegant and noble font, after a while of studying each individual letter, each hooked, beak-like serif, we become slightly afraid of it due to the sharpness of the letters in contrast with the sleekness and curvature we see at first glance.
Fraktur includes all 26 letters of the Latin alphabet with the Germanic "S Sharp" and "Umlauts". The word Fraktur translates loosely as "Gothic" and is deemed appropriate as it's roots as a font stem back to the time of the Goths, Huns, and so forth. Likewise, Times New Roman is also named very much after its historical development as a typeface as it derives from Roman scriptures and carvings found on stone.
Both of the above being serif fonts, rather bold, striking and noticeable; Universum is very much different compared to afore mentioned. Universum was created in 1925 by Herbert Bayer (Bauhaus). A sans serif typeface in it's own right with full-bodied letters and a very uniform and similar-looking feel to it, this font was created to do exactly what it's name suggests - become universal. Although this font never got released, unlike the other two fonts' jobs (to be a political letterhead associated with one country almost!), this typeface was created solely to unify everyone and promote equality: a view that may have been needed at such a critical time in politics and history alike.
OUAN401 - Context of Practice - Jiri Trnka's 1965 "Ruka (the Hand)"
OUAN401 - Context of Practice:
During our first Context of Practice lecture last week, we had a short introduction to all the relevant other courses in terms of history, politics, propaganda and so forth. In a way, they all seemed to link very closely in terms of purpose and audience, I particularly enjoyed the topics on Animation, Graphic Design and Creative Advertising.
Aiming towards the animation side, we looked at a rather interesting little animation by the title of "Hand" or "Ruka" (in Czechoslovakian). This was made in 1965 by a man named Jiri Trnka. Ruka in particular was incredibly amazing in the sense that something so controversial could come out to look like a child's animation! I admit, although I found it sweet and innocent at first - a cute little doll who made his way as a sculptor - as the story progressed, it became more and more sinister as the Hand, the antagonist entered.
The hand seemed to be a metaphor for the Czech government in the sense that it controlled everything that the sculptor did. The sculptor was trying to make a decent living for himself but after being wrongfully seduced by the "government" if you will, all further actions in his life were affected by the hand. When the puppet sculpted the hand, the hand rewarded him with medals and a crown of leaves, ironically like a Roman leader, like a war hero or a God!
To me, the moral of this animation was very deep. Once you have done what the government wants of you, they will gift you and praise you and lure you in to yet again run more errands at their will. As soon as you put one foot wrong and try to escape their power, they will hunt you down until the death and even then control your funeral. It's like they have a hold over your will to live...
During our first Context of Practice lecture last week, we had a short introduction to all the relevant other courses in terms of history, politics, propaganda and so forth. In a way, they all seemed to link very closely in terms of purpose and audience, I particularly enjoyed the topics on Animation, Graphic Design and Creative Advertising.
Aiming towards the animation side, we looked at a rather interesting little animation by the title of "Hand" or "Ruka" (in Czechoslovakian). This was made in 1965 by a man named Jiri Trnka. Ruka in particular was incredibly amazing in the sense that something so controversial could come out to look like a child's animation! I admit, although I found it sweet and innocent at first - a cute little doll who made his way as a sculptor - as the story progressed, it became more and more sinister as the Hand, the antagonist entered.
The hand seemed to be a metaphor for the Czech government in the sense that it controlled everything that the sculptor did. The sculptor was trying to make a decent living for himself but after being wrongfully seduced by the "government" if you will, all further actions in his life were affected by the hand. When the puppet sculpted the hand, the hand rewarded him with medals and a crown of leaves, ironically like a Roman leader, like a war hero or a God!
To me, the moral of this animation was very deep. Once you have done what the government wants of you, they will gift you and praise you and lure you in to yet again run more errands at their will. As soon as you put one foot wrong and try to escape their power, they will hunt you down until the death and even then control your funeral. It's like they have a hold over your will to live...
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