Combining Painting and Animation

I have recently been interested in the tension between fluid animations and static painting. The two diverse mediums can both convey compelling narratives, yet in such unique ways. “Beyond The Body” combines traditional canvas paintings with projected, 2D animation to explore the diversity of the human experience beyond the colonial and patriarchal.

The portraits represent the Western world’s fixation on the body to signify identity, and their isolated forms express the importance placed on hierarchy and the individual rather than the collective whole. Altogether, the paintings represent one type of knowledge structure that I view as monolithic, linear, and rigid.

 The animation projected onto the paintings symbolises alternative feminist ideologies that encourage new ways of understanding the human experience beyond the body. The ambiguous fluid forms of the animation move away from literal representations of the self and explore “the body not as the basis of identity” This pushes the idea that identity is a fluid, socially constructed phenomenon that is performed through the body, not the body itself. By avoiding the physical in my animation, I change the portraits’ identities and reduce their sense of hierarchy and isolation. These clashing ideals create a tension that is heightened by the mix of static painting with digitally projected animation. The two diverse mediums work together to inform each other and complete the work.