Author: chickoff@andrew.cmu.edu

Chickoff-Project-02-Section D

Chickoff Seagull

//Cora Hickoff
//Section D 9:30AM-10:20AM
//chickoff@andrew.cmu.edu
//Project-02

var faceWidth = 350;
var faceHeight = 300;
var eyeSize = 20;
var pupilSize = 9;
var beakSize = 50;
var x = 170;

function setup() {
    createCanvas(640, 480);
}
 
function draw() {
    background(130,180,200);

    //face
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(235,235,235);
    ellipse(width / 2, height / 2, faceWidth,  faceHeight);

    //body
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(235,235,235);
    ellipse(340,430,270,250);

    //beak
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(255,220,25);
    rect(width / 10, height / 2, x, beakSize);

    //feather 1
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(220,220,220);
    ellipse(370,440,20,100);

    //feather 2
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(200,200,200);
    ellipse(380,440,20,120);

    //feather 3
    strokeWeight(0);
    fill(180,180,180);
    ellipse(390,440,20,100);

    //feather 4
    strokeWeight(0)
    fill(200,200,200);
    ellipse(400,440,20,90);

    //eyes
    strokeWeight(2);
    fill(250,250,210);
    var eyeLX = width / 3 - faceWidth * 0.12;
    var eyeRX = width / 2 + faceWidth * 0.25;
    ellipse(eyeLX, height / 2, eyeSize, eyeSize);
    ellipse(eyeRX, height / 2, eyeSize, eyeSize);

    //pupils
    strokeWeight(2);
    fill(0,0,0);
    var pupilLX = width / 3 - faceHeight * 0.12;
    var pupilRX = width / 2 + faceWidth * 0.25;
    ellipse(pupilLX, height / 2, pupilSize, pupilSize);
    ellipse(pupilRX, height / 2, pupilSize, pupilSize);

}
 
function mousePressed() {
    // when the user clicks, these variables are reassigned
    // to random values within specified ranges. For example,
    // 'faceWidth' gets a random value between 75 and 150.

    faceWidth = random(200, 350);
    faceHeight = random(200, 300);
    eyeSize = random(20, 30);
    pupilSize = random(7,11);
    beakSize = random(30,50);
    beakWidth = random(10,50);

}

When creating this project, I was originally hoping to make a dog of some sort. I made a lot of sketches for this, trying to simplify the shapes. However I ended up changing my direction after a happy accident. When I wrote the code to create a rectangle, it turned out to be yellow because of the color variables I had randomly set. I immediately thought it looked like a seagull’s beak and so I went with it!

Looking Outwards-02 Section D

Still from Dreamlines at Minute 1:46

This is a video of a capture of one of the search strings used to create Dreamlines, an interactive net-art work created by Leonardo Solaas in 2005. The search word for this particular video was “plum.”

Leonardo is both an artist and a programmer. He states that, “The user enters one or more words that define the subject of a dream he would like to dream.” At the same time, one cannot be sure whether they are observing their dream, or the computer’s dream and thought process. There is no definitive answer to this uncertainty, just as dreams can be very general and not make logical sense.

I find it beautiful that even an electronically generated work can mimic patterns in nature. This artwork reminds me of spider webs, bacteria, mold, and other organic forms. However I did notice that the more I picked out single curves and lines in the work, I became more aware of its unnaturalness. I realized that enjoyed it when I saw it as an organism rather than what looked like an imitation of a living thing.

Cora Hickoff Self Portrait

Cora Self Portrait

//Cora Hickoff
//Section C 9:30AM-10:20AM
//chickoff@andrew.cmu.edu
//Project-01

function setup() {
    createCanvas(500,600);
    background(167,171,198);
}

function draw() {

    //face
    fill(255,255,255)
    noStroke(0)
    rect(175,120,160,240,50);

    //nose
    fill(247,216,180)
    noStroke(0)
    ellipse(225,250,15,40);

    //top of nose
    fill(255,255,255)
    noStroke(0)
    ellipse(225,237,15,40);

    //freckle blush
    fill(255,227,225)
    ellipse(230,230,60,20);

    //freckle 1
    fill(185,149,108)
    ellipse(215,230,4,4);

    //freckle 2
    fill(185,149,108)
    ellipse(230,225,3,3);

    //freckle 3
    fill(185,149,108)
    ellipse(240,234,3,3);

    //freckle 4
    fill(185,149,108)
    ellipse(250,234,4,4);

    //gold stripe 1
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(220,360,70,20);

    //white stripe 1
    fill(255,255,255)
    rect(220,380,70,20);

    //gold stripe 2
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(160,400,200,20,10);

    //white stripe 2
    fill(255,255,255)
    rect(140,415,235,20,10);

    //gold stripe 3
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(135,435,245,20,10);

    //left gold sleeve stripe 1
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(125,440,20,180,10);

    //left white sleeve stripe 1
    fill(255,255,255)
    rect(140,440,20,180,10);

    //left gold sleeve stripe 2
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(160,440,20,180,10);

    //right gold sleeve stripe 1
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(330,440,20,180,10);

    //right white sleeve stripe 1
    fill(255,255,255)
    rect(350,440,20,180,10);

    //right gold sleeve stripe 2
    fill(255,196,66)
    rect(370,440,20,180,10);

    //gold shirt square
    fill(255,173,10)
    rect(180,440,160,160);

    //mouth
    fill(0,0,0)
    ellipse(250,320,40,12);

    //tooth
    fill(255,255,255)
    noStroke(0)
    rect(241,313,6,7,1);

    //left eye
    fill(255,255,255)
    stroke(0)
    strokeWeight(2)
    translate(width/2,height/2)
    rotate(PI/4.0)
    ellipse(-136,-70,15,30);

    //right eye
    fill(255,255,255)
    stroke(0)
    strokeWeight(2)
    translate(width/150,height/8)
    rotate(HALF_PI/1.0)
    ellipse(-179,-2,15,20);

}

I started this project by first drawing a sketch of what I wanted to create. I then simplified it into the shapes that I’d program. Even though my original plans changed as once I started, I learned to adapt with the process and realize that it’s okay for things to go wrong. Sometimes the unexpected happens and the work is better than it would have been had everything gone to plan.

Looking Outwards

Screenshot from Droning Like a Ur. The human forms have begun to merge with the flora of their world.

Droning Like a Ur, by Ian Cheng, is a live simulation with an infinite duration. Cheng works with a video game engine that continually generates new combinations which allow the simulations to evolve.

This means that his simulations make their own decisions based off of Cheng’s programming. These actions cannot be foreseen and are not completely predetermined. Cheng says that his live simulations are like video games that play themselves.

I love the way in which the creatures and environments in his work maintain ambiguous and strange shapes but are still recognizable. If characters maintain a mostly “human” appearance, we still identify them as such… even if they are unlike the humans in our world.

In the beginning of this video, there are strange, squishing sounds as well as a bug-like buzzing. Coupled with the imagery of bodies twisting around, these sounds created an uneasy tension. This is one of the features of Cheng’s work that I love. He generates worlds with depth and spirit. Art does not have to be lifelike to achieve this.

While I do admire this piece, I believe it could have been more effective if the dialogue in the video were less understandable and less recognizable as human. In my opinion, I feel like the voice contradicted with the unpredictability of Cheng’s simulations. It seemed too absolute, even though it was not fully comprehendible.