Artist Research

animatic

mock up of my final animation... 

including sequence, rough timing and music idea.

final story board

Developing theme

Concept art on the main imagery I intend to use in the Animation. 

Pen on paper, approx 2m long.

Concept Art

Some sketches I completed whilst searching for appropriate imagery.

Kali-kata (Kolkata)

I've visited Kolkata several times, as (rather fittingly) it is the birthplace of my Mother. The city is believed to have gotten it's name from one of Bengal's most prevalent deities, it's modern version being thought to be derived from the ancient Bengali term 'kalikkhetro' meaning 'field of the goddess'. On my most recent visit to Kalcutta I honoured this history and my curiosity  and visited the Kalighat temple, the place believed to be the site where the Goddess' toe fell.

This temple was the busiest place i have EVER been.!We (me and a brave Uncle who'd allocated himself the duty of showing me the Kalighat in all it's glory) had to make our way through markets surrounding the temple, selling garlands, pigment, idols and offerings for the goddess- a trail of saffron red and incense smoke leading us to the Goddess. We left our shoes with a stall-holder and continued into the temple barefoot, petals and dust sticking to the soles. The temple was an outside enclosure full of people worshiping and queuing to view the idol of the Goddess. There were so many people, you would be lucky to glimpse the Goddess inside, draped in her garlands and cloths, but all you needed was to see her eyes to feel her presence. We battled the crowds and for once being a westerner seemed to have it's advantages, as the priests at entrance of the Goddess' chamber grabbed my hand and dragged me through so i could glimpse her. A seconds look and that was it, a glimpse of red eyes through the smoke and there she was. I was snatched away by my uncle to move up some stairs to catch a glimpse of the full figure of the Mother from further away. As some devotees shuffled out of the way I had another second with Kali before my forehead was smeared with sandal wood and we scurried to the exit, avoiding grabbing hands from beggars and the pools of blood left behind the mornings animal sacrifice.

And after all that, without being Hindu or indeed religious in any way, i admit to feeling Kali's presence. Whether it was the atmosphere of the hoards of devotees, clanging bells, chanting and grappling to look into her eyes, or the Mother herself with red eyes gleaming, there was something real...

starting point

Kali: The Black One

Fierce Mother Goddess of dissolution and the destruction of illusion. A warrior known for her bloodthirsty brutality, devouring enemies and dancing on battlefields- drunk on their blood.

Kali is often used as a symbol of aggression and ferocity, but what I think is most important about her character is the paradoxical personality traits that are often ignored. Kali is first and formost a manifestation of the Mother Goddess Durga in her time of battle. Kali remains a Mother and is fiercely protective, thus caring. As the legend goes, at the sight of her husband Shiva she calms from the heat of battle and embraces him, a gesture that Kali devotees claim to show the Goddess as humane and nurturing. These devotees feel a very intimate relationship with 'Ma Kali' ('Mother Kali') and feel protected and loved in the worship of her...

I would really like to explore this relationship between anger/love, brutality/humanity, ferocity/beauty as a further investigation into the Hindu Goddesses. Kali shows another more complex side to the feminine archetype described by the pantheon of Hindu Goddesess, and I aim to represent her energy visually in my animation.

Previous Animations

Oh, I've dabbled...

Some very hashed together animations from previous projects.

'Daksinakali: My Mistake' is an image of me taking the pose of the Hindu Goddess Kali sticking out her tongue as a sign of her mistake. I collected all of the mistakes I made in a week and pulled them out of my mouth... An act of regret and acceptance, whilst imitating the image of Kali. This piece was projected to be the scale of a wall, in a dark room.

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Another stop- motion animation where I lay out around 10kgs of rice onto a bedsheet and manipulated it in front of the camera... Playful experimentation.

A piece I made as part of a larger project, interpreting a private letter found on the road:

I put together some drawings I made into a sort-of animation to add movement to them...