It is often difficult to break tradition. Painting, sculpting, and other forms of classic art have received respect and veneration for ages, but as society evolves, modern forms of experimental art inevitably emerge. Some people love these new sprouts of inspiration while others vilify them as subpar, unauthentic, or inferior to “true high art”. But despite such opposition, these forms are making remarkable strides in the artistic realm.
One new medium is the computer, a relatively recent invention and machine of infinite potential. From the computer erupted a geyser of fresh forms including graphic arts, computer generated images, and animation. Don Hertzfeldt, a notable animator and award-winning filmmaker whose work has been showcased around the world, has said that his work serves to “free the work of independent artists from the dungeons of Internet exhibition” and gain both respect and exposure for animated shorts. His project, The Animation Show, was cocreated by Beavis and Butt-head producer Mike Judge, and has garnered much positive attention.
Hertzfeldt specializes in surrealism and absurdism, and his work often utilizes black comedy to convey more difficult messages about life. Many of his films are abstract, meant to convey a general meaning, tone, or emotion instead of concrete ideas. For example, The Meaning of Life (which followed the physical evolution of humans and their social stagnancy as violent, bickering creatures) tells of the human condition and emphasizes how ridiculous much of the conflict of the world is.
The Animation Show is both informative and entertaining, at times explaining animation terminology and at other times, poking fun at animation conventions like “the illusion of movement” and “third dimension”. It’s seemingly light-hearted fun, but consider that Hertzfeldt must manually draw thousands of sketches per short, as well as voice the characters, compose the music score, animate the frames, and much more. Keeping this in mind, it’s hard to claim that animation like his isn’t a valid form of art. Whatever the medium, the universal qualities of art – expression, purpose, effort – are present. As modern art gains ground, we will begin to redefine the identity of art and its place in a new era.
Title: The Animation Show
Name of artist: Don Hertzfeldt and Mike Judge
Date of work: 2003
Materials/Medium: Paper Sketching, Camera Photography
Duration/Running Time: 8 minutes 7 second film
Genre: Film: Animation
Venue or Location: North American touring festival, theatres