Earthworks In Motion: Animated Land Art Experiments by Paul Johnson
Posted by:
Paul R Johnson
Info from Licensor: "When I was 9 years old on a camping trip, I picked up a stick and started drawing in the sand. I spent hours on it. Something about the deliberate movements, repetition of shapes, and the feel of the sand was meditative. Since then, I've tried to make things out in the wild with the raw materials the natural world provides whenever the opportunity presents itself. Early last year, I began experimenting with putting these works in motion. The aim was to create videos in which the works seemingly create and assemble themselves without human intervention. By using stop motion animation, I can make small changes to each arrangement before stepping out of the shot. Each clip started off a rough concept of how the elements are going to move but usually the end product turns out very different due to variables in weather conditions, materials, and happy accidents. The process is time consuming but taking the time to create something out in the elements forces me to closely examine and appreciate the incredible patterns and systems of the natural world. I hope to keep exploring and adding to this series in the future."
Occurred: 2015 / Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, USA