In all forms of art
there is precedence and there are rules. Throughout the history
of painting, the world has witnessed precedence get set and destroyed. The
tradition of painting things as they are in real life (with artists like
Gustave Courbet) was shattered by surrealist and abstract artists (such as
Pablo Picasso) who decided that they wanted to paint what they felt, not what
they saw. Even in film, there is the classical Hollywood ritual of a structured
narrative and a limited palette of shots and framing- an institution that
experimental filmmakers and conceptual directors have come to intentionally
neglect.
The issue implied
between Paul Wells’ “True Animation” and John Halas’ “Animation: The Physical
Laws” is whether or not the conventions of using physics and scientific laws
within animation are merely a precedence to be transcended or a rule to be
followed religiously. Halas believes in the rule. In his book, he references
Newton’s three laws on page 32, and dives into detail and example. This reading
makes it apparent that the over arching argument is that just because the world
an animator creates is completely from scratch, it is still necessary to follow
the world’s natural guidelines and that there will be enough room for
creativity amongst that:
“Imagination follows on scientific analysis, taking its cues from what is real.”
-Halas
p. 60
This thought differs
from Wells’ Picasso-esque mindset of “aesthetic expression” on page 29, but
Halas bridges the gap in his emphasis on the importance of creativity toward
the end of the chapter:
“The artist is under
obligation to create something which goes beyond the manufacture of a carbon
copy of natural forms and movements-- the province of the live-action camera. “
-Halas
p. 60
Wells
would agree in this sense of auteur, that the artist is in total creative
control, but he would take it one step further. His belief is that, like the
mind and heart, animation should be free and abstract and that expression in
its uninhibited form is the only way to create animation. In my own experience
as a spectator and appreciator of art I have found myself standing in Halas’
camp. There are certain rules of art, like rhythm in music, that make the piece
palatable and enjoyable. This set of rules, these elements of art are the
common ground in which the artist and the spectator are able to meet and
connect. Without it, the artist can try to bare his soul to the world without
parameters, but we the viewer will not understand, as if he were trying to tell
us a story in a language we do not speak.
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