On Tuesday night me and my colleague Susana went to an opening of an exhibition at Concrete Hermit which is on Club Row at the northern end of Brick Lane. It was very interesting as the Graphic artists were commissioned to re-interpret work by other artists who used more "traditional" methods like painting. There were several striking pieces and I collared Ed Taylor who, for me, had contibuted the best piece. This was a reproduction of a painting by an artist called Von and was a stark close-up of the eyes of an Owl.

I asked for an interview and told to email them with some questions. I was quite perturbed by this and wrote down the answers to the questions I did manage to ask straight after meeting Ed. I emailed their publicist anyway with some (rather good) questions and received a reply that they were far too busy and was sent a press release instead (below).

Here's the image that really got me. Unfortunately, I can't find a picture of the original work, but I'll email Von and Ed to try to get the original.

JOINING FORCES: TAYLOR JAMES COLLABORATIVE IMAGE MAKES EAST LONDON GALLERY DEBUT

Exhibition: 9-30 June 2010, Free Entry

Venue: Concrete Hermit, 5a Club Row, London E1 6JX

Creative production studio Taylor James’ latest creative effort, formed from the cross-pollination of illustrator and CGI Studio, is to be showcased at the Concrete Hermit Gallery, East London, 9-30 June. Aptly titled ‘Joining Forces’, the exhibition includes work born from partnerships between six esteemed image-makers and a CGI/post-production companies, commissioned by Creative Review for its June CGI special. The six page feature was designed to demonstrate the creative capabilities of CGI outside of photorealism and Taylor James’ image also graced the issue’s cover.

Taylor James’ striking image of an owl is a collaborative piece between one of its creative leads, Ed Taylor, and illustrator and artist, Von, and was chosen to grace the cover of the coveted magazine. Taylor James was pleased to take up the invitation to participate in the magazine’s annual CGI issue with such a unique concept. Creative Review said ‘We ran our first CGI special issue last July. In it we talked about the fact that, although CGI is a great photo-realistic problem-solving tool, it might be more interesting to see what use the technology could be put to in creating new kinds of imagery. So, for this issue we picked six illustrators/designers, most of whom have a hand-drawn aesthetic, and matched them with six CGI studios. We asked each pair to come up with one image which would represent a synthesis of their skills.’

Taylor James has been at the forefront of creative visual content creation for over ten years, specialising in print, interactive and broadcast media. Having CGI, retouching, photography and live action services all in-house enables the studio to offer a broad spectrum of innovative solutions. Ed Taylor said “CGI offers unlimited creative possibilities, there is no inherent style born out of the discipline. The most important thing is creating an aesthetic that most effectively solves our client’s brief.”

Given the editorial time constraints, a previously completed piece of Von’s work was selected from his website, www.hellovon.com as inspiration. Von had seen Taylor James’ step by step guides of projects at www.taylorjames.com and liked the juxtaposition between photos taken and the 3D/CG elements being added before the image was fully rendered. Von (www.hellovon.com) explained “we went with a drawing of an Owl I did in 2008 because it already had a very angular 3D feel which provided a great starting block for Taylor James to do their magic.”

Ed Taylor explains the creative development process: “I wanted to make the original image come out at you by introducing some subtle but dramatic lighting but without making it too over the top. I didn’t want the piece to be typically 3D i.e. with highly convincing form and shading...and I certainly didn’t want it to be a demonstration of “fancy shaders” chromes, HDRI reflections, or any kind of gimmicks.”

With the introduction of subtle 3D elements and delicate lighting and shadows, the abstract forms in the original have been embellished with translucent feathers. Two final versions were used and will be shown at the exhibition; a de-saturated tonal image, true to Von’s original and a bolder colour version with brilliant eyes.

This exhibition is a first of its kind to be commissioned by Creative Review in conjunction with their CGI special. The final results are experimental and stunning examples of how a combination of artists can work together with pioneering technology to create new and exciting imagery.

All in all, it's a pretty good read and gives a lot of insight, though I would have liked a more personal view from the artists in question. Here is a copy of the questins I sent to them

Firstly for Ed

Usually, when I go to exhibitions I see original artwork. What are your thoughts on changing another artists work?

Do you think that Von could reproduce a piece of your work and do it justice?

For Von

Can I ask the same questions but in reverse? What are your thoughts on having your work re-interpreted by another artist?

Do you think Ed's version of your piece did it justice?

For Ed and Von

I read the interview in the magazine and thought it sounded a bit contrived, like you were being very guarded. Is there anything "controversial" that you could add to spice things up a bit?

I loved the work and the "feel" of the exhibition, the only criticism I would level is that the original works were not on display. Was this because you wanted the CG works to stand as pieces on their own? Or is there another reason?

As I said earlier, I didn't get a reply to these questions, I got the press relaease instead, but these are the kind of questions I want to ask and if I get replies I will publish them.

I did manage to write down some answers to questions I did get to ask. Here they are:

mancpete - How much for the Owl piece (I always want to know this, and will ask it as often as I can because I want to know about the motivation of the artist)

Ed Taylor - I never really thought about that. (Bravo Ed, I really like that answer!)

mancpete - I usually get to see the original artwork. What do you think of re-imagining another artists work?

Ed Taylor - No reply (I was a bit disappointed about this as Ed had gone into some detail aabout his in our earlier conversation)

mancpete - Why aren't the original versions here alongside the CG versions?

Ed Taylor - I think they missed a trick there. I don't know why they're not here. They should be. (Totally agree Ed!)

Have a look in the gallery if you're in the aera, or if not you can go to the respective websites and see for yourself.

Coming soon: Review of last nights shows and an exclusive interview with Christopher Lakony

mancpete