Art History Class: Visual Analysis

My college life began with a mandatory meeting for all the filmmaking students of the campus. However, as a student whose concentration is animation, I understand animation as a unique form of art that is different from filmmaking. Unlike filmmaking, everything in an animation is made of the animator’s intention. For instance, the shape of clouds represented in a film mostly depends on the mother nature. But in an animation, the clouds are designed only by people who are making it. Therefore to be an animator requires ability of translating virtual ideas into pictorial messages. And the first step I took to obtain this ability better is to learn from life and build my storage of visual memories.

Being a student of Sarah Lawrence College, I

Studying humanities and social science subjects enriches me. So far, I have taken not only animation courses, but also history, art history and film history courses in college. By discussing the reading materials of my history class, I learned not only more about what has happened in this world but also how to think critically and comprehensively. By writing visual analysis papers for my art history class, I learned, from great painters in the history, the aesthetic way to represent different subject matters. I learned light logic from Caravaggio, and learned to manipulate space from Vermeer’s interior

When I saw the stunning Duomo which I have read about from my textbook right in front of me, I was suddenly touched by its own beauty. Although I wrote a research paper about the theories of Brunelleschi’s dome, I feel his intellects indeed only when I climbed up to the Cupola. I started to realize the importance of experiencing. Therefore I decided to go study abroad for a year to feel the culture that I will not learn from reading books, and also build a richer visual memories storage. I choose to study in University of Art London because it can provide me with both the experience of feeling a different culture, but also a more intensive and professional art training. My previous one year and a half college experience was cramped with studies and informations in diverse fields. I was taught to research, think and write. Such college experience always inspires me with amazing ideas which I wanted to make animations with. But what I lacked is the strong ability of translate these ideas into the language of art. It is also important for me to have a long-term art learning experience so that I can work on my projects and build a satisfied portfolio. I believe in the London College of Communication, I would have more chance to meet with more animation people. Although I really love taking advices from other animation students about my works, my school now has a very