Instruments of Atlantis

These four instruments were discovered at the archeological site for Atlantis. Listed are the instruments and what we think they were used for.



I scanned in a sketchbook page and used it as my background layout and then I created a few texture brushes (i.e. watercolor, colored pencil) to give it more of a drawn and painted feel to each image. I used Garamond font for the text.

The Crucible Poster

Image to replicate shadow puppet style

Shadow Puppetry

Unlike other types of puppets, the shadow puppet itself is never seen in performance, only the effect it creates. The performing shadow puppet is not just a single object of wood or cardboard, but a collection of things working together. However clever or beautiful the puppet shape, it's the puppet's combination with light and a screen that makes its magical effect.

Shadow puppet shapes are made to block some or all of the light and cast a shadow. If you are trying for crisp edges on your shadows, it's important to keep the material thin. Good quality, small scissors give clean edges and the curved scissors make cutting round shapes easy. Remember, it is the edges of the puppet shape the audience notices most, so spend extra time making sure they are clean and even.

Simple puppets use just the main control wire, but more complicated puppets may need a second wire to operate a moving part. For most performances, two wires is about all a puppeteer can handle. While the same type of wire will do for both main wire and second wire, the best second wires are old umbrella wires. These have a tiny eyelet in the end and let you attach the wire to the arm, leg, head, etc. with thread.

Digitally speaking, one is using shadows as the main medium and edge quality. Similar to cut paper, various cutting tools can be used to give different edges, from frayed to clean and crisp.

Richard Bradshaw (http://www.bytypuppets.com/main/page_richard_bradshaw_style_shadow_puppetry.html)

Martha Stewart (http://www.marthastewart.com/article/shadow-puppets)

Wayang Kulit (http://www.edwebproject.org/bali/gallery/puppet.html)

Illustrated Me

Me as a cut paper illustration

Paper Cutting

Cut paper art is used commonly for scrap booking and construction images. It is great for giving a textured and assembled collage look to a piece. Such techniques are also great for pop-up book art and can incorporate interactive elements either for children or adults. Artists today use this method for landscapes, flowers, and animals. It is usually placed in with the craft category as it is more hands on than other methods.

Important to remember about cutting paper is that it is all about texture and edges.

Paper trimmers are the most efficient in cutting clean and straight lines. They are used most commonly for cards in scrap booking. In recreating this digitally, one can use marquee tools or vector lines to make a refined edge along with various embosses to give a lift to add highlight and shadow.

Scissors will give a slight bend and give to the paper depending on the type, design, and strength of the blades.

Tearing will give a feathered and uneven edge which can be great for more organic creations.

Crumbling will give a wrinkled and organic texture to the paper, that can be a good use for many shadows and highlights along the surface and edge of the paper.

Folding will also give creases and add highlights and shadows to various pieces.

In creating all of these digitally, it is important to use illustrator for edge and line to help with vector lines and patterns that can be transferred to photoshop for texture and painting, etc.


Florindamaria (www.apapercutter.com/papercuttingportfolio.html) uses paper cutting for animals and celebrities, only using one color.

Peter Callesen (www.petercallesen.com) uses paper cutting to creat 3d works of art.

Hina Aoyama (www.designrelated.com/inspiration/view/Karen/entry/2976/paper-cutting-art-by-hina-aoyama) uses paper cutting for fantasy images such as foliage and fairies.

The Tree

My lithography piece

Lithography Making

The process starts with drawing the image on the stone by using a greasy black lithographic pencil. These usually take three to twelve days, depending on the size and complexity of the image. The main problem is that mistakes cannot be erased. Small corrections can be made with a sharp knife, but major corrections are needed, it is necessary to start again on a new stone. This is important to keep in mind when recreating the process digitally.

The technique of lithography (from the Greek for "stone drawing") relies on "the principle of the antipathy of grease and water." Generally, the stone on which the image is initially created is limestone. The image is drawn on the stone with some greasy material. After the image is drawn, the stone is dampened and ink is applied with a roller. The greasy image repels the water and holds the oily ink while the rest of the stone's surface does the opposite. The stone is chemically treated after the image is created in order to enhance this effect. Some materials for drawing the image are litho crayons and pencils (containing wax, pigment, soap and shellac), liquid tusche (similar in composition to the crayons but water soluble), stick tusche (a solid form), conte crayons, pens and graphite pencils to name a few.

The finished stone is placed on a bed that carries it through the press. The paper is placed on top of the stone with some backing papers to protect it. A sheet of metal or plastic is placed on top of all the materials and they are braced together. A roller underneath that is turned by a handle moves the bed. This is similar to the intaglio press except that a scraper bar instead of a roller applies the pressure from above. The scraper bar slides along the greased metal plate pressing the paper against the stone so that it lifts the ink from where the greasy drawing material holds it on the stone.

Color lithography is a more complex process that usually involves multiple pressings, one for each color in the image. This requires an extensive knowledge of color theory because the process requires the mixing of colors on the final image itself. According to one book on lithography technique, "The original color drawing should be treated as a guide for the final print, not as a finished work to be duplicated exactly." Different stones are sometimes used for each color but the same stone can be used for multiple colors.

Marks are greasy or oily when drawing on the stone, and the use of the threshold effect and layer masks are normally used when making digital lithographs.

Charles Marion Russell (http://www.art.com/gallery/id--a427/charles-marion-russell-posters.htm) used lithography to make images of the West.

Bernard Buffet (http://www.artexpertswebsite.com/pages/artists/buffet.php) used lithography for portraits and animal sketches.

Vito Acconci (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:%27City_of_Words%27,_lithograph_by_Vito_Acconci,_1999.jpg) used text as a means to make lithography.