BARD MFA PORTFOLIO

Genesisss: Intro & Act 1 (2024)

This is the first of three animations I am making to explore the evolution of the serpent archetype in creation mythology.  The first story is adapted from Inanna and the Huppalu Tree (2900 BC), the second is Genesis from the King James Bible (400 BC), and the third is The Song of Amergin (1268 BC) from pre-Christian Ireland.  I created the script, moodboard, color palette, character design, storyboard, collected audio, and completed the first draft of the Intro and Act 1 in After Effects during a 10-week animation class through Warrior Art Camp. 

Length: 3:31 minutes
Materials & Tools: Paper, Watercolor, Scissors, Scanner, iPad, Mac Book Pro, Callipeg, After Effects and Final Cut Pro
Voice: Yolanda Sokiri
Music: Sean Costello

 Was Hilma af Klint an Animator?  (2023 - Present)

I wrote this blog post to document my exploration of the possibility Hilma af Klint visualized her paintings as animation keyframes.  I plan to continue experimenting with this inquiry and extending it into an animated documentary. Here are a few of the experiments I have shared on Instagram: 

Materials & Tools: Hilma af Klint Catalogue Raisonné, iPhone Camera, iPad, Mac Book Pro, Photoshop, and Final Cut Pro
Music: Sean Costello

Duality: Cards, Zine & Animations (2023 - Present)

I created 52 duality cards as an exercise to hold paradox and inhabit the confusion and generative possibility in the spaces in between.  I use these cards in my daily contemplation practice, and turned them into an accordion-folded zine.   I also use the cards as prompts for animations I share on Instagram.  I am interested in expanding this subject further into additional zines, oracle cards, animations, and physical installations. 

Materials & Tools: Cardstock, Gouache, iPad, Mac Book Pro, Photoshop, Callipeg, and Final Cut Pro
Music: Sean Costello

Valhalla DSP: Website and Ads (2008 - present)

I am the creative director and co-founder of Valhalla DSP, an audio plugin company I co-founded with Sean Costello in 2008.  I create the visual look and feel for Valhalla, which includes brand identity, website, graphic user interfaces for the plugins, and marketing.  Lately, I have been leveraging ads as experimental video opportunities and noticing my work and art influence each other.  Here are a few of my most recent ads:

Length: :30 each
Materials & Tools:  iPhone Camera, Mac Book Pro, Photoshop, After Effects, and Final Cut Pro
Music: Sean Costello

Yolanda Sokiri: Website & Home Page Animation (2024)

I met Yolanda through Bayo Akomolafe’s experimental We Will Dance With Mountains workshop in 2022, and we began a collaborative friendship focused on creative decolonization experiments. 
I created a website with this home page animation to Yolanda’s specifications for her coaching practice. 

Length: 4:56 minutes
Materials & Tools: Squarespace, Mac Book Pro, After Effects and Final Cut Pro
Voice: Yolanda Sokiri
Music: Sean Costello

We Live in the Medium (2024)

I created this project over a five-week essay class taught by Sabrina Orah Mark.  It began as a screed against TikTok and evolved into an interactive essay about the evolution of the internet. The first section details my 30 year history in digital marketing, the second section examines current challenges in technology, and the third is an exploration into new ways to relate with the internet.  This topic and format feels very generative for me, and I would like to continue exploring different facets of emergent technology.  I can also imagine offering this work as an interactive physical installation.  

Length: Approximately 5:00 reading time
Materials & Tools: Genially and Mac Book Pro
Most of the Music: Sean Costello