Interdisciplinary Sculpture, 2021
Arnab Gan Choudhury, hailing from India, is an international student at MICA. A painter turned sculptor, Gan Choudhury had previously received traditional training in art during his time at the Government College of Art & Craft, Kolkata, India. At MICA, Arnab pursues his second bachelors degree in Interdisciplinary Sculpture, the first one being in Financial Accounting (Bachelor of Commerce) from the University of Calcutta.
Skill Building
A series of technical exercises build and demonstrate skills in Rhino, laser cutting, 3D printing, and CNC routing.
Rhino
Project I: Chariot
Medium: Craft Plywood, Wood, Wood Stain, Nylon Strap, Metal Buckle, Paper, Glass, Water.
Year: 2020.
Chariot is a performative work of art that explores the idea of ‘balance’. As a youngster, I had always been fascinated by balancing tricks – the effortless balancing of various complex objects in unimaginable ways would capture my imagination. Unlike magic tricks, balancing acts did not rely upon concealed mechanisms or unseen apparatus; it bargained with nature. However, what beguiled me the most was the frailty of the act – the idea that the performer’s efforts could disintegrate into nothing with the slightest intervention and that very tension encapsulated me.
Chariot is a celebration of such a bargain, where the artwork is meticulously balanced in a performative act, creating a similar tension among its audience, only for them to witness the collapse of such an intricate assembly.
Project II: Stretch
Medium: 3D printed PLA, Sock, Clothespin, Fabric Stiffener
Year: 2020.
Stretch, as the title suggests strives to capture the action of stretching or being stretched. While serving as a memorabilia – a commemorative of the sock that lost its partner, Stretch aims at capturing a moment of time wherein the action of being stretched is being performed. The piece, once again, employs balance as a major component to seemingly defy the laws of nature, thereby giving the illusion of an invisible force being responsible for preforming the captured action.
Project III:
Process
Research
Animatronics: A Dying Art?
In today’s entertainment industry, with the increasing use of Visual Effects (VFX) and Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI), animatronics, has been relegated to the background. As the industry is continually striving to become increasingly efficient in both aspects of time and budget, is the art of animatronics in jeopardy?
More Information:
“Definition of ANIMATRONIC” – Merriam-Webster
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_effects
Jones, Beverly. “Computer Imagery: Imitation and Representation of Realities.” Leonardo. Supplemental Issue 2 (1989)
Stan Winston Studio (2008). “Press Release”. Los Angeles Times. June 16, 2008
Pierce, Todd James (2013-07-18). “Beyond Lincoln: Walt’s Vision for Animatronics in 1965”