update
It's been a while since I last posted here! The last couple months have been incredibly hectic, I've recently completed a data science internship where I worked full-time on multiple projects for the company. It was a great experience, I got to do a lot of cool stuff and I definitely learned a ton, but it has also been exhausting – in the past few weeks I wound up so tired that after work I would just collapse on the couch for a few hours before actually going to bed. Recently I got diagnosed with a Vitamin D deficiency from getting so little sunlight, one of the symptoms of which is 'extreme fatigue.' I really did need the break from personal projects such as this blog.
I am glad to have more time and more energy now, after starting to take Vitamin D supplements as prescribed. In a week I will leave the country to study abroad, and I'm both excited for it and feeling a little unprepared. I've spent 100% of my brain's energy the past 3 months dedicating myself to learning data science, and 0% of it to practicing my German… so now I really need to learn some of that bureaucratic vocabulary so I can successfully navigate the university setting. I opted not to participate in the monthlong intensive language program that nearly everyone else in my program chose to do, because I wanted to properly finish my internship and because I felt that my language skills were fine. (I tested at the B2 level.) Taking courses in German will definitely be a struggle, but I'll just have to rise to the occasion.
Best to spend the time I have before leaving doing absolutely nothing, then, so I can go in with my brain's battery fully charged.
I still do have an art project I've been working on on weekends. It's an idea for a stop-motion animation called Moon and Stars. Moon is a lighthouse keeper, rotating the moon every day to keep it in its proper phase. She sends inspiration to artists, poets, and anyone who stays up late at night. Stars is her sole companion. Each night he climbs a ladder to put the stars in the sky. But Stars is becoming frail and weak. His life is being threatened by the story's villain, Light Pollution. Moon must fight for him.
I'm still developing the story's plotline, but attached is some concept art. I have no animation experience whatsoever, so I plan to use OpenAI's new tool Sora as soon as it is released to the public. I'm so excited about its capability to generate beautiful, sweeping, panoramic videos from a single prompt, and with its image-to-video capabilities I'm hopeful that it can capture the likeness of Moon and Stars if I upload photos of the finished dolls. As for my artistic vision for the backdrops, I'm interested in exploring painting with watercolors directly onto cotton cloth. Painting with watercolors on cloth allows the paint to not crack if the cloth is folded, making the work much more portable. This is of course a project that's likely to remain on hold for an indefinite period of time – getting ready to study abroad is definitely the priority.
Some concept art for Moon. Her outfit changed quite a bit!
Concept art for Stars
Moon's outfit. She will also get a removable cloak, with a hood!