Damian Gascoigne is an animation director and also lectures at Kingston University on the animation course.RESEARCH
Damian was born in Bradford but moved to Watford when he was very young. He likes to create work without working: snooping around, doodling, snapping, collecting, doodling on the phone - "The habit of creating." He loves looking at hair and posture, due to his interest in moving image. In 2008, He went to Lisbon with his Kingston students and was able to draw again, with inks, brushes and pens, which he really enjoyed. Jonathan Harris is an ex-Kingston student who Damian is now working with, in order to create his first short film created with the use of a computer. He loves looking at things around him and takes pictures all the time of people he knows and people he doesn't! A story or character can form from what you see. It can inform your work with a feeling or a mood.
PERSONAL WORK
"The Love Books" was a giant polystyrene book that had an animation projected on to it. For four years, Damian kept a picture diary, which consisted of 27 books and about 5000 images. These images were about things happening in his life and it was these images that were animated and projected onto the giant book. Another image projected onto a wall was of a woman rising from a table.
PITCH REQUIEM
Last year, Damian spent three months creating pitches, or seven commercials, that never came about. You are not paid for pitches, you are only paid if you are commissioned. He has been working for 25 years and though it is a competitive business, he loves working. He couldn't have a boss and be told what to do. He currently works at Picasso Pictures.
NEW TERRITORY
He is currently is the middle of creating his first computer-based animation with one of his ex-students, Jonathan, who has taught him how to create 3D imagery, which is new to him as he is from a drawn-animation background. "Animating in 3D is like driving a Porsche in a chip shop" - fancy technology but what can you do with it? He loves working in a team and with people, such as animators and model makers, who are better than him. He doesn't really like what comes out of a computer in it's processed form. His 3D work is going to be based on a 2D aesthetic, which is bringing his work into a new realm. The animation is called "Muso Soup" and it is about 2 intellectuals who have a battle between music interests and a battle of minds. He originally worked as an illustrator for five years but wanted to experiment with sound and movement. "I'm in love with working with sound". He is influenced by Seoul, Korea and Asia. He also loves the work of Ryohei Mahagiarha.
I thought Damian was a really nice and funny man though I was a bit confused by his animations. The reason for this is that they contained so many different styles, to the extent that you can't even tell that all the animations were created by the same person. I wonder if this is because within animation, you are sometimes hired to create something that has already been designed, and you are not involved fully in the creative process, but I do not know much about the animation business. He, at one point, showed us an illustration that he had created to inform his 3D characters, but in all honesty, I much preferred the style of the illustration to that within the animation and I would have liked to have seen more of his illustration work. I liked the way that he takes pictures wherever he goes as a source of inspiration and to see the world around him, it is something that I would like to start doing. I also loved the work of one of his influences: Ryohei Mahagiarha, who is also an influence to Adrian Johnson. I will be looking at this work, along with the book "cartoon modern", a book about animation from the 1950's, which Damian recommended.
See more of his work at his Picasso Pictures profile site: DAMIAN GASCOIGNE
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