Draft 1
The project that I chose to copy is by an artist whose only known information is his Instagram username, @muddycap, and he is based in Seoul. He creates chairs made from food, toys, and everyday household items that we see, whether through AI or 3D modelling, which is unknown.
Initial thought: “Is Blender challenging for designers with no prior knowledge of 3D modelling?”
After watching tutorials I thought, “this was manageable to follow.” It is similar to using an Adobe program-not similar in its functions and purpose, but similar in that it is a software with many powerful tools that I need to make mistakes with and learn from to realise my vision. When building the chair, I felt that its process was similar to painting and drawing, where an understanding of form, colour, light and shadow, and proportion is crucial to creating a realistic-looking model. Then my thought changed: “Is Blender accessible for people with no prior knowledge of design, or painting and drawing, or art in general?”
A later thought occurred to me that all I had been thinking about was how do I build…
My proposal is to explore the questions: “Is Blender accessible for people with no knowledge of art?” and “Can you de-build (unbuild, deconstruct, take apart) using Blender?” Or is there a different way to build? If, in the design world, the purpose of Blender is to create photorealistic visuals or stylised art for games, film, architecture, and product design, what else can be created by those who do not wish to make the same? How can we, as graphic communication designers, utilise the tools that Blender provides us with in ways that stray beyond the conventional? Create something that resembles?
My approach in exploring these questions further would be to create using unconventional methods, such as:
- Start building from a cube combined with strictly using basic mesh shapes without manipulating them
- Have the object be symmetrical
- Use the wireframes instead of solidifying
- Create from one side of the plane only
- View an object from the Z plane, which would make the object appear as just a line, with the shadow from light revealing the object at XYZ plane
References
Muddycap (n.d.) Instagram profile. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/muddycap/
Draft 2
When using Blender to create a copy of the Bagel Chair, I found the fundamental qualities of 3D modeling to be similar to painting and drawing, where an understanding of form, color, light, and shadow is essential to producing a realistic resemblance. This observation led to the following questions:
Is Blender accessible to people with no prior knowledge of art?
Can Blender be used to de-build, unbuild, or deconstruct objects rather than construct them?
If Blender is commonly used to create photorealistic visuals or stylized assets for games, film, architecture, and product design, what else can be created by those who do not wish to pursue those outcomes?
How can graphic communication designers use Blender’s tools in ways that move beyond conventional applications?
Through my iterative process of addressing these questions, I found that the most compelling inquiries emerged from the idea that a two-dimensional object comes to life through shadow rather than its volume or materials.
Rooted in the ideas of Adhocism, this project re-incorporates existing methods to form new ways of making. Light and shadow are basic elements that have a long history, dating back to prehistoric cave paintings, becoming central to this investigation. In Blender, an object cannot exist visually when rendered without light. The absence of it causes the model to collapse into black, despite being visible in the 3D viewport. Light produces contrast and cast shadows, allowing form to emerge. Hence, the object only comes to life conditionally through the presence of light and shadow.
By working with two-dimensional illustrations in a three-dimensional space and using light to alter how an object is perceived, I question ideas of degradation and transformation. Shadows, often understood as the absence of light, instead function as imprints of it. They record the form of the object obstructing the light and act as projections rather than voids. In this sense, I am printing with light.
As light passes through an object, information is selectively removed or emphasized. Through simplification, magnification, and alteration of the illustration, the object is continuously transformed. This raises the question of how much information can be removed before an image loses its identity, and whether such transformations render the original obsolete.
Blender becomes a tool to visualize this process of reduction, instead of building. It reveals what is essential to retain and what can be removed. By dissecting the object and reconstructing it through shadow, I explore the point at which a Volkswagen Beetle ceases to be recognizable as a Beetle and simply becomes a car. The work reflects on how digital processes degrade, abstract, and reshape our understanding of objects in the physical world.
I chose the Volkswagen Beetle because its design follows function and is stripped of excess, reflecting the principles of mechanical evolution central to Adhocism. The Beetle also transformed mobility into an emotional and human experience. I wanted to bring this humane quality into Blender, a tool that can often feel cold, distant, and difficult to approach.
To further explore these ideas, I aim to work with all parts of the car, taking them apart and experimenting with transparency, materiality, and light sources to observe how changes in illumination affect perception and form.
References
Muddycap (n.d.) Instagram profile. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/muddycap/
Jencks, C. and Silver, N. (2013) Adhocism: The Case for Improvisation. 2nd edn. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
Draft 3
When using Blender to create a copy of the Bagel Chair, I found the fundamental qualities of 3D modeling to be similar to painting and drawing, where an understanding of form, color, light, and shadow is essential to producing a realistic resemblance. This observation led to the following questions:
Is Blender accessible to people with no prior knowledge of art?
Can Blender be used to de-build or deconstruct objects rather than construct them?
If Blender is commonly used to create photorealistic visuals or stylized assets for games, film, architecture, and product design, what else can be created by those who do not wish to pursue those outcomes?
How can graphic communication designers use Blender’s tools in ways that move beyond conventional applications?
In my first round of iterative processes of addressing these questions, I found that the most compelling inquiries emerged from the idea that a two-dimensional object comes to life through shadow rather than its volume or materials.
Rooted in the ideas of Adhocism, this project re-incorporates existing methods to form new ways of making. In Blender, an object cannot exist visually when rendered without light. The absence of it causes the model to collapse into black, despite being visible in the 3D viewport. Light produces contrast and cast shadows, allowing form to emerge. Hence, the object only comes to life conditionally through the presence of light and shadow.
By working with two-dimensional illustrations in a three-dimensional space and using light to alter how an object is perceived, I question ideas of degradation and transformation. Shadows, often understood as the absence of light, instead function as imprints of it. They record the form of the object obstructing the light and act as projections rather than voids.
As light passes through an object, information is selectively removed or emphasized. By simplifying, magnifying, and altering the illustration, the object is continuously transformed. This raises the question of how much information can be removed before an image loses its identity, and whether such transformations render the original obsolete.
Blender becomes a tool to visualize this process of reduction, instead of building. By dissecting the object, I explore the point at which a Volkswagen Beetle ceases to be recognizable as a Beetle and simply becomes a car. The work reflects on how digital processes degrade, abstract, and reshape our understanding of objects in the physical world.
I chose the Volkswagen Beetle because its design follows function and is stripped of excess.
From the second round of iterations, I answered my initial questions by constructing the car from 2D illustrations of everyday objects assembled in 3D space. These objects only become visible when motion is added. The process involved experiments with multiple layers, light angles, light types, and transparency. It produced optical illusions, graphic outcomes, and shifting perceptions that transformed the car into something new.
This project demonstrates that Blender is accessible not only through prior artistic training, but through experimentation, perception, and inquiry. Blender can also function beyond its conventional role expected outcomes.
References
Muddycap (n.d.) Instagram profile. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/muddycap/
Jencks, C. and Silver, N. (2013) Adhocism: The Case for Improvisation. 2nd edn. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press
