Final year project
Liminal World (The Game) [Read more]
Liminal World Game Poster
This is a poster design for the experimental video game I have created for my final year project. As a first-time video game creator, I took on the challenge of learning how to use the Unity Game Engine, which required hours of online tutorials and lots of creative problem-solving. This body of work is a personal observation of the mind and body, more broadly mental health, and the disconnect that one can feel between the two entities. I chose the video game as a medium because I wanted to provide a participatory experience for others. The video game serves as a private virtual world, created to explore various aspects of the mind in a space completely separated from the body. In this, I hope that audiences can discover these spaces in their own way. Aside from their aesthetic, I think posters such as this can offer the chance to capture a moment, pause to focus on composition and for reflection on the theme.
The Game Layout (Maya Rendering)
Being self-taught in the use of Autodesk Maya has allowed me to utilise this powerful software freely and from an angle of pure creative experimentation. Over the last two years, I have slowly increased my ability within the software, which has allowed me to develop a unique visual language that conveys the complex and layered concepts of the theme.
Gathering Cries (Still from animation)
My final project has also involved the further development of my video work. Most of what I create digitally is based on a plethora of my own drawings. Once the ideas from the drawings have been digitised, adding movement through animation/film techniques invites another dimension to my work. Throughout my time at the university, I have focused on moving image work. I find film and animation processes allow me to be more strategic and planned in deciding how I can visually translate the emotions and narratives that exist so clearly in my mind.
Final Exhibition 3D Mock Up
I have used my Computer Aided Design (CAD) skills to create plans for how my final exhibition could look. Instead of having the video game playable within the space, I decided to have posters, figurines and a trailer on display. Being able to play the game from the comfort of one’s own space is important for the wider theme of mental health; so exploring these spaces is better experienced from home rather than a public white cube type space. I also wanted the exhibition space to reflect and engage the viewer in the ‘world’ I have created. The amber glow has been a key element in my recent work, I have utilised it to create a dreamlike/nightmarish atmosphere and I wanted this to be reflected in the space.
Figurines
Alongside my digital work, I have found that creating a physical element has been key conceptually, as it represents the physical properties of the body, while the mind is represented in the virtual realm. I am also interested in playing with the formats of the traditional video games where figurines of characters are made. It brings a more tactile element to otherwise a completely virtual project. In making the figurines, I focused on using easily accessible materials, with the idea that anyone else could create one too. Utilising simple papier mache techniques, which can be done from home, the figurines aim to match the somewhat amateur but raw experimental curiosity that I believe is crucial to my work.
Among The Tadpoles (still from animation)
Couples Spawning (still from animation)
Reaching Daggers (still from animation)
Ama Dogbe
I am a British-Ghanaian artist using predominantly digital mediums to create work that explores a variety of themes from a personal, social and political perspective.
During my four years at the university, I have become interested in the rich possibilities digital mediums offer. I am self-taught in computer-aided design and film editing software such as Autodesk Maya, Final Cut Pro and the Unity Game Engine. I have discovered that the process of learning new software has expanded my practice and each learning process can be like opening Pandora’s box of exciting creative choices. The tools I have learnt to use have provided me with the means to express myself, and also create ‘worlds’ that offer others the chance to explore their thoughts and feelings too. My final project has extended my work beyond moving image to develop a basic video game, which has pushed my ‘world building’ and digital skillset to a new level. Through my dissertation, I explored the extent to which digital marketplaces offer digital artists a way of reaching an audience and making a living.
My projects are conceptually diverse and build upon daily reflection and curiosity, observation of my surroundings and my personal experiences within it. I hope to continue learning more about the traditional and innovative methods used in the film, animation and gaming industries, while also maintaining my creative freedom and openness as a fine artist.
Final year project
Liminal World (The Game)
Awards
In my second year of the university, I applied and was selected to exhibit in the Modern Painters New Decorators Members show in 2020. Since then, I have continued to be a member of the local gallery and I am currently exhibiting with them again in 2021.
I applied and exhibited as part of the LCB Depot (a Leicester based gallery) L.O.V.E Art Online Exhibition in November 2020, and I was a featured artist in the LCB Depot Film Exhibition in March 2021. I entered short video/animation pieces for each.
In October 2020, I applied for the Dazed New Gen X Gap Competition for young artists and was excited to be selected from hundreds of applications to be one of the six artists commissioned to create work. I used a combination of film and CAD animations to create a video piece which was then publicised through the Dazed Magazine website and associated social media.