Animated Spirit
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My name is James (JC) Chiang and I'm an animator, painter, teacher, and free spirit. In the 20+ years since graduating from Sheridan College's Animation Program. On this blog, Topics will include all things art-related including film, illustration, fine art, and of course, animation - all with the goal of pushing you and me to think a little deeper and wider about the why and how of..
Animated Spirit
1w ago
“Boredom 1.0 no longer exists… no one is bored (yet) everything is boring.” — Mark Fisher I don’t think I can summarize the state of the 21st century mind better than Mark Fisher does in the above quote. We’re flooded with wanting, bombarded by data and detail yet we’ve never felt more apathetic towards things ..read more
Animated Spirit
2w ago
“The artist is the hand that plays, touching one key or another, to cause vibrations in the soul.” — Wassily Kandinsky This past weekend I had to remove a beloved Japanese Maple tree from my garden. It had gotten beaten down by the heatwave last summer and subsequently infected with a nasty fungus. The operation was ..read more
Animated Spirit
1M ago
“You adapt yourself, Paul Klee said, to the contents of the paintbox. Adapting yourself to the contents of the paintbox, he said, is more important than nature and its study. The painter, in other words, does not fit the paints to the world. He most certainly does not fit the world to himself. He fits ..read more
Animated Spirit
1M ago
“The object, which is back of every true work of art, is the attainment of a state of being, a state of high functioning, a more than ordinary moment of existence. In such moments activity is inevitable, and whether this activity is with brush, pen, chisel, or tongue, its result is but a by-product of ..read more
Animated Spirit
2M ago
“Self trust — it’s a very hard thing to achieve, for me. To trust yourself. Because we don’t really do it, you know?” — Philip Guston, Painter Oftentimes, we get so busy that we forget that we can choose. But we can. We can choose to live with self trust or with continuous doubt and ..read more
Animated Spirit
2M ago
“…if one would solve the everyday problems of existence, whatever they may be, one must first see the wider issues and then come to the detail. After all, the great painter, the great poet is one who sees the whole — who sees all the heavens, the blue skies, the radiant sunset, the tree, the ..read more
Animated Spirit
3M ago
“The Artist is no other than he who unlearns what he has learned, in order to know himself.” — E. E. Cummings, Poet Today, I’m going to demonstrate a pose from a recent high profile animated film (which will remain unnamed) that is problematic. Normally I would not do this publicly. I do not want to ..read more
Animated Spirit
3M ago
“This is very important— to take leisure time. Pace is the essence. Without stopping entirely and doing nothing at all for great periods, you’re gonna lose everything… just to do nothing at all, very, very important. And how many people do this in modern society? Very few. That’s why they’re all totally mad, frustrated, angry ..read more
Animated Spirit
3M ago
I love to work. Most people dread it. As artists, it’s a tragedy to turn work into drudgery. Hence it’s wise to be reminded of the value of creative work besides the obviousness of sustaining a living. Today, I leave it primarily to the words of others to make some critical points clear: On work ..read more
Animated Spirit
3M ago
“There is no art without contemplation.” — Robert Henri We live a lifetime of constant comparisons; from the time of early sibling rivalries and competing with schoolmates for grades or popularity to who’s richer, more famous or more powerful as full-grown adults. We treat life (and people) like games and sport. It’s all quite silly ..read more