scotteaton

Artist+AI Experiments: Body Hands I

 creative AI, experiments
Apr 162019
 

Daily experiment – what happens when you mix bodies with hands (not mine) and add the magic of neural networks? We didn’t know, until now.

Joking aside – the magic of this emerging artistic medium (using AI, machine learning, deep neural networks, whatever you want to call it) is the ability it gives us to remix domains, effectively combining visual ingredients into a cauldron, the way a chef experiments in the kitchen, to see what happens. The results are sometimes good, sometimes awful, but there is adventure to be had. It is a new type of visual exploration, and gives us new components for our creative processes.

Experiments coming frequently until the June 18th exhibition.

Creative AI – extended presentation online

 AI, creative AI
Apr 122019
 

Artist+AI: Scott Eaton Lens Series 1Drawing plus AI – created using a bespoke neural network trained on my figure photography

I’ve just recorded and uploaded an extended version of my recent Creative AI talk. This talk summarises the last two years of my exploration into combining AI with my interests in photography, drawing and sculpture. The talk gives a good synopsis of the amazing creative potential of these tools. This is the first time I’ve shared the work in public, as I now feel it is mature enough that I am comfortable showing the results of my explorations. There are many more experiments and works-in-progress to be shared in the coming weeks and months, and of course mark 18-23 June in your calendar for a visit to my exhibition of this work at Somerset House, London (admission is free).

Please find the lecture here:

CreativeAI talk – Thursday, March 28, Somerset House

 creative AI, creativity, machine learning, news
Mar 142019
 

Scott Eaton preview of creative AI artworkclick for larger

On Thursday, March 28, I will be giving a talk at London’s CreativeAI meetup at Somerset House previewing the last two years of my experiments using AI and machine learning to create figurative artwork. People close to me know I have been working on this, unannounced, for quite a while and I am excited to show the work for the first time in public. The second speaker, Andrew Brock, will also be showing some mind-blowing work done while interning at Google’s DeepMind last year. The evening promises to be a visual feast!

The talks are open to the public, but spaces go quickly, so register now. Also for your calendar, my work will be shown in its entirely at an exhibition at Somerset House from 20-23 June. More information will be coming in the next couple weeks.

CreativeAI @ Somerset House: REGISTER HERE

Essential Anatomy with Framestore @ Somerset House

 anatomy, courses
Nov 022018
 

Scott Eaton's Essential Anatomy Masterclass, with Framestore artistsIntro showing some of the studios I’ve taught over the years

I’ve just finished an intensive, one-day Essential Anatomy session with the talented artists from Framestore, London. Sixty artists and I convened in the Somerset House screening room for a day covering critical lessons from both human and comparative anatomy. I don’t often run anatomy courses this short (most are a minimum of two days), so it was a challenge to distill the essential lessons from many years of teaching anatomy into a format the could deliver the maximum amount of useful information in a single day course.

In class ecorche studies - Scott Eaton's Essential Anatomyin-course anatomy studies over old master drawings
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Anatomy reconstruction study – Homo naledi

 anatomy, portrait sculpting, zbrush
May 242018
 

Homo naledi reconstruction, v2

A producer friend recently asked if I had time to put together a quick sculpt for a pitch he was giving to a potential client. The request was for a concept of what the extinct homonid species Homo naledi would have looked like in life. I happened to have a relatively free day and was excited to do some digital sculpting so I said I would give it a try.

First, who or what were Homo naledi? It turn out they are fairly recent relatives of modern humans (ca. 250,000 year ago) – discovered in 2013, to great acclaim, by a pair of cavers fumbling around in a South African cave system. The species appears to be a interesting mix of human and primate characteristics – hands and feet very near our own but with shoulders and pelvises closer to our primate ancestors. We know they were short of stature, possibly standing barely five feet tall, and had small skulls exhibiting primitive features including reduced cranial capacity (half of a modern human), robust orbital tori, reduced/absent chin, but with small teeth and gentle canines.

Taking these few data points and a handful of images of the incomplete skulls of homo Naledi, I put together a couple versions. The first, below, pushes the facial characteristics more towards primate, but with the spark of intelligence one would expect of the genus Homo. The second, and my preferred version (above), leans toward a more human interpretation of facial characteristics. It includes a quick torso study for context and posture, as well as what I imagine to be a mass of matted, dirty hair. A timelapse of the sculpting process coming soon.

Homo Naledi portrait study, v1

Comparative Anatomy at Blizzard & Pixar

 anatomy, animal anatomy, courses
Jan 032018
 

Pixar Animation Studios front entrance gate

I’ve recently returned to London after a busy couple weeks on the West Coast – this trip taking me back to Blizzard Entertainment and Pixar for anatomy talks and workshops. I’ve been to both studios a number of times in recent years, but this visit was for something new – the inaugural sessions of my Comparative Anatomy for Artists course.

blizzard dedicated to entertainment plaque.

What is comparative anatomy? Simply, it is the study of animal anatomy. More accurately though, it is the study of the relationships between the homologous anatomical structures of different animal species. For example, how a horse’s humerus (upper arm bone) differs from a human’s, and how that differs from a mole rat’s, or elephant’s, or dolphin’s in structure, function, and appearance (unbelievably yes, a dolphin has a humerus, as well as forearm, hand, and finger bones, all hidden in its front flipper!). There is a treasure trove of fascinating and bewildering adaptations that have taken place in the natural world to fit the general “animal vertebrate body plan” to many different environments and ecosystems. This course explores these amazing adaptations and how we apply this knowledge artistically to create, imagine, sculpt, draw, and animate better animals and creatures.

My Comparative Anatomy for Artist course will be running in London in the Spring of 2018, dates to be announced (sign up to the mailing list for news). If you are a games/visual effects/animation studio interested in an onsite workshop, please get in touch.

Scott Eaton running comparative anatomy workshop at PixarWith the giant Luxo Jr sculpture outside Pixar’s lobby

contrast in styles - orcs versus cartoonsOrc v. the Incredibles, a battle of campus art

Eaton-Houdon Écorché

 anatomy, sculpture
Oct 032017
 

Houdon Ecorche Sculpture 2.0 - Desktop anatomy reference–

The Eaton-Houdon Ecorche is a contemporary anatomy figure based on the classic L’Écorché, the 18th century anatomy study by French neoclassical sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon. The original écorché figure was used for centuries in art academies and ateliers around the world to teach students anatomy and cast drawing.

Multiple views of the Houdon Ecorche v2
This version, produced in collaboration with Michael Defeo, corrects a handful of lingering anatomical mistakes while retaining the gesture, pose, and naturalism that made the original a favorite of mine and of other artists through the centuries. Here it is produced at eighteen inches, an ideal size for desktop reference and study. Each figure is hand cast in museum-quality resin with removable magnetic arms.

Available at: EATON.london

 

Desktop Anatomy figure - Eaton Houdon Ecorcheclick for larger

BIM VI

 bodies-in-motion
Oct 022017
 

male walkover ballet dance bodies in motion scott eaton photographyclick for larger

Working my way through our Bodies in Motion VI shoot from earlier in the summer. So many great photos and sequences, I am really looking forward to sharing these on bodiesinmotion.photo – some amazing images for anatomy study.
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