Up

I really like the overall image, and the feeling of moving upward and hope that you feel describe the song. However I do agree with remarks made in class that some improvements could be made by experimenting with elongating the image vertically, and moving the circles around to create even more of an effect of upward movement (much as Kandinsky simulated movement using placement of circles and color in "Several Circles"). Have you thought about placing the circles in a more scattered way, but still close enough to each other to affect balance and tension between them, as opposed to being clumped together? I'm not sure how that would look, but it's an idea to experiment with! In addition, trying to make the transition from very dark to pastel colors more gradual may be something to think about, though I do like the shadowy feeling toward the bottom.

All in all, you have a great start-- I like the graphic a great deal, and already I feel the upward pull because of the weight of the bright circles. I'm looking forward to seeing the final outcome!

I really like this piece. I'm not in your class so I can't comment on what was discussed about the piece, but I think your work is nice.

My eye was first drawn to the shadow rather than the balloon. This is as expected, because the black offers a stark contrast to the background but the pastels are more muted and do not attract attention immediately. Also, honestly, the silhouette just looked really cool :) I think the transition between dark and light could made more smooth somehow, but I do like the tree being colored. Maybe the gradient could be adjusted to make a larger percentage of the tree stump black. This makes the transition less jarring.

The arrangement of the circles seems largely centered, but spreading them out throughout the yellow balloon outline may serve to make the piece feel slightly more full.

Overall, I love the concept, the contrast between the crisp and rounded lines, and the balance between positive and negative space. Nice job!

This is really neat! The colors and circles really capture the mood of the scene from Up, and I like the elegance in its simplicity.

While I'm not in the visual module, I do have some suggestions/ideas. I'm not sure if you want to leave the circles enclosed in the yellow balloon, but one thing that might be interesting is having the circles expand further outward into a blue sky (in other words, instead of a yellow oval, the yellow opens up like a V). Alternatively, if you increase the canvas size and placed the image off-center, you could add a sense of smallness (but this depends on your intentions).

I'm a little uncertain what the bottom of the yellow oval is (a tree trunk?) and it's slightly out of place in color and location, but maybe that's the intent (bridging the color and the black and white). Other than that, I really like the rest of the piece-- the silhouette and the details in the grass and rock. Good work!

I really like how your final product turned out. I'm a big fan of the fact that the circles don't stop at the edges of the balloon but continue into the head of the person. I'm glad that you found direction in terms of movement with respect to the circles. Before, though they seemed to be centered, they didn't create any sense of movement. The viewer's eye was not particularly inclined to follow the path. Now, if the viewer first sees the patch of earth, his or her eye will then wander over the person then trace out the path of the balloon. The movement in this work is really wonderful.

I enjoyed seeing the growth from the preliminary to final outcome. The breaking of boundaries was really creative and added to the uplifting sensation. The change in the boy's orientation emphasized the vertical aspect, which also helped. Turning the balloon dark also makes it much easier to follow the colorful circles with your eyes.

The transition from your preliminary outcome to the final piece is great; you definitely took into account the feedback you received both on the gallery and in class. Making the image larger vertically, creating almost a path of bubbles upward, and switching to a taller silhouette really add to the feeling of upward movement and hope. It also is interesting how you changed the tree to a balloon, and made it black instead, so that most of a viewer's attention is drawn to the circles. Finally, I love how you started the circles in the boy; like they are bubbling up from inside him to pull him and his little island upward. Great work!