Art in Motion: Animation Aesthetics - Softcover

Furniss, Maureen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1864620390 ISBN 13: 9781864620399

Publisher: John Libbey Cinema and Animation, 1996

Synopsis

A comprehensive examination of the aesthetics of animation in its many forms. This work is a useful resource for researchers, students and anyone with a serious interest in animation. It provides analyses of animation produced throughout the world. It overviews the relationship between animation studies and media studies.

About this title

Review:

True to the description on its back cover, this book remains a 'comprehensive' treatment of animation aesthetics--but comprehensive pertains primarily to the US--which Furniss (California Institute of the Arts) acknowledges--with occasional references to Canada and Europe. Covering history, alternatives, visuals, sound/structural design, limited animation, stop-motion and digital animation, censorship, audiences, representation, and abstract animation, the book provides a thorough overview suitable for nonspecialists because of its facile writing style and numerous illustrations. But to be truly comprehensive, this book should cover a broader geographical area. A serious shortcoming of this revised edition is the skimpy coverage of Asia's rich tradition. Though Japan merits a page or two, China and Korea each get a paragraph, India even less. For example, the author makes no mention of China's exquisite brush painting style, Korea's 'multimation' experiments, or the very recent accelerated growth of animation production in India, Korea, China, and parts of Southeast Asia. Only two of the 129 illustrations are Asia-oriented, both of the South Asian cooperative venture 'Meena' (initiated by UNICEF in association with Hanna-Barbera Cartoons), with not one word of explanation about it. Those who do not own the first edition (1998) may wish to acquire this one. Summing Up: Optional. Undergraduate and general readers. -- ChoiceJ. A. Lent, Temple University, Dec. 2008

True to the description on its back cover, this book remains a 'comprehensive' treatment of animation aesthetics--but comprehensive pertains primarily to the US--which Furniss (California Institute of the Arts) acknowledges--with occasional references to Canada and Europe. Covering history, alternatives, visuals, sound/structural design, limited animation, stop-motion and digital animation, censorship, audiences, representation, and abstract animation, the book provides a thorough overview suitable for nonspecialists because of its facile writing style and numerous illustrations. But to be truly comprehensive, this book should cover a broader geographical area. A serious shortcoming of this revised edition is the skimpy coverage of Asia's rich tradition. Though Japan merits a page or two, China and Korea each get a paragraph, India even less. For example, the author makes no mention of China's exquisite brush painting style, Korea's 'multimation' experiments, or the very recent accelerated growth of animation production in India, Korea, China, and parts of Southeast Asia. Only two of the 129 illustrations are Asia-oriented, both of the South Asian cooperative venture 'Meena' (initiated by UNICEF in association with Hanna-Barbera Cartoons), with not one word of explanation about it. Those who do not own the first edition (1998) may wish to acquire this one. Summing Up: Optional. Undergraduate and general readers. -- ChoiceJ. A. Lent, Temple University, Dec. 2008

Synopsis:

"Art in Motion: Animation Aesthetics" is the first comprehensive examination of the aesthetics of animation in its many forms. It is therefore an essential resource for researchers, students and anyone with a serious interest in animation. "Art in Motion" provides thought provoking analyses of animation produced throughout the world. The first half of the book overviews the relationship between animation studies and media studies on a larger scale, then focuses on specific aesthetic issues concerning two-dimensional and three-dimensional animation, full and limited animation and new technologies. The second half contains a series of studies on abstract animation, audiences, representation and institutional regulators.

About this edition

• Publisher: John Libbey Cinema and Animation
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 1864620390
• ISBN 13: 9781864620399
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 250