1940's Ireland
Unlike any reconstruction projects i have come across, this will as I've said before stand out as the time, culture and environment will shape the project as much as the clients deliverables and personal preferences.
This was a building in Northern Ireland, used and built by Irishmen and women, but it was also designed and used by Americans. Two vastly different cultures and styles, I need to research both and pick and chose what would and wouldn't have been available at the time and place.
Northern Ireland has always been a associated with mainland UK, but what most don't seem to remember is when the UK was watching coloured TV Ireland still had black and white, if the common households even had a TV. even in today's society opinions and perspectives differ vastly in such a short space of land/water.
Asking historians and google what existed is one thing but asking real life members of the community (who i will not name for safe guarding reasons) was more beneficial in picking and choosing what was true and accurate.
For example, what was common in England wasn't common household objects in Belfast, and what was common for Belfast wasn't common for Derry. A prime Example would've been cars.
When you think World War 2 you think cars, tanks and landrovers, but the horse and cart was still very much a common household mode of transportation in rural Ireland even into the 70s, which included northern Ireland rural city, Derry/LondonDerry during WW2.
These pieces of knowledge are important when making final decisions on what should and shouldn't be included, and weighing up options on was it more american or more Irish.
Oil lamps although technology had surpassed their use were still used in WW2 especially in rural areas by Americans and Irish as there had to be back ups if there was ever an attack and electricity went out, so that will be included.
Gas masks are another example of prime imagery when discussing WW2 yet they weren't used as much in Northern Ireland in comparisons to most places. only one bomb ever actually landed in Derry, so yes there were gas masks and shelters but ration books were more a common than gas masks, this is the kind of picking and choosing i have done in this project, every asset has been researched whether it was actually there and readily available not just in the time but the place, creating a realistic reconstruction of the era.
To keep me on the right track and consistently remind me about all of this i have a large visual wall/mood board/project board in my work area rather than going back and forth from digital files, this i find helps develop a project more thoroughly and helps with the previously discussed 'why why why'.
I have an example of a previous projects visual wall on behance and pinterest to give any of you a general idea of what i'm on about and give you an insight into my design process, to be honest i used a previous projects because at this early in the project it looks like a messy pile of post it notes and reference photos, so not as visually impressive.
Once i had a feel for the era and style i was aiming for i began compiling mood boards and final concept art.
Part of recreating the era and concept art involved digital composition and restoration of available resources such as the high resolution photographs, these were obtained by specifically requesting them from the US.Navy Headquarters in New York with a connection obtained from M.lusby at Base One Europe.
This technique is ever more popular in the last year or so, It not only takes competency in the full adobe suite but also an extreme level of research, for example 7ups logo was red on black until the 70s not the current green on white. Its all in the research of the finer details.
Links for an idea of what i'm talking about :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcriltNQMfI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqCFXK0vDok
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB-o1-LyGlM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2Srw245R7U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11Ekb90q7eo
https://www.pixartprinting.co.uk/content/controversial-art-colourising-past/
-example of criticism of this type of art.
https://www.boredpanda.com/historic-pictures-colorized/
https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2016/8/29/12662478/marina-amaral-black-and-white-photo-colorization
Computer arts, issue 92 and 97 (2007)
-several articles on the up and coming technique of digital colourisation.
The American Organist, Volume 34 (2010)
Some Restoration and Colourisation Artists i took influence from:
Jordan Lloyd
Mads Madson
Marina Amaral
Arthur S.Siegal
Ansel Adams
Russel Lee
This was a building in Northern Ireland, used and built by Irishmen and women, but it was also designed and used by Americans. Two vastly different cultures and styles, I need to research both and pick and chose what would and wouldn't have been available at the time and place.
Northern Ireland has always been a associated with mainland UK, but what most don't seem to remember is when the UK was watching coloured TV Ireland still had black and white, if the common households even had a TV. even in today's society opinions and perspectives differ vastly in such a short space of land/water.
Asking historians and google what existed is one thing but asking real life members of the community (who i will not name for safe guarding reasons) was more beneficial in picking and choosing what was true and accurate.
For example, what was common in England wasn't common household objects in Belfast, and what was common for Belfast wasn't common for Derry. A prime Example would've been cars.
When you think World War 2 you think cars, tanks and landrovers, but the horse and cart was still very much a common household mode of transportation in rural Ireland even into the 70s, which included northern Ireland rural city, Derry/LondonDerry during WW2.
These pieces of knowledge are important when making final decisions on what should and shouldn't be included, and weighing up options on was it more american or more Irish.
Oil lamps although technology had surpassed their use were still used in WW2 especially in rural areas by Americans and Irish as there had to be back ups if there was ever an attack and electricity went out, so that will be included.
Gas masks are another example of prime imagery when discussing WW2 yet they weren't used as much in Northern Ireland in comparisons to most places. only one bomb ever actually landed in Derry, so yes there were gas masks and shelters but ration books were more a common than gas masks, this is the kind of picking and choosing i have done in this project, every asset has been researched whether it was actually there and readily available not just in the time but the place, creating a realistic reconstruction of the era.
To keep me on the right track and consistently remind me about all of this i have a large visual wall/mood board/project board in my work area rather than going back and forth from digital files, this i find helps develop a project more thoroughly and helps with the previously discussed 'why why why'.
I have an example of a previous projects visual wall on behance and pinterest to give any of you a general idea of what i'm on about and give you an insight into my design process, to be honest i used a previous projects because at this early in the project it looks like a messy pile of post it notes and reference photos, so not as visually impressive.
Once i had a feel for the era and style i was aiming for i began compiling mood boards and final concept art.
Part of recreating the era and concept art involved digital composition and restoration of available resources such as the high resolution photographs, these were obtained by specifically requesting them from the US.Navy Headquarters in New York with a connection obtained from M.lusby at Base One Europe.
This technique is ever more popular in the last year or so, It not only takes competency in the full adobe suite but also an extreme level of research, for example 7ups logo was red on black until the 70s not the current green on white. Its all in the research of the finer details.
Links for an idea of what i'm talking about :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcriltNQMfI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqCFXK0vDok
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB-o1-LyGlM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2Srw245R7U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11Ekb90q7eo
https://www.pixartprinting.co.uk/content/controversial-art-colourising-past/
-example of criticism of this type of art.
https://www.boredpanda.com/historic-pictures-colorized/
https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2016/8/29/12662478/marina-amaral-black-and-white-photo-colorization
Computer arts, issue 92 and 97 (2007)
-several articles on the up and coming technique of digital colourisation.
The American Organist, Volume 34 (2010)
Some Restoration and Colourisation Artists i took influence from:
Jordan Lloyd
Mads Madson
Marina Amaral
Arthur S.Siegal
Ansel Adams
Russel Lee
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