Sometimes inspiration lies in small things.
Everyday objects, their shadows and a pen.
That's all Vincent Bal needs to create his imaginative art.
Welcome to the world of Shadowology!
International readers of this blog might never have heard of the Belgian filmmaker Vincent Bal. But here in Belgium he's known for several movies, both for children and adults.
Even though in general I'm not such a fan of Belgian movies, Vincent's humorous musical movie Brabançonne really convinced me of his talent.
One day a little
black book with the intriguing title Shadowology caught my eye at the
bookshop. I was surprised to see Vincent's name on it.
Apparently he's not only a talented film director, but he has a very original hobby as well.
Instead of describing what Shadowology is, I'd rather let you discover it for yourself.
That way you can experience the same sense of wonder I did when I first saw these works of art!
Do you wonder how Vincent Bal started in May 2016 with his habit of making one shadowology-drawing a day?
Discover it - along with other interesting facts - in following interviews:
For Dutch speaking people: there's also an interesting (short) interview in Dutch here.
As some of the drawings don't figure in the movies above, the images are interesting for English speaking people too.
In December 2020 the Shadowology short movie Sea Shadow was released.
There are interesting Dutch interviews about it here and here.
Can't you get enough of Shadowology?
Head over to Vincent Bal's Youtube-channel or Instagram!
Once again you managed to hit the sweet spot, Tau. First time I heard of shadowology. You're making me feel like I have been living in a house for half of my life only to discover now it has many, many rooms I've never even been in to.
ReplyDeleteWhat strikes me is that the artist is so multi-talented: great drawings, combined with sublime lighting and appropriate soundtrack and/or sound effects. Some scenes he must have filmed in reverse (what with the plastic wrapper unfolding around the head of one of his cartoon figures). The guy's a freaking genius - in Hollywood he'd probably be making a fortune. And he remains so level-headed about it.
One thing you don't know about me yet: I hate arrogance. Well, this guy seems genuinely modest about his versatile skills. Once again, great stuff!
A mansion with more than 300 rooms, Bohse?
DeleteLike Toddington Mansion in Gloucestershire which was bought by Damien Hirst?
Oooh, I've got nice memories of the first time I discovered this artist. That was in Arken, a beautiful museum in the dunes of Copenhagen (Denmark). Which reminds me of other artists who absolutely deserve to gain more notoriety and to be highlighted in this series.
Anyway, there are still a lot of rooms to discover!
Actually, I think I'm as excited as you are to show you around 😄
Vincent Bal is indeed multi-talented 😉
If you haven't seen 'Brabançonne' yet, you really should give it a try. You're someone who'll totally appreciate it, as it's both in Dutch and French (half and half). Absolutely recommended (which I don't say often for movies)!
And yes, I totally agree he deserves a greater platform! That's why he appears in this series. There are so many talented people out there. It's unbelievable that they aren't more famous. As you said, working in Hollywood would probably make all the difference.
Maybe you haven't said it explicitly yet, but it doesn't surprise me that you hate arrogance.
Same here. That's why we get along well.
Did you know that in Iceland 'important' people (even the president) are spoken to with their first name? Because in their society everyone is considered equal (and thus there's less arrogance linked to one's status). Many people/countries could learn from it 😉
I'm starting to wonder, Tau, how many rooms you have in that GI Jane head of yours, not unlike Damien Hirst's humble abode. The Burj Khalifa in Dubai comes to mind. Or the family tent of Ronald Weasley: small from the outside, but a regular ball room and maze all combined into one once you get in.
DeleteAnd I like the Icelandic approach. My kind of people.
😄
DeleteMy fear of heights could be a minor problem in a building like the Burj Khalifa.
Actually I've read only one Harry Potter-book. The last one (Deathly Hallows). Yes, sometimes I can be a bit of a contrarian 😋 No seriously, I did win a really beautiful version of that book and read it before it was even available here. It convinced me of the writing skills of J.K. Rowling. One or two years ago I bought all the movies and saw them one after the other. Didn't remember the Weasley-family tent, but it sounds awesome!
Did you know that your reaction sparked a memory and thus helped me to decide which art will be showed in my next article (I'm rather a last minute blogger)?
Maybe it's not entirely wild art, as the different art pieces were exposed in museums. But they're very unusual and the artists not so well known. And they totally amazed me when I discovered them (in real life). The feeling they gave me, was that of wonder and infinity.
Hear hear!
If the winters weren't so harsh there, I would love to live in Iceland. But only three hours of light a day during months, that's really something I couldn't bear. Especially after reading 'Winter-IJsland' from Laura Broekhuysen, I'm absolutely convinced of it.
When I visited the country 16 years ago I immediately fell in love with the fantastic views. Nothing but nature as far as the eye could see. Waterfalls along the way. Black beaches. Wonderful!
Ooooh and the aurora borealis! That's natural wild art at its best! Fantastic! I could watch it for hours and hours (which I did when I had the occasion to admire it) 😄