Remember that if you are digital artist and photographer, con can submit to the group "Contemporary Art Submissions for Gallery Of Refined Arts" https://www.facebook.com/groups/218231538530025/?fref=ts, and participate to the competition to get your art in motion.
Gallery Of Refined Art(referred to as G.R.A. throughout the article)
Meet Gala whom hails from Spain and creates exceptional images via commissioned work with photographers all over the world.
Gala is a true survivor and inspiration to the art world. Her story will move you and give a new perspective on life's ups and downs.
G.R.A.
- Where are you located and where do you love creating art?
Gala
- I am located in Spain and I love creating art in Barcelona.
G.R.A.
- How did you get into creating motion effect?
Gala
- Pffft (exhales) ... this question is very emotional for me, Monika. I never thought that this would happen to me, but I have a disease that rendered me for bed rest for 3 years with constant surgeries and forced me to stay at home. I had to leave my job I had, and I lost some friends and family, - just because my rhythm of life was slower. I had to learn to walk again, metaphorically and physically speaking.
During this time something awakened in me, a tremendous calling for new technology. I enrolled in a virtual college to study multimedia, programming and new software. I joined a few forums with topics about this virtual world... All new for me, because I originally studied Philology.
A day I discovered a G.I.F. of Bill Domonkos, an American cineaste, it shook me to the core.
Later I had the great luck to discover George Redhawk, who has been my inspiration. He woke something up inside me, a feeling of self-improvement and self realization.
I feel that everything happens for a reason, and I think that digital art was my fate. It makes me happy to know that I have found myself. Fortunately I am healthy now. I walk fine and I can lead a normal life, but pain is a forever memento of fear, - the possibility of falling again terrifies me.
But if I had not fallen now I would not be talking about virtual art.
G.R.A.
- Where do you see photography and motion effects going in the future?
Gala
-I have very clear vision of the future full of virtual art in motion.
I see really intense optical effects not only on potography but also paintings by famous painters. There are some Vincent Van Gogh GIFs that already exist. Why wouldn’t we see an exposition of Van Gogh in movement? Today this is entirely feasible ... just imagine the future!
New software will be created with new effects, new textures... and with them new experimental artists will emerge.
There is still so much for bettering quality of the image, but we're so close ...
As for photography, actually motion effects are necessary for marketing and advertisements. We are entering a new era.
G.R.A.
- Can you describe a day in a life as an artist?
- I live online 24 hours a day, I am a clear example of what we shouldn’t be ... a virtual girl. But I love to communicate with people around the world and learn from them. It's funny, but I owe a lot to my followers. You can’t imagine how many people have approached me and offered help by suggesting new software, a website, sending me articles on the topic. They want to see me move forward. They have replaced the void that I felt when I was ill.
My life now has to be disciplined 100% and I have to combine computer work with my gymnastics or physiotherapy every day without forgetting to take extra time to study and publish on all my social networks. There are days that I'm exhausted.
G.R.A.
- How do you succeed in business with motion effects?
Gala
- It is difficult, but it was never my purpose. My collaborators could tell you that I work entirely for passion. But the moment is near when karma will come back to me in a very good way. I always say that if you give out good, good will come to you.
Magical Mind TV, a program about couture, art, and spirituality, has commissioned some digital work from me for an episode about Salvador Dali, and for the next episode of Mimi Kirk.
I am currently working on a collaboration with Isaiah Maghanga on a video clip of a Stimo singer which is very exciting.
Recently, I received a proposal from United States for working on a big project in collaboration with some illustrators and producers to create a virtual novel with daily episodes. The novel, "The circle of Names", will have and excellent story line, graphics, and cooperation in production. The story is about fulfillment of the Promise of God, and is being drawn from the anthropological, historical and spiritual record. Concepts of 'return' and 'resurrection' and how they have evolved through progressive revelations of the thought of God. Like the gathering of the native Nations going on right now in North Dakota and Canada
I received an official proposal about teaching two classes in my city : Artistic gifs and Cinema graphs. I would like to dig deep in the origin of GIF and teach the students about the first precursors artists like George RedHawk and Bill Domonkos, because they innovated and created a trend, bringing something new, different and enriching our society.
G.R.A.
- What is your dream project?
Gala
- My dream project would be to create a virtual exposition about Antonio Gaudi in Barcelona or Reus (Tarragona).
I grew up in Barcelona between artistic buildings of Gaudi, and right now I'm living in a small modernist city Reus, where Gaudi was raised. It is also the my interest in architecture with the intention to provide a visual effect of movement between curve and curve ... it would be interesting to give movement to the city’s architecture and see it exposed. In fact, it was a dream for Gaudi to give motion effect to their architecture.
G.R.A.
- Is there a typical workflow for creating cinema graphs?
It is laborious. I work on an image with software to give it motion effects and at a risk of losing quality because of what we know "noise". You can’t create a GIF if you have to correct this noise with layers. The problem increases when the photo has an abusive use of Photoshop.
For this reason it is easier to work on paintings or drawings than with overly photoshopped images. It takes time.
G.R.A
- What software do you use and why?
Gala
- For cinema graphs I use only Photoshop.
Right now everyone wants to buy the best software that make everything for us without realizing that Photoshop is the perfect tool for everyone. Of course, we need a good camera, a tripod, and creativity.
For motion effects I use a software for animation which has morphing effects. Sometimes I create them with Photoshop.
G.R.A
- What advice would you give yourself for when you first started out?
Gala
- That art stimulates and elevates the human spirit, and everyone has the ability to create. If you feel this impulse of some kind follow it and don´t worry about anything, especially if people like or do not your work.
A lot of people come to me looking for the way to make money and later disappear tired of not getting money. This is creativity, passion, love, art... and many hours of effort. It is a vocation.
G.R.A.
- Thank you for your time Gala, your story is inspirational, thank you for sharing it.
Gala
- Thank you!
To view Gala's amazing work click on the links below:
