Phenomenal Cosmic Powers. Itty Bitty Living Space.

It seems one of the big trends of recent times on weblogs around the world is the ‘X Things’ phenomenon, where you’re asked to come up with a certain number of ideas around a theme. Some of the ones I’ve noticed – and will probably have a stab at when I get time – are 26 Things (a photo scavenger hunt), 100 Things, and the Friday Five.
I’ve always been intrigued by the notion of creativity in tight spaces – where the real talent shines brightest as the format is very tightly controlled. A great example is the highly restrictive three-frame cartoon format, which was mastered by the great Charles Schultz (Peanuts) and Eric Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes). There’s the 30 second TV and radio commercial. The 3 and a half minute pop song. Scrimshaw. The Ship-In-The-Bottle. The 32 by 32 pixel buddy icon format. The postage stamp. (and in some cases, valiant filmmakers struggle against the egregious limitations of the 180 minute long feature film – see the previous posts on a certain movie which may or may not contain traces of Ring.)
Throughout the web, there are some cramped goals being set for artistic expression – like 16color.com, which asks animators to fit their vision into a tiny window with 16 colors in their pallette, and people can try their hands at the 3 frame format over at stripcreator.com or the Red Meat Construction Set.
While some artists feel their visions cannot be fully realised until technology, or finances, or their public are up to a certain standard, there are some artists which just get on with it, with what they have available, and set the world on fire.
It only took 3 years for Jesus to change the world.