Continuing on from my previous fiber sculptures — fiber 15, fiber 16, and fiver 17 — an attempt to simulate these in the digital realm.

This was done for a few reasons. Firstly, it has been far too long since I attempted to simulate fiber digitally. The last attempt (Fiber Pens Proof One) did not go as well as expected, and after a ling hiatus, I wanted to approach it from a different angle. Secondly, the fiber sculptures take a long time to make, so the investment is high. By simulating designs digitally it allows ideas to be explored quickly. Thirdly. I wanted to experiment with adding (linear) perspective to my work.

To make this piece I took a blended approach. I took the code that I use to generate the templates for the fiber sculptures and modified it to produce not only the back but now also the front. For the front it produces a grid that can be used for sketching on (when working in the analog), or as a snap-grid (when working in the digital).

Thoughts

As a way to visualize how a piece will look prior physically making it, this works well. As a standalone piece of digital art I am torn between liking the honesty that it shows (it could be nothing but digital art) and that its clearly not a good simulation (skeuomorphism vs. the real thing).

I have made some discoveries when making physical pieces that wouldn’t have happened if working purely in the digital. So whilst it is good to simulate work before making it, and perhaps producing digital art in its own right, my practice benefits when working between and across media rather than exclusively in one or the other.

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