Flash-Brushes

Flash i.e. Actionscript can be used to imitate brushes very realistically. An artist who uses this technique for his work is Erik Natzke. His work looks vibrant, colorful and one could not tell that it is generated with the aid of a computer. I very much like the "paintings". Unfortunately, Natzke does not publish any code of his code enabled brushes.

Another artist who uses Actionscript is Patrick Gunderson. His work looks less like a painting, but not less beautiful. In contrast to Natzke, he published some of the code he uses.

I found an comparable example of a processing implementation of a paint brush online:

http://screamyguy.net/sketchBoard/index.htm

http://jot.eriknatzke.com/?p=164
http://pat.theorigin.net/category/code/as3/

Morphing

Morphing is a special effect that transits one image to another seamlessly. Morphing software involves fading as well as distortion. Corresponding key points need to be selected in both images, so the program can exactly calculate how to change one image to the other.

The first very good morphing program was developed by Thaddeus Beier and Shawn Neely (Pacific Data Images) in the early 1990s. They used this "feature-based morphing" first in videos such as "Black and White" by Michael Jackson.

Nowadays, there are various small morphing software packages available to buy and to download. I am currently experimenting with an application called Morpheus Photo Merger. It is very easy to use, but the quality may not be sufficient for the final.

Example:

Portraiture

Generally, a portrait is an artistic representation of a person. The face dominates the painting, photograph or sculpture. The artists usually intents to reveal the person's character, mood or likeness. Usually, the person looks directly to the artist, so the viewer can connect more easily with the person.

One of the best known portraits of the 16th century is the portrait of Francesco del Giocondo's wife, Mona Lisa. The painter Leonardo da Vinci succeeded in providing her with the famous Mona Lisa smile that is fascinating and attracting people all over the world.

Self-portraits, in contrast, display the artist him- or herself. Artists may chose to create a self-portrait for promotional purposes, to tell stories about themselves or to show them in a more superior role than they actually are.

Albrecht Dürer can be seen as the first prolific self-portraitist. Even at the early age of 13 he started experimenting with self-portraiture. At the age of 22, he painted the "Self-portrait with Carnation", which was originally intended for his fiancée. His probably most popular portrait was produced at the hight of his success and therefore promotes himself as the triumphant artist.

One of my favorite painters is the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. The vibrant colors she used as well as the influences she had from Realism, Symbolism as well as Surrealism make her work very unique. She is famous for various self-portraits. They reveal very strongly and sometimes even shockingly her emotional state.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portrait

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-portrait
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frida_Kahlo

http://artcess.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/frida_kahlo_le_due_frida1.jpg