Catriona Baker, Assistant Professor and Interim Chair of Animation at Lesley University, with her students, has created original animation for White Snake Project’s new opera, REV. 23. She, with two student teams, have developed both a thirty-second animation and two augmented reality animations. The students worked with Adobe Animate, Adobe Photoshop & After Effects as well as Premiere software programs.
When asked how she thinks animation helps communicate better than traditional, static imagery, she shared “I think the narrative with animation is clearer, but still allows much more room for the viewers’ imagination and interpretation.”
REV. 23 is the first opera project she’s developed animation for. When asked about the challenges on this new subject matter she shared “communication. Sometimes the students spend so much time perfecting the animation that they forget that communication is just as important as the visual creation.”
An animator, book artist, and painter, Ms. Baker holds a BA in Printmaking from Mount Holyoke College, a BFA in Painting from Maine College of Art, and an MFA in Animation and Painting from the University of Pennsylvania. She was a grant recipient from The Governor’s Academy for faculty development in paper engineering in 2005, and a grant recipient for painting at Vermont Studio Center in 1998. Baker has also worked for Rustmonkey animation studios.
Her paintings, drawings, and artist books have shown nationally in galleries and corporate collections, including Florida Craftsman, Dana Hall School, and Yieldbot, Maynard. Recently her animated 3D short Every Two Minutes was accepted into the 2015 Annual 3D-Con convention in Snowbird, UT where it received the “Best First Time Presenters” award. Her work explores the visual consistency between traditional mediums and digital processes.
Originally from both Martha’s Vineyard and Cambridge, MA, Ms. Baker lives in Sudbury, MA.