Andrew Wallerstein / Shadow Company Virtual Studio
Scroll through this page to find such goodies as the artist's Bio and Statement, Preferred Software and System Details, Mailing Lists, and Links to crucial imaging sites...
Artist's Statement:
Digital imaging, computer painting, technodrivel... Whatever you might call them, these new and indispensible tools in the artist's pallette have come to dominate nearly all forms of the visual arts. Naturally, criticism has been leveled at the new medium from many sides. But why? Because it is the new medium. It seems to threaten, but this is a grave misconception. The new medium is not here to displace but to enhance, just as did the invention of paper, photography, the airbrush, and the endless list of other tools that have preceded us and our "machines". Nor are we cold. I pride myself on my use of the word DIGITAL. For me it does not signify ones and zeros, but rather the means by which I've accomplished my creations. It signifies the tools of the new medium. 100% Digital = 0% Traditional. Peace...
Bio:
Andrew J. Wallerstein was raised in the heart of New York City, attending high school in Manhattan and then nearby Vassar College where he received his B.A. in film production, theory, and history. While still at Vassar he realized that his talents and training in film made for a natural crossover to multimedia production and digital design. Returning to New York, he has lived there for the past few years with bouts of inspiration, insomnia, and a love-hate relationship with Macintosh Digital Imaging and the Internet. Within the last two years he has created numerous album covers, interactive press kits, poster designs, and more for a variety of clients, in addition to the bread-and-butter business presentations and graphics for American Express, Seagrams, VEBFA, State of the Art, and others. Andrew relaxes (frequently) between imaging sessions with his soulmate Diana, his coffee press, his friends, his movie & software collection, his CDs (acid jazz / house / hip-hop / funk / jazz / soul), many Phillies, and the occasional viewings of Seinfeld, the NY Rangers, and the Discovery channel.
Preferred Software:
Adobe Photoshop, Fractal Design Painter, KPT Bryce, Ray Dream Designer, TextureScape, Kai's Power Tools, MacroMedia Director, Aldus and Alien Skin filters, DeBabelizer, SoundEffects, NetScape, and HTML SuperText.
Preferred Hardware:
Mac IIvx, Mac PPC 8100, Mac Quadra 840av, Mac Centris 660av, NEC MultiSync and Apple monitors, SyQuest removeable media, Iris, Tektronix, and HP printers, US Robotics and Hayes modems.
Usage Rights, addresses, etc.
Be advised that all images are copyright 1994 AJW/Shadow Company. Images may be used and distributed as freeware for personal use provided that adequate credit is given. Commercial use is absolutely prohibited, however, and permission of the artist is required for publication or commercial use of any sort. Feel free to contact the artist by mail or email at the addresses listed below with any questions, comments, desires...
Andrew J Wallerstein, Shadow Company, New York, NY
eMail to: shadow@emedia.net
Mailing Lists
Here you'll find some LISTSERV mailing lists useful and pertinent to the new media and the artists who worship it:
ADOBEPS (ADOBEPS@WSUVM1.BITNET, Adobe Photoshop and Priemere Software Discussion List)
DESIGN-L (DESIGN-L@PSUVM.BITNET, Basic and applied design in Art and Architecture)
DIRECT-L (DIRECT-L@UAFSYSB.BITNET, MacroMind Director for Macintosh
GRAPHICS (GRAPHICS@ULKYVM.BITNET, Graphic design discussion)
INFO-MAC (INFO-MAC@CEARN.BITNET, Info-Mac digest)
MACMULTI (MACMULTI@FCCJ.BITNET, Macintosh multimedia discussion group)
QUARKXPR (QUARKXPR@IUBVM.BITNET, The Quark XPress List)
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Systems' Photoshop remains the dominant still imaging package for the Macintosh, Unix, and IBM Platforms. Remarkable in its functionality, brilliant expandability, and ease of use, Photoshop is the standard to which all others must aspire and adhere. What's more, Photoshop's versatility and innovative plug-in architecture have spawned the most exciting array of effects packages from the essential Kai's Power Tools to Xaos' brilliant Paint Alchemy package. Not much more needs to be said about this young legend. If you don't know it, you're totally in the dark...
Fractal Design Painter
Fractal Design's unique Painter application maintains a standard of excellence in a niche of digital imaging slightly apart from Photoshop's. The two are not competitors, as both achieve remarkable results of totally different types. Painter is known for its resolution independence and "natural media" capabilities, its ability to mimic natural painting techniques and media (oils, charcoals, etc. and their interactions with paper/canvas textures). Obviously imaging of this sort will never replace the natural media painter, but Painter provides the ideal means for digital imagers interested in achieving those specific looks and feels. What's more, Painter supports Adobe's plug-in architecture, allowing all of your Photoshop filters to be used from within Painter itself.
KPT Bryce
KPT Bryce is the remarkable new 3-D landscape modeling and rendering software from HSC Software, the folks that brought us the amazing Kai's Power Tools. As a matter of fact, grandmaster Kai Krause himself produced the simple (sometimes too simple) user interface. Despite its simplicity, its power is nothing short of astounding and its rendering module produces work of only the finest quality. Images rendered relatively quickly at 72 dpi can be upsampled for print at almost no loss of resolution. This little wonder will emerge as a leader in a niche all its own, as many Ive spoken to find it preferable even to the established VistaPro. It is a fantastic companion for the still imager, able to produce landscapes, spacescapes, and other artwork from the ultra-realistic to the supernatural and beyond...
Ray Dream Designer
The still imager's ultimate 3-D companion for the Macintosh, Ray Dream Designer has made an entire field its own with its power and performance to price ratio. Despite its lack of an animation module, Ray Dream Designer remains not only an ideal companion to advanced Photoshop users, but to novices just breaking into 3-D design as well. It's interfac, is relatively simple while representing an extensive toolset. Drag-and-drop simplicity applies to everything from object grouping to texture creation. Simply drag and drop the desired percentage of transparency, for example, and the model/texture respond accordingly. Hearty kudos and recommendations for this one: It's reputation as the ideal Photoshop companion is well deserved...
MacroMedia Director
This remarkable application has attained a reputatuion not only for excellence, but as the program shell of choice for multimedia developers of all kinds. It's capable, built-in animation and (limited) paint modules help with the work, although Photoshop is highly recommended for most graphics, design, and animation work. It's scripting language is extremely powerful in spite of its steep learning curve, and the interactive "score" window makes editing and effects extremely intuitive. There is even a player application for windows which allows cross-platform multimedia development of games, tutorials, presentations, films, interactive press kits, you name it...
Acknowledgements
At this point I'd like to thanks all those who've made many things possible, especially Lile Elam and the talented webmasters at Art on the Net whose innovative approach to all artistic mediums and the internet is bringing artists of the world closer together. Their herculean efforts also serve to further the acceptance of the new digital mediums in an often snobbish art world, and for this I am most grateful...
I'd also like to thank Diana (you're the one) for kindness, love, and support; Jason, Eric, Filip, Alex, Herschel, and all the Buffalo Soldiers whose raw intelligence, knowledge, resources, and collective inspiration are making this possible; and most definite thanks to Parisa, Carter, Gordon, Ganden and all the folks at eMedia.net for their assistance, connnections, and for being New York's finest service provider...