Doug's Intro

Animator/Illustrator/Student Director

A drawing is an idea. As an animator, I turn ideas into stories.
I am currently a junior at the Kansas City Art Institute. It's been a blessing and privilege to be a student there after earning my AFA at the Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville, IL. I keep this as a journal of my latest projects and explorations in animation.

Vimeo - http://vimeo.com/user4679231
DeviantArt - http://drmeloche.deviantart.com/

Sunday, August 29, 2010

KCAI ANIM: Hunting & Gathering Project, PART 1

Alright! First assignment for animation; draw a landscape of your favorite childhood location and one of your favorite local location.


Childhood Location
There is one location from my childhood that is especially precious to me. The Lake Muskegon Channel at Pere Marquette in Muskegon, Michigan is a special place that holds many memories. It is here, where my father and I first went SCUBA diving in open water, I often swam with my cousins, and my uncles took the family on boating trips through the channel. Also, inside the channel is a retired World War II submarine, the U.S.S. Silversides. My grandfather took me to the neighboring museum when I was very young, and he spoke a great deal about bravery, courage, and other things I would come to understand much later in life.
I’ve always found a special comfort in the waters of the Lake Michigan. When standing in the surf, and breathing deeply of the cool rushing breeze, any problems and concerns I have are washed away. I realize just how small I am in the world and how simple life really is. Lake Michigan has been the setting for a great deal of my most treasured childhood memories that helped make me the man I am today.



Kansas City Location
Although I’m a second semester student here, this is my first year attending Kansas City Art Institute. I transferred here from a small town, called Troy, located outside of Saint Louis. This place is very unfamiliar to me, and I knew I would need a place that reminded me of home. I like very much how KCAI is not located in the middle of a bustling city with skyscrapers and congested intersections. Although this is a major city where you can find almost any form of entertainment, there’s still a friendly inviting attitude to this place. Our campus is surrounded by trees and anywhere I need to go is within walking distance.
While walking through the Sculpture Park on the Nelson-Atkins Museum property, I found a place that became very special to me. It was rather instantaneous. What first drew me to this spot was the sculpture titled “Three Bowls”. It is located on the highest hill overlooking the entire park. “Three Bowls” differs greatly from the other sculptures in the park. While most of the works emphasize smoother curvilinear forms, “Three Bowls” resembles a rigid geological structure. Once I approached “Three Bowls”, I saw over the side of the hill. The sun was just beginning to set behind the city buildings in the distance, illuminating them with a golden light. In that moment, I knew I’d found my special place where I could “escape”.