Wham!

Last weekend I took a motion graphics workshop at the School of Visual Concepts in Seattle, WA. In one of the exercises we were asked to fold a piece of letter-sized paper in half and then again to create four segments. Afterwards class members were given an onomatopoeiac word like “Splosh,” “Pop,” “Plunk,” “Swoosh,” etc. My word was “Wham.” There were two of each of the same words given out. The challenge was to draw four versions of your word while not divulging your word to the rest of the class. Afterwards, each student went around the room to find their matching word.

Not all of the students had drawing skills, but it didn't matter because each student managed to convey their word and find their other word match. This was interesting because the words were subtly differentiated. For instance, my word (Wham) is very close characteristically to the word “Plop,” however there is a stronger quality in “Wham.” I now have a new appreciation when I watch animations, given all the thinking that went into just one word during this class exercise.