Katriel Jay Worrall
Creative Technologist
LATEST PROJECTS
To see more or discuss possible work let's talk >>
Alistair comes across Rue on a stormy beach - a sweet and confident little fairy boy in a dress who challenges what Alistair has been taught about gendered clothing. Why is it, in fact, that boys ''aren't supposed'' to wear girly clothes? Is there even a reason at all?
In a scene designed to poke fun at our perception of what it means to act 'grown-up,' the Duchess allows her child (a hippopotamus calf) to drink alcohol, believing that this will make him 'sophisticated' and mature. She mourns, however, her own 'childish' ways, and fears they will damage her son and hinder his development; for she is obsessed with stuffed animals and colouring books.
Whilst looking around for something to eat, Alistair discovers that, in Wonderland, apples are sentient beings; with "faces and feelings." Despite the fact that red and green apples are much alike in this special feature - whilst it is seen as perfectly acceptable to eat red apples, to eat a green apple is seen as a shocking, horrific act. This pokes fun at meat bias. After all, "you wouldn't eat a puppy, would you?"
In the Gorge Game; a group of animals will jump back and forth between two sides of a gorge while another animal sings. When the singing stops, the animals remain on the side they have landed on, and start to treat those on the opposing side as strangers. This has been my satirical take on unnecessary suspicion towards immigrants, seeing as we all originated from "the same side" - the same continent; Africa.
The Queen's Scribe is a quirky, fluffy white cat who - much like a fair population of Social Media users - cannot help but document every minor occurrence in his life. Having long run out of paper, he writes on the trunks of trees; and in fact there is an entire forest covered in his words.
This is where Alistair meets Cheshire; who, in my version of Alice, is a wombat. 'Quest for Normality' is - in an intended act of irony - a rather strange and surreal scene inspired by the experiences of a friend-of-a-friend with Alice in Wonderland Syndrome. Its aim is to vaguely suggest that 'normality' does in fact not exist. Everyone in Wonderland is 'normal,' but no one in Wonderland exists.
Some residents of Wonderland are just far too "fashiontabulous" for ordinary clothes; they will not wear anything without a brand bug (a bug pinned to an item of clothing), and see anyone who doesn't wear famous brands as being beneath them. All this despite the fact that brand-bugged clothing doesn't seem to match the diversity (in shapes and sizes) of the residents of Wonderland themselves.
In this scene, Alistair awakes into his ordinary, paper-doll world, and we meet Dina; who, in this version of the story, is his pet greyhound rather than his cat.
Alistair in Wonderland
A Stop-Motion Animatic Film
Using Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland as a source text, I have created my very own story in which 'Alice' is a little boy named Alistair, 'Dina' is a dog, the piglet is a hippopotamus and the 'Cheshire Cat' is a wombat. As many believe that Carroll used his characters to make satirical comments about the society in which he lived, I have constructed each scene to pick apart an element of the society in which I live. Simply click on a frame from one of the scenes above in order to read more about it.
The final film can be found here.
To find full documentation of my process and unique behind-the-scenes imagery, simply follow this link to my blog:
A circus freak from the year 2084; an era where genetic engineers have become artists. She was created - in this currently fictitious world - as a form of artistic protest against all of mankind having become uniformly 'perfect' and 'beautiful.' (Image by Lara Galea)
Darling was created to appear bulky, asymmetrical, sluggish, ashamed and slow - a spectacle in a world we envisioned as 'perfect to the point of appearing sterile.' (Image by Lara Galea)
The tail-like 'growth' dragging behind Darling was originally intended to be a 'mono-arm' with both of the wearer's arms embedded inside it. Due to safety concerns brought about by Darling's asymmetry and the resulting uneven distribution of weight, we later opted for the arms and this slug-like growth being separate. The hands can now hold the headpiece in place using the strap handles hidden behind the 'facial flabs.' (Image by Lara Galea)
Darling's growth is covered in wrinkled, tan-coloured 'lesions,' which - originally - would pulsate when she reached down to rest her hands on her knees. This was achieved with a combination of pressure sensors (in the knees) and muscle wire (in the lesions). Unfortunately we ran out of time and weren't able to properly ensure that the batteries we received were safe to use for extended periods of time. With this in mind, we opted to remove Darling's electronic components. (Image by Lara Galea)
Darling's skin is made out of spandex fabric...which has been digitally printed on. The print itself is a morphed collection of photographic skin samples - including wrinkles, moles, scars, freckles and even yours truly's belly button! (yes, that is what those dark patches are)
The formation of our team began with Lara Galea stating that she wanted to create something that looked "fleshy and disgusting." I was extremely interested in this idea, of course, with my love for anything strange and creepy. Sophie joined us after switching to our course from her Arts degree. (Image by Lara Galea)
Darling
A costume for the World of Wearable Arts Show (W.O.W.) 2016
One of my course papers - 'Digital Skins' - was deliberately aligned with 2016's W.O.W. show in order to give my classmates and I the opportunity to enter into the Performance Art section of this fantastic event.
This section's theme was described as 'a bleak place' in 2084, and we were to design and create a circus performer from this time. As a team, Lara Galea, Sophie McIntyre and I took Darling from a simple, scribbled sketch on a page of brainstormed ideas and watched her evolve into the sweet monstrosity she is today. We were astounded to discover that - after sending her off to Nelson - she was in fact accepted as one of the finalists, and actually make an appearance in the show. Of course we all flew down to Wellington to see her in the preview show, and Lara stayed long enough to tell us later that she had won a runner-up prize for the "WOW Factor" award!
Darling is currently still in the possession of W.O.W. and may be exhibited in museums if selected for this. We are very proud of our freaky fabric child.
Tip: Click on the images above to learn more about Darling.
Visit World of Wearable Arts here.