The Past
Cave Paintings - Early examples of attempts to capture the phenomenon of motion into a still drawing can be found in paleolithic cave paintings, where animals are depicted with multiple legs in superimposed positions, clearly attempting to convey the perception of motion.
Athens - One of the most earliest successful depictions of an image in motion is evident in the Greek era. Ex. A Parthenon frieze relief which depicts a series of horses that appear to gallop at increasing speeds as they progress.
The Magic Lantern (1671) - The Magic Lantern was classed as the ancestor of the modern day projector. It consisted of a translucent oil painting and a simple lamp. When put together in a darkened room, the image would appear larger on a flat surface. Athanasius Kircher spoke about this originating from China in the 1600’s.
Thaumatrope (1824) - A Thaumatrope was a toy used in the Victorian era. It was a disk or card with two different pictures on each side that was attached to two pieces of string. When the strings were twirled quickly between the fingers the two pictures appear to combine into a single image. The creator of this small but yet important invention is clouded. People believe that John Aryton Paris was the creator whereas others believe Charles Babbage was.
Zoetrope (1832) - A Zoetrope is a device which creates the image of a moving picture. This contraption was produced in 1834 by George Horner. The device is basically a cylinder with vertical slits around the sides. Around the inside edge of the cylinder there are a series of pictures on the opposite side to the slits. As the cylinder is spun, the user then looks through the slits producing the illusion of motion.
Praxinoscope (1877) - The Praxinoscope, invented by French scientist Charles-Émile Reynaud, was a more sophisticated version of the zoetrope. It used the same basic mechanism of a strip of images placed on the inside of a spinning cylinder, but instead of viewing it through slits, it was viewed in a series of stationary mirrors around the inside of the cylinder, so that the animation would stay in place, and also provided a clearer image. Reynaud also developed a larger version of the praxinoscope that could be projected onto a screen, called the Théâtre Optique.
Flip book (1868) - The first flip book was patented in 1868 by a John Barnes Linnet. This was another step closer to the development of animation. Like the Zoetrope, the Flip Book creates the illusion of motion. A set of sequential pictures seen at a high speed creates this effect. The Mutoscope (1894) is essentially a flip book in a box with a crank handle to flip the pages.
Animation studio in Prosser shuts down production work (Yakima Herald-Republic)
PROSSER -- American Animation Studio's cartoon of Teddy Roosevelt may not see the movie screen after all. At least, it will have to wait. The Prosser startup that made children's movies about historical patriots has closed its production studios until sales pick up.
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