Nomad Error Logs #1
First published on Substack December 11 2023
Welcome to the Nomad Error Logs, Issue 1; the first of my monthly newsletters.
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In this issue, I'm going to be sharing a bit about a glitch art festival happening right now that you definitely ought to check out, as well as some bits and pieces of other things I've been working on. I also want readers to come away with some useful knowledge, so I'll also be sharing some artists that I'm loving right now as well as some cool tools for making glitch art. So whether you're an aspiring or established glitch artist, or just interested in looking at glitch images and video, then there should be something here for you.
News
December brings the 4th installment of glitch.art.br, an annual online glitch art festival which showcases the work of a metric glitch ton of talented artists from all over the world.
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As the exhibition is held online, all the work is easily accessible. Different media is hosted on different sites. I included the links below for you to check it all out.
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From what I can tell, this is a labor of love from just one person. Massive appreciation to them for all the effort this must take to put together. They definitely deserve a lot of love for this.
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The festival also publishes an online book, which comes out a few months after the festival.
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You can check out the previous years' books here.
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They're lovingly put together. I really wish there were physical copies of it freely available because I think it would look amazing on high quality paper (although I totally understand why there aren't and I'm certainly not going to complain about a festival that showcases artists for free).
This year I entered one of my pieces called Mnemosyne. Mnemosyne being the goddess of memory. Here, Mnemosyne is made up of a collection of computer folders and subfolders. Our own, human memories stored like files on a computer. Susceptible to corruption.
The work was made using GLIC and Gimp. Anyone who follows me may know about my love for GLIC (and I actually did a GLIC workshop for FUBAR this summer). This is one of my favorite pieces using the tool. It's a really good example of what kind of cool effects you can get with GLIC.
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So go check it out and support all the talented artists. I've found lots of new artists in previous years and this year is no exception. Please do support this festival as it’s a great way for new glitch artists to get their work exhibited.
Artist Spotlight
The world would be a grey, drab place if it wasn't for the colour which artists bring. Each month I want to take some time to share some of my favorite people in this space. Whether they're creating work that inspires me, pushing boundaries of the medium or the industry, or just doing something cool that I think is worth celebrating.
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So I want to kick this column off with an artist who has provided a community, as well as doing something unique with his own art.
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Apophis Ignotus is a digital artist and illustrator based in Arizona.
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His work explores a massive range of themes from absurd horror illustrations about clowns to post humanist surrealism, with some of his most unique work combining the two.
Transfer of Consciousness
Unbirth of the Omnissiah
Ever-evolving, he’s constantly shifting forms and trying new things while still retaining that trademark Apophis style; something that is not easy to do as an artist and something that I’ve often struggled with in the past.
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I’ve always enjoyed when his work tells a story, either through the series of images, or through the accompanying text. A particular highlight for me being a series of images showing the lives of a post-human space couple; like some kind of transhumanist melodrama taking place in a synthwave landscape. I became addicted, waiting for the next work to see how their lives turned out.
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Some of my other favorite works of his are his mixed media glitches, such as his work SUPPRESSED; a fantastic mix of oil painting and pixelsorting. I’m also a big fan of some of his works that seem to be the recruiting VHS tapes from some alternative dimension cult that worship the great Apep; think Heaven's Gate if they were less Vaporwave and more Pharaohwave.
SUPPRESSED
Cherubim
He's also the head honcho of the.collective.ai, a community of mixed media artists, from illustrators to glitch artists who share ideas, advice, collab on works and generally just post [non]sense on the discord. He is someone who values inclusivity and encourages people with different artistic backgrounds to work together to create something interesting.
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If you’re interested in joining the Discord, you can join with this link.
Tool Time
"An artist is only as good as their tools."
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Actually, I really don't agree with that sentiment. Some of the best art has been made when the creators have had to work with the limitations of hardware or software. Would we have Mario's iconic look of it wasn’t for the graphical limitations of 8bit hardware? The story goes that he was given red and blue overalls to provide a contrast so that the player could better see his body movements while running and jumping. He was given a hat because animating hair would have been a pain in the arse. Those limitations birthed the most iconic video game character of all time.
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Even so, we're lucky enough to live in a time where there's a seemingly infinite number of different tools available all easily accessible. Being able to make glitch art has never been easier. Each week, I'd like to use this section to wax lyrical about software, apps, tools etc. that can be used in the glitch artist's workflow.
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So I'm starting this series off with a couple of tools that a lot of glitch artist will already know. But even if you're still familiar with the software, I recommend to keep reading because I'll be putting a little tip for iPhone users at the end.
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This time around I want to use this column to recommend Glitch Lab and Chroma Lab. They're part of the Lab series of apps, which also include Mirror Lab, Mosaic Lab and 8bit Photo Lab, as well as the recently released all-in-one version, the appropriately named One Lab. All can be downloaded on Android devices.
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These apps have managed to package a lot of powerful tools together along with an easy-to-use interface. The Glitch Lab app has some of the most sought after effects in the glitch artists' toolbox such as pixel-sorting, frequency modulation and RGB offset, as well as a load of other things you probably haven't thought of.
rgb offset
oscilloscope (frequency modulation)
pixelsorting
Chroma Lab is a little more niche, but I often find myself using it in my workflow for colour correction, as well as its blur functions lending itself well to using touch and pinch controls, making it a bit more user-friendly than using a mouse.
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I've always considered the Lab series of apps, especially Glitch Lab, to be a kind of gateway drug. I'm sure it's been responsible for kick-starting the hobby or career of many a glitch artist. Once you've accustomed yourself to the app and exhausted using all the presets, you can start combining Glitch Lab with other software or techniques to start making things that are truly unique.
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But what if you're one of the many people that have an iPhone and don't have access to an Android device? Actually, one of the most common questions I see about the Lab apps is "when is this app coming to iOS?". As far as I can tell, there's no plans to make an iOS version of them, but, there's a workaround that will allow you to use the Lab apps on a PC. You can download an Android emulator, such as Bluestacks and use the apps directly on there. Bluestacks actually does a pretty good job of mimicking the Android gestures so that using the app is a pretty seamless experience.
So now you have no excuse not to give them a try.
That's pretty much it for the first issue. If you found that informative or entertaining, consider subscribing to get it direct to your inbox each month. Newsletter is published on the 2nd Monday of the month, and my blog posts are the 4th Monday of the month. Hit the green button below to subscribe.
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Next up I'm going to be writing about some album art from my childhood that inspired me to become an artist. Because the 4th Monday of December is Christmas, I've decided to publish the next post on December 27th so you can read it while working off your post brussel sprouts hangover.
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See you all then.
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tokyo_nomad_