Behind the Project: Human Sculptures

In this series, we’ll look deeper into some of the projects on Behance.net that were especially admired in our community. This time, we spoke with Julien Palast, a photographer in Paris. His “SKINDEEP” offered a unique, eye-catching rendition of humans as sculptures. Take a deeper look into his process below.

What was your inspiration for this project?
I wanted to create instant bas-relief (a type of sculpture) with live bodies, like ephemeral sculptures of the human form. i got inspired by the scenes you can find in the front of churches or antique monuments.

Can you describe your process in creating this project?
I wanted to retain the sculptural form of the body without the personal identity of a model. I tried with body painting in the past, but it is a very long process that always needs a lot of on-stage and post-production retouching. So I was searching for a technique that would avoid all this. I started by experimenting with different materials and techniques. I did several trials before coming up with the right technique. it got improved during the photoshoots, and is still improving!

Did you expect it to be as popular as it’s been on The Behance Network?
No, i wasn’t expecting it to be so popular, I was happy with the outcome but I was very happy to see that so many people appreciated it.

Did you go through many versions and iterations before coming up with these final pieces?
I did a first version of the SkinDeep project in 2010, but the material was not the same and the outcome was more abstract, less accurate, which was nice too but I wanted to explore a different side for this second version. In between these two series, I tried out with several different materials and techniques before finding the one that I found more suitable.

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Most Appreciated Projects on Behance

Appreciations are a way to send genuine kudos to another creative professional on Behance. This is our community’s way of curating the network, so that the best projects gain the most exposure. Here’s a look at two of the most appreciated projects on Behance this week:


Nike + Training is an interactive mobile app that lets you track how high you jump, how fast you run and how intense your workout is, what more could you ask for? Check out the full project here.


 Maria Corte Maidagan compiled some illustrations she created for publications like the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal into one project. See the full body of editorial works here.

⌘ JavaScript MVC: Inheritance

If you’ve ever done a lot of JS development you might find the following situation familiar: you’re loath to open up the bowels of the sweet webapp you wrote because you know inside you will find hundreds of lines of jQuery selectors stacked on top of each other. Try as you might, they just won’t be tamed simply by separating out into distinct functions. Soon you’re lost in your own code, trapped in a Borgesian labyrinth of your own making.

That was one of the first challenges we ran into when I started working at Behance: the decentralized, deframework-ized nature of the client side code. Like many other shops, JavaScript was viewed with equal parts suspicion and distaste. But as our code grew, it became increasingly impossible to continue working the same way as thousands of lines of JS collided tectonically into each other as Everests grew out of merge conflicts.
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Workspace Wednesday: Halloween Hurricane edition

The Behance team was very fortunate to make it through Hurricane Sandy safe and sound last week. However, power outages and floods kept us from commuting to our beloved Soho office, leaving us to work from wherever wifi could be had, mostly our couches and coworkers’ homes.

For this special Workspace Wednesday, we’ve got a roundup of our team’s workspaces from last Wednesday, which also happened to be Halloween!

 

Photo Report: Thousands Gather at Behance Portfolio Review Week!

Portfolio Review Week is still going on around the world – here’s another photo report from a few more locations! Check out our Pinterest page for updates as well: Portfolio Review Week Collection

Dublin, Ireland (hosted by Lukasz Kulakowski)

Timisoara, Romania (hosted by Sorin Bechira)

 

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (hosted by Ramy S Maki)

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An Ode to Creative Work

Creative work is a labor of love.

All too often, we celebrate creation and overlook the difficult and emotional labor behind the scenes. Anyone who creates for a living knows all too well the doubts and barriers – both within us and around us – that challenge us every day. From the very beginning, our team at Behance has sought to discuss and support the “work” part of the creative world – the “99% perspiration” – that goes into making ideas happen.

Today, I’m pleased to share a short film – an ode to creative work. In recent months, our team embarked on a side project to film an eclectic group of creative minds at work. From the Behance community, we asked some folks we admired (interactive designers, art directors, graphic designers, fine artists, and others) to allow us to film them over the course of a day – the ups and downs and everything in-between.

We all share common struggles, yet collectively, we have more opportunity than ever before to make an impact in what matters most to each us. It is this hope and vision, grounded by the reality of the hardship of creative work, that motivates our team to build 99U and Behance.

An Ode To Creative Work

Behind every great advancement, in every industry, there is a creative mind.
Creativity may come easy, but creation is hard.The late nights spent trying, and failing, and trying again.

All the while, holding onto our vision. Pushing what we see in our mind’s eye into the world.

But our potential is being held captive by forces around us and within us.
Middle men who play us down while marking us up.Not giving us credit. Getting us to work for free.

And worse, we get in the way of our own success.We rely on chance encounters. We’re disorganized and isolated, liable to go unnoticed.
We can do better.

When creative minds come together, the sum exceeds all expectations.We connect, we learn, we critique, we prosper.

It’s not about money or fame, it’s about doing what we love.It’s about creating our greatest work on our own terms.It’s about realizing that creativity is not just an opportunity – it’s a responsibility.

Here’s to unleashing our full potential. For us, and for the world that awaits what we will do next; Take creative control.

Most Appreciated Projects on Behance

Appreciations are a way to send genuine kudos to another creative professional on Behance. This is our community’s way of curating the network, so that the best projects gain the most exposure. Here’s a look at two of the most appreciated projects on Behance this week:


Ukrainian illustrator Andrey Koval takes us on a visual journey through the history of aliens (and their costumes!) in her recent project. Meet the full cast of extraterrestrial characters here.


Combining typography with automotive design, Chris LaBrooy‘s recent personal project has Behance members talking. See a few more detailed shots here.

Behance Team Holding Strong Amidst Hurricane Sandy

A quick note from Scott Belsky, Behance’s Co-Founder, on Behance’s status this week.

It has been a wild week for all of us, but everyone on the Behance team is safe and sound. At this point, our thoughts are with those people and families that have lost lives, their homes or were otherwise impacted by the storm.

All of Soho lost power – and many of our homes are still without electricity or internet, but the team stayed coordinated to take care of each other, keep Behance up and running, and continue to serve our members.

As I look back over the years we have worked together as a team, it’s clear that adversity always makes us stronger. Server mishaps, broken elevators, missed planes, minor earthquakes, and yes – even hurricanes – bring us together. We become better communicators, more tolerant, and we learn how to prepare for next time. It’s easy when it’s all smooth sailing. But when something goes wrong, the greatest teams rise to the occasion…and really stand out.

I want to express gratitude to team Behance for their patience and commitment this week. Makes me especially proud to be on this journey with all of you.

Behance members: Our community management team is accessible and doing their best to respond to your questions. If you are having trouble getting ahold of us, please email energy -at- behance -dot- com.

Thanks and be well!
scott

Portfolio Review Week Begins! Events around the globe…

This week, Portfolio Review Week kicked off around the world! With almost 200 events scheduled wordwide, we’re seeing news from this inspiring gatherings to share work & get feedback buzzing all over the internet. Despite Hurricane Sandy, which has caused postponement of East Coast events, the communities in the rest of the world are thriving. Here’s some early news from these events:

Budapest, Hungary:

 

Rome, Italy:

Kyiv, Ukraine:

Hamburg, Germany

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