Using Touchdesigner, I created a piece called “Eventually No. 1”. The title, along with many of my other projects made in this software, are inspired by the Australian-psychedelic-rock band, Tame Impala. I saw Tame Impala live in Brooklyn back in 2022, and I have since been chasing the high and euphoria his performance first brought me. The eccentric and vibrant visuals he displayed coupled with his feel-good music made this experience one I will never forget.
As I was in the beginning stages of learning Touchdesigner, which I am still very much in, I often asked myself how this software could be applied in the professional world–and that is when I was reminded of Tame Impala at The Barclays Center in 2022. The different operators in Touchdesigner each produced a unique effect which resembled the visuals at Tame Impala’s concert as well as those at concerts of other artists, typically from the EDM genre. From this point forward, I envisioned my project being projected behind Tame Impala or another one of my favorite artists while they perform live.
In terms of how this project was created, it all starts with a noise texture operator which I found to be responsible for the vibrant colors I was looking to depict. I wanted some movement to the visual so I composited the noise TOP with a ramp TOP which gave the visual a circular and serene motion. I decided to connect another ramp TOP to the composited operators to further influence the movement of the colors and overall structure of the visual. Finally, I wanted more control over the vividity and color spectrum of the piece so I used a level TOP to influence those factors. A lot of the creation of this piece was trial and error and simply identifying what I liked and did not like about a certain effect. Overall, any decision I made throughout the process of creating this was made with respect to my chosen theme of psychedelic-rock music.
“Eventually No. 1” is one of my earliest creations in a software I plan to continue learning for years to come. I am not only proud of this piece, but I am inspired by the endless possibilities this work could give me. I am currently working on audio reactive visuals using Touchdesigner, and although this project is not audio reactive, it serves as a stepping stone to the next phase of my creations.
