A piece is the fundamental building block of a Medlay artifact.

It is a hybrid between a cinematographic shot and a comic panel. Like its precursors, it gains significance when placed in context with other pieces—specifically, when it is spatially juxtaposed in a sequence1 of pieces.

Series of images into loop

A piece consists of one or more dynamic series of images2 sequentially juxtaposed over time.

Each piece is structured as a loop, allowing the content to be repeated over and over in time and always accessible to viewers.

A piece formed into a loop.

Different types of pieces

When a piece is formed into a loop, it means that the one or more series of images it is composed of are spliced together.

The splicing can be either continuous3, achieved through a smooth transition of time and space, or discontinuous, marked by the absence of such a transition.

A piece consisting of a single discontinuous series. The splicing is immediately perceivable.

A piece consisting of a single continuous series. The splicing is not immediately perceivable.

When a piece consists of a sequence from a single series, the last and first images of the series are spliced together at the end of the piece, meaning the series4 is juxtaposed in time with itself.

A piece consisting of a single series.

When a piece consists of a sequence of multiple series, the last image of the last series and the first image of the first series are spliced together at the end of the piece, meaning the last series is juxtaposed in time with the first.

A piece consisting of a multiple series 1–2.

A particular case of a multiple-series piece occurs when it consists of a sequence of two series of images where the second series is simply the first one, time-reversed and played back.

A piece consisting of a multiple series 1–1 back and forth.

Length of time

Each series is designed to run for a short period rather than a long one. The shorter the series, the shorter the resulting piece, and the less time viewers need to go through it and fully grasp it.

The duration of each series must always be considered when crafting a quickly digestible piece, especially when the piece is composed of multiple series in sequence.

Viewer’s interaction

A piece can be programmed to respond to viewers’ interactions and/or focus of attention, shifting from a passive state to an active one when triggered by an event5.

For example, a piece consisting of a single series may change state and transition6 to a different series in response to viewers tapping the piece or scrolling the canvas to a specific area of focus.

A piece consisting of multiple interactive series 1–2–1. The 1st series cuts to the 2nd one in response to the viewer’s tap. As soon as the 2nd series ends, the piece resets to its initial state.

A piece consisting of multiple interactive series 1–2–3. The 1st series cuts to the 2nd transitional series in response to the viewer’s tap. Once the 2nd transitional series ends, the piece transitions to its final state, where the 3rd series is played.

Frame

Since a piece is spatially juxtaposed on a canvas, its frame is directly visible7 to viewers. The frame’s size, shape and borders become significant elements that can be shaped to express or reinforce the meaning of the piece.

A vertical or horizontal shape can better emphasize the content of a piece.

Significant size.

Significant border.

If you have any suggestions or spot anything that needs fixing, please let me know. Your thoughts, critiques, and recommendations are more than welcome.

Thank you!

  1. More on sequences of pieces in the next post, Sequences. ↩

  2. What in cinematographic language are called shots.

    In this context, I prefer using the more generic term series, mainly because the term shot is too strongly connected to the cinematic media form and its primarily photographic nature. ↩

  3. Here, the bag of tricks from continuity editing comes into play. ↩

  4. The series coincides with the piece itself, as the piece is the series. ↩

  5. On mouseover, on tap, on scroll, …. ↩

  6. The transition can be either a cut or an entirely new transitional series, which plays only once and serves primarily as a connector between the starting and finishing states of the piece. ↩

  7. Similar to a comic panel and different from a cinematographic shot, which latter frame is fixed sized and shape and has transparent, non-significant borders. ↩