Plastic Animal Forms
Representing movement and forms through repurposing packaging material: Part 1 of 3
Primary Objectives: “ Represent and construct a chosen animal form transforming found̾ reclaimed packaging material into an interactive model”
“Consider different levels of representation in both 2D and 3D.”
“Ability to critically dissect form and speak to its aesthetics and creatively use found material for modeling and constructing.”
Materials: Opaque plastic packaging, adhesive materials (tape, super glue, hot glue), attachers (brads, wire)
Time Frame: 1–2 weeks (Part 1)
02.19.2021 — Day 1
Task: Identifying endangered animals native to one’s home; Choose one to further research and understand; Write/sketch a one-page story based on the animal; Explore constructing like animal forms with physically manipulating plastic packaging.
Identifying Endangered/Extinct Animals from Texas
Research Articles:
Ideas:
- Whooping Crane: One of the most endangered birds in North America; Hunting and habitat loss nearly drove the species to extinction in the 1940s; Federal, state, and non-governmental groups have been able to preserve 250 whooping cranes living in the wild and 150 in captivity.
- Southwestern willow flycatcher: River flow reductions and habitat alteration and loss have caused the southwestern willow flycatcher to the brink of extinction.
- Swallow-tailed kite: One of the most threatened land birds currently without federal protection.
Considerations: (Looking primarily at mammals for more variety and room for flexibility for their form)
My favorites!
- Mexican Long-Nosed Bat (interesting way they move and so many different types)
- Black-footed Ferret (very cute, long body)
- Jaguarundi (didn’t previously know about them- wild cat native to the Americas)
- Eastern Brown Pelican
- Bald Eagle
- Mexican Spotted Owl
- Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle
- Houston Toad
Why I chose the Mexican Long-Nosed Bat?
I definitely feel like bats are misinterpreted with a negative connotation, even fruit bats who feed on nectar and pollen, mutually beneficial to the plants as a primary pollinator. I think their form is extremely dynamic and interesting with their tiny (2–3 inch) bodies and long thin but maneuverable wings, night vision, and elongated noses and tongues well equipped for feeding on nectar. Moreover, one of my favorite books, when I was a child, was “Stellaluna,” I highly recommend it!! Here is a link to the video recording: https://www.storylineonline.net/books/stellaluna/ It first introduced me to the common characteristics of a fruit bat, who should not be feared but appreciated for their extremely unique characteristics. (Also the bat looked very fluffy in the illustrations)
General Research
Status of the species
- Due to their migratory nature, the rarity of the species, and their seasonal movements, their population size is difficult to estimate
- Listed as endangered in 1988 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Texas and New Mexico listed them as endangered in 1988 and 1990, respectively; In 1991, they were declared as endangered by Mexico under the Mexican Endangered Species Act.
Physical Description
- Larger than most bat species (2.75 to 3.75 inches)
- Dark gray to brown in color
- Long muzzle with a noticeable nose leaf at the tip
- Have a long tongue (3 inches) covered in hair-like papillae, useful for getting flower nectar
- Have a small tail
History of Movements
- Migrate from central Mexico to northern Mexico every year, where parts of them cross the border into Texas and New Mexico
- Female bats give birth to one or two young each year, born in Mexico during the months of April, May, and June. Mothers recognize babies by their distinct smells and distress cries
- After nursing for a month, the bats fly independently and few adult bats have actually been located in Northern Mexico and Texas. This indicates that different genders may split geographically. However, at the end of the year, from October to December, adult males and females congregate in a cave near Cuernavaca, Morelos, in central Mexico.
Feeding Habits
- They feed on nectar at night from plants like agave or century plants
- They are highly maneuverable especially at night, hovering in flight while they feed similar to hummingbirds
- The bats rely on the plants for food as the plants benefit from the bat's role as a pollinator — mutualism
- While consuming the nectar, bats also ingest pollen from the flowers as it inadvertently attaches to their fur which is later consumed as they groom themselves. The pollen provides vitamins and minerals: “Agave nectar is at least 17–22% sugar and the pollen is about 50% protein”
- The species is closely related to the Lesser Long-nosed Bat (Leptonycteris curasoae) and remain the primary pollinators of many agave plant species
- They are well equipped to feed on nectar and protein-rich pollen due to their long muzzles and tongues. They often migrate towards bloom periods to find agave and cacti species.
- Big Bend National Park — agaves begin blooming in mid-May & early June at higher altitudes
- Bats arrive in Texas after one month of flowering, spend the summer there, then leave the US in the late summer.
- Follow the later blooming agaves southwards into Mexico
- November- they feed on blooms of subtropical trees and cacti several hundred miles into Mexico
- Winter- Spent in the lush Central Valley of Mexico, feeding on a large variety of flowers
- Spring — Fly back north following bloom times of cacti and agaves
Habitat
- In Big Bend, the bats are associated with five distinct vegetation types at various elevations: “arroyo-mesquiteacacia (1800–4000 ft.), lechuguillacreosotebush- cactus (1800–3500 ft.), deciduous woodland (3700–7800 ft.), pinyon-juniper-oak woodland (3700–7800 ft.), and cypress-pine-oak (5800–7200 ft.)”
- For roosting sites, they rely on cool caves, crevices, abandoned mines, tunnels, and old buildings and occupy the same locations every year
- Thousands of bats may roost together at a single site
Locations
- Mexican Long-nosed Bats have been located in southwestern New Mexico, the Big Bend area of Texas, Texas, and southward to central Mexico.
- They were first discovered in the US in 1937 in the Chisos Mountains at Big Bend National Park.
Threats
- Compared a rare species versus the Lesser Long-nosed Bat
- The population at one of only two known roosting sites in the United States, a cave in Big Bend National Park, fluctuates widely in numbers from one year to the next — from zero to as many as 10,650
- The population has also declined in Mexico: an abandoned mine in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, went from 10,000 Mexican Long-nosed Bats in 1938 to none in 1983. Another mine had a ceiling covered with newborn bats in 1967, but only one bat was found in 1983.
- The reasons are not extremely well understood — thought to be related to the loss of roosting sites and food sources (lost by land use and wild agave harvesting)
- Very vulnerable to disturbance and destruction of roosting habitat, leading to the displacement of large numbers of animals at one time
- Only a few roost sites provide a proper roosting environment including temperature and humidity. The one in Big bend is protected but in Mexico, human disturbance and destruction of roost sites are common. Mexico has 137 species of bats.
- In tropical Mexico, there is an issue with vampire bats and many ranchers and the public believe that all bats provide dangers to humans, leading to their death by destructive control practices.
- Agaves have also been harvested for the production of liquor, and “in northeastern Mexico, for preparation of “quiote,” a traditional sweet” These plants are also harvested before they bloom by removing their base at the center, which prevents future generations of agave plants from growing. This is problematic since each plant grows for 10 to 20 years and flowers only once.
Recovery
“Identifying and protecting additional roost sites, protecting foraging habitat, and obtaining population biology data are the three most important activities needed for Mexican Long-nosed Bat conservation.” Further research is being conducted.
- Some efforts including planting agave plants around the roads in Northern Mexico, which in turn also slow the effects of soil erosion
- There have also been efforts in increasing awareness to the public in schools about the importance of bats.
Sources
Forms of the Animal
Images of the Animal
Questions to Consider
What is the animal’s personality? Write adjectives down to help guide your form-making.
- Misinterpreted, nocturnal, survivalists, vegetarian — mutualistic relationships with plants, frightened, disturbed — urbanization & deforestation, social — very large roosting locations
What are the similarities and differences between you and your animal’s behavior? List them.
Similarities
- We are both mammals (bats include the world’s smallest mammals)
- Vegetarian, benefit from the environment, especially fruits from plants (Long-nosed bats feed on fruit nectar and pollen)
- Social creatures — tend to live in colonies with our families (not as large as bat roosting sites though)
- Find shelter- For roosting sites, long-nosed bats rely on cool caves, crevices, abandoned mines, tunnels, and old buildings and occupy the same locations every year.
- Ritualistic with a routine/ schedule — Bats arrive in Texas after one month of flowering, spend the summer there, then leave the US in the late summer; Follow the later blooming agaves southwards into Mexico; November- they feed on blooms of subtropical trees and cacti several hundred miles into Mexico; Winter- Spent in the lush Central Valley of Mexico, feeding on a large variety of flowers; Spring — Fly north following bloom times of cacti and agaves
- Diseases pose a very large threat to both species — bats have few natural predators and are victims of many diseases including the white-nose syndrome.
Differences
- I prefer to be out in the daytime while bats do not — their small eyes with sensitive vision, which helps them see in conditions we might consider pitch black
- Advanced ears that augment their vision in the dark through echolocation
- Live in roosting colonies with hundreds of other
- Dwindling population due to disturbance and destruction of roosting habitats as well as public negative perceptions towards the species
- Notable physical differences- Long retractable wings, sleep hanging downwards
What are your animal’s special traits or behaviors?
- Mutualistic relationship with plants as a primary pollinator
- Echolocation abilities: “ The use of sound waves and echoes to determine where objects are in space. Bats use echolocation to navigate and find food in the dark. To echolocate, bats send out sound waves from the mouth or nose. When the sound waves hit an object they produce echoes. The echo bounces off the object and returns to the bats’ ears. Bats listen to the echoes to figure out where the object is, how big it is, and its shape.”
- Winged Fingers! Their wings consist of elastic skin stretching from the edge of the forelimb to the tip of an elongated little finger — They have extremely elongated fingers with the membrane between each allowing them to curl up.
What factors led to the animal’s extinction or endangered status?
- Refer above to the research section
More Sources
Assignments
- Write up a story from the perspective of the animal about the challenges it’s facing and it’s daily life (does it hunt? sleep all day? Run from predators?) This story is meant to help give you a better connection to your animal.
- Do some sketch research about your animal! These drawings are meant to help you understand the overall forms of the animal and how it moves (videos are really helpful here!). What are the primary characteristics of it? What is it’s visual stance? How do it’s characteristics relate to it’s life?
02.25.2021 — Day 2: First Iteration
Task: Full animal/bust by Tuesday. Post 2–3 (top view/side view/perspective view) photographs anonymously on Miro
Plastic I have collected
Process
Paper models for the wings
Thinking about how a Chinese fan folds inwards, I began sketching and modeling the basic skeleton of the bat wings in white cardstock before moving to my limited amount of black plastic. I was intending to use handles of utensils/spoons as the plastic, but I couldn’t get a drill to drill holes in the backs of the really thick spoons which is why I resorted to the sushi takeout container with its flat, wide vertical ridges.
There were two skeletons for the wings I was considering: one that was primarily like a fan, and another one (top design) that has an additional hinge to represent the thumb. Each piece is connected by a brad so it can fold inwards like a natural wing. The brads worked as nice as hinges for the bat’s wings. Here are some gifs to represent the actions:
Cutting plastic components
Sushi containers — the skeleton of the wing w brads to connect
Smartfood popcorn chip bags — thin wing membrane (foldable- can create creases when folded like a fan but also thin and fragile) — I’m wondering if the design is too distracting? I tried using plastic trash bags but they’re too thin and not creaseable
Bottom ridged parts of takeout bowls — the bottoms of these bowls had vertical ridges that represent fur strands in some manner which I used to create the body
Dove body wash lid — long muzzle and snout that opens up (make a tongue that comes out when you open it)
Black spoons — large ears, pointy cut the edges of the spoon to be sharper
Middle of larger containers — round curves for body feathers
Fabric softener bottle — the base of the body- perfect size in comparison to the wings
Hangers (top curved part) — feet (curve) so the bat can hang upside down as its natural sleeping position
Different Views
Final 3 Photos
Takeaways from critiques & things to change
- Add more components/ segments to the wings — crease them better so they can stay closed and the movement is more fluid — I think the wings should be much bigger to be more accurate to the proportions of the bat if I continue to use this same size for the body
- The long muzzle nose is off, it should be directly above the head pointed upwards not outwards. I need to move it to the top, and figure out how to make the head a more similar type of plastic to the body — white and black has very large contrast makes it stand out — feels unbalanced
- Consider adding a tongue, perhaps when the nose/mouth opens up
- Find a better way to connect the wings to the body- maybe use zip ties? & Make a hinge of some sort to close the wings completely
- Add more black to the body to hide the blue underneath — kind of bright and stands out; remake body without any focus on the feathers but rather the small narrow shape of the form
- Are the feet- top parts of the hanger curves too large? How can I make them smaller and still functional?
- Criteria: Don’t worry about detailed components like fingers or feathers etc, only consider the overall form and proportions of the figure. Don’t worry about the colors of the plastic, the forms are what matter most; however, do consider the contrast that certain plastics next to each other will create
03.03.2021 — Day 3: Revised Iteration
Revisiting the forms of my animal — specifically the Mexican long-nosed bat with its distinct features compared to other bat species
More images for proportions of forms
Process
Retractable Wings with joints
To mimic the action of a bat's wings folding inwards when they sleep or hang, I added a structure of long black plastic pieces connected with brads to create different hinges and that will fold over, in order to open and close.
New Head
I completely redid the head to be more accurate to the head proportions of the bat by making it smaller in comparison to the wings. I also reduced the size of the ears and made the muzzle longer to represent their long nose. I also moved the nose to be in the same direction of the face, rather than above it like in the previous iteration. I added a small red piece on top of their nose that represents their nose “leaf.” I think the leaf looks a little bit flat right now.
Adding another joint/segment to the wing
I needed to make the wings bigger to account for the proportions of the body so I added the framework for another segment. This would also facilitate connecting it to the body.
Body
Instead of putting emphasis on unnecessary details like the previous iteration with individual feathers on the body, I decided to attack the bottoms of two takeout bowls together to make the small bean shape of their body. However, it was a little too wide which is why I used zip ties to pull the ends closer together to make the body longer and less fat. I also used zip ties to connect the head to the body to minimize the unpleasant appearance with glue on the outside — I need to purchase black zip ties so that it doesn’t stand out as well. I like how the takeout bowls actually have a red interior, which complements the bat's true color which is slightly brown as well as black.
Feet/ Hooks for wings
To represent how the bat has hooks at the bottom of its wings/ its feet, I added the tops of hangers to the feet so that the bat would strong enough to hang upside down. However, the proportions of the hooks are off, but in order for it to be able to maintain the weight of the body, I need strong plastic material like hangers. I will try to find something else sturdy, with a somewhat curved hook shape over the weekend, or try to acquire smaller black hangers.
Components
After making all of the different components, I started to piece them together with glue, tape, brads, and zip ties!
Photos from different views
(Photos taken in studio)
Interaction
(Photos Taken in dorm room photo setup)
Standing Photos
Flying Photos
Lying down & Miscellaneous photos
Things to change moving forward
- Wings still need to be larger, maybe make the skeleton of the fingers out of a thicker/stronger material so the movement of opening and closing the wings is easier. Find a diff thin material for the wing membrane that creases? Trash bags are too thin? So can’t really crease to fold inwards.
- Make the body narrower and make the feet more accurate to the form of the bat; have it integrate with the skeleton for the wings
- Improve the nose leaf to make it appear less 2-d and more 3-d as a natural component of the nose
- Make the feet more proportional to the body — the hooks should be much smaller but it still needs to be able to hold up the weight of the model when hanging backward
Class Critiques with Daphne
- The graphics on the popcorn bag are distracting — maybe try to change the material- use the other side of the bag? doesn’t have to be a black color can be silver. The skeleton/ fingers can also be a different color like in real life — doesn’t have to be all black.
- The wings should be larger and attach at the back! The body shouldn’t go till the end of the wings, and they shouldn’t be separated, which makes it look like a bird with 2 wings attached rather than a bat.
- To make the feet more proportional with a smaller radius, instead of looking to find a material that is a small hook, try to cut something in the shape of a hook out of very strong plastic.
03.04.2021 — Day 4: Final Iteration
Remaking the wings
Winged Elongated Fingers — Skeleton
I began with remaking the frame for the wings with a much thicker and stronger plastic to make the fan(open and closing) motion more fluid and smooth. I found this sturdy broken file holder to cut up for the long fingers (vertical skeleton pieces). However, the plastic was much thicker than I expected to cut, and I had to acquire a drill to drill holes through the plastic. I didn’t have the appropriate size bit (I didn’t really know how drills work before this) so had to play around with the smaller ones to get a hole large enough for the brad to fit in between. I also really struggled to cut the file folder with scissors and box cutters (unfortunately I cut myself), so eventually used a saw instead.
Final Skeletons
The middle hinge serves as the bat's thumb, as each of the branches is an elongated finger. I have made the skeleton a lot larger to fit the proportions of the body better, and the middle stick is longer so that the wings can join outside of the body. I added the red piece which will later serve as the feet connected to the wings connected to the hook as they hang upside down with their feet.
Wing membrane materials
One of the critiques I received was that the popcorn bags for the wing created too much contrast with the black and yellow colors, distracting from the form. To resolve this issue, I tried various materials to create the winged membrane.
I needed a material that was thin- soft plastic that can fold, but also not too thin like plastic bags where it has no structure and does not crease to be retractable, which is why the soft plastic material of the chip bags was ideal. However, chip bags all have decoration and high contrast designs with text! Below is an image of all the chip bags I looked into as well as the chocolate bag from entropy which was a prime contender — but the yellow on the brown was still too strong. I was also considering the white CMU bookstore bag which I thought was the perfect texture and one solid color! However, since it was white, I thought it would be too high contrast versus the black of the wings.
The other side of the popcorn bag was solid silver/metallic which I believe was too bright with high contrast if used plainly. However, I appreciate how this side of these chip bags in particular crease well and are one solid color. I then decided to glue a trash bag on top of the chip bag material to create a black-more compatible color versus silver as well as create a thin veiny membrane style with the trash bag.
Assembling Wings
Completed Wings
Attaching both wings together
Unlike the previous iteration, Daphne pointed out that the wings should actually be touching, without the body in between. I decided to attach both of the wings together at the back with zip ties.
Miscellaneous Photos
Standing up finished views
Photos for Miro Board
Flying
Lying down
Closed Wings
Hanging
For Friday, I plan on taking better photos and narrowing down which photos to keep for the final. I agree with Q’s feedback that the neck was not as distinguishable as some of the miro bat photos were (although the bat looks different in some of the others — the body is more blob-like), so I think I will push the neck upwards for it to be more distinct.
03.12.2021: Day 5 — Final Photos
I saw an agave (the favorite plant of the Mexican Long- Nosed Bat) last weekend at Phipps! This cacti room would be the perfect habitat for a bat if it was enclosed inside a cave of some sort :)
Reflection
Looking through everyone’s finalized projects on Miro was really exciting — and it was especially interesting to see how all of the animals including mine, evolved so much, over just the span of one week. I was amazed to see how everyone’s structures portrayed the forms and distinctive details of their animals so accurately and representatively through using niche and unconventional ways to join sections of plastic packaging.
First Miro vs Final Miro
Continuing from the in-class presentations, if I had more time, I would like to find better materials for the wings (less wrinkly than gluing the trash bags to the chip bags) and still make them a little larger to more accurately fit the proportions of the body, as well as probably work on making the neck more narrow and tilt upwards, to separate it from the body more clearly.
This project was definitely harder than I initially thought it would be. I enjoyed learning more about the distinctive attributes of my bat and about its unfortunate endangered status. I thought the plastic collection process was very difficult, trying to find exactly what I was looking for or having to change what I intended to do based on the forms of the plastic I had, but I think it has made me more observant of the different forms within a larger structure. It was similar to a scavenger hunt but also a puzzle of some sort, to attempt to combine different sections of each plastic item to create something cohesive. By the end of the project, I became very cognizant of all the plastic forms on items in stores around me. I enjoyed working in 3d which is something I’m still not very used to, especially when realizing how different it is to visualize concepts in 3d versus with sketches on paper. My model definitely ended up nothing like some of my initial sketches. I’m excited to finally throw away/recycle and clean up the cesspool of dirty plastic in my room now :) and work on portraying my animal in a digital 2-d illustration next.
