The journey of a log through a milling machine – or at least, a really convincing approximation of it – is captured in mesmerizing detail by this stunning stop-motion animation by photographer Brett Foxwell called ‘Woodswimmer.’ Thousands of photos were captured during the process of sanding away the surface of the wood a bit at a time, so you not only watch the log transform, you get to take a journey through its history.
Short of somehow fitting a camera and lighting inside a real machine to get a similar view, Woodswimmer is probably the closest we’ll ever get to this highly unusual and surprisingly fascinating perspective.
“A music video made entirely from wood for a song by bedtimes.xxx/music, WoodSwimmer is based on a concept I developed while designing a new stop-motion universe where wood is the primary element,” says Foxwell. “The sequences are cross-sectional photographic scans of pieces of hardwood, burls and branches. It is a straightforward technique but one which is brutally tedious to complete.”
