Day of the Disguise Art Ninja

I'm Ricky. I live in Bristol.

By day, I work as an animator...

which is lucky, cos I love art.

I live for art, I even dream of art.

I draw...

I paint...

..I make things!

I hang out with my mates, Gavin, Michelle and Sarah.

Most importantly, I make ninja moves.

Some people call me the...

Today, I'll show you how to make fantastic fingerless gloves

without knitting...

disguise your eyes with Go To Sleep glasses...

Shades!

..and I get arty to surprise my mate Sarah at her party,

because today it's...

ALARM BEEPS

-HE SIGHS

-It's a new day, and it's...

time to get my ninja on!

And my clothes.

Hah! Huh! Heh!

I can't help feeling I've forgotten something.

HE GASPS

PHONE RINGS

-Mum?

-'Hello, mate.'

-Oh, hi, Gavin.

-'Where have you been all weekend?'

-What do you mean? It's Friday.

'No, it's Monday and you MISSED Sarah's birthday!'

No way!

KNOCK ON DOOR

Dude, got to go, there's someone at the door.

Who is it?

Ricky, it's Sarah, are you OK? We're all really worried about you.

Ricky's not here right now. Your call is important to us.

If you'd like to leave a message after the beep,

he'll get back to you.

Ricky, don't be weird, a door can't have an answer phone.

Beep!

OK, if you're going to play that game... I'm gutted you

missed my birthday and just give me a call when you're there. Bye.

I'm a bit gutted. Sarah's lovely.

I know, I'll make her a present - maybe some fingerless gloves.

But as I can't knit, I'll make some without knitting.

The Art Ninja knit-free fingerless gloves.

So I've got myself an old sticky tape loop - it's all finished -

and ten lolly sticks, and I'm going to lay them down

just over a finger's width apart.

Great. Now I'm going to get out some sticky tape.

Take a good length.

I'm going to lay it about a third of the way down the lolly sticks

and just make sure all of them are stuck,

without sticking to the table.

There we go.

Turn it over so the sticky side is facing up

and I'm going to roll my sticky tape loop across them.

OK, it's picked it up.

There we go, perfect.

So all of these now are at equal distance

around the sticky tape loop, and this will become my loom.

Cool. Now I'm going to take my wool...

and just put a little bit of the length through the loop, and then

I'm going to wrap it round each of the lolly sticks, like this.

Wrap and loop, wrap and loop.

Now, I'm wrapping these loops around quite loose...

as I need the tension to be loose for the next step.

OK, now the fun bit.

Got a loop around every single lolly stick

and I'm going to do a loop around the first one I did,

and then...

pull the bottom loop over the top loop and down the other side

of the lolly stick.

This is where all the stitches and the loops start to interlock.

Every time I make a new loop, the bottom loop goes over the top of it,

tying the whole thing together.

And eventually it will start flowing through

the middle of our tube, like that.

Now this can take a little while,

so I'm going to do it at ninja speed.

Using thicker wool gets you quicker results

as it starts to build up faster.

Nearly there now.

Right, that's looking pretty good.

You can see how it's all come together through the loom.

Even though the technique isn't traditional knitting,

the end result looks pretty convincing.

Now I need to get it off my makeshift loom.

I can't just pull it off cos it'll drop all these stitches

and the whole thing would unravel, so I need to cast it off properly.

So I'm going to get a good length of wool...

..and cut it.

And now I'm going to post the thread through each of my loops.

So, pull the loop up...

..post the loose thread through it.

Pull it through like that,

and I can slide that entire loop off of the loom.

There we go, now move on to the next one.

Lift up the loop...

and push it through.

And you can see it gradually coming off the loom as we cast it off.

Last one.

Look at that.

Looks great.

Tie a knot in the loose ends of the wool so that they don't unravel.

There we go, get rid of that bit.

So now I've got one...

but I need to ninja myself another one.

There we go. Right, might as well try 'em on.

When you get to the end, about there,

find a little hole in the stitch, pop your thumb through.

There we are.

I think Sarah's going to be really happy with these.

Now, you don't just have to make green ones, you can

change colours to create a stripy pattern

and you can experiment with different size looms,

like this cake tin I've used to make this rad hat.

Knitting without needles - you need to get involved in this.

I'm sure that picture moves on its own.

It's almost as if it's animated.

Oh, yeah!

I'm going to show you a trick that'll get your animations running

rings around the rest.

I'm going to teach you the secret of the memo note free runner.

Things you'll need are...

a pen, a book of memo notes, a camera and a computer.

Or, if you've got a tablet with one of those animation apps,

that's pretty good too.

Here's how to work it in three ninja moves.

Ninja move number one.

I'm going to put a memo note straight on the wall,

being really careful not to draw on the wall,

and I'm going to sketch the first frame of my character.

So, head, just a nice, big, round body, and then, when you're going to

draw a person running, I always start sort of mid-run.

When you run, you run in alternates like this,

so I'm going to have a leg forward and a leg back, and then,

if the right leg's forward, I'm going to put the left arm forward

and the right arm back. So that's the first frame.

That's kind of a good guide.

Ooh, that's me!

Try watching people run just to get a good guide for how they move.

Good observation usually leads to good animation.

And now I'm going to put another memo note over it.

I can see the frame from before -

that can be my guide for the next drawing,

and it looks like his foot's about to land on the floor,

and it'll probably land about there,

so that is going to be my starting point here.

Then I'm going to draw a nice head,

round belly, and the way it would have landed,

got a slight bend in the knee now

and his other leg probably would have brought forward.

Arm goes down, other arm goes down as well.

Another note on top, and you already see

he's starting to move across the wall.

I've got this foot on the floor, and this means I'm going to keep

this foot where it is. This is a really important point,

because if you make a run cycle and a person puts a foot down but keeps

moving, it just looks ridiculous, like he's sliding across the floor.

And unless he's on ice, which this guy's not, it doesn't work.

I'm taking a photograph after each drawn memo note

to create my animation.

Ninja move number two.

Once you've drawn your character and you've drawn your running frames

and you get back to a frame where it's kind of where he started...

So, the same leg's forward and the same leg's back,

it's at this point you can do a little bit of a sneaky cheat,

and that is reaching to the back and bringing that frame forward,

put over the front, cos now we're into an animation loop.

An animation loop is the loop of frames.

It finishes where it begins,

which means you can continually re-use them.

And this is good because you can make your character run for ever!

Ninja move number three.

Now your character can run, you can

control the distance which they travel - basically, their speed.

So if you look at here, if I want to make him move faster

and bound further away, I can just push the memo note further away

till you can NEARLY see the other frame, but not quite.

That's going to work really well.

So use your three ninja moves, use your imagination

and get your memo note free runner running around your room.

Ready, steady, go!

STARTING GUN FIRES

A really quick, fun animation. Have a go yourself.

I'm going to plan something to make up for me missing Sarah's birthday.

She deserves a treat - she's had a lot on her plate recently.

Not party food, unfortunately!

I know, I'll use one of the clean plates to make a Banksy-style

stencil of a skateboarder.

Did I hear my name?!

It is I, Banksy, master of disguise! Whoa-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!

Look, I'm a cocktail sausage.

And now I'm a pineapple chunk.

Usually, I'm a graffiti artist from Bristol. Your manor, Ricky.

I do street art, mostly, but I've done album covers, I've done a title

sequence for The Simpsons and I've even painted on a real elephant.

I usually spray my graffiti through stencils.

Here's one of my famous pictures now.

For somebody who loves secrecy, you don't half go on about yourself.

If I'm going to make a stencil,

I'm going to need a good background first.

I've got an old bit of cardboard here.

I'm going to give it a bit of a grey wash.

There we go. We brush the paint around.

I want a kind of messy, anarchic finish to it.

So it looks like a wall!

Yeah, that's looking good.

Maybe some white paint splats on it.

There it goes.

Yeah, look at that!

Ooh, better not get it on the food!

Nice. Think I'll have a couple of black splats as well.

Definitely put paper down with this one. Yeah!

I'm going to put it to the side to dry while I draw my stencil.

Think I'll draw my skateboarder mid-trick.

Of course, you don't have to draw a skateboarder,

you can draw anything you like!

Right, I'm going to cut that out, so I'm going to put some modelling

clay down first, then just pierce that hole for my scissors.

There we go.

Get my scissors in there and cut it out.

Notice how I haven't joined up the front foot to the skateboard?

If I did that, I'd lose this area here.

It needs to be able to touch the outside.

To the arm, and there we go.

And there's my skateboarder stencil, ready to go.

Right, put my stencil, I reckon, about there,

and I'm going to use a nice big brush

to block it in with a bit of black.

Banksy would use spray paint, but try this, it really works!

I'm just holding this little flat bit here in place

cos the brush and the paint might move it and smudge the picture.

Time for the reveal.

Ah, yeah, skateboarder!

I'm going to flip the plate over and do another one down here,

and I'll pop the plate in the other way.

There we are.

Right, here we go.

Yeah, another skateboarder! Rad!

I think that looks awesome! I'm really happy with that.

My very own Banksy. Or should I say, Ricksy.

Did I ever tell you about the time when I played a prank

by sneaking my paintings into the Tate Modern and the Louvre in Paris?

No... But that has given me an idea for Sarah's party.

Why not try a stencil inspired by Banksy?

PHONE RINGS

Oh! I'd best not answer that, it might be Sarah.

ANSWERPHONE BEEPS

'Hi, Ricky, it's your mum!

'Sarah called earlier - I hope you didn't miss her birthday!

'Anyway, Ricky, just wanted to tell you there's loads of other

'stuff not to miss.

'Keep your eyes open for these specs-tacular glasses,

'"shave" the best for later with art using shaving foam,

'and you become art itself at the gallery.

'Bye!'

I'd better get on with Sarah's party or I'll miss her next birthday too!

Hey, you there!

Oh, this guy's such a chancer.

The future's so bright, I have to wear shades.

"Why?" I heard you ask.

I didn't say anything!

Ever been in class but can't keep your eyes open?

Ever made...

a spectacle of yourself?

Now YOU can disguise your eyes with brand-new Go To Sleep Shades.

Here's how you make them.

You need some black card and a white pencil.

Use it to draw around the front of your glasses...

onto the card.

Turn your glasses so you can draw around the arms.

Now draw some lenses inside the frames you've already drawn.

Next, get some scissors - snippy-snippy -

and, with care, cut out the glasses from the card.

Please get rid of your excess card - ahem - responsibly.

You need a small piece of modelling clay and your pencil

to safety poke holes in the lenses.

Use these holes to help you cut out the lenses with your scissors.

It's not over yet.

You'll need to make another pair in much the same way as demonstrated.

"Eye-eye."

Now, using a camera or smartphone, take a couple of selfies -

one with your eyes open and one with your eyes closed.

A very good likeness.

Next, send these pictures to print.

Wait, who's this guy?

I don't remember taking those!

Oh, well, they'll do.

Now, using a pencil, draw around the eyes of your printed selfies

using the outline of your cardboard glasses, like this.

Cut out both sets of eyes.

Those eyes REALLY suit me, don't they?

With a glue stick,

attach the open eyes to one pair of cardboard glasses.

And attach the closed eyes to the other pair.

You must stick both frames together back-to-back,

with both sets of eyes facing outwards.

Classy!

Finally...

make a fold in the arms of your glasses so that YOU can wear them.

Go To Sleep...Shades.

Buy them now, cos I can see these flying off the shelves.

Well, I could, if I had my eyes...

..open!

I'll keep my eye out for those!

Here's a real quick art tip -

how to make things look like they're moving really fast.

I'm going to start my drawing with a car, cos cars are quick.

Windscreen, couple of wheels, and there's the light.

Now I'm going to draw the driver - here he is in there.

Hands on the wheel, ten and two.

I'm going to give him some hair,

and I'm going to do this with zigzag lines going backwards to show

the wind going through his hair.

Now I'm going to add some action lines behind the car,

so whichever way your character's travelling,

make sure your action lines are behind.

And this makes it look like it's travelling really fast.

On the wheels, I'm going to add some too.

But on these, I'm going to put a little curve,

just to show that the wheel's going round.

And finally, for extra speed,

I'm going to add a puff of smoke coming out of the back of the car.

There we go...

a quick art tip.

CAR ENGINE STARTS

Oops!

BOTH: Ricky, Ricky, Ricky!

No rest for the wicked.

What can I do for you guys?

Ricky, what can you do with these pipe cleaners?

Pipe cleaners? Well, maybe next time, if you pipe down a bit...

Ohhh!

BOTH: Ricky, what can you make with this?

That looks interesting! I choose you.

-Yay!

-So what are your names?

-My name's Steph.

-My name's Ruby.

Hi, Steph and Ruby, nice to meet you. Where are you from?

-BOTH: We're from Liverpool.

-So what have you guys got for me today?

We've got some shaving foam.

Shaving foam... Do you know what?

I've been "shaving" this one for a day just like today.

I'll just go and get my stuff.

So, I've got...trusty shaving foam, some nice coloured paints,

a piece of paper and, like, a dinner tray.

So what I'm going to do to begin with is use the shaving foam.

I'm going to use quite a lot of it.

I'm going to fill the whole of this tray with it.

'If it's not yours, make sure you ask first!'

I'm going to make some marble effect wrapping paper.

Basically, I've forgotten about my friend's birthday,

so I'm going to make some wrapping paper to wrap up her present

and hopefully make it up to her.

I haven't really forgotten anyone's birthday.

-Is it quite bad to forget somebody's birthday?

-BOTH: Yes.

Ohh! It's going to have to be a pretty good present.

Now that I've sprayed it all out,

I'm going to use this ruler to flatten it out nicely.

I'm planning a party to make it up to my friend as well.

What would be the best party you could think of?

Erm, a roller skating party.

Roller skating party? That is a good idea.

I prefer skateboarding, myself, but it'd still be really fun.

Now, going to use these nice colours over the foam.

Start with some yellow.

Then a bit of red.

Bit of blue. Here you go.

And a little bit of this darker blue, bit more purply.

-I quite like fancy dress parties.

-Me too.

So you can hide amongst everyone, it's quite fun.

I've got a piece of cardboard over here

and I'm going to use this to scratch through the foam and the paint

and give it a little bit of structure and pattern.

Look at that, you get all these stripes on the cardboard as well.

'I'm scraping the lines in a horizontal and vertical cross

'pattern, but you can do whatever you like.'

Yeah. Now is the fun bit.

I'm going to lay a piece of paper over the foam and the paint

and just press it down lightly

so that it picks up all the paint from the foam.

Right, think it's time to peel it off.

Ooh, yeah. Lay this down.

Scrape off the excess.

'Every piece of wrapping paper you make is unique.'

-OK, guys, you ready to see it?

-BOTH: Yes.

Cool. Here we go...

What do you think?

-Wow!

-Whoa!

-Do you like it?

-BOTH: Yeah.

So what would you guys give it out of ten?

Hmm...ten.

Ah, ten, phew! That was a close shave.

It's a good score, too. I usually get silly scores.

-Anyway, thanks very much, Steph, cheers, Ruby.

-BOTH: Bye.

-Bye-bye.

Why don't you make marbled wrapping paper?

I'm going to use it to wrap Sarah's present.

But I'm going to do it at ninja speed.

All I need to do now is to put on a surprise party to make it up to her.

Just send a little e-flyer, an invite to my friends, send.

LAPTOP BLEEPS

-Whoa! Everyone's coming!

-BLEEPING CONTINUES

I'm going to throw Sarah a surprise party she'll never forget.

Ninja skill...ooh!

This is the venue for my surprise party for Sarah.

Major art EVERYWHERE.

This is a surprise party for Sarah, so...I'd better hide.

MUSIC: Sing by Ed Sheeran

Yes!

Yes! Nailed it!

None of this is working.

I need something that will really knock Sarah's socks off.

You know what? I shall become art itself.

But first, I'd better get my ninja on.

Heh, ha! Hoo, hoo, hoo, hoo!

Hm! Agh!

Check this out...

.."p-arty" ninja!

'I've cut a hole in this piece of plywood so I can put my face

'in the picture.

'I've been inspired by Banksy to hide in a gallery.'

Did I ever tell you about the time when I played a prank

by sneaking my paintings into the Tate Modern?

So what I'm doing now is just drawing an outline,

so I've got a guide to do my painting,

and I'm actually going to draw a face, much bigger than my own,

so the features overlap.

And when I paint it, I can easily hide within it.

Already disappearing into the background.

Oh, yeah!

Sarah's so going to love this.

I think I'm pretty much done with the black now,

so it's time to start getting involved with some colour.

This blue bit here is going to be the shadow on my face.

It goes right down the middle

so the light's going to be coming from here and casting a shadow.

Although I'm painting myself, this isn't strictly a self-portrait.

It doesn't really look anything like me.

It's more of an abstract portrait, cos all the features

have been exaggerated, the colours aren't necessarily true to life,

and it's all a bit weird. Pretty cool, though.

Last thing to do now, cover up the eyes.

Obviously, I'm using some special face paint.

You shouldn't just use any old paint on your face.

Now you see me...

now you don't.

I've officially become...ninja art.

'Cue the guests.'

-WHISPERS:

-Look out, here they come.

Ooh!

'There's Sarah and Gavin.'

Look at that.

'Matt, Andre, Rich... everyone's here!'

-WHISPERS:

-There's Sarah, she hasn't noticed me yet.

ALL: Cheers!

Oh, Gav, this is really great, but where's Ricky?

I don't know, Sarah. He's always letting people down at the minute.

SHE SIGHS

I can't believe he's not here.

I mean, who throws a party for their best friend and doesn't turn up?

Hmm. This one looks REALLY familiar.

RICKY BLOWS A RASPBERRY Gavin!

It wasn't me!

Yeah, Gav, it's an art gallery, not a fart gallery.

-Ricky!

-Yeah!

-Why are you in a painting?

It's meant to be a surprise for Sarah.

-Ahh!

-Go get her, so I can make her party arty.

Ha, brilliant!

-Ah, look at that.

-That is good.

-Oh, that's Rick...

Oh!

Happy birthday, Sarah!

That's amazing!

Come over here, I've got something for you.

Oh, thank you! Thanks very much, Ricky.

-I'm sorry I missed your birthday.

-That's OK.

It's some fingerless gloves - I made them for you!

-Oh, thanks!

-Lovely wrist warmers.

OK, Sarah, let's party.

-Oh, thanks for my party, Ricky. All is forgiven.

-My pleasure.

-Shall we go and get some food, guys? ALL:

-Yeah!

Food, awesome!

Hey, I'll just get this off my head.

Ugh, it's stuck!

I know I'm no oil painting, but this is ridiculous.

Guys... Hey, guys!

Hey, guys! Guys, my head's stuck.

Guys...

Hey, guys!

Wow.

I finally got that frame off of my head and I'm back to normal.

Looking good!

Today has taught me a valuable Art Ninja lesson.

If making up with mates is your aim, then just say sorry in a frame.

That paint took a long time to get off my face.

I'm glad it's all gone, though.

Phew!

What was that?

Ughhh!

Argggggggggh!

To get your Art Ninja on,

go to the CBBC website.

Ninja skills!