Gnomonology

Tips, Tricks and Techniques for Digital Artists

A dynamic online resource from the folks at Gnomon

Welcome to Gnomonology, a dynamic new online resource brought to you by Gnomon. Founded by me, Alex Alvarez, in 1997, Gnomon is celebrating our tenth year as the leader in education for the visual effects, gaming and design industries.

With the increasing prevalence of online video and high-speed net access, Gnomon has created Gnomonology as a resource for our professional instructors and students from around the world. Delivering high-quality tutorials and assets for a variety of tools and applications, Gnomonology strives to provide you with convenient, affordable and educational content. Our mission is simple... to empower digital artists with professional techniques that have been developed over the years of experience our instructors bring to the site. Whether you are a 2D or 3D digital artist, we hope that you find Gnomonology to be a valuable resource. Tutorials and assets for an increasingly wide range of tools will be added to the site every month.

If you are unfamiliar with Gnomon, here is a brief history. To begin, the word Gnomon is a bit unusual. The 'G' is silent, pronounced 'NO-mon'. A Gnomon is the upright on a sundial that casts the shadow and a Greek word meaning "the one who knows". In 3D software packages such as Maya, the Gnomon has a third meaning, being the arrow that directs the artist to the location of the world origin.

The School:
Gnomon School of Visual Effects was founded in 1997 to provide student and professional artists in Hollywood with high-end production based training for the film industry. Over the past decade, the Gnomon School has expanded to the broadcast and gaming industries, offering over sixty courses on a wide range of skills and applications. With a faculty and advisory board consisting of over sixty industry veterans, we are proud to be the leading visual effects training facility in Hollywood.

Training DVDs:
The Gnomon Workshop was founded in 2000 to bring Gnomon calibre education to the world, via professional quality training DVDs. Whether your interests are digital matte painting, character modeling, digital sets, vehicle design, creature rendering or maquette sculpture, our DVDs help artists learn from the experience of others in order to save time and improve skills. Techniques that have taken our instructors years to master are available to artists in a format that is unparalleled. Our customers range from high-school students who are just discovering the career opportunities that lie ahead of them, to seasoned professionals with decades of experience.

Online Courses:
Gnomon Online, originally launched in 2001 as the original video tutorial site for Maya, has just experienced a major relaunch and redesign. Now an extension of the Gnomon School, Gnomon Online offers a myriad of ten week online courses for those interested in an immersive educational experience.

Thank you for visiting Gnomonology. We are extremely excited to have the opportunity to provide the community with a new educational and asset resource. I have been teaching and creating tutorials for many years, trying to share my knowledge and help others. Education is my sincerest passion, and I hope that Gnomon helps you succeed and accomplish your goals. If you have any questions or requests, please be sure to let us know!

-Alex Alvarez
Founder/Director, Gnomon