Illustrator, designer, and artist Peter Judson has created a captivating new series of pixel-art works titled "Staring At Fields," which playfully challenges the boundaries between design and fine art. These audio-visual pieces, inspired by the CMYK color palette used in print production, feature dancing monolithic forms that construct, deconstruct, and reassemble themselves in mesmerizing loops. The project represents Judson's exploration of how individual elements can come together to form a cohesive whole.

The concept for the series originated from an unexpected source: an internet meme featuring salmon nigiri sushi rendered in both RGB and CMYK color schemes. While the RGB version appeared unnaturally vibrant, the CMYK version looked muted and subdued. Rather than being discouraged by this dullness, Judson found inspiration in it, driven by his deep fascination with color theory. "I think color is a skill that can be learned, similar to cooking and combining ingredients. The more you do it the better you become," Judson explains.

Judson's artistic approach focuses on finding the perfect moment when form and color achieve harmony. He uses animation as a tool to dissect and reveal this moment of balance, showing viewers how fragile these compositions truly are. "The aim was to combine form and color until everything clicked into place. Animation became a way of pulling that moment apart – revealing to the viewer that the finished composition is fragile," he notes. "Slight changes in scale and position disrupt the harmony whilst also hinting at how the final composition was made."

The visual aesthetic of these works bears resemblance to teletext, the primitive pixel-based designs that appeared on old television screens through cathode ray tubes, where images would blur and bleed across the display. Judson deliberately deconstructs his creations, allowing them to fall apart like a child's tower of blocks being knocked over. This process reveals the fundamental design elements within: patterns, stripes, checkers, symmetry, and repetition. Viewers witness these pieces not as fixed compositions but as raw elements continuously searching for visual harmony.

The deconstruction and reassembly process serves a deeper purpose in Judson's artistic vision. "Deconstructing and reassembling them allows for catharsis: the artwork is both undone and remade, and your perception shifts with it," he shares. This cyclical process of creation and destruction invites viewers to contemplate the nature of artistic composition and the delicate balance required to achieve visual coherence.

Sound design plays a crucial role in enhancing the conceptual framework of the series. Judson incorporated endearing MIDI sounds including digital horns, chimes, and synthesizers that accompany the dancing blocks. The audio elements were added later in the creative process as a way to further emphasize the deconstruction theme. When two artworks are clicked together, they create an unexpected collaborative element, as if the animated monoliths are communicating with each other, achieving musical harmony alongside visual discord.

Judson's approach to pairing sound with visuals often involves deliberate contradiction and contrast. "I'd deliberately undermine the visual by pairing it with something jarring, like heavy horns and bass over a delicate palette," he explains. With 100 individual works in the series, he had ample opportunity to experiment with how sound could either reinforce or confound the viewer's visual experience. This tension between audio and visual elements adds another layer of complexity to the already rich conceptual framework.

According to Judson, "Simplicity can be serious and occasionally seriously silly," a philosophy that permeates throughout the entire "Staring At Fields" series. What begins as an intellectual examination of visual languages quickly transforms into something more emotionally engaging, drawing viewers into what he describes as "charming, contained chaos." The works successfully balance conceptual rigor with playful accessibility, making complex ideas about color theory, composition, and artistic harmony approachable to diverse audiences.

The "Staring At Fields" series represents a significant exploration of digital art's potential to blur traditional boundaries between disciplines. Through his innovative use of pixel art, animation, and sound design, Judson has created works that function simultaneously as design experiments and fine art pieces, challenging viewers to reconsider their understanding of both mediums.