The term 'Libre Graphics' refers to free and open source software used with graphics, which offers its users an alternative to proprietary software like Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. Not only is Libre Graphics the denotation for free software like Gimp, Inkscape or Scribus, it also describes a software philosophy movement, which is becoming more and more popular these days. Open software is everywhere today, for example, the majority of servers on the Internet are powered by Apache, an open source web server, and by Linux, an open source operating system. The spirit of Libre Graphics is to give its users the opportunity to take part in this free and legal movement in order to enable the whole world to do creative artefacts, not only privileged people. The main goal of Libre Graphics is to bring people together in order to create a linked network in the cause of creating high quality free graphics application.

A program is considered free software, if the user can modify the software, shape its tools and has the four following essential freedoms, established by the software freedom activist, Richard Stallman:

1. The freedom to run the program as he wishes to.
2. The freedom to study how the program works and change it.
3. The freedom to redistribute copies to help his neighbor e.g.
4. The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others

Open Design is a design artefact project whose source documentation is made publicly available so that anyone can study, modify, distribute and sell it.

Co-Design is a product, service where design professionals empower and guide users to develop solutions for themselves.

Open Design and Co-Design are two concepts that completely revolutionised free software and challenged the idea of the author. They both refer to collective creativity.





GIMP is an essential image manipulation software, which is free and available to everybody and has similar tools than Photoshop. It is mostly used for editing and retouching images, resizing, cropping, putting effects on photos and more particular functions. From being a school project of two students in 1995, GIMP now is a widely spread application, which is even expandable by plugins and works for OS X, Microsoft and Linux.





Inkscape is a free and open-source vector software, which is supposed to be an alternative to Illustrator and its biggest competitor. Even though Inkscape can export and import different formats, SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) is the format required. Inkscape is adequate when it comes to the creation of logos, lettering, line arts and illustrations.





Scribus is an Open Source publishing application, which works on Mac OS X, but also on Linux and Microsoft Windows. Scribus is particularly suitable for layout, interactive PDF presentations, typesetting, brochures, newsletters, books or posters. Until today, Scribus has found a lot of support from professionals as well as from beginners since its modest beginning in 2011. The number of participants of the Scribus Team is constantly growing, which is why Scribus ranks among the most known open source software. Scribus supports the file format XML.







Since 2006, an international convention, co-founded by Dave Neary and Dave Odin, takes place once a year and is financially supported by donations. In 2015, the meeting happened in Toronto, Canada, where communities gathered to discuss about free software issues and share their knowledge. But who are these associations that are participating at this project, exactly? Here are some examples:




This association is a travelling lab, where new ideas for creative tools are developed, and organizes regular meetings and commissions. Artists, Designers and Programmers participate in these assemblages and work out four threads: Networked graphics, co-position, pixels and lines and abstracting craft.



This institution, based in Porto and founded in 2010, is a Libre Graphics and Design research studio, which focuses on free and open source software, libre culture and critical engagement.



Their focus is not on results or outcomes, but on the process. The members of this association invite their users to get involved in the elaboration and work on workshops, commissions or solf-projects.



As the name already reveals, Libre Graphics Magazine is an association, which publishes a magazine regularly as an online and printed version. It serves as a catalyst for discussion to build a home for the users of Libre Graphics software.








After being introduced to three different open software programs and downloading them, we had the assignment to create our own sketches using Gimp, Inkscape and Scribus. I started off by simply editing a few photos using different functions of Gimp.



















The image above is the original and represents the Central Park, which is located in New York.



















In the second picture, I clicked on the category 'Colors' on the bar at the top around with brightness and contrast of the image. I set the brightness to 17 and the contrast to 27.



















In the third image, I clicked again on 'Colors' and chose the filter 'Posterize' and set it to 3.



















In the next step, I clicked on 'Hue-Saturation' under the category 'Colors' and dragged the 'Hue'-switch to 83.



















From the green saturation, I switched to a turquoise one by dragging the switch to 128.



















From the previous image, I changed the hue-saturation from 128 to 163, so it turned dark blue.



















Again I changed the hue-saturation from 163 to -142, turning the image from dark blue to violet.



















After experimenting with different hue-saturations, I clicked on 'Colors' and adjusted the color curves to get a result like the picture above.



















By clicking on 'Levels' under the category 'Colors', I adjusted the input and output levels as shown at the right. This step made the image look faded.



















After testing different hues, color curves and levels, I then desaturated the image and chose the shade of grey based on luminosity.



















Subsequently, I chose the effect 'Threshold' located in the category 'Colors' and set it to 116. The modified image above now has kind of a comic touch.



















Lastly, I again put the effect 'Threshold' on the image, but this time a little lighter, meaning to 73. Thus, the imaged looks overexposed and the contrast between black and white is even bigger.


To summarise, here are the 12 versions that belong to my first series of editing an image in GIMP.




























The second image I chose, was again a panorama picture of nature. I suppose that the original that I used for editing has already been modified. (see below)



















After opening the original in GIMP, I clicked on 'Colors', then on 'Color Balance' and dragged the Cyan switch to -67 and the range to adjust, I chose, is 'Midtones'.




















After experimenting with basic editing options, we had a scale workshop in class called 'Scaling to the universe'. To start off, we watched the famous film 'Powers of ten' by Charles and Ray Eames.





















After seeing that movie made by the famous designer couple Ray and Charles Eames, I then visited an exhibition about them and their work, which is currently exposed in the Barbican Centre here in London.














































Like the name of the 'Scaling to the universe'-workshop already reveals, the assignment was to scale into a picture so that it is not recognizable anymore by using GIMP and Inkscape. More precisely, the part on which you zoom in should look completely abstract.

I chose a photo that I had taken in my holidays in summer in Finland. Here is the original sample:















































































































After zooming in gradually, I ended with a snippet zoomed in to 200%, which was initially the street on the picture and put the 'Posterize' filter on it. In fact, that's how a complete new pattern arose.

























After defiguring the initial photo by scaling in, we should take the new originated pattern and use it to design a poster. I flipped the image clockwise to 90° and copied it to form 6 rows on an A4 with 6 times the same pattern in each row. In addition, I played with different opacity levels on each row.















































The second picture I used for the 'Scaling to the universe'-workshop was one taken in Spain in Malaga on the beach.





























































































































After the same process as previously seen, meaning after zooming in from 18,7% to 200%, I adjusted the color curves in the section 'Color' to get a blue tone. Then, I selected the filter 'Threshold' to put it on the image to use it for the poster, this time in a landscape format. It kind of reminded me of snake's skin.


























The third and last image I used for the 'Scaling to the Universe'-workshop, is one of two older people holding hands.






















I again zoomed into a certain part of the image right up to 200%.






















After scaling in, I pressed on the 'Color'-button on the bar at the top, then clicked on 'Hue-Saturation' and dragged the Hue-switch to 39, so the image turned yellow-green.






















From 39, I dragged the Hue-switch from 39 to 135.






















Once again, I clicked on 'Colors' and turned the brightness to -25 and the contrast to 64.






















After playing with brightness and contrast, I put the filter 'Posterize' on the image and dragged the switch to the value 21.






















I repeatedly played with the 'Hue-Saturation' and changed it to -58, so the image appeared in a pink tone.






















I also tried the effect 'Cubism', which is to find under the section 'Filters', with a tile size of 5,5 and a tile saturation of 2,7.






















In addition, I played around with the color curves of the image, this result actually is my favourite outcome of all the experiments. It remind me of the plumage of an eagle.






















The last thing I edited out, was to desaturate the photo and adjust the brightness to -93 and the contrast to 77. By playing around with the different hues, levels and color curves, you get a feeling for photo editing.






















To sum up, here is again the series of my experiments with this picture at a glance:
























After numerous experiments with scale, I tried to develop a few examples that interpret scale differently than the images seen above.


























After duplicating the picture of this road over and over again, I always placed the pasted version into the center of the copied image in the background of it.


























To deepen that idea, I played with different hues on the various layers; from violet to blue, from orange to yellow.

To complete the first assignment of the 'Scaling to the Universe'-workshop, I still tried another approach. I took an old black and white picture, where a family is watching TV. On the TV screen, you see the same picture over and over again, so in other words, the process of reproducing the same image over and over again could be endless here. The only difference would be that the image would appear gradually smaller and smaller.

























The target of the second part of the 'Scaling to the Universe'-workshop was to do the exact opposite than at the first assignment, meaning not to zoom in, but scale out. At first, I had difficulties to grapple with this task, but after thinking about it for a while, I had an idea.

Equipped with my camera, I took the tube to Canary Wharf and had a close look at the numerous buildings and took photos of them.






















































































































































After having a look at the photos I took at Canary Wharf, I just started to sketch out a city skyline freehanded. This is what came out:
























I dragged my drawn sketch into Inkscape and tried to trace it with the pen tool. After finishing that, I tried to do some shading with the pen tool by increasing its width and choosing grey as color.






















After having finished the tracing of my self-made city, I then tested a few variations on GIMP. I, for example, increased the contrast, inverted the colours, turned the city red or orange and put a 'blur' effect on the last sample.

GIMP (General Image Manipulation Program)

Inkscape

Scribus

Associations working with/for Libre Graphics

1. Libre Graphics Research Unit

2. Manufactura Independente

3. Open Source Publishing (OPS)

4. Libre Graphics Magazine

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