FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

.gif art

The Longest-Running Everyday GIF Artist on Tumblr Just Broke 4 Years

Angular Geometry’s mesmerizing loops have been a GIF art staple for nearly half a decade.
Images courtesy the artist

It started as a 30-day animation challenge, but this month marks Tyler Haywood's fourth straight year posting at least one GIF to his Tumblr page every single day. This makes him the longest-running daily GIF artist on the site, according to a source at Tumblr. After that first month was over, Haywood tells Creators, he simply "found it easier to just keep the momentum up." The rest is history.

Haywood posts perfect loops of dancing dodecahedrons and gelatinous spheroids under the name Angular Geometry, and has done so every day since since 2013. In 2014 he was recognized by the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art's .GIF Shop series for posting at least one "mesmerizing short animation" a day for 560 days. On May 1, he reached day 1,462. "I can't believe I have made a GIF every day for 4 years!" he wrote on his site alongside the GIFs below. After we told him Tumblr's data confirms he's the longest-running everyday GIF artist, he said, "I have no idea how to word what I am feeling to be honest. I am really moved."

Advertisement

The Massachusetts College of Art grad spends anywhere from ten minutes to several hours in Cinema 4D and Adobe's Creative Cloud to make a single animation. "A lot of the process is just like sketching," he says. "I just start with a mark and see where it takes me that day."

It's not uncommon for an artist to post new work to social media every day. Like publishing FitBit data to Twitter, it incentivizes discipline and fosters growth. Last month CGI artist and animator Beeple—whom Haywood lists as an inspiration, alongside GMUNK, Kidmograph, Zolloc, early Modern Architecture, the Futurist Movement—celebrated his 10th straight year of everyday stills. He discussed the value of momentum. "Once you get the momentum, that's what carries you forward," he says. In moments of laziness and temptation, "You think, 'Am I really going to ruin my streak for this?'"

Some days are easier than others. Haywood's discipline has been tested by a cross-country move, a power outage, and a broken computer that forced him to implore a local design studio to let him borrow their tools. "It honestly only takes a small percentage of the day to get it done. But it really all comes down to being dedicated and trusting the process."

His advice to artists on their own everyday creative journey is, "Don't worry so much. So much greatness is ruined by anxiety. Some days will turn out like garbage, some days you will be magically inspired and you will make something you are extremely happy with. The great thing is that the days just keep coming."

Advertisement

Days are certainly still coming for Haywood. He's now reached day 1,475 and shows no sign of stopping.

Below is a selection of Angular Geometry's massive body of work, starting with the first GIF in his everyday series.

See more of Tyler Haywood's work on his website.

Are you working on an everyday art project? Send us your portfolio here.

Related:

30 Whimsical GIFs Let You Explore Tokyo from the Comfort of Your Own Home

This Illustrator Is Making a Sci-Fi Drawing Every Single Day for a Year

A CGI Master Made a New Artwork Every Day for 10 Years. Here Are The Results