Circle Squared

Here’s an old but great holiday-themed animation by HunterGatherer (aka Brooklyn-based artist/designer Todd St. John). “Circle Squared,” originally released in 2007, was commissioned by T Magazine for the Christmas season. The story is told through stop-motion animation, using toy-like hand-made wooden forms, which interact similarly to the way Russian dolls nest. These cube-animal shapes originate from the idea of a box containing a gift, but instead of depicting a literal gift-giving situation, the story is rooted in the cycle of nature, where animals end up unwittingly giving of themselves so that other creatures may live.