Response to Tomas' Blog

Tomas - you are an amazing artist and an even better friend. Thank you for always being there for me. I know that at times, things seemed a little rough for both of us, but we made it out alive. When I went through that phase in class where I was very unfocused, you were there to kick me in the butt and get me focused again, and maybe even saved me on a deadline or two.. :) I can't thank you enough for all you have done. This group of designers has really come a long way and together have shared some unforgettable moments. There has never been a boring time in class. We all have grown together and learned together, developing strong friendships along the way. I am proud to have been a part of that.

Thank you Tomas and everyone else in class.
Also, Ms. Gilpin and Mr. Williams, you have been strong leaders for all of us, pushing us to achieve more than we could imagine. Thank you for that.

And on a final note, we are no longer presenting to each other for approval, but to clients and potential employers, so bring all you have, we are now competing to be the best!

-Brit

Chapter Two - From Cave Walls to Postmodernism

As the title states, in chapter two we learned a wide range of material, everything from cave walls to postmodernism. In class, our instructor made a timeline to demonstrate the variety of beliefs that made art into what it is today.

It is known that far before my time, the way of writing was very different and technology was limited. The first writing system was made up of simplistic pictures that represented words and sounds. Over time, as writing changed with different cultures, the alphabet was established. It was derived from the first two Greek letters (alpha) and (beta).

In the late 15th and early 16th century, the Renaissance, "rebirth" brought about works of art from painters such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael. During this time period, Johann Gutenberg began refining a printing process that used moveable type. Within fifty years, the printing and typesetting industry spread across the continent and mass media was born. The Renaissance and invention of moveable type opened the doors to new opportunities and new ideas for modern art.

The different types of modern art include: Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Dadaist, Futurist, Constructivism, Bauhaus, de Stijl, Modrian, Art Deco, Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, New Realism, Super-Realism / Photo-realism, Pop Art, Op Art, Phototypesetting, and Postmodernism. Each style of art had its own beliefs as to what defined that particular form of art. For example, a photo-montage, which we can now do in Photoshop, use to be done in the dark room.
I am interested in the history of art and the way it has developed over time. From this lecture and reading, I have really learned a lot.

Chapter One - Visual Communication

As of last week, we were to read and outline chapter one. In this chapter, it discusses different aspect of visual communication, such as seeing and how the eye actually works. As the chapter continued, I found that there are five parts to clear communication. These include: sender, message, medium, receiver, and feedback. In order to communicate clearly, you must first brainstorm. This involves determining the audience, conducting interviews (research), finding the purpose, and defining the intended reaction. The next step is to choose a medium. This is how the message gets out to people (brochure, web, radio, newspaper, etc.) When it comes to mediums, we must eliminate as much noise as possible. This means that words should be easily understood, not hard to interpret; otherwise it is known as semantic noise. Static on the radio, smeared ink in a newspaper, and links that do not work on the web, are all examples of channel noise. We must also keep in mind the receiver, by keeping it personal and memorable, yet simple. The final element of clear communication is feedback. While feedback is ongoing between two people talking, it however, is not always immediate. 

The last part of the chapter elaborated on the seven different theories of visual communication. 

Not going into detail, the list includes: Omniphasism, Gestalt, Semiotics, Constructivism, Ecological, Cognitive, and Huxley-Lexter, 

Florida Dance Theatre

The requirements for this project were pretty basic. We were to find a local non-profit organization and make a poster. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, this project wasn't extremely challenging. I chose to advertise the Florida Dance Theatre. This organization is a professional dance company and training academy in Lakeland, Florida. Students would take classes in several different areas of dance. For the poster, I used a silhouette of a ballet dancer because the organization use to be known as Lakeland Ballet. I added two simple, soft spotlights to represent the idea of performing on stage and incorporated the logo and additional information towards the bottom. I used a deep red for my background color because, to me, it represents passion, and these students have a passion for dance.

Please feel free to comment. Thanks!

Postcards

For this assignment, only original photography was allowed. While it is easy to find clear images on the net, its a completely different story when you have to depend on your own photo taking skills. I decided that Florida is always represented as a bright and sunny place. Even though that is true, I wanted to capture the essence of the night, with the way that  lights reflect off of Lake Hollingsworth. The postcard of the Garden Bistro showcases the landscape, and the Amtrak Station resembles the historic aspect of Lakeland. I choose to frame my images with a black and white border, and added another black and white box for the location title.

The back of the postcard, I kept it simple, using a line drawing of the Lakeland swan logo.

 

I am looking forward to reading comments, so please feel free to do so. Thanks! 

VOGUE - Magazine Cover

     When I started last weeks project, the assignment was to  create a magazine cover in Photoshop. My immediate thought was to create a cover for Alternative Press, which is a rock band magazine. However, I wanted to show a similar but somewhat different side to my style of design. For this reason, I choose to create a cover for next months volume of Vogue. I felt that, opposed to Cosmo magazine, whose models focuses on fashion and beauty, I wanted to portray Vogue with a very structured pose. This particular image shows strength and beauty in a rebel way, allowing me to incorporate some of my usual style with the new.

     The image was first lightened by adjusting the color levels, and then touched up to remove any spots and wrinkles to reveal a slightly textured airbrush effect. This gave the image a more flawless, yet realistic look. 

When working with an image like mine, the most challenging part of the project was actually finding a color scheme that I liked and was legible. I felt limited by the colors in the outfit, but found a way to make the story titles stand out.

     Overall, I had fun making this piece. It turned out better than I had expected in the short time period I had allowed myself. 

I would love to hear everyone's criticisms, what you like or dislike, so please do feel free to comment. 

Thanks,

B.Huey

Completed Assignments

Today I finished up and presented to my instructors and classmates, two of the projects assigned from last week. I believe the overall response was positive. I wanted to take this opportunity to share with and in turn get feedback from other talented and creative minds. Please feel free to comment. Thanks!

The first assignment was a 2 page spread, like you would find in a magazine. Roughly three-fourths of the spread had to be illustration, and the other fourth was to be text. The assignment called for us to find an already existing article and create illustration that went along with it, or pick a topic, create the illustration, and write our own article. I choose to do the second option, writing my own article. My topic was the 2009 Vans Warped Tour. This is annual punk/rock concert that is usually held outside, where there may be anywhere from 5 to 10 bands all playing at once, but staggered throughout the designated area. I went to this concert about four years ago and I had a blast, so I wanted to bring that out in my illustration. It is always crowded, and sometimes you weren't exactly sure what the person standing next to you was thinking when they decided to wear the outfit they had on or spike their hair a foot above their own head. The Vans Warped Tour is usually advertised using a lot of bright vibrate colors and skulls.
Without further explanation, here is the final piece.

The second assignment was to create an advertisement based on a certain sports event. Myself as well as my classmates drew from a cup to see who would advertise each sport. I got to do skateboarding. This turned out to be a much less complicated piece. There are not near as many details to focus on. I created a decorated skate deck as my main focus. The deck stands out because it is one of only a few items that has color, and then I used a grunge font at a fairly large size to draw the viewers attention to the event title. Now, I do want to mention that the event is not a real one, it is completely made up for the purpose of the assignment. I also added a textured metal to the background to reinforce the ramp shape, because the ramps are typically metal.