Hi guys! My name is Regan and I'm from Manhattan Beach, CA. I'm currently a sophomore double majoring in Public Relations and Spanish. I'm taking this class because I'd really like to add a minor in Comm Design. I have always wanted to try my hand in art and design, but have always been too nervous to try and never knew where to begin. I have very much enjoyed the two weeks I have spent in this class and already feel my creative potential blossoming. I can't wait to finish my first piece!

Hey guys, Im Samuel from Atlanta, Georgia and I am a business major here at USC.

I spoke about this picture with my group in class. I like this picture because I feel like you tell a lot form a person about who they are/were and what they do/did by their hands. I just thought it was extremely interesting.

Paige's Post

Hi guys! My name is Paige Eller and I am a freshman currently with a major in art, and emphasis in Design. I was lucky enough to get the opportunity in high school to attend an art and technology based school that taught me how to use some Adobe programs. I have some background in Adobe photoshop, illustrator, inDesign, Aftereffects, flash, and even reason. Because of the opportunities I had in high school, I began looking at schools with art/design programs and that's sort of how I ended up at USC. I'm not exactly sure what I want to do when I graduate but I hope to be in a field that either is relative to advertisement or product marketing or product design. One of my favorite artists is Jen Stark. Her work has recently inspired me because I tend to make a lot of work in black and white and her vibrant, colorful work has changed my outlook. Her multimedia work includes wood and colored paper to create these intricate sculptures and designs. Here are just a few of some of her stunning works!

Hi! My name is Nesma Madkour. I'm majoring in Business with an emphasis in Marketing and Advertising. I hope on upholding a minor in Communication Design, Which I hope to pursue one day in the fashion industry. It's kind of weird how I decided I wanted to take my hobbies and fulfill them into a career. It actually never once crossed my mind that I would become a Business major. I wanted to major in Biology and go into pre-med, for my entire childhood. My passion was becoming a doctor. I was so sure of it. That was until I got accepted to USC. I took one semester of Biology classes. Then I realized that I wouldn't be able to do this for the next 8 years because, like any other normal person, school isn't for me. Therefore, the following semester I took a class just for fun. Art History. Shortly after the first week of the course, I figured out what I wanted to do. Something with art and design. I love dressing up, planning, styling outfits, photography, and sketching. Why not give my interests an opportunity to grow and become something bigger?  This all leads up to why I brought a fashion blog to class. Modiris is a fashion blog my sister started about a year ago. She had so many ideas and needed some help to start it. I thought, why not? I then helped with the marketing,and  added some insight on certain colors, as well as prints on an outfit. She had me take part in planning where the photo shoots were to be taken place and let me take the photos. Helping her Work on this blog has pushed me towards what I'm really passionate about. It gave me a whole new perspective on the Fashion design industry. Since it was my first real fashion project, I thought it would be a great idea to give you my outlook and what fashion design means to me. 

The blog : http://www.modiris.blogspot.com/?m=1

Also, here are some photos I photographed as well as collaborated on with the outfit/styling: 

Hey guys! My name is Bonita and I'm from Los Angeles. I am a first-year Business major hoping to minor in Communication Design, which seems perfect since I'm interested in a career in advertising and marketing. My hobbies include designing (graphically...?), photography (just like every 18 year-old girl these days), listening to music, discovering new places to eat, and trying out new recipes. I am currently a student worker/graphic designer at Annenberg and I like to sketch and paint in my free time. Last year, I did a series of photos for AP Studio Art with a concentration in "Demons" where each image revolved around a certain flaw: greed, alcoholism, vanity and so on.

My poor best friend who kindly let me paint him green for this shoot.

Fun fact: This tequila bottle is filled with dirty paint water.

The common theme here is that my pals often let me apply awful makeup on them for the sake of "art."

Hi everyone! My name is Mary Condolora and I'm from Atlanta, Georgia. I am currently Undecided, however I hope to minor in communication in design. My love for design began when I started taking classes in my high school's fashion program. A friend in my fashion class gave me this collage that she made for

her AP Art class. I love the aesthetic to it, how it is somewhat chaotic but very neat at the same time, and her use of white space. I really enjoy Design 102 and I'm looking forward to developing my design skills and understanding the fundamentals. 

Hello all, my name is Hallie! I'm from Bethesda, MD. I am a freshman and I am Undeclared, but I hope to major in Narrative Studies and minor in Communication Design and Music Industry. I worked at the clothing store Anthropologie this summer, and fell in love with their beauty product displays. Here is a lotion from a cosmetic line that I really like called “Library of Flowers,” which they sell at Anthropologie. It smells amazing, and the design is very eye-catching. When you’re buying cosmetic items at the drugstore, you are rarely visually intrigued by products. Most toiletries are plainly designed—shades of white, black, and blue. However, Library of Flowers breaks that mold and includes bold graphics on its products. As someone interested in marketing and advertising, I really appreciate the attractive design of this product. The aesthetic of the product does the marketing for itself. Just as the design suggests, Library of Flowers is a bold, girly fragrance that will make you stand out.

Hi guys! I'm Anna and from Seattle, Washington as well! I am very clumsy and fell/cut my arm on glass and had to get surgery shortly before classes began, which is why I missed the first class (& this post might seem choppy-still getting the hang of typing with one hand!).
Because I missed the first class, I thought I would post an extraordinary object that I would have brought last Thursday. This is a Lokai bracelet, created by an inspired individual whose grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimers. At that moment, he felt very low, and so the black bead contains mud from the Dead Sea to capture that moment of sadness. At the same time, he was struck by an immense feeling of gratitude, so the white beads are filled water from Mount Everest (one of the highest points in the world).
I thought the bracelet was a warming design, reminding me of a Yin/Yan symbol. Because the design radiates peacefulness, I placed the bracelet with our Beta fish Flow along with prayer beads and a Buddha statue my sister got me when she studied abroad in Nepal last spring.

Hello! I am Josie and I am from Seattle, Washington and just moved here in the spring. I have a lot of interests, a main one being music and concerts. This is a poster from one of my favorite bands that was designed for one of their concerts I attended in Seattle. I thought it was such an interesting and abstract design, with everything from the lettering to the use of color, shape, and space. It hangs in my dorm room and every day I look at it and discover new things I like about it!

LG, Just Like Chicken Powder

Hi everyone! I'm Laura Gouillon (which is spelled like bouillon, aka chicken powder...), and I have a lot of different design interests. I'm a freshman majoring in Computer Engineering and Computer Science, and I'm very interested in potentially minoring in 3D Design. A few fun facts about me are that I am a French citizen (as well as an American citizen), my favorite color is orange, I am a trombone player in the USC Spirit of Troy Marching Band, and I am really fascinated by epistemology. If I were to start a company, I'd have to choose a name that doesn't exist yet, like my initials, LG, life's good...(the sarcasm is strong with this one). I love experimenting with photography, film/video-editing, abstract and geometric art, and product design.

Posing under a projection at the LA Art Show.

The pet rocks I decorate consist of most of my Facebook friends. 

Midnight photo adventures on campus - Side effects may include symmetry, high contrast, and insomnia.

This is an isometric rendering of a Porsche Boxster I 3-D modeled using Autodesk Inventor, in high school.

One of the still shots of a short film I made called "V for Voodoo"

An example of the abstract pen and ink drawings I like to doodle.

I use Adobe Premiere Pro to edit video, and my personal camera for photography and filming. I like to doodle lots of intricate maze-like drawings like this last photo, and am drawn to mechanical / industrial-seeming intricate art, especially pen and ink. 

Feel free to check out my Instagram (@guavachic), my YouTube channel, or my Vimeo channel to see more of my projects. 

Fight. On.

Intro to Design Fundamentals -- Hello fellow designers!

Hello, my name is Stella Cho!

I'm a senior fine arts major, whose emphasis is on intermedia.

I love video arts, films, reading classics, music, theatre, and mostly any form of arts!

Design I is a mandatory course to take, however, after attending the first week of class, I've grown very excited and thrilled by the class. I love how we discussed many things and was exposed to a wide variety of visual art. I believe the power of the visual art comes from cultural quality and components of it. I would love to learn and develop myself into an artist who can carry strong, deep cultural roots and characteristics uniquely my own.

I am posting few stills from my video art I produced last semester for FAIN 440.

Happy to meet you all!

Hi, just sharing a higher-quality version of the Les Miserables poster design I shared in class: 

The artist is Mondo,
Thanks,
 Elena

Inspirations

Hello fellow Designers (:

I have three different reasons as to why I am interested in designing or learning more about design.

The first one is fashion designer Michael Costello. I first knew of Michael Costello when I watched a season of Project Runway. I, however, did not notice his work during the show since I did not particularly focus on him. After he got big, I came across his designs and his dresses. NOW i noticed his work. They were beautiful. I was truly inspired about his intricate designs. Looking at his designs helped me gather more confidence to draw out my own designs, even if they were only for myself to look at. Now, i have an even greater love for dresses!
Below are three out of many designs he created: (images all from website: http://mtcostello.com)

My second inspiration is a drawing of a heart i drew in a personal journal. It was my third attempt. I had a phase of drawing body parts, or the human body in detail, and i came across an image of a heart. After my first attempt, i knew i could do better and so i drew a second one. I made a small mistake that changed how the heart looked and i didn't like it, so then i decided to draw a bigger one to be able to show more detail. I was satisfied and it made me realize that I CAN draw, and that I CAN get the satisfying result if i put my heart into it. I also realized, whenever i do draw or put something on paper, it comes from emotional inspiration. 

My third reason as to why i am interested in design, is that i grew up in a very artsy family. My dad has always had a passion for interior design and he loves dressing well. This has definitely influenced my way of dressing, and my passion for art. I also grew up with Egyptian and Chinese culture. I have an attraction to the architecture of mosques, or temples. My life was surrounded by art and design.

How I rationalize color

I am not someone who wears a lot of color. In fact, a quick glance at my closet reveals that I hardly ever shy away from black, grey, or white. And on special days, when I am hit with a random sense of adventure, olive green, maroon, or navy blue do the trick. Despite my obvious fear of wearing things that are too loud, I am attracted to color. I appreciate it in my house, in animate objects, on walls--essentially, anywhere but on me. The one exception would be a fabulous party, --no girl can resist a show-stopping cocktail dress. Am I right?

All jokes aside, I believe that my attraction to color in other things is my way of balancing out the lights from the darks, the extravagant from the subdued. This photograph of Questlove, drummer from the band, "The Roots," inspires me in that it has helped me understand how I perceive color. You see, you don't have to wear color to be a colorful person, so to speak. It's about what you give off.  In the same way that a tapestry, a vase, or a rug can light up a room, so does what you say and what you do. In other words, "you wear the clothes, they don't wear you."

Photo was taken by Pari Dukovic for the March 2014 issue of Wired Magazine.

Hi guys! My name is Emma. It's great to be on this blog and fascinating to see the awesome designs from everyone! This is a piece that I did a few months ago. It's a simple and fun illustration of how I view the connection between life and death. I think a little tiny bit of us stays on this universe forever and is passed on to the next generation or to a complete stranger. It could be a memory, an item, or even something spiritual. I feel like in some ways it keeps people connected. Hope you guys find it interesting!

Overseas Inspiration

Hello Everyone!

My name is Taylor and I am from Orange County. I am currently a Communications major, however I hope to incorporate design into my schedule somehow (maybe as a minor). As I shared in class, my inspiration comes from my traveling experiences. Last class I brought in a string of camels that I got from Dubai and that I currently use as wall decor in my room. I thought this decoration was important to bring into class because it gave my peers a better idea of what style I am into and what sort of ambiance I prefer to surround myself with, which is typically Bohemian themed. I also thought it was important to bring this piece in because it demonstrates what inspires me, which are my memories from all my travels. I buy the same type of colorful stringy wall decoration each time I travel abroad, and each piece I have demonstrates a different culture by incorporating birds or elephants instead of camels. I hope the class enjoyed my explanation of what inspires me, and here is a picture of a piece of work that is similar to the one I brought into class.