Project 2: Materialism X 4

Set of 4

Economy & Emphasis 

Movement 

Balance

Proportion 

 I initially struggled picking a concept for project 2. I started with 'bling' but found it to be too specific and narrow. Once I chose materialism, my ideas came to life. After hundreds of sketches, I decided on four images to transfer and cut. Using proportion, movement, economy & emphasis, and balance design principles, I depicted materialism as an addictive, all-consuming condition. Above are the final designs on bristol paper painted with black & white gouache with details done using microns.

Words come to life..

Finally our class project on Movement, Proportion, Emphasis & Economy, and Balance is complete! I am so relieved to be done with it after over 100 sketches and numb fingers from cutting all the designs. I decided on a concept of "Words come to life" through endangered species. Here are the final pieces and some sketches from along the way. 

The entire set...

Design Principle of Movement...

Design Principle of Emphasis & Economy...

Design Principle of Proportion...

Design Principle of Balance...

A Thought and Experience

Hi again!

  I was just reflecting about my experience working in a collaborative project for Design 102. It was great to see what I would eventually be doing in higher devision classes and perhaps beyond this university and I learned some things along the way. The first is that if I have an idea, no matter if it's the first thought that comes to mind or something that I've drawn one hundred sketches for, it's worth mentioning. This was my first collab project and not to mention my first design class ever so I suppose it was natural that I was a little timid. However, once I became more comfortable with my group, I noticed I was able to speak out a little bit more and good thing because we ended up using a few of my ideas, even if they had to be tweaked but I liked that. I mean, that is the whole idea behind a collaboration. The second thing is that things aren't always going to work out. Compared to others, I wouldn't say my team had the easiest time getting things accomplished and I got the glimpse of rushing things to meet a deadline that people often talk about. No matter the situation, though, I learned I just have to do my best and be there for my team--even if it can be a bit frustrating. Along with that, I have to be happy with the end product because I don't want to put my name on something that I'm not completely happy with. Overall, it was a great experience and it showed me that this is something I might actually want to have a future in. I love the idea of creating and presenting work, I just have to make sure it's my best work always.

Marisa

"Come Together Right Now"

Working together is never easy--this project exemplified the roller coaster of collaboration.  In the end, it came together and I walked out of the room proud of the work I completed.  Our group decided to design our own beer label and in the process we each made our own bottle design.  My label and design was titled "Golden State of Mind" and it embodied my personal sentiments regarding urban culture.  Each member of my group made their own label, expressing their own message about urban culture and college life to make a complete collection of beer.  I believe my work showed how people strive to get what is new and "hip" whether or not that goal is realistic or worth while, that is for every individual to decide.  Overall, I believe that this was a great learning experience and I am happy that I was in the group I was in and had to overcome the bumps that I faced.  I would do this project again any day and I think this was the most beneficial and fun project of the semester.

"Hand Made" Collaboration With 400 Students - Joanna Lee

For this collaborative project, our group decided to work with typography. Instead of solely utilizing computer graphics, we decided to go back to the basics by also experimenting with hands-on, tangible material so that we could explore all realms of type and font production. The idea itself was very general from the start, which opened up all doors for every group member to bring fun, exotic, everyday items that would form letters and eventually pertinent, cute little phrases. During the first group meeting, we brainstormed the concept of our project; we all came to the consensus that we wanted a visual book (almost like something that could be found pleasantly sitting on top of a table at a coffee shop for passersby to stop by and flip through) that provided both the artistic and entertainment elements to its readers. 

Link to the E-book, Hand Made: http://issuu.com/michael_bermudez/docs/handmadefont_project

"Hand Made" book cover page

Doing so brought more life to the text, and showed me that not everything in the design world had to be computerized and technology-based; sometimes going back to working with materials with one's own hands makes the experience even more intimate because one can feel the textures and how the objects themselves physically function and create the piece. Personally, it was a good wake-up call because I had assumed that design immediately associated with only computer-made layouts, spreads, etc. But through the experience that I gained while working on this project, I noticed that you can do both computerized works with an integrated hands-on creative aspect to it as well. 

Previously, I had always seen typography with a very skeptical eye because it only appeared to be a very narrow-minded, tedious process of learning the intricacies of text. Working on this project definitely showed me how the letters of the alphabet have unique shapes and symbols that all hold certain significance. Physically forming them with my hands when tying the rubber bands from one pin to another created a tension that I as the artist could feel while creating the rubber band "strokes" to create each letter, and positioning the safety pins in a rational and artistically-pleasing technique was a very fun concept to learn as well. Other different media that were used included grass blades, which had a very sharp and pointy feel to it, the tea bags, which held a very strong and fortified feel to it, sticky notes, which signified playfulness, and pixy dust, which was a very soft medium to work with (which meant that it took a lot of time to form.) The creation of the alphabets took about 2 to 3 class work studio days, and the rest of the work (compilation of the e-book) was done in and outside of class. We decided to include little phrases that correlated with the material used to make the words and the alphabet letter themselves because not only would it be practical, but more engaging because it shows the functionalities and readabilities of the letters we made from the rubber bands, grass, pixy dust, wet tea bags, and safety pins. 

Not only did I learn the valuable art of different typographical creations, but I also learned how to work in a group with varying interests and emphases. At first, being grouped up with a pair of advanced level students was overwhelming to me, but it was great that they encouraged us to be free in our thinking and to include input into what kinds of materials we would want to use to make the fonts. It was also a technical project because we thought about how to place and space the letters and which witty phrases to incorporate with each font.

Overall, I really enjoyed participating in this project, and I would definitely want to try it another time if I were given the opportunity to do so because I know for sure that every group learned something valuable, worthwhile, and unique from their own experiences.

Wet Teabags

Grass Blades

Pixie Dust

Safety Pins

Post-It Sticky Notes

Rubber Bands and Push Pins

Rubber bands + push pins on the wall

Rubber bands + push pins on the wall

Rubber bands + push pins on the wall

Rubber bands forming the alphabet

Reflections: Collaboration Project

Given the constraints of designing objects displaying personal promotion, my group decided to design leave behinds. My group consisted of 402 students, David and Maureen, and fellow 102 student, Darwin. We each created different leave behinds that referenced our own personal aesthetic and interests. For example, I created a leave behind in the form of a paper lily and pad. I decided to use this design because a lily and pad are symbolically connected to the Impressionist movement, as exemplified by the work of Monet. Generally, I enjoy painting impressionistically, so the form of a lily and pad for a leave behind made sense symbolically. Furthermore, to follow a group theme of the importance of materiality, I crafted every part of my design by hand. The lily pad base was modified by a process of staining the paper through adding paint and oil to a bath of water and submerging the paper into it. Additionally, each flower petal was hand painted by a three layer process. Lastly, the words "thank you" were hand scripted on the back of the leave behind. Through my leave behind, I tried to convey a sense of my aesthetic and my skill with color and paint.

The final product:

While we ended up producing an adequate project considering the constraints, I wish we had come up with a project that was truly a collaborative project. In essence, we all created different leave behinds, but it could have been interesting if we had designed something truly cohesive. In the end, due to conflicting ideologies and the waning of time, we decided to adhere to a project focused more on individuality. In future projects, I hope to make cohesion more of an importance.

Overall, I enjoyed this project. Working with design 402 students allowed me to adopt certain advanced design skills. Moreover, I saw what a higher-level design class would be like. This design project was beneficial in many ways, and I am glad we did it.

Collab Project

My group for the collaborative project designed a surf brand, complete with logo, surfboard, and apparel. I personally loved this concept because I am a huge beach girl (Santa Cruz native)! We decided upon the brand name High Life, inspired by many stereotypes of surfers. Since I was raised in a beach town, I am very familiar with the different types of surfers and the habits that they posses. Our brand name incorporates their favorite beverage (40's), their agriculture fetishes (stoners), and their crave of the ocean life (the euphoria that comes with successfully catching a wave).

My first assignment within the project was to design the logo! After dozens of attempts in my sketchbook, this was the design we chose to work with:

Since our brand is represented by a squid, Geo had the brilliant idea to incorporate the tentacles into the logo! After he drew that and Julian added color, this is the final product:

There are certain aspects of the original that I wish had been retained (the relationship between the letters and the circle), but overall I think it has a great surfer feel about it. I think this logo could definitely be seen on stickers and surfboards everywhere someday!

Reflections on Collaboration Project

The collaboration project was awesome! I enjoyed making new friends and being able to see what I will be doing in the next few years here at USC. Moreover, I know what to expect for that particular class, which is more satisfying than not knowing what to expect at all. My partners from the 402 class were Julian and Huey and they did a great job at showing me how to go about planning and putting into effect the actual project itself. I thought it was super cool to see my drawings (the cyclops squid eating the fish) on a surfboard as well as all the other little characters on clothes and hats because it inspired me more in regards to my aspirations in the fashion industry. What I also liked were the critiques because I got a sense of what to look for in everyday designs such as the kerning in typography, whether the typography suits the targeted audience, the spacing of objects on a certain design, etc.

Best Square Design

I chose this square as the "best" design of the day because of its simplicity that also establishes a feeling of depth through the use of the rule of thirds and the lines that diagonally reach towards the horizon line. The image exhibits an aesthetically pleasing composition that guides the viewer along the diagonals lines that extend towards the focal point of the drawing (located in the center, two thirds from the bottom of the image) to give the sense of endlessness. The image's simple symmetric composure stood out to me as both unique and efficient, which earned its place as the most "successful" design for all that it accomplishes with only ten lines.

The Best Design

This line sketch to me is arguably the best design. This image overall is very captivating and aesthetically appealing. Using just ten lines, the designer was able to capture a feeling of movement and flow that guides the viewers eyes toward the center of the field. Not only do these organic lines imply motion but also direction through the use of lines with changing character--from thick to thin and back to thick. Using curved lines, the artist was able to even capture a calm, soothing emotion.

best design

I thought this was the best design because of the effect the lines have in drawing the viewers eyes to the center of the square. The lines are positioned well and make the piece aesthetically pleasing. It's interesting to look at without being overly cluttered.

Self Critique

The theme for my project was the industrialization of agriculture and its detrimental effect on humans and animals. My first piece used the element pattern. I englarged the size in order to show how big corn has become in the food we consume/farming industry. If given the opportunity to fix this piece I would add more detail and some sort of backround, or at least horizon line to break it up.

The second piece I did was to show the common farmer and how he is being taken over by factory farms. The element was movement. I think I didn't show this element as well as I could have and would fix that. If I could improve this piece I would put more detail in the farmers face and do a little more with the background
My third piece shows the element of balance. This is the one I'm most disappointed about because it didnt turn out like my drawing at all. I'm happy with the composition of the original drawing, but I would do this one over. I would also make it more balanced so the element is easy to see.

My last piece was a chicken on a noose to sybolize their helplessness against cruel factory chicken farms. This piece shows emphasis and economy. I'm very happy with how this piece turned out and how it clearly shows the element