Art 220: Entry 5

On Thursday's class, we had to present an image and come up with 10 captions that altered the meaning of the image. The class was split into two groups and we took turns sharing our images. After sharing our images, we had to provide more captions so that there would be 10 great captions in total. The exercise was very fun and I  found that I was frequently congratulated on my clever ideas.

The image that I presented was a scientist holding two handfuls of dead bat mulch. A few of the captions I had were "dinner's ready," "economy confetti," and " Hollywood face cream, used by the stars!" One of the images presented by my classmates was a picture of very bright boots in assorted rainbow colors. Some of the ideas we gave were "official army attire," and "don't ask, don't tell." Some of photos were quite fun to do, such as a Jedi holding a lightsaber which I captioned "this is my small stick." Other images, however, required a lot of thought and were harder to produce ideas for quickly. When our professor noticed this, he gave us a new exercise. He showed us a coffee cup and told us to promote the fine arts program at our school using only that image. We all seemed a bit stumped at first, but once the group had ideas rolling, we kept it going.

This was an excellent exercise in brainstorming. Our professor helped us speed up the process by telling us to shout out the first thing that came to mind and to feel free to add on and make other people's ideas better. As artists, we will be working collaboratively on projects in our future careers and it is important to learn to contribute as well as strengthen existing ideas. One creative mind is good. Many creative minds are better.


descriptor collection 
iterative: frequent or repeated
quixotic: (like Don Quixote) having impractical ideals, being on a unreachable pursuit
illogical: contradictory, not making any sense

Art 220: Entry 4

Tuesday's class was about creativity. After viewing a TED talk series video featuring Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of Eat, Pray, Love, our professor asked us the following question:

Have you ever experienced fear-based reactions to your creative career choices?

How are you successfully overcoming these reactions?

The short answer to this is definitely, but I'll elaborate. I often have mini panic attacks. Usually it's because I start to think negative thoughts about the future or I become overwhelmed with too many tasks at once. I also feel like there's a pressure to succeed in my family because I'd be the first to graduate from a University. Then there's the added pressure of being an art major. My parents accept my career choice, but they definitely tried to dissuade me when I initially told them.

I recently decided to stay at school longer and complete a second major. Many of my friends who have graduated with animation degrees are working in coffee shops and retail stores. I found this terrifying. I thought, what was the point of them spending so much money on tuition if they were working at places they could have been hired at straight out of high school? What's even more frightening is that these people are incredibly talented! I feel fortunate that my school has many excellent professors. But even in the best universities, there are always some that aren't so great. I was supposed to graduate soon and I began to panic. I began to research art schools and I even visited one. The work the students were producing was amazing and the hire rate of the graduates was downright intimidating. The price of admission was also intimidating. I left feeling depressed. I couldn't afford to go there for grad school and I wasn't ready to graduate so soon. I made an emergency appointment with my advisor and told her I needed to add a second major. I had toyed with the idea of double majoring many times throughout my college career and in this moment of panic, I finally made it so.

While I did panic about going out into the world as an artist, I did not abandon my career choice. I instead compromised. If I'm going to have a difficult time finding an animation job right away, then I will at least have a backup. Since I'll be at school longer, I'll be able to get in some internships in the meantime!

I know that I love art (I have been drawing for as long as I can remember). What keeps me going is that I know that I am talented and that I know I am not the first person who has struggled with the decision to be an artist. When I feel like I'm having a difficult time, I remember that even Walt Disney and John Lasseter had to fight to become important figures in the animation world.




descriptor collection
sanguine: hopeful or optimistic. can also be used to describe bloody colors
ludicrous: absurd and laughable
condescending: a patronizing manner

Art 220: Entry 3

On Thursday, when we turned in our comic strips of how we got to college, we were asked to rank them all from best to worst. We were told there could not be any ties and we were given a time limit. Initially, the idea of ranking everyone was a bit of a shock. We were on the clock and we had to select the top and bottom pieces and order everyone in between. Everyone had different opinions as to how we would vote and organize the comics, and a few people became competitive and chose to vote for their own pieces.

Following the activity, we split into groups and discussed the process that went into ranking the students' work. Our group felt that clarity was very important. If the comic strip clearly communicated a story, the piece was successful and it was more likely to hold our interest. We also felt a sense of chronology strengthened the comic. We felt that the effort and quality that went into making the comic was very important. There were a few comic strips that seemed to be thrown together quite quickly and others showed a lot of planning and time put into it. Rushed work was less likely to be ranked higher. And while artistic ability was judged, it was not the most important factor in determining the better comic strips, but it did help.

After discussing the ranking process, we discussed the group atmosphere. There were a few students who took charge and decided to lead and suggest ideas as to how the class should rank the comics while the majority of the class, simply silently agreed to what was occurring. Some people did not like or agree with the process but not to many people actively voiced their dissent during the ranking process. Towards the end of the ranking, the class began to rush to try to get the final comics ordered and it was less organized than it had been earlier.

The whole experience of ranking the class may have seem a bit unfair at first, but in the real world, only the best ideas get picked. Usually it is one person or a small group of people who decide the fate of many, which seemed to occur naturally when a few elected themselves leaders. This was an excellent opportunity to review and critique all the student work in a group setting and it taught the class the value or hard work. Those who did the best job were publicly announced and even given a prize.



descriptor collection:
ephemeral - existing for a short amount of time
bawdy - inappropriate, sometimes in a humorous way
axiomatic - something that is obvious and therefore taken for granted

Art 220: Entry 2

Tuesday's session was quite interesting. Our professor, Jimmy Moss, told us we were going to have a test- to the dismay of the entire class. He looked around and asked if we would prefer to play a game instead. The class instantly became joyous and excited. He pointed out that both tasks involved competition and reward but the class countered with the fact that games were fun while tests were stressful. It seemed that Jimmy was proposing that there was hardly a difference between the two tasks. Once we get beyond psychology and the experiences attributed to the words, it was pretty cool to realize that there are indeed parallels. This discussion of visual literacy and how we shape meanings according to what we are familiar with segued into the following activity.

The class was shown a photo with no prior history given. We were asked to state what we knew for a fact and to avoid conjecture. For example, we could describe the people as adults, but we could not state the gender of the people present in the photograph. Gender is a social construct and these days, sex can be altered. There is no way to be certain of a person's gender based solely on physical appearance.  As we continued the exercise, it became increasingly difficult to point out obvious facts. It was fun to try to describe the photo as best we could and after we had exhausted all solid facts, we were allowed to draw conclusions and make assumptions. Based on earlier facts presented about the attire color of individuals in the photo, a student in the class drew the conclusion that the two people were matching because they were a couple.

As artists, we have to be intelligent and use words and colors wisely. The color red can be attributed to passion, aggression and sexuality. In our daily life, it is used for traffic signals such as the stop sign because the color is also associated with urgency. Perhaps someone driving on the freeway wouldn't come to a screeching halt if they saw a red Jack in the Box sign, but the eye-catching color wouldn't hinder their business either. Shepard Fairey's Obama Hope Poster served as positive propaganda but Firas Alkhateeb's joker poster is equally as powerful. Manipulating the image to make Obama appear as the villain, the Joker is dissettling. The red scars across the mouth portray the president as a dangerous and insane. The dark circles under his eyes hint that he is up at all hours of the night, perhaps up to no good.

It was interesting to explore the concepts of psychology in both words and images. As artists, we might be creating work that is meant to influence others. Subtle hints can subconsciously create emotions in an audience or striking colors and provocative imagery can drive the message home. I felt that the exercises were great at developing attention to detail which is a very important skill to have as an artist.



descriptor collection:
drab - uninteresting to look at because of a lack of color or brightness
belligerent - aggressive and having a tendency to start wars
platitudinous - unoriginal and cliché

Art 220: Entry 1

I had been meaning to create a blog for a while. Interestingly enough, I was asked to start one for a course I'm taking this quarter called "Concept Development." In this blog, I will reflect on each class session. So, here goes...

On Thursday's class, we talked about problem solving. Before solving a problem, the problem needs to be clearly defined. This is something that applies to any situation and is perhaps often overlooked. This made me think of my eternal struggle with essays. Ever since I took a class in high school, I began to loathe writing essays. The process was always long and excruciating but in the end, the pain was not experienced in vain as I always received high marks. This is because I thoroughly contemplated the question. I dissected it, and carefully answered each portion. I prefer to sit and think for hours and know exactly what I need to answer rather than wasting those hours completing the task without actually achieving the goal.

We were told how much time and effort is expected from us in and out of class. The university's policy is that for every 3-unit course, 6 hours should be spent outside of class reviewing and/or doing homework. Our professor, Jimmy Moss, told us he took this very seriously and wanted us to be dedicated and passionate. I was reminded of my recent visit to The Art Institute of California at Los Angeles, where I was inspired to work longer and harder on my art. While some people may have been shocked, I smiled and accepted the challenge.

Jimmy Moss mentioned that this course would help us to produce more ideas quickly. Being a good problem solver is beneficial when it comes to generating ideas. If you can quickly define the problem, you can start to come up with ideas that much faster. Spending time outside of class is like practice. It is investing time in trying to become a better artist.

I expect that I will develop new skills and grow as an artist as I progress through the quarter. Through this blog, I will document my metamorphosis :)



descriptor collection:
imperturbable - not easily worried, distressed or agitated
effectual - potentially effective
efficacious - having the power to produce a desired result