Beatiful Losers

On Monday we watched the film "Beautiful Losers," which is a documentary film that was released in 2008 about a group of artists during the 1990s.  At first, class seemed to be going in a minimal/casual direction, but soon changed due to the lack of participation.  I think it is safe to say that everyone had the case of the Mondays, especially after having full bellies from all the turkey over Thanksgiving break.  That is why we were assigned to write a response to the film and answer questions about what the ideas and inspiration were.  I thought the documentary was moving.

One of the themes I noticed behind the film was the notion of D.I.Y. (do it yourself).  There were 12 artists who each had a distinct creative background whether in traditional art or street art.  There were painters, graffiti artists, illustrators, and photographers.  Each artist had a particular technique, but the reoccurring message was to do art yourself and make something out of nothing.  During one of the interviews, someone mentioned that art school is a place where people tell you what not to do.  A lot of the artists in the documentary shared this view.  Most of the them never desired to become famous or admired amongst the contemporary art world.  Instead, they wanted to create art for themselves and went against the mainstream culture.  That all changed when they formed relationships together that would propel them and their work to become sought after in commercial advertising, painting, and the film industry.  Their growth as artists is conveyed throughout the documentary, while maintaining a handcrafted attitude.

The artists' inspiration appeared to have come from street life and each other.  They would share their creations in a gallery called Alleged.  At first it was more of a social gathering than a place to present artwork.  It eventually became a gallery where people would come and see their work.  As the gallery hosted more shows, the artists became friends and their relationships allowed them to inspire each other by sharing ideas.  Another thing that ignited creativity and inspiration during the 1990s was the booming skateboarding scene.  No one had ever done art on the back of a skateboard.  Some of the artists were avid skateboarders and used this outlet as inspiration to express their creativity.  The most known artist to do so was Shepard Fairey.  These are just two of the things I noticed during the film.  There may be other forms of inspiration that were mentioned during the documentary that I missed, but street culture and the sharing of ideas were the two that stood out in my mind.

Graphic Design Proposals

Today's class meeting ended early.  We spent 40 minutes going over our graphic design option proposals.  Each of us got to propose our best one and discussed possible ways to improve it.  There were a lot of similar ideas and some really unique ones.  We quickly went over them because Jimmy wanted to show a film.  Unfortunately, there was a problem with the cable so we couldn't watch it.

As part of the CSULA evaluation process, we were given the opportunity to provide feedback to Jimmy about his teaching methods.  This was my first time completing an evaluation at CSULA, but it wasn't new to me.  I've had to complete evaluations for my professors at Pasadena City College.  After filling out the evaluation we were free to leave.  I'm excited for the next few weeks coming up.  Not only is it Thanksgiving break, but there is also a lot of work to be done.

Class Exercise

It's coming down to the last few weeks of this quarter.  I can't believe how fast it's gone by.  I have a few ideas for my 5 minute film, but haven't had time to get started yet.  I plan on tackling a big portion of it over Thanksgiving break.

Today's class was spent discussing graphic design at Cal State L.A.  Jimmy questioned our knowledge of what graphic design is.  It is almost everywhere we look.  It's in packaging, posters, internet, and business cards.  It's amazing when you think about it.  We also spent the last 30 minutes trying to come up with ways to improve graphic design awareness to incoming transfer students and current CSULA students.  Our assignment is to come up with 3 really good solutions to this.  I feel like time is running out.  It's CRUNCH time!

Stage 7 - Production

This is the final stage of The Design Process.  It's time to hand off the designs to the production team...well, not exactly.  There are a lot of tasks that are involved in producing a design.  The obvious one is feedback.  Aspelund describes positive and negative feedback as both equally important.  He mentions that negative feedback will dominate, but will also be the most vital when making revisions and final decisions.  I agree that any type of feedback will only benefit and strengthen the design.  He also covers prototyping.  At this state I wasn't aware of the different types of prototyping.  There's concept (rough representation of the design), throwaway (test function of a certain element), and evolutionary (exploration).  These prototypes are different approaches to modeling the design.  It also helps to better understanding the dimensionality of the forms.

There are other important factors to consider during the production phase.  Decision-making will always be a part of the design process.  That will never change.  The important thing to remember is that sometimes certain decisions can cause changes in the design.  For instance, deciding whether or not to continue experimenting with materials can alter the schedule of a design.  The deadlines are set and cannot be changed.  Aspelund also mentions budgets as another aspect of production that should be considered.  Sometimes the budget can put constraints on a design, but must be accepted and worked around in order to meet the specifications of the client.  I find this to be the most challenging because the budget could sway the direction of the initial design.  As a designer, I will have to adjust and make modifications as I go through my process.

The last section of this stage is about documenting and reviewing the design process.  Aspelund emphasizes the importance of keeping well-organized documentation of your work.  In my work, I have slowly begun to realize how this is extremely important especially when something goes wrong.  I always refer back to my old files.  The design process is one that will stay with me and I will continue to refer to it.  Although the methodologies mentioned throughout this book may seem obvious at times, they will assist me now and further into the future as I mature as a designer.

Logos Are Everywhere

Logorama from Marc Altshuler - Human Music on Vimeo.

Documentary + Final Project

 There's always something different every class.  Today we watched a documentary called, "What Are Dreams."  It seemed like there wasn't a specific agenda except to watch a film.  The film wasn't decided yet so we got the chance to choose one.  Since no one could decide, Jimmy chose three documentaries that the class voted on.  "What Are Dreams" was the one that got chosen.  Watching the film, I knew somehow we would connect the documentary to the class.  There is always a reason for the things we do, especially in Jimmy's class.  The documentary basically shared people's dreams and provided statistics on different types of sleep and dreams.  R.E.M. (Rapid Eye Movement) is the deepest form of sleep.  There are also four stages a person goes through before getting to R.E.M.

Jimmy assigned us our final project for the class.  It is a 5 minute self-analysis video that must be posted on our blog.  Pretty much we have the freedom to create in a visual way what inspires us.  Over the weekend, we must dream every night about our project.  Jimmy mentioned that doing so will allow us to be more creative since our minds are constantly working even while we sleep.  As long as we think about it before, it will get carried into our dreams.  I hope this works.  I have a few ideas I think I want to explore already.

Who & What

I think today's class was by far the most mind challenging.  Specifically due to the activity.  The concept was simple; communicate information back and forth to your team mates.  It sounds a lot easier than it really was.  We first arranged our chairs in a circle.  Jimmy had a white board eraser and tube of acrylic paint in both hands.  None of us knew what to make of it.  Jimmy explained that the eraser is a "who" and the paint is a "what."  He introduced the "who" to his left and the "what" to his right.  Each person had to relay "this is a who" and respond with "a who?"  The goal was to go around the circle without messing up.  It was fun and challenging at the same time.  None of us wanted to give up, so we continued to try to get it right for over an hour.

The last hour involved an imaginary sketch of a place Jimmy read to us.  He read us a story and we had to come up with the visual of how that place would look.  It was a fun exercise that allowed us to be creative.  I enjoyed being able to sketch what ever came to mind.  Everyone had very different interpretations.  We ended class with this sketch.

Stage 6 - Communication

Stage 6 is about breaking down the art of communicating.  It is something that designers must constantly do.  We communicate through visual language to our clients, audience, and corporations.  This chapter offers very helpful tips on organization, quality, presentation methods and techniques when communicating.

I found this chapter helpful, especially in the section about "The Art of Presentation."  I think time is everything and Aspelund mentions it in the tailor's rule.  He points out that designers must account for the time it takes to plan for the presentation itself as well as the time it takes to meet the deadline.  It's a double-duty task and I agree with his statement.  Designers are constantly thinking out loud, even without words.  By planning ahead and taking the time, I think it is less likely that there will be accidents along the way.

The methods and techniques mentioned are also very useful.  Pencil, colored pencils, markers, pens, power points, and models are all techniques that can be utilized to create a designer's presentation.  Some are more traditional than others, but all are equally effective if they are integrated in the presentation properly.  As long as there is a beginning, middle, and end, then the presentation will have met the basic standard.

The presentation is just like a performance.  Designers must prepare for this performance and know the direction of it.  Do the research.  It is important to know who the audience is and what language to use.  Is slang more effective than formal?  If so, then the presentation could be produced using more images than words.  I think Aspelund has very honest insights on the art of presenting and overall communication.  I will be looking forward to implementing these methods and techniques to my own work.

Binaries

Who knew that today's date would trigger a big discussion on binaries?  What is a binary, anyway?  According to wikipedia, "Binary means composed of two parts or two pieces."  In mathematics, a "binary numeral system refers to a representation for numbers using only two digits (usually, 0 and 1)."  I didn't know too much about binaries before this discussion.  I knew it is applied to computers and involved '0' and '1'.  Jimmy put the first 7 binaries and asked the class as a group to figure out the next 3 sequences.  It was definitely challenging since most of us have never heard or dealt with binaries, but we managed to come up with a few solutions.  We couldn't come to an agreement, which led Jimmy to talk about the importance of methodology.

We talked for a while about methodology and clients in the real world.  Jimmy mentioned how we can improve on communication with our clients.  If we can't explain our methodology, then who can?  We briefly went over the remaining one word, ten images assignment.  Class ended a half hour early.  Jimmy didn't assign 'HW' over the weekend.  Well, we still have to read and work on our apple sketches.  This weekend is going to be not so homework-free.

Visual Language + Creative Briefs

Today's class involved a discussion regarding the GAUGE speaker from Thursday.  Jimmy opened the discussion by asking what our responses were to Ismael's presentation.  I thought his overall experience and advice was very insightful.  Although, I went to the event with very little expectations, others found his presentation to be too short and less formal.  There was some criticism about his lack of professionalism in the way he was dressed.  I thought he projected himself as a casual kind of guy and it did not shock me to see him in that way since his profession is in the design field.  Most designers are not suit and tie kind of people.  There were some other points that were brought up that I didn't relate to during the discussion, but everyone agreed that the event was worth attending.

We spent a good hour talking about Ismael Obregon.  Towards the last hour, we finally presented our 10 images and one word assignment.  Unfortunately, I left my images at home since we hadn't set a date that we would need to bring them.  Up until today, I had the images with me.  Just my luck!  Good thing I can still bring them in on Wednesday.  I got the impression that Jimmy wasn't too happy with the results from this assignment.  I'm not surprised because I found it challenging to change the meaning every time with images.  On a positive note, Jimmy excused us without assigning any "HW."

Stage 5 - Definition & Modeling

This chapter focuses on the modeling of the design.  This is the stage where your design begins to take form.  Aspelund mentions a hierarchy of a design's needs and must be met before going forward.  He values functionality as the first step.  Does it do what it's supposed do?  Well, hopefully it does.  There's a total of five steps, each with its unique purpose.  When fulfilling these steps, a lot of decision-making is involved which Aspelund quickly points out. 

Another thing to think about is the dimensionality of the design.  Is it 2-D?  3-D?  What tools/programs can you use to help your design become a reality?  These are all decisions that a designer must make while modeling.  Also, what kind of materials will work better with the design?  Should the type of fabric be considered?  The good thing about modeling is that it's like another form of sketching.  You can mold and experiment a little but attention to detail is key.  In this chapter, Aspelund describes this stage as challenging and sometimes designers must reinspire themselves.  I think it's important to keep the inspiration alive.  Take a break, and look at new ideas.  They might just trigger the response that you were looking for.

Response - Ismael Obregon

As a requirement for this class, we had to attend this quarter's GAUGE event.  The guest speaker was Ismael Obregon (Founder and Creative Director of Oishii Creative).  I'm really glad that I was able to experience one of his presentations.  At first, he seemed a little shy but eventually opened up after he showed us some of his work.  He has some really impressive work.  He's worked with the NFL, Disney, Fox, HBO, EA Sports, and many more.

He opened up his presentation by talking about language.  He himself is trilingual, and asked the audience if anyone knew more than one language.  This all tied into his presentation at the end.  He mentioned that we all know more than one language as designers; that is our native language and visual language.  We use words to communicate and those words in turn become translated into visual language for others.  He also mentioned that it is our responsibility to maintain and change language because it is our inspiration.  His presentation lasted about 15-20 minutes.  He transitioned to an open forum for discussion which allowed people in the audience to ask any questions about his career experiences.

Overall, I felt like I walked away with some great insight and advice about the real-life design field.  Who better to share their own experience than Ismael Obregon.  He started out as a young artist/designer, who created his own design studio.  It's important to have people share their experiences that are in the field your interested in because it can only further inspire you.  There will be negatives along the way, but the positives will surpass them in the end.  I know I've been inspired.

F.Y.I.  I forgot to mention...Oishii translates to 'delicious' in Japanese and Ismael loves sushi, hence the design of the logo.

Deadly Sin + 10 Images

Dr. Evil - Image taken from Google

 So my deadly sin was "greed."  I think I chose some pretty good images to move the meaning.  At first I t thought it would be a tough task, but as I began diving into it, it came quite naturally.  Finding a good image was the fun part.  Some were funny and others were serious.

Class started off with us showing all of our images.  We got to walk around and decide which of the seven sins was being portrayed.  I think overall everyone did a good job.  We talked a little bit about them and even deciphered a few that were difficult to figure out.

Towards the last hour of class, Jimmy put on a video called Powers of Ten.  I have to admit it was a bit confusing and interesting at the same time.  It's hard to explain so I'm just embedding the video so everyone can take a look for themselves.




Take it for what it is.  Our assignment for the weekend is to come up with a creative brief for the film Powers of Ten.  We have to come up with a one-page outline for the target audience, client, marketing stand point, and the who, what, when, why, how.  Tomorrow I will be at the music hall on campus for the gauge speaker at 7pm.  The speaker will be Ismael Obregon.  I will have to write a one-page response by Monday.  Can I do it? 

Methodology + Film

What is methodology?  According to merriam-webster.com, it is:

"a body of methods, rules, and postulates employed by a discipline : a particular procedure or set of procedures"

But, what is a method?  A procedure?  These are all questions that started off today's class.  We were given a choice again to choose between watching a film or going over our game ideas until Jimmy decided to talk about 'methodology'.  I think what he was trying to do was to make us think about some of the terms we MIGHT know.  I, myself, have heard of the term 'methodology' but never quite used it.  The way it continued was sort of like a domino effect.  One word led to another, and so on and so on.  It definitely made me think.

After the 'methodology' discussion, we watched a short film called "Why Man Creates" by Saul Bass.  A good portion of the film was in animation.  It was funny at times and kept my interest.  Saul was an American graphic designer and filmmaker.  He is best known for his design on animated motion picture title sequences.  Throughout the film, there was a list of 7 titles which had to do with creation.  At the end, Jimmy asked the question, "Why does man create?"  I think man creates to improve on life, progress, capture history, tell a story, pass on knowledge, and to show wisdom.

Finally, we went over our game ideas.  Jimmy made us select one game from everyone that we thought was the best.  We ended up with 10 of them.  Out of the 10, we had to select our favorite.  It came down to 3.  Out of the 3, we voted on the one that we thought would have good commercial success.  The winner was "Pandemonium" created by Cee.  It was a good game idea about guessing the word/phrase by acting the part out.  Our assignment for the evening is to choose one sin from the 7 Sins and find 10 images that communicate that sin indirectly without being obvious.  This should be challenging.  Can't wait!