Time Does Not Equal Effort

The only time of year when I actually don't wait until the last minute to do homework is the very beginning of the school year (or the semester, I guess) because I'm usually excited about the start of school. Then after a couple months, I procrastinate. However, I have to say: I never necessarily procrastinate, per se. As online-journalist, Robert Biswas-Diener, writes in an article for CNN "Are you a procrastinator or an incubator?" basically, a procrastinator is someone who waits until the last minute to do work and does a shitty job. An incubator, however, works best under the pressure that doing it last minute provides and does a "superior" job.

I am an incubator. Especially when it comes to art, I suppose.

Really. Just because I don't start on an art project a week in advance or immediately after it was assigned doesn't mean I don't put in just as much effort. I put in HELLA effort. Because in the time that I spend not doing the project prior to the deadline, I am thinking about what I want to do for the project. I'm constantly thinking about all these different things that I can do. A big reason why I wait until the last minute is because I am incredibly indecisive -- I never know exactly which path I want to take. Until only a few hours before class will I be forced to make a decision.

I work quickly and I work well under pressure. I am always putting in effort. I am always putting my heart into my work (well, most of the time. Sometimes when I absolutely cannot think of anything to do will I just do whatever and essentially BS it.)

Natural talent is also factor.

No, I'm not being arrogant or cocky. I'm merely stating a fact. I recognize that I have natural talent. I'm good with my hands. I X-ACTO knife things very well and I can draw fairly decently to sometimes very good.

So goddammit, stop hating already. I've had years of practice with using a blade that (I'm inferring here) has given me some ability to draw well. Years. I began when I was, like, ten years old.

My ideas are also quite excellent.

Just be happy for me.

Critique

Experiment of Typography

This piece of graphic design art, more specifically typographic art, is..to put it simply, very good. In the description of the this pieces, the designer stated that he was only allowed to use text in black and white. As the words “cyber” and “urbanization” are repeatedly used in the design, it is clear that the designer’s intent was to bestow upon the viewer a sense of cyber and urbanization. The designer achieved his goal in doing so as the design follows axis to create a very technological look and feel.

The designer used text in a very geometric way with text going in straight lines diagonally across the center of the page with slanted texted going vertically down the page. The slanted vertical text going down the page really adds to the overall effect of the piece as it adds a profound depth and impact to the words “cyber” and “urbanization.” The designer also used reversed text that gives the piece variety and gives the eye continual movement from one aspect to another.

My gut-level reaction to this piece..I just wanted to dive right into it. The gray, slanted, vertical text really makes the piece what it is as that is what draws me in. Even in the grey bar with the curved edge adds depth as it also softens the very technological feel of the piece. This typographic art makes me feel smart and happy. Smart because of the tech feel and happy because it’s very pleasing to my eyes.

The designer also uses a variety of sizing in text to create a hierarchy and visual rhythm throughout the piece. It guides the eye from the center of the piece to spiraling around it, eventually ending on the outskirts of the design. Given with the designer only had to work with, he did a very good job with this typographic piece.

Feelings of Inspiration

Often times I endure serious artist's block. Well, that and I'm just incredibly indecisive about what I want to do sometimes. This past semester, I've probably done every single art homework assignment last minute. Part of it is because of procrastination, but the larger part is lack of inspiration/motivation.

For example, just recently, for my 2d art and design class, we had a color schemes project; it involved doing something with analogous colors and then complementary colors. I couldn't decide what to do until the Sunday it was supposed to be due. But once I completed the first half of the project, I was suddenly inspired to do something for extra credit. Live. Laugh. Love. I did Live first, then Love was the extra credit. I was SO excited once I completed photoshopping Love. SO. EXCITED. Once I finished it, I was more happy with the result itself than proud of myself that I did it. I guess that's what being an artist is all about? And then I did Laugh and the project was whole. :) My professor said she loved it. I just got it back today. She said she didn't even want to return it back to me. Hehe.

I like showing people what I've done. But not because I'm arrogant? But because..it just looks so freaking COOL. Doing this kind of stuff reallyyyy makes me happy. I love it :)

More on feelings of inspiration though. For drawing class, our final assignment was to draw any three things but had to include 3 of the 6 ideas from Calvino: lightness, quickness, multiplicity, exactitude, something I forgot, and consistency/our own alternative. For two weeks, I had NO idea what to draw. I barely figured out what ideas I wanted to draw and how I wanted to draw it. But once I figured out, once I was inspired, I became excited and anxious to begin. Worked on them all night while I worked my graveyard shift at the library. I'm freaking tired and exhausted but it was worth it. Just talked to my professor about it. She gave me a 94 :))

I swear. The feeling of being inspired has to be the best. There is nothing like wanting to do something great, knowing how you're going to go about doing something great, actually doing it, and then..finishing. Best.

See, I may not put in as much time into my projects..but I put in "HELLA" effort! So, I'm not a procrastinator. I'm an incubator. If you're actually reading this and wondering what I am talking about, you should Google it :)

Oh, and I have an A in 2D, bee tee dub. :))

K, peace out.

One Word: loveasc

www.pacificoneword.org search: loveasc.

I have to say, this project really did help me reflect upon who I really am. In the time leading up to the actual session when we took our photos, I considered words such as passionate, mastermind, manipulative (in a way where I can create things with my hands haha), and vulnerable. When it was time for the final One Word project, where Charlie was giving the presentation about what kind of word you should put as your One Word, it hit me. loveasc. I really don't know why I hadn't thought of it before. loveasc is me. It's whom I've been for a while. And whom I'll be for a very long time.

I started writing this blog in the morning but then decided to get breakfast with my roommate. Now it's 11:55 PM and I don't remember where exactly I was going with this. So I'll leave it here for now.


Schpanks for reading.
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Creativity & Knowledge

Creativity and knowledge have a strong link with each other – but at the same time, they differ greatly. Wikipedia defines creativity as “a mental process involving the discovery of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the existing ideas or concepts, fueled by the process of either conscious or unconscious insight.” In this way, creativity directly links back to knowledge in the sense that “new ideas or concepts” are knowledge – as anything that one knows as facts can be considered knowledge.

During the process of creating, we are constantly using our knowledge to create. If we had no idea how to draw a human face and the proportions of a body, how would we be able to put our creativity to work if it involves the result of realistic human beings in the picture? Knowledge, essentially, allows for us artists to execute our creative plans.

Not only does knowledge allow for us to be creative, but creativity is basically another form of knowledge. As a Yahoo! Answers user has put quite perfectly, “Not all individuals have a creative nature or the ability to see things differently.” So just because an individual has knowledge does not necessarily mean that they are creative. In order to be creative, we need to be able to cleverly and skillfully manipulate the knowledge we have into something that no other would think of.

Following that path, creativity and knowledge are different. They are not two separate entities as they need each other, but they do have their own characteristics. As stated earlier, creativity involves personal brain activity to mold and shape new ideas and concepts. Knowledge is all about facts and just knowing what is correct. Creativity involves a process that consists more of just memorizing and storing information in the catacombs of our brains. This process varies from person to person as the process can consist of anything that will help an individual get the creative juices flowing.

However, knowledge can also need creativity as well. Extending creativity’s definition to the simple terms of being able to think in a different way, knowledge needs creativity in that we need to be able to link different pieces of information together and, thus, creating a new piece of knowledge. One such example is in the medical field – being able to link together symptoms and diseases to appropriately diagnose a patient.

Bringing this to a close, creativity and knowledge are not standalone entities but rather form a team that will allow individuals to become unstoppable in whichever they choose. It is only dependent upon the individuals’ willingness to work hard and the knowledge of which how to apply their creativity.

Me, Myself, and I

After that night where I just went off and drew..well, I think it kind of changed me. The drawing turned out to be pretty emotional-looking and really..well, it will always remind of that night and how I was upset. Not so much about what I was upset about, but just the experience of drawing from..my heart? My soul? lol. But just the experience of drawing for myself for the first time. Not drawing for a homework assignment (which it turned out to fit for, actually), not drawing to get praise and approval from others, not drawing just to practice and get better. But drawing for me, to alleviate myself my upset mood that I was in, to make me feel better about myself. To distract myself from reality into a whole different world where only charcoal hitting paper matters.

For a long while, when I created my loveasc cards and door signs, I always made them for other people. I never once made something for myself. Always for others and to see their reactions. Yes, it's good to give and I love doing it. But sometimes, it's good to give to yourself as well.

It's kind of like I put a little piece of myself into the drawing. It's kind of like the drawing took a little piece of me. It's now mounted on my wall, whenever I look at it, I'm reminded of the upset feelings I had that night.

I'm also reminded of the first time I drew for me, myself, and I. That's a big deal to me. As I am now a growing artist.

Inspirations and Resolutions

Last night, I got upset about something and just needed some alone time. I tried sitting outside my residence hall but it just didn't suffice. Then I decided to walk around campus until I found the right spot to just sit and chill. I ended up at the patio of The Lair. It was around 10:30 I think, so there was quite a crowd both inside and outside - so I went to the other side of the patio (something I recently found out about).

One thing that I like about The Lair's patio is that it's got rocking chairs and a beautiful view of campus across the creek. I saw Brookside Hall from across the way and..I had the sudden urge to draw it. I knew exactly how I wanted to draw it and it was just such an inspiring view that I didn't mind going back all the way to my hall and back with my art supplies and bristol pad.

I began to sketch the building - gesture drawing if you will. It took me a good five minutes to lay down the foundation of the piece - I couldn't decide how I wanted big I wanted to draw the building in comparison to the dark sky around it.

Around 11:30, I saw a dark figure (and a dark figure because the small pathway from the main side of the patio to where I was at was not lit with light) heading towards me from the other side of the patio - I didn't worry too much. I was too engaged with my drawing to care and I was also listening to music. And then the dark figure said something. I unplugged and asked him to say it again. "I'm just coming over behind you, I don't want you to get freaked out. And I don't want to mess you up (with the drawing)." He was part of staff and was locking up the chairs together. By this time, I had finished sketching the building in pencil and begun outlining in an extra soft charcoal pencil. He looked over my shoulder and saw what I had so far - he said it looked cool.

One thing I find interesting, and something I think about constantly, is how our self is the most critical critic we will ever meet. Sure, sometimes I will really like my work - usually my graphic design pieces but I am more critical with my drawing - and sometimes, I just don't see what other people see.

I left The Lair just at midnight, taking my time on the walk back to the dorm. As I walked back with my unfinished drawing in my hand and my art box in the other, everywhere I looked, I thought to myself how fun it would be to draw it and how amazing it could look. But, not necessarily a drawing by me - anybody. I especially thought how nice it would be to draw the east entrance to my residence hall, with the old school brick wall and the little alcove the door was encased in, and especially the nature that surrounded. If I didn't hate drawing trees so much, I would give it a shot.

I walked down my hall and immediately sat down outside of my room, as my roommate was already asleep. I sat down against the wall and resumed my drawing right away. Honestly, I wasn't thinking much of the drawing until more people started commenting on it. But even though people said that it was really good and they liked it a lot, all it did was make me feel better not about my drawing skills but just from the shitty mood that started this whole thing. It was only until after I had sprayed fixative over the finished piece did I begin to appreciate my own work. I liked it, too.

The night began with a terrible mood that led me to be inspired by a simple, and literal, vision I had as I tried to alleviate the mood.

Resolution: draw more night landscapes and/or scenery.
Resolution: be less of an extrovert - I'll get more things done that way.

What are art, craft, and design?

ART

Art allows for freedom of expression. This expression can either stem from emotion, belief, or thought. Thus meaning that there are no rules in which an artist must follow in order to create a work of art. For example, the only reason why an artist may paint a flower next to a tree may not be because there is a rule that says you must, but because it is based on the artist’s personal views and emotions. Just like how an artist may paint based on their emotions, a viewer may also interpret based on their emotions, as well. Art gives room for not only the artist to be free but the audience as well.

Art is abstract – although a piece of work may seem concrete on the surface, the feelings in which were put into it and can draw from it are far from the practicality that the naked eye perceives. It can be anything and everything.

Essentially, art is the result of any one person’s ideas, thoughts, and emotions in physical form.

CRAFT

While craft does maintain an element of art within its object, it still carries its own characteristics. Craft is more meticulous and requires more attention to the process in which the object is being made. Craft is also specific to physical form that can be touched and felt, whereas art can be any type of form.

Art is to be put on display; it is for the viewers’ eyes, ears, and what have you. When an individual creates a type of craft, there can also be that option of just putting it on display (i.e. a sculpture) or there will be a specific purpose for the new creation. Take the chair as an example. Yes, the chair was an invention, but it was also a craft. Thus, the craft had an intended purpose: to be sat on. And while crafting the chair, there were specific steps in which the inventor took to successful create a stable object that can be sat on.

Of course, a chair can still be considered art. However, it is only the aesthetic beauty that the chair has that will be the art aspect and the practicality and function that is the craft.

DESIGN

Design is about how thing fit together, how things look like on a page, and the logical arrangement of elements. When a graphic designer is designing, he or she must consider the ‘elements of design’ that includes such terms as balance and unity. And, say, an architect (a designer of buildings) must consider the depth of a room, the measurements of the beams, and so on and so forth. Art is still an aspect in design, only which, design is not as free for a designer to roam like an artist is with a canvas.

Designed work has a specific purpose – usually targeted at an audience to get a blatant message across, or for commercial uses such as advertisements. In design, objects, words, and anything else on the page, has to make sense. There should be a reason for everything that’s there whether it be to emphasize a word or add balance to the design overall. And the target audience is especially important in the process of creating the design. One must be able to recognize the target audience’s interests so to create an effective piece of work.