Monday, November 28, 2011
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Cabinet of Curiosity Shelf Concepts
For my cabinet idea I have been looking at balancing hard and soft spaces. I didn't want to make a normal, run of the mill cabinet, so I decided on more of a showcase-shelf kind of display. My shelf is constructed out of stainless steel/aluminum/brushed nickel...something with a reflective quality that still has a pretty smooth finish, with glass bulbs to cover the artifacts. Around each of the glass bulbs is a small light to help showcase the artifact and create a light effect through/on the object or its container.
From left to right, the artifacts go from the cat collar box, to the tip of the reflective wave where you will find the silver bell, and below the curve the ring. In the cat collar's bulb, the light is located on the left side and in front of the box. I decided on two lights for this one only because the box has holes to see the collar through and I wanted to introduce the effects of light through those holes, which will probably create a circle light effect on the inside. For the bell, the light is located in the front below the bell. I chose to put it there because the bell container has a single opening in the front and if it is silver, as originally intended, the box should already have reflective qualities. The light for the ring box is located above the ring, so as to really create a dramatic light affect on the ring itself. The location of the lights helped determine where each artifact should be located.
I chose to create bubble-like bulbs to help showcase the objects and encourage the artifacts and their containers to be viewed from many angles, so the sphere shape really helps with that. Each artifact sitting on the silver curve have a small base to level the artifact. I chose encasings rather than an open shelf to play on the idea of creating a container for a container of an artifact. Another thing I noticed was all of the artifacts shared a round quality and were being put into a box of sorts, so I wanted to do the reverse and put the boxes in the circles.
My color palette is simple as it is a reflection of my materials (literally). I wanted to keep the palette clean and simple so as to unify the objects and show the "reflection" in the personal items.
Finally, I chose this concept because I like the idea of a heavy curve looking like it is balancing on a bubble. I think the optical illusion is very appealig to the eye and, again, helps draw the viewer to closer examine the artifacts and their containers.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
www.lifemylief.com
More fun signage to check out...
Seoul Subway Map |
Purposeful Signage |
Zurich Retirement Home Signage |
Portugal Street Signage |
Batman and Robin Zone... |
Sign in the Dublin Zoo |
Typeface is everything |
Signage Precedence
Thursday, October 27, 2011
National Museum of Natural History Light Installment
Finding a flarfing...
Sounds funny huh? Flarf is a type of poetry, until recently I had never heard of before. Flarf poetry has been characterized as an avant garde poetry movement of the late 20th century and the early 21st century. It is an interesting form of expression, and isn't easily understood by all who read it. To create Flarf poetry, the first creators began to search Google with odd search terms, taking the phrases of results and coupling them with other random found phrases to create a poem. The poems use an odd aesthetic, as the movement is dedicated to exploring the inappropriateness of the art form. The results of these poems usually yield hilarious and sometimes disturbing creations, in various forms of text and presentation. The term Flarf was originally coined by the poet Gary Sullivan, one of the earliest Flarf writers. Here is an example by poet Katie Degentesh:
I Loved My Father
I loved my father and I loved Jesus.
What was I to do?
I felt like a canoe
that was being pulled apart by two strong men.
I expressed that eloquently by imitating his life,
by becoming more and more ineffectual daily.
People would generally hide from him
because he looked so American
I didn’t know that my father was controlling and manipulative.
I wanted to glorify Him by paying off the debt of sinful man
At least he could’ve explained why
he didn’t want me to play with the toy gun.
He really cared about us.
Maybe he had no feelings towards or against other people, either.
Rather than be exposed to one more sales pitch
They spit on me and I ran away
Nothing happened for almost a year then
He’d call the State Police just to try and settle me down
If you got your finger cut off on the
on the thought of killing him
He got angry and he wanted to get even.
I love plants and trees, but
I wasn’t allowed to go out or talk.
He was a wonderful man,
dealt with the servants of the castle
made a good living and provided well for his family
shared his affections with his boyfriend on weekends
I loved him from afar.
I sucked my thumb until I was six years old.
I didn’t realize it at the time.
When I was your age, he said,
“I had a square piece of white cloth to be made into
firstborn children of God, truly made perfect as God.”
He looked at me, and he knew I had stolen it.
A man will be hated by his own family.
I hated Listerine and I hated my father.
I do not know whether he is alive or not.
I took what I wanted, and left him spoiled behind me.
I was reborn in Ireland, in 1753.
When I first began reading flarf poetry, as recommended by a few friends, I didn't understand it. I thought it was a waste of energy and an un organized excuse for a poem- anyone can take google search results and slap them onto a page and call it a poem...right? Maybe not. Though the poems are discombobulated, they seem to follow a common theme, and when they don't they almost seem as if it is a stream of consciousness. I have found that writing a stream of consciousness without woe, can turn out to be a beautiful thing, because sometimes we second guess what our mind is trying to relay to our brain.
The reason I was introduced to flarf poetry in the first place, was due to the website www.livemylief.com . The website is a creation of Steve Roggenbuck, a 23 year old Chicagoan and self proclaimed poet. Steve, together with a few behind the scenes editors, manages the website, creating bits of poetry, videos, gifs, photoshopped creations, and more. Using the internet as his form of sharing his poetry, he has acquired followers and friends alike that regularly keep up with his videos, as he posts them daily and weekly. The website has a variety of things on it, including rants, silly tangents, mock yoga, and reinterpretations of already created art. One of my favorite things that steve does is print flarf poetry on large white cards and posters and displays his poetry via different posters on a video. Even better, Roggenbuck is obsessed with Helvetica font, my personal favorite.
The following video is one of my favorite videos by Roggenbuck, as he addresses poetry by my favorite poet, E.E. Cummings. In the video he takes excerpts of various poems of Cummings' and creates something new from the existing works...
Instructions Gone Wild
http://www.lugaluda.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/How-to-tie-a-tie.jpeg |
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Guilford County is a county full of people from here, there, and everywhere around. Named for Major Nathaniel Greene, following his commander role in the battle at Guilford Courthouse in 1781, the town was established close to the center of Guilford County and was named Greensboro. In 1840 Governor Morehead selected Greensboro as the location for a new rail line.
The Southern Railway depot was built in 1927 and can be found around the corner from downtown Greensboro. The station itself was built by the New York Architectural firm Fellheimer and Wagner. The depot houses waiting rooms for departing passengers, as well as local, regional, and interstate bus services. At it's peak in the 1940's one could see as many as 40 passenger trains coming through Greensboro in one day. The station has been used as a transportation hub for many years, but faced a few years of solitude when the depot was closed due to need of renovations in 1979 and the depot was donated to the City of Greensboro. In restoring the depot, reconfigurations were made to portions of the track near the original station, a new baggage tunnel was built and the existing passenger tunnel was extended. Platforms and canopies for the depot were also added for passenger convenience. The update did well for the depot as it is now a fully functional train and bus hub that brings many people in and out of Greensboro on a daily basis.
Last year, the station saw approximately 105,000 passengers and brought in about 4.5 million dollars for the city.
Friday, September 30, 2011
All of the lights, all the lights,
This is a video of the passage way between the National Gallery of Art East and West Building located in Washington DC. It contains over 40,000 lights.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Reception Desk Inspiration!
I found this appealing because of the movement of the space and the way the desk mimics the form of the wall behind it. The desk works well in the space because it contributes to the flow of the room.
I chose this reception area because it is so different from the one before it. The eclectic use of furniture makes the space more interesting and allows for a cohesive design.
These two spaces are just 2 examples of precedence. I appreciate them because of their cohesive design and the thought put into the furniture working with the walls around it. I think in a reception area, the furniture makes the space and these spaces have great furniture that make the rooms what they are and give them each their own identity.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Down Home- Cabinet of Curiosity |
Gate City- Pharmacy |
Voices- People behind the voices |
Period Room- Dining Room |
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Where I want to be...
Industries of the Blind Diagram & Narrative
Friday, September 2, 2011
Greensboro History Museum Diagram & Narrative
Thursday, September 1, 2011
"Oh no she di'nt" chimed the girl walking closely behind me as I rounded the corner of Tate Street on my way to the Weatherspoon Art Museum. "Oh yea girl, an den," the other began, as I shuffled off quickly to make my way up the pyramid like stair decorating the front of the building. As I stood in front of the building , the omniscient shadow loomed over me, half making me wonder what surprises wee being held inside, the other half wishing for the sun as I stood in the brisk fall weather. I climbed the stairs, making my way to the double set of glass doors. I opened the first door and entered into a breezeway to the main entrance to the museum, only to see the wide array of signage noting the restrictions on what is and what is not allowed in the building. The quiet is enough to stiffen the most lively person, I felt, as I was suddenly silenced thought I was already quiet. The curator at the door quickly glanced over at me, my belongings, and the people around me, searching for rule breakers and potential art destroyers. Luckily, I qualified as neither.
I entered the space to an array of photos being snapped. Snapped up, snapped down, around the corner, you, me, him, her, them, the other person with the camera; the space was adequately observed. The glowing floor drew me to the center of the building, and, as I crept towards the glowing blue tinted granite, I realized that the glow was the sunlight streaming onto the floor. Standing beneath the dome, one is immediately humbled, as he realizes that his is but a small occupant in such a large open space. Moving past the dome, I was drawn down the hallway, towards the window in the back, casting shadows of trees, and the red brick across the street. Walking past each gallery, one is ever so tempted to peek inside, like a child listening to an adults conversation. Not straying from the task at hand, I focused on the foyer, the glowing floors, the spot lights on the ceiling often reflected on the floor, the beautiful glowing sconces, and the dome. All easily noted, and appreciated, with the help of a little stroll and a good, stable granite bench.
New Nametagz
To kick off Visual Communication I, we were asked to create a name tag for a fellow classmate that reflects both their personality and yours. As well as a name tag for the desk, the creation would also be the blog header for the classmates student blog. I was assigned Courtney Wilson, and after sitting beside of her for a year last school year, I felt I had a good handle on what Courtney would like.
This design was my first attempt. The materials used are india ink for the name, and watercolor, with colored pencil overlay on the card.
The second design, though similar, did not seem to bode well amongst group discussion.
After writing Courtney's name every which way in every shape, color, and style a person could think of, I felt mildly stalkerish and at the end of my rope. So I ditched the ink.
Friday, April 29, 2011
A few of my favorite things
Bonnaroo 2007 |
Object- My pink utility knife I received for Christmas, complete with pliers, bottle opener, mini saw, Phillips head screw driver, knife blade, and flashlight. Best of all- it is pink.
NYC 2008 |
Savannah 2008 |
Savannah 2008 |
Savannah 2008 |
Savannah 2008 |
Friday, April 22, 2011
BP 13- Scandinavian Design
Scandinavian Design |
Bubble chair- Eero Aarnio, 1968 |
Paimio Armchair-Alvar Aalto |
Arne Jacobsen- rodovre town hall, stairwell 1952-1956 |
Scandinavian design also resignates through scandinavian modern architecure, such as buildings Alvar Aalto and Arne Jacobsen designed. I appreciate the scandinavian design concept because of it's appeal to the masses and is aimed for everyone including the "average joe", which every third world country has. The products are well priced and are innovative in design and new forms.