May 23

Oh... a what!

Today's classroom was filled with fun and laughter.  We played the icebreaker game of... I'm actually not sure what it is called, but it was comprised of the folling: us sitting in a circle, one person starts off by saying to the person next to them, "This is a what," while handing an item to them.  Then that person asks, "A what?"  and they respond, "A what." and the other person says, "Oh, a what!" Then the receiving person passes the item to the next person and again says, "This is what," then they ask, "A what?" the person that hands it to them, asks the person who handed it to them, "A what?" and the first person gives the answer, "A what." and the process repeats around the circle until it meets its way to the person that started it.  Does this sound complicated? 

It was a game that required concentration and communication.  We didn't just have one item, but two going on at the same time, opposite directions.  It wasn't really about what we were saying, but how we were saying it.  There is a distinct way of saying "What," and "What?" and making that distinction to who were were communicating to was crucial.  

Sir Ken Robinson

It was my first time hearing of Sir Ken Robinson and I'm glad Professor Jimmy showed him to us.  Ken spoke of being in and finding your "element". He talked about "digital immigrants" vs. "digital natives"and I immediately thought of my parents.  It took a while for my dad to move up to a smart phone, but he still doesn't really know how to use it, and my mom absolutely refuses to learn how to use one.  My niece got her first cell phone when she was five years old! I got my first cell phone when I was nineteen!
What I took most from Ken was that being good at something isn't a good enough reason to do it.  It about passion and your attitude towards it.  More importantly, there are three things that will help you succeed: your ability to think differently, how welyl you work with others, and how well you can communicate.  

Reading: Stage 7, Production

This is the final chapter of "The Design Process" by Karl Aspelund.

Feedback  It is always a good idea to get feedback from others.  In a design team, there are many people who can give feedback and opinion.
"Difficult as it may be to hear someone criticize your work, you must view this as positive."
But it is how you take that feedback that matters the most.  Feedback, or constructive criticism is necessary because taking in other's opinions can help to better the design or make visible any problems that you have not overseen.  It shouldn't be taken in a personal way.  By being a student, having my work critiqued by professors and fellow students is perfect practice in taking in constructive criticism.  It can be frustrating when your work has to go through constant change or tweaking but it's all a learning process.  I like to ask my friends and family for their opinions as well, because since they are not exactly experts on design so they will give me their raw, honest, un-sugar-coated opinion.
"What exactly is being praised?"  Positive feedback, like praise can sometimes be overlooked.  Sometimes praise can be the result of something that was accidental, or "happy accidents".  However, if what is being complimented about your project is going away from the goal or concept of your design, then changes may be necessary.

Scheduling  Reading this section made me realize how important it is to make a schedule.  Our final project is coming up and with less than two weeks to prepare, planning out the necessary task to complete the project is crucial.  Procrastination is something I am guilty of.  Nothing pains me more than wishing I had more time to do a project while knowing that I could have done better.
"...organize your planning si that it is always visible."
Ironically, I was just thinking about my calendar.  I have it where I thought I could always see it, next to my mirror.  I noticed it the other day and tripped out not only because it was May, but because finals are sooner than I had expected!

What I took the most from this final chapter in The Design Process was "Treat each project as a learning opportunity."  I am a student, so I am constantly taking in knowledge and trying to learn as much as I can.  I'm taking a mental note, sticking a post-it  on my memory wall to never forget it.

May 18

Crystal... not so clear.
It was a lovely, rainy morning today because I made good use of my umbrella.

Class didn't shoot off right away, I think Professor Jimmy did not want to stick with the agenda, so he had us solve a number  sequence. On the chalkboard he wrote:

   1

 10

 11

100

___?

Our task was to come up with a logical, rational explanation that explains the sequence.
We were split up into two teams, men vs. women.  Working with the other gals in my class was interesting.  We all seemed to have come up with the same understanding of the sequence.  In the end, our explanation was better communicated than the men.

The whole point of us doing this was to learn how to communicate in an effective way.  As designers communicating is what we do, so we must learn to master it.  Working with clients or a design team demands open and clear communication.  Just because you understand something, someone else is not going to understand it the same way you do. Thus calls for clarity on your part.  You have to know something in and out, front and back, side to side, from all angles to be able to communicate effectively.  One thing for sure, it's harder than one may think.  It's also frustrating, especially when the other person doesn't get it.

I am constantly trying to improve my own communication skills.  It ties into everything, not just design.  We are beings that rely on and are in constant communication with one another.  What would we do with out it? 

May 16

"The interpretation of dreams is a royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious activities of the mind." 

      -Sigmund Freud 

I had a bad case of the Mondays this morning, dragging myself out of bed, into the car, then to class. I blame my blankets for trapping me tight and warm.   Note to self: Perseverance (finals are now in full effect!).

Today was movie day in class and we were given two choices: a documentary on dreams or a film by Akira Kurosawa based on his dreams.  Truthfully I couldn't decide, but I always enjoy Japanese films so I chose the second one.  I don't regret my decision but will definitely be watching the other one. 

I like interpreting my dreams, when I can remember them, that is.  I like the metaphors and symbolism tied to dreams.  A struggle in your dreams can resemble a struggle your waking life.  I always look up dream dictionaries online that give you symbolism for different things, animals, or actions in dreams, and it always amazes me how direct the comparisons can be.  I've recorded some of my most memorable and shocking dreams because I don't want to forget them.

One morning, I tried explaining to my mom that I dreamt I was a strawberry and there was a lion whipping a turtle. She looked at me and laughed, but I will admit, speaking about dreams can be funny.  Telling someone about my dreams has also made me realize situations in my waking life.  About a year ago I used to wake up laughing hysterically.  I read online that it might be the result of me either being overworked or my need for laughter in my waking life.  It turned out to be very true.  

I don't always believe everything I read online, but dreams are always open to your own interpretation.  Hence, they are what you make of them.  Dreams have also given birth to new ideas, inventions, creations, paintings, etc.  The fact that our mind allows us to dream is amazing.  Dreams can take us to another world and do things we can't do in the waking life.  Have you ever woken up crying? Those are the worst dreams, for me.  But it amazes me that when your asleep your body is practically paralyzed, but your mind has full control over your emotions and even the images you see in your mind.  I like it when my dreams are like movies: plot, setting, characters.

All eight of Kurosawa's dreams were portrayed in magnificent ways, all conceptual but left the door wide open for interpretation.  The dreams went in the order depicted: Sunshine Through Rain, Peach Tree, The Blizzard, The Tunnel, Crows, Mt. Fuji in Red, The Weeping Demon, and Village of the Watermills.  I enjoyed "Crows" the most because it brought  many of Vincent Van Gogh's paintings to life, even Van Gogh was in the "dream" ear cut off, while painting in nature.  As I watched the movie, I wondered what thoughts or events could have sparked such dreams like this.

I wonder what I will dream of tonight.  Our homework is to plant our final project (a video on our Creative Process) in our mind before going to bed so that, hopefully, we dream about it.  So planting I will do....

Good night, and happy dreaming to you!

Feel Good Talk with John Coy

John Coy was the first AIGA President for the Los Angeles chapter and has been a designer for decades, working with the Getty Center, UCLA, LACMA, CalArts, and many more.

Technical difficulties delayed the start of the talk, but soon enough we were let inside.
To me, John's advice was very zen, as he advised more than once to find our center and purpose in the universe.

For me, his words of wisdom and guidance are ones I took the most note on paper and mentally.

"There really is no competition."
I guess this relieved some stress of the unknown and unanswered questions in my mind.  I always saw the graphic design industry as competitive, but my views are starting to change.  I'm a young student in this game, an amateur so the fear of not being as good as everyone else has always scared me.  This provided me with a new mindset on my journey.

"It's not one program fits all."
John gave this answer in response to a graduating student's question for advice.  For me this was good advice, because I'm not traditional and I dislike following order.  It's not so much about breaking rules, but I believe that everyone is different.  Not one person is going to follow the same path.  This has probably been evident for the longest time, but actually hearing it, from someone who loves what they do and has been successful at it, made me believe it more.
I'm taking life one day at a time, and not knowing the future is scary, especially an unplanned one, but at the same time, I am going where ever life takes me.

"Stay in a good mood."
There is nothing worse that trying to make something in a bad mood.  Stress can definitely put you in a bad mood so it is essential to relieve stress in a positive way.  John mentioned meditating, which is something I want to do more of.  What good comes from a bad mood?

Collage
I used to always to make collages out of magazine clippings for fun, but when life got busy I stopped.  When John advised that we do this, I mentally added it to my ongoing to do list.  Not that it is a chore, but because, like sketching collaging allows you to explore ideas with different, and sometimes random, compositions; it's almost as important as sketching.  Collages also allow for happy accidents.

"Get out of your head."
I suffer frequently from creative blockage and I know well enough that it is because I'm over evaluating things.  It's my first time in the quarter system, so I'm still getting used to having projects due every week.  Having all these projects with only a week to do leaves no room for creative blockage, so being able to step away from the task at hand to clear my mind is crucial.

John's talk was an emphasis on the designer's journey with a focus on oneself.  I found this not only informative but also helpful because of the advice that was given.  A lot of the questioned asked were not specifically answered, as John believes that we are all geniuses with our own set of unique qualities or "hardware" that we must "tap into" or it's useless.  We must find our purpose in the universe.  I left the talk with much to think about, especially a necessary focus on my sense of self.  

May 11

Professor Jimmy, wherefore art thou?

I got to school on time, found great parking, and came to class ready to learn, and Professor Jimmy was no where to be found? What?

The nice lady from the office came and told us that he was out sick and that we had to stay and discuss our final project.  So that we did for about 20 minutes.  Dustin gladly took notes on the board for us, we briefed the final project in the briefest way that we could. (Wow, no red underlining on briefest! )

We came to an agreement that we are to demonstrate our own creative process in a video within 3-5 minutes to an audience that consists of our peers and Professor Jimmy, and are to post the link on our blog and also email Jimmy the link.

Should we have been more specific?

May 9

What an early morning it was.  We were required to  rearrange ourselves in order from shortest to tallest.  It came to no surprise that my petite self was the shortest.  I felt like I was in elementary school again.   I still had a good seat though.. Front row, end seat. 

Creative Briefs
Our goal for today's class was set to brief the final project.  It went unaccomplished because now we have it for homework.

Our homework for the weekend was to brief the short film "Powers of Ten" by Charles and Ray Eames for IBM.  I had seen this in high school in my favorite teacher's class so it brought back fond memories of her.
I had no idea what a creative brief actually is so I googled it.  To my understanding it was basically a who, what, when, where, how of a creative project, or advertisement campaign.  A lot of the information I read said that a creative brief is exactly what it is, BRIEF.  It helped that Professor Jimmy brought in examples of briefs because although every brief is different they still have similarities.

Creative briefs although short take time to make because you are communicating the main message and goal of the project in the least amount of words.  Briefs should be easy to understand, and most importantly, to the point.  What is the one thing you want to communicate?  What is the most important thing?  Creative Briefs should include the client name, date, preparer, contact info, objective, project, background/history, and can may even a schedule of tasks.

Think... Feel... Do...

As designers our job entails many things.  We not only have to be creative, but also be able to communicate effectively.  Communication is key.   We are artists who are also business(wo)men who educate and communicate effectively.  All the good sh*t mixed into one.   

Getting to know your client is important, especially establishing a relationship with them because you're going to be working with them.  Understanding your client is important also because it is ultimately their message that you are communicating.

I learned a lot today, as we went into specifics about the role of the designer.  It was important insightful information.  My mind is yet again open and wandering.

Reading: Stage 5

My thoughts jumped around, while the analogies stuck in my brain causing my over active imagination to reawaken and spit out more comparisons.

While reading this section, I will have to admit, was a tad bit overwhelming.  I'm all for being environmentally friendly, so I guess I fear creating something that will damage the environment.  Sadly, this has already been done too many times.  


You cannot assume that just because you, yourself find your design easily comprehensible, that others do as well.  This chapter touches upon the definition and modeling of the design process.

Anatomy of an Idea  Your design is your creation, it is your baby.  You must know it front, back, side to side, inside and out.  While reading this section i could not help but think these thoughts because they are true.  When you create something you put so much work and thought into, like making a painting, but in design one must take it another step forward because your design will make it's way into the environment where the materials used to create it will have to e considered, along with its function and purpose.  You design is like your baby because you have a say in all details and aspects of how it is made and why. 

Scale  I read this section and immediately thought of a five foot safety pin, versus a normal one inched sized safety pin.  When making a model of your design scale is a major factor depending on it's function and purpose.  A gigantic safety pin defeats it's purpose, unless your Paul Bunyan. 

Does a designer have to be a jack of all traits?  Does a designer have to not only know how but have to also be very good at drawing, painting, sculpting, etc.?  I think in a design team, not really, because in a team you can have people with certain strengths and weaknesses, but if you're working alone it can work to your advantage.
An awareness of materials and how things are made along with their effect on the environment is also crucial.  So a designer should be well informed of all the materials they are using along with having a creative mind, and also good will.

Creating models allows you to explore, and by comparing it to sketching, Aspelund helped me see it in a different light.  With my own sketching processes I have to remind myself that it is changeable and that it isn't a final copy of what I am going to be making.  The same goes for making a 3D model of your design.  This stage is important because your model is tangible and actually exists in the universe.