Week 4: 3D Shape Exploration

Craft: This project was done using a combination of Adobe Illustrator (where the shapes were drawn out) and a digital cutter using the software Silhouette (where the shapes were printed).    

Concept: The goal of this project was to see what types of designs could be made using a digital cutter. The two shapes below, a box and a diamond shape, where examples of 3D designs using personal artwork.

Composition: Composition was of great importance for the box with my art piece due to the positioning of the piece's central focus having the same focus on a 3D shape. Considering the layout of how I want the art piece on a 3D shape is something I want to put more thought into. 

Special Edition Post:

Edyta Stepian's "Non-Phenomena"

This exhibition consisted of large-scale video projections on the walls of SXU's Art Gallery. When I first stepped in, there was a striking impact as if I had been transported to an entirely different environment, Stepian opened her presentation  by allowing the viewers to ask her questions about her piece. The first topic of concern was how the piece was made. She stated that the video clips were taken by pointing a micro-lens camera at a fish tank filled with water, with natural substances such as plants and sand while also including man-made objects such as wire, glitter, and bits of paper. To create a tumultuous atmosphere in this small setting, she created ripples in the water with a blow dryer and moving the water physically to created a disturbance in to the items in the tank. Sound was also a component in this multimedia exhibit. Stepien stated that the sounds came from field recordings of pitches from hurricanes and storms.

Another topic was what she wanted to communicate through this piece. Stepien's inspiration for theis piece came from the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina. Stepien stated that she wanted to explore the relationship between the natural and mechanical by making this simulation of a violent storm that transported us as the viewers to the center of the chaos. She explored how even natural objects have man-made components.I believe that this was successful in the way the entire gallery space was transformed to envelope the viewer in constant motion and dimness. 

This exhibition is different from any other exhibition I have attended in that it made me pay attention to both space and sound. I enjoyed how more than one sense was required to interpret  what was happening in the composition. Even though I new I was inside of a building, the walls no longer felt like walls because of the depth and scale of the projection. While my eyes were visually interested, my ears were audibly interested in the ominous sounds of wind whistling and high pitched, resonating bells that provoked a certain emptiness or muffled sound as if I really was underwater, immersed in chaos.

Week 7: Eye Candy Tea Photo Shoot

Concept: The purpose of this assignment was to take well- composed photos of the tea box brands I designed called Eye Candy.
Craft: I used a DSLR Canon Camera utilizing both the auto functions and manual functions. Soft light created from attaching an umbrella to the lamp was also utilized to ensure the boxes looked 3D and not flat.
Composition.This set of photos is a straightforward shot of the tea boxes with props surrounding them as documentation.

Week 5: Tea Boxes

Craft: The tea boxes were made in Adobe Illustrator using the pen tool. The pen tool was useful in both drawing out the figure and also adding/deleting anchor points where needed. During this project, there was a variety of new techniques required to successfully execute the project. One technique was being able to add artwork to the figure so it would fit perfectly inside with the Draw Inside tool. This required me to order my work into 3 different layers: fold lines, cut lines, and art. I had to select both the folds layer and cuts layer, then copy the shape by highlighting everything in the layer. Then, I pasted the figure in the art layer as a mask. Locking the folds and cuts layer, I adjusted the shape in the art layer to fit directly over the original shape, then clicked the button in the tools panel named Draw Inside. This enabled me to copy and paste my art into the figure. Thereafter, adding text and designs to the box became very easy.

Concept: The concept was to create tea boxes that demonstrated branding with the use of personal art.
Composition: This compositional layout was inspired by a brand of tea that seemed to be interested in promoting their logo by printing it on multiple sides of the box. I let the artwork or color underneath the tea boxes influence the overall theme of the logo and mood. For example, the blue box seemed very serene, so my logo included a sun, rays, and clouds to respond to the background. The colors also popped from the background being that orange is complementary to blue.

Week 6: New Tea Box Designs

Concept: The purpose of this assignment was to create tea boxes that appeared to come from the same brand of teas. Though the brand would be the same, the art on the boxes needed to have multiple variations but not so different that each box looked like it was an entirely different brand.
Craft: These layouts were made in Adobe Illustrator. Since the box design had to be unique while still fulfilling the dimension requirements, I had to research a lot of different designs. I first started of with a "sketch" arranging 3x5 rectangles on the page to determine how I wanted the box to look like and function. I then traced the sketch in another layer, which became my layer designated for the cutting lines. Another layer was designated for fold lines while the other was designated for the art inside the box.
Composition: Since this projected required uniformity, I made sure I did this by having the same brand name " Eye Candy" for each box. Though I had three different art pieces, each done in a different medium, I arranged them in a similar way, making the eye the focal point of the design in the boxes, tabs, and envelopes. I think that this compositional design is different because it not only provides the consumer with tea but draws the consumer's eye to the art. When the consumer looks at the box, there is a figure looking back at them which goes beyond grabbing a tea bag.