Assignment 05: Website/Blog

Throughout the course of Spring semester, our class was assigned to create a blog page (the very one you are reading now) and also a complete website with a link to each of our final pieces in a digital format. The U of MN allows each student a certain amount of web-space which made this website possible. There is a link in the right hand bar to the site. Or click on the web address and you will be redirected to the site.

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~stran356/2334  

The design of the site resulted from the need to appear professional but also to reflect my age and personality. I decided to utilize circles as a background in grayscale in order to allow the final pieces to pop off the page and become a focal point.

As this site is still under construction, some of the menu bars are inactive at this time. The "coursework" menu that leads to "computer apps" and "gd 1" are live and show final pieces with a description of the project and the piece itself. Also, the "biography" and "contact" links are active.

Letterpress Sketches

I know these probably should have gone up first, I just finally got my sketches scanned. These show my exploration of the finger-painting idea, from the word "ready" through the development of the scratching idea.

Here's the first proof print! It was really surprising to see the plate and then see print. The plate holds a really really small dot so the half-tone was really difficult make out, but once it printed it was amazing!

Assignment 04: Letterpress

For this project we were assigned to create a design utilizing two polymer plates to be used on the Vandercook press. We were each given a prefix to the idea of "-made." I receive the word "ready." From here, I came up with the idea that something that is ready-made is perfect upon creation and does not need outside assistance. Nature and children stuck out to me the most. After sketching, I decided to peruse the child idea. 

A child with its innocence and wonder is essentially ready-made. As a child plays, or finger-paints, he or she is completely open to the work and it is pure and utterly perfect in the feeling put in.

I image put here are possible color choices to 

use on the press. The design itself, is a splotch of paint with the word "ready" scratched in as if a child had done it. Also, the dominant "ready" written over top will be used if the scratched word is not readable.

Assignment 03: Informative Series Final

This is the final of the Informative Series project. These posters are designed to be on a bus shelter to be seen by those waiting for buses and also, those driving by. To do this I wanted to avoid too much text and concentrate on image and large drastic statistics.

After much review I essentially combined the creepy and informative styles used in previous drafts. Each piece utilizes a striking statistic juxtaposed with an image to both draw attention, but also suggest the intensity of the statistic presented. The bright yellow-green was used to emphasize the idea of the wicked witch from Snow White and the poison apple analogy. Also, the stem and leaf motif was used to create a sense of identity to the pieces and to suggest there is more than just these three pieces. Lastly, the pattern in the background is designed to reflect the mass amount of people this issue affects. Using the typical bathroom stall male image also fits with a statistic style.

I tried to mix very similar designs with that of pieces that can be independent. The first two are similar in design and I think they fit together better than the third. Granted, these would typically not be seen all at once, but I would have liked all three to be more similar. That being said, I feel the third is a strong design in itself because of the strong attention it draws from the viewer.