Brain storms to Brain farts.

When i was a kid, i would always hate having to brainstorm. I thought it was the most pointless thing, yet my teachers would always and us a blank brainstorm sheet and ask us to fill it in accordingly. WHY?! I would ask myself,. Why on earth does this matter, and how does this even help me. Looking back now, I realized that brainstorming when i was a child was always pointless to me because the ay or teachers presented it to us. You would have to follow a certain format, and would have a limited amount of spaces to jot down ideas, or too many. So i would always get frustrated as a child. Its a brainstorm, its a map of the thoughts and ideas that would come to out, so why put some BS structure to it that would be conducive to everyone?

As I grew older, and was given more freedoms when it came to brainstorms, I soon found myself not hating the process of brainstorming, and actually finding it useful. I could step back and see my ideas and organize them to be more effective. I could dictate home many idea bubbles I wand to string out from the center.

I will stand out.

After discussing about Designer of 2015 Competencies with our group today in class I sat down afterward and checked off all the the ones I thought I was good at, and drew a circle at all the ones I thought I wasn't that great. I noticed that most of my checks were next to the bottom half of the list. The points that weren't in bold. Our groups had noticed that the ones that were not bold seemed to all be more general and applicable to everyday life. Not just designers. We agreed that these skills were useful to every field. 

So it got me thinking that this may be to my advantage. I am a graphic design major, as well as a student who will be minoring in marketing. I decided this a long time ago, because in this job market, one most always be flexible and dynamic. I have confidence in my skills as a graphic designer, but I want to stand above the crowd. I want to be able to offer more. Knowledge is rarely a disadvantage. I never want to be pigeon holed when it come to my future I want to be able to stretch myself as far as I can, and to do that i need a strong base to stand upon. So I couldn't be more pleased with my strengths, because i know that in the long run the will only propel me further.

Sick Day! So my own thoughts!

I didn't make it to class this past Wednesday due to my cold. So! This post is gong to be about a couple of thoughts i had regarding my ever changing views about art. I love to learn. Until I hit college I never realized how much I enjoyed discovering new things. For instance, I never would have thought that art history was going to be one of my most favorite classes ever. Usually one associates history especially ART history as boring, but there I was not only learning about ancient civilizations, but how there architecture, and art was so essential to their culture.

                I find that the more I informed I become about an artist or a time period, the most I appreciate it. For instance, I never cared much about Jackson Pollock. I didn’t really understand why he was so famous, until I finally sat down and watch an interview of him talking about his artwork. I also research what art movement was going on at the particular time period. I was blown away. I had a new appreciation for this man’s artwork whom I once scoffed at and thought “What’s the big deal?” I also then discovered all the other artists who took influence in his work as well. Fascinating.

                So keeping that in mind, I wonder if the rest of our society thinks the way I used to about just art in general, because they are simply ignorant to all the history and influence behind art? I look at a museum like the MOCA as an example. When I first went there I thought to myself “What a pretentious pile of bull.” The pieces there made no sense and altogether just irritated me. Why? Because I didn’t’ t know where they were coming from, and why they were even all that important.

These artworks are art of our culture and society. So why not give a little more information to the general public? Why don’t we make our museums a little more interactive, and a little more informative? We such engage viewers, we should want them to say “Oh, how interesting I didn’t know that.” Not “What the hell is this supposes to even be?” Art and History are one in the same with each other. So why not present them in a way that coincides more strongly together. And slapping some paragraph next to an image, or having a viewer actually have to dial a number is not enough. We can make exhibits more engaging and educational. I look at the California African American history museum’s execution. They are on the riht track when it comes to presenting there artwork, with their history. They understand that their history is rich and needs telling, and that the art they display helps tell that story. These are just some thoughts I have always had regarding how we artist can strive to improve the public’s opinion about us, simply by including the public in our process.

Day 5

Ugh. Finally getting over this cold, so forgive the delayed blog post. So let's answer some very interesting questions shall we?

Have you experienced your own or other people's fear-based reactions to your creative education and career choices?

In our particular field, there is so much competition. We also live in a time were our economy isn’t the most stable either. The bar has been set so incredibly high, and often times I feel that my talents will not suffice.  I want t go into advertisement. Consumerism fascinates me and always gets me excited, but as I said earlier the amount of competition is truly daunting. So I often second guess myself, and become paralyzed with fear and paranoia.

How have you successfully overcome these reactions?
I always have moments were I freak myself out and let a huge wave of doubt wash over me. Its quite paralyzing to be honest. But when these moments his I do a couple of things. I pray. I pray that this doubt will only make me stronger in the long run. I pray that God give me the strength to keep moving forward. I pray that my drive never diminish or disappear, and then I finally say thank you to the lord for giving me the talents I have now. I sometimes just talk to my mom about it. She reminds me that fear is a natural and unapologetic symptom of trying to achieve something, and assures me that no matter what she will always be proud of me.

What is your concept of your creative process?
Boredom. I think when we become bored with reality we tune out and our brains take us to that creative state.  That detachment from reality, even for a second is when ideas start popping in our head.  
How do you approach creating, making?

I noticed that sitting down and saying, “INSPIRATION COME TO ME!” doesn’t exactly work. I do however notice that prior to making something I tend to occupy myself with boring tasks. ( Hence that whole boredom.) For instance, if I want to start sewing something, I tend to clean my room or closet. This task usually gets my mind to a place where I can start envisioning how I am going to draw out my pattern, or how much material I am going to use. This is why my room is rarely clean.

 

Late Art 220 Day 4

This is the re-uploaded (because I never noticed the first post didn’t go through) Day 4 post.  Sabbatical. Usually when I heard that word used in movies or TV, the ever so common joke “You got fired huh?” followed behind. So listening to  a 17  minute lecture as to why it benefits was pretty newfangled . But, what got me thinking wasn’t so much about the sabbatical, rather the idea that as designers and artist we sometimes need to get out and press restart.

It’s common knowledge that when working on something it’s good to step out and take a breather, engage in something else, and return with hopefully some fresh perspective. But I then started to wonder about the bigger picture. I noticed that sometimes I find myself in lulls. Creating or drawing the same old things, or only looking at, and getting inspired by the same old things. While, I do often venture out and try to learn as much about as many new things that can hopefully influence me for the better. I am always trying to better myself, and retain as much as I can, so that I can use it for the future. But I wondered if this tactic (while ideal) will eventually burn me out?

So I got to thinking, is trying to push your creativity to the edge every second a positive or a negative force? Does maybe stopping for a bit and relaxing in your mind, a good thing too? Will giving yourself a break allow you to better yourself? I am not sure.

               

Art 220 Day 5

I just realized my last post never went through, so I will be uploading that later. So! Already on the third week of class. Jimmy had us to an exercise were we listened to a story that ultimately led up to us drawing what we imagine would be behind the a door with our name on it.

                I am currently taking a class called TVF 250, and the biggest theme throughout this class is self-identity. I read an entire article, on how our name has such great influence on how we identify ourselves. So, bringing it back to Jimmy’s class, when given the option of drawing what is inside a room that has MY name on it, I couldn’t help but think back to my readings of self-identity. My name is not only a way to identify me from others, but it is a way to label myself. So, the question was how do I view and feel about myself, and how would I represent that with a drawing.

                Since I for the most part enjoy myself, and take pride in the things I enjoy, I knew that a great way to represent myself visually would be to draw and image of things I enjoy visually. I like cute shit. I really do. I love things that are imaginative, childish, and whimsical. This is because as an individual I identify myself as a kid at heart. A little girl who loves to surround herself with things that give her joy. I am not impervious to the negative, but I definitely make an effort to not seek it out, or try to change it into a positive.  Cakes, Ribbons, smiling faces, angels, and a cotton candy queen would be inside the room with name on the door, and I am proud of it.

Day 3

Wow. This class continues to surprise me. Today, the theme was PROCESS. Or at least I think it was. So our teacher, Jimmy, asked us to rearrange ourselves by our birth dates. Simple enough. After we had successfully organized ourselves, Jimmy told us that in the future, we would most likely be working collaboratively with others. A very important life lesson. I couldn't help but agree more that knowing how to work well with others is a very helpful skill.

I have always considered myself as more of a leader then a follower, but one thing that i have learned through trail and error is that you are not the only one who thinks that they're the leader. While you may think your plan is the best and most efficient one to get the job done, someone else may be thinking the same thing. So, after many past altercations that have taken place between two people who may think they know what  needs to be done, I have learned that taking a step back may just be whats best for the group. It's very easy to butt heads and slow the entire group down. Being a leader means doing whats best for the team. Shut up for a second and LISTEN to what leader #2 has to say. It may also be that the group prefers their idea more.