Getting Lost

I asked my friend Nathan to help me with this project and he agreed mostly because he did not want to do his homework for organic chemistry. When I told him what the project was he used it as an excuse to use his motor cycle. He took me to a confederate memorial very far away from campus where I took these photos. We then went to Sheets for food but I figured that wouldn't be as interesting. The confederate memorial was quite creepy and to add to it there was lightning the whole time I was there.

Public Space in a Private Time

To be honest Vito Acconci is one of the people in life who I try to avoid.  What he is saying makes sense but he overanalyzes, gets off topic, and attempts to make sense of a complex subject with a simple concept.  All in all making sense of this type of work gives me a headache. I do however like his beginning paragraph (1) because it shows a progression of how society has changed because of time.

"It used to be, you could walk down the streets of a city and always know what time it was.  There was a clock in every store; all you had to do was look through the store window as you passed by."  This is a concept that did not exist in my life time, but I like the concept because it allows more social interactions. The idea of everyone being on "the same clock" is ideal because everyone relies on each other for the time.  Because there is a need to rely on others for time there would also be a stronger sense of community.  A sense of community is what we lack in today's world.

"But then times changed, and time went away... Time came cheap now; you picked up a watch like a pack of matches."  In this quote, Acconci is referring to when wristwatches came into style and suddenly you could find out the time on your own.  "You wore your time on your sleeve, you had time (almost in the palm of your hand. Public time was dead."  Today people do not rely on each other for anything because they don't need to. You have a source of communication and  infinite information in the palm of your hand.  If Acconci thinks wristwatches seperated society he should see what smart phones have done.  There is no longer a need to go to the library, ask people for directions, or get recommendations on restaurants.  Your smart phone has access to all that information and more.  There are now online relationships, jobs, and classes which eliminate the need to go out into the world at all. The world has become more disconnected by technology than it has been connected.  Vito Acconci displays this aspect in society well because he doesn't tell you what has happened, but he shows you.

PROJECT 2 FINALLYYYYYY

IM SO HAPPY TO BE DONE :)

Forgot to Post Signature and Line Drawing :O

Advertisement Project

Ever since I visited Baltimore I have noticed that the Natty Bo sign is colorless, which I found unusual for a logo.  For this project I add the main 3 bright colors (red, yellow, and blue) and I put in bolded bright colored text.  I also found that adding a border really focuses your attention in on the logo.

Winsor McCay

An American cartoonist and animator, Winsor McCay was a revolutionary cartoonist who inspired many famous cartoonists such as Walt Disney.  He was born in 1871 in Spring Lake, Michigan where he started drawing at an early age.  He originally went to business college, but then moved to Chicago in order to study at an art institute, however, he found that he couldn't afford it and went straight into work in printing. He produced wood cuts for circus, theatrical, and World War I propaganda posters.  He then moved to Cincinnati, Ohio to produce art for Kohl and Middleton's Dime Museum.  In 1903 he began drawing cartoons the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Many of Winsor's cartoons and animations were based off of poems or dreams. I watched two of his most famous animations Little Nemo, created in 1911, and Gertie the Dinosaur, created in 1914.  In these films he portrays himself first as the cartoonist and then he presents a challenge such as creating a 4000 page animation or controlling the animated dinosaur. It becomes humorous as things start to become chaotic because the challenge is too much for him.  He then regains his composure in the end and conquers his challenge and goes above and beyond what the viewer expected him to do.

Seeing these films gives the illusion of a time machine and really gives you insight into why Walt Disney's first animations were so wacky. I was really interested in the dream like cartoon Winsor created in Little Nemo.  His use of perspective really made the cartoon come alive and I was surprised he was able to portray that so accurately in his cartoon. He portrayed the surreal aspect of a dream also very well because the cartoon gives a sense of slight confusion followed by interest in what might happen next. The way the dream proceeded from a clown like figure on a blank piece of paper to a colorful scene with a couple climbing into a dragons mouth carriage was a very good build up.  I really liked how his characters, although silent, truly had their own wacky personalities that they portrayed through their body language and actions. His characters were fun, energetic, but in a way slightly insane which really brought the whole concept of the dream back together.

Project 2 Progress

I have completed most of the general shading in the face; however, I do have a lot more work to do in the details. I also need to crop my image on photoshop or learn how to adjust my work board.  I found putting in eyelashes to be a challenge because the lines come out blocky. To solve this I either have to simplify the details or find a different tool to use.