Design I // Balance

For Design I’s third project, we focused on balance. Students constructed 4 compositions based on the following options of balance: symmetrical, asymmetrical, radial, and pattern. Their theme had to be inspired by the lyrics of a song or poem of their choosing. The medium used to depict these shapes was black construction paper, and good craftsmanship was emphasized. They also had to implement the elements and principles of design in their work. Some students even accepted the challenge of making 3D pop-up elements.

Below are some of the composition sets that were submitted.

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Section4_Abby-Jenkins_Balance_GoodMorningBaltimore-Hairspray
Song: “Good Morning Baltimore” from “Hairspray”; Design by Abby Jenkins
Section4_Ashley-Baker_Balance_HakunaMatata-AshleyBaker
Song: “Hakunamatata” from “The Lion King”; Design by Ashley Baker
Section4_Breanna-Rochelle_Balance_Loverman-Train
Song: “Loverman” by Train; Design by Breanna Rochelle
Section4_Cassidy-Jones_Balance_TinyDancer-EltonJohn
Song: “Tiny Dancer” by Elton John; Design by Cassidy Jones
Section4_Dylan-Turner_Balance_CagedBird-MayaAngelou
Poem: “Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou; Design by Dylan Turner
Section4_Kaleb-Baker_Balance_TheHouseOfTheRisingSun-TheAnimals
Song: “The House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals; Design by Kaleb Baker
Section4_Kimberly-Kazmark_Balance_SpacePoem
Poem about space by unknown writer; Design by Kimberly Kazmark
Section4_Lexi-Bennett_Balance_PianoMan-BillyJoel
Song: “Pianoman” by Billy Joel; Design by Lexi Bennett
Section4_Mary-McClung_Balance_Escape-RupertHolmes
Song: “Escape” by Rupert Holmes; Design by Mary Beth McClung
Section5_Bes-Reilly_Balance_DeathOfABachelor_Panic!AtTheDisco
Song: “Death of a Bachelor” by Panic at the Disco; Design by Bes Reilly
Section5_Jillian-Lovato_Balance_ADreamIsAWishYourHeartMakes-Cinderella
Song: “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes” from “Cinderella”; Design by Jillian Lovato
Section5_Samantha-Marshall_Balance_AWholeNewWorld-Aladdin
Song: “A Whole New World” from “Aladdin”; Design by Samantha Marshall
Section5_Taylor-Fikes_Balance_IJustCantWaitToBeKing-LionKing
Song: “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” from “The Lion King”; Design by Taylor Fikes
Section5_Wes-Edgeworth_Balance_HuntinFishin&LovinEveryDay-LukeBryan
Song: “Huntin Fishin Lovin Everyday” by Luke Bryan; Design by Wes Edgeworth

Intro to Computing Art // OMG American Gods

For students to refine their skills using Adobe Illustrator’s Pen Tool, my students accepted the challenge of the OMG project, as in “Oh my gosh, this is so challenging and time consuming!” But the effort is well worth the outcome.

The theme was to recreate a god or goddess in modern society. Students researched Greek, Roman, and Aztec mythological figures to learn about their core characteristics, and brainstormed how to apply them in our current culture.

They photographed themselves, friends, or family as their models. Then they used that photo as a template to make a vector illustration in Adobe Illustrator.  Tiny solid shapes make up the entirety of the photo to make a realistic representation.  They spent about three weeks on the project. The process is like creating a digital painting! Below are some examples that were turned in. I also included the outline imagery of a couple illustrations to show the number of shapes that were created to make up the compositions. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results! These illustrations are sure to blow your mind!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Print
Aditi by Madison Wigginton
Screen Shot 2017-03-07 at 3.49.17 PM
(Outline of shapes)
Carson_Brantley_americangods_hera
Hera by Carson Brantley
Caylee_Hubbard_gods_venus
Venus by Caylee Hubbard
Apollopp
Apollo by Darren Cheairs
Print
Hecate by Elizabeth Gammill
Grayson Brown_American Gods_Athena
Athena by Grayson Brown
American Gods
Loki by Rebecca Bailey
Print
Apollo by Whitney White

Intermediate Computing for Design // Reinterpret a Cliché

The third project for Intermediate Computing for Design class was called Reinterpret a Cliché. Imagery seen too frequently is often not seen at all. This is the case with overused design symbols and everyday objects. Overuse renders them ineffective, and they lose their power to communicate. It is the function of the designer to revitalize these clichéd symbols and objects by interpreting them in individual and personal ways.

Students picked 6 of the following 12 examples of typically clichéd objects to be reinterpreted:

  1. Heart
  2. Key
  3. Apple
  4. Sun
  5. Stars
  6. Mouth
  7. Light Bulb
  8. Tree
  9. Cloud
  10. Eye
  11. Rose
  12. Nuts & Bolts

Then they chose a theme all 6 illustrations would have in common. Not only were they to work stylistically, but conceptually, as well. The final product had to be black & white. They scanned their sketchbook designs into Photoshop or Illustrator to continue rendering them to completion, either using the Pen Tool or Live Trace option.

Below are some designs that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

bethany-smith
by Bethany Smith; insects
cara-moore
by Cara Moore; flowers
carly-bond
by Carly Bond; fairy-tales
connor-booth
by Connor Booth; under the sea
gerald-wicks
by Gerald Wicks; Harry Potter
imani-smith
by Imani Smith; dancers
ques-nevels
by Ques Nevels; fighters
sarah-ferguson
by Sarah Ferguson; fruits & veggies
stephen-latham
by Stephen Latham; bit-syle Mario characters
taylor-knight
by Taylor Knight; stereotypes
lauraleigh-hicks
by Laura Leigh Hicks; facial hair

Design I // Shape

For Design I’s second project, we focused on geometric and organic shapes. Students constructed 3 compositions: 1 for all geometric, 1 for all organic, and 1 for a combination of geometric and organic. The medium used to depict these shapes was black construction paper and white Bristol cardstock. Good craftsmanship was emphasized. They also had to implement the elements and principles of design in their work.

Below are some of the composition sets that were submitted. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

section4_abby-jenkins_shape_combo
Combo by Abby Jenkins
section4_breanna-rochelle_shape_combo
Combo by Breanna Rochelle
section4_breanna-rochelle_shape_geo
Geometric by Breanna Rochelle
section4_breanna-rochelle_shape_org
Organic by Breanna Rochelle
section4_dylan-turner_shape_geo
Geometric by Dylan Turner
section4_forrest-russell_shape_geo
Geometric by Forrest Russell
section4_kaleb-baker_shape_combo
Combo by Kaleb Baker
section4_kimberly-kazmark_shape_org
Organic by Kimberly Kazmark
section4_landen-rucker_shape_combo
Combo by Landen Rucker
section4_lexi-bennett_shape_combo
Combo by Lexi Bennett
section4_lexi-bennett_shape_geo
Geometric by Lexi Bennett
section5_forrest-beasley_shape_geo
Geometric by Forrest Beasley
section5_jillian-lovato_shape_geo
Geometric by Jillian Lovato
section5_jillian-lovato_shape_org
Organic by Jillian Lovato
section5_laken-beasley_shape_combo
Combo by Laken Beasley
section5_laken-beasley_shape_org
Organic by Laken Beasley
section5_samantha-marshall_shape_combo
Combo by Samantha Marshall
section5_samantha-marshall_shape_geo
Geometric by Samantha Marshall
section5_taylor-fikes_shape_combo
Combo by Taylor Fikes
section5_taylor-fikes_shape_geo
Geometric by Taylor Fikes
section5_wes-edgeworth_shape_geo
Geometric by Wes Edgeworth

Intro to Computing // Creature Cartoon

In Intro to Computing, students learn the basics of Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. This Spring semester, I teach one section of the class. During the Fall it is primarily students who are trying out for the graphic design program in November, but during the Spring it is mostly fine art students who are taking the class as an elective.

This is the second semester I have implemented this project as an introduction to Adobe Illustrator. For Creature Cartoon, each student pulled words out of separate bags– one for a physical trait, one for an action, and one for an emotion. The end goal is to illustrate a unique creature that accompanies all these traits successfully in Illustrator.

After receiving their words, students brainstormed and submitted a series of thumbnails of their ideas, which were then narrowed down to their top three when I visited them in class one-on-one. Those three were turned into well-drawn comps that were drawn with Sharpies and Micron pens, and critiqued by their entire class. The best drawing was scanned into Illustrator, and vector shapes were placed on top. The focus of this Illustrator project was learning the Pen Tool and conducting organized layer management.

For even MORE fun, my students will turn their illustrations into animated GIFs when we start the Photoshop segment. Stay tuned to see those later this semester!

Below are some illustrations that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Carson-Brantley_Creature_AnixousFlyAntlers
by Carson Brantley: anxious, fly, antlers
Elizabeth-Gammill_Creature_crawlgigglylongtail
by Elizabeth Gammill: crawl, giggly, long tail
Monster Illustration
by Grayson Brown: mellow, shell, exercise
Basic RGB
by Jacquelyn Mullins: bored, whiskers, jumping
Print
by Shannon Shepherd: big feet, running, sad
Whitney_White_Creature_AfraidManeCurledAsleep
by Whitney White: afraid, mane, asleep

UPDATE: See GIFs created later during the semester here.

Design I // Line Explosion

This semester I teach 2 sections of Design I. A new experience for me is teaching an overwhelming number of Landscape Architecture majors, along with Fine Art, Photo, Interior Design, and Floral Management. Also in semesters past I have taught more girls than boys, but this semester’s numbers even out more.

For their first project, we focused on line and the psychological meanings of straight and curvy line work. Students chose 1-3 adjectives to illustrate using line, creating a “line explosion.” The medium used to depict these lines included Sharpies and Micron pens of different thicknesses, and good craftsmanship was emphasized. They were to also implement the elements and principles of design in their work.

Elements: line, shape, mass/form/volume, space, value, color, texture, time/motion.
Principles: balance, rhythm, repetition, unity, variety, size/scale/proportion, emphasis/focal point.

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

section4_abby-jenkins_line_boldloud
by Abby Jenkins: bold, loud
section4_breanna-rochelle_line_wrinkledawkwardgooey
by Breanna Rochelle: wrinkled, awkward, gooey
section4_dylan-turner_line_sharptight
by Dylan Turner: sharp, tight
section4_kaleb-baker_line_gooeywildprickly
by Kaleb Baker: gooey, wild, prickly
section4_lexi-bennett_line_whimsicalconfusingflat
by Lexi Bennett: whimsical, confusing, flat
section4_paige-davis_line_steadysuspiciouswrinkled
by Paige Davis: steady, suspicious, wrinkled
section5_taylor-fikes_line_sharpboldtight
by Taylor Fikes: sharp, bold, tight
section5_willie-griffin_line_sharpawkwardsuspicious
by Willie Griffin: sharp, awkward, suspicious

Intermediate Computing for Design // Oh What a Character

It is a brand new semester!

Intermediate Computing for Design is for students who submitted their portfolios for the graphic design review in November and were accepted into the program.  All of these students took my Intro to Computing class in the previous semesters. The last time I taught Intermediate was 2 years ago and I really enjoyed it, so I am excited to have the opportunity again.

Their first Intermediate project was called “Oh What a Character!” They found an image online of a celebrity, changed it to black and white, placed it in Illustrator, and worked on top of it like a template to create their own caricature of the person.  The requirement of the illustration?  It had to be completed using a maximum of 7 letters and 2 symbols in black only from one typeface on their computer.  Yes, a typeface!  They could rotate and resize typeface items as needed.

Below are some designs that were turned in. All have aspects to be improved upon for their portfolio, but overall I was very pleased with their results!

* I have permission from my students to promote their work on my website.

Ques-Nevels_Jackie-Chan
Jackie Chan by Ques Nevels
Print
Princess Diana by Cara Moore
Carly-Bond_Miley-Cyrus
Miley Cyrus by Carly Bond
Conner-Booth_BetteMidler
Bette Midler (Hocus Pocus) by Connor Booth
chanceredo
Chance the Rapper by Darby Taylor
Gerald-Wicks_TheWeeknd
The Weekend by Gerald Wicks
Connor
Connor McGregor by Trent Furr

Paper Art Gifts

Due to the number of art and graphic design classes I teach as a lecturer at Mississippi State University, I do not have a lot of time to produce paper art and freelance as I’d like to. When a gift-giving event comes up, I tend to take advantage of that time to practice my craft. I love doing to produce a natural look using plant inclusions– blending up flower petals, grass, and leaves in with the pulp. I also have been experimenting with ways to apply imagery to the paper. (Excuse my photography. I need to do better at documenting my gifted art.)

img_2588
Laser-cut typography with black paper placed behind
img_2364
Laser-cut typography with black paper placed behind
img_7930
Spray-painted typography using self-produced stencils
img_7931
Close-up
img_7926
Spray-painted typography using self-produced stencils, and Sharpie dots
img_9689
Hand-painted typography
img_9687
Close-up
img_0208
Hand-painted typography // Spanish for “You are Beautiful”
img_0118
Hand-painted imagery