Body Object Project

For this project, we had to make a sculpture that was both aesthetically pleasing and functional in relation to the body. I wanted to make a space helmet. My space helmet would also have an audio portion to it, and would be able to play music or sounds through headphones in the helmet itself.

I first began by searching for some inspiration pics to help generate ideas for my own space helmet.

alien_helmet_design_1_by_janniklind-d6xefi7

alien helmet design 1 – janiklind on deviantart.com

helmet01

Black Helmets – Donnie Luu

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My first step was to construct what the user wears on their head. It had to be flexible yet pretty sturdy, as well as be able to hold the headphones to use for the audio portion. I decided to use thin scrap cardboard from a box of applesauce, reinforcing it with duct tape.

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I wanted to make shoulder pieces for my helmet, so I took cardboard and made several pentagons. I then taped and hot glued these together to make the base. I eventually decided to cover them with paper mache made out of toilet paper, it order to give it a uniform look. These pieces were later spray painted with a matte black.

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Here is a picture of the helmet and mask together, in order to give an idea of how they would eventually attach. I made helmet out of pieces of cardboard cut into equilateral triangles, then covered in crisscrossed strips of duct tape. For the eyes I used plastic sunglasses I had recently received after getting my eyes dilated. The entire piece was later spray painted black.

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Because I wanted the experience of wearing the hood to be as dark and enclosed as possible, I decided on using a hood to cover up any places where light could shine in. My mother and her sewing abilities were a huuuge help here. She used spare material that was lying around in my garage.

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This is the end product. Halfway through the construction, I realized that it was developing a medieval look. This was unexpected but I liked it, so I went with it. By the end, I had a black space knight helmet that could play space music!

Examples of the Elements of Art and Principles of Design

For this assignment we had to find at least three examples around the Fine Arts Building of the Elements of Art and the Principles of Design.

ELEMENTS OF ART

Line: quality (thick, thin, broken), implied line, actual line,
linear networks: cross-contours, psychic line.

Line3

Line – Linda Sanchez

Line2

Line – Linda Sanchez

Line1

Line- Linda Sanchez

With line, Linda found some great examples in the tiling, as well as the line where a corner forms on the ceiling. My favorite is the crack in the concrete. It is very distinct and unique compared to the other two.

Shape: is a flattened enclosed area.
The boundary of a shape can be created by enclosing an area with a continuous line or implied line, filling an area with solid color/ texture, broken color texture

Shape3

Shape – Linda Sanchez

Shape2

Shape – Linda Sanchez

Shape1

Shape – Linda Sanchez

Shape was found in the way the roots and leaves of a plant give it a certain form. It was also found from the folds of a bag and how it creates and interesting shape. Lastly, the sharp edges of a cigarette bin create some more distinct shapes.

Texture: physical, visual (illusion), invented texture

Texture3

Texture – Linda Sanchez

Texture2

Texture – Linda Sanchez

Texture1

Texture – Linda Sanchez

Texture was plentiful around the Fine Arts Building. I like the similarities and differences between the first two pictures. While the first one has texture from 3D bumps and ridges, the second seemingly has texture from the contrast in values. The last one is a great example of texture because it is so rough and unsmooth.

Value: Contrast, value distribution (proportion of lights and darks)

Value3

Value – Linda Sanchez

Value2

Value – Linda Sanchez

Value1

Value – Linda Sanchez

The first picture shows value in different areas of shadow and where light directly hits the wall. The second also uses light and shadow to create value. The last one is interesting because of the lines that have different values to them themselves, as well as the surface they are on.

Color has: HUE< SATURATION< VALUE
plus WHITE = TINT
plus GRAY = TONE
plus BLACK = SHADE

Color3

Color – Linda Sanchez

Color2

Color – Linda Sanchez

Color1

Color – Linda Sanchez

Color was certainly easily to find.Color was found in ceiling wires, in work from other students, and left of paint outside.

Plane: 3-d form that has length and width but with minimal thickness.

Plane (1)

Plane – Marcos Ramirez

Plane

Plane – Marcos Ramirez

 

Plane (2)

Plane – Marcos Ramirez

Planes are anything that are pretty much flat. There is the see-through plane of the plastic covering the men’s bathroom, as well as the planes that make up the blinds in the classroom. There is also, of course, the papers that student art is on.

Volume: refers to enclosed area of 3-d space

Volume

Volume – Marcos Ramirez

Volume (1)

Volume – Marcos Ramirez

Volume (2)

Volume – Marcos Ramirez

These objects were chosen to show an enclosed area. They are all some form of a container. The watter bottle holds both water and air, for example. The other two containers are relatively empty, on the other hand.

Mass: solid 3-d form

Mass (2)

Mass – Marcos Ramirez

Mass (1)

Mass – Marcos Ramirez

Mass

Mass – Marcos Ramirez

Mass was an 3D solid, so I chose some interesting objects around the building. First I found some model houses, a 3d object made of planes. Then I found some rectangular pylons that seemed pretty standard. The glass bottles create an interesting 3D shape, but a 3D shape nonetheless.

Space: area within or around an area of substance: positive/negative, compression/expansion, activated, entering.

Space (2)

Space – Marcos Ramirez

Space (1)

Space – Marcos Ramirez

Space

Space – Marcos Ramirez

For Space, I chose pictures that showed an area and how objects/people were placed/ reacted to the enviornment.

Light: can enhance or obscure, affect emotions, entice us to enter, create mystery, can even be the sculptural medium

Light (2)

Light – Marcos Ramirez

Light (1)

Light – Marcos Ramirez

Light

Light – Marcos Ramirez

Light can be seen in the way it shines against the wall, in the way it creates distinct shadows, and in the way is shines through a translucent object.

Time/motion: actual and implied are two aspects of time.

Motion

Motion – Marcos Ramirez

Motion (3)

Motion – Marcos Ramirez

Motion (2)

Motion – Marcos Ramirez

Motion (1)

Motion – Marcos Ramirez

Motion was a bit more difficult to capture in a still image, so I chose things that implied movement frozen in time. The first was water coming from a fountain. The second was a door closing. The last was a girl mid step.

PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN

unity | harmony: similarity, oneness, togetherness, cohesion
variety: visual diversity to avoid an unintended monotonous composition and to hold the viewer’s interest.

Unity/ Variety - Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety – Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety - Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety – Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety - Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety – Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety - Maria Addison

Unity/ Variety – Maria Addison

These first two pictures are great examples of unity, as they all look visually the same and together. The last two images show unity and variety at the same time. While they have the same shape and/or design, each individual might look different from the other.

balance:
Symmetry/approximate symmetry: visual or actual equilibrium of two halves of a composition mirroring each other in size/shape and placement of elements of art.
Asymmetry: creates equilibrium among visual elements that do not mirror each other on either side of axis. (Depending, design can be quite dynamic or chaotic
Radial symmetry: equilibrium achieved by elements emanating from a point, usually the center of a composition

balance1

Balance – Maria Addison

balance2

Balance – Maria Addison

balance3

Balance – Maria Addison

The first image is a perfectly symmetrical design. The door shows balance inits shape and in the distribution of light/dark wood segments. The bathroom sign shows both symmetry and asymmetry in each character.

scale: comparative size of an element of art or object in relation to other
objects and expectations about what is normal. Ex. Human scale
proportion: relationship of the size of parts to each other and to the whole

proportion1

Scale/Proportion – Maria Addison

proportion2

Scale/ Proportion – Maria Addison

proportion3

Scale/Proportion – Maria Addison

For scale and proportion, Maria found things that were adjacent to the same object of a different size.

rhythm: sense of movement – regular, irregular, pattern, grid

Rhythm - Maria Addison

Rhythm – Maria Addison

Rhythm - Maria Addison

Rhythm – Maria Addison

Rhythm - Maria Addison

Rhythm – Maria Addison

These images show different examples of rhythm. while the first and last images have more random rhytms, the second image has more linear and pattern-like rhythm.

emphasis: arrangements of elements of art to make some areas the primary focus of a viewer’s attention

emphasis2

Emphasis – Maria Addison

emphasis3

Emphasis – Maria Addison

emphasis4

Emphasis – Maria Addison

Maria Addison was incredibly clever to find emphasis in objects that serve a safety function around the building. They were designed with the explicit purpose to call our attention in the event of an emergency. The red lettering of both the exit sign and the fire extinguisher are obvious examples of emphasis. The last example of the map shows emphasis in the way it breaks the pattern of the wall. Against such a plain surface, the map stands out.

Line 4D Group Project

For this assignment we were divided into small groups and instructed to come up with a temporary installation art project that had to do with line and physical space. My group decided that it would be interesting to explore how people react to new and unexpected lines and paths in the day to day life. We decided to take chalk and create new “instructions” for walking across campus sidewalks.

jump DSCN2175 step DSCN2185 DSCN2191

 

As we observed the reactions from pedestrians we were disappointed that more people did not give into the lines we drew. The one that had the most success was the box that said “Do Not Step Here”, which was interesting.
Overall while the project was certainly interesting, I think in the future if we were to re-do the project we would use 3D objects and obstacles to create new patterns rather than just lines. People would have a harder time ignoring them and it would make for a more interesting project.

 

 

Reading Response #1

The readings for WTF is Design & Art Anyway? were very interesting. I thought they provided some key insights into the distinctions and similarities between art in design. I was particularly interested in the definitions of design, because I had never thought about what was considered design before. I never realized what the design process looked like for professionals in the field, and how it requires a different focus than one might have for art. I thought Kees Dorst summed it up very succinctly. “In design, your goals are partly determined by others, the stakeholders, because the things you create must fulfill some practical purpose in the wider world… An artist determines his or her own goals” (Dorst, 88).

  1. What is your personal view of the difference between the designer and the artist?
    My personal view of the difference between the designer and the artist is that the designer is primarily concerned with making things that serve a function, while an artist is concerned with making things that are expressive of life, reality, emotion, society, politics, etc. A well designed chair’s meaning is in its existence as a chair to sit on. An artistic masterpiece’s meaning is to capture an idea or an image. A sculpture that looks like a chair is probably not meant to be sat on. An elaborate and ornate chair is probably not meant to be put in a museum for another century or so. A designer’s designs don’t amount to much if they are not put into use by a consumer. A piece of art that doesn’t get shown to the public or sold to a museum is still a piece of art. Emily Dickinson wrote hundreds of poems that were never published until after her death, for example. Had they never been discovered and published, they would have still existed and still served the artist’s purpose.
  2. Which are you? Why?
    Based on the perspectives provided by the readings, I think I would consider myself more of an artist than a designer. Anything I’ve ever drawn or created has simply been for the joy of creating it. I’ve drawn things to give to people, to hang up on my wall, and to just spend leisure time. As Dorst described, I’ve made things to fulfill my own goals. I’ve never made anything to function, or because someone else needed something I could make. I think the closest I’ve come to that is re-purposing jars and mugs to hold pencils and spare change. That doesn’t count as designing, however. As an interactive games studies major, I am currently learning how to code. In the future I could see myself working on coding projects that are for the purpose of selling to a consumer. If I end up working in the video game industry, I think I will see myself transition into more of a designer, because I will have to take consumer needs/wants into consideration.