Apr4

Information Map

Posted on by
Information Map

The information map was by far one of my favorite projects to work on. The whole premise was that I was provided a dense catalog of financial information (mostly credit and bank card transactions) and was tasked with organizing the data into categories, then visually representing the categories in infographics, which were laid out in the style of a two-page publication spread. For the design, I tried to stick to 3-color objects in terms of graphic elements; every icon on the spread is between two and three colors, with very few exceptions. The whole design is fairly minimalistic, and I feel like it has a certain streamlined look to it, with the blurbs of text existing in an almost playful sense. While the information is very boring on its own, I added small elements of witty banter in the text to liven up the information, and I think that the design of the icons and all the colors used reinforces that liveliness.

That is where we start with the background. When I was creating the background – which consists of a dollar sign and three coins in a repeated pattern – I wanted to create something that would liven up the background compared to a solid color. When I placed all the text and images, it just seemed too dead, or rather too bureaucratic. It was cold, and I feel like all the effort I put into trying to make it something with personality really paid off; I really tried to emphasize the diversity of my data sets, and I think this spread really does a good job of making everything look unique.

The main typeface I used was Century Gothic, mainly because I like how well it works in both a bold weight and a thinner weight, and the italic style really worked well for the body text since I was adding in my own dialogue; they helped it feel more like I the reader was looking into someone’s real analysis and thoughts, rather than just reading a status report of what they were spending. I think that element of my design is what really brings it together. This was supposed to be personalized for a specific individual, so you would want it to be a little livelier in that sense; you would want that person to feel special rather than have them feel like a simple statistic. Similarly, I used Eras Bold ITC for the numbers on all the graphs, as they needed to also have a little personality, yet had to be legible as small sizes, which is where Eras Bold ITC seemed to really shine.

Overall, the design is meant to be something that you could look at, be genuinely interested in, and maybe have a bit of a laugh over. The spread is fun, light-hearted, and colorful, yet it manages to communicate the categories of purchases effectively using an icon-based vocabulary and a series of graphical representations, going above and beyond the original task.

Apr4

Artifact Map

Posted on by
Artifact Map

For the artifact map, I was supposed to create a literal map that could show a data set that would pertain to the campus. For my data set, I visited various spaces on campus that had tabled outdoor areas and measured how busy they were. I always like to find secluded areas when I eat outdoors, so I tried to create a scale from 0-10 people present, and rather than using numbers to communicate a key, I used the familiar language of traffic light colors to communicate how full the specific space was, with a dotted outline representing a space that had no traffic throughout the day. Each indicator icon features the abstract shape of a person composed of a circle and triangle (with more people representing higher traffic), as well as the corresponding color for the traffic for clarification. The overall design of the map has a sort of scroll-like design in the sense that I wanted it to be something that is distributed and can be rolled out for use in such a fashion, so I ended up going with an almost medieval theme for that purpose.

Apr4

Symbol Methodology

Posted on by
Symbol Methodology

For this assignment, we were tasked with creating a set of symbols that represent a pre-defined idea or concept. For myself, I decided to try and create a logo that would represent the YouTube channel that I use in my free time. In order to capture just what my channel was, I needed to think about what that persona involved and what I needed to represent. The main themes across my channel were retro styling, futuristic elements, and technology. For the top-most symbol I started with a basic drawing of a CRT monitor, then combined several other stylistic concepts and elements to give it the flowing and dynamic appearance it has now. I believe most of my decisions were influenced by the sway of the old Windows 98 and Windows XP logos, yet there is something about the negative space and cut-outs within the shape that evoke something a little futuristic, mainly the mixture of sharp and rounded shapes working in unison. With the middle symbol, a similar approach was used, this time mixing the shapes of a standard hard drive with that of an abstract computer chip. Again, the end result was something that wasn’t quite literal, but managed to give off a feeling of the old and what has yet to come, and a clash between the two. The rounded shapes and cut-outs allude to the architecture of computer parts and circuitry, yet everything feels as if it is still united as a whole, complete symbol; it is encapsulated in this circular shape, and that holds up really well with the idea of this being some kind of logo or branding element. The last symbol is the one that interested me the most, mostly because there is something about it that, while extremely minimalist, is highly effective in communicating a variety of ideas about my channel, and even some concepts I hadn’t considered until it was created. The symbol itself is akin to an old television screen, and the offset angles and rounded corners really give it a sort of Jetsons-esque appearance, but the sharp angles and motion suggested by the blade-like rectangles allude to both television standby screens and some sort of futuristic wiring. Overall, this symbol has a lot of elements working together, even though it is so basic in terms of form, which is probably its greatest strength.

Apr4

Wikipedia Reader

Posted on by
Wikipedia Reader

For my contribution to the Wikipedia Reader, I focused on the Japanese animated film Ghost in the Shell. I used two photos from the Wikipedia page, the other four in the document being selected by myself in order to provide more depth and context to some of the persons and elements mentioned in the text. Naturally, the placement of these images lines up with the text they are surrounded by, which is arranged in a two-column based grid. Additionally, there is a small graphic element of two overlapping squares at the top right of the first page, which is meant to emphasize the column width, as well as the title, chapter number, and Wikipedia link in a manner that was more interesting than simply displaying the text on a blank area of the page. For the entirety of the text, I picked Kozuka Mincho Pro as the typeface, mainly because it is compatible with both Japanese and English text and gave the text a more educational look while also appearing a bit bolder and more defined than the default Wikipedia typeface.

Apr4

Proportional Grid Booklet

Posted on by
Proportional Grid Booklet

This pamphlet was meant to arrange the commencement speech of Bill Gates. Given that Bill Gates is a very sophisticated and intelligent man, I tried to pick a typeface that would elevate or highlight that sort of character. For that sort of person, I considered using a typeface that had serifs, sleek curves, and had a semi-bold appearance; something studious and clean. I ended up choosing Perpetua for the body text, Clarendon LT Standard for the pull quotes, and Copperplate Gothic Light for the cover page, and I feel like those were good choices for the task at hand. In terms of the formatting of the text, I went for a narrow margin, and a modular grid was used to organize the text.­­­ The pamphlet follows a relatively simple paragraph structure, with an indent marking a natural transition in the text’s topic.

Apr4

Type Specimen Poster

Posted on by
Type Specimen Poster

 

For the type specimen poster, I really tried to capture the essence of the western theme, hence the “W” which initially stood for the “West” in my mind. I used borders that gave off an almost hand-made aesthetic akin to that of a stitched garment or the dotted line of a trail on a map. The overlay of the white and reddish-orange create a level of depth in color that gives new life to the typeface, portraying it in a way that, while uncharacteristic, still manages to highlight the form and use of a display typeface of this nature. Additionally, the framing of the actual text “Home on the Range” lends itself to the wood type nature of the typeface, reinforcing the block structure and allowing the composition of the poster to feel much more whole and solid than if the elements were separated entirely; a consistent and clean design.

Apr4

Display Typeface

Posted on by
Display Typeface

The theme for my display typeface was Home on the Range. Right when I picked my theme, I instantly thought of the old saloon signs in movies about the Wild West. From there, I tried to emulate that style in a typeface that was meant to emulate wood type. In order to give it the appearance of a wood type, I made sure every letter was made on the same size grid, each confining to a rectangle that made sure every letter looked like it was made from a block of wood. I added small flourishes to the sides of letters to give them a more western feel, mostly deriving the idea from the appearance of a branding rod. The serifs additionally added to the block format of the letters, adding in straight edges to really define the shape of the rectangle. It’s a consistent typeface, and I think it definitely captures the rough and industrious tone of Home on the Range.

Apr4

Monogram Project

Posted on by
Monogram Project

 

This monogram was designed as a representation of my initials (D.A.P.) in a way that I felt was significant and meaningful to my own identity. Typically, monograms tend to highlight or emphasize the family name by giving it the largest or most decorative appearance, yet I ended up making something unconventional. For myself, I put more emphasis on my middle initial. While at the time this was just a fun warm-up kind of exercise, I gave it a little more depth by alluding to my own personal history with my name. By emphasizing my middle initial, I was trying to acknowledge the fact that although I go by David Padilla in many of my classes and even in the workplace, I am always called Anthony Padilla by the majority of my family members and close friends. At some point, it just became less of a hassle to call myself David in line with the many rosters and name sheets throughout my years of school, and this was my attempt to re-visit what I considered to be a name that only my family knew. Aside from that, the majority of the design is a clash between the more computer-oriented typeface of a terminal and the more modern elements of a sleek and sharp display typeface. I felt as though these elements combined my love for technology and my desire to be an educated designer.

Mar8

Another Mid-Term!

Posted on by
Another Mid-Term!

Where are you in your hours that you declared earlier in the semester? Looking at your work now, are your current accumulated hours enough?

I think I’m definitely on track with my expert hours, especially since I ended up taking way more time on things than I first thought I would. I think I’m averaging about 7 hours a week on my work, and while I don’t feel like an expert on any level, I do feel as though I am progressing and understanding the concepts a lot better than when we first started. I’ve had a ton of technical difficulties along the way, and I’ve had to make decisions about design due to the motion maneuvers I was capable of, so it’s definitely been a solid learning process; far from perfect, but still sophisticated.

Has your definition of “sophisticated” work changed from last semester? If so, how so? What is sophisticated in your weather report?

According to what I said last semester,

For the sake of clarity, we’ll define sophistication as meaningful complexity. I believe the three categories for this section are also quite straightforward. High sophistication implies a level of discernment in the work that not only meets criteria, but resonates with a theme or some other element that makes the choices relevant and meaningful. Medium sophistication is similar to high, but only scrapes the surface, showing you are aware of your decisions, but perhaps not fully conscious of their implications. Low is the absence of any of the criteria in high or medium, and is simply the lack of any thought whatsoever.

I think that this definition still rings true! I believe that according to this, I did create something sophisticated. While the main point of the project was to simply include 40 points of data in different structures and in motion, I went a bit farther. I could have done bare-bones outline art and used a simple, generic font, but I didn’t! I tried to give the interface a theme, and tried to make sure it was consistent. I tried to give it a little futuristic twist in the way the font and shapes were picked (i.e. the concept of a modular, shifting interface), and I think if I managed to turn it into the whole “projection” style of video, it would be really cemented. Nonetheless, while the execution could be further developed, I think that the work is still sophisticated.

Describe how the new things you’ve learned so far connect to what you already had coming into the semester.

While we already knew how to design an interface (in the most basic sense) as well as how to make sophisticated maps (in other words had the knowledge to organize data in a functional and clear way), we did not really have a lot of experience with the actual animation side of things. I think that even though I was already familiar with Premiere and how that works, this was a whole other beast compared to the level of complexity Premiere allows for (it’s really not that much). I think that getting used to the workflow of Premiere was the hardest part, and just needing to really plan out what layers had what elements was a huge deal for me. Once I kinda got my footing around those aspects, it was pretty smooth sailing.

What are somethings you are still unsure about in this project that you would like to know more about?

I think one thing I really want to learn more about is working in 3D space or the idea of masks. Like, I know that sounds like a super simple thing to want to learn about, but from what I understand masks have a huge variety of uses, and I think that learning to move in 3D space could be equally beneficial and versatile. I think if that’s too simple, the next thing on my list would be the idea of maybe more advanced special effects, like making the video into a sort of real-time projection, or if on a screen, maybe the idea of scan lines or something like that? Kind of like how the Star Wars movies have holograms that have visible scan line. Maybe that’s a little advanced for this class or project, but it’s something I have great personal interest in.

Assign a level of value to this project. Identify two other projects in your creative life and place this weather report relative to them. How close or far are they from one another? What qualities did each project have that the other’s didn’t that would rate them higher/lower?

Wow, okay. Well, I think if we’re talking about anything we’ve ever done so far, I think the things I’d like to line them up with are the interaction/app design project from Image Methodology and one of my favorite personal YouTube projects (a Samurai Champloo game review). I think that I can kind of view this as a sort of upward linear progression, the lowest being the YouTube video, the middle being the Image Methodology project, and the top being this project. I see these three projects as a learning process, each sort of building up my skills and “conceptual toolbox”. I think that the personal project taught me a lot about timing, which is obviously incredibly important for any kind of animation work. I think that having to time the video clips to music, as well as presenting clips in a way that wasn’t temporally disorienting for the viewer was really essential to my growth in the video editing and composing department. the UI Lesson was obviously a lot more involved, and handled all the most basic elements of AfterEffects, mainly being x and y-axis movement, as well as some careful planning of keyframes and perhaps opacity when it was required. I think that project gave me the base understanding for the weather project, which was almost a sort of proving grounds in terms of complex motion, as there were a ton more layers to work with and way more factors to consider at any given time. In this sense, they all have value, but I think that the level of difficulty they had and what I actually learned from them was what set their value, more than anything else.

Break down the percentages of what entities are responsible for creating growth within the creative you. Am I part of it? Part of it is on you, right? Do you consider your classmates/friends as influencers on the course of your trajectory for success? At the end of the semester you will be evaluating me, but right now within your own pie piece, how much have you brought to the game? How did it end up that you brought that much?

I think that my classmates have a huge influence on me, as does my mother, you, and my own experiences and thoughts. I think one of the most key elements of my growth is what I do myself, however. Recently, I created some symbols that were viewed as “cartoony” and “adolescent”, so I kinda had to think about why that was. I ended up having a big conversation with my mom about it, and it kind of makes sense that I’d make something like that. A large portion of the media I intake are animated cartoons (mainly Japanese anime) and it’s been that way since elementary school. While I like a variety of different types of media (The Princess Bride is a classic), I have a rather adolescent, silly preference. My room is covered in posters regarding things like Minecraft, Star Wars Battlefront, and the James Webb Telescope. I have a single anime figurine (don’t worry, I don’t plan on buying more) on one of my many shelves of books, which also have everything from Choose Your Own Adventure to Harry Potter  to Slaughterhouse Five. Regardless, I have a very adolescent (or maybe youthful is a better word?) way of living, and it definitely shows up in the work I make and affects my creative growth in that sense. However, that’s not a bad thing, either. I am developing as an artist and designer (especially if I plan on doing any sort of cartoon or videogame-based work), but I think I need to take more responsibility to make sure I get some exposure to other styles, as well.

Anyhow, I think the percentages would be something like this:

Classmates/Friends (clap clap clap clap): 15%

Professors : 20%

Mother: 15%

My Own Actions/Thoughts: 50%

I already kinda explained the reasoning behind that, but I guess if I need to sum it up…

I care deeply about my relationships between those in my life, including professors and classmates, and I really take their advice to heart. However, I also have my own personal biases, preferences, and aspirations, and those are always going to be apart of my work and the fuel for my creative growth, as those stay with me for the rest of my life, and will only develop and grow as time passes.

Jan24

Calculating Expert Hours

Posted on by
Calculating Expert Hours

As far as calculating expert hours for Advanced Typography, the standard amount would apparently be 17 hours per week, with 4 in class and 13 outside of class. If I carry that over to a full month, that’s about 68 hours. Given that a semester is usually about 6 months (if I remember correctly), that’s about 408 hours across the semester, and 204 by the mid-term point. I think that I definitely hit the 13hr mark outside of class. I live and breathe homework and practice, so I don’t think I ever have a problem with that.

I think on a light week I may spend closer to 7 hours a week outside of class working on assignments, so I think it’s reasonable to say that I would be somewhere between 132 and 204 hours by mid-terms, and have anywhere from 264-408 hours at the end of the semester. That’s a reasonable goal and something I feel is incredibly attainable. I’m sure I’ll end up hitting the upper bounds of that estimate as the work load picks up, so I think I’m going to have a considerable amount of hours by the time the end of the semester rolls around!

If I were to go back as far as elementary school to see what my total expert hours were across all subjects and fields, it’d probably be about 2,538 hours, assuming I spent 8 hours in classes during the week, and at least one hour outside class doing homework or practicing somehow. That’s a really low and conservative estimate, but it does leave a lot to be desired!