These are maps I did for Graphic Design I. The first is a geographical map of the coffee drinks from my job. The second is decision making map. The third is an infographic map.

use of practice time: consistent

The second half of the semester I was very consistent about using my free time for expert hours. I would say I worked on my design work (this is between image methodology, graphic design 1, and my own personal work I explore) about 3-4 hours a day. I have been practicing my drawing skills and exploring fashion design which I know is kind of weird, but for some reason I think it connects to graphic design in some way. I have also been trying to understand illustrator much more, so I just do little experiment learning what the tools can do.

sophistication of work: medium

I feel as though the sophistication of my work from the beginning of the semester has dramatically increased. I still do not believe it to be at a high level yet, because I see what work with a high sophistication looks like and I know I can get there with more practice, but I also know I am not there yet. I have begun sketching on paper before I go to illustrator which has really helped the sophistication of my work, I can sketch through several ideas very fast and now that I am starting to have an eye for what might work, I can quickly weed out the better ideas and iterate on those.

use of feedback: meaningful

I use feedback as a tool to help me guide future iterations on a project. Ultimately, I try to explore every idea someone gives me, because I do not want to leave any ideas unused or untested. I use the feedback of my peers and professors to give myself of a level of objectivity to my work. I have found that when I am objective my work benefits immensely. I do not get offended when someone thinks something is not working, because I have realized I am not the only person that has to look at my work.

level of challenge to yourself: intense

In this second semester I believe I have went out of my way to challenge myself. For the geographical map, I used only symbols and although its hard to understand at times, once you learn what the symbols mean, it is quite simple to understand the map. I worked hard to get faster and more efficient with creating icons and symbols. I also have been working outside of class to learn more about the tools I am using. I have been trying to push myself to the point where I am uncomfortable, maybe that sounds weird but I remember someone saying you should never be comfortable and it should never be easy. So when I start to feel either of those things I immediately kick it up a notch.

other expert experiences: medium

I went to the art opening for one of the drawing professors, which was very interesting and his work was beautiful. I also went to East. I went to four different studios, Canopy and Pump Project and a few other small studios. I bought a few pieces of art and saw probably 200 artists work which was a little bit of an overload of visual information, but it was a good experience for me. I starting creating my portfolio website which has introduced me to web design. I am planning to double major in graphic design and computer science so I am excited to start exploring that part of design. I also went to the first day of the Art and graphic design thesis show.

social emotional development: mature

Quite frankly, I have had a horrible semester and I feel as though I have not brought that into the classroom. I let it influence the work I do outside of class which I feel is healthy and productive in my growth as a designer. But I do not let the bad day I might be having effect whether or not I am going to work on my projects and my craft.

contribution to class climate: warm

I only missed one day this semester because I was not feeling well. I feel like I send out the vibes that if someone needs advice they can come to me. I frequently go to people in both sections of this class for advice and direction.

outside work

Maps

For this project, we had to pick a word and then create three final symbols. The process involved picking nine smaller words that fit underneath our bigger word. We then had to create symbols and icons for these and then combine them to create our bigger words. In end I winded up using the majority of my non-objective symbols to create my final symbols.

Final Symbols for Passion

 

 

Use of Practice Time: Uneven- Consistant

So far this semester I feel I have been uneven to consistent with my use of practice time. Although I was not in the computer lab everyday of the week, I have been working on projects outside of the coursework for either design class. I have been working on my pen tool skills as you can see in the illustrations and the tattoo design I did for my friend. With the symbol project I worked very hard to have clean and simple lines. When I am in the lab I work diligently. I rarely look at my phone and I stay for at least three hours. I would say I average 9 hours working outside of class a week which is a little behind the projected amount of expert hours I wanted.

Sophistication of Work: Medium- High

I believe the sophistication of my work is medium to high. There are a few technical problems with the work I do. Like when I transferred my vinyl to the wall, I forgot the dot above the ‘i’ on one of my words. In the illustrations I did, not all the lines are as clean as they could be. But I think my color choice is interesting. The tattoo that I designed for my friend, I believe, shows a high level of sophistication in my work. I hand-drew an idea of what I wanted, scanned it into the computer and then traced the drawing with pen tool. I  treated my friend as a client and kept her updated on the progress of her design. I also had to work with virtually no conceptual reference since she had only a vague idea of what she wanted her tattoo to look like.

Use of Feedback: Meaningful

In regards to the tattoo I designed, I definitely had to take whatever feedback I got back and use it. Since it was her design, I had to set aside a few creative ideas so she would be happy with the end result. With my own illustrations, I worked on them by myself so I didn’t get any feedback from anyone. I really had to work on them and trust my instinct was leading me in the right direction. For the symbol project, I listened closely to the feedback I was given and put it into my work. there was one suggestion I didn’t listen to. It was to put spikes on both ends of the symbol that is two interlinking circles. I just didn’t believe doing that would make the symbol better so I made a judgement call to not take that advice. I did try the image out just to make sure. I didn’t want to completely disregard anything someone said.

Level of Challenge to Yourself: Intense

I feel as though I have challenged more this semester. I have been working on more personal projects and I have also been looking for ways to make my work in class more interesting. For the symbol project, the final three symbols are combinations of non- objective symbols. I definitely feel like my use of non-objective imagery shows how far I pushed myself for that project. I’ve also been pushing myself to master Illustrator, which was one of my main goals for doing the illustrations I did.

Other Expert Experiences: Class Assignments plus my own personal work and a few readings

Unfortunately, I haven’t been putting much into my other expert experiences outside of practice time. I have a design reading list of about 50 books and I’m slowly making my way through the list. Right now, I am on By Design by Ralph Caplan and The Art of Looking Sideways. By Design is kind of densely written so it’s taking me a long time to get through it. I suppose I should begin going to a few conferences

Social Emotional Development: Mature

I feel like I am developing maturely. I do not get butt hurt when someone tells me that what I am making does not look good. I understand the objectivity of judging someone else’s work. At the beginning of the fall semester last year, my work was heavily connected with myself. My work is still connected with me, but I understand to make good work I have to have a level of separation from my work.

Contribution to the Climate: Warm

I feel I always have something to say about something in class. I try to answer questions and contribute to the class discussions. I  am always open to giving people advice or my opinion on their work. I am usually not negative or off putting (at least I would hope I’m not). I have not missed a class yet and I would hope my presence in class is important.

Conclusion:

I have worked very hard so far this semester, but my lack of other expert experiences besides practice time and sophistication leads me to believe I deserve a B+ to an A-.

Final Symbols for Passion