1. Create a four-year degree plan. How will this major help you prepare a career in the future? Do you have a back up plan if this major doesn’t work out?

Kim Livingstone is a saint and showed me how to complete a gdes degree in essentially three years since I’m a transfer. I received AP credit for some of my gen eds which made that possible.

Still thinking through different career paths, but right now I think I’d like to work for a company and do their graphic design rather than solely do freelance work. Also, it’d be fun to be a college professor. A degree in graphic design would give me the skills to do all of those different paths. If this major doesn’t work out, I’d probably major in rhetoric and writing since I find it interesting and I’m pretty good at it.

Freshman Year at Baylor

FA 16

Required Chapel
Concert Choir
Intro to Management Information Systems
Business Pre-Cal
Intro to Art
Christian Scriptures
1st Year Seminar – Hankamer Business School

SP 17

Required Chapel
Drawing I
Design IA
Intermediate Jazz Dance
Christian Heritage
1st Year Seminar – College of Health & Human Sciences

Sophomore Year at St. Ed’s

FA 17

Type 1
Visual Studies I
Intro to Computer Science
Rhetoric & Composition II
Graphic Design I
1st Year Seminar – VISU majors

SP 18

Literature & Human Experience
Image Meth
Adv Type
Sophomore Portfolio Review
Graphic Design II

Junior Year

FA 18

History of Graphic Design
Graphic Design III
The American Experience
French I

SP 19

Presentational Speaking
Junior Portfolio Review
Interaction Design
Junior Studio
American Dilemmas
French II

Senior Year

FA 19

History/Evolution Global Process
Senior Studio
Internship
Capstone

SP 20

Social Design
Topics in Graphic Design
Senior Exhibition & Portfolio
Science in Perspective
Contemporary World Issues

2. Do you have a minor or have you considered a second major?

If so what is it and why do you think this will be a beneficial choice?
If not, identify at least one minor or major degree option that you are interested in. Explain why you chose this option.

Not entirely sure I have any room to squeeze in a minor, but if I did add one it would probably be journalism simply because I love NPR.

In Type 1, we were recently set forth on Fontstruct.com to design a display typeface based on a quote randomly assigned from butdoesitfloat.com. My quote was “Truth suffers too much analysis.” I did some research and found that the speaker of said quote was Frank Herbert, a moderately well-known sci-fi writer best known for almost starting a cult. I used the science fiction genre as inspiration for the modular nature of my typeface aptly named “Herbert.” The process of creating my first typeface revealed how similar the basic shape skeletons of many letters are.

The strongest aspect of this work is how cohesive the typeface is across the board. All the characters feel like they belong together. The weakest aspect is its simplicity. While the Fontstruct website was inherently limiting with its grid set up and limited block options, I feel like I could have pushed the limits of the grid further. Conceptually, the project can be strengthened by expanding the typeface further through lowercase, unusual punctuation marks, and other glyphs. Technically, I can improve on my Fontstruct skills by learning and integrating keyboard shortcuts. I learned a lot about how typefaces like Helvetica and Futura were created by creating a typeface of my own.

Graphic designer Paula Scher anchors the New York-based design firm Pentagram, where she has worked since 1991. She has been described as “master conjurer of the instantly familiar,” a testament to her massive talent and skill at brand identity. As part of a Netflix documentary series “Abstract: The Art of Design,” Paula Scher was examined for the graphic design episode. In the docu-series, Scher says that typography is everywhere and that it “shouts” out to her. Her clear love and affinity with typography has clearly influenced her work. One of her projects the documentary analyzes is her branding work for The Public Theater. Scher transformed the theater into a highly recognizable symbol through typography. Inspired by old wood type, each letter has a different width to represent the many different types of people in New York. This unique type setting truly is “instantly familiar.”

Scher earned a BFA from the Tyler School of Art and honorary doctorates from Corcoran College of Art, Design and Maryland Institute College of Art, and Moore College of Art and Design. As a teacher, Scher held a position at the School of Visual Arts for twenty years as well as positions at Cooper Union, Yale University and the Tyler School of Art.

As a graphic design major, I’m really interested in typography. The Public’s branding is a particularly interesting and unusual. I also have a soft spot for theater, so this branding is interesting to me for that reason as well.

Some of Scher’s other client work include the High Line, the New York City Ballet, and the New York Botanical Garden.

Resources linked in blog:
Pentagram
Pentagram, About – Paula Scher
YouTube, “Abstract: The Art of Design” trailer

Part 1

Below is my “time tracker” for the past week (click to view in new tab and zoom). Looking back on the week, I’ve realized I do a lot of homework, which makes sense since I’m in school. I think I do a decent job of time management as I get plenty of sleep.

Part 2

This is a piece I really love. The concept is simple, but the impact is great. Each rectangle analyzes a different color scheme. The top left rectangle is monochromatic, top right analogous, bottom right triadic, bottom left complementary. The most challenging part was making the four rectangle’s to appear unified despite their different schemes.

Part 1

What are the main points of each article?

“What Entrepreneurs Can Learn from Artists”
Entrepreneurs are stereotyped as charming, charismatic, innovative, and business-savvy. But what can take them to the next level are the best qualities of the artist – intuition, comfortableness with uncomfortableness, storytelling, passion, to name a few. The characteristics that make artists seem a bit wacky – such as childlike contrarianism – are the spunk that entrepreneurs and innovators need to get our of their boxes and into the tie-dye-rainbow-prisms of artists.

“Are Artists Entrepreneurs?”
Find partners to fill your gaps. You can’t be an expert at everything, nor do you have to be. Some artists are natural entrepreneurs, which is great, but if you don’t fall in that category, find someone(s) who can help take you beyond your limitations.

What can artists learn from their “entrepreneurial cousins”?

Making is often a solo activity. With the exception of peer critique, artists work primarily by themselves – a painter out in the woods alone, a sculptor with his clay. Entrepreneurs excel at teamwork. The recluse of the artist is directly contrasted by the team-sport-spirit and network-growing nature of entrepreneurs. From entrepreneurs, artists can learn to step back from their easels into reality and grab hands with those that will help them on the climb to success.

Do you agree that artists are entrepreneurs? why?

I think that there is more in common between artists and entrepreneurs than not. But based on my time as a business major compared to my time as a visu major, there is a clear separation. Teamwork between the two groups is crucial for mutual success, but there often is a clear distinction based on natural aptitudes and skill sets – artists being able to think creatively outside the box and entrepreneurs being more business, network minded. So, if we’re talking about “entrepreneurship” in a very general sense, then I guess we’re all entrepreneurs, but from a strictly career sense, no, artists are different than entrepreneurs.

Which of the 12 characteristics of artists do you agree with?

“Artists thrive under constraints” One of my professors once told our class that it’s much easier to be creative when you’re not looking at a giant void. Constraints are key to know where the heck to start when you have all the tools and resources in the world available to you.

“Artists are comfortable with ambiguity” Art is inherently unable to be quantified. Ambiguity and discomfort are iconic to the trade.

What others would you add to the list?

Artists are disciplined. It takes major discipline to click away at an Illustrator file or make sure the camera is lined up just right for the perfect shot.

Artists are patient. “Watching paint dry” is not a cliché for artists – it’s reality. Patience is key when refining and iterating a work to perfection.

Additional thoughts.

Both of these articles were fascinating and incredibly relevant to all the visual studies fields. The comparison of artists to entrepreneurs is a thought-provoking one. The point that artists need entrepreneurs and vice versa is integral to the success of both parties.

Part 2

Do you have grit, or is this something you need to work on?

Yes, I have grit. My dad pushed me so hard since elementary school that I was forced to develop it. My grit is evident in my relentless pursuit of doing everything I commit to with full completion and accuracy.

List a couple of things you could do to increase your level of grit.

Learn a new skill. I believe learning a new skill is one of the hardest things to do. It’s so easy to give up on something when you’ve just begun, but to increase grit you have to practice at following through.
Meditation. Perhaps an unlikely suggestion, but mediation requires such focus and determination to not only calm your mind during your practice but also remain dedicated to practicing on a regular basis.