2-28-12 (14th Class)

This was the class where we went over everything and anything we ever did in class.  Then we talked amongst ourselves for 2 hours.  Jimmy Moss put up the remaining schedule in a sort of visual graph which did indeed do spectacularly in helping me block out the remaining time I have left this quarter.  Oh and the list of great many things we went over this winter are:

Perception,

Brainstorming

Game vs Test

Teamwork

Critical Reflection

Mapping

Methodology

Presentation

Critical Evolution

Evaluation

Judging

Storyboarding

Visual Interpretation

Visual Literacy –(example: To read a picture)

Meaning

Analysis

Project Brief

Emotional Motivation

Salesmanship

Descriptive Language

Innovate

Punctuality

Professionalism

Networking

Critique + It’s Purpose

Growth

And Socializing, but that doesn’t count because it’s the same as networking.

As for the discussion about videos, I have a feeling that it might lose points for being so dark since the overall message is suppose to be positive.  I would still like to continue with my idea, because I like it enough, consequences be damned.

Also a note to myself: The credits on the video will look like:

Designed by Steven Steigerwald

Art 220 Concept Development course at Cal State La

Winter, 2012

Entropy – A doctrine of inevitable social decline and degeneration.

Ephemeral – Lasting for a short time.

Ephemeral Art – Temporary mediums, like drawings in chalk, or on a whiteboard with dry erase markers, or sand drawings on the beach. 

2-21-12 (12th Class)

Felt like this class didn’t have a plan.  Half of it was a team building game of ridiculousness.  The beginning was interesting as we discussed the GAGE speaker no holds-barred.  Frankly I’ve already wrote a paper discussing the speaker so there really no reason to write a blog about it.  The game itself I suppose was a commentary on working together as a group.  Seems like our group just didn’t cut the mustard in the end had to give up.  Not very inspiring ending.  I’m not sure what else to write about because that was the entire class.  The game was very repetitive and the speaker discussion was jut another part of something I’ve already written. 

2-16-12 (11th Class)

We finished giving our presentations this class and that was pretty much it.  Since I went last week there really isn’t much to say apart from some presentations.  I did catch some flak for commenting on the chess? Game because his presentation was similar to my own, even though I didn’t like his.  I’d argue that that presentation was vague, all over the place, with a good idea mixed in there somewhere.  Starting off funny is all well and nice, but if you don’t sell your idea, that’s all that someone is going to remember, and I didn’t like that his presentations was mainly just bashing the concept of chess.  Certainly would have been a great presentation if he bashed “standard” chess to sell his idea, but it didn’t come off that way, instead more like “chess is stupid, so I thought I’d do some things to it, but seriously, chess is stupid” which just rubbed me the wrong way afterward.

I did like the end of the class where we discussed and looked at some concept briefs.  It was insight into the inner workings of graphic design and I feel less intimidated at having one of these jobs if my instructions are so clear.  It’s hard to communicate a complex and detailed message if you always just “wing it” like I thought you were suppose to do.  I had fun writing my brief, though I didn’t have fun writing the GAGE SPEAKER EVENT paper, mainly because the speaker actually made me feel guilty at taking notes of her event.

I’ve noticed I’ve been writing very cynically lately, and I wonder why.  Can’t be healthy to be so negative and pragmatic…hopefully something will cheer me up soon.

2-14-12 (10th Class)

So in the blogs we’re supposed to have to come up with at least 3 adjectives.  No where in the syllabus

instructions about blogs is the word “adjective” even mentioned.  So I guess I’m playing guessing games with this blog.  What will be missing from this blog this time?  Anyway, this class was just presenting our presentations.  Though, my presentation board was rather shabby, lacking the crispness of other boards.  I tried to spice up my actual presentation to the class, but I have no idea if this would improve my grade an anyway.  The professor said it was good, but I still don’t know if that means anything, because we may just doing practice.  Uncertainly sucks.  Oh wait, I mean uncertainly is “distasteful”, because I got to have a fancy vocabulary.  Oh, and even though I presented already, I got to bring my board bulky board back again, if I have to lug it around my other 2 classes again, I’m going to be “aggravating”

So what to say about other people’s presentations?  Lot of shyness.  I can’t help but understand, I too have a pretty bad case of stage fright.  I’ll admit, when we were critiquing, his mentioning of the need for constructive criticism is something I agree with wholeheartedly.  I’m tired of people just saying something was good or bad and being very non-descriptive.  I assume their trying to spare someone’s feelings, but still, you don’t learn anything if you don’t address the problems.  Course I don’t know if this exercise actually has any purpose, because it there is no grade involved, it’s completely  “superfluous” as my art class takes time out to be a speech class, despite the fact that I already did a speech class last year. 

2-9-12 (9th Class)

Not much to say about this class either. 

The entire class consisted of presenting our 9 game ideas in front of everyone.  Saw a lot of ideas, though oddly most were complex in a way that was boring.  Not enough simple ideas.  Also, the professor was pretty hard the people who had less then 9 ideas.  Frankly it was hard to get 9 idea, and a lot of mine were junk ideas because there really was not enough time to think these things up.  I feel these people who really didn’t get to present their ideas will have sub-par projects as a result of the lack of feedback.  I guess it’s nice we’re getting feedback from the professor this time...

Also, minor grip.  It’s annoying having to do a project of one of our ideas when we turned in our sketches.  I had to rewrite the rules from scratch and I’m sure I forgot a few.  Nothing having the sketch with me sure slowed me down on this project.

2-7-12 (8th Class)

Not much to say about this class.  We all brought games, and we played them.  Learned I'm not that shabby at chess.  The homework however, 9 orignal ideas for games, is going to be tricky...

2-2-12 (7th Class)

So, spent the first hour of class trying to name a boring pie chart while the Professor looked for a projector.  Wasn’t a waste, but I probably should have gotten breakfast and came to class slightly late.  After the professor found the projector we did watch a truly interesting video by Sir Ken Robinson, where he discussed our archaic education system.

I do think it was an interesting commentary about how people don’t discover what they are actually good at or love to do, causing a life crisis.  Talent is buried deep and education isn’t designed for finding talent.  He equates our current education system to fast-food.  Standardized, and of reasonable quality, but impersonal, and completely lacking in innovation.

I also found the segment of him talking about removing tonsils being in fashion way back when, and no longer, and equating it to the ADHD phenomenon.  I can attest to that as a first grader, I was given A.D.D. drugs cause my first grade teacher said I needed to them.  Even though I never felt the drugs do anything, I was taking this damn medication all the way up till middle school.  Certainly the message that there was something wrong with me didn’t do my self-esteem any favors, and in fact to this day, it still pretty low.

1-31-12 (7th Class)

Another morning class today, but then again, I should expect no different, it’s a Tuesday.  And the day got started with the thrilling topics of mapping.  Cartography, pie charts and statistical mappings, wow, with such intense topics, it’s a wonder I could keep my eyes open!

Later on we were treated to a Design Process Model that resembles something like that you’d see in a computer chip.  Something about how the analytical research stage generates the ideas, the concept development filters them and refines them, and the Design + Production process is the refinement of the best idea.  After that came a study of the syllabus, then we were given in hour at the end of class to make a process map with vague instructions.  I admittedly liked this because this meant I could goof off on my laptop while researching process maps online.  With some time management, I was able to complete the assignment minutes before it was due, while not feeling stressed at all.  Ingenuity and laziness go so well together…

I am annoyed at the homework being another Process Map being I had already researched them doing the first one, the second one will end up no different…