No Assembly Required

I am still having no luck uploading my album covers. Sorry, they should be up soon!

But on a better note, my final for the polymer plate assignment is up and finished! I decided to go with a "type as image" approach, creating my own letters. I became quite attached to the idea of defining my word, pre-made, as "No Assembly Required." I loved the idea of depicting this definition in an incredibly hard to read type, creating the paradox of it requiring mental assembly. In my mind, this will be the front cover of a greeting card, further pushing the pre-made nature. Along the sides runs "manufactured thoughtfulness," a little surprise found upon looking closely. I'm awfully excited to get off the computer and begin to print, as I know the it will be the best part!

Sparatic Responses to "Pre-Made"

Our new assignment, which I'm uber excited about, is a polymer plate print with the theme of "made." I drew the prefix of "pre" and have various ideas...
My first reaction was prepackaged, manufactured, artificial thoughtfulness. Like greeting cards. All you have to do is grab one off of a categorized shelf, sign your name, and hand it to the person. There's no thought involved. Another example was pre-made cakes that you buy and have them fill in the blank with someone's name. All you have to do is pick one (and spell their name right). This has got me a bit stuck on a food theme: the "Just add water" mixes, shake 'n bake, cut and bake cookies, microwave dinners, Lunchables... Then the idea of fast food: it's there waiting for you to pick it, barely personalizable. Dining halls or cafeterias with pre-made food sitting out, you have choices, but at the same time, you have no choices. All you have to do it pick something. I was feeling the "Just add water" for awhile, but then I realized it's not something that's entirely pre-made, you do still have to add that water! Something more in the right direction is "No assembly required." None. It's already made, you just have to choose one. I like the idea of those magnetic words that you create sentences with on the fridge. They are there, waiting for you, you just have to pick the order. Like pre-made page layouts in programs where all you have to do is drag in pictures, text, clip-art... Those last two might be more assembly than I would like to portray. I'm really intrigued with the idea of using greeting cards to display this "pre-made" concept... maybe tying it together with the fast food/cafeteria style walking-with-a-tray and "Just pick one!" Mostly concept craziness thus far... More to come.

It may not be the World Series...

but it's mine! (which I'd say is better anyways.)
So here's what I've been working on:
I'm continuing the Carpool Poster concept with a series of three that have become a semi-promotional/informative package for carpooling. I'll be using a modified iconic Bob Dylan cover as a CD case to contain other pieces, such as a concert ticket, backstage pass, button, sticker, keychain, etc. I'm using a music theme as a source of attention draw, hopefully to those of the Dylan era. Since only 8% of commuters carpool, and most of them being middle aged, I hope to appeal to that generation of polluters.
(due to technical difficulties, the Dylan cover will be posted asap)

Greenway Response

By using inspiration from their new website (www.midtowngreenway.org), we began to form what could soon become a cohesive identity of the Coalition. The back of the postcard is basically meant for display only and I'd prefer that it be left blank to save on resources and to make people feel comfortable taking it and holding on to it for their use, rather than feeling obligated to send it. A simple one-sided design leaves the door open to using it as a viable, inexpensive mailer, keeping it simple to update with more current information. The layout of the poster feels a bit sparse and I think with more time and information, we would have been able to solve that composition dilemma. Overall, I'm pretty excited about the final output. I believe we were able to promote the Midtown Greenway as something that community members can see the benefits of getting involved in.

Greenway

Gina, Liz, and I worked in a group to create a promotional and informative piece for The Midtown Greenway Coalition. Rather than creating a brochure, we decided it would be more to the Coaltion's interest to design a poster to advertise the Greenway to community members to encourage them to become involved, which was a main theme they wanted to come out in the final product. We promoted the idea that there is something for everyone, no matter their income level, amount of free time, etc. The final is a poster with an update-able postcard "handout" for people to take with them to remind them of upcoming events. Below is poster and both sides of the postcard.