“The thing I hate most about advertising is that is attracts all the bright, creative and ambitious young people, leaving us mainly with the slow and self-obsessed to become our artists. Modern art is a disaster area. Never in the field of human history has so much been used by so many to say so little.”
-Banksy
Writing and music are my strongest influences. I rarely recall drawing, painting or editing when I’m not listening to music. I favor inspirational music: often instrumental or alternative. I think those styles work best for me because I am not being distracted or pulled into a mindset where I have to pay attention to others. My mind can be entertained, yet focused on my own personal work and journey.
My writing is a creative influence that molds my work, or rather braids it, I suppose. I use my writing as a loose pattern that guides my ever wandering ambitions.
I’ve never considered myself a talented drawer therefore I’ve never enjoyed the medium because I thought I was bad at it. After half a semester, I’ve realized that it’s not that I’m bad, I’ve just never been taught to drawn properly. I’d never formally learned about shading or perspective. Drawing this semester has helped expand my horizons My work in the drawing studio is affecting my painting too, in a positive way. Because I’m working with mostly black on white, I’m becoming more comfortable using black and white in painting instead of merely relying on color to produce understanding.
I rarely blog, this may be error, or a note upon how busy my life is. Unfortunately, I don’t believe it is the latter. Hence this post is an attempt at reconciliation!
My semester from hell is complete; fall 2012 spun me around like a twister, so rapid that when I landed I hardly knew which way home to Dallas. Perhaps it poetic justice; after my whimsical semester abroad I was due some difficult schooling. In about 5 weeks I will commence my final semester of my education at Austin College. The past four years have disappeared into what I can only assume is dreaded debt and fond memories.
When I was 18 everyone I knew asked me “What college will you attend in the fall?” Now at 22 each person I know asks me “What do you plan to do when you graduate?” When asked this question I usually snort a laugh and say I don’t know. I haven’t had time to plot my future these past few months. My time was spent in labs, in my studio, on group projects, writing papers, haggling with the registrar to receive due credit and working with the football team. That was fall.
Now is spring! Be warned, I’m ready to plot like none other. Today I worked on my resume until I wanted to cry because it looked so pretty. And today I’ll begin the task of constructing my work-related website. I don’t want to rush this endeavor; good work is the produce of two things: impulse and time, so I’m taking January to lay every foundation I could possible require.
The future scares some my age; but I see nothing to fear if I do as I’ve always done and take an active role in planning my own life.
For those who don’t know, I’m studying abroad in Florence, Italy this semester. Now, the concept of writing about the past three months sounds like too large of an undertaking for any one Sunday afternoon. So to make this short, but never the less sweet, I’m going to share pictures of my time abroad.
My first month here, I explored the city; I climbed to eternal staircase that leads to Piazza Michelangelo and saw the city’s beautiful skyline.
I also visited Pisa and climbed the Leaning Tower!
The last week of January I had the unexpected privilege of flying to Gothenburg, Sweden to taste a cold that most Southern girls, like myself, rarely know.
Here in the city, I have climbed to the top of Brunelleschi’s dome.
I’ve seen Michelangelo’s David, Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, Tribolo’s Boboli Gardens, Alberti’s Santa Maria Novella and Arnolfo di Cambio’s Santa Croce. These are just to name a few of the historical, revolutionary sites I’ve had the honor of visiting and studying.
While living in Italy I’ve seen Juliet’s home in Verona, covered in locks by lovers from around the world.
I’ve witnessed the Colosseum, in a state of snow which Rome hasn’t seen in over 30 years. I walked St. Peter’s, amazed at its vastness.
Last month, when my Grandfather came to visit me, I gawked at the streets of water that are Venice.
Recently, I’ve gone to Bologno and tasted the world-renowned meat. Then just this weekend I drank Tuscan wine at a 600 year old castle in Siena.
In March, I went to Barcelona, Spain and relaxed on the warm beach, tasted fresh market fruit, saw Gaudi’s stunning cathedral and even witnessed a silent protest against animal cruelty.
In England I visited the magnificent Lincoln Cathedral then in London I visited the Globe where Shakespeare’s plays were hosted. And many other awe-worthy sites around the huge city-all thanks to hand transportation of the tubes! “Mind the gap!”
This semester I haven’t had access to studio space, so my art has been limited to digital photography and sketching.
I cant complain though, this break from my paint brush has allowed me more opportunities to write, including for the school news paper, “Blending”!
The past three months have been unlike anything else I’ve experienced in my 21 years on this planet. Before January 1st I had never left the USA, now I have been across the world for three months and I’ve visited 4 different counties! Next on the list? France!
Arrivederci and à bientôt!
As a Communication: Speech emphasis major it’s not likely I’ll ever take another DVP class. But that’s not to say I didn’t love the class. Because rest assured, reader, I did.
This past summer I was a print production intern for an Ad agency. I liked the organized system: the plotting and scheduling that went into producing an ad. With full assurance I can say that was also my favorite thing about DVP: the production stage.
For my final project that was my largest contribution. I was heavily involved in all the stages, but my most thorough and welcomed assistance pertained to the details. I scheduled where we’d meet as a group, what time, made sure we’d have all the supplies we needed. I sent emails, made a Facebook group, shot out texts, found a set and coordinated with the owners. Planning production was like working an intricate puzzle. I had to factor in multiple people’s schedules.
Once on set I passed out scripts, ran through lines with actors, gave instructions and helped set up equipment. With over 10 hours of working on set, there was plenty to be done by all. Considering all that could have gone wrong with upwards to 20 people on set, I was extremely pleased with how everything progressed. Our actors worked hard to be their best and the homeowners were gracious to let us move their furniture as we pleased.
The editing was fun; it was interesting to convert vision into reality. But when I look back over the past month, it’s the production that I remember most fondly. I know this to be true because of how I now view movies. I don’t think of how cuts are edited together (although, I am now much more aware when perspectives shift, thanks for bringing back reality, Brett), instead I envision the work that went into each shot.
I’m thoroughly thankful I took this class. The 6 hours of class time a week were worth it. Feast of Judgement won’t be the last film I help produce. (See short film in the post below)
It was a journey, to say the least. Since my last post things took an unexpected turn. Our source never showed. Austin and I made out way to the Woodsman Circle Home to interview the property owner’s agent, who had roots at the place, but she never showed or returned my calls.
So what happened then? Plan B! We had done our homework and were well prepared for the worse. The following week we accumulated research from the Sherman Museum where we collected scans and we also toured the Touch of Class Antique Store Museum where we met the Mayhughs! They own the antique store and have since the mid-80’s; they also happen to be W.O.W. conosouries. Austin and I sent up an interview with them for that Thursday and our Plan B began to take motion.
Filming was an adventure. Neither of us had experience setting up lights or adjusting camera angles all while trying to get audio and ask questions. In truth, despite our naivety, we remained in control, learned a lot and enjoyed the experience.
But our story doesn’t end there. Editing must follow an afternoon on “set.” And by “editing” I mean: more hours that I’d like to recall locked in the lab in front of a mac deliberating over Final Cut working out nit picky details. For those of you who don’t understand what goes into making an effective “cut,” I pray you never have to. It’s a rewarding, albeit frustrating experience.
The bulk of our footage was suppose to come from our trip to the property; obviously our source bailing was a huge set-back. I sincerely feel Austin and I rose to the challange and produced an informative documentary. And thanks to a prior [legal] trip of mine to the property, Museum pictures and our pan from the gate we manage to pull together an asthetically pleasing project. as well.
So here it is, if you care to be informed and dazzled, take a look!
No project is perfect, even the greatest of films have errors or room for improvement. Our documentary is no exception to this. To me chagrin I’ll admit I let the fear of blinding the older couple keep me from suggesting better lighting. In the future I’d like to be bolder in my approach. As my professor suggested in class I’d like to improve the sound quality. Being in a large room with tall ceilings and a lack of furniture to absorb sound made it more difficult, but is no excuse not to be more creative when facing such struggles in the future. Because of prior said set-back I also did not receive the opportunity to explore the artistic boundaries I’d hoped to push of filming the actual structure. All this considered, I’m proud of my first Final Cut produced project and the work Austin and I put into it. Now all I have to say it:
Bring it on, short film!
When meeting with my DVP: Documentary partner today I didn’t know what to expect. We had no plans on how to kick-start our project. So we sat down and began with a phone call.
First you should know what our pending project is about. In Sherman there is this old deteriorating building most students call “the orphanage”. In fact, it served as a non-profit retirement home for elderly women from the last 20’s through the 70’s. Once it was decided upon as our topic the next step was to find a contact; since the property is private we cant just walk on.
So that is when our phone call come back into play. Our contact was very friendly and offered for us to meet her at the “orphanage” (aka: Woodman Circle Home.)
Thus began our conversation of questions. How should we film the interview? Who is going to ask the questions? What if it rains? What will our questions be? Do we want to take pictures too? Do we want pictures of the original structure? How will be get them?
In conclusion, I say all this to show that even though we walked into Ida Green not knowing our first steps, we were able to quick formulate a list of “To Do’s.” This next week’s progress will be the backbone of project and it started in ignorance. How how much one learns when faced with a deadline.
When asked to make an argument in DVP a few ideas came to mind, but only one stuck out so much that it made it through production. The Twilight craze, in my humble opinion, is… stupid. It encourages young girls to approve of stalker, victim relationships, that boarder-line necrophilia. But that aside, the acting and plot structure of the movie just suck.If my strong words do no convince you, here is my video.
Twilight in Two Minutes
My editing still needs improvement; it’s too choppy. Partially because at times I only wanted to include certain lines, and it became difficult to cut the preceding or follow words out. My quick speech seemed to fit the theme of my project, but without a doubt I could still use more practice slowing down and enunciating.
frecklemelayne 