Logo Assignment

When creating these logos, I was having a lot of difficulty making them aesthetically pleasing while also representing something iconic about the person (or idea). After a bunch of failed attempts I decided that in most cases the phrase "less is more" can be applied to a logo. I ended up taking recognizable features/artwork and tweaking them to convey a straightforward concept.

Disney + Star Wars

Tim Burton

Albert Einstein

Text Assignment

For my assignment I decided to construct the word unnoticed using glitter and confetti. I liked the idea of the contrast between the meaning of the word and the way it was represented. Which is stronger? The written word or the visuals used to portray it?

Text Assignment

Helvetica

        Last week in class we watched Gary Hustwit's Helevetica. I didn't think that a movie solely about a font could be as interesting as it was. Even though I have been surrounded by a broad array of typography my entire life, I never thought too intensely about the process of choosing a particular font style. I know the basics aboot appropriate fonts - don't use comic sans for an essay because it makes it look childish, times new roman for anything school or work related, and other simple things like that. I have had to choose a typhography for a media project before, but I don't usually spend too much time on that.
         I loved how the people in the film were so passionate about type face. The one man who said that well constructed fonts got him excited was my favorite - prior to this I wasn't aware that so much work went into making fonts. Since I have always had hundreds of fonts to choose from on a computer, I guess I took it for granted. It was strange to see the modernist and postmodernist view of typefaces. I don't see why some of the people hated helvetica so much, mainly because it was overused or boring or what not. Helvetica is a classic font, and after viewing this documentary, I had a lot of respect for what it's inspired over the past few decades. I didn't fully realize just how many people and companies use Helvetica - I wonder what it is about this font that makes it universally friendly.

Typography Response

Typography in the streets of NYC.

Good: This is a good typography for a New York City bar. The font is very basic - its not too classy that it would turn away average folk, but its not too casual that it would draw the bridge and tunnel crows. Its a good, solid font to attract a younger, hip crowd. It's easy to read, which is important for people who are looking to drink. The letters are in all capitals, and they are glowing neon red. This is sure to stick out against surrounding stores and to attract wild people looking to have a good time.

Good: I think that Macy's has picked a great typography for many reasons. Firs tof all, the only thing I really can make out in this pictures is their obvious, blaring red sign. Normally I wouldn't like that the letters are arranged so that theyre overlapping and on top of each other, but it works here because it keeps your attention long enough for you to read that it says Macy's. The giant star also makes it interesting to look at. In all the crowds of people and hundreds of stores in Herald Square, Macys doesnt need to try too hard considering it's by far the largest store in the area. However it makes sure to stand out of the crowd with its giant, bold advertising.

Bad: I picked a random street in chinatown to show how the typography is all similar, busy, and frustrating to look at. I thought going somewhere that I wouldn't know the language on the signs would make it obvious which had the best typography - which sign would I be drawn to? But in this area, I found that no particular sign stood out to me, and not just because I don't read chinese. There is an overwhelming selection of signs and it's impossible to pick one that has the best styling choices. For me, the simple signs are better. The signs with the white background and the red writing seem the cleanest and most appealing to me.

Bad: Perhaps this font and color scheme may be good for what this place is selling, its not really eye catching or aesthetically pleasing. There are Crown Fried Chicken's all over the city, and even though their food is delicious, it may not always be the best quality. Everything about this typography is average - the font is alright, the dull red and off white, the name that says exactly what they sell, everything. It is easy to read and to the point, which is good for most customers who want to grab food and go.



Good: The McDonalds in Times Square may be the flashiest typography I've seen in NYC. All the ads in this part of NY are big and glamarous, but the giant golden arches take the cake. The font is oh so familiar, the shiny gold "M"s are screaming out at you wherever youre standing. The golden arch is a better approach to advertising than writing out the full name; for some reason the sole letter looks less obnoxious than if McDonalds was written out in huge, bright letters.



Good: The Apple Store. I guess this isn't technically typography, but it's definitely effective in catching your eye. The apple is bright and bold, and it doesn't need any actual letters to get its meaning across. A giant apple, floating in what seems to be mid-air.

Good: This is the Loews Theatre on 68th street. It's my favorite theater, and it follows the typography of pretty much every theater in the city. The font is large and extremely bright with the classis red and yellow lights. I feel like this theater in particular does a good job of making the customer feel like they're really going to get a great show experience. The entrance is grand, the list of movies moves underneath the "Loews" sign, and the words describe exactly what you're going to. A movie theater.

Photo Assignment 9/20/12

This weeks assignment was to find a picture, identify 3-5 shapes, convert them to silhouettes, and then arrange the shapes to convey a particular theme.

Romance

Anger

Busyness

Growth

Loneliness

Serenity



Week 8: Mark Fiore

We watched a couple of Fiore's animtions in class, and I liked them because they were a good example of the simple animations we can create in this class. For the most part, the drawings in his animations are still, and there is once character that moves its face (eyes, eyebrows, mouth, etc) and sometimes moves its body a bit. These shorts are mainly for sending a quick message about something relevent in the news, and less about the complicated/extravagant animation. This is just another example of how meaning can come across in a strong way even if the way it is portrayed is not spectacular. Simple effects like a glowing light from a computer monitor give the shorts life and personality.

Week 7: I Met the Walrus

This is one of the cooler text animations I've ever seen. It is fairly simple in the sense that the text and hand-drawn animations match up exactly to what the interviewer/John Lennon is saying. It creates some nice visuals to accompany the statements that John Lennon is making. For example, when John Lennon discusses the idea of trivial v. profound, there is an animation of a Trivial Pursuit Card. This isn't actually relevant to the interview, its just a word translated into a drawing. I love the rotoscope effect - I think it works better with the time period in which the interview was conducted as opposed to a real life recording. There aren't any elaborate colors or really complicated drawings, but I think it is more effective this way. Simple and to the point.

Week 6: Creep - Low Morale

This animation is a very interesting take on Radiohead's Creep.The main character is a simple, thumb-shaped man who stands in one spot for most of the music video. As he sings, the environment around him constantly changes to reflect his meaning of the lyrics. In class we learned that this animation is composed of hundreds of individual drawings that are all compiled into one frame. I think this works well because it gives the viewer the opportunity to watch the environment unfold and transform, and since the character isn't really moving, he isnt a distraction from his elaborate surroundings.

Week 5: Jan Svankmajer - tma/svetlo/tma (Darkness/Light/Darkness)

I think this may be my favorite piece that I have watched so far. The entire stop-motion animation takes place in a small, empty room, and different body parts enter the room one at a time. It starts off with just one hand and two eyeballs, and then another hand, a pair of ears, and so on. The body parts rearrange themselves as each new one enters the room, and it gives the viewer a fun way to see how body parts would work if they were put together differently. There is a real struggle to get the bigger body parts (such as the head) in the room, and I like how each limb reacts in a unique way. The limbs and organs have a distinct personality, and when two or more parts join together, they turn into one united being. The development of the body and the pace of the animation are perfectly timed, and the lights being turned out after there is a whole body is a nice touch. Almost like the work that needed to be done is done, and its time for the man to rest peacefully.

Week 4: Stan Vanderbeek - Science Friction

Science Friction is a cut-out animation that I feel is ahead of its 1959 production date. The animation is very complex and jumps from image to image rather quickly. It is a good representation and criticism of the American conformist culture that was present around the Cold War. The music is fast paced to compliment the rapid movement of the animation. I really like the way Vanderbeek combines different images (such as a dogs head on a human body), and he is extremely successful at keeping the viewers attention. The combination of real life film, cut-out art and hand drawn animation work together better than I could have ever thought possible.

Week 3: Max Fleischer - Out of the Inkwell

I loved the interaction between the artist and the animation in this particular piece. At one point, the artist is holding the clown onto the piece of paper to stop him from moving around while he is trying to draw. This gives the clown a real sense of character as opposed to just being a blob of ink on a sheet of paper. My favorite part was when the clown takes the ink off of his head and throws it onto the artist - it created a surreal and humorous feel to the animation. I can't imagine how much effort was put into this to make the people interact perfectly with the clown and the environment. The backrgound music gives the entire video a light and entertaining mood.
　

Week 2: Norman McLaren - Dots

I really enjoyed how simple this short animation was. It consisted of a red background with various green dots moving throughout the screen. It took me a little while to appreciate it because I had to look back and realize that this was made in 1940. The cute and quirky sound effects fit the movement of the dots well, and I liked how as the dots got more complicated, so did the sound effects. I viewed this as some sort of retro poster art come to life. There wasn't really any story, more just an entertaining combination of shapes and sounds.

Week 1: Winsor McCay, Gertie the Dinosaur, 1914

If I had been alive in 1914. I am sure that I would have absolutely loved Gertie the Dinosaur. My favorite film of all time is Jurassic Park, which was the first film to extensively use CGI to produce realistic, computer animated dinosaurs. I suppose that Gertie was as much of a breakthrough in 1914 as Jurassic Park was in 1994. The animation is simple, but you definitely get a sense of personality from the simply illustrated dino. I wonder how long it took for McCay to master his timing to give the illusion that Gertie was really responding to him. Its incredible that people were so thrilled to have this as a form of special entertainment - I doubt any child now would want to watch something like this when they have so much to choose from on TV/Internet.

Week 9: The Media Students Book: Chapter 2 Assignment

Do Activity 2.4 and 2.6 as a written document of a total 1-2 pages.

2.4: Look at a few ads from television. Ask yourself each:
1. Is this a narrative? Does it begin rather than just start, and end rather than just stop?
2. How do I know? Are the people in it constructed as characters? 
3. Or is it simply a list of claims or prices, or an image of a situation in which the product seems attractive?

When I turned on my television, the first ad to come on was an ad for a ShamWow. For anyone unfamiliar with this product, its some kind of microfiber cloth that has an exceptional ability to absorb liquids. I think that this commercial (and any similar commercial) is what #3 is describing. TV Ads that lure a buyer in by introducing a product and then giving a number of situations in which that product would be useful. There aren't any real characters in it, and the "narrator" is just a person attempting to sell you a gimmicky product. All the "As Seen on TV" products follow a similar commercial structure in which there is no attempt at a story.




2.6: What difference does this "speed" and clarity or capacity for exaggeration make to the kinds of narratives which can be told in animation? Do you think South Park and the Simpsons tell different kinds of stories partly because of their different styles of animation? How would you apply this to films such as The Incredibles which are heavily marketed on off-screen star voices?

I don't feel that the type of animation completely decides what kind of story is being told. Sure, less serious story lines may tend to have a simpler animation (for example, cartoons), but a simple animation can still have a deep meaning. I have seen very important issues in South Park, and I don't think that the simple cut-out appearance makes me take it less seriously. A more extensive method of animation is just more visually appealing, as we can see in many Disney/Pixar films. The Incredibles has a much more elaborate and complex animation structure than The Lion King, but both the stories have strong characters and interesting storylines.