Saturday, March 10, 2007

The Hand-Written Blog:









in summary - today was a pain in the ass yet enjoyable at the same time

and i need to find a more efficient blogging technique

for the last few years - i have been adamant about destroying all my old notes and notebooks - and i still do except for this blog

but i will admit that it is a interesting resource to be able to look at and observe how you put shit together in the past

i have to look into these photo-blog sites and consider the pros and cons of switching either this blogger site or the photobucket site

things i am gonna look into:

- Flickr which i already dont like because i have a (possibly unreasonable) dislike of Yahoo-related products
- the google photo site 'picasa'
- i also have to investigate Multiply a bit more - i have the hunch that that place is the best option - but without the google backing i am hesitant to commit to their (superior) service

it would be wise to make the switch sooner rather than later if there is gonna be any switches


i will prolly find a way to keep all these sites

we will see...

thats all for today

im gonna go get some sleep on the subway

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Strange Days pt II

Here are the materials I picked up at the store:

Some cheap-ass plastic tools (i actually picked these up partially because the texture on them is this swirly-brown texture which kind of reminded me of my Skate-Tag assignment) - these should be good for the bigger pieces i do - maybe not so much the smaller ones (plus they were cheap which was the most important thing)



Here are the tools jabbed into the clay:






And here is my clay mascot who was awoken and tried to escape the box before he was ultimately mashed back into the lump of clay.





i made that while i was waiting for the video to upload on YouTube


so things are looking good

got my idea and my supplies

but my fuckin shoes are SOAKED




oh - and here is a shot of some Toronto buildings that caught my eye today:

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Strange Days + Revenge of the Super Sculpey



damn i have too much fun


today was a pretty rough day actually:

here it is summarized wiff pictures -


first of all - i guess i can trace it back to last night as i was falling asleep while using adobe illustrator at the library at school

man - i aint even think i was gonna make it home

this morning - i woke up and made a list of things to do (including updating the blog) and got off to a late start

i left the house and got just far enough away from the house that i wouldnt turn back when i realized that i remembered my CD player, but forgot to put a CD in it

we finally got a mild day in the city, so everything is melting
i had tossed on a old pair of shoes that ive had for more than a decade which i usually trust for wet and muddy conditions
- by the time i got to the bus stop - i realized that both shoes had developed a hole in the bottom

but as a true soldier - i ventured forth

i got downtown to the theater district where i was gonna check out the printing place for the In-Line Skate Tag assignment

the instructor gave us general directions where it was - but all i remembered was that it was near the Hooters restaurant on the corner of John and whatever


So I found the Hooters --





-- but I didnt find the print shop

i think it was in this building - and i searched around in there for a minute
but i dint much feel like hammering on doors and asking if they knew where a print shop was



so i admitted defeat - resolved to learn the lesson that its important to know where you are going before you try and go there (i swear i learned that lesson in the past - but as i said before - there is clearly something wrong wiff my memory)


this was ok

no sweat - because my real objective was to make it to Loomis at Sadina and ______ (Richmond I think) to pick up the molding material we need for the Toy Project

this stuff is called 'super sculpey' - but that name is a little too whimsical for me to be using on a regular basis - so i am gonna stick with 'clay'


anyway - i make it to Loomis and walk in

of course they dont have any of this clay

not only that - but they give me a strange look when i ask if they have any in stock (as tho they never heard of it before)

it was looking bleak at that point

on my way out the door, i asked the dude behind the counter if there was any other art stores around and he told me there was some joint called Carrys or Currys or Corrys or something on Queen street about 2 blocks away

so i set out in search of this next place

and fortunately i had something go my way

here is what the store looks like:

on Queen between Spadina and Bathurst



the clay was less than $13 before tax

i am posting this now so nothing disastrous happens --

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Toy Project Rough Notes

Yeah I got kicked out of the library.

TIme check: 5:28 pm


here is my rough notes for the upcoming Toy Project in Sketching for Communications class:







i was actually on my heels for this one until i had a talk with my sister who reminded me about my natural inclination toward aliens and robots

so i am sticking wiff aliens and robots

as it stands right now:
it is going to be a series of small toy figures approx 1 - 2" high - i am thinking about putting together about a dozen of them (as long as it doesnt take a decade)
and
i am going to put together some sort of simple small space ship vehicle

i was hesitant about this project at first - but ive already warmed up to it

the cross-over it has with my other projects is that i seem to be cultivating a consistent style - or at least noticing a theme in the work i put together


there is some underlying commonality behind it all which is cool



all media conveys a message - even something as seemingly trivial as a toy is a opportunity for communication

tho it may be indirect - it is still there

you are what you eat, and you are reflected in what you produce


more on this in the next post --

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Friday: Video Project - Sasquatch

For video class we have to assemble a 1 minute film which involves a series of different types of camera shots

we had a hard time co-ordinating everything (since there is 4 members in the group) but eventually everybody came thru


this clip here is the long version which one of the group members flexed his expertise to get this 2+ minutes down to a coherent 1 minute (he cut out most of my ridiculous rambling)

anyway - here is the full 2+ minute version - it turned out pretty funny

im gonna put together the out-takes as well some time next week just for kicks



i have more to say about video as well

overall - between shooting and editing (color correction, etc) - it took approximately 5 hours (which is less than i thought it would take)

but like i said - we may still work on it some more

time check:
4:41 pm - first warning at the library just came on

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Thursday Night: Caught up in the Matrix

im hesitant to talk about anything that goes on in regards to Interactivity class for fear of possible copyright violation and subsequent lawsuit


the instructor for that course remains a enigma


in the halls he has been likened to such figures as:

Chuck Norris:




House MD



and various other figures


me personally:

i will not make any comparisons


the class is definitely a action packed 2 hours

i spent Thursday night finishing up my preparations for Friday's class

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Thursday: Collage

These are photos of a collage-in-process

actually - this is incomplete as i need to grab a scan of the actual finished product so you can see it in all its glory

as i believe i posted before - the objective of the collage is to eventually be designing a CD cover and label

so this collage which was done for class on Thursday is to be prepared in a way that fits a CD cover and label for next Thursday

we have been encouraged to use art tools to further refine these collages and come up with some sort of consistent theme:




First - gathering the raw materials and sorting








And then assembling a final product:





it is loads of fun doing art in public places

Time check: 4:21

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Super-Mega Blog Update

not that many people are actually keeping track of this stuff -

but dear sweet mother of god it has been a busy week


i didnt think it would be
but somehow this week got wild after my last blog update on wednesday

today is Saturday

that means i did not have any time to throw in a worthwhile blog update between wednesday and now

i had time to update the blog - just nothing worthwhile with any pictures, etc

so
i am going to be posting a whole bunch of shit today

its 4:10 pm

lets see how much i can get up here before i get kicked out of this library by 5...

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Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Tag Prototype Part II

Here is a Prototype (#3) of the tag in the main colors.

I have included the transparency section as well.

It took a bit of work, but if what I'm conceptualizing pays off, it should be pretty dope.

Just as I was hoping, the transparency layer shows clear through to the bottom.











I think I am pretty settled on this design.

The only thing I will prolly change is the location of the transparency (prolly will move that a little closer to the top).

Time to get live with it.

Gonna hit the watercolors and design some icons.


Also of note - I am gonna figure out a way to make all my other projects tie into this one as well at least in some aspect.

These include:
- Toy design for Sketching class
- Collage for Multimedia class
- Matrix for Interactivity class
- Magazine Ad layout for Media Tools class


stay posted

or dont

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Tag Prototypes

I got problems, but I seem to have a system in place that is saving my ass.

I keep losing track of assignments - but the fact that I do all my work at the college and keep the shit in my locker means that I always have material on hand.

Yesterday it turned out we also had to submit all our rough notes for the work we had done on the In-Line skate tag assignment - something which I completely forgot about.

Fortunately - I had all my notes and prototypes on hand - PLUS I had already made copies for the blog - PLUS i had the camera on me to take a quick photo of the latest prototype that I had put together but had not had a opportunity to scan yet.

So everything was salvaged - except for my retarded memory skills.

I swear - ever since I started messing with mnemonics - I can easily access a integrated understanding of the universe but even as of right now as I type - I can hardly remember what day it is and what my schedule for the day is.



The overall plot for Memento may have some holes and be far-fetched, but where there's a will, there's a way.

Look into NLP. Sigils. Symbols.

My note-taking skills is intense.


Anyway - back to the project:

Here is prototype #1 again:




Here is prototype #1 taken apart:



Here is what I have in mind for the general color-scheme:

It will be primarily brown with light colors inserted.
I am leaning toward light yellow, pink, and light blue (lighter than the blue construction paper I have there).


Here is the photo I snapped of Prototype #2 just before I handed it in:

Prototype #1 was 4 inches wide, this one was 3 inches and also had the colored tabs.

I'm liking the way 3 inches looks, but 4 might be easier to maneuver with.

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Golden State Warriors Logo - Final Version

At long last - i am done with the Golden State Warriors logo.

The final 6 were chosen, printed, and mounted on Monday, then submitted yesterday.

I snapped a photo before I handed it in:




Obviously there was all sorts of problems:

- the school print shop ran out of ink so i had to venture elsewhere in the -30 celsius weather to get the shit printed
- the case i brought with me to hold the printed logos turned out to be too small, so i had to exercise extreme caution carrying the paper back to school in the driving wind
- the final layout somehow looked off balance - all the colorful logos were on one side and the monotone logos were grouped together - couldve used a bit more tact
- decided to use that cursed rubber cement again (still hate that shit)
- none of the star detail in the Outer Space themed logo showed up in the printed version

All in all tho - the final product looked pretty dope.

I'm familiar enough with Photoshop now to get some things done, and I know that there is a wealth of resources available on the internet if I find myself out of ideas.

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Monday, March 5, 2007

Skate Tag Developments

yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeah some nice progress going on

just about ready start layin it down in Photoshop

finna do some watercolors for the backgrounds - and i got some other ideas going thru my head to work on

but this is how things are looking right now -

here is what the notebook is saying:






and this is the earliest prototype of the tag

if you can follow the notebook scans - these images should make sense



here is the tag broken down into components:



basically im looking at 4 sections to be printed front and back with some innovative assembly

i got a ill idea for transparency use - and if that comes together then this might actually turn into something to look at

still a fair amount of work to be done


- need to choose a font
- need to illustrate some vector images
- need to settle on a color scheme (i have one in mind - will save that for next post)


will be posting more soon

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Kool G Rap - 4, 5, 6

i dont know how G Rap gets slept on after all these years

even i slept on this album when it first came out back in '95



from the wikipedia entry:

4,5,6 is the solo debut by Hip Hop artist Kool G Rap, released in September 1995 through Cold Chillin' Records. The release followed his break-up with DJ Polo in 1993. The album was not received well critically, but was warmly accepted by underground fans. Despite the album's dark, grimy street sound, it peaked at number one on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and also featured two crossover hits, with the title track "4,5,6", and "Fast Life". The album features guest appearances from B1, MF Grimm and Nas, as well as production from Dr. Butcher, Naughty Shorts, T-Ray and Buckwild of D.I.T.C.


as far as im concerned - there may be rhymers as good as G Rap, but I'd be hard pressed to come up with anybody better


i been revisiting the mid-90's a lot lately

Keith Murray, Redman, O.C., Wu

even back then they were complaining that Hip Hop was dead

if it was dead then - then i have no idea what it is now


zombies on the mic


this album is heavy on the gun play, but G Rap tears it up

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Sunday, March 4, 2007

"the future is open source everything."

today i downloaded the open source version of Illustrator called 'Inkscape'

i already use Audacity quite a bit for putting together audio material

i post on internet forums often

so i decided to check out the wikipedia entry for 'open souce' (which is where i got the quote for the title of this entry)


there is no doubt things are changing

and i use broad terms to say that because it seems that putting it any other way would be to sell it short

people try to prognosticate which direction things are heading in - but the landscape seems wide open right now

who can tell?

technologies are popping up now that werent even thought of a few years ago
-- maybe even a few months ago

some people say that things need to change - revolutionaries, activists etc


but it is becoming more and more evident that things already are changing right before our eyes


and its not the activists that are doing it - it just seems to be naturally occurring

almost by accident



in my brief experience with this open source illustration program, i can already tell that i will not likely ever own a copy of Adobe Illustrator

i wont even bother looking for a cracked version of it

i dont know what that means, but there seems to be some pretty dramatic implications to this open source movement

for a certain portion of the population - its fun and games

but last i checked - the software industry was a pretty lucrative market

companies dont like to go down easy --




ever since i learned how to be creative again, my need to be stimulated by outside sources has diminished tremendously


strange times in a strange place


anybody who claims to know what it all adds up to is talking shit
BUT
some people seem to know how to approach the situation better than others


no doubt about that



ahh life


i used to be a 'down with the system' type of dude
but
it looks like the system is already downing itself



if the future is open source - and you are not a open source type of person
what does that mean for you?


be easy

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The State of In-Line Skating in North America

so its true - nobody in-line skates anymore

or at least the number of people who in-line skate is steadily decreasing


i was talking to one of the managers of a sporting store and he was telling me that in-line skate sales have been diminishing consistently over the last 8 years or so

in fact - he said that annual sales of in-line skates is a quarter of what it was compared to 8 years ago

i believe the figures he mentioned were a mill in sales, and last year they only sold 250K


also of interest - the Salomon line of in-line skates is being discontinued

apparently they used to be owned by adidas, but they got bought out by the sports company Wilson, and Wilson does not have the facilities to continue making in-line skates anymore


anyway - in-line skates have 2 main parts - the boot and the wheels

the boots used to be made out of a thick plastic material (and weigh a ton), but now they are made out of fabric

they are not as durable, but they are hella lighter and more comfortable

other important features of in-line skates that i was informed of:
- some skates have a extra braking feature at the back, but this technology has never been mastered and apparently is quite fragile - it was meant to appeal to beginners, but is nothing more than a nuisance and it generally breaks with the slightest use
- the framing that holds the wheels can be made out of plastic or aluminum - the plastic is heavier and not as solid, so the aluminum is a no-brainer
- there is a variety of wheel styles (thickness and circumference) currently available - also the composition of wheels varies from company to company
- right now - the hottest type of wheel is the largest type of wheel - generally 100mm - allows a skater to go the fastest
- the dude at the store expressed some lament that Salomon was leaving the in-line skate industry because he held that they had the best wheels


the K2 style seems to have the most cross-over appeal

some of their blades actually had designs on them rather than the generic black skate with highlights

that kind of snowboard style seems kind of played out at this point

its all about the paisley and the curves


i see this project coming together nicely


earth tones
bold icons
paisley curves
focus on comfort and durability
environmental themes (environmental awareness is trendy right now)

maybe i can get Al Gore to endorse my in-line skates

top seller for sure


more updates to come

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