its 4:30 Saturday

audio project: done

1/3 of the english essay: done

one of the toys has been built and documented but not yet cooked

lookin good
lookin good
lookin good

Toy Building Process

This is a basic rundown of the process I am planning on using:

1. basic wire base frame:



2. base piece



3. cover up wire



4. addition of foot and opposing leg



5. body piece





6. addition of head and other opposing arm + some face details - also widening base at top






i will obviously add more pictures of the addition of details as i get to that stage


things look promising - i will make some alterations to the style of these figures to get exactly what i am looking for - but all and all things are going better than i thought they would a few hours ago


still plenty of room for disaster tho - dont worry

1

Toy Prototypes #1 and 2

here are the first prototypes i tried to put together in accordance with my sketch designs

you will notice that one is bigger than the other

i did that big one first to make sure that my design was feasible

this morning i got hit by a strike of inspiration while trying to figure out a way to make the characters stable but dynamic at the same time (dynamic is the word of the day)

so basically - the character is built around a central pillar which acts as the LEG and the ARM on the OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE BODY (ie - left leg, right arm)

this way there is a stable pillar, but i can make the character look like he is in motion rather than just standing still

also - one of the dudes in my class mentioned i might want to take that idea AND add some wire re-inforcement - which you will see in further detail in the next post









as you can see - this pillar design allows me to make the character look like he is running and gunning

Here are a list of things i am going to accomplish in the next 72 hours:

1. toys built, documented, cooked, blogged
2. audio project
3. utopia comparison essay (We and The Beach)
4. studying for psychology quiz
5. preliminary work finished on box for toy - complete with a color scheme (at the least)
6. work on psychology project
7. read a chunk of Oryx and Crake for utopia class



call me Agent Clockwork

a big robotic box of creativity

Psychology Project - Funny How Things Turn Out

our big project for Psychology class is a creative project for which we had 4 options

the Instructor mentioned that if we had something different in mind, then we could run it by him to see if it would be feasible


one of the options consisted of taking a abstract 'doodle'-type drawing (something that somebody draws when they arent really paying attention), and expand it to be a larger piece which reflects their thought process



since i have been working over these past few years to obliterate my conscious and subconscious and merge them into one 'thing', i have found myself frequently putting mnemonics to use (as i mentioned in a previous post with reference to the movie 'Memento')
this got me thinking about the psych project

i had a idea to try to use all of the mnemonic structures that i am familiar with and merge them into one image - and so far (from the rough sketches) i am excited about the effects that are coming up

mnemonics rely on structures and patterns that are easy to recall and lend themselves to making connections to information

accordingly - it can be said that a 'mnemonic system' is a very structured system

the interesting effect emerges when you compile a bunch of mnemonic systems in the same place - because you get a huge shitload of 'orderly' information (structured trails and packages) in what looks to be a chaotic arrangement

here is a little sample of where this project seems to be heading:



upon completion of this project - i might sleep for a couple of months

what you see above was done in pencil crayon on a 4" x 6" sheet

i am aiming at putting the good copy on 11" x 14"


really looking forward to this one

sort of like consolidating everything i have ever done ever in a visually stimulating way


i gotta contact my boy Os3y3ris for some feedback on this one

Printing

After last weekend's rain-soaked debacle, i finally had a chance today to make it to that printing place that we were referred to

the shop is called 'Marcormedia'

what a nice set-up they got there


the dude who runs the show seemed like a nice guy and loaded me up with some business cards and flyers

i have to remember to dish those out to some of the other people in class


anyway - he had some printing solutions for the upcoming projects (most imminently - the Toy Project) and i am looking forward to working with somebody who knows what they are doing


it sounds like its gonna be about 20 beans to print the packaging for this Toy Project, and about the same for the other upcoming projects (skate tag and snowboard)

i took some video of my trip down there today but it doesnt look like ill have time to put it together tonite

Toy Sketches and Sculpting Research

Here are the preliminary sketches for one of the toy pieces:




As you can see - it is going to be a little alien dude packin a big gun and also in a running pose as tho he is carrying something

i have those cork/rubber/felt stoppers that will be mounted on that top hand - and if everything goes well - you should be able to arrange about 5 or 6 of these guys in a formation that they will be able to carry something

it would be a interesting decoration piece and might still be cool for kids to play with



as for research into sculpey techniques:

all i did was type 'Super Sculpey' into Google and I got sent to the main Sculpey site

they have tutorials and tips right there - which is great because they range from beginner to advanced

the best piece of advice (for my purposes) that i read was that one dude says that he uses index cards to put his pieces on and even puts the index card in the oven when he cooks it - and the index card does not burn

since these are going to be small pieces, i am going to employ that technique as well



the sculpey site is so ridiculously thorough with the tips and tutorials that i dont really see myself venturing too far away from it as far as research goes

if i have time tomorrow i might peep the site that the Instructor showed us in class (i have the link in my notebook)

Little Ninja Turtle

 
 
 

Green Robot

 
 
 

The Claw

 
 
 

Some Stone Wall Dude

 
 
 

More Small Toy Samples

 
 
 
 
Here is a bunch of small toy samples I found kicking around

Toy Resources

 
 
 
 

Here is a sample of a cookie cutter i tried to put together for the Toy Project

also - i spotted these sheep statues which looked sturdy and could serve as a inspiration for what i am trying to do

Upcoming Investigative Reports

Upcoming Investigative Reports:

The Facebook Phenomenon
Suicide in Hip Hop



also some sort of discussion about Open Source making things better and worse at the same time (obviously culminating in apocalypse)

Toy Project: Adventures at Home Depot

since the deadline for the Toy Project has turned this into a major priority and i still dont have a concrete idea, i have resolved to pursue a plan A and keep plans B thru ZZZ in mind

today is March 14
the deadline is March 26


so the problem is clear

factoring my personal lean into it: i will not produce a toy that is just eye-candy

it needs to have some sort of functionality


producing something without functionality is a violation of some sort of code i subscribe to

so i wouldnt be able to do that and sleep comfortably (or enjoy it)


so:
i am letting the project take its own form:

- something simple
- something functional
- something interactive
- something that allows people to be creative themselves


i am sticking with the alien theme

i am still aiming at making a series of small alien figures but the idea is now refined:
- so it will be less time consuming - i am going to make a cookie cutter so i can have a consistent size for the figures, and will let them have differences based on their colors and poses

also - i have decided to have them double as a platform so that when they come together - they can hold something (like those scenes in the cartoons where ants carry away a person's picnic lunch)

Toy Project

if you click on that image you will be taken to a series of images which show the supplies i picked up:

- some vinyl, cork, and felt guards so that the figures can be put on delicate surfaces with no problem
- the figures will have a wire (paperclip) structure so i had to pick up some wire cutters
- Home Depot did not have any Sheet Metal ribbon strips, so I found what I needed on a lumber shipment that they had received and asked if they could cut a piece off for me - they said no so i snapped a piece off anyway


the sheet metal strip will become the cookie cutter

i have a set of pliers at home that i will use to bend it into the shape i need


so - next step is to put the cookie cutter together - and start churning out a couple of these little dudes

and if it dont work - then move on to plan B


the objective is to have the toy basically done by the weekend so i can put the package together next week

(PS - it makes no sense that this project is due before the skate tag project)


costs so far:
Paperclips: $2
Clay: 13
Sculpting tools: 3
Duct tape: 3
Wire cutters: 5
Pliers: found at home (approx 5)
Paint: can't remember right now - will find the receipt at home
Vinyl/Cork/Felt Guards: 7.50


Time: formative and sketching - 3 hrs
Research and supplies: - 2 hrs
Trial runs with clay: - 2 hrs


should have the cookie cutter up here to-nite



also got a idea how to fit the collage in on the box shape (and the theme for the characters i create)

and the skate tag assignment is similar to this in that there will be transparency layer used on the packaging


more later

Next Problem - the Open Source transition

abandoning Photobucket is important for now, but some consideration has to be made about the programs im using


Photoshop and Illustrator are great - but ive already made a commitment to get familiar with the Open Source software (GIMP and Inkscape)


BUT
since i am just learning the programs right now - i cant determine whether it is better to continue working with Photoshop and Illustrator and then make the switch-over at a more convenient time
OR
put in some time now and make the switch

as i type this post i am starting to think that it is wise at this exact moment to stick with what is easiest - the Adobe programs - and then make the switch if the switch is absolutely necessary


from my brief experience so far - the transition from the Adobe programs to them Open Source joints is not that rough

Saving Time Saving Time Saving Time

alright yall

we got some executive decisions being made over here because the ratio of blog posts to actual work being done is not representative

literally: im working 24/7 over here


when i sleep - i meditate on ways to be more productive

no shit


so - this blog process is trippin things up



so here are the executive decisions being made:

1. photobucket account: cancelled until needed at a later date
- the plain fact is - photos that get uploaded to the blog directly ALSO appear in the Google Picasa web system - which is basically Google's version of Flickr or Photobucket - this saves me having to save the images to Photobucket and then cross-reference them to the Blog / Google account

2. all scans and notes are going to be uploaded directly to online and not much care is going to be taken to save them in a offline database

3. emphasis is going to be placed in 2 main directions:
- techniques to become relentlessly creative/productive as needed vs stockpiling old elements for future use
- assembling all projects under one umbrella which conveys a consistent theme


maybe im rambling right now

but i have a big pile of shit right beside me that belongs online but i have no time to put it online using the process that i have been using so far


more later
more later


more later

Suck My Ergonomics

respect to Zeppelin2K on Wu-Corp for posting this

interesting shit

Fuck

the print shop at school is the major sucks

the giraffe ad came out looking like a piece of shit

i will try to get it re-printed elsewhere before i have to submit it tomorrow



2nd time this happened



not complaining - just letting cyberspace know

Toy Inspirations

Here is a little inventory of some elements inspiring my state of mind to approach this Toy Project:







no doubt i will have more on this later



picked up some supplies today:

paper clips and duct tape

need to find some wire cutters and a pair of pliers