On the front of the program given out at the concert, there was this design. Krannert is putting on a concert series which is titled "Wall to Wall Guitar Festival" which this design represents. I just thought the negative space in the shape of a guitar was intriguing along with the double function of the dot of the "i." It reminded me of the hidden arrow used in the Fed Ex logo, which I never saw until pointed out in class. This design took a hesitation to understand as well.

Just a few hours ago I attended a Taj Mahal concert at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts. I love watching people do what they love, and while those boys jammed on stage it was quite apparent they were right where they wanted to be and couldn't be happier. I love concerts were the artist can transfer their energy to their audience. The whole art world in general I find so inspirational because you barely ever find anyone in the field who is not completely in love with what they do. All this stuff just makes me smile and reaffirms my decisions about the path I have chosen.

BMW was established in 1913, originally creating aircraft engines. After the company went through many owners and names, in 1917 two Austrians, Karl Rapp and Max Friz, took over the business giving it’s name as it is known today, Bayerisch Motoren Werke or in English words, Bavarian Motor Works. During this same time the BMW logo was created. During my research, I could not find an actual designer who made the logo, but many of them did refer to the logo under Rapp’s and Friz’s procession. Whether they designed it or not, I am not sure. The logo itself was inspired by a rotating airplane propeller. It literally can be described as a circle, or roundel with four quadrants in the colors blue and white. The white represents the white blades of a propeller and the blue mirrors the sky. The colors blue and white are also the colors of the Bavarian flag. Unsure of it’s reliability, but another web site suggested the original propellers of the first BMW planes were painted blue and white so pilots could see through them. Even though the company moved to the engineering of motorcycle engines in 1920 and eventually automobiles in 1928, they still kept their original abstract propeller design and it still remains untouched today.

Key words found in each major's web pages. . .
tradition with contemporary, interaction, risk taking, experimental, and diversity

Possible slogans. . .
Make it. Love it. Be it.
Dive In
Experience art
more than art

Concept for t-shirt design. . .
Because the School of Art and Design is among many other colleges at the University of Illinois, students are provided with a diverse education, interacting with many other environments. In addition, UIUC has a rich history, establishing tradition and it's world known standard of excellence. The School of Art and Design guarantees these traditions, but also encourages and provides development in contemporary society and technology to expand even more the University's diverse environment.

A couple days ago on the quad there was a memorial titled "Eyes Wide Open" recognizing soldiers from Illinois who have died in the war. The title was very appropriate from my point of view because I have not been directly effected by the war and this display was a realization for me. Every pair of boots represented an amount of soldiers who lost their lives, which I think totaled about 100,000 people. The part that really got to me was the boots were labeled with people my age. I could never imagine myself in the action of war and to think there are who are losing there lives- quite scary. I am a lucky girl to be in a great environment, furthering my education.

This newspaper cut out along with several designer responses was posted on the website www.designobserver.com. This post was initially intriguing because 9/11 feels like forever ago and this year I don't even remember anyone recognizing it as an anniversary. The idea presented in the article was to not reconstruct ground zero with any specific monument or more sky scrapers, but rather leave it a natural habitat for people to go and "escape" city life. The concepts of the idea I much agree with and found it interesting that designers are participating in a project I assumed was for architects or landscaper. Other than the enjoyment of seeing different perspectives of ground zero, it is neat to know as a designer there is a broad range of projects to pursue.

This newspaper cut out along with several designer responses was posted on the website www.designobserver.com. This post was initially intriguing because 9/11 feels like forever ago and this year I don't even remember anyone recognizing it as an anniversary. The idea presented in the article was to not reconstruct ground zero with any specific monument or more sky scrapers, but rather leave it a natural habitat for people to go and "escape" city life. The concepts of the idea I much agree with and found it interesting that designers are participating in a project I assumed was for architects or landscaper. Other than the enjoyment of seeing different perspectives of ground zero, it is neat to know as a designer there is a broad range of projects to pursue.

"Only Jesus Can Save Me From Hell"

Earlier this week on the quad, I was entertained by the crowds of people gathering in front of large signs defining the way to salvation. Personally I am a spiritual person, but when others advertise "only one way" to a righteous life, it ticks me off. Who gives them the right anyways to judge people's afterlife? At the same time of irritating me, I also find it humorous because you know that half the people that start throwing there hands up in the air and start "praising the Lord" have no idea what they are actually doing. They see one person get excited so they jump on the Jesus band wagon as well. Believe what you want, but make sure you study and learn to RESPECT different religions from all over the world before you draw any conclusion. Anyone on this campus who is not a Christian was probably extremely offended when they read "Only Jesus Can Save Me From Hell."

Ideas about "positive". . .light/dark, confident, clear, direct, acceptance, sunflowers, ice cream, good grades, batteries, magnets, electricity, smiles, and the plus sign.


The sun puts people in a positive mood. Especially on a day like today, where the rainy cloudy weather was reflected in everyone.



When I asked an engineer what he thought of when he heard "positive," he instantly thought of the positive charge in batteries as well as magnets.


The plus sign is an instant connection with the word positive. Here on a report card the plus sign adds an extra encouragement. In addition, our society associates the letter "A" with positive achievement.


I know this is a bit cheesy, but rainbows make me smile. To me they are an encourager of hope and faith, symbolizing the natural beauty in the world.


As a designer, the term positive is used frequently relating to space. Here the contrasting black and white defines positive and negative space and depending on the viewer, two different images can be seen.

Some synonyms for "preference" include alternative, bag, desire, election, first place, flash and groove. I am not sure about groove or flash and their connection, but I am still pondering. . .

Through my survey some friends suggested choice, favorite, black/white, comparison, best, opinion, and option.

Formally voting on a ballot is a method of making choices you prefer. The following image of voting also goes along with this idea as well.


To give a personal preference in a public group vote, raising one's hand is a signal commonly used.


Another hand signal used to communicate a preference is the "thumbs up." This is my friend Cassie responding positively to Ronald McDonald.


A common phrase I enjoy saying if I like something is, "I dig it!" This image may be a stretch, but this bull dozer conveys the action of digging or in my case "liking."


Even though this food isn't very appealing to me, the first place ribbon signifies that it is someone's preference.


Hand signals are used quite often to acknowledge certain things. Here this person is bringing attention to a photo on the computer, giving it preference over the others.

pref·er·ence n.
The selecting of someone or something over another or others.
The right or chance to so choose.
Someone or something so chosen. See Synonyms at choice.
The state of being preferred.
Law.
A priority of payment given to one or more creditors by an insolvent debtor.
The right of a creditor to priority of payment.
The granting of precedence or advantage to one country or group of countries in levying duties or in other matters of
international trade.

Assignment One Critique. . . Initial thought processes and ideas


This picture is an example of an image that didn't even make it to the first critique. Even though I thought it portrayed a good serif "S," at first glance the letter dominating is a "T" in the upper left.







Here is another first cut example rejected because it does not portray a serif L, but instead has equal line width all the way through like in Univers.












These were the images used for "L" in the first critique. The image as a whole confused people. I initially wanted the "L" to be seen as the background of the image that is in focus. I did not realize till I hung the image up in class that the blurry foreground makes an "L" as well. I still like the subject used for the "L", but new after critique that a new picture needed to be taken.



For this image of an "S" the white triangle at the upper right was voted as pretty distracting by the class. Initially I thought it made for an interesting image, but after thought I did realize how it took away from the purpose of the photo. Because of this, I choose to use the same photo, but re-crop it. One part of the photo that did work was the use of sheet music in the negative space to help convey my message.



I think this initial image was successful. The use of part of an instrument worked well. I did learn however to not manipulate my font, but rather keep it in its original scale!

This first critique was a huge learning process I am grateful we had because the assignment and expectations were defined much more clearly. Instead of conveying a concept, I conveyed an idea. I did not offer any visual of what it is about music that defines me. I also did not take into consideration the composition of the text underneath the image as supporting information for my concept.


Through my sketchbook I dug deeper with my idea to create a concept. I played with the ideas of conveying pulse and rhythm alongside with my "upbeat" personality, but what really represented me was my passionate personality for the arts. When I do play my horn, I live for the the musical moments that transform you into another state, the energy that creeps up your spine and takes over your entire being while flowing through your veins. I knew that I needed to show this power through use of large text that flows into each other. In addition, my pictures created the narrative of the musical process. The first picture is the latch on my case, the next of my lyre with music in it, and thirdly the triggers on my horn. This shows the process of getting out the instrument, looking at the music, and then executing. This reflects my work ethic that I have learned from music, as well as other forms of art. There is a lot of work and logic that goes behind final products, but the benefits are what keep you persevering. There are times when you want to call it quits, but you have to keep getting the instrument out, keep digging deep into the music, keep playing even when your lips are shot, because when you reach the peak of that musical moment, every second of sweat becomes worth it. This process is reflected in all areas of life, including this class.

ten·sion n.
The act or process of stretching something tight.
The condition of so being stretched; tautness.
A force tending to stretch or elongate something.
A measure of such a force: a tension on the cable of 50 pounds.
Mental, emotional, or nervous strain: working under great tension to make a deadline.
Barely controlled hostility or a strained relationship between people or groups: the dangerous tension between opposing
military powers.
A balanced relation between strongly opposing elements: the continuing, and essential, tension between two of the
three branches of government, judicial and legislative (Haynes Johnson).
The interplay of conflicting elements in a piece of literature, especially a poem.
A device for regulating tautness, especially a device that controls the tautness of thread on a sewing machine or loom.
Electricity. Voltage or potential; electromotive force.

When asking people what they thought of when they thought of the word tension I received the following responses: bridges, wire, anxiety, stress, sex, pain, racial tension, sexual tension, stretching, and tense shoulders.

Referenced to a thesaurus, examples of synonyms include constriction, balance, pressure, strain, discomfort, and suspense.

I happen to support and applaud Dove's new advertisements and when I read this article in the Daily Illini expressing male bashing opinions I was ticked. The first quote from Lucio Guerrero is where the anger started to increase rapidly. After women have been constantly pressured with super skinny celebrities, movie stars, and models it is about time the more average, just as beautiful bodies get recognized. Granted the US is the fattest nation, but here on campus girls revolve their thinking around food and exercise. "Oh, I ate way to much today. I must work out" is a popular statement everyone is aware off. The models in the Dove ads I don't even think are clinically overweight. America needs to stop putting there focus on body shape and concentrate on being healthy.

Many factors such as stress or physical activity can leave the body tight and tense. Stretching is a great way to relieve the knots and aches of tense muscles.


This photo was taken during the Civil Rights Movement when racial tension was outrageous. Just looking at the pain and passion in the peoples faces is read as tension.


From personal experience, headstands create intense pressure on the neck and head. This combined with the blood rush creates an uncomfortable tension or stress in the upper body.

. . .After looking at my previous post with the tug-of-war picture, I decided I no longer like the picture with the children battling over the frisbee. The innocence and purity of children doesn't send out a tension vibe even if there is a push pull force between them. I think there are much better examples to use.