Personal Piece #23

Mesdames et Monsieurs, Kim Richardson! :D 

Catching up on blogging!

Hey all! I know I had some Vis Com resolutions for the second part of the semester . . . guess I didn't include blogging in that by accident. I's behind! I don't have everything here to show--some initial layouts are just not complete enough. But they will make an appearance here, I promise you that.

SO, what has been done the last few weeks? The two food magazine spreads . . . Mmm hmm, mmm hmm. Uh, the huge chili project, the book project, Black History month . . . yeah, that's it, I think, with more on the way in the near future. I have a sprinkling of work in progress for you! I also have some personal projects and some printmaking work, seeing as it is my artistic outlet that still allows me to be just that: an artist, and not a designer. Granted, I still need the basic skills and training of a designer to make a successful print. But I feel so liberated when I print. Especially now that we are in lithography! LOVE it so much more than any other printing process thus far. So, without further ado, I will walk you through my progress one by one. Thank you for tuning in to Lauren's blog! We hope to see you again soon!

Here we have the How Safe? food magazine spread. My parents were kind enough to provide me with the carrots, including dehydrating and microwaving the sickly one for me. lol :D 

Sneak preview of Secret to Feeling Full spread. Thank you to my model, best friend, and roommate, Kat. 

 

OKAY. First of all, everyone, may I introduce Sandra. She is the cartoon spokeswoman for Wick Fowler's 2 Alarm Chili now. :) She's a devilish lady who simmers far more than the spicy product. This is quite the project. Three promotional posters, two newspaper ads, an animated gif (yet to make an appearance), and a can label. The color scheme comes from the three colors of chili peppers (yellow, green, and red) and the ads really will be ads. I wasn't really sure what to put on a newspaper ad for chili . . . thanks to Rusty, I know now. 

Black History Month poster. I know there are mixed feeling concerning this celebratory month, so I wanted to focus on African pride and heritage, which is why my model is the famous and incredible singer Angelique Kidjo. It is difficult to find anyone who celebrates her cultural roots as much as she. :D 

Now, here we have my latest printing endeavors. The first is my first lithograph print, which I am SO proud of! Our prompt was "Distorted." My first thought was a woman before a mirror with a negative interpretation of her body, but when I saw that someone else had done the same concept (brilliantly, might I add) I changed my idea completely! As you may or may not know, I am currently re-obsessed with Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera and more recently, its sequel Love Never Dies. In the second show, the Phantom travels to Coney Island, buys, and runs it. It's known for it's freak shows, of course, and I realized there really is not much more distorted. Freak Shows. Not only the humans on display could fit into that description, but the idea of placing humans on display for entertainment and humiliation is sick and macabre. The character in my poster is Master Squelch from the show, one of the Phantom's loyal freaks and minions. The typography added to the literalness of the piece in relation to the prompt. This print is currently hanging outside my dorm. :D 

The second print is yet to be printed, but will be tomorrow evening. This is a much more personal piece. Though it may not seem to make much sense, the concept has to do with one of my secrets. :3 I'm not sure if I want to confess it here on the blog, though. I mean, a few people in Print class, sure, but everyone? We'll see. :D 

Finally! Anyone want a green hat? XD I knit it just because I needed to knit something but I'm not too attached. Also, I am finally knitting myself a pair of socks. My feet are tingling at the anticipation of being cuddled in soft, warm sock yarn! 

A fond goodnight, all! 

Cheers! 

Personal Piece #22

Ahh, Josh Groban! <3 How I love him and this piece. Now that Midterm is over, I figured we could continue blogging as usual. :)

An oldy, but a goody. :D My step-sister, Cynthia, suggested I leave this piece unfinished. It is now finished. Whenever people at my old high school would see this, the first thing out of their mouths, "Did you draw the words??!!" *insert awed wow* My internal response, "No. I scanned the drawing, typed it up in Photoshop, printed it back out, and stuck it perfectly in tact back into my sketchbook. *face palm* LOL 

Vis Com II Midterm Portfolio

Okay, are you ready for this madness?! :D

Firstly, I must present the proof of my art director "oks." I mean, all this work has to be validated, or it's all for naught, am I right, am I right? So, if you'd kindly observe . . .

Look at all them red Sharpie oks! :D 

A word of warning: The last piece is completed according to art director instructions, but are not yet officially approved. We shall fix that. 

Unfortunately, I did not meet the goal for the class: 270 hours. My total was only 81 hours, which is a ridiculously low amount. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, I have learned a significant amount from this class about responsibility and taking charge of my own life. I realize how much devotion to Vis Com I lack when I'm up to my ears in classes, other homework, and an extracurricular activity scattered here and there. But I really took charge of my life this week, and although it is not perfect, I am (excuse me) damn proud of myself, and this portfolio, which in the long run . . . isn't that all that truly matters? If I don't have pride in my work, who on earth will? 

So, without further ado, may I present the portfolio! I am super excited about this! I'm going to try something different: I'm going to right the budget information and post the image directly beneath instead of posting everything at the end of the post, like in my other entries. 

Ladies and gentlemen, enjoy! 

Midterm Portfolio

1. Typeface Poster 

-budgeted: 6 hours

-hours worked: 5 

Typeface Poster 

Web layout

2. Jazz Combo Poster

-budgeted: 10 hours

-hours worked: 10 hours (whoa . . . again) 

Jazz Combo Poster 

Jazz Combo Poster, iPad horizontal view

Jazz Combo Poster, iPad vertical view

3. Red Barn Promotional Poster

-budgeted: 6 hours

-hours worked: 5

Red Barn Art Festival Poster  

Red Barn web banner for Kirksville Arts' website

Red Barn web banner for Truman website

4. Herpetology Poster 

-budgeted: 6 hours 

-hours worked: 8

Herpetology Poster 

Herpetology web banner for Truman

Animated gif banner

5. Stress magazine spread for Time

-budgeted: 6 hours

-hours worked: 10

Stress Magazine Spread

6. MU Vet Brochure

-budgeted: 9 hours

-hours worked: 8

MU Vet Brochure outside 

MU Vet Brochure inside 

MU Vet animated gif

MU Vet web banner

7. Yellowstone/Tetons Poster 

-budgeted: 6 hours

-hours worked: 5 

Yellowstone/Tetons Poster 

Yellowstone/Tetons iPad Truman view vertical

Yellowstone/Tetons iPad Truman view horizontal

8. Happiness Newspaper layout 

-budgeted: 6 hours

-hours worked: 5 

Thank you all, so much, and God bless! <3

Cheers!

P.S. Word of warning about the gifs! They don't work unless you click on them! :D 

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (assignments that didn't make the cut)

Good evening, everyone! The moment has come that you all have been waiting for. Tonight is the night that I blog my Vis Com II midterm portfolio. After much stress, many trips from my iMac to Rusty's office, and hours of procrastinated work, I am proud to say that I have assembled a portfolio that I am glad to call my own. But before I can present the main portfolio, I must take a moment to post the entries that were worked on, but did not make the final cut.

No doubt, I should have devoted more time to them when I supposed to, hence why they are the forsaken. I know the stereotypical response to surviving an impossible situation is, "Phew! I'll never do THAT again!" Inevitably, this promise is made and then broken almost immediately afterward. But may I say that I mean it when I say, "I won't do THAT again." I neglected work more than I should have for a number of reasons. Some was fatigue and college laziness. But primarily, it was the issue of transporting new version Indesign files onto older software, making work time in class slim. Also, when you have no absolute deadlines, it is easy to say, "Ahh, I can work on that later." And then, later is staring you square in the face, demanding your attention at the last minute. After the hectic whirlwind of this week before midterm break, I can honestly say I am ashamed of my routine for handling things and I sincerely tell you that I learned my lesson. This midterm has taught me so much, primarily that if I am determined, I can literally do anything, even if it seems impossible. Not only that, but I don't have to sacrifice quality on a tight deadline either. I feel I have matured a significant amount, just from this one assignment. But now, I have shared enough of my innermost intimate thoughts. Now it times to present the portfolio, inclusive and exclusive. I hope you enjoy what you see. Let us begin with . . .

The Rejects

These are the pieces I love but did not love enough to push to the final stages for the midterm portfolio. Some are completed, others mere shadows of what they could be. Sad, really, and beautiful. :)


1. MAE posters and web banner 
-budgeted: 4 hours
-hours worked: 4 hours (whoa . . .)

MAE web banner

MAE Poster #1

MAE Poster #2

MAE Poster #3

2. Highway 63 Newsletter
-budgeted: 6 hours
-hours worked: 4 hours

Highway 63 newsletter front 

Highway 63 newsletter back 

3. Detour Magazine Spread
-budgeted: 10 hours
-hours worked: 4 hours (ouch)

Detour magazine spread 

4. Native American Heritage Poster series and animated gif
-budgeted: 6 hours
-hours worked: 3

NAHM Poster #1

NAHM Poster #2

NAHM Poster #3

5. "Only You" poster series and animated gif
-budgeted: 9 hours
-hours worked: 5 hours

The rest of the midterm is but a scroll away! Sincerest love and thanks, all!

Cheers!

Smoky Poster #1 

Smoky Poster #2 

Smoky Poster #3