Lip Lovin Lemonade

Yesterday when I was cutting up my lemons for the 'sour face' pictures, I noticed that the lemon, cut lengthwise looked a lot like lips. I thought I could incorporate that into an ad for lemonade that would be sold at a lemonade stand. I took a picture of a lemon and tried to work that into being the lips! Go get yourself some lip lovin lemonade :)

The Feel of "flamenca"

Shaving is related to my brand due, again, to the sharp/smooth contract. Razors are just that: razor sharp. Yet their effect when used for shaving yields an incredibly soft and delicate result. One of the best feelings I ever experience is when I shower and shave my legs before going to sleep in my freshly laundered sheets. However, I didn't think it appropriate to reveal my naked legs. Sorry, Scott.

Day 6: What A Magical Place

Anything can happen in Neverland :)

relocating the mouth

Of course, these circumstances are hardly unique. Consider for a moment we think about why we say rather than what we say. Maybe the displacement of the mouth as an instrument of identity would create multiple new identities.

new perspectives

first, let me apologize in advance for a very long post. you have been warned

the photographs i chose for my book are all snapshots that i took before i ever worked on the actual project. i did not take them for any particular reason except that i liked something i saw. (ha) i have tried to train myself to pay attention to light, shadows, shapes, people, etc etc to make interesting photographs. even if i do not have my camera, i make a mental note of the moment, place or time for future reference.

technically, all the photographs i used in my project could be classified as 'snapshots': photos taken on a whim with no conceptual basis or meaning. some photographers do not consider snapshots to be 'art' or 'photography'. i personally believe that while most snapshots usually do not involve the same technical skill or conceptual basis that fine art photography has, they can be meaningful and beautiful in their own right and belong to their own photographic sphere. phew.

that being said- i love snapshots, but find it incredibly hard to judge whether the snapshots i take are worthy of further study. on the other hand, i LOVE looking at snapshots that other people have taken. i like to study what they photograph and how they photograph it.

are you bored yet? i almost fell asleep.

CONCLUSION: i asked several people throughout the day to go photograph something, anything. most of those people were from branding class (yay!) and several people took more than one photo (which was awesome). everyone seemed slightly intimidated BUT excited too. which is goooooood. in the end, i just wanted some snapshots to look through to make me look at my own photography differently.

so THANK YOU to everyone who participated and helped me out. i chose my 10 favorite photos. i dont remember who took what so don't be offended if yours aren't here.. and if you want the photo you took, holla, and i will email it to you.

Perspective

I was thinking how a persons perspective can completely change the image he sees. If your perspective on life is, It sucks. then all your going to see is the bad. If you think Life is good. then you will see the good.

With some martial arts, perspective will get you far, or make you confused. sometimes you need some on to take you to the top of the stairs and point you in the right direction. and once you do, you see what everything fit together.

More than a flyer

Had the hardest time figuring out what to do with this project today. After getting really frustrated a few times I just started to draw stuff kinda. I decided I wanted to try and do something that more represented not just why I love listening to this artist, but his versatility and skill at what he does. Then I remembered a quote I read online somewhere recently about one of the first producers that Tech N9ne produced with.

"When he flows it sounds like an automatic rifle!"

energy sucker

an energy drink that really isn't an energy drink...it pretends to give you energy and just makes you fall asleep immediately. kind of plays off the whole energy drinks eventually make you start crashing.

Back in the Day!

So I don't know if this is a very valid design strategy for anything but at least I was thinking about my brand in a different unique way. For this day I put my design and the strategy idea into an illuminated manuscript form to try something different (and to be silly). Well ive had fun on this part of the project and am excited for the next.

clean

Its natural soap..

FullGive (Day 6)

I just thought that it would be a good idea to spell out FullGive using some the product line. It is a creative way to show case some of the products as well as reflect the hands on and grass roots feel that I have been striving for through out the project.

Day 6: Simplicity

After thinking about how many different ways a logo can be created, I found that the most effective and positive outcome for me has always been illustrative. An illustrated logo is a more natural feeling and it most certainly helps with skills concerning type. Rather than going straight to the computer I think about how many different ways I can create the same letter form in a simple form, for all ways that would go with what the brand is all about. For Soto, it's always had that natural organic feel to it, so I redrew it and used old fashioned prismacolor markers to create textures of movement and added a leave with the same color tone to see how a handmade logo would work with an object from a more natural environment.

Greetings to all.

Today I was feeling like I needed to lighten up

my design a bit. So I thought I'd put down an idea I've had for a little off beat movie about the

adventures of a cello and his friend bow. Then I thought it would make a fun children's series to

teach kids about music, instruments and composers. One of these days (probably not until I retire in like 50 years) then I'll get around

to actually making the series.

Who wouldn't want to sit in a seat where it would engulf you in a perfume all the time. Just think, when someone flatchulates is has the possibility of being pleasant rather than unbearable. What will I think up of next?

I was so inspired by lindsay k. and her horrible myspace can that i decided also to make a design based on everything i don't want to represent suite furniture. Don't get me wrong i love golden girls but hip to them is something they try not break. Not quite what i was looking for. I love almost all of these colors but not together, and when talking about crazy patterns i don't mean crazy ugly. So this is what i don't want, which helps me define what i do want. Enjoy!

Freudentisch and Video Games

When it comes to modern family game time, technology is almost always involved. With the (NEW!) Freudentisch Game-able, the entire family can enjoy interactive gaming at its finest. The Freudentisch comes loaded with preloaded games, as well as cartridge slots (hidden in the legs and tabletop itself) that will accommodate any game cartridge previously made, from the original GameBoy right on down to the Nintendo DSi, to Playstation and X-Box discs, N64 and Wii, this table can play them all. (One can also attach alternate gaming controllers.) One to four players can fit, with a screen that will partition based on who checks in on what sides, so this truly is a family-friendly console! (For those who prefer a more traditional gaming feel, models are available that incorporate traditional joysticks and buttons on the table surface.) No doubt about it, this table will revolutionize the gaming world's point of view and make gaming personal again!

Day 6 - The key to success

Don't you just hate when you're working well through a project and all the sudden you run into problems like having layers are guides locked that you need to move but you just can't quite figure out how or where to unlock them? Or how you can't edit text correctly when you don't have the right font? Or even worse, don't you just wanna scream when you go to make quick adjustments to a file you worked on all night only to find out that it has become corrupt or read only? I know I do. That's why I suggest making a key that when held and clicked on a object, all those problems just disappear. Guides become editable, layers are unlocked, fonts are installed, files are magically repaired, and everything becomes altable. That sounds pretty fantastic huh? Well... a guy can dream.

The Attitude of "flamenca"

Although most models give the pouty mouth and eyes, I feel like these two convey an appropriate look consistant with "flamenca."

The becoming-prince of the multitude

Kant dedicates reason as an animating force in doubt, and enlightenment as a police armed to banish the "fanatical vision". What does it mean, it means a resulting death of philosophy. Doubt then, not reason itself reveals the revolutionary passion in reason as emerging from the margins of art history.

"The becoming Prince of the multitude is a project that relies entirely on the immanence of decision making within the multitude." —Michael Hardt & Antonio Negri

This piece reasons with the decision of joining the "Furrydom", anthropomorphism, and a courtship with the multitude.

FullGive (Day 5)

So I wanted to try my hand at carving my own FullGive stamp. The idea being that I can now spread the love and put a bit of a FullGive on anything and everything for everyone to see… ha ha can you feel the love?

Playing with Fire!

I was thinking What made Kenpo different from other styles and inturn what would make my brand different. I came to the idea that they are "living". Kenpo, unlike other styles, is constantly evolving, improving, and getting better. So I started thinking what is living that isnt? FIRE.

So I took the chines symbol for Kenpo, and set it ablaze.

The Glo of Under Water...

Today's design is a little bit back to the original idea I had for this project with the idea of making the Glo Energy Drink branded and designed for many different types of sports. This one is obviously designed for swimming with the logo on a pair of goggles.

Sour Faces

I decided to experiment with the taste of lemons. Lemons are known for their fresh and citrus smell, and they taste great loaded with sugar in lemonade. But how do they taste all by themselves? Not so good as me and some of my friends found out. I wanted to really dig into the real taste of lemons and took pictures doing it. If you ever want a real jaw jerking, eye stinging, explosion of sour taste in your mouth experience, get yourself a lemon! If not, visit a Lemon Time stand near you :)

Soto's Asian Foods

Today I was thinking of the concept of what things I have at hand that are more unusual and stand out from others', and I realized I always have a small variety of Japanese foods I get when I go to small markets. Even though the list of things I eat or drink which origins are Japanese are very wide, at the moment I found I had green tea, pocky (biscuit sticks dipped in chocolate or strawberry coatings), rice crackers wrapped in seaweed, and large strips of seaweed used for making homemade sushi.

Because Soto's origins are of the Japanese culture I was thinking how it would work if it a brand that released a large variety of Japanese food such as what is found at a Japanese market.

Freudentisch and Exotic Pets

Freudentisch is all about pets. Pets are animals. As I worked on this concept, I thought about Meret Oppenheim (especially her piece with the fur-covered teacup and spoon, and the trussed heels). I asked myself if there could possibly be a market for tables covered with faux fur. Initially, I wanted a shag carpet or faux ermine coat to cover the table, but I decided to go with the iconic leopard print. The overall idea behind today's concept is: some people enjoy snuggling with pets. If a customer purchases a table pet, why not make that worth snuggling with too? It won't bark, it won't bite, and, best of all, it won't leave a mess on your boss's suit pants! It also won't require walking, grooming, feeding, veterinarian visits, licensing...

define design

when i was little and i made food, condiments had to be applied in an aesthetically pleasing manner. HAD to be. i have been known to throw away a hotdog because the mustard and ketchup looked too messy.

that being said, why can't mustard on toasted bread be typography? why can't a wine bottle be sculpture? why can't a wallpaper pattern be art worthy of hanging on a museum wall?

i love the idea of everyday objects considered as art. viewing your surroundings as creative, intentional, and beautiful will give you a whole new appreciation for them. this is an essential part of what i believe as an artist and designer and want to translate that belief through my work.

Cable Table reDesign.005

I caught a rerun this morning of an interview John Mayer did recently about his new album Battle Studies. He was asked about how it differs from his last release, Continuum (2006). He brought up some interesting points about how Continuum was meant to be "perfect." He redid certain vocals nearly 100 times to get them just right, the same with the instruments. He smoothed it out as far as he possibly could. On the other hand, Battle Studies is "purposely rough." He felt that, lyrically and thematically, it was the most approachable album he's done, so he wanted to treat the music the same way.

It got me thinking about when it's appropriate to do this with design. I've heard that art directors and designers go back and forth all the time on whether the hand-drawn look is appropriate or not, and I'd put in my $0.02 that there are times it definitely works. I wanted to take this approach with the Cable Table brand with the hopes of making it more welcoming to a younger, artsy-er and maybe unorganized audience. This newer, sketchy logo (created thanks to the magic of carbon paper + my previous logo w/ a few things added) is meant to give off a look of "You are capable of making this table whatever you need it to be. It's your canvas." The components would possibly be sold as attachments rather than already included and set up. It's not as sleek as what I originally offered to the lifehacker crowd, it's much more DIY and open-ended.

By the way, I've found that carbon paper is a great way to bring your designs back into the sketchbook and that experimental mindset after playing around with them on a computer. I highly recommend it. It helps you get "closer" with the forms of the typography and shapes, plus I've found it helps your freehand sketching skills later on as well.

Day 5 - Comic

Today so I started thinking about what the name, Altable, could be applied to and I realized that really anything changeable or that can be altered would usually work. So I decided a Transformer-type comic would do the trick. I hired one of my illustrator friends to do the comic for me about a morphing-robot called Altable. After he drew up a rough sketch, I scanned it and roughly colored it digitally, which took a whole lot longer than I thought. But I think it turned out well. I definitely have a new found respect for any comic book artist.

Day 5: Real Value

I am going for the implication of costly perfume/cologne. How much does or could it cost your per squirt? Sometimes I think about stuff like that, or I think about stuff like that all the time. But if you start analyzing stuff like your daily routine and start with how much it costs you to shower, get dressed, eat (if I remember) go to school, cost per day for tuition and all of the sudden you start realizing how many resources you can use and go through on a daily basis without realizing it. So what if that sort of thing is applied to the ad. How much is it worth?

If the cost is high to initially buy the perfume or cologne then it will probably be used sparingly, but remember if you don't use it quick enough, it will go bad. So the actual value of the product decreases if you use it or not, so again, what is it's actual worth to you as a consumer?