Logo Creation

 The most important discovery I learned from creating a logo is that I have somewhat of an imagination. I also learned that I have descent drawing skills. Additionally, the videos helped develop my ideas. I thought the videos gave a better understanding of how graphic designs are created. I think it is really interesting how some of these images evolved.

It was difficult trying to come up with a logo idea. I started off trying to create a logo for a plant nursery, hence the banana logo. I then came up with the idea to create a beer logo. I wanted to emphasize the town of Lewiston in the logo. Since Lewiston is a big boating community I chose to use an anchor in the design. I also used 1812 to signify the War of 1812 in the area. It was difficult trying to draw my ideas on paper. I first started out with a rectangular shaped logo, but I thought a circle would look more interesting. Also, I wanted to really emphasize the colors black and green in this logo.  I tried to make the logo look like a full moon in one of the sketches, but I messed it up. I am surprised at how my final logo came out.

 Sketches

Value Scale & Color Wheel

After creating the value scale, I learned about the different shades and the value system. I thought this assignment was quite easy. On the other hand I found the color wheel project to be quite challenging. Being that I am colorblind and have a difficult time recognizing certain colors, I especially had a difficult time creating the secondary colors. I am not quite sure if I completed the assignment correctly. Although I did find the color wheel difficult to create, I thought the painting aspect was fun. I especially enjoyed mixing the colors. My most important discovery was the appropriate pigment mix in the paint. I noticed that I had to mix the colors proportionally to get the results I was looking for. I thought both videos were successful at demonstrating each assignment. Additionally, I wondered if there is a specific reason why the demonstrator sharpened the pencil with a utility knife and chose not use a pencil sharpener.

Color and Emotion

The Color movie gave me a good understanding of how color is implemented in a work of art.  I was especially intrigued how artist use bold colors to express strong emotions. Vincent Van Gogh thought his work of the café was one of his ugliest pieces of art because of the bold color scheme. This “ugly” painting does an excellent job expressing Van Gogh’s idea of how a café can ruin a man. The most intriguing idea I learned in The Feelings video is how art gives us a particular feeling. For example, the Mona Lisa lends a mysterious feeling because of its glow. Even though, the woman is an ordinary woman, the color scheme makes this work of art mysterious.

Color has great influence on our emotions. Because colors often remind us of particular occurrences, one might have an emotional attachment when seeing a color or blend of colors. For example, Americans often associate a combination of red and green with Christmas. The use of blue in art is often associated with freedom and often gives a calm feeling. More intriguing is how color is used to purposely draw certain emotions. For example, McDonalds uses yellow to enhance hunger and red to increase energy in their restaurant. As a fast food company, this color scheme draws people in to eat, and makes customers feel like they need to eat fast and leave the restaurant. 

Elements and Principles Project 1

I thought this project was fun and educational at the same time. It really helped familiarized me with the elements and principles of art because I had to recognize them while trying to take a picture at the same time. I really was surprised at how well some of the pictures came out. I especially thought it was fun searching for good shots. In addition to the pictures I captured in this project, I added some pictures from my travels that I thought were excellent examples of the elements and principles of art. I hope you all enjoy!

Week Two Blog Update

Prior to watching the videos and reading this chapter, I had no understanding of what aesthetics meant.

I really enjoyed the video Aesthetics: Philosphy of the Arts. I thought this video really enhanced the readings on aesthetics and gave an in-depth lesson of how aesthetics evolved. I learned there is no correct approach to analyzing aesthetics, however, everyone has his or her own understanding of what defines beauty. I enjoyed the neoclassical idea of Leon Battista Alberti. Alberti believed that beauty is harmony and perfection. His idea of formal order and symmetrics is important to me. In addition to Alberti’s work, I found it interesting that there was no understanding of aesthetics during the Middle Ages. Instead, the idea of beauty was found in God.

The video CARTA: Neurobiology Neurology and Art and Aesthetics gave me an understanding of how the brain functions when exposed to a work of art. After watching the video, I learned that there are eight laws of art. These eight laws are grouping or “binding”, peak shift principal, contrast, isolating as a single cue to optimally excite cortical visual areas, perception problem solving, symmetry, abhorrence of unique vantage points and suspicious conscious, and art as a metaphor. I thought when the second speaker spoke about isolation was interesting as he explains how a seven year old mentally challenged kid may have produced a better work of art than Leonardo Di Vinci in some peoples eyes.

These videos relate to the text because they give us a view of how we visualize a work of art. They also reinforce and give an in-depth analysis on aesthetics. Although I really enjoyed the first film on the philosophies of aesthetics, I thought the second video was difficult to follow. Perhaps captions would have helped.