Fly

MFA Thesis Show Stuff

Hi everybody! What a crazy and fantastic weekend. Below are photos from the thesis exhibition reception. I was so busy running around saying hi to old friends and running my mouth that I didn't take a lot of pictures at all. The reception outfit ended up being anti-climatic. Because of pure exhaustion and other stuff going on (my dad's car broke down on the way to Philly, thank God him and my uncle are ok) I didn't have time to shop. I was so inspired by your suggestions but too beat to actually put in the work to grab something new, so I wore something I already had. I'm sure you've seen it before on another Fly post, but it's a vintage silk jumpsuit with a belt I snagged I from my mother's closet. It worked for the evening, it was comfortable and cool.

The reception was amazing. We had DJ Shish Boom Bah play some awesome music for us (he's Rahil's husband). I heard the food was great. By the time I got to the table everything was gone. Good thing my mother loves me, she knew her goodies would go fast so she saved me some for later. I was so happy to see faces I hadn't seen in forever (a lot of former colleagues came through). And I was glad everyone enjoyed themselves. If I can grab more pics from friends I will post more.

Post-Grad School Madness?

I woke up today feeling like I still had work to do. My dreams were filled with printing problems and unfinished designs. I was so relieved when I opened my eyes. The reality is I can do anything I want right now! Here are ten things I look forward to doing without having to worry about time (in no particular order):

!. Reading a book.
2. Having a decent phone conversation without looking at the time.
3. Having coffee with a friend.
4. Watching TV without the feeling of guilt.
5. Eating good meals.
6. Saying yes to social activities.
7. Sleeping normal hours.
8. Visiting mom in Maryland.
9. Going to the movies.
10. Doing my posts for Fly.

Well, I'm off to wash my hair. It's really a hot mess right now.

You're Invited

If you live in the area or plan to be in Philly this week, definitely stop by and see the exhibition. Or, come through for the reception on Saturday. Here's the info:

Hey

So remember those pictures I promised on Monday? Well here they are. Sorry so late but I've been working nearly five days straight and haven't had much time to make it to the computer for updates. This is how the gallery space looked in the very beginning (plus one project that took nearly an hour for me to hang). As of 11:00 pm last night I was done and at about 10:59 am today my MFA review wrapped up. Now I'm just waiting for the other grads to finish so we can grab a celebration lunch. I'm so happy and yet completely exhausted. I can't wait to sleep.

 

Sigh...

I've been up since 5:45 am and been going ever since. I don't think I like this installing-an-exhibition thing. Too much measuring. Sadly, I hate measuring. Will post some progress pictures, hopefully later tonight.

Another Project

Wrapping up another project for my thesis exhibition.

The Final Stretch

This is it! This is my final full week of grad school. I can't even believe it's been two years already. I feel like it was just a few months ago when I left New York City for Philaldelphia. Time flies!

Because I'll be finishing up projects and preparing for my show I won't be posting as much, actually up until next Wednesday. Some have been asking about the exhibition show and yes it is open to the public. If you're in the area definitely check it out or even come to the exhibition reception. There's three of us showing so you'll get to see tons of amazing graphic design work. Click here for the details.

Clock Project

Here's another project I'm working on, a clock based on my summer road trips.

Images from my day

My messy desk and a project that's coming together with lots of neon green (my favorite color right now). Remember that project I was working on for sixth graders? This is a little part of it (minus the neon green cup).

Sixth Graders

Does anyone here teach, live or work with sixth graders? I'm working on a project where they are my target audience. I know nothing about them and want to know what they're into. Email me or comment about the sixth grader in your life. What music are they into? Clothing brands? Colors? TV shows? Art? Design? Pop culture icons? Video games?

Here is a mood board I'm starting to put together of colors and type that feel appropriate for the age. (Right now these colors swing more feminine than what I want, I need to work that out.)

Another Fly Bag

Here is another version I worked on for my fibers class. Again, I hand-dyed all the fabric and hand painted the stripes on the lining. I am obsessed with embroidery and wanted to do all the type in stitches. Also, the photo doesn't really show this well, but there are three compartments. On each side I made pockets the length of the bag, one is in front of the lining and the other is behind. In the top photo you can see the zipper for one of the pockets. It was a lot of fun trying to figure out how to make that element work.

Fly Bag

In my fibers class I decided to re-design the Fly Bag for my main project. I wanted to create something that seemed a little more finished than the previous version. I decided on a tote bag with lining, and since "fly girls" are always on the go trying to keep up with their creative endeavors I imagined she would like to keep her laptop handy. So I added a cushioned laptop pocket (ideally it would be attached inside, but I left it loose for now). I also felt the colors and details in the patterns would also make this tote bag feel a little more special. It was fun trying to figure it all out, but there were quite a few technical difficulties along the way.

I must say it was a very LOOOOONG process. Using inspiration from the colors on this site I dyed all the fabric from the lining to the handles in hot pink and sea-foam blue (my favs). It took a lot of sample tests to get the colors just right (see my sketchbook). Then I dye-printed the dots for the lining and feathers for the outer portion of the bag. The feathers didn't quite come out how I imagined...but whatever. Then crazy me said, "hey I'm going to embroider the Fly hummingbird as an additional pattern. That took forever! But I loved the way they came out. Sadly the fabric marker I used to sketch the birds is still visible! It's supposed to fade away after 24 hours - WTH!!! So that led to another whatever, what could I do, the project is due today and of course I was working on it up until 3am. The zipper was problematic and I didn't have enough fabric for the handles, so they're a little short. BUT overall I'm happy with it. It's only supposed to be the dummy before the final final bags but I couldn't resist going all the way.

More of Fibers Class

A little while ago I was obsessed with creating watercolor patterns using abstract flowers. So now that we're starting to use printing and painting on silk in my fibers class I looked to my watercolors for inspiration. It didn't come out quite like I imagined but I had a lot of fun experimenting.

Day Five

My Victorian Era Dolls will now represent different motifs that were used from various countries to make up what we now know as Victorian design. This sketch is for the Paisley which was used heavily by Scottish and English designers during that era. My design evolved from this, but this is one of the sketches I presented in class.

Fibers Class

I love my fibers class. Working with fabric is something I've always wanted to experiment with so when I had the opportunity to take this class I jumped on it. Here are two pieces I have to turn in today. They're both silk dyed in acid and MX dyes.

Day Four

As I began researching my first doll, the Victorian plush, I found that there was a wealth of information to be used on this era alone. And because I love the design from the Victorian period so much I decided to focus my project on that era. I think I would have more fun with that direction. Although I respect all the other design periods I was not excited about working on a Constructivist inspired plush toy. Have no idea what I'm talking about? Visit previous links about my design project here.

Typology, is a wonderful book covering the evolution of type. It's out of print so if you can find it grab it. It's been a great resource for my project. (I heard New Vintage Type: Classic Fonts for the Digital Age is a great alternative to Typology.)

Day Three

I love Project Runway because aside from the wonderful clothes it's the closest thing we graphic designers will probably get to having a reality show. I can totally relate to the agony of working really hard on something and feel confident about what I created only to get shot down by my peers. It's the world of design and like the show last night, it's all about the balance of your taste and style along with fulfilling your client's needs. On top of that, you can't take anything personal. I could go on and on but I won't, that's another post. Anyway, I am pushing forward with my toy project: plushes based on the different periods of graphic design. Here are some really rough sketches I presented in class. These sketches are based on my research for The Victorian Era and Russian Constructivism design periods. My professor shot me down to the ground. Basically, she said the direction is off and I am restricting myself with the elements I was using. The criticism was helpful, the class' input was also very constructive so back to the drawing board I go.

Day Two

In developing ideas for my project I pulled these images for inspiration. Lately, I've been really interested in embroidery, rag dolls, and cross stitch samplers. I showed these in class to help support my concepts of designing either plush toys or embroidery kits based on graphic design.

Day One

Oh the joys of studying graphic design. Our graduate design program is intense, demanding yet exciting and fulfilling. I've decided to document the ups and downs of my Graduate Thesis class during this Spring semester. You'll see photos, sketches and notes about how my project is falling into place (or maybe not ...eeeek!!) The first year grad students (me and two others) are to design something that will educate an audience about the History of Graphic design...agh!! The second year grad students who are graduating this Spring can choose to design something on any topic they wish. Lucky dogs!!!

We were given the topic before class, so day one we had to come prepared with three proposals for our ideas. I was SOOOOOO nervous reading my proposals to the class. I think I stuttered through the whole thing. (My poor classmates.) Anyway, I'm thinking about doing my project on the Arts and Crafts Movement, Art Nouveau, or the History of Graphic Design as a whole. I want to either design elements for the kitchen (tea towels, aprons, oven mits, etc) or something to educate children about design history. I presented my ideas, got some good feedback and now I have to tighten up the proposals and come in with visuals next week. Exciting but very eeeeeek!! :)