sean adam's presentation

Sean Adam's presentation at Command G was fantastic! Thank you for showing that to us! I'm so glad I brought my S.O. he really liked it as well. Not only was it very interesting from a design standpoint, it was a good presentation, in general. I was inspired by his entrepreneurism and bold life choices.

Throughout his presentation, he brought up the history of graphic design, and even differences between East coast and West coast flare. Because I'm so new to design, I felt a little behind on those things, but the exposure was great to start thinking about it. He talked about a lot of things I hadn't heard of before, which gives me fun avenues to explore.

His story about starting the restaurant with ugly colors and designs was hilarious. It got me thinking about starting little projects like that with people I know, or friends. Although, he mentioned that the restaurant went out of business, so we would need to be prepared for that. Even if that was the case, it definitely seems like a fun project. At least at this point, most of graphic design seems very fun!

Speaking of that, I appreciated his motto for what type of work he wanted to do and how to stay happy. Specifically, refusing to work with bad people. While it may not always work out that way, I think it is great advice to get out of bad working environments. In addition to that, I hope the work stays fun, in the way he described, mainly that it is challenging, yet still enjoyable.

I'm looking forward to checking out his videos!

teaching to see review

I loved the Teaching to See video. It exposed me to some things I haven't thought of before. What I really liked was not seeing an object for what it was, but for what it is doing. Something I feel I lack is being able to capture light and texture properly when replicating an object. It was difficult to attempt that with our texture project. That is something I hope to work on to get more experienced, not only at replicating proper light, shading, and texture, but also to really see it.

The video also made me think more about taking some drawing classes. While it seems clear that you can be a very good designer without knowing how to draw, at the same time, it seems like it would help to have that understanding. It seems helpful to be able to bring in those skills in design.

I haven't taken typography yet and this video really got me excited about taking that class. Very inspiring.

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rhythm balance

sean kelly lecture

I thought Sean's presentation was really good. It was fascinating to hear the perspective of a designer. Since I am new to graphic design, I haven't had much exposure to that. What I found most interesting about his presentation was how he got started in the business and how much of his work came from referrals or through his network of connections. It showed the contrast between going out to do it on your own versus working for an agency. I was inspired by his work and his attitude about graphic design in general.

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design studio review

It was really interesting to see an actual design studio. The mural wall was fantastic - what a cute idea. I really like the open feel of the studio. Some of our cubicles at work have low cubicles and it becomes easier to work on projects because everyone can hear everyone else. Of course, there is less privacy, but it makes things a lot easier to collaborate.

I thought having her office on the second floor was interesting. I'm sure nice for her to have a break and be able to look down on the floor to everyone else. On the other hand, it appears a little intimidating to have to walk all the way up her stairs to talk to her, especially since she would certainly hear you coming.

The overall atmosphere of the studio also seemed welcoming and collaborative. It seemed like a good place to be a designer.

a new approach to design thinking review

I was actually pretty unsure about what he was talking about for most of his talk. Once we got to the meat of the presentation with global connection or communication systems, I started to understand. I think IBM has a long way to go to catch up to Google with global sharing/communication platforms, but perhaps with well designed applications, they can get there.

Something that did resonate with me was the infinity imagery. I really liked their use of having various people draw out the symbol, which helped me remember it later and be able to tie that back to reflect, make, and observe. It made me think of Sean's talk and how much he emphasized sharing your work with others for review and walking away from your work for a night to give you more perspective the next day. There is clearly a valuable lesson there, which I hope to remember as I get stuck in a creative rut.

The other thing about reflect, make, and observe being on a continuous loop reminds me that while projects have due dates and deadlines, they don't always need to be done. It is just as easy to look back on work that is currently being used and find more areas to improve. While doing that will always push the work further to be better, it seems like it could also be a detriment by never finishing a project. Either way, it is something to keep in mind.

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100 iterations (the moon)