Assignment 4: Mounting Emotion Studies. Due Wed, Feb 1st

Matting your Emotion Compositions- Due Wed, Feb 1st

Mount your compositions to the mat board provided in class; follow the diagram included below. You will leave a 2 inch border around the perimeter of the matt and a 1 inch gutter/space between each composition. 

Assessment

You will be evaluated on the following criteria:

Following Directions-
Correct sizes and spacing according to mounting diagram. Written components on the back- did you include the emotion, f/g relationship, and type of balance for each composition?

Craftsmanship- 
Are the 5x5 compositions lined up and straight?
No glue left on surface? 
No pencil marks?

Design/Placement-
Did you use the design principles to create an interesting layout on your mat board? 
There are six compositions; please organize them well. Use repetition of color, line, size relationships, value, etc. 

Assignment 3: Six Emotion Composition Studies. Due Monday, Jan 30th.

Intro

For this assignment you will create six duotone compositions, each on 5" x 5" quality paper. Your six compositions will seek to communicate one emotion from the list provided. Each 5" x 5" study will communicate a different emotion from the list below using only basic elements of design (nothing representational) and only two colors per composition (white paper is a color).

The American Psychological Association recognizes seven basic human emotions which are found throughout all cultures and are considered to be universal. They are: 

• joy

• surprise

• sadness

• fear

• contempt

• anger

• disgust

Required Materials

• Colored paper- paint chips from paint store or art paper- ex. Canson, Strathmore, etc.
• Rubber cement
• Metal ruler
• Xacto knife and fresh blades
• Cutting Mat

Specifications

1. Your six composition will be 5 inches x 5 inches. 

2. Choose six emotions from the APA list of seven emotions included above. 

3. Figure/Ground and Balance- you must use each type of F/G relationship and each type of balance at least once in the six compositions.

4. Your paper should be professional artist quality (no construction paper, printer paper, or thin papers)

5. Back of each composition should be labeled in pencil in the upper left-hand corner of the page. Please include the following information:

• Your name
• Date
• Emotion (from the list on this page)
• Type of F/G relationship (Stable, Reversible, Ambiguous)
• Type of Balance (Symmetry, asymmetry, Radial, Crystallographic)

Goal

Your goal is to create visually interesting compositions that effectivly communicate these base emotions using what you have learned regarding figure/ground relationship, the elements and principles of design, semiotics, and what you have read in the Wong text. 

Assessment

You will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• 30% Composition- visually interesting, good use of F/G, design elements, all negative and positive space is well though out and the shapes all appear necessary
• 30% Craft- clean precise cuts, gluing, no pencil marks.
• 30%Communication- composition clearly communicates the intended emotion. 
• 10% Following directions- proper labeling, correct size, used all types of f/g and balance at least once, correct paper, etc. 

Due Date

Monday, Jan 30th. Critique begins promptly at 10:10am. Please have your work pinned to the wall by that time.

Class Schedule for Monday

After critique I will do a demonstration on proper way to mount artwork to mat board.
You will complete matting of your Emotion studies to be turned in on Wed. On Wed, we will be documenting your work in class. I will do a demo on simple documentation of flat (2-D) work.

Please note: All figure/ground studies you are have completed so far will also need to be mounted. You will have the weekend to complete them before turning them in. Only the matted emotion studies will be turned in on Wed. You will take them home with you after the critique. 

Research: Wong Text. Chapters 3-6. Due Monday, Jan. 30th

Research

Wong, Principles of 2-D Design. 
Chapters 3- 6. 

Assignment 2: Figure/Ground Relationship Studies

Description

Using basic shapes (square, circle, rectangle) create three sets of studies showing the three figure/ground relationships (stable, reversible, ambiguous). You will end up with nine (9) compositions total:

Square- Stable
Square- Reversible
Square- Ambiguous

Circle- Stable
Circle- Reversible
Circle- Ambiguous

Rectangle/Thick Line- Stable
Rectangle/Thick Line- Reversible
Rectangle/Thick Line- Ambiguous

Materials

Nine 5" x 5" bristol board squares (preferably not smooth texture)
Black Cason Paper (for cutting out your shapes)
X-axto knife and blades
Cutting Mat
Metal Ruler
Rubber Cement

Process

1. Start by laying out multiple compositions using only the selected element (square, circle, rectangle). Do this enough times (at least 10 attempts for each composition) to come up with a good composition. You may overlap the shapes, and may use both black and white shapes of any size. The shapes just need to be the same, ie. only squares, only circles, only rectangles. 

The goal for your compositions it that they illustrate the figure/ground relationship, and that they have implied movement and visual interest. Please pay attention to details. 

2. Pick the best examples from each series (ex. square- stable) and apply that design to the 9 inch x 9 inch bristol board. Use the Canson paper to cut out your final complex shapes (the result of overlapping the simple shapes from step 1). 

3. Rubber cement (gluing both surfaces) all black paper to the white bristol board. Again, pay attention to craftsmanship. These should look like they were printed out. Super clean. 

4. Bring your final nine (9) compositions to class for critique. In addition, please post all 9 to your blog under "Assignment 4: Figure Ground Studies"

Schedule/ Due Dates

Monday, Jan. 23rd- 
DUE One Set of F/G studies using squares (Stable, Reversible, Ambiguous)
Quick Peer Critique will begin at 10:45am. 
In-Class work time on other two sets of compositions. 

Wed, Jan 25th- 
Due Two sets of F/G Studies- Rectangular and Circular compositions (Stable, Rev, Amb)
Critique will begin at 10:45am. You will have 15 mins to pin your work up on the walls. Please pin them straight and evenly spaced. 

Research: Gestalt and Figure/Ground Relationship. Due Monday. Jan 23rd.

Required Research- Due Monday. Jan 23rd. 

To help you build your  compositional skills, please read through the following two blog posts. They introduce the concepts of Gestalt and Figure/Ground Relationship. Links are below:

Gestalt

Figure/Ground Relationship

Research: Intro to Semiotics (three presentaions). Due Wed Jan 18

Material

Be sure to review the two full slide shows included below; we will be discussing in class. There will be a short quiz sent out after class on Wed.

Semiotics:  Please review slides 3-52.


Here is another slide presentation that gives examples of how to analyze an image/advertisement.

Goal

After studying the above materials you should be able to describe the basic types of signs and how they operate. In addition, you should be able to identify their use in our culture. Lastly, you should begin to understand how to apply semiotics in your own creative practice.

Assignment 1: What's up/Mashup- Image Analysis, Deconstruction and Reconstruction. Due Monday, January 15th.

Project Description 

This assignment is about slowing down and learning to look carefully and intentionally.  It's about observation, interpretation and response. As we stated in class, we spend much of our time reacting to the visual stimuli around us without much conscious thought as to what is being communicated. Our goal is to work on conscious viewing. 

You will start by breaking down the magazine page you picked in-class today. For this exercise we will be studying visual language in terms of both the Elements and Principles of Design.

Please be careful and concise with this exercise.

All work for this exercise will be posted to your blog.

Process

Step 1- Select an interesting Image

Select an image- Find an interesting page from a magazine to use as your source image. Be sure it has lots of details, contrast and variation. Images that contain both representational elements and text may be easier to use. 

Step 2- Scan Original

Take a photo (or scan) of the original source page and post it on your blog. Be sure to crop the image so it looks professional. 72ppi is proper resolution. Label this image as Original. 

Step 3- Analysis of Original

Write two paragraphs identifying all the basic elements of design you can find in your source image. Try your best to find as many elements as possible. Use the lists I posted to the blog to break down your image in terms of the Elements and Principles of Design. You can find that reference page by clicking here.  

For the Interpretation, use your own language to try and break down the communicative (semiotics) aspect of the magazine page you are analyzing. Be specific and be sure to qualify every statement you make by answering the questions why? or how? For example, if you say an image is sad, please describe Why you feel the image is communicating sadness and how. What aspects of the magazine page are communicating sadness?

Step 4- Modification (through Deconstruction and Reconstruction)

Use analogue cutting and pasting (x-acto and rubber cement) to deconstruct the page from your magazine and create a new composition that communicates something in stark contrast to the original source image. Start with a piece of paper the same size as the original magazine page. Create a composition that activates the whole page. Label this image as Modified.

Important notes: 

1. Every part of the original image has to be used. You can't throw anything away. 
2. None of the text from the original should be recognizable in your modified compositional. It should all be used as line and shape. 
3. Don't add any other elements or remove any. 
4. Glue your collage down on to a sheet of poster board or matt board that is the same size as the original source image. 

Step 5- Analysis of Modified Composition

Using the same approach as step 2, analyze your new composition. Be sure to qualify your statements by answering the questions why? and how?

Step 6- Scan Modified

Take a photo (or scan) of the Modified image and post it on your blog. Be sure to crop the image and fix the levels so it looks professional. Label this image as Modified. 

Due Monday, January 15th.  Start of Class. 

Rubric

You will be assessed on the following:
30% Analysis- both the quality and quantity of the break down of your two images (original and modified). 
30% Craftsmanship- precision of your cutting and pasting. Does everything look intentional? No rubber cement globs, etc. 
30% Creativity- how much you have changed the message of the original image/magazine page. The quality and originality of your new/modified composition. 
10% Presentation- Display at critique. Hung straight. Mounted on Matt Board. No bent edges or marks on Matt. Professional presentation. 


Helpful Hint- It's not necessary to completely cover every inch of your Modified composition with cutouts from the Original. Instead, think about how the white of the page can be used as shape and how it can add to the overall composition. 

Research: Elements and Principles of Design. Due Before Class Jan. 11th.

Intro

The Elements and Principles of Design are the building blocks of visual language. This page is a starting point for your research on the subject. Remember, every author will present a slightly different list of things as "the" elements and "the" principles of design/art. The main thing to remember is that every image, regardless of how complex, can be disassembled into basic core components that are shared by all images. In this sense, all images have a simple shared core language. 

Link to an introduction on Formal Analysis:

http://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/building_lessons/formal_analysis.html

Basic lists of the Elements of Design and Principles of Design:

Required Reading- Due before class on Wed., Jan 11th. 

Please read the Preface, Chapter 1: Introduction, and Chapter 2: Form of Wucius Wong's Principles of Two Dimensional Design. Here is a link the Wong Text in pdf. Save the pdf to your computer; we will be reading through the entire text this next few weeks. 

Note: the language we are learning will be used to analysis the images in this week's assignments. Do you best, with what we have discussed in-class and with what you will be reading this week.