Holiday Budget

I thought I would post some ideas on how to be creative during the holiday season. Even though your holiday budget may be tight, there are other ways of giving a priceless gift without overextending your wallet. Photo gifts are always a fantastic gift. Special photos are to be cherished, and have value aside from currency. A nice site to visit is Snapfish for this sort of gift. What else is great about this site is that you can upload your digital photos, create the gift online and have it shipped to you or the receiver in mind. The site even has a section dedicated to gifts under $20 to assist with holiday budgeting.

Another great economically modest gift is creating a cool mouse pad for someone. I am always on the search for unique mouse pads, and I don't know if you noticed but mouse pads can get expensive! For a fancier sort of craft you can visit this site. However, the drawback for this creation is you will need to be a bit computer and image savvy. So, for a more hands-on experience you can also follow these instructions. A mouse-pad is also something that someone will put to use and keep for an extended period of time. I have posted a photo of a creative pad for inspiration.



These are just a couple of ideas. You can browse online for more. Here is a site that offers some more creative ideas on making gifts. Remember if you do not feel comfortable solely giving hand-made gifts you can combine them with less expensive purchased gifts to raise the value of your overall offering. Good luck and happy holidays!!

Longing for Art

I have been so wrapped up in pushing my graphic and web design career forward that I have neglected my fine art. My friend, and one of my mentors, Anne Mondro has joined a new gallery in Chicago. The gallery, American Contemporary Gallery, hosts a handful of very talented and diverse artists. As I was browsing the artists and their work I stumbled upon these pieces that I have posted here.

These two paintings made me still. That is what happens when I encounter a piece of art that speaks to me - everything becomes still and for a moment I seem to understand it "all." Art, like these two paintings, whisper the secrets of life. They whisper things about connection and order. How amongst the day to day randomness there is a design that we can neither control or understand. These two pieces are very inspirational to me and they resonate to my inner artist and humanness.

Flash Exhibit

Gallery Project presents Flash, an exhibition of original graphic art of tattoo culture worldwide. What used to be reserved for warriors, carnival performers, and other people on the fringe of society, tattoos now adorn us all. Their decoration guides their wearers into life's chaos and helps to define their individuality in the face of its conformity. The images are chosen talismans that protect, evoke memories, capture emotions and express opinions. The artists responsible for these creations are unique. Their canvas is alive, ever changing and imperfect. Their canvas can feel pain, and these engravings are permanent marks on a dynamic surface. There is a unique synergy between the artist and their living canvas that leads to the creation of an artwork that is personal and unrepeatable. This sub culture of artists has founded, maintained and evolved its traditions without any mainstream support or recognition, a social network of artists, creators and collectors that has evolved outside the contemporary art context.

This sub culture of artists has founded, maintained and evolved its traditions without any mainstream support or recognition, a social network of artists, creators and collectors that has evolved outside the contemporary art context. This showing of paintings, drawings, and graphic art, reveals some of the imagery and iconography which describes this culture. Curated by Jeff Zuck, owner of Name Brand Tattoo in Ann Arbor, and Alexa Lee, former director of the Alexa Lee Gallery, these artists represent the current state of several living global tattoo traditions. The artists include: Adam Forman from LA, Mario Desa from Chicago, Chriss Dettmer from Hamburg, Jeff Zuck, Kerri Baker, Leo Zulueta, Jen Munford, Mike Aul, Ethan Zuck and Dianne Mansfield all from Ann Arbor, Mike Dorsey from Cincinnati, Bill Falsetta from Ann Arbor, Tomas Garcia from Barcelona, Adam Shrewsbury from Cleveland, and Jason June and Guy Ursitti from Fun City Tattoo in New York City. Flash is a tribute to tattoo creators and enthusiasts, and is recognition of their artistic and cultural contributions. Gallery Project is a fine art collaborative. Its mission is to provide a venue for contemporary art that is culturally aware, individualistic, courageous, and thought provoking. Gallery Project is located at 215 South Fourth Avenue in Ann Arbor. Gallery hours are: Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 9; and Sunday, noon to 4. The gallery is closed on Mondays. For more information, call 734-997-7012 or e-mail at galleryproject@gmail.com. Visit the website at thegalleryproject.com.

Halloween

The season is changing now, time to pull out the winter coat if you haven't already. A fun place to consider taking the family is Wiard's. Events include country fair, hayrides and a haunted house. We go every year. Another event I would like to promote is through an organization that Ann Arbor Designs actually does creative work for. I have posted the flyer, but it is strategic race of sorts - but on bicycles! The race, Night of the Living Tread, is a yearly occurrence with this being its third annual appearance. Check jimmyrigged.com for more details.

Obama

“I believe that America's free market has been the engine of America's great progress. It's created a prosperity that is the envy of the world. It's led to a standard of living unmatched in history. And it has provided great rewards to the innovators and risk-takers who have made America a beacon for science, and technology, and discovery…We are all in this together. From CEOs to shareholders, from financiers to factory workers, we all have a stake in each other's success because the more Americans prosper, the more America prospers.”
— Barack Obama, New York, NY, September 17, 2007

I am so excited about this election. Being a part of the current generation and trying to break through vocationally has been a struggle. Every American has their own trials in our current economy. Whether it be trying to maintain a current lifestyle, attempting to create a life or losing everything all together; we are all suffering together. Something needs to give. I was raised to believe that I could accomplish anything if I worked hard enough. My parents never put restraints on me, they supported whatever I wanted to do. When I wanted to take piano lessons they bought me a piano, when I played in a band they put up with hearing drums in their basement, when I worked on my art they dealt with the mess. Now a mother, I instill those same ideals into my son. I want him to pursue anything he finds an interest in. I will never tell him that after working hard through college he will have to settle for whatever job he can get. That is not the America I love. If someone has the skills and the drive, they should be able to get to that place where they can benefit the community and themselves the best they can. I refuse to lose hope and I am thoroughly excited to be a part of the up and coming era of change.

Illustration vs Graphic Design

There was a time when students went to school for either Illustration or Graphic Design. Illustration is "a visualization such as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that stresses subject more than form" (wikipedia). Graphic Design "can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation. Various methods are used to create and combine symbols, images and/or words to create a visual representation of ideas and messages. A graphic designer may utilize typography, visual arts and page layout techniques in varying degrees to produce the final result of the project" (wikipedia).

So what is the difference? Well, generally Illustrators do not perform Graphic Design and Graphic Designers do not create Illustrations. That statement is beginning to faulter, however. Everything and everyone is becoming global. Designers and Illustrators must function across all platforms, although the two are very different. Illustrators create visual depictions of concepts. Whether it be via cartoons, actual drawings, digital renditions - Illustrators construct the beautiful eyecandy that goes into the layout.

The Graphic Designer is the collage artist, in layman's terms. He/she gathers the illustrations, photos, type, copy, paper, color and all other odds and ends that come together to create an entire communcative piece. The Graphic Designer finds a way to juggle all the elements effectively to ultimatley deliver the end result - the message.

Design at its Best

I stumbled upon Phire Branding while researching design in my area. There is not a day where I am not researching design and absorbing all I can. By saying that I research on a daily basis, when I take the time to focus in on a particular designer or firm, it certainly means that I have found something valuable. Phire Branding's web-site makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It is so intuitive, as I feel completely in tuned while it displays its contents. It moves from left to right, from top to bottom, supporting my natural instinct to absorb information.

Phire Branding is Flash at its best. Their usage of the program is exactly why I am learning it. The site is so organic and seems to have a life all its own. With every click there is something new and compelling, while maintaining the consistency that is so essential in design. This site is fantastic, so much so that it must be shared. Here is an article about the firm if you would like to know a little more about them.