My Stuff

Scatter Piece

2008-12-24T10:48:00.000-08:00

I scattered a bunch of wrapped candies and painted with various dilutions of india ink to create the greyscale tones. I probably could have done a cleaner job with a pen since I'm still so shaky with a paintbrush, but that wasn't the assignment.

Scatter - India ink on paper

Jenny Saville

2008-12-24T10:29:00.000-08:00

For our final Figure Drawing assignment, we copied a work we admire. I selected Prop (1992) by Jenny Saville whose work I absolutely LOVE. This drawing was done in about 45 minutes because I procrastinated so it's rather off. I might go back and fix it when the weather gets nicer.

My version - Vine Charcoal on paper

Prop - Jenny Saville

More Self Portraits

2008-12-24T10:20:00.000-08:00

The first is another self portrait project we did in General Drawing in which we drew ourselves in an experimental context to reveal our identity. I chose to draw myself as my favorite graphic novel character Death, from the works of Neil Gaiman. The second is a portrait I drew for Figure Drawing using only tones. So that brings the count to 5 self portraits for 2008.

Ink on paper

Vine Charcoal on paper

Magazine Concept and Design

2008-12-22T16:16:00.000-08:00

For our last project in Computer Graphics, we had to come up with a concept for a magazine and create a cover, table of contents, and sample page for it. I created a magazine for type geeks (what I'm becoming) recycling my typography animals. This was a really fun assignment for me since I'm interested in publication design. Again, I used my favorite typefaces Franklin Gothic and the lovely Mrs. Eaves.

Bronx Zoo Brochure

2008-12-22T16:05:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed the gridding assignment from ComD so much, I used it again to create my Bronx Zoo brochure for Typography. I created grids from tracing shapes within the animals and then I drew in the lettering. The informational section was hastily thrown together since I ran out of time, but I'm okay with how it looks since I got to use Franklin Gothic again.

Blaxploitation Film Festival Poster Series

2008-12-22T15:55:00.000-08:00

So my obsession with blaxploitation films spurred by the LCD album cover assignment spilled over to my Computer Graphics class. The assignment was to create a poster series using imagery to link them. I chose to do mine on a blaxploitation film festival. I drew silhouettes of Shaft, Eddie from Superfly, and Coffy and placed a quote from their respective movies underneath.

Album Cover Assignment

2008-12-22T15:23:00.000-08:00

In Light/Color/Design class, we each selected a piece of instrumental music and made a painting based on it. Afterwards, we cropped the painting to create the cover and 6 page inserts for the album art. My song was "Wildcat" by Ratatat. To me, it brings to mind the blaxploitation films of the early 70s so I tried to capture the feel of the movie posters of that genre.

Wildcat

Painting - Ink and Tempera paint on colored paper

Album Cover

Album Art

Alice In Wonderland Play Poster

2008-12-22T14:22:00.000-08:00

We did this really interesting assignment in Communication Design in which we made grids based on collages. I traced my favorite shapes from a combination of three different collages. From there, I decided my grid might make a cool poster for an Alice In Wonderland play. This semester, I've really been inspired by the Polish Poster movement so I tried my hand again at hand drawn typography. It turned out really well and I discovered that I really like to draw type. I've also fallen in love with Franklin Gothic, which is the typeface I've used for the newspaper quote and theater information for this poster.

Collages

Grid

Final Poster

Museum Sketches

2008-11-19T21:17:00.000-08:00

For the first half of the semester in Figure Drawing, we were assigned to visit a museum every other week and sketch any figurative work we chose. Below are 10(ish) minute sketches I did at The Met, my favorite museum.

For our mid-term assignment, we chose one artist that we admired while doing our sketches and researched their work. From there, we made 5 quick sketches and 1 finished drawing of their work. I chose Edgar Degas.

Here is my finished drawing along with a photo of the original:

Pencil on Mi Tientes paper (18"x24")

The Dancers by Edgar Degas
Pastel on Charcoal Paper (28"x23.25")

Self Portrait - Initial Sketch

2008-11-17T19:28:00.000-08:00

We've been assigned to do self portraits in 2 classes, so over the next few weeks, I'll be posting several. I did this one in less than an hour in between classes today which is a record for me. It turns out that my figure drawing teacher wants a more tonal drawing, so I may fix this one up and turn it in for the first part of my general drawing assignment. There are a lot of things off in this drawing which I plan to fix in the studio tomorrow. The nose is too long and the lips are still a bit funky. Also, I need to widen the face shape a bit.

Charcoal on Mi Tientes paper
18"x24"

AIGA Event Postcard

2008-11-15T17:27:00.000-08:00

Front

Back

Pop Art Painting

2008-11-15T09:54:00.001-08:00

LCD Assignment. Tempera paint on bristol.

Alphabet Poster

2008-11-13T18:40:00.000-08:00

This was our most recent Typography assignment. I rendered my alphabet poster in the style of Andy Warhol. Typefaces are Helvetica Bold for capital letters and Garamond Bold Oblique for lower case letters.

Figure Drawing

2008-11-11T17:28:00.000-08:00

We went to the Met for Figure Drawing today. I'm getting better at proportions and speed, but I still tend to draw wide and that's very frustrating. I drew an Aphrodite sculpture from 2 angles and a seated muse. The drapery on the seated muse looks really crappy and I should have given myself more time on it. Oh well, these are just exercises so I'm just going to let it go.

Homage to Roy Lichtenstein

2008-11-10T13:33:00.000-08:00

For our most recent general drawing assignment, we reinterpreted a drawing from an artist of our choice. I selected "Study For Tension" by Roy Lichtenstein, 1964, and rendered mine in the same medium, colored pencil on paper.

Mine

Lichtenstein's

Cubism Inspired Painting

2008-11-10T13:14:00.000-08:00

This was an study of complimentary tertiary colors. I chose red-violet and yellow-green.

Tempera paint on bristol board.

Restaurant Concept and Design

2008-11-10T12:09:00.000-08:00

We just finished a really interesting assignment in communication design where we each came up with a unique concept for a restaurant and created a logo and menu design for it. My logo is hand drawn and all informational elements are set in Mrs. Eaves which is a really lovely serif typeface inspired by Bodoni.

Description: Mince is a family restaurant specializing in savory and sweet pies. Besides great food, Mince will offer a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere reminiscent of European hearth fire kitchens. Savory pies will come in two sizes, single and large for sharing. Assorted dessert pies will vary by the week and will be served by the slice. Mince will be located in the West Village neighborhood of New York City and will seat approximately 40 guests.

I superimposed my logo onto the awning of Foccacia Restaurant on 4th Street and Bank Street. I like this space because of the round pans hanging on the wall and also the fire oven that can be seen from the dining area.

This is the logo on the business card. The back will be a solid chocolate brown, the same color as the logo and text on the front.

The menus will be round and will display savory pies on the front and sweet pies on the back. Names of the different pies are set in small caps, descriptions in italics, and pricing in roman.

Photoshop Stuff

2008-11-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

Another week of computer graphics homework:

Dalai Lama
drawn with pencil and brush tools

Dalai Lama
photo manipulated with dodge, burn, sponge, and smudge tool

Peg-leg Biker Baby and His One Eyed Girlfriend

2008-10-24T18:41:00.001-07:00

Hopefully this is the last of my Scary Babies series. The assignment was to apply illustrator effects and to blow the picture up. The actual size of this piece is 17x22 inches.

Cart Book

2008-10-21T11:14:00.001-07:00

This was a really fun assignment we did in order to learn more about InDesign. We all made little books about anything we wanted. For mine, I pushed my cart around the city and took photos of it for a "Cart Love Story." The spreads will be pasted together in a 6x6 inch accordian book. Click on the spreads for a closer view.

Creepy Babies

2008-10-17T01:21:00.000-07:00

Here is an illustrator project we did in Computer Graphics. The first objective was to create a flat drawing. The second was to create a sense of depth.

Typography Book Design

2008-10-16T18:31:00.001-07:00

Here is the book cover redesign I made in Typography.

Claire's Birth Announcement

2008-10-12T06:28:00.001-07:00

This is also from a while back, my cutie pie Claire's birth announcement. The photograph was taken by her very talented uncle, Dwo Law of Dwo Law Photography, LLC.

Quoc and Michelle's Wedding Invitation

2008-10-12T06:09:00.001-07:00

I did these back in June, but forgot to post them here. These invites turned out REALLY well. Once again, there is a Vietnamese version in addition to an English version. They were screen printed on a velvety cardstock. Printing on dark stock is rather tricky. The color was really off in the first proof since the ink wasn't opaque enough so the screen printer had to print another layer on top. That did the trick and the color really pops off the paper. I learned a lot more about the printing process through David at Ames Printing. He did a really awesome job and I think I'm going to try using him again for the Tiegermans' wedding stationary. I don't know how that will work with me being in New York though. Looking at these, I realize that I should probably take photographs of them.

Main Card

Reception Card

RSVP Card

Map Card and Return Envelope

Illustrator Assignments

2008-10-10T20:42:00.000-07:00

For the first part of the assignment, we were supposed to make a graphical representation of a word or phrase. I chose absinthe and rendered the letter forms in the shape of a green fairy, which is a nickname for the drink.

For the second part of the assignment, I used Dakota Handwriting letter forms to illustrate a graveyard scene.

Stuff I've been doing at Pratt

2008-10-08T11:24:00.000-07:00

So I've neglected this thing for a while, but here are a few things I've done so far in my first semester at Pratt (which has been a totally awesome experience). I've only posted stuff I have digital copies of. There's more stuff that I'll have to scan.

Theater Poster for Avenue Q in Bauhaus style.

Hamlet Theater Poster done in Polish style.

Book Cover redesign for Good Omens

Illustrator Project - Atmospheric Depth

Illustrator Project - Tracing and altering brush strokes

Illustrator Project - Gradients

Illustrator Project - Patterns and Gradients

Typography - Metropolitan Opera Logo and Stationary Design (selections)

Pratt

2008-04-21T22:03:00.000-07:00

I got into Pratt Institute!! Woohoo!!

Nudes

2008-04-18T12:18:00.000-07:00

I think I'm going to call this done! We drew Marianne on Monday and Dan again on Wednesday. With Marianne, I really liked how I drew her legs. I had a bit of trouble with the foreshortening at first, but after I shut off my brain and thought in shapes, I was able to get it right. Again, there is too much contrast on the rest of her body and not enough detail, but I ran out of time since I spent so long on the legs.

I think it's appropriate that I began the drawing with Dan and am ending it with him. He did 3 45-minute poses. I chose to concentrate on a small portion of his body each time to fill in some of the negative spaces on the drawing. Next week, I think I'm going to do another charcoal and gesso drawing.

Bronze Project So Far

2008-04-16T08:32:00.000-07:00

My wax cast is now ready for the bronze pour. After alternately dipping it in slurry sand about 8 or 9 times and allowing it to dry between dippings, it now has a thick hard shell around it. Once the bronze is poured in, the wax will melt away allowing the bronze to take the shape of the shell. I'm really looking forward to the pouring, which is next Tuesday.

Jo On Top

2008-04-10T07:51:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest progression on this project. Last night we drew Jo, who is my favorite model. I think this is the best one I've done. The proportions are a little off, but the values are a little more realistic. Although figure drawing the the most challenging art form I've attempted so far, I really think that it's becoming my favorite. I know I have a long way to go though.

(it's not the best photo, but I was in a hurry.)

William Kentridge

2008-04-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

I am in love with William Kentridge's work. He draws in charcoal and animates it be erasing portions and drawing on top. Where ever he is not able to erase completely leaves a haunting trace of the history of the drawing. His work represents his feelings and observations about apartheid from his point of view having grown up amongst the white middle class in South Africa. Here is one of his films.

...and Bruce again.

2008-03-28T14:29:00.000-07:00

I think the second Bruce is the best one I've done in this series. The proportions are about right and it's not too high contrast.

Dan and Bruce...and Dan again

2008-03-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

Here's the drawing I did of Bruce on top of the first drawing of Dan that I drew last Wednesday before our school was evacuated for some mysterious reason:

We had Dan again tonight and so here is Dan on top of Bruce on top of Dan.

Grace's Invitation

2008-03-20T15:59:00.000-07:00

Grace has made her final choice for her wedding invitation design. Now it's off to the printers. The main card is Genesis Coco 80# cardstock and will be 4x9.25 inches. The peach colored cards are Curious Metallic Caramel 111# cardstock. The RSVP card will be a post 4x6 postcard and the map is 4x3.25.

Dan

2008-03-20T12:20:00.000-07:00

I took this photo of the drawing I did on Monday before I drew over it last night. It's incomplete and, as always, I wish I had more time to work on it. Dan's face is slighty more angular and I drew his torso too short. He's not as flabby as I drew him either and his legs are too big. I'd also like to add more contrast between the shadows and the highlights. I had to use a blending stump instead of my fingers too, which I didn't like. I understand the reason for not blending with your fingers since the oils can affect how the charcoal lays on the paper, but it's still a hard habit to break.

Charcoal on paper

Conte Crayon

2008-03-01T20:45:00.000-08:00

Today we did conte crayon. It's not my favorite medium, but then, maybe I'm just tired of drawing boring still lifes. People are much more fun to draw.

Next Step in the Bronzing Process

2008-02-29T08:07:00.000-08:00

Last night I finished spruing my piece and started the dipping process. The thicker red wax provides a path for the metal to eventually flow into the tree trunks and lids while the thinner wax sticks act as vents for any trapped gasses that may float to the top. After I finished attaching the red wax, I sprayed my piece down with Mop N Glow to make it sticky. Next, I dipped it into a vat of slurry twice allowing it to dry in between dippings. The slurry helps preserve the texture and detailing. Next week, I'll begin dipping it into the sand between slurry dips. Below are some photos I took while waiting for my piece to dry.

Value Study

2008-02-27T21:04:00.000-08:00

We're learning about value in my figure drawing class right now. Tonight we had this wonderful model who was heavyset. I loved all the globular shapes in her body. We were really able to practice shadow and reflected light in many areas. Below are two drawings I did tonight. As with nearly everything we've done in this class so far, I wish I had more time to explore each pose further. These were one hour poses, the longest we've had.

Charcoal and Gesso

2008-02-23T15:06:00.000-08:00

We did charcoal and gesso drawings in class today. I really like this medium. It's something I'd like to do again on my own. I started and finished during class time today which is a definite improvement for me speed wise. Also, I think I like drawing people better than vegetables. Last week's vegetable drawing was a bit embarrassing.

Joyce Carol Oates

Bronze Tree Trunk Boxes/Bookends

2008-02-20T07:07:00.000-08:00

I'm currently working on a pair of bronze tree trunk bookends that are also boxes. Metals are such a neat medium although a little intimidating at first. Like with all things, you just have to take it one step at a time. I've been meaning to document my bronze casting experience, but I keep forgetting to take photos during class. Here are a few that I took last night though.

This is the plaster mold I made after initially sculpting the general shape of the piece with clay. I don't have any photos of the clay though. I then poured wax into the mold. To make the piece hollow, I poured out most of the wax after a shell had cooled and hardened around the outside edges. To make the bottom, I poured some wax onto a wet surface to make a sheet which was cut out and soldered to the shell. Next, I carved texture into the tree trunk and made little animals to go on the lids.

This last picture is the step I'm on now. It's called sprewing. I attach the red wax sticks to the piece in order to create a path for the bronze to flow.

Here is a great site that explains the whole process:
http://www.modernsculpture.com/bronze.htm

Self Portrait

2008-02-13T08:24:00.000-08:00

Here's the self portrait I drew in graphite. Since I can't seem to get the scan to look right, I took a photograph of it and it looks better I think.

Illustrations

2008-02-07T08:15:00.000-08:00

Here are a few drawings I included in my portfolio for Pratt.

Vy's Wedding Invitations

2008-02-06T14:12:00.000-08:00

Vy's invites were very similar to Anh and Thu's in design. She LOVES the color green and we picked an illustration to go along with her very art nouveau-ish dress.

This card was printed on very sheer paper and as an overlay to the Vietnamese version below:

The rest of the cards were printed on 80lb white linen paper.

Postage Stamps

2007-12-26T14:03:00.000-08:00

I came up with a bunch of solutions to the Parsons Challenge and have narrowed them down to two. The instructions are to design a postage stamp of your favorite fruit or vegetable. I think Mangoose shows my personality the best. It's quirky and silly. Mango-go is also really fun and stands out more so I'm really torn to decide which to turn in.

Way-Way's Baby Shower Invitation and Thank You Card

2007-12-18T15:09:00.000-08:00

Way-Way and James will be welcoming the newest addition to the Pee family in February. I got to design her baby shower invitations and thank-you cards. The invites were printed on 111# Curious Touch Soft Milk paper, which has a soft, powdery texture. Each invite was wrapped in pink tissue paper and placed in a pre-printed envelope following the same graphic theme. The thank you cards were printed on a canvas textured paper and are fold-over cards that are blank on the inside.

Brookhaven Student Art Show

2007-12-12T15:45:00.000-08:00

It took me weeks to make this monkey, but it was a lot of fun. My teacher asked me to enter it in the student art show, so here it is! I started out with a 16 foot long 2x6 plank of wood. I gave my friend who ran out of wood about 4 feet of it, so the monkey plus the stand were made out of the remaining 12 feet. The stand is about 2 feet high and 18 inches wide. The piece is movable at the shoulders, hip, and knee. The markings were burned in and 2 colors of wood stain were used.

Kids in the Courtyard

2007-12-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

Everyday, when I go home for lunch, I see these kids running around the courtyard. They looked so cute today and the weather was so nice that I felt compelled to take a few photos of them.