attempt with type

Rough layout

Original Images for Shakespeare shortfilm

For this project, we are using FinalCut, Garageband and Photoshop to create a 5 to 7 second video that evokes the feeling of a specific Shakespeare play.

I chose to do "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

For my images, I chose a close up of my eye, a bottle that resembles a potion bottle, a forest, and donkey ears.

Paper Rough Draft- Evan Roth

  Evan Roth is an innovative artist, who currently live in Hong Kong. He has had a long history in the art world, creating new and interesting projects that push the limits of the law and find new ways of thinking. Through his work, it is apparent that he is a unique designer who really enjoys what he does. He first got his start when he graduated high school. He attended the University of Maryland, graduating with a degree in architecture. He then worked for a few years in LA for the company called AutoCAD. AutoCAD is a company that creates a specific type of software that allows architects to create 3-D models of their designs. After three years, Roth enrolled at the Parsons School of Design back in New York. While attending Parsons, he created many projects that are known throughout the design realm. After studying there, he graduated as valedictorian of his class. Once he had obtained his degrees, Evan Roth spent some time working at the Eyebeam Openlab. The Eyebeam Openlab basically has a bunch of state of the art tools that can be used for creativity. They promote research of digital media and experimental projects. At the lab, he began many different projects, one of them being the well-known "Graffiti Research Lab". As he continued to create and develop new projects, he also began to teach courses at Parsons himself. He has taught many unique courses such as Internet fame, in which students are graded based upon their fame on the Internet ad their promotion of themselves. He taught another course called Geek Graffiti. In addition, to creating side projects, he is one of the founders of F.A.T. This stands for Free Art and Technology. kIt is a research and development lab that is completely open to the public. Roth has had his hands in numerous projects over the years and continues to experiment with technology, design, and different forms of media. He continues to creates work that is unexpected and clever.

  Roth has been involved in and created many works of art throughout his career thus far. Many of his projects have become well known. He has shown projects at the Sundance Film Festival, on the BET network television channel, at the Museum of Modern Art, and many others. He has also been published in many acclaimed magazines such as the New York Times. One project that he developed in 2003, during his time at Parsons, which has been viewed many times, is titled "Typographic Illustration". It is an exploration of different typefaces. He used specific typefaces to create images and illustrations of people. He then animated the process and put corresponding music to accompany the animation. For example, he used the typeface Baskerville Old Face to forma  picture of the famous rapper Notorious B.I.G. He then made a video of the process, putting a song by Notorious B.I.G. as the background music. Another project of his, again created while he was a student at Parsons, is titled "Graffiti Taxonomy". In this project he basically created an analysis of different styles of graffiti letters. He took photographs in a specific area of different styles of the letter S, for example. He then recreated these various styles and put them into a layout, displaying each one. Besides these few, he has created numerous other design projects that have displayed his skills as a designer and an individual. He has also dipped into many projects throughout the years. One of the better-known projects that he co-founded and has been involved in is called the "Graffiti Research Lab". The GRL has morphed into a group that has created numerous art projects, each of which has roots to graffiti as an art form. Their tagline says that they are a group "dedicated to outfitting graffiti artists with open source technologies for urban communication". One known projects that they have created is a way of making "outdoor digital projection in urban environments". It allows them to project what looks like graffiti on any sort of surface. The twist is that it is just a projection. For example, they had a showing at the Museum of Modern Art in which they would write on the wall, then erase it and rewrite something else. The projection however, looks so much like real spray paint, giving the illusion that the paint is dripping. Roth has clearly stepped outside of the box in his way of thinking. His many projects have proved this throughout the years.

  Roth's work is one of a kind. It is clear that he enjoys what he does and that he invents new ways to approach things. In all of his work, his creative perspective shines through. His voice is clear in all that he does. Firstly, it's apparent that he enjoys the urban scene. He includes hip-hop music and rappers in a great deal of his work (such as the Typographic Illustration project). The F.A.T. website has pictures of many rappers on its homepage. Secondly, he likes to expose social and governmental problems, or use them to create. One topic that is seen throughout much of his art is graffiti. Graffiti in general has obviously had a strong influence on much of Roth's work. This is apparent in his Graffiti Taxonomoy project, his Graffiti Analysis project, his founding of the Graffiti Research Lab, and the classes that he has taught at Parsons. Part of his allure to graffiti is also fueled by his enjoyment in pushing the limits on vandalism. Much of his work is based around violating specific laws, such as copyright laws. The Graffiti Research Lab has therefore created a way to vandalize, while being a legal process. It took the art of graffiti and the ideas behind "tagging" walls and free speech and created a way for this to be completely legal. When the Graffiti Research Lab had a show at the Museum of Modern Art, they drew on the walls of the Museum (with light that looks like spray paint). They went as far as writing, "this museum sucks" on the wall. While they were being playful and making art, their vision is clearly seen in this act. Throughout his work, Roth has shown that he is capable of using many different types of mediums. He is capable of creating unique work that is extremely creative.

Small Tweaks make all the difference

It’s funny how sometimes a simple design change can make a world of difference. One of my friends just purchased a PS3. We were noting how it’s neat that the album art appears next to your music, while selecting music from your computer. Another friend commented that that is not really necessary. It’s true- not necessary… but we got into a discussion about the little designs that may not be necessary, but seem to hook us in. The “cool” factor.Anyway, I was reading through Brian Oberkirch’s blog posts at http://www.brianoberkirch.com/ today. One of his posts was just a small blurb about the redesign of twitter, just a small tweak that made a world of difference for him. Instead of showing the newly added friends, it shows who is following you in terms of the most recent followers. For him, this made the experience more enjoyable and less of a background tool.It’s interesting to see how these small chances on an interface can completely change how someone perceives it or interacts with it. Take the new layout of facebook as yet another example of this.

Add Art... no ads, just art

So I found this awesome firefox plug-in through Steve Lambert's website. He is a designer. He created this plug-in in collaboration with other people with support from the Eyebeam and Rhizome. This plug-in makes it so all the ads that would normally be seen on website are instead replaced with art, new art shows, contemporary artists, and curators.
What an awesome idea. Just another form of media to add into our everyday lives. Another way of customizing our reality. Taking what we take for granted and making it our own. I think this is extremely clever, informative, and smart. It gives us- the viewer who uses the plugin- new information that we want, and it gives promotion to art shows.
According to Steve Lambert's site, "for many, replacing ads with blank space would be enough. AddArt attempts to do something more interesting than just blocking ads - it turns your browser into an art gallery".

9 to 5 paintings

I have recently been researching the work of Evan Roth for the term paper that we are writing. Upon looking through his website, projects, blog, etc... I have stubbled upon many of his interesting ideas. Just some of the small tidbits that he has posted have peeked my interest.
One of his posts was about what he calls a "9 to 5 painting". He hooks his mouse up to a chord that splits the chord to two seperate USB ports. He then plugs the mouse into two seperate computers. Then, one computer is used during the hours of work and the other computer can be used to create a visual representation of the work that was done throughout the day. For example, one of these"9 to 5 paintings" was created from him checking his email, etc.
I find this to be such a fun way to a. create art while you are working, b. create a visual representation of what you did throughout the day, c. create something unique with an innovative concept behind it. Bravo.