Weekly Recap 2/20-2/26

What I did:

Worked on map spread: 3 hours
Worked on postcard:  3 hours


What I encountered, accomplished, explored:

I'm close.  I think the colors are close to being right and the visual language is close.  I don't have a lot of insightful things to reflect on this week other than I realize the changes I need to make.  One of the maps is in a previous post.  This is another one that works too.  The final spread will be somewhere in between.  I really like how this one funnels the information into the end point but the stripes are still ambiguous.

My postcard is really good, I think.  It captures the chaos and insecurities that people go through when trying to immigrate.  I think this format and theme will make a really great poster.

Whats next:

WORK WORK WORK.

possible postcard image.

I kind of love this, its a lot different from what I've been doing but I think it could make a cool book cover or poster too.  Really captures the confusion and purpose of the project.

progress made.

Weekly Recap 2/13-2/19

What I did:

Designs for "I want to Immigrate" booklet:  9 hours
Meeting Franc: 1 hour
Thesis: 4 hours
Title inspiration searching: 3 hours

What I encountered, accomplished, .....:

Franc had a lot of good pointers and ideas for the design and grid of my booklets.
Megan's tips for my writing were great, not too many fixes just some ideas.  There are a lot of documents like "affidavits of an authentic marriage" that maybe I could put in examples for.  I will have to ask Susan about that.

I've found some really interesting quotes that are getting in the right direction for a title for this series of booklets.  It needs to be something that resonates as American to international people but isn't too "stars and stripes".  I also don't want it to be overused or cliche.

I'm not going to post images because I don't really have much new to show since tuesday and the last few blog comments I've gotten said that it's hard to see what is going on in the images I post.

Whats Next:
Stats 350 exam tonight...yuck.

Finish the Immigrant book and get started on the other two.  I feel like I have a good handle on the language I am using and the grid now so it will be a lot of plugging and chugging for the other two booklets now.  Hopefully by the end of spring break I will have the content in place for all three.

I'm also trying to work a little bit with color.

remember

"Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrations and revolutionists." — Franklin D. Roosevelt

More Quotes

I am in search of inspiration for a title.  I really like "We the People"  but i think it is over used and it is on the cover of the Design Policy Advocacy publication.

"System in all things should be aimed at; for in execution it renders every thing more easy."

GEORGE WASHINGTON, letter to George Washington Parke Custis, Jan. 7, 1798

"The Family is the Country of the heart."

GIUSEPPE MAZZINI, The Duties of Man

"Under any system of society ... the family holds the future in its bosom."

CHARLES FRANKLIN THWING, The Family: An Historical and Social Study

"All of life is a foreign country."

JACK KEROUAC, letter, June 24, 1949

"The future is not an inheritance, it is an opportunity and an obligation."

BILL CLINTON

"Old men can make war, but it is children who will make history."

RAY MERRITT, Full of Grace

"I still believe in a place called Hope, a place called America."

BILL CLINTON, speech at Democratic National Convention, August 29, 1996

"This is America ... a brilliant diversity spread like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky."

GEORGE H.W. BUSH, RNC acceptance speech, August 18, 1988

"We became not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams." 

- Jimmy Carter

critique

Good critique today.  Everyone is in a great place and making progress.  I still have a TON to do.  spring break is going to be great.  undivided time.

I met with Franc today, he had a lot of great ideas i'm going to try out for the grid and layout.

In critique today we discussed ownership of our projects and filtering the suggestions we get about our projects.  It feels good to dismiss someone's comments that don't help or you don't agree with.  I am looking forward to designing this book the way that I think is most functional based on my research.

Weekly Recap 1/6-2/12

Sorry this is a few hours late, its been a busy few days.

What I did:
Type type type type trials:  4 hours
Navigation page trials: 2 hours
Meeting with Megan Levad: .75 hours

What I discovered, encountered....I can't ever remember all the words:
Well I decided on a typeface!  Drumrolllllllllllllll

SYNTAX

I'm really happy with it!  It's simple, clean, but still human and conversational.  It looks fun but still official.

I'm still working on the system for the pages but the grid, as of now, is six columns for the bottom portion of the page for things that are "one or more of the following", and 4 columns for the top half of the page.

My meeting with Megan was really great today.  Lots of good changes to be made. She boosted my confidence with the work I've already done too, I am definitely on the right track.

Every time I talk about my project with someone new I realize how needed this type of design is for all aspects of official protocols and information.  Its amazing how much it would effect people's lives.

Whats Next:
Keep designing and finish the content.

P.S. This is my 100th post since I started this blog a year ago this week.  A year ago yesterday I landed in Italy.  The inspiration for my project.

OBAMA

Our commencement speaker is Obama.  How did that happen?  Wow.

Weekly Recap 1/29-2/5

What I did:

Worked on type samples:  7 hours
Worked on resume, business card, leave behind, and portfolio:  9 hours
Career Fair: 4 hours non stop.

What I accomplished, encountered, discovered:

I felt really good after critique on tuesday.  I'm definitely making progress but feel like  have SO much to do still.  I'm so prepared to devote most of the weekend, especially since the career fair is over.

I've really been trying to maintain the "checklist" aspect.  Having something to mark off is important in a practical sense to make sure that everything is included but also in an emotional satisfactory sense, being able to check something off the list is  great feeling of accomplishment to a lot of people.

I need a different way to differentiate things that are absolutely required and a list of things that people need at least one of.  I really like the way the narrow columns work in 4th spread.  In critique we talked about maybe using the narrow columns in a vertical list for required items and then horizontal if they need at least one for the other section.

I need to do a lot more work on the type.  San serif is definitely the way to go but I need to find a face that is neutral but still has a humanistic and fun quality to it.  We decided that Futura is too loud for this.  I want it to look professional and believable and legitimate but not so "official" that it is unapproachable. We also talked about adding details in the background or something that ads some more visual interest but doesn't interrupt the function.

I also re-worked the graph/chart.  I think this is more aesthetically pleasing but not as functional.  The language needs a lot of work.  Hannah didn't like this as much as the ugly one from the old proof.  I think there can be a happy medium.  I agree with her that there is a quality of absoluteness to the old one that is unmistakable and should somehow be adapted to the aesthetic of this one.  

The career fair was great today.  It was like job speed dating.  I felt so great afterwords.  I got some really great feedback and tips and some potential interviews and opportunities.

Whats next:

work work work work.

apply apply apply apply.

I have a meeting with Franc on thursday to go over my process and with Megan Levad on Friday to go over my writing within the project.  I think they will both be great resources.