Today marks the beginning of the end for my undergraduate school career. Come December, I will have finished all my classes and received a bachelor’s degree in fine art – graphic design. In the meantime I am taking the following classes this semester:
- History of Graphic Design – an in-depth examination of graphic design’s origins, evolution, and impact over time. I’m extremely excited about this class.
- Senior Project – this is where I will finalize my portfolio and prepare for my BFA show at the end of the semester.
- Technology & Process – it’s a fancy name for a packaging class. I’ll be developing brands and packaging for a number of products and fictional companies. I’ve had a similar class in the past. Time-consuming but fun.
- Ideas & Styles – graphic design projects in the realm of print. In the past we have designed swatch books, posters, album covers and so on. I wonder what’s in store for us this time around.
So far I’ve only attended the History of Graphic Design class and it was excellent. There are a total of 4 students in the class, including myself, which makes it more like a graduate seminar. Professor Georgette Ballance, formerly of the prestigious Cornell University, is a sweetheart and very knowledgeable. And it doesn’t hurt the she edited a book on the subject. All in all I think this is going to be a great semester. I have to make sure I schedule myself well as I work on my projects. It would be nice to work on projects without the element of procrastination. As self-motivated as I am, it’s time I recruited an external control to hold me accountable on these projects.
On a similar note, I’ve already started thinking about graduate school. It’s a bittersweet subject for me, because I hate the idea of having more homework in the future, but I’ve fallen in love with a particular school. I somehow stumbled upon a video of St. John’s College and was mesmerized about 20 seconds into it. Imagine a school with no textbooks. Instead, the curriculum surrounds around the Great Books of the Western World. I’m going to look further into the school and make a decision about when I will visit.
I suppose in the blogging community it’s almost mandatory that you write on the first of the new year. So here it is. I’ve met my quota. Many thanks to all the folks who read, commented on, and subscribed to my blog in 2007. Some of you have been reading this stuff since I began Sketchism in 2003. You guys rock.
A few milestones for the year: Participated in the Blogathon, bought a scanner, went to 4 places outside of Florida as I planned, got braces, got my Associates Degree, and I can’t remember anything else right now. I’m sure there were plenty. If there’s something in particular that I failed to mention, post it in the comments.
My biggest advancement on Sketchism in ‘07: posting sketches. Seems like it’s something I should have been doing since day one, but it’s better late than never. Buying a scanner definitely helped.
I am in the process of listing my goals for 2008, so keep an eye out for that. Tell me, are you making any goals? Mind you, I mean written goals, not wishful unwritten resolutions.
In my last entry, I recommended listening to the soundtrack of the film Once. Well here’s a scene from the film where they perform one of my favorite tracks When Your Mind’s Made Up. The video quality is terrible but this one had the best audio version. Sit back and enjoy.
I’m definitely looking forward to this weekend. Tomorrow is the company’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange followed by the Christmas dinner in the evening. We’ll be heading to Dave and Buster’s for a night of billiards, greasy meals, and arcade games. But wait, there’s more! Later at night I will embark on a mini road trip with 7 other friends to Lake Placid, FL, for a weekend of home-cooked meals
a la Maroo and hopefully a few games of Manhunt (a.k.a. group hide-and-seek). Anyone who knows me well can vouch for my unbridled passion for a good game of Manhunt. I’ll play that anywhere, anytime. The only trouble I ever have is finding other like-minded people to join in on the fun. Now we’ll have an entire house and wood to run around in.
We’ll return on Sunday afternoon, just in time for me to hop on another trip up to Orlando with my family where we will spend the week together for Christmas. The cousins and I will most likely end up going to one of the many theme parks where we will dine on expensive snacks with our Disney Dollars. I’m not quite sure yet, but I may have to travel back down to Miami on Wednesday to work a few days before driving back up to Orlando to spend New Years with the family. Either way, it doesn’t bother me. I enjoy being on the road, listening to albums and audio books. I’m trying to decide whether to purchase the audio version of A.J. Jacobs’ The Know It All or Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything. Either audio book runs at least 15 hours long in an attempt to cover a world of data.
I’d say it’s a nice way to end one year and begin another: Food, friends, fun, and a whole lotta facts.
On a completely unrelated note, please check out this soundtrack for the Irish indie film Once. It’s wonderful.
I don’t know if I’ll have much internet access after tomorrow, so enjoy the weekend and Merry Christmas!
I think the only people who can appreciate this one on a deeper level are
Nat and
Cory, who were my kind hosts in Baltimore. These were quotes we found ourselves saying the entire time we were together. I’m still having a blast doing this typography thing. Hope you like it too.
Typographical experimenting, like poker, is an enjoyable activity for the whole family. Your turn to shuffle.
It’s the last week of school and I approach it with anticipation. Sure, I have quite a bit of work to produce for these last days, but I’m confident I’ll get things done on time. Most importantly, as the illustration above alludes to, I’ll be flying out at the end of the week for a total of 10 days. First to Chicago, then to Baltimore, then back home. This trip will complete my
traveling goal for the year: 4 places outside of Florida
and my goal to visit Nat. I’m truly excited about this mini-adventure of mine.
If anybody is interested in tagging along on this trip, let me know. I’ll shoot you the specifics. I’ll be leaving Friday, the 7th and returning Sunday, the 16th. And yes, I’ll be taking plenty of pictures.
What are your plans for the winter break?
