GREENSBORO'S GOT HISTORY...who knew?

DOWN HOME:
to the left of the lobby of the greensboro historical museum lies the DOWN HOME exhibit. it doesn't have its own room like the other exhibits but informational banners form an implied room. the exhibit highlights the history of jewish life in greensboro. there is a large timeline on the wall behind the exhibit featuring important moments like the first jewish school, library, textile mill, mayor, festival in greensboro, and so on. the banners around the outside discuss creating communities, keeping jewish faith, and putting family first. there's also a television with some sort of informational message on display in the space. the t.v. isn't the biggest and with the small size of the speakers and acoustics of the lobby space it's hard to hear the message. there were also some items in display cases such as a synagogue and an interactive kitchen that many found helpful however the help was short-lived. it was easy to move quickly through the space and there weren't many bright colors or any major attention-grabbing features there. the audio from the video caught my attention but only temporarily. i think that for the space to be more successful there would have to be more of an enclosure, sectioning the display off from the rest of the busy and sometimes loud lobby. the entire space-all the way up the stairs is open and the sounds travel far. it's understood that this exhibit is a traveling one, i just think there's a better way to make use of the space.

VOICES:
this was the main exhibit and, therefore, was the largest. i wondered if it would ever end but not in a bad way. honestly, i had no idea that greensboro's history was so interesting. walking in, i immediately noticed the wall of quotes. the following room was full of pictures of people in greensboro's history as well as some major points in greensboro's history. following that was a series of rooms that went from more guided and maze-like to more open and exploration-oriented. displays ranged from townlife to roads and railroads to farming, slaves, mining, factories, churches, hobbies, military, drafts, and so so much more. there was endless amounts of memorabilia and historical artifacts. much of the displays were interactive in some way. also noteworthy were the colors that led a viewer from one space to the next. it made the exhibit flow well. at the very end there was a map that had audio of different people speaking different languages. all were saying "hello, my name is ____ and greensboro is my home" in their native language. the map featured blocks that you could turn to see that quote written in the native language as well. it really brought the display from all of the history to the present and showed that greensboro is a huge mix of people and there is so much more history to be made.

POTTERY DISPLAY + PERIOD ROOMS:
the pottery displays were instantly eye-catching. this is mostly because their bright and earthy colors were housed in stark white-painted display cases. there were four total with a column in the center with an informational television in it-probably so that people would stop and spend time in the space instead of walking right through. most of the pottery was from the years 1923 through 1959. i thought this was crazy because they looked brand new! the t.v. program called them JUGTOWN ceramics and said that most were marked on the bottom with the symbol and the artist's initials. obviously i couldn't pick up a bowl to verify but i feel like that would've been pretty cool. there was information on the paint-glaze-kiln process which i found helpful for spectators to understand how these beauties were made.
the period rooms to me were captivating. i really felt like i stepped back in history and wasn't just looking at something in a glass case. i began to stick my head into the belle meade parlor when i noticed the sign that said i couldn't reach past the railing or an alarm would go off. back to reality. all of the period rooms featured dark woods and heavy prints. there were prints on the floor rugs, the wallpapers, the pillows, and so on. also all of the furniture upholstery looked so luxurious and comfortable. almost worth setting off an alarm to touch. but not quite.

GATE CITY:
alright, i'm not going to lie, this one creeped me out. i've gotta be honest about that. as i entered the exhibit i was taken back in time to the hotel clegg, the main hotel in old gate city. it was full of information on what was going on at the time from theater shows to train schedules. there was also a telephone exchange room. i can't imagine working with all of those wires. no thank you. walking through the doors and out of hotel clegg i immediately felt like i was in the city...there was audio of people talking, the railroad, birds chirping, someone building something, and so on. there was a huge fake tree in the center of the city which may have had significance but i didn't pay much attention to. there was a pharmacy, a school, a steam fire engine place, a theater, and a hotel. each place was interactive and had lots of information. there were fliers and announcements from the time period posted up everywhere. but i've got to be honest...once i walked through the hotel and saw all of the cardboard cutouts and then realized that some places started TALKING TO YOU when you walked in i was instantly glad that i didn't go alone. regardless of my scaredy-cat paranoia, i definitely felt like i was in gate city (or a creepy haunted version of it) and so the museum did a good job of setting up what it was like back then. i'm sure it wasn't as bad as i just probably made it sound.

GIFT SHOP:
i definitely think that the gift shop reflected the museum and its displays. there were some old-fashioned games, dolls, etc that mirrored the HISTORICAL aspect of the museum. there was also pottery that matched the pottery on display. there was all kinds of north carolina memorabilia like books on birds and plants in NC as well as cookbooks from NC. there was plenty of information at hand about greensboro and north carolina and that definitely parallels the museum's goal.

yeah, i've got skills.

as crazy inspired i was at the industries of the blind, i really feel that my skills would best be put to use at the greensboro historical museum. i think that everything they do at the iob is amazing and the story mr. lopresti wants to share is incredible. i think, however, that there are some really cool things that can be done at the greensboro historical museum. there are small details to fix and some small treasures to bring out.  i'm very organized and can help the group stay on track. i'm also a "balancer" as we discovered in class so i'm pretty good in group situations. i'm a hard worker and i'm all about staying on track so our group wouldn't fall behind. i'm really motivated to update this building and make it a place that brings the community in and teaches them about the city they call home.

SEAC POSTER COMPETITION

holy header

what's the deal with the header change? well, besides the fact that it's a new semester and i'm no longer taking the classes i had listed, i was ready for something new. i decided to leave out the class list-that's what tags are for. i'm still not 100% sure i'm loving the header so it might actually change. but lately i'm loving feathers. i just had to use a feather as a concept for a project i just did for visual communications (see earlier blog post) and they're just cool (can i still use that word?). they have so many different colors and patterns and lines. the possibilities are endless!


photo cred goes to thingsorganizedneatly.tumblr.com, a website i adore. "things organized neatly" couldn't describe me and my style better. while you won't find that in my apartment, the things i like and the spaces that inspire me are clean and neat. chaos can come in patterns and artwork. here are a few of my favorite photos from thingsorganizedneatly...

had to give a shout out to the eams' (;

sequence: diagramming a building

INDUSTRIES OF THE BLIND



narrative: as i walked up to the building i wondered what i'd see inside; this building sits on a street i drive down on a daily basis yet i've had no idea what's been going on in there until i finally got the chance to go for class. i walked into the building, through a vestibule-a concept i never noticed until this semester when we've talked about them- and into a waiting space. i could see a staircase and below it was a sort of meditation garden. our group was led up the stairs by the friendly naari to another sort of waiting space. this time there was a couch. from there we went into the board room to sit and hear from mr. lopresti. after talking with him we received a tour of the extensive and impressive factory. watching all of the workers work with smiles on their faces was truly inspiring for us all. i couldn't be happier to be a part of this studio and this project!



occasions: work, meetings, deliveries, presentations
players: factory workers, management, delivery people, staff
resources: stairs, rooms, machines, staff, time
surroundings: factory, lobby, office, basement, storage, restrooms




thumbnails:

when we entered the space it was strictly business and i got right to taking pictures. once we gathered as a group and began our tour i was so excited to see everything and learn about the place that i didn't take many productive pictures. i diagrammed the main space that we'll be working with-i just wish i would've had the chance to document more of the more amazing and inspiring factory space and its workers!



diagram:

since we went up and down so many stairs i thought it would be appropriate to diagram the building similarly. the factory, the main part where most of the action is, is on the bottom floor and the most people are down there. the main entrance and, basically everything else is upstairs. i made the office areas on the top stair because a smaller number of people enter there on a regular basis as compared to the factory, main entrance, and lobby space.

sequence: diagramming a building

GREENSBORO HISTORICAL MUSEUM

narrative:

After reading an article in the local paper about the Greensboro historical museum I decided to make a trip there and check it out. It must have been a busy day, and maybe due to the article, because there was no parking. I had to park at a meter in front of the library. I made my way around the corner back to the museum. Looking at the outside, the front entrance space seemed to be a place for groups to gather. I walked in through the small vestibule and came upon the lobby space. In front of me sat a desk on an area rug which I took to be the “front desk”. I signed in and continued to look around. To the left was a display space that visitors could walk through. Further back was some sort of corner booth. There were two entrances to the auditorium and between them was a display case of some sort. I looked toward the large spiral staircase and decided to make my way up. The second floor was small and cramped, especially with the number of people there that day. I continued up the stairs to the third floor. This floor had all kinds of displays. From galleries to informative posters to talking books this was definitely the learning floor. After making my way around I went back downstairs and made a side trip to the restroom. I signed out at the front desk and went back to my car at the meter feeling very glad I read the paper this morning.

OCCASIONS: field trips, spectating, learning, working, deliveries, presentations, exhibits, research

PLAYERS: students, teachers, locals, spectators, delivery people, workers, historians, security

RESOURCES: space, displays/exhibits, galleries, elevator, stairs, time

SURROUNDINGS: galleries, stairs, elevator, storage, auditorium, restrooms

 

THUMBNAILS:

DIAGRAM:

CONCEPT

a direction to go in. a way of making design decisions. inspiration.



my concept?
a bluebird feather.

i was totally okay with this concept because feathers are never boring. they have such a sense of flow and flight to them that's just captivating to me. to find pictures i went to one of the best picture sites ever, flickr.com.

source!

SIDENOTE: so you'd think that the baby version of a bluebird would be so stinkin cute, right?

NOPE.

i just thought i'd share because i found this picture hilarious. 

source!

back to business.
bluebirds aren't just BLUE which became evident in my picture search. i found this picture and i think it's going to be my main concept picture. i really enjoy the way the blue-gray fades to white and then to the copper color.

THE P'S:

proportion: think about how many feathers a bird has! in comparison to the bird itself, one feather is measly. but the feather has a pretty even proportion overall.

balance: a feather has symmetrical balance. both sides are pretty identical. some small pieces (called barbs) may be uneven but the unevenness between the two sides balances out typically.

unity: all of the barbs that are found along the shaft of a feather make the feather a whole.

emphasis: in this feather the emphasis is definitely on the white space. feathers usually show emphasis through color and/or pattern.

rhythm: i'd say this feather has some rhythm. the arrow-like pattern of the white goes against the direction of the feather pieces and that creates some rhythm. also, the amount of lines creates a rhythm as well.

THE ELEMENTS:

space: the spaces between the barbs add interest to the feather and almost call attention to themselves.

line: there are plenty of lines to be found on this feather. they're mostly straight but the transition in color creates its own sort of line as well.

color: the colors are almost complementary, making them stand out more. they're both cool and warm, joined together by white in the middle.

value: with the white in the middle and the darkness of the shadows in the spaces between the little feather barbs there's a variety of value.

form: although mostly flat the feather does have some form, helped by the curve of the stem.

shape: the feather is almost like a long oval. its shape is pretty organic, though. it's definitely not strictly geometric.

texture: the amounts of lines and the color transitions add definite texture to the feather.



in case you were wondering...

what the heck is a barb? and a shaft?

source!

inspiration everywhere

we had a guest speaker [frank cheney] come and talk to us on friday and he talked about precedents and using ideas from other designers. lately i've been collecting inspiration from everywhere. from tumblr to blogger to xanga [i know, its oldschool] there's LOADS of inspiration out there.


lately i'm loving...


WINDOWS. BIG ENORMOUS WINDOWS.

white interiors.

frames. especially big ones that aren't hung. i took my mirror off of my dresser and leaned it against the wall. i also took my corkboard off the wall and leaned it on my desk against the wall. love.

i could spend hours going from website to website looking at crazy awesome blogs and websites...but then when would i get my studio work done?!

sequence: diagramming a building

this semester we're being introduced to diagramming buildings. last week we made a trip over to the weatherspoon art museum and were told to write a narrative about visiting the museum. using our narrative (or doing it separately) we drew thumbnails of the sequence of events/ different spaces in the building. from that we were told to make our thumbnails into one big diagram that somehow clearly expressed the building and the space.
for my narrative i wrote from the point of view of an art student who had sculpture class in the gatewood studio arts building and then art history in the WAM. my trip took me from the studio to the weatherspoon and i had a few sidetrips along the way. in my diagram i expressed the trip step by step and emphasized the more important steps in different ways. The bigger squares are the main objectives and the main places i needed to go on my trip to class. the smaller ones are side trips and distractions. the more i drew my diagram over and over the better it got.

i definitely think that next time i'll focus less on the step-by-step details and think "bigger picture". its all about learning, right?

it's that time again

at the start of every semester we have to make new name tags for our blogs. this year, we were paired up and had to create a new name tag for our partner. the name tag had to express our "client" and his or her style and interests. i was partnered with ayten nadeau. i'd never really talked to and gotten to know her very well so this was a definite challenge for me. she told me that she liked the style of tiffany's and her favorite color was pastel pink. she's got a turkish background and loves traveling and textiles. she expressed to me that she wanted her name tag to be organized with something unexpected. this is what i came up with.

UPDATE:


after group critiques, i decided that adding a semi-border would take this name tag up a notch. so this is what came from that.

 

ayten, my client, was very pleased! (: