Archive for Uncategorized

“Counting The Days…”

{ November 24, 2008 @ 5:18 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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A perfect title brought to you by Collective Soul!  [rock on!]  _\m/

Well, it seems so scary that next week is the final day for this class!  I can’t believe how fast this semester has gone by!  I still have so much to finish up, like my music, process of art project, and tidy up my sign language presentation.  I may add more to this blog later on in the day, but one good thing happened:

My Blurb book came in today!  I was so thrilled, and the pictures turned out fantastic!  If we had had more time [and our pictures were organized better], I probably could have added even more to the book!  No lie!

Anyway, I had a great semester.  Going to Balboa, seeing artists, blogging, drawing, creating the book, music, and everything else.  It’s been hella busy, but oh so satisfying!  I look forward to the next semester and all that’s to come along with it.  But for now, I look even more forward to having a nice long break before the start of semester 2.  (Again, scary!)  I get to kick back, relax, and figure out what to buy my family and friends for Christmas!  I’ll also have time to get back to working on my comic, my other personal art projects [including my General Grievous sketch I never finished (see below).

But for now, I continue on with my studies for two more weeks and then I’m done!  =)  It will be a bittersweet semester.  I will be happy to finish, but sad that it will be over in a matter of days.  So for now, enjoy the picture and have a great Thanksgiving, everyone!

 

~ Adina ~

John Paul Caponigro: The Power of Color

{ November 23, 2008 @ 9:15 am } · { Uncategorized }
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Just as I was getting ready to start the day, I decided to do my promised blog about John Paul this morning as a treat to you all.

My mom was simply overjoyed to hear when I told her that he would be out here giving a lecture about his digital compositions and showing some of his work.  She learned about him during one of our classes at Mira Costa with my favorite teacher, Peggy Jones.  [As a side note, Peggy is my number one favorite, and my makeup teacher, Larry Jorgenson, as a close second!]  Anyway, note aside, mom and I both enjoyed his art, and that was mainly what we went there to see.  It was a bit of a disappointment, because he mostly talked about his process and not about the art pieces themselves, which was what I REALLY wanted to hear about.  Ah well, at least I got to see his art which made me happy.

I love how painterly his pieces are, they are just so saturated with color and either very simple or overly complex.  However, there were a few that I didn’t like, such as the ones where he added artificial beams of light, or making clouds look symmetrical.  It just seemed exceedingly fake and unnatural, unlike some of his other pieces.  The picture I used at the top of this blog was my favorite.  It just has this wonderful aestheticly pleasing appeal to it:  the light snow, ripples on the water, so natural and peaceful.  And I always loved the color blue, so this just enhanced my liking of the composition even more.  Since snow is usually never falling in a uniform pattern, the distribution of the snowflakes was just perfect, not too many clustered together or too far apart.

This exhibition truly was a visual feast for the senses!

Peggy Jones: 3-N-1

{ November 22, 2008 @ 9:27 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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I was lucky enough to see the second showing of “3-N-1″ [aka Omikuji:  Oracles] on November 19, 2008, before going, the next day, to John Paul Caponigro’s artist talk [but that's for tomorrow's post].  It was such a thrill to see Peggy again after graduating from the college.  Her artwork is always astounding and just beautiful.  With her photographs, Peggy captured the Japanese tradition of omikuji, or “written oracles”, and used them in a contemporary manner for her photography.  Instead of using fortunes or other traditional text, she created her own little messages [things like "You will do one green thing today.  It will lead to others.", etc.]  Like a fortune cookie message but much deeper and more ecological friendly.  Each of them has to do with either of the three R’s:  reduce, reuse, recycle.

One thing I found VERY interesting was that Peggy didn’t use the traditional method of printing her images out on high-end paper, but instead she used an almost silk-like, self-adhesive vinyl material [and you could touch it too!] that she stuck directly onto the gallery wall.  I thought it gave an interseting and new feel to the pieces, almost as if they were windows giving little glimpses into different objects of Japan and the little omikuji tied to each.  This was an interactive exhibition, you had to spin the bamboo wheel in one part of the room, match the kanji on the wheel to the drawer on a small box.  Then, you take out the paper, read it, fold it up, and tie it to one of the bamboo poles at another end of the room!

It was visual, interactive, and always fun!

 

~ Adina ~

Itchiku Kubota: Kimono As Art

{ November 18, 2008 @ 3:52 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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This probably would have been a most astounding experience to really enjoy [if I hadn't had a headache!].  Kubota’s “Symphony of Light” series was breathtaking.  A stunning display of over 30 kimonos arranged in a semi-circle, rotating into different seasons [in this set, from fall to winter] all connected by a long continuous landscape pattern uniting each kimono.  Sadly, Kubota passed away in 2003 at the age of 86 and never got to finish his masterpiece.  Now his sons are continuing their father’s work back in Kodaira, Tokyo.  Also, these kimonos were made for display purposes only, not for Japanese ceremonial wearing.

I love how the kimonos were each unique in themselves yet connected together by a single panoramic pattern spanning across 30 individual Japanese robes.  The most spectacular thing about the robes was that you were looking at a painting and not a piece of clothing.  Kubota had transformed the traditional wrap into his own canvas in which to show off his breathtaking works of art.

 

~ Adina ~

Blurb Book

{ November 17, 2008 @ 6:32 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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So, I completely forgot about the BookSmart program being inaccessible due to the fact that I have the new version and the school Macs have the older version still  ["sarcastically":  gotta LOVE Macs!]  One of the many reasons I still use my PC, no matter how much mom tries to get me to go with Macs.  So, I figured I might upload some of my images I’m using in my book that I at least have SOME access to [via my devinatart since]  I wish I had more but at least it’s something.

First, I had the GREAT pleasure of going to my first Comic-Con convention earlier this year and, as I said,  got to meet my favorite comic artist Chandra Free.  She was just so nice and a wonderful woman.  She even let me get a picture with her and so here it is:

 

And, as you can see, I even got a signed print from her too!  So, now I’m just awaiting for her comic book to officially come out to stores whenever she gets a chance to finish the last loose ends!  [And here's a link to her site:  I HIGHLY recommend you check her out!  http://www.spookychan.com/gallery.php ]

Next, here are a few of my Halloween pictures I edited, or didn’t use, but enhanced and modified later on [sorry about the watermark on the first two!  I'm a bit paranoid about people stealing anything I upload] :

 

AND, a small watercolor I just doodled a few weeks ago, but mom thought it was too cute so she wanted it in the book!  [*haha!*]

And, that’s about it.  Well, that’s all that I can access from this computer with limited usage.  [quite sad, actually  >>; ]  But, oh well, that’s the way things go, I suppose.  Can’t foresee the unforeseeable!

OK, so I’m running out of things to say, so I guess I’d better go now.  I’ll see you all next week, hopefully with our books [or the week after, at most!]  Take care and have a great last few weeks of this semester!  =)

 

~ Adina ~

“Spectacular Spectacular!”

{ November 16, 2008 @ 4:10 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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“Everyone:  So exciting, we’ll make them laugh, we’ll make them cry, so delighting-.  ‘

The Duke:  And in the end should someone die?’” (I hope not!) – Moulin Rouge

 

It’s been a long first semester here at San Marcos, but it’s all been worth it.  I have greatly enjoyed all the classes I have taken so far and look forward to the next installment of my higher education at the university.  It simply HAS been spectacular!  There’s no better way to put it.  It got overwhelming at times, but it was still enjoyable.  There was so much to absorb and learn in each class.  I think that I greatly enjoyed Bob Kostlan’s music class on Fridays the most.  It is so much fun learning to create our own musical pieces and how intricate and unique Reason 3.0 and Pro Tools really are.  Just the thought of being able to create my own ORIGINAL musical pieces is just so inspiring in itself.

I am so happy that this first semester has been so enjoyable.  I am also terribly excited about the final presentation days both in this class and at VPA 302 with Judy Bauerlein.  Everything seems to be going along rather smoothly in all my classes.  I hope that next semester will be just as good, but hopefully not as stressful.  There’s just so much to finish up and prepare for now:  sign language, the Photoshop book, music and art, etc.  I’m not complaining, it’s just wonderful and stressful all at the same time!

Well, I’m running out of things to say, so I’ll wrap up for now and see everyone tomorrow night at class!  Until then, take care.

~Adina~

Leland Foerster

{ November 4, 2008 @ 4:15 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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This is very sad.  So far, I am REALLY not impressed with any artist as of late.  I just feel that my inspiration and interest in art is lacking this semester [and this is my first semester at San Marcos!]  The theme of the pictures was of agriculture in the Imperial Valley.  This is something I am just not interested in.  I’m a person who needs color; I need to see saturated and colorful images to really get my inspirational juices going.  Desaturated and monochromatic pieces just don’t do much for me; they lack vitality.  It was somewhat interesting seeing the aerial shot of the river connecting to the ocean, but it was missing the vibrance of its natural colors.  I’ve seen mind-bogglingly bright and vivid images of hot-springs from the sky, but this was mostly mono-toned blues and grays.  It WAS interesting, just lacking, sadly.

Ah, well.  Hopefully I’ll try to attend some of the galleries before the end of the semester and see what they have to offer.  And my arm is now bothering me from the flu vaccine so I should stop typing now and get back to my images instead.  Signing off!

 

~Adina~

Why So Serious?

{ November 4, 2008 @ 2:51 pm } · { Uncategorized }
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Me:  The Joker:  Halloween 2008:  BEST Halloween ever!

No lie!  I had THE most kickass costume and had so much fun just walking around in it almost all day.  [I won't post up pictures, they'll be in my Photoshop book later on!]  The makeup was so awesome.  I used gelatin to try to imitate Joker’s scars and then painted white over most of my face.  The rest was just the red smile and black eye paint.  The worst part was my hair.  I had to have my hair braided and then put up on top of my head and pinned down with clips and bobby pins.  Hurt like hell!  But, luckily, it didn’t bother me after I got the wig on.  I did, however, get a slight headache by the end of the day; that and I was getting a bit overheated in the jacket, vest, and shirt.  So, afterwards, I decided to take some pictures of myself that I hope to use in an image I am creating for my book.  But, I did get a bunch of stares at San Marcos and two Japanese boys even wanted to get their picture with me!  THAT was the best part of the whole day!  Speaking of which, here’s a video tribute I made for the late Heath Ledger [may he rest in peace]:

 

Anyway, I am looking forward to finishing up this semester.  My other classes are very interesting, but not quite as fun as this one!  *haha!*  They are either too stressful or boring as hell.  Also, that means I can get back into finishing up some of my own art pieces I never got to complete, or do more on my original comic book.  Aside from that, my photo series book is actually coming along rather nicely!  I do hope to get even more done with my book very soon.  I am getting more and more brushes that are extremely useful and helpful with edges, borders, and vector type rendering.  I also am enjoying the use of the refine edge and extraction tools.  I forgot how useful the extraction tool was; I remember using it in Peggy Jones’ class and finding it to be a life saver for most of my pictures.

Alrighty!  Well, I guess that wraps up this blog for now.  I’ll be back later on to update more on my book and about the class.  Take care!

 

~Adina~

“This is Halloween!”

{ October 28, 2008 @ 6:25 am } · { Uncategorized }
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Well folks, it seems that in 4 days that delightful holiday is upon us again!  I am greatly looking forward to going to class dressed up as The Joker, mostly just to see people’s reactions on the Sprinter since I take the train out to San Marcos [I come form Oceanside, so yeah], and see if anyone else in class dresses up or not.  I just might stop by work early on and say ‘hi’ to my fellow co-workers before I catch the eastbound train.  This is going to be SO much fun!  Without a doubt!  Other than that, I’ll be back at home well before the Witching Hour, to help fright the children on our block and hand out ghoul-icious treats for them with the help of my equally terrifying father, as well as visit a friend too.  =)  I have always enjoyed this holiday season; it’s just so much fun and full of delightful frights and scares!  My family has a tradition of dressing up and having “ghoulash” for dinner.  I’m going to help my dad with his makeup later that evening and, hopefully, do something with mom as well!  *haha!*  I really feel like this will be one of the best Halloween’s ever!  Seriously!  [pun definitely intended]   XP  I will take better pictures of myself in my makeup and costume and post them up the following day!  And while on the subject of ‘The Dark Knight’, here’s my favorite tribute video someone made for the movie:

Speaking of frights, I got to go see SAW V, mostly just for the makeup effects and prosthetics [broken bones jutting from skin, sliced in half hands from tip of fingers to elbow, and all that fake bloody goodness!]

The plot was a bit off from the previous films, but I guess I kindda figured out what was going on [in a sense].  For the most part, it was the whole dissection of “what did they DO to make it look real?” was mainly what was going through my head, deciphering what the makeup artists did to create the effects for the film.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to finishing up this panorama project; I hope that I can add some additional features to the image instead of just leaving it as is [that would be TERRIBLY dull to me].  I greatly anticipate continuing work more on my photographic series book and seeing how it will turn out in the end.  There’s still so much I want to add and create for additional pictures.

Well, it seems it’s about time to leave for now, so I leave you here with one of my original pictures I made for my comic I’m writing.  [Forgive the watermark and the small-ish size, but it's necessary for my own protection so no-one steals my work]  Take care and keep up the great work, everyone!

 

~Adina~

The Answer Lies Within

{ October 20, 2008 @ 7:25 am } · { Uncategorized }
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Another day, another blog!

Let me begin by saying that I am greatly looking forward to working more on this and the new upcoming project, the panorama.  So far, I’ve been writing down ideas as to how I want to divide up my Photographic Series book, and it seems like it will work.  The two sections I am MOST looking forward to completing are ‘Artwork’ and ‘Theater’.  As I have said before, I took a most fabulous makeup class; we learned so much in just a few short weeks.  We covered Cirque de Soliel makeup, cuts, bruises, scraps, bullet wounds, scars, old age, beauty, and so much more.  I do not wish to post up my artwork here since I am not a fan of art thieves, not in the slightest.  I am, however, willing to bring in some of my artwork in class where I can safely keep it on my thumbdrive, instead of posting it on here. 

Another thing is that I am anticipating, in one week and 5 days, is Halloween.  My family and I are big fans of that holiday and we have a tradition of dressing up and handing out candy to the kids in our neighborhood.  Usually, I like to dress up and just walk around for the fun of it (plus, it’s good exercise and an excellent excuse to get out of the house!) and to see people’s reaction’s to my outfit.  Like last year, one of the best years ever, I was a banshee with this gorgeous grey wig and medieval-type dress and cape.  It was amazing that so many people kept commenting on what a beautiful costume I had.  Now THAT was fun!  And as a preview for this year’s Halloween outfit, let me start by saying three simple words:

“Why so serious?”

 

Best.  Birthday.  EVER!  No lie!

And finally, as a special treat, I would like to share with you all some of my favorite work from one of my favorite Photoshop artists:  Chandra Free, whom I had the pleasure to meet at Comic-Con this year.   She is a fabulous woman and an inspirational artist.

Ok, well, I’ll be back later to update more on my book and panorama when I have ideas.

Take care!
~Adina~

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