Final Project and Talk Show in class

On Thursday February 23^rd, Professor Moss explained what our final project is.  At first when I noticed the word “Final” in my class I tend to get stressed.  Hence the reason why Professor Moss put the word project behind it.  He pointed out how the use of words can change feelings towards different goals or assignments.  So our final project is to make a one-minute video of what we think Graphic Design is at Cal State Los Angeles.  We must post this video on YouTube and show it in class.  I am freaking out because I have zero time during the weekend to make a video, yet alone turn it in for a big chunk of my grade.  I am already starting to stress out. 

After I went into panic mode during class, we touched upon another topic in class that was presented to us.  Motivation, where do we find it upon ourselves to have it.  What motivates us?  Well I noticed that some students want instant gratification, which will show immediately in what we do.  Other students work towards a long term goal that is delayed gratification in which will pay off in a later part of their career, whether it is in their career path, life, or any goal that they have in the distant future. 

Professor Moss had a hand full of students sit in front of the class and had them discuss how students felt in regards to instant gratification and delayed gratification.  Then we placed a different set of students who were presented with a different subject which was where do you get your motivation from.  At this point students were sharing where their motivation comes from.  I felt that at this point in the discussion we all had a moment where we actually dug deep in and really thought about how we each come up with our inspiration and motivation to accomplish a task or goal.  I feel that this was a key moment to everyone.  In order to know how or what you are doing, you need to know why.  I feel that knowing why your doing a certain task is essential, because it gives you that self-motivation that you sometimes need.   I feel the class was a perfect example of Concept Development due to the class discussions that we had among ourselves for that day.  We opened up about ourselves and discussed the way we develop ideas and how we come up with certain concepts.

Insignificant

Impressionistic

Superficial

Kali Nikitas and Game

On Tuesday February 21^st, we were to bring in our briefs for our games and our response papers from the AIGA speaker event that we all attended.  The speaker was Kali Nikitas.  In the beginning of class we were all instructed to place ourselves in a circle.  We were then instructed to discuss our opinions from Kali’s speech and what we got out of the event.  I found this to be very interesting due to the fact that most of my classmates including myself participated.  I was not surprised as to hear what most people got out of the event because I had taken the same stand in which they did as well.  As a student who will not going to be in the graphic design program much longer, I approach every class in from a different perspective as opposed to a student working very hard in their program.  I try to relate the topic at hand in a way that will help me in the future with a different subject.  But to touch upon our class discussion I noticed how some students had mixed feelings in regards to the guest speaker.  Voicing our opinions was very important to all of us so we can pull ideas and concepts from each other that we perhaps missed during the event.  As always it is very important to recap on events that we attend to help us grasp ideas and concepts for a better understanding and to help relate the topics to our own lives. 

For our next activity, Professor Moss had us split up into two groups and play a game.  It is very difficult to explain in writing how to play the game.  The concept of the game is to take two objects, while not saying what the objects are but calling them something other than what they are.  Then the person starting the game states what they are and sends them along in the circle in opposite directions.  The goal of the game is to send the different objects all the way around the circle of people with out messing up.  What is really tricky is that everyone must listen and pronunciate correctly at all times or the game can become very confusing.  I personally felt that I was playing the game correctly and making it very clear to my classmates but it is a group effort to accomplish the goal, which our group could not do.  What I did notice was that our group was definitely not having as much fun as the other group who did finish their goal of the game.

Recondite

Esoteric

Melodramatic

Some Adjectives

obedient
immense
efficacious

Day 2 for Critiques of Presentations

As for Thursday, our ART 220 class took the entire period to critique our colleagues presentations.  We did tend to stray away from the presentation critique and ask questions from the game.  Which I felt to be quite annoying, but for the most part I felt that everyone had their own presentation issues and weaknesses, no two presenters are the same.  What I noticed that we all could learn to be better at is be more confident.  A lot of people had confidence issues.  I feel that having confidence is key.  Knowing your own presentation contributes to confidence.  So I noticed that most of the presenters had possibly no knowledge of how to explain their game, or pitch the idea behind their game, which I found out to be a key ingredient.  It is very important to know your idea and communicate your idea to your client.  It is an essential part of becoming a designer.  The ability to visually communicate and help your client understand your idea. 

Some Adjectives

quaint
repulsive
unsightly

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentines day

On Tuesday our game presentations were due, I was the third person to present their Pitch to the class.  After seeing my other two classmates present before me I noticed that I needed to revaluate my strategy.  I personally know that I am not the greatest presenter in the world but one of my biggest fears and weaknesses is presenting in front of my colleagues.  Another big fear that I have is being critiqued.  I do know that the profession that I am currently trying to pursue is based on being critiqued in front of clients or colleagues.  What I did do was rehearse and organize the way I was going to present my game.  Prior to presenting I tell myself that I do not know these people and I am never going to see them again.  I take that feeling and apply it to how I feel and for the most part my nerves go away.  The other approach that I kept in mind was to keep my presentation short and concise and only touching upon key points.  I did not receive too many critiques from my classmates, which I was for the most part actually disappointed in.  One point I did note was how as confident as I was in the beginning of my presentation I do need to be in the end of my presentation. For the most part I felt that my presentation was well presented compared to the other presenters but there is a lot that you can learn by listening.  Noticing the little things matter, from the words you use, to the way you communicate using your hands.  Try to be inviting while speaking to your audience.  The little things do matter. 

Day 8 for Tues. 7th

On Tuesday my Concept Development 220 class was a game day.  Each classmate had to bring in a game, whether it was a board game, dice game, or card game.  So we spent almost the entire class period playing a different game, with a different person every 30 mins or so.  All in all it was a repose class period day with laughs and fun.  What was different though about our activities in class, was that we had to stop and analyze what the game was about.  Why and how it created emotions from us.  I have never once stopped to think of these things while or after I played them.  That is probably how into the games I am.  All of the games that I took part in kept me beguiled in the game.  Also my competitive nature took over.  As a designer I believe the goal behind us playing these games was to feel emotions. Somehow as a design major/visual communications major must create emotions in the targeted population.  This is exigent in trying to create a successful product.  So our assigned homework is to create a new game, and come up with 9 concepts for this game.  We must create a type of process map which includes all of these concepts and rules but make it visual as well.

Day 7 for Thurs. 2nd

On Thursday, Professor Moss had the entire class pin up our Process Maps that we developed as the homework assignment.  The process map had to be a visual of how we as a student earns an A in the course.  As students were pinning theirs up on the board, I noticed that mine was very different compared to the rest.  What I had noticed was that not only did my process map not relay the message correctly but it had been done wrong entirely.  Professor Moss pointed my work out to the class asking everyone else's opinion about my work.  I did not want to claim that the work Professor Moss pointed out was mine.  What I had failed to do was create an actual map.  But what I did was create a Pie Chart.  I felt atrocious knowing that my chart was being judged and renamed and critiqued at.  But in another perspective the class practiced their skills of seeing what is presented and not reading into the work.  It helped the class practice our innovative skills with graphic design.  Thursday's class was a bit overwhelming  for me because I tend to not like being picked out from the crowd or in this case my classmates.  Especially since it was a major mistake.

Day 6 for Tues. 31st

In class we discussed and exercised the ability to illustrate a way to get an A in the class.  Now the quick assignment given in class was very enigmatic to the subject at hand.  Reason being was because Professor Moss wanted us to use our creative side.  So as a class not one person took the leadership role and helped explain what the exact goal of the assignment was.  So as a class I feel we all failed to communicate with each other on a common goal.  The idea behind this was to be able to plan and map out the process of passing our class.  Visually we were to show in the minutest amount of words as possibly the mapping of how to get an A in the Art 220 course.  I personally felt precipitous as I was trying to complete my assignment.  I did not feel like I did a great job of getting my point and message across.  I found the assignment to be quite difficult in the alotted time given.

Day 5 for Thurs. 26th

In class we broke up into two groups to discuss our assignment that was given to us. The assignment was to create ten different phrases for an image that we showed.  With each phrase we were to change the view and mood of how we looked at the image.  This assignment was some what hellacious due to the extreme the mood chage must be.  What we learned in our groups was that we did not complete the assignment as described.  We actually did a suboptimal job.  It was not until Professor Moss stopped out group and did a ver good job of explaing how we should brainstorm properly in a group environment.  He made us expeditious come up with ideas of what was going through our head.  That class made me take a different perspective on how I as a student come up with ideas and/or brainstorm.