Cave Paintings/ 35,000 years ago

What are cave paintings?
Beautiful, detailed, and colorful representations found on the inside of cave walls and ceilings.Name several common themes found in cave paintings?
Large animals, tracings of human hands, abstract patterns
How were these paintings created (tools, pigments)?
Things used were water, plant juice, animal blood, soil, charcoal, and hematite. Brushes were made by sticking together sticks, small stones, leaves, and animal hair.What is the most famous cave painting site? When was it discovered and by whom?
Post an example of cave painting(s) from this cave.The most famous cave painting site is Lascaux, France. It was discovered in 1940 by four teenage boys. 
Why did this cave have to be closed? What was done to satisfy public curiosity?
The paintings were being damaged by the carbon dioxide emitted by the tourists. In order to satisfy public curiosity, a man made replica called Lascaux II was created next to the original.
Post an example of cave painting(s) from Altamira cave.
In Altamira cave, why do most of the paintings have a red hue?
This is because there is red clay in the soil.
Who discovered this site? How old are the paintings confirmed to be?
The site was discovered by Marceline Sanz de Sautola and his daughter Maria. The paintings were confirmed to be 19,000 years old.
What is the oldest known cave painting site? When was it discovered and by whom?
Post an example of cave painting(s) from this cave.
The oldest known cave painting site is Chauvet-Point Arc. It was discovered in 1994 by Eliette Brunell Deschamps, Christian Hillaire, and Jean-Marie Chauvet.
What was different about the painting techniques at this site?
The walls were scraped clear of debris. A 3-D effect was created by etching around the edges.
What is "speleology"?
It is the study of the features, history, processes, life, etc. of caves.
What three reasons do archeologists and historians believe prehistoric man created cave paintings?
To tell a story that already happened.
As an instructional aid to help learn hunting techniques
For magical/ religious reasons that if a desired event was painted, it might happen. 

A13 Research and inspiration

Exquisite corpse-  a method by which a collection of words or images is collectively assembled. (Wikipedia) Started with a writing game called Consequences; was developed by the Surrealists (Wikipedia).

Surrealism- A 20th-century avant-garde movement in art and literature that sought to release the creative potential of the unconscious mind (Google).

Brainstorm:

Modern, humorous


Inspiration: 

This exquisite corpse looks interesting because it combines diametrically opposite body parts such as the bulky, robotic torso and the exceedingly thin legs.

This picture demonstrates how unusual exquisite corpses can look. Here, the impression of a centaur is given. At the same time, it is an amusing mixture of a cow, a human figure, and a frog- like creature.

The Creative Process

A series of steps you repeat every time you work with a concept.

Why do we need a creative process?

•  This improves consistency. A certain level of quality will be maintained.
• Ability to plan and time your work. Time management skills can be developed.
• This will raise the quality of your work.
• Communication will be more effective and more professional.

Steps to the creative process:

1. Research client and competition to get inspiration. Look in magazines, get online, etc. to get inspiration.
2. Brainstorm; strive to be unique and innovative. This ensures a fresh and creative approach. Ask questions like: What kind of message? What audience am I targeting? What kind of color or style will work for this audience.
3. Sketching: Sketch to get thoughts out. Use thumbnails. Consider placement of elements. 
4. Execution: Implement your ideas. Combine type and imagery into a well-developed composition. Utilize design principles and visual organization guidelines to help. Try techniques, explore possible options, and analyze the outcome. If you get stuck, walk away and clear your head. If the piece doesn't look how you imagined, and it isn't working, try another idea. Forcing an idea won't result in a good design.
5. Critique & revise: Take a step back and look at your design with an objective eye. Make sure the design effectively conveys the message to the intended audience. If it doesn't, go back and tweak the composition until it does! Asking others for their opinion will help with this process.

Photo composition notes

Snapshot- a quick shot, often spontaneous, taken to record a moment in time.
Photograph- an image taken with care and thought.

Rules of composition
Rule of thirds- imaginary lines drawn dividing the frame of camera into thirds, both horizontally and vertically.

• Place subject/ important elements where these lines intersect. 
• Place horizon line at the top or bottom horizontal divider. 
• Fill up entire frame with subject for a closeup image.

Leading lines- Use the lines created within the foreground or background of the composition to lead the viewer's eye through the photo. 

• Lines can draw attention to one or more intended subjects or a single focal point.

Point of view- Change the way your subject is perceived by changing the camera position

• If you are photographing a subject that you want to seem very tall, compose the shot so that the camera is looking upwards.
• Doing vice versa can also make a photograph look interesting.

Simplicity- Keep your background simple and clear of clutter.

• The mood and effectiveness of a photo can be altered by what is in the background.
• A chaotic composition will cause the viewer to look away.

Semester Reflection

I would say that I've learned quite a bit about the programs Illustrator and Photoshop. I've learned how to create logos and icons on Illustrator. Also, I had fun using the paint and layer mask options on Photoshop. I'm not sure of what else could be improved for next semester. One thing I would like to learn how to do would probably be to learn to create my own cartoon character.

Review Week 17

I'd say that I've learned quite a bit about serifs from this article. I didn't really know earlier that they originated from Roman times. Also, I didn't know that they were classified into two separate types: adnate and abrupt. Also, seeing the different components of the letter, like spine, counter, bowl, terminal, and ligature was new to me.

Review Week 16

How many points are in an inch? How many points are in a pica?
There are 72 points in an inch, and 12 points are in a pica.
Of the seven classifications, which classification (s) would best work as body type? Why?
Old script and Modern might work the best because they both don't look too fancy or distracting.
Identify the lowercase characters that have ascenders?
They are b, d, h, k, l, and t
Identify the lowercase characters that have descenders?
They are f, g, j,p,q, and y

I think that this is Slab Serif because the line weight appears to be the same throughout, and also, the serifs appear to be like squares.

I think that this is Script because the characters resemble actual handwriting.

This is one is Decorative because of the slightly "fun" look that the characters have.

This is Sans Serif because of the lack of lines at the ends of strokes.

This is Blackletter because it resembles the medieval style of writing.

This is probably Old Style due to the wedge-shaped serifs.

This is probably Modern because of the thin, flat serifs.