Week12-Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

Let's see... What did I do over Thanksgiving break? Well, Wednesday I went out because I was extremely excited that I did not have to work for Black Wednesday (since I work at a bar)! Thursday was Thanksgiving, and my family and I celebrated at my house with a big dinnger (Yumm) and then I went to work for a few hours, came home, and ate again (who doesn't!?) Friday, I did A LOTTT of homework, followed by even more homework, Saturday I worked, and Sunday I did some homework!

I hope everyone had a magnificent Thanksgiving Break!

The End!

Week11-Spreads

The following is a link to my entire magazine. All of my spreads are included and can be viewed in this link.

http://www.lulu.com/product/download/lauren-sekula-computer-graphics-portfolio/6098026

Week10-Memory

Craft: For my memory illustrations, I used very simple techniques. First, I used the elipse tool to create the polka dots and heads. Next, I used the drawing tool to make some of the abstract shapes such as the limbs, shoes and bed. I used a lot of different colors as well as the gradient tool. Also, I used the stretch, and scale tools to change the size of the bear and human girl.

Concept: The concept of this series was to illustrate a surreal situation coming from a very normal situation. In the first illustration you see a girl sitting on her bed with a stuffed animal bear. The colors of the room are very realistic (this is how my room actually looks; with polka dots on the walls and pink furniture). Then, in the second illustration and third illustration everything becomes surreal. This is to show that a person's memory can create all sorts of different scenerios and stories. In one illustration the girl is tiny compared to the lifesize bear, and in the third illustration they are both the same size. Also, the decorations on the walls are changed to show that it is also no longer realistic.

Composition: The characters in the illustrations are always placed in the center of the bed. This is because they are the main idea to the story that the series tells. The bear and girl are positioned very close to one another so it appears as though they are holding one another similar to the way someone would normally hold a stuffed animal. When the girl is small, I positioned the bear's arms differently so it looks like the bear is holding her too.

Week 9-Teapots

Craft: The teapots were our first opportunity to use the drawing tool. We were instructed to copy a teapot placed in front of us and choose a brush stroke in Adobe Illustrator to draw the teapot. We used a computerized/magnetic tool and drew onto a mouse pad tool and the sketch mark would appear on the screen. For the first two teapots I was just practicing with the tool, becoming more comfortable, and made one teapot in black and white, and another of the same teapot adding soem color with the drawing tool as well. For the next teapot, we were instructed to give our teapot an environment, and also to use the same drawing tool. I kept the same brush stroke, but added different color, and put the teapot into an environment. There was a pepsi can, a mouse, counter, and computer within the same area as the teapot. Next, I drew a teapot using the shape tools in Illustrator. Finally, I used the drawing tool again, but also used the anchor and point tool.

Concept: The concept of this assignment was to become comfortable with a new tool in illustrator by warming up using that tool, and then incorporating the use of the drawing tool into drawings where additional tools would also be used. Also, an additional concept was to show that every object is always in a larger environment.

Composition: Most of my teapot drawings do not have much composition because the teapots are alone on the page. However, they are placed primarily in the center of the page to make them standout because they are the main/only focus. In the illustration where the teapot is in an environment, I made the teapot larger than the can, mouse, and computer in order to show that the teapot is closer to us than the other objects. Also, the lines were made for the counter to show that there is a separation between all of the objects.

Week 14

http://www.lulu.com/product/download/lauren-sekula-computer-graphics-portfolio/6098026

week12

CRAFT: For this illustration I ended up combining many different techniques in order to achieve what I wanted to capture. I used the tools that we have learned about thus far in class and improved my skills. The heads of each character, polka dots, and eyes were crafted using the elipse tool. to make each limb symmetrical, I used the transform/reflect option on the tool bar. I also incorporated the pen tool and the paintbrush to create the limbs the facial features and the bed.

CONCEPT: The concept of this illustration was to use one object in three different pictures and put the object into an environment in which there were 3 constants (i.e things that remain the same) and 3 variables (things that change in each picture). Since the concept of my series is very cartoon and imaginative in appearance, I wanted to make the characters and the color scheme the same way. In each picture, the girl, the bed, and the brush stroke remain the same. The placement of the American flag, the colors, and the size of objects in each illustration changes. The first picture is the most realistic; with the girl as a larger size and the bear as a smaller size. The second illustration shows reversed roles, as the bear has his arm around the girl whom is now as tiny as the bear once was. Finally, in the last picture, both the girl and the bear are equals.

COMPOSITION: A few things need to be mentioned about the changes in each illustration. First of all, the reason I decided to change the placement of the American flag is because there is already so much going on in this picture with big bold colors and the idea of the bear and the girl that few people would notice the change in position of the flag. I think it is a challenge for viewers and this means that they have really taken a good look at the picture in order to notice this. Next, I wanted the third picture to be sort of a conclusion of the series. This picture incorporates information from the first two such as the colors of every polka dot from the first picture in a gradient behind polka dots that are colors taken from the wall in the first picture and the dots in the second. Also, both characters are the same size, making them equal.

Special Post-Art Institute

On Saturday, October 17th, I went on the group tour at the Art Institute. I took a lot of pictures but 3 pieces of artwork really caught my eye. First, I took a picture with a Native American warbonnet from the Western Plains. The reason I chose this piece of artwork is because my Great grandmother was from the Chawktaw tribe. This warbonnet represents my heritage and I also admire the amount of effort that went into creating it. The beading is very intricate and the use of feathers tells so much about the Native Americans use of things from nature for survival and also spiritual purposes. Next, I chose a painting that was in the first gallery. I believe this painting of a woman and the sunset was create in the late 17, or early 1800's. This picture was beautiful to me because it demonstrated so many things we have been discussing in class such as use of color, focal points in artwork, and texture. The third painting I chose was from the Modern Art gallery. It was painted by a woman whose art always depicts women in very uncomfortable positions, looking very awkward, fearful, etc. The reason I liked this painting is because you feel as though the woman is staring right through you, like she knows what you are thinking and it really catches you off guard.

Week7

PHOENIX ARIZONE AVERAGES 300 SUN-FILLED DAYS PER YEAR.

Week8

These are the top 5 versions of my illustration of a sign I found in Bronzeville. The sign says "Chicago's Historic Boulevards". Bronzeville is a historic town dedicated to the black urban cities. I wanted to create a series of illustrations showing the sign at different times of the day. First, I created an illustration that represents the middle of the day. the sky is clear and blue and the sign appears to be shadowed like the weather is partly cloudy. Second, the illustration appears to be showing the middle of the night. The sign is darker to show that there is no light reflecting off of it. It is almost being masked by the night. My third illustration shows the morning/early afternoon. The sun is bright and relecting onto the sign, and this shows the sign in a brighter light, so someone can see that it is red. I made every color a bit brigher on the sign to illustrate this. My fourth picture is illustrating a sunset. I used a slight gradient on the sign to show that the sky is partially light and dark, so the sign as a shadow on one side but not the other. Finally I wanted to show a sunrise. The middle of the sign has slightly brighter colors and a small glow to show that the sun is slowing rising.

****Special Post****

Due to the fact that I have had so many complications with my first photograph choice, I decided to create an entirely new illustration using a different photograph from my trip to Bronzeville. I spent the entire weekend on this new illustration to catch up the best I could. I was able to make 2 versions of the illustration. I am still not completely finished, but I was able to add style, gradient, and some other nice touches so far. My next step will be to finish the letters on the sign, add some last minute details that I am missing from the original photograph, and come up with a color scheme.

Week6

Week5

CRAFT: I constructed this illustration using Adobe Illustrator. By using mainly the pen tool along with a few other tools I was able to create the shapes that make up this picture. I became very familiar with the specific pen tool that allows you to adjust certain anchor points to change the shape of an object. Also, I became a lot more comfortable with grouping layers together. This allowed me to send certain shapes to the back of the illustration and other shapes to the front so the picture looked more realistic and three dimensional.

CONCEPT: The concept of this project was to create an illustration using a real-life photograph and depict this photograph as accurately as possible.

COMPOSITION: I tried to use colors in this picture that were closely related to the actual colors in the photograph. I wanted my illustration to appear realistic, but I also wanted to add my own style to it. For example, the plaque on the statue has a border around it that is not really visible in the photograph, but I wanted people to understand that it was in fact a plaque, so I made the gold color stand out by creating a more yellow hue. Also, the flowers in my illustration do not look very realistic, but they stand out against the dull colors of the statue. I wanted to emphasize the flowers because they are the most colorful part of the photograph.

Week4

CRAFT: I chose this picture by locating my folder on the desktop and opening the image in Adobe Illustrator. By using the pen tools, eye dropper, and grouping/locking/hiding certain layers I was able to create designs over different parts of the picture I wanted to create in the illustration. The eye dropper tool was used to steal a pixel of color from a certain object in the photograph and create that same color in the illustration.

CONCEPT: The concept of this project is to create an illustration based on a real life photograph.

COMPOSITION: I chose the foliage, sidewalk, buildings, and sky to illustrate first because I wanted to lay down the ground work before I illustrated the finer details. Also, the foliage makes sort of a horizon or border to work around.

Week3

Craft:
I designed this image using Adobe Illustrator. The text, shapes, and colors you see were made using different pen tools, brush strokes, fillers, eclipse shapes, and keys such as "command z,c, v". Also, I used the grouping feature to make finding layers a lot easier while working.

Concept:
The concept of the project was simply to show that I am comfortable using Adobe Illustrator, and each of the designs within the image use a specific tool.

Composition:
By creating each shape for the car, I demonstrated how I was able to use the pen tool in order to create an abstract shape. For the wheels I used the eclipse tool and held down the shift button in order to make the wheels perfect circles. The border was made by using a charcoal brush stroke and changing the size to make the line appear thicker. By using the color palette, I was able to choose the background color. My name was also made by using the pen tools.

Week 2

CRAFT: In order to create this photo I used my digital camera. I held the camera straight and made sure the artwork was in the center of my shot. I did not use a flash for this photo because I made sure to take photos in daylight in order to get a more clear shot.

CONCEPT: The concept of this photo was to integrate the artistic side of Bronzeville and the "normal Chicago town" into one shot to show the area's diverse elements. I wanted to stress that even though the town may have some unique style and artwork, there are people living within this area that may simply view it as "home". I wanted to give viewers the impression of looking from the outside into the town.

COMPOSITION: In order to bring to life the idea I had for this photo I made sure to pick a spot in the artwork that appeared almost like a hole; or an eye that someone would look through in order to see the town. The fact that you are looking through the artwork into the town that is farther away shows that among all of this artwork are the homes and lives of the people in Bronzeville. I also made sure to leave some of the tunnel in the photograph (where the artwork was located), so it was clear that I really was on the outside looking in at this point.

Week 1

-My name is Lauren Sekula

-I'm a psychology major with a clinical/counseling concentration.

-This will be my last semester at Saint Xavier. I'm a senior, and will be graduating a semester early.

-I have a few favorite bands/artists. Nickelback, Lifehouse, The Fray, and Keith Urban are among my favorites. I actually went to a Nickelback concert last weekend and like them even more after seeing the band live; they put on a great show!

-Chicago has always been my home. I lived in Mount Greenwood until I was 6 years old and since then I've been living in Evergreen Park.

-My favorite color would have to be a toss up between pink and green.

-I drive a 1997 Mercury Cougar; "The Beast".