Design Madness

For those comic fans I want to talk a bit about the design that happens at this extravagant event. Comic Con is huge event that takes place in San Diego, California. It is a convention about comics, movies, and now television. This event is well known internationally. People come from all over to come and experience meeting from film directors to comic collectors. The design aspect of Comic Con hit me while I was walking around the convention center. It was the way that the stations were se up. The banners that were put up for everyone to see what was showing. The free stuff that was handed in for everyone to have. They even gave away free comic books. The have movie premiers before the public sees the movies. It's magical. It was like design was literally a part of the event. It was crazy! I advice those who like to watch T.V, movies, read comics, or want to meet celebrities to come to Comic Con July 25th 2010. I can assure you it will be better than last year.

It was a pleasure meeting Nathan Shedroff! He seems like such a nice and artistic guy. He is the author of the upcoming book called "Design is the Problem." He talked more about Design Innovation and Sustainability.

Everything is design. From the moment you wake up, people do not realize everything around them has been designed.

A photograph is the description of an event printed on paper. . I recently created a pin hole disposable camera as an experiment to see how a camera worked in the old times. Also, it was to learn what photography was composed of and its history. . This camera was made with paper, a needle going through the paper to see the picture and some tape to make the camera box be put together. This camera looked to be easy to make but for my group it took a while before I actually got the camera to be ready so the pictures would show up instead of not getting any pictures, which would have destroyed our whole project.

These are some questions that perhaps people don't know about cameras. I hope it helps!

Why is the photograph from the pinhole camera inverted?

The pinhole camera inverts the picture because when more light comes in the camera the mirror image meaning the picture that is inside makes it to be opposite for the picture this is called inversion. Then since the light bounces into the bottom of the mirror view inside the camera this is what flips the picture around and then when its developed it comes out on the right side so that people can see the picture.

Why is the photograph from the pinhole camera a negative image?

Taking a picture with a pinhole camera has a certain effect. When a person takes a picture of an object the light that is being produced affects the way the picture is going to look like when it gets developed. For example if a person takes a picture of a flower in the sunlight what is going to happen is the flower is not going to be color and its going to be black. Then the background that the flower was exposed in is going to appear to be dark since the sunlight also appears to be dark, unless there were some shadows that exposed what the flower looked like. On the other hand if there is a lot of light the picture is going to turn out to be dark and if the object that you are taking a picture of is dark like a shadow it is going to show up light on the picture.

The view finder functions to help pick what the photographer is aiming for in order to take a picture with my pinhole camera. The definition of a view finder is "optical device that helps a user to find the target of interest" (Dictionary.com). When I am taking a picture what I want is to know what I am going to take a picture of. Since the view finder is a useful tool to use then it makes it easier for my group and I. The measurements of my view finder are 12x 6 cm. Each measurement was made so that the photographic paper would fit and my picture would show up correctly. First I measured how big the square where the photo paper goes and then made the first square for my view finder. I calculated the measurements as to how everyone else was doing it.

The exposure and development process.

The procedures for the development process are the exposure, developer, stop path, fixer and rinse. The exposure is when the light is hitting the silver bromide (AgBr) which does not allow you to see the picture after it has been exposed. Developer is when AgBr completes the image, kind of like finishing a painting. Stop path is when you place the image in so that it will wash off the developer. The fixer is when the image washes off the unexposed meaning the AgBr to become exposed. And finally the last procedure to do is the rinsing part, which is when you put the pictures in water for about 4 minutes so that the chemicals wash off so that it is better to touch.

Motto when taking pictures: "Capture a moment that take place in time weather its emotional, political, or miscellaneous, and that wants to make an impact on the people who critique it" (I wrote it myself).

Have you ever gone to a random cd store? I know its hard to find those now because the music industry has changed into buying music online. For those who still go to CD stores let me talk a little about album cover art. First of all, I love album art! I think it is one of the best ways an artist can express their passion for art through music. I bet that the first thing that a cover artist has to do is listen to the album a couple of times. He/She has to really know what the music message is going to be to those who are going to listen to it perhaps everyday. Personally, cover art is very unique. I have bought CDs that look amazing, and just bought them for the cover art. One of my favorite album covers has to be "The Damnwells Bastards of the Beat." Next time you go to a CD store- buy a CD album that you like not because of the music but because of the cover art.

In the world of fashion there have been many important people who have been able to change the clothes, accessories and styles for many years. Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel is one of the few people who have done anything to get people to appreciate fashion the way she does. Coco Chanel is a resilient person because of the way she pulled through after setting goals to become a famous fashion icon internationally and remain as a historical fashion statement.

Coco started having different sorts of styles. She was very broad to what she wanted to make. “The sky was her limit” she wouldn’t say what she made but surprised many people with her outstanding work of art. A perfect example would be that in 1922 Coco launched the famous fragrance “Chanel No. 5” which remains popular until this day. It was invented in 1921 by Earnest Beaux and named because of the “fifth scent” that he presented to his client Gabrielle Coco Chanel. Fashion is not something a person could just pass on to be a simple thing. Fashion is like art, it has nothing to compare to because of its own hidden beauty that people are welcome to wear (Artists and Entertainers). One of the things Chanel had to work towards her fashion industry that made her become a resilient person was that all the accessories and clothes she made was because she wanted to change the fashion statements from previous designers and to change their opinion from the day they started to hate it. One of her biggest goals she had to face was to change their point of view of the people who hated her work. Throughout time she accomplished it by making more clothes, making some improvements and showing more people what she had.

Since she loved the theater she wanted to contribute by making some of the costumes for the stage. Plays like “Octeapus Antigone” (1973) and “Oedipus Reso” (1937). She took a big part also by making costumes for cinematic works such as “La Regie De Jeu” (The time 100). By that time she had also opened a couture saloon in Biarritz in 1916 through 1920 (Biography Channel). By that time Coco Chanel had been already known as the start of a new fashion era.

The culture in Norway is very diverse. Its roots come from the Viking age. Currently the Norwegian government helps out preserve the collections of folk art and music and other cultural traditions. Schools want to keep teaching their students about the Norwegian history of folk culture and basic traditions. Some of Norway’s most famous traditions are woodcarving, ornamental painting, and tapestry. Norway Festivals were established in 1997 and continue to be a tradition until this day. One of the biggest festivals of the year is the MOLDE International Jazz Festival with more than 400 performers many of them being world famous music performers. The festival takes place in July and its open for the public to go and be a part of this wonderful event.

Log Cabin Architecture

During the 17^th and 18^th century the Eastern and Central Europeans settlers brought their knowledge of log construction. The colonial French introduced vertical log construction down in Mississippi in the 17^th century. During the 18^th and early 19^th century frontier settlers built log cabins as they moved south through Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia. Log buildings are known to have been built for a short time of use. The soldiers of the Revolutionary war used them for shelter. Log cabins were not only used for housing it was used for schools, churches, commercial structures, etc. Around the mid 19^th century settlers began to construct log buildings in the western part of the United States of America. Americans found log buildings that were built by Russian traders and colonists in the late 18^th and early 19^th century. Scandinavian and Finnish immigrants brought their own log building techniques to America. The Old faithful inn at Yellowstone national park in Wyoming is a great example of the craftsmen movement of the late 18^th and early 19^th century. The Resort which, was designed by Robert C. Reamer, was a very influential building for its use of natural materials, which gave it a rustic design. Gustav Stickley and other leaders of the craftsmen movement promoted log buildings. During the 1930s-1940s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) used log construction in many of the state and national parks.

These are 2 styles of log cabin building

Round Log Chink: This style uses round logs with a round notch or a half of full compound dovetail corner. A chink gap is left between the logs to be finished with chinking.

Broadaxe Hewn Log: The corners are locked together with half or full compound dovetails corners. This style of log work is very pleasing to the eye, as the natural curves and variations remain in the log.

Sources: http://www.pedersenlogsmiths.com/log_styles.htm

Sacramento.