ART-235 PROJECT BRIEF 01
As Authored and Designed by Marla Antonella Gómez Carrillo
at the behest of Brigham Young University Idaho.
Good evening, Dearest Brethren and collegiate peers, alike.
I would like to humbly wish you all a wonderful week and take the present opportunity to thank you so very much for your willigness and disposition to view my own personal "Graphic Design Weeks One-Three Project Brief Demonstration" at the behest of Brigham Young University Idaho's virtual modality for the Art 235 Graphic Design Course.
As such, I wanted to discuss the tremendous importance of representing the seven creative strategies of graphic design in a visually dynamic and deeply resonant manner that can transcend audience demographic barriers and that has the capability to be intellectually challenging and scintillating and also tremendously emotionally cathardic and inventive, allowing for multiple polysemous interpretations of the visual stimuli that is being presented in an illustratively representative form. I additionally wanted to take the present opportunity to analytically as well as retrospectively discuss which were the personal experiences, stylistic influences and complex emotional nuances which came to shape the investigation and conceptualization processes behind each and every single one of the compositions presented as well as the referential frameworks that form part of the visual auditing and compilation process upon which I have based this artistic and infographical compendium of information and visual artistry.
This project has been one of the most genuinely emotionally fufilling and enlightening aspects of my tenure at Brigham Young University Idaho, permitting me to explore and rediscover my personal and professional aptitudes and capabilities as a professional comic book illustrator, mixed-media visual artist and experimental photographer. In further remittance to the principle thematic of discussion, I would like to precedently take the opportunity to express my most sincere sentiments of gratitude and respect to my Professor, whose unwavering dedication to helping us as students progress throughout the process of materialization of this project allowed me to improve as an artist and to refine my own capabilities within essential visual illustration and photographic visualization softwares, such as in those of Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign and Adobe Illustrator. His continual guidance, unwavering academic orientation and emotional support provided me with the consistent motivation, self-belief and discipline to finish this portfolio demonstration in the best and most optimal manner possible in spite of the many challenges that unexpectedly presented themselves along the way, allowing me to improve and to refine each and every single one of my compositions in a manner that is true to the spirit of the assignment prompt and that aims to heavily adhere to each of the requirements expressed in the allotted assignment rubric.
Furthermore, in consideration of the context of our now hyper-industrialized global landscape and continuously evolving professional viewpoint, whose very internal infrastructure, methodologies of sustainable applicability and is contingent upon the capability to cater to diverse audiences, the processes of depiction of each of the singularly effective seven creative strategies Representing the conceptualization and execution process of each of the seven creative strategies in a highly inventive and philosophically multifaceted yet mentally, emotionally and intellectually accesible manner within the realm of graphic visualizations and illustrative designs creates a semblance of intrigue and of investment from the prospective or select audience demographic.
As such, the process learning how to best and most cohesively represent the seven creative strategies of graphic design in a visually distinctive manner is fundamental for designers to enhance the cultivation of visual literacy, memorability, the encouragement of personal intellectual and artistic exploration, inspiring creativity, the differentiation of brands, communicating narrative and ethical themes and values as well as establihsing diverse parameters for audience identification.
Thus forth, the amalgamation of diverse artistic methodologies and techniques, both traditional and ditgitalized, can serve in accurately representing or depicting pictographically as well as metaphysically the universality of the seven creative strategies of graphic design in various ways. Summarily, by blending traditional artistic techniques such as painting, illustrating, manual typographic and calligraphic design elaboration, three-dimensional modelling and rigging, motion and vector graphic-based softwares it can create visually distinctive and highly diversified compositions as the synthesis bridges the gap between past and present, highlighting the continuity and universality of the creative strategies across differente eras and mediums. Conversely, the utilization of traditional artistic methodologies enable prospective designers to explore expressive techniques such as texture, brushwork and layering aggregate depth and richness to designs, the digitalization of tools on the other hand, offering endless possibilities for experimentation manipulation and refinement. As such, by amalgamating each of these respective approaches, designers can accomplish a sustainable balance between expressive freedom and technical precision.
Drawing from a diversity of artistic traditions and cultural influences enriches the visual vocabulary of graphic design, as traditional techniques rooted in various cultural idiosyncrasies and regions enriches the visual vocabulary and versatility.
The creative strategy of combination connotes the amalgamation or unification of two seemingly dissimilar objects of study and these are combined to suprise the prospective auidence and suspend their disbelief by demonstrating the conceptual improbability of creating a semblance of compatibility and cohesivity betwen two opposing visual elements or components. In a similar fashion, the creative strategy of isolation focuses on the prospective viewer on an element in a composition by visually separating an elemement or succession of elements visually from its surroundings or from other objects. In turn, the strategy of metaphor or simile, primarily focuses on the meaning of the image created as it can be infered by the prospective audience and the images created with one's obejct as it is correlative to something else entirely as well. Furthermore, the strategy of change of context or of environment contrasts or juxtaposes objects with unnatural or uncommon environments to highlight a particular concept or convey a specific idea. Conversely, the creative strategy of physical shape and similarity utilizes physical similarities to showcase connections between seemingly dissimilar objects. Finally, the creative strategy of material change, swap or focus involves the deliberate alteration, substitution or emphatization on specific materials within a design to achieve the desired visual effects or communication particular concpets or messages, as this strategy allows designers to manipulate the particularities of a conceptual framework of compositional reference or the visual properties of materials to create contrast, highlight focal points and conevy symbolic meaning.
With each of these respective definitions of the creative strategies in mind, I wanted to do a brief analysis of each of the personal experiences and investigative elements which came to inform each of the respective conceptualization processes of each and every single one of the seven compositions which have been enjoined. Moreover, I have chosen the visual motif of glass and glass-adjacent materials as it holds a fascinating allure within the context of compositions representing each of the creative strategies due to its inherent symbolic and metaphorical richness, possessing uniquely transcendental and ancestral storytelling properties that make it a compelling symbol for exploring themes of human conflict, resilience and the fragility of the human spirit across various creative strategies. The first composition, entitled "The Mirror Behind The Glass Eyes" based upon the principle of elemental combination, primarily consists of a depiction of a world self-contained in tragedy through the lense of a young woman from an unspecified marginalized community seemingly trapped or encased in glass. With a look of tremendous determination, the young woman in question transmits a semblance of hopeful optimism to help her community and to not feel ideologically trapped by her physically and metaphorically isolating circumstances. I was inspired by my own personal experience as a Venezuelan-American refugee and immigrant who also has high functioning autism and I additionally wanted to display my own personal journey of coming to the realization that there is a world of hopeful yet realistic proactivity and optimism outside of my comfort zone, outside of my personal self-imposed limitations in life and that I wanted to make a proactive change in the world through my artistry by infusing it with a humanitarian purpose.
The second composition, which is entitled "No Longer Self-Contained In Tragedy (The World Alone Survives)", represents the principle of visual juxtaposition and it additionally depicts a female subject who is seemingly conflicted by the chaotic state of the world in which they inhabit, being within the confines of a microcosmal ocean however, the female subject in question (although positioned to provide an optical illusion of her falling) is in actuality swimming against the current and fighting to reach the surface for her survival. Through this composition, I wanted to demonstrate the resilience of the human spirit through the lense of utilizing the motif of glass as a universal allegorical representation for the duplicity of human nature and the fragility of the human condition.
The third composition, that of "A Heart's a Heavy Burden (Heart of Glass)" represents the strategy of "Metaphor or Simile." The title in question, was inspired by a line of dialogue from the Hayao Miyazaki film adaptation of "Howl's Moving Castle", wherein the character of "Sophie" remarks that "A heart is a heavy burden." I wanted to show that through a weighted yet fragile material such as that of a glass heart sculpture as displayed within the illustration in question, there is so much emotional gravitas and versatlity in our hearts as human beings and yet they are fragile and we must care for them and nurture it with every fiber of our being.
Professional Mockup Demonstrations of the Seven Creative Strategies of Graphic Design
SINGULAR/INDIVIDUAL WIDE-SPACE CANVAS MOCKUP PRESENTATION
The composition featured within this first mockup demonstration is:
"The Mirror Behind The Glass Eyes" (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF ELEMENTAL COMBINATION).
The process of crafting a composition which could effectively encapsulate the immense importance of the principle of elemental combination became one of the most fundamentally enlightening and inspiring undertakings of this project's structure and finalized submission. Firstly, as a creative strategy of graphic and illustrative design, the principle of elemental combination is fundamentally intrinsic to our daily lives as it permits us as artists to unify seemingly disparate elements within a particular design format, utilizing and experimenting with various techniques in order to best unify disparate elements within a particular composition or within a succesion of select compositions, creating a semblance of cohesivity and harmony by meticiously arranging and configuring elements in relation to one another, the prospective designer can thusly successfully ensure that the overall composition can feel tremendously cohesive rather than thematically disjointed. This ancestral practice was originally proposed more than 9,800,000 years ago as throughout the course of recorded history, there have been various different artistic movements which have innovated by proposing their own uniquely revolutionary stylistic characteristics and key identifiers. This was further exemplified in the Renaissance period as well, as artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Michaelangelo had mastered the art of combining multiple different elements, such as form, line artistry and multi-formatted color combinations to create an enticing sense of fluidity and movement in compositions. Similary in the Bauhaus movement of the early 20th century, artists and designers had sought to integrate different artistic disciplines such as painting, sculpture and architecture in order to best create the best and most meaningful compositions possible. The thematic inspiration for this piece primarily stems from my experiences as a neurodiverse Venezuelan-American two-time immigrant as I wanted to portray the themes of feminine empowerment and the longing to transcend the bounds and limitations imposed by society. Although the subject of this compostion is depicted as being encased in glass, I wanted to show that her micro-expressions denote an audibly but not visually silent stoicism and strength and I wanted to display this by having a woman of color represent the enlightenment and trasncendence that we all wish to achieve in our lives. Perhaps she is far closer to breaking the glass than she is to reaching the river that holds her afloat and her vulnerabilities are what guide her and naviagate her through the harsh journeyings ahead, but she does not cower in fear, rather she is completely ready to affront each of these forthcoming challenges with grace, compassion and humanity.
Furthermore, with regards to the awe-inspiring and deeply reflective title of this particular composition, I was primarily inspired by a line of dialogue spoken by the character of Vanessa Ives a powerful supernatural being and heiress from the victorian supernatural mystery and Gothic psychological drama named "Penny Dreadful." Within the eponymous television series, the titular "Miss Ives" who is also referred to by her title as "The Scorpion Queen" who was portrayed brilliantly by the extraordinarily talented and multi-faceted French actress "Eva Green" is confronted with the many challenges that haunt her both psychologically as well as physically as her native ninetheenth century Londonian community becomes occupied by a malicious coven of vampires who are at the service of Sir. Alexander Sweet (an acclaimed zoologist and the director of London's most famous Natural History Museum who is actually the legendary Vlad Dracul or "Lord Dracula" in disguise as he has been masquerading as a human with the intention of ushering the world into a new dark age, an ante-mortal ploy which threatens Vanessa directly because of her connection to the titular Count. This ancestral coven not only seeks to threaten her and weaponize her abilities, but they also seek to utilize them as the final centerpiece that is needed for the apocalypse to take form. In the first season of this television series, Miss Ives starts to reflect upon the days of her childhood, wherein she was nestled by the equally wealthy Murray family and received at their manor, where she befriended the character of Wilhemina "Mina" Murray who in the Dracula mythos is destined to become highly intelligent and fearless property solicitor Jonathan Harker's wife and one of the key figures in the fight against Dracula. Enlisting the help of various characters from Gothic literature, such as from Dr. Victor Frankenstein and his Creature, Egyptologist Dr. Abraham Lyle (who is from the universe of "The Mummy"), Sir. Malcom Murray who is the patriarch of the Murray clan as well as from Sir. "Ethan" Lawrence Chandler, or "The Wolfman", Vanessa forms and courageously leads a Motley Crüe of supernatural sleuths who can help her solve the mystery behind Mina's disappearance whose psychic connection to her becomes just as much of an asset as it is a liability. As she reminisces about the days of her youth and about the sins of the past, she is additionally confronted with the choice of sacrificing her future so that balance can be restored and so that Dracula may be defeated or with the option of adopting the very malicious persona that Dracula represents. As these flashbacks unfold, the context of the story shows us that Miss Ives used to practice taxidermy as a personal hobby instilled in her by her family and as Mina's brother Peter asked her why she enjoyed practicing this discipline, Miss Ives answered that she liked to view those things which trasncended the merely superficial and that she connected with the deceased through the discipline of taxidermy because she especially liked to dignify the dead, bringing them a semblance of closure and affection that they could have never received in life and that she liked to view her connection to them as looking beyond "The Mirror Behind The Glass Eyes" or beyond the sullen gaze of the deceased, showing her a world of profound solemnity that allowed her to respect all life and to look beyond what it easily perceptible, challenging stereotypes in our society and allowing her to enrich her perception of her own life.
SINGULAR/INDIVIDUAL WIDE-SPACE CANVAS MOCKUP PRESENTATION
"No Longer Self-Contained in Tragedy (The World Alone Survives)." (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF VISUAL JUXTAPOSITION).
SINGULAR OR INDIVIDUAL WIDE-SPACE CANVAS MOCKUP PRESENTATION, DARK FOREGROUND OFFICE DEMONSTRATION
The composition featured within this mockup presentation is entitled:
"Holding the World in the Palm of Your Hands (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF CHANGE OF CONTEXT OR OF ENVIRONMENT).
SINGULAR OR INDIVIDUAL WIDE-SPACE CANVAS MOCKUP PRESENTATION, LIGHT FOREGROUND OFFICE DEMONSTRATION
The composition featured within this mockup presentation is entitled as follows:
"The Forbidden Flame: Ascension in Solitude." (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF VISUAL ISOLATION."
TRI-FOLDED WIDE-SPACE LIVING ROOM MOCKUP PRESENTATION:
The compositions featured within this mockup demonstration are:
"A Heart's a Heavy Burden (Heart of Glass)." (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF METAPHOR OR SIMILE)
"All Flowers in Time Bend Towards The Moon." (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF PHYSICAL SHAPE AND/OR SIMILARITY).
"Crystalline Flora (Sussurations of Earth)." (REPRESENTING THE PRINCIPLE OF MATERIAL CHANGE/PHYSICAL SHAPE).
