Final Exam

Craft: Using the brushes I made (known as: the Vitamin C brush set), I cropped 3 different objects from the pictures given to us. Using those brushes, colored over the objects in house image. The eraser was used to smooth out the edges. Using the character window, I arched the words as well as add drop shadows, manipulate the text size, and add an inner shadow. A lot of adjustments and transforms were made to the objects so they could placed accordingly. I adjusted the brightness/contrast of different layers. At the end, I merged and layers and then duplicated the window over the rest of the house. I also added my signature.

Composition: this image has a like a multiply window or layer feel to it. The candy canes start the image. The path leads you up to house, so it kinda carries the eye to the door. The brightness/ and contrast as well as the various colors really make the image bright and cheerful just like Christmas.

Concept: I transformed the image of this house to a winter scene. The interesting part is whether its a house decorated as Santa's workshop or is it literally Santa's workshop.

The Vitamin C Brush

Week 15 My Coffee Mate

Craft: Using a photo of my Aussie mate at a cafe, I created layers of different colors from background to foreground. Different set of brushes were used, but mostly the basic brushes in full hardness. The pen and tablet were used to created the hair. The light strokes made her hair look more natural. By working from background to foreground, I was able to create depth in the photo. Softer brushes were used to detail the face.

Composition: By working from background to foreground, I was able to create depth in the photo. Softer brushes were used to detail the face. Darker background colors brought focus to the subject. By using "adjustments"....."hue & saturation" I manipulated the colors to better fit the photo.

Concept: Using a unique style of manipulated images, I took a photo of a mate and turned it into a more colorful and playful image.

Week 14 OOOO OOO IT'S MAGIC....YA KNOW!

Craft: Using different brushes, this piece was created. The background layer was created with three different brushes with different opacity. Using previous skills, I constructed a guitar. The guitar strings were a brush I created and used. When creating a brush start a new document with a 2500 pixel x 2500 pixel document in gray scale. After designing your brush, click "define brush preset" and you'll have created a new brush.

Composition: Drop shadows where used to make the guitar POP! The opacity was changed to give the hands and arms a "ghostly" look. Shapes were used to construct the guitar. The darker background colors make the yellow hands more noticable

Concept: There is a ghost playing a guitar.

Week 13- Nature and Texture Collage

AUTUMN BOMB

Craft: Using skills learned from the past semester such as cropping, brightness/contrast, drop shadow, transform, adjustments, and paint brush, I constructed this piece. Using skew and distort, I shaped and curved the street and a few of the buildings.

Composition: The biggest challenge was trying to make achieve this sense of perspective. I did not want this image to look flat but rather layered Using shades of red, I attempted to turn surrounding building like they are heating up and about to get hit by a nuclear bomb explosion. The irony is that the nuclear bomb is made up of leaves. The building are made up of textures. The sky is leather and tinted yellow to give more focus to the AUTUMN BOMB

Concept: To merge textures and nature together in some collage form. My piece became more of a scene of a city with an explosion of autumn leaves. The message can be taken in different ways, but I wanted this sense of Autumn is approaching the city fast and nature is making a striking come back.

Week 12 Make it POP!

Craft: By double clicking on your background layer you change it to a normal layer. Set that layer to multiple and mess with the opacity as you see fit. The layers placed below your new normal layer will blend together. In this case, I just a basic blue background. Using the eye drop tool I identified the the different values of blue when needed.

Composition: In order to MAKE IT POP, I used different values of blue. The balance of whites and darks made this possible. Changing the value can create focus on different aspects of the image. By doing this different parts of the image will POP!

Concept: My theme for this weeks project was the "Sydney Opera House." Theses are photo's all from my study abroad in Australia. The three photos are all different angles of the Opera House in Sydney, Australia.

Special Edition Blog: Chicago Art Institute

This blog will feature my three favorite pieces from the Chicago Art Institute. The above picture is of our tour guide, Nathan Peck!

Fishing Boats with Hucksters Bargaining

Craft: Oil on Canvas (created 1837-38)

Composition: The artists glob white paint certain parts of the canvas to created this feel and depth of the waves. It also tells me how rough the waves are. The picture looks as it if there is a giant wave about to tumble over the boat and knock.

Concept: This picture portrayed how older boats dealt with severe weather. I find it ironic that despite the vast different in time and advances in technology to boats, that if a tidal wave was to come the end result for a boat in 1837 or 2010 would end up the same.

My Thoughts: I like this painting (particularly this section of the painting; shown above) because I find it hard to tell where the tidal wave ends and where the clouds begin. Does the white paint near the top edge of the wave indicate the water is falling or is that a cloudy sky? Is the back end of the boat hitting the water wall of the tidal wave, hence the white splashes? Perhaps, it simple just a splash. Despite all the great detail and the painting craft and composition being understood, this detail still leaves me guessing as to whether it is sky or water.

Houses of Parliament, London

Craft: Oil on Canvas

Composition: The painting looks like is around daybreak. There is a sense of fog in the painting, which is fitting for London. The strokes of paint indicate waves, which means that this building is located next to a water source. In this case, I know its a river because I been to London.

Concept: This is interesting. I like that distance plays a factor in the pieces he creates. Most people stand right in front of art to really grasp the art their viewing. However, this art takes on new meaning depending how close or far you look at it. If you look close it looks distorted, but from from away I can make out the lines of the Parliament building.

Oct. 31, 1978

Craft: Acrylic on canvas and newspaper

Composition: The background is simple dark color with simple white text. There is a large date center in the piece of art.

Concept: This piece is art. It's hard to understand at first, but the irony in it is that this art is all about the day it was created. This master piece of art was born on Oct. 31st, 1978. The piece does not give any other details except the fact about when it was created. This is modern art. Older pieces perhaps can be dated based on the popular painting style of the time or the details in the piece itself. This piece answers that question right up front.

My Thoughts: The concept is SOOOOO simply, I did not understand it until I read about it. I tend to forget the simplicity in art. As a person who enjoys art pieces with a lot of concept, I tend to always try to find a deeper meaning or "read between the lines." This is the exception. I feel like I "get it."