Our Word

dis·rupt  (ds-rpt)

tr.v. dis·rupt·ed, dis·rupt·ing, dis·rupts

1. To throw into confusion or disorder: Protesters disrupted the candidate's speech.

2. To interrupt or impede the progress, movement, or procedure of: Our efforts in the garden were disrupted by an early frost.

3. To break or burst; rupture.

 

also...

 

 1. (tr) to throw into turmoil or disorder

2. (tr) to interrupt the progress of (a movement, meeting, etc.)

3. to break or split (something) apart

[from Latin disruptus burst asunder, from dīrumpere to dash to pieces, from dis-¹ + rumpere to burst]

Understanding Comics

It is not the actual item. It is a drawing of the item. Those are not people in that painting, those are paintings of people. An icon represents a person, place, or thing. There are images that stand for something else, there are images that convey language, there are pictures (resembles the object). However, images can change and mean something else. It really has to do with how you see something. Letters and numbers always represent the same thing, but pictures are the things that change. Words are abstract. You can change the face of someone by just drawing lines and it still represents that person. A cartoon can put the meaning out there that was intended. There is a slight chance that it will be misunderstood. You can point out exactly what you want to point out. You can focus on what you want people to see. You can express emotion in a drawing. Words only do so much. An image can really speak to a person. You can create an emotion with one image that might take several sentences to evoke in a person. Art makes things visible. Even a line can be strong, dynamic, or angry.

Writer's Toolbox

How do you best explain an image? With words. How do you get your ideas across? With words. Write everything you do down. Yes, photos are helpful, but even art museums have a description for the artwork. Words help you convey what you are thinking at the time of creation. Words written off to the side of a sketch help a person remember why they drew it, what the intention was, and how to improve it later. Note taking is the best skill you can have. It adds to the creativity. Brainstorming, concept maps, and one word sentences explain so much more than what an image alone can explain. Without writing thoughts down, it would be hard to understand a piece of artwork. The title to an artwork in a museum helps the viewer understand the artwork. Titling everything you do keeps things organized. It helps a person know several months after making the sketch what it was. A mind map can enhance a design dramatically. Write every idea you have down and put in on the map. You will be glad you did. Draw line from one idea to another, connecting things you think go together. The pencil and paper method is the best way to do a mind map. It is quick and allows your ideas to flow. Starting with a large piece of paper gives you more rooms for your ideas. An 8”x10” piece of paper might limit your ideas. You want to think big!

Thought this was worth sharing :)

 I was working on a ceramic tea pot and while I was carving out some of it, pieces fell on the pot exactly like this. Pretty cool.

Objectified

Objectified was a movie all about design (like our class). It included people who redesign things to make them more comfortable and functional. Then they send the redesigned product back out into the world to see if what they did will work. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it does not. People hardly ever see when an object has been redesigned. We become so use to something that it is just part of the routine in life. An object becomes "just there." And that is part of the job. Secretly changing an object for the better and having the consumer not notice is a good thing. Any product can be redesigned. Nothing is ever perfectly done. Design is about the future. We want to keep it going. You need only look back when you need to know what did not work. Never look back for something that did work because it has already been done. People want the new and the now. You will design something only to have someone else come along and redesign it. And as designers, we need to accept this fact. Try not to stray from the ten principals of design. They are what make a good designer. Every designer will have designs that will not work. It is better to have 10 designs that do not work than to have no idea. Make the design meaningful. Make the design count.