Mobile devices are currently in the hands of nearly half the world's population and these devices are giving us access to all types of information. The value of this information depends on our ability to visualize it, to use it.
Our ability to use the information we get from our mobile devices is the focus of my doctoral research. Through this blog I will explore the industry trends in mobile device hardware and software to identify best and worst practices in information visualization.
I’m not sure if, in order to mimic Warhol’s style, I have to first copy it. Here is my plan.
I’ll start by working in Photoshop and copy all the design elements from one of the Kiku silkscreens. Then I will try playing around with modifications to come up with my own style that is influenced by Warhol’s.
Pictures will be coming soon.
After some thought, and conversion with the Skill Acquisition instructor, I’ve decided to see if I can mimic the style of 1 or 2 famous silkscreen artists. I had originally thought I would try to learn their technique as well but since at least one of my muses (Warhol) is dead and there is that huge difference in technique effort, I’ll stick to mimicking artistic style.
I will be recruiting the two silkscreen artists I mentioned in my last post to help me develop a metric for measuring my progress in acquiring the skill of mimicking a particular style.
The first step will be to come up with original artwork. To do that I’ve gone on a search for images of Andy Warhol silkscreens. It should be noted that I got Warhol’s name from an art history professor and I had no idea Warhol did silkscreening! But not only did he do silkscreening he did GORGEOUS silkscreen art. A Google search yielded instant reward.
Andy Warhol was commissioned to do an exhibit for the Gendai Hanga Center in Tokyo in 1982. Below are pictures from the Kiku exhibit:
I don’t know if choosing different flora would be considered mimicking or copying. But, since I already picked the Baobabs from The Little Prince, I will try to mimic Warhol’s style with that image.
My next step is to take a closer look at these images and see if I can gleen what the process will be to mimic them. I will also do some reading about Andy Warhol, which means a trip to the library. And, finally, since I intend to mimic and not copy, I’ll need to think about what unique elements I can add.
Really? January 26th?! I thought my last post was just a few days ago. It must be the graduate school vacuum.
I’m discovering a new skill: how to develop a skill acquisition program when your skill is “seemingly” non-complex. I put seemingly in quotes because the skill of silkscreening depends on materials and techniques. Let me explain.
My local sports-apparel silkscreen guy, with whom I arranged to work to acquire my skill, showed me his materials and technique and it is decidedly a simple task. He doesn’t use screens, in the traditional sense of the word; he burns his artwork, which is simply printed on a laser printer on white paper, onto a sheet of treated material using a heat box that has a bright light in it. It looks very much like a photocopier except the light doesn’t move across the image. This process takes less than 2 minutes. Then the treated material, which reminds me of the window cling I have in the rear window of my car, is clipped onto a frame and, viola, a screen. Start to finish, 4 minutes – tops. From there it is a quick glop, squeegee, and lift to an imprinted shirt. The ink he uses stays wet for such a long time (someone told me months!) that there is no need to be fast or efficient about the squeegee step. The longest part of the process is putting the shirt on the board, squaring it up, and smoothing it out.
Conversely, two silkscreen artists recently emailed me and told me that they use water-based inks that can dry “in the screen in a number of seconds.” So “it is a really labor intensive process to get a clean, clear print.” I’ll be getting some video of their process to compare to my local guy’s. To be honest, even if I could learn the artists’ technique, I’m not sure I would want to. At least not in the context of something I’ll likely only use during this semester.
This technique variance, and my preference to stick with the less stringent technique, leaves me with a dilemma. How do I measure the acquisition of a skill that is so simple?
I bought some small brushes and picked out the smallest one. This was perfect! The entire image took just under 2 hours.
I would have been thrilled with this progress but then I saw how my local professional silkscreener makes his screens, which takes 2 minutes. So, I won’t be pursuing any more Mod Podge painting. I still have to run silk screen ink through my home-made screen and see how it works. That will be later this week.
Starting next week, I’ll be “working” part time for my silkscreener. He and I will sit down and come up with a performance metric at that time.
I went to Hobby Lobby and found a PLASTIC embroidery hoop, which means no need to tape the frame.
Since I decided to go with the craft technique first, I purchased Mod Podge to paint the negative space. OMG, this is clearly not a technique to use if you want to achieve a high level of detail. I knew I would need some pretty small brushes to create the details but because I couldn’t find any I opted to just use the 1/2″ brush I got at the dollar store. This brush was WAY too big to use for anything but the largest areas, of which there are very few. So, the frame is sitting on the kitchen table hanging out until tomorrow when I will go in search of tiny paint brushes.
I learned that tracing the design onto the screen (with pencil) is super easy. Too easy to bother developing a metric for measuring my skill development. Painting with the Mod Podge is pretty straightforward but definitely requires having the right tools for the job; i.e. the small paintbrushes are critical. I think that painting the design with Mod Podge could be the hardest way to get a design onto a screen so I’m going to develop a metric for measuring the level of detail I can achieve on the screen. My first graphic, the Baobabs from The Little Prince, has a ton of detail that could be incorporated into a screen so it is a happy accident that I picked it because it can show the development of my skill of “drawing” with Mod Podge.
OK, maybe I need to choose a different picture! This might be too much detail for my first project.
Here is the design I will be trying to copy onto the “screen.”
I purposely removed the stars and the Prince. And I doubt I’ll have all the small detail in the trunks. Wish me luck!
I’ve flipped through both of my copies of, “The Little Prince,” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and it appears that I’m going to have to get creative with the positive- and negative-space choices. This initial challenge is because I will only be screening in a single color and it is the negative-space that gives a single colored design its details.
My next steps are to:
* My ability to paint the Mod Podge into the negative spaces will largely determine the level of detail I can achieve with the image. This is a much harder technique for achieving detail than some of the more advanced techniques that allow the use of computer-printed images. So there is a trade-off between various elements of the process that require different levels and kinds of skill.
As I wrote that last sentence, I realized that silk screening requires multiple different skills. It should be interesting to explore the nature of multiple skills necessary to complete a task/job. I have tons of questions!
I realize many of these questions are outside the scope of this class but I thought I’d put them down since they are in my head.
I’ve decided to start with craftgrrl’s tutorial, which can be found at http://community.livejournal.com/craftgrrl/3674467.html
During a quick trip to Goodwill I did not find any embroidery hoops. I did, however, find a black picture frame and a sheer curtain panel for about 4 bucks. I took the picture out of the frame and discovered that it has a routered edge, which was unexpected. I don’t think that this will make any difference but I’ll keep you posted. The sheer curtain has a couple stains and a funky smell so I’ve thrown it in the wash. On the plus side, the curtain is a good sized panel so I should be able to use it for several screens.
I will continue to look for embroidery hoops just so I can check out whether the frame makes any difference in the crafty technique. Next I need to head to Hobby Lobby to get the Mod Podge and silk screen ink. Several other tutorials suggested I get some tape to protect the frame from warping and to block the outer edges of the screen so I’ll pick that up too. I’m going to hold off on buying any tulle because I think there are enough steps to figure out in the beginning. After my first few screens I’ll go in search of tulle and nylons.
I haven’t picked a design yet but since my favorite book is, ‘The Little Prince,’ I’ll probably take a picture from it.
I intend to develop the metrics for measuring my performance after I go through the process a couple times specifically because I have no idea what I’m doing. I’ve started looking up art professors who teach silk screening to see if any of them can help me develop the metric and offer their feedback on my development.
Twenty-five percent of my grade for this class is based on a journal in which I document my process and progress in acquiring a skill. It seems appropriate that the first entry should be an announcement of the skill I intend to learn: silk screening t-shirts.
There are a plethora of websites that offer tutorials! Since I am not required to take a class, I have begun perusing the tutorials. It appears that there are three main silk screening techniques, ranging from crafty to commercial. All three techniques, however, use the same method for the artwork; i.e. create the design such that the negative space represents where you don’t want the ink.
Crafty … This technique involves: a home-made screen using embroidery hoops and sheer curtain or tulle; Mod Podge for blocking the negative space, screen printing ink, and cheap paint brushes to apply the Mod Podge and screen printing ink to the screen. This technique is usually done with artwork that involves just one color.
Casual … This technique comes closer to the commercial process but is usually done with purchased products that make some of the trickier elements a non-issue. For example, you can purchase pre-made silk screen frames with a design already on them. Or you can purchase blank frames which are square or rectangular frames with silk screen material having varying weave densities to accommodate varying levels of design intricacy. These pre-made screens can be ordered with a chemical called emulsion which must be exposed to light to “burn” your artwork into the chemical. But I am getting ahead of myself. Suffice it to say that at the casual level you can buy your silk screening materials such that you can put as much or as little of your own skill into the process as your desire and budget allows. Here is where the artwork starts having two or (rarely) three colors.
Commercial … This technique is what the retail shops use. It is replete with expensive equipment and an entire workshop designed to accommodate the high volume production of silk screened t-shirts. Artwork in these shops utilize full four-color designs.
For the purposes of this class, and given my limited time and financial resources, I’ll start with the crafty technique and explore its range and limitations. Then, I’ll progress as far through the casual technique as my budget will allow.
My next entry will be the details of the metric I am developing to assess my performance.
Oh, and fyi, I will be spending 3-5 hours per week practicing my skill so I should have lots of good, bad, and ugly experiences to report! I will be keeping my digital camera handy and may even bust out my camcorder.
My verdict on Mahoney’s description of the iPhone Facebook app … I concur. Visually elegant, intuitive interface that doesn’t require the user to “think” about how to use it.
The reason the app works for me when the browser version failed so miserably is because each feature is isolated on its own view (in iPhone parlance). I will admit, however, that this separation of features works specifically because of the visual affordance of the mobile device. In other words, because of the small screen the app has to organize its content in smaller chunks. And while the browser version does not put all its information on one screen, it has too much.