Week 4: Alphabet Letters Using Straight Lines

Craft: In Adobe Illustrator, we learned how to make certain letters of the alphabet using the pen tool.  We used guides and the rulers to help make the letters proportional to one another.  To make a letter, I started at the capline and would go to the baseline. The guides that were displayed were formatted the same way as the guides for any letter. The lines were all straight, and some letters consisted of more points than others.  The pen tool helped create corner points for each letter. Because of this, the letters all had various paths.  The letters were even filled in with the help of the fill tool. 
Composition: With the help of the fill button, the colors that form the shape help the viewers focus their attention on the letters and how they're composed from straight lines.  The colors exemplify the straight lines that were used to compose the letters. Similar to the last designs, the background is white which helps direct the focus to only the letters and nothing else.  By having a white background, the viewers could clearly distinguish the overall font without distractions.  
Concept: The letters that were created represent a feeling of calmness since the letters are filled in with blue and are all the same height.  The heights might be the same, but the letters aren't tightly compacted.  This makes the letters appear as puzzle pieces because of this design of them.  Also, the letters represent a feeling of simplicity since they don't have hooks attached to them.  They don't look complicated.

Week 3: 5 Different Variations for Each Object

Craft: For this week, I had to make five different variations of each object using the brush tool. I still used Adobe Illustrator and the same line drawings. I went to the Brush Library to preview and choose the different brush styles.  To get to the library,  I clicked on Window at the top, I then clicked on Brushes.  Only a few selections were shown so I clicked on the button containing the three lines in the right corner and chose what design I would use.  There were a multitude of patterns and designs. 
Composition: In our class, we had to choose one of our line drawings and the variations and present them to the class.  The class would say what they thought of each one as soon as they saw the variations of the spray bottles. The majority of the class liked the one on the top left the best.  Some people thought of tic tacs, zebra gum, and candy when they first noticed the spray bottle.  The spray bottle incorporated four different colors: green, red, orange, and yellow.  Those colors together made the spray bottle look as if it was made out of tic tacs due to the shape and size of the design elements.  Since the background is white, the viewers look directly at the spray bottle and can really focus on the different colors.  Also, the viewers focus on how the colors come together to create a meaningful piece.
Concept:  The colors create a warm and bright feeling towards the spray bottle.  Yellow, red, and orange usually correlates to the sun and the variety of shades it displays.  When all three of the colors come together, they make a unison emotion of liveliness and vibrant.  Despite the spray bottle's function, the colors display a whole new meaning to the spray bottle.  Usually we don't think of spray bottles being described as vibrant or bright, but the one brush pattern changed the significance and make the viewers look at the spray bottle in a new perspective.  If I had to chose my favorite variation, I would chose the middle one on the top due to the color shades and their effect.  The colors aren't that bright so they display a laid-back feeling.  They don't overpower the spray bottle because they're soft colors and are arranged very smoothly. 

Week 2: 5 Drawn Objects Using Lines

Craft: This week in Computer Graphics we had to use lines to recreate five objects using Adobe Illustrator.  We had to use either horizontal, vertical, or diagonal lines for one drawing along with the lines being either mechanical or organic (natural). We got to choose what combination we wanted to use for each object as long as the combination was used once.  For the boot, I used the line segment tool to create mechanical vertical lines. When I drew the teapot, I used the paintbrush to make organic vertical lines. The wine bottle contains organic horizontal lines made with the pencil tool.    For the spray bottle, I used the pen tool to make mechanical diagonal lines.   The coffee mug was recreated by the line segment tool and by mechanical horizontal lines.
Composition: Since all of the line drawings have a white background, the background draws the viewers' eyes to the objects. The focus is solely on the line drawings due to the plain background.  The lines help guide the viewers' eyes due to them going in a single direction.  By having the lines all in going in the same direction, it's easier to distinguish the shape and object than if the lines were going in all directions. 
Concept:  While all of the objects are shaped differently due to the different lines, they all employ the idea of the object being whole. The closeness in the lines and how compacted they are help elicit this feeling.  This is especially noticeably in the boot and spray bottle.  Even though the lines vary, the display of them creates an illusion of a real, 3D object. Also, the variety of lines within an object portray the idea of the object having a distinct shape.  The wine bottle and teapot, especially, indicate this idea since the wine bottle lines get narrower near the top.  For the teapot, the handle and tip are made out of tiny lines since they aren't big as the body of it.  The coffee mug lines display a different perspective of a round object that contains a handle.  All the lines with the different lengths allow the viewers to see the objects in a variety of domensions.

Week 1: Intro

Hi!! I'm Marissa Keleher, and I'm currently a freshman here at Saint Xavier.  I'm majoring in Biology and live in Evergreen Park.  I went to Evergreen Park High School and commute to school. I'm involved in many activities here including Pals for Change and Honors Program. Last semester, I took part in the speech competition that was taking place here.  I didn't win, but it was a cool experience to be a part of.   I'm not involved in any sports here, but I participated in track and cross country in high school. 

I took Computer Graphics for the first time in my first semester of my senior year of high school, and I loved it.  I never realized how many tools there are on certain computer programs that enable us to create a piece of artwork. In high school, I learned how to use the Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, and it was fun using the different tools and incorporating them into my work. For our art show, I received a 3rd place award for one of my Computer Graphics designs. Considering that that was my first time taking a Computer Graphics class, I felt pretty proud of myself. I'm excited to be able to take another computer graphics class.  I'm excited to know more about the other programs that we're going to be using.