Roy D. Chapin Jr.-
Be ready when opportunity comes...Luck is the time when preparation and opportunity meet.
Tip #3
Make the most of EVERY opportunity!
Art school is and can me a great opportunity for networking and meeting new people. Meet people in as many different fields as possible. Meet people in Film, Business, Graphic Design, Illustration, Computer Science etc. You never know when you will find someone who can help you on a project or teach you something new that will lead to new growth.
Take advantage of whatever opportunities your school offers. I am going to be applying to a job in the next few days at my schools Mac-based computer lab. For the first few weeks I was in this school I had no clue that this place even existed until one of my friends told me about it. I was relieved to find a room full of not only computers but computers that had the entire CS4 package on them and they were all 17+" iMacs. I had hit the jackpot. That lab offers many assets that will help me besides the availability of computers but they have tablets, MIDI controllers, Scanners, Audio/ Visual equipment even a full recording studio. I have been known to stay for hours after my final class just working on getting used to the various ammenities available through my school. Take advantage of yours as well.
What opportunities do you make a priority to be a part of?
What is it about your art or design school that you take advantage of the most?
Showing posts with label Survival Tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Survival Tips. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
The Courage of an Artist and Survival Tip 2
Okay so it is currently an hour past my usual bed time and the sandman is beating me to death. I am just finishing a project that has taken me an astounding amount of time and it has lead me to an interesting conclusion.
I HATE WIRE. The assignment was quite simple, make your hand out of 12 gauge rebar tie-wire. I started strong using a piece of pipe to mold the fingers and all was good lots of fun. Then it started to become a pain the more I worked. The wire would simply bend too far or not enough and just became an overall pain to work with. My hands are now looking like the hands of a coal miner from the annealment of this medium of Satan and my legs are thanking me for sitting down for the first extended period of time since I began working around 3:00 this afternoon.
So all in all I am proud of the product. From seeing how most everyone else was going about the project I think I have come up with a creative and original solution to the problem proposed. Instead of using the standard contour and gesture lines I decided to use a series of modified spirals and wire braids to form a three-dimensional hand that resembles a mix between a piece of science fiction and horror. Whatever goes down I am proud of my work and that is what art is really all about.
Survival Tip #2:
Be content with your best work.
Joe Namath said,"You learn you can do your best even when its hard, even when you're tired and maybe hurting a little bit. It feels good to show some courage." This is definitely true when it comes to making art. There are few professions that demand so much with so little promised in return. There are no guarantees that our work will be given great reviews, excellent merit from spectators or even, in the worst case, a glimpse at all. It is in these cases were it takes genuine courage to continue to create art. SO never look down on your best work. When we do we only handicap ourselves and slow our progress but when we take in what we have really accomplished then we can move on to bigger, brighter and better things...that hopefully don't involve wire.
I HATE WIRE. The assignment was quite simple, make your hand out of 12 gauge rebar tie-wire. I started strong using a piece of pipe to mold the fingers and all was good lots of fun. Then it started to become a pain the more I worked. The wire would simply bend too far or not enough and just became an overall pain to work with. My hands are now looking like the hands of a coal miner from the annealment of this medium of Satan and my legs are thanking me for sitting down for the first extended period of time since I began working around 3:00 this afternoon.
So all in all I am proud of the product. From seeing how most everyone else was going about the project I think I have come up with a creative and original solution to the problem proposed. Instead of using the standard contour and gesture lines I decided to use a series of modified spirals and wire braids to form a three-dimensional hand that resembles a mix between a piece of science fiction and horror. Whatever goes down I am proud of my work and that is what art is really all about.
Survival Tip #2:
Be content with your best work.
Joe Namath said,"You learn you can do your best even when its hard, even when you're tired and maybe hurting a little bit. It feels good to show some courage." This is definitely true when it comes to making art. There are few professions that demand so much with so little promised in return. There are no guarantees that our work will be given great reviews, excellent merit from spectators or even, in the worst case, a glimpse at all. It is in these cases were it takes genuine courage to continue to create art. SO never look down on your best work. When we do we only handicap ourselves and slow our progress but when we take in what we have really accomplished then we can move on to bigger, brighter and better things...that hopefully don't involve wire.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Survival Tip #1
Ok so I figure Since this is called the Art Student's Survival Guide I might want to start posting some survival tips. Ok so Tip #1:
That's Right. The same thing that your mother told you back in grade school. This is just a small thing that goes into many facets of your art career. I recently moved into my new basement office and set up a desk and general work area for my freelancing business. This allowed me to do a couple of very important things. It allowed me to have an area strictly for art and nothing else. My old desk had been my loyal partner in art second only to the old thread-ball-covered coach in my apartment living room. While the desk was good enough for the occasional project it was small and I frankly can't concentrate when I have to worry about dropping the $175 graphics tablet to its doom every time I reach for a pencil. Organization is the key to comfort.
Another important task that having an organized desk space serves is that I can now remove myself from the hustle and bustle of the chaos around the house. I can now instead of retreating to my room and hoping the door drowns out the thousands of noises vying for my attention. I now walk down the stairs to my desk and crank up the stereo (which has currently been playing the same Flyleaf CD for 3 days). Yes seclusion is a plus to any workspace but quiet seclusion is even better. This lack of chaos is a rare and valable commodity in my house. I am constanly having to look for something or ask around about some news because my family is always moving things. Now my space is my space. If I put down a drawing then I can rest assured that it is going to be there when I return. Organization is key in chaos.
Another way to get organized is to make folders. Yes those manila colored folders that every man, woman and child has seen a million times. I found that it is really very convienant to have each client in a folder. This keeps things organized and allows me to keep track of the progress of each project as I work on it. It also helps me catalogue the work I do for people. If they are a consistant client I have all our history right on file and can pull it out at a moments notice in case any questios or discrepencies occur. Very useful.
So all in all getting organized is the key to a successful workflow and the absolute beginning to any freelancer or art students skill base.
That's Right. The same thing that your mother told you back in grade school. This is just a small thing that goes into many facets of your art career. I recently moved into my new basement office and set up a desk and general work area for my freelancing business. This allowed me to do a couple of very important things. It allowed me to have an area strictly for art and nothing else. My old desk had been my loyal partner in art second only to the old thread-ball-covered coach in my apartment living room. While the desk was good enough for the occasional project it was small and I frankly can't concentrate when I have to worry about dropping the $175 graphics tablet to its doom every time I reach for a pencil. Organization is the key to comfort.
Another important task that having an organized desk space serves is that I can now remove myself from the hustle and bustle of the chaos around the house. I can now instead of retreating to my room and hoping the door drowns out the thousands of noises vying for my attention. I now walk down the stairs to my desk and crank up the stereo (which has currently been playing the same Flyleaf CD for 3 days). Yes seclusion is a plus to any workspace but quiet seclusion is even better. This lack of chaos is a rare and valable commodity in my house. I am constanly having to look for something or ask around about some news because my family is always moving things. Now my space is my space. If I put down a drawing then I can rest assured that it is going to be there when I return. Organization is key in chaos.
Another way to get organized is to make folders. Yes those manila colored folders that every man, woman and child has seen a million times. I found that it is really very convienant to have each client in a folder. This keeps things organized and allows me to keep track of the progress of each project as I work on it. It also helps me catalogue the work I do for people. If they are a consistant client I have all our history right on file and can pull it out at a moments notice in case any questios or discrepencies occur. Very useful.
So all in all getting organized is the key to a successful workflow and the absolute beginning to any freelancer or art students skill base.
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