This took m about 3 hours to finish, but im satisfied with how it came out. Due to my crappy quality brushes, some of the strokes came out a bit shakey, but at least it kept its shade. The white got a bit dirty when i was pasting it on the bristol, but overall, i would say it came out well. For 3 hours, i’m satisfied with the final product.
Narrow (Low Key)
Broad
Here are my collages for Project #3
For the first One, i was making my focus the bell shaped figure, surrounded by a dark frame (disregard the gloss around it, the lighting was not the best in the pictures). As for the second one, i went for variety, although it feels a bit lopsided, but i wanna see what others think i should do before i make major changes to it. does it need more or lesss? I would appriciate some feedback.
After my experience with project number two, i can say my writing skills have developed quite a sum. Although i do feel i could have done some things diffrently in my writing. I noticed i do have a few problems getting off topic in some areas, knowing what the topic should be focused on. I would be on topic in one paragraph, but then soon i would drift off too far into it, I begin to get off topic all together. Another thing that i can see room for improvement is how i word sentences when i talk under a topic. From time to time, i would word sentences to a point where I begin to lose myself and my train of thought. I want my sentences to be able to follow each other in a way that it its both readable and it makes scence. But hopefully, i will learn from my mistakes and be able to carry this knowledge to my other projects, avoiding to make the same mistakes, and to overall improve my writing skills and thought process.
For all the time i have been in New York, I have always restricted to the Bronx, I have been in the Bronx for all of my life, as if i was trapped in a box with no opening, as if the Bronx was all i knew, it’s the one and only New York i know. But that all changed once i was accepted to New York City College of Technology, located in Brooklyn. It all started when i took that one step out of the two train on Borough Hall in Brooklyn. When i came up from the station, i was unfamiliar with the area, but somehow, i still felt at home as if i was still in my New York, seeing all the tall buildings mashed together with busy streets and crowds of people. One of the first thing i took notice of was Columbus park behind the station i got off on. It was just a wide open space with some lavenders surrounding a fountain that seems to not have much water pressure like most fountains, as if it were just leaking from the top and overflowing towards the bottom. Also from time to time, there would be a small market taking place in the center of the park during the afternoon. But the one thing that stood out more than that was the building that also sat in the center of the whole park, the Supreme Court of New York. which would also explain why there were so many people dressed in suites in the area, most likely they were lawyers or just people who work their.
Going up from Columbus, you would get to the pier by Brooklyn Bridge, which would soon become my favorite area of Brooklyn. The Pier was the most relaxing area you could go to in Brooklyn. With the water surrounding the pier, and the view of the statue of liberty from afar and the sun gazing down during the afternoon. its a heavily populated area, full of tourists, not as bad as Time Square, but its still a pretty big number. Despite that, it would never spoil the great view the Pier has to offer. You could see another part of Brooklyn from across the bridge, going into Manhattan i can presume, but looking past the left side from the statue of liberty, it just seems to be a wide landfill that is under construction. Does this mean that they are adding on to the area, or was something being removed or replaced for something better? i guess if i asked around, people would tell me different things about whats happening, but until then, i guess i’m just gonna have to wait and see.
Going back to Columbus park, if you went down towards Fulton, there’s a huge shopping district that goes on for blocks, its bigger than most shopping districts I’ve been to. That’s another thing that I noticed differs when going from one area of Brooklyn to another, is the poverty in the area. some stores in Brooklyn are cheaper than other stores, depending where you went, if you went up towards the Brooklyn Bridge like i mentioned earlier, prepare to pay a pretty penny for most things (Especially Food), since it seems to be a popular tourist area, the prices are rather high. Throughout the streets, you will always see a food cart of some kind. Halal, Hot dogs, Smoothies, you name it, Brooklyn has them. Brooklyn also has to be one of the most cleanest parts of New York I’ve ever seen compared to the rest. Well…..at least some parts of it that is. It still has that musky air of cars mufflers and food carts, combined with some litter of trash and leaves here and there. being in the area for a little over a month now, i have grown to get used to it rather quickly, since it doesn’t feel too much different from the areas that I am used to.
But no matter where i go, each part that i visit has its own charm to it. When it comes to Brooklyn, its charm has to come from within the area and its landmarks, kind of like if Borough Hall is its own Time Square of Manhattan, only less busy and more welcoming. I always Wondered about the Borough Hall building across the street where I get off the train to get to Brooklyn. It always seemed like an old, but important building to me. Who goes in there? What is the building used for? What importance does it hold to the rest of the area? Perhaps one day ill go inside, but until then, it will always be a curiosity in my head filled with all these questions. It reminds me of Colson Whitehead’s essay, “City Limits”. He talks about that everyone has a different interpretation of New York, as if it was their own. the inspiration of his essay combined with my new curiosity of Brooklyn makes me wonder how everyone else saw Brooklyn before i arrived here.
Some buildings like the Borough Hall building and the movie theater i can safely say that they have been there for years. But what about everything else? What buildings have come and gone since then? What was the building by the station before it started become a construction for Duane reads? Whats was added? what was lost? Little things like this I begin to piece together by myself as i walk around Brooklyn, comparing buildings to buildings and the people who surround the area as well. Perhaps the change was for the better, or even for the worse. Some things ill probably never live to know about Brooklyn, but if i know one thing, it’s that the Brooklyn i see today is the Brooklyn i will know. From the Beautiful view of the Pier by the Brooklyn Bridge, To the massive historical buildings near Borough Hall, its something that will always be apart of New York for years to come, especially through the eyes of my New York.
This is a low-key image that i would say is the opposite of the image below as far as how the mood is. Think of being in the room once again, but this time, its at night, where the only light you have is the glow of the moon, thus giving the dim beam of light that comes in the room. Imagine if you came in the room at night and it looks like this, wouldnt you feel a sence of discomfort and unsafety. As if the shadow in the corner was concealing something away from your eye. Or if something was going to come out and attack you suddenly from nowhere.
This is a hi-key image, where the focus comes from the left side where the light is illuminating from. The mood it portrays is asi if your trapped in a blank room, with nothing but one window inside of that room. But all you see through that window is a blank ocean. As if you were helpless and alone, isolated from the rest of the world. the only thing that gives you a sence of comfort is that one window in the room, illuminating most of the darkness thats in the room.
My name is Kevin Ayala, I’m 17 years old and currently studying in City Tech for a major in graphic design an advertising. Ever since I was a child, I was always passionate about drawing, no matter what I did , I would always doodle about small thoughts that would pop into my head. Majority of the time, these thoughts were inspired from playing video games so much, since that would be the one thing I would always do whenever I had free time . Other times, it would be about cartoons I would watch on television. These two sources of entertainment were the main inspirations I had that began my passion for drawing and creativity.
From every game I played, or every cartoon I watched, I would always have a keen eye for the detail of the characters and the creators style of drawing them, since many are unique. Their appearance, art style, and characteristics were all main points I would always consider when I drew something out of the inspiration I got from it. Throughout my time in school, I would always meet new people that would give me even more inspiration or suggestions for my artwork, not only improving my work, but creating a stronger passion for drawing. Before I knew it, I already had my mind set to what I wanted to do in the future as I grew up. I wanted to take my love of drawing, and create a career out of it. I go by a saying i grew quite fond of, “If it’s something you love to do, go for it”
In five to ten years from now, I see myself as a concept designer either for television, game making, or advertising. I want to be able to present my portfolio to someone with confidence, and show them what kind of ideas I have for a project or an idea for an on going one. Just the thought of seeing something that I created in the public eye of millions gets me exited to do what I love.
My profile and avatar shows that drawing and sketching is what I want to do, and how I’m driven to do so. My avatar represents myself, drawn in a sketch, showing that I love to draw, hence the pencils and eraser next to the drawing. I left it uncolored, showing that I’m still incomplete, Although it shows what I’m capable of doing as far as my artistic ability, I still have a lot to learn before I can actually go out there and express myself to businesses and companies. People will see this through my portfolio, as it shows my development throughout my time in City Tech. With these new learned techniques, i can show my future employers that i am ready to work and ready to show what i have to offer to their future operations as a graphic designer.
When it comes to my profile, it shows the past work i have done in my College courses and shows how passionate i am at using my creativity for my assignments, making them as strong as i possibly can. If there is ever something that i know i can do better, i will ask for criticism or opinions. with those idea’s from others that gave me criticism, i revise my work, making it fit the assignment as best as possible, possibly even going above and beyond. I want people to look at my work and know that I’m very serious about what i do and what my employers or professors from me.
For all the time i have been in New York, I have always been going from place to place, starting with the Bronx, which is where i live. I could tell you a lot about where i live, I’m sure you can too where you live. But what about new places that we visit be with a friend or to visit someone. Whatever the reason, this area that your going to is completely foreign to you, how would you feel knowing that your not in your area anymore? most would feel rather scared knowing this, i know i was. It all started when i took that one step out of the two train on Borough Hall in Brooklyn. When i came up from the station, i was unfamiliar with the area, but as a New Yorker, i still felt at home, seeing all the tall buildings mashed together with busy streets. The first thing i took notice of was Columbus park behind the station i got off on. It was just a wide open space with some lavenders surrounding a fountain that seems to not have much water pressure like most fountains, as if it were just leaking from the top and overflowing towards the bottom. Also from time to time, there would be a small market taking place in the center of the park. But the one thing that stood out more than that was the building that also sat in the center of the whole park, the Supreme Court of New York. Now i knew why there were so many people in suites in the area, most likely they were lawyers or just people who work their. Going up from Columbus, you would get to the pier by Brooklyn Bridge, which would soon become my favorite area of Brooklyn. The Pier was the most relaxing area you could go to in Brooklyn. With the water surrounding the pier, and the view of the statue of liberty from afar and the sun gazing down during the afternoon. its a heavily populated area, full of tourists, not as bad as Time Square, but its still a pretty big number. Despite that, it would never spoil the great view the Pier has to offer. Going back to Columbus park, if you went down towards Fulton, there’s a huge shopping district that goes on for blocks, its five times bigger than where i live. another thing that differs about the area compared to my area is the poverty in the area. most stores in Brooklyn are cheaper than most other stores, depending where you went, if you went up towards the Brooklyn Bridge like i mentioned earlier, prepare to pay a pretty penny for most things (Especially Food), since its a popular tourist area, the prices are rather high. Throughout the streets, you will always see a food kart of some kind. Halal, Hotdogs, Smoothies, you name it, Brooklyn has them. Brooklyn also has to be one of the most cleanest parts of New York I’ve ever seen compared to the rest. Well…..at least some parts of it that is. It still has that musky air of cars mufflers and food karts. being in the area for a little over a month now, i have grown to get used to it rather quickly, since it doesn’t feel too much different from the areas that i would usually go to in New York. But no matter where i go, each part that i visit has its own charm to it. When it comes to downtown Brooklyn, its charm has to come from within the area and its landmarks, kind of like if Borough Hall is its own Time Square of Manhattan, only less busy and more welcoming. I always Wondered about the Borough Hall building across the street where I get off the train to get to Brooklyn. It always seemed like an old, but important building to me. Who goes in there? What is the building used for? What importance does it hold to the rest of the area? Perhaps one day ill go inside, but until then, it will always be a curiosity in my head filled with all these questions. It reminds me of Colson Whitehead’s passage in his novel “City Limits”. He talks about that everyone has a different interpretation of New York, as if it was their own. the inspiration of his passage combined with my new curiosity of Brooklyn makes me wonder how everyone else saw Brooklyn before i arrived here. Some buildings like the Borough Hall building and the movie theater i can safely say that they have been there for years. But what about everything else? What buildings have come and gone since then? What was the building by the station before it started become a construction for Duane reads? Whats was added? what was lost? Little things like this I begin to piece together by myself as i walk around Brooklyn, comparing buildings to buildings and the people who surround the area as well. Perhaps the change was for the better, or even for the worse. Some things ill probably never live to know about Brooklyn, but if i know one thing, it’s that the Brooklyn i see today is how I will always see it. From the Beautiful view of the Pier by the Brooklyn Bridge, To the massive historical buildings near Borough Hall, its something that will always be apart of New York for years to come, especially through the eyes of my New York.
Hokum (noun): false or irrelevant material introduced into a speech, essay, etc., in order to arouse interest, excitement, or amusement.
OR
out-and-out nonsense
Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Hokum?s=t
I encountered this word in our readings of “City Limits” by Colson Whitehead in class. The word is first introduced on page two, Paragraph two of the essay, in the first three lines. Whitehead uses this word to explain how people portray or advertise New York is usually never the way that you knew it, thus making the information false or wrong according to your perspective of New York, or in Whiteheads case, “It’s all hokum”. After searching up the definition of hokum, i was able to get a better understanding of how Whitehead used the word in his work, describing how the New York today is wrong compared to how you remembered it.
The OpenLab is an open-source, digital platform designed to support teaching and learning at City Tech (New York City College of Technology), and to promote student and faculty engagement in the intellectual and social life of the college community.
