Since I last posted there has been a significant amount of stuff happening this summer. None like last summer but I opted to of course take classes and stay in Pasadena versus driving/traveling back to Nashville. To refresh, I am taking three classes at AC at Night. Visual Communications, Intermediate Transportation, and Transpor-tainment. It has been a real exercise in personal time management plus prioritization to oversee that all work for all classes gets done ASAP every week-into-weekend so that I am not overwhelming myself last-minute (which I have been prone to do often before) there was no room for errors this summer. I have actually done some 'mind management' in the way of trying to explore what I am willing to learn on a daily basis. Wether that be remaining up to date with current events or reading extensive literature on design and business in the background when my mind just can't be creative. I have been digesting a lot of music this summer too because I felt that the guidelines of summer still applied regardless if i was in class or not. I made sure to listen to music often, play on the weekends when time permitted and maybe even have a little romance mixed in. All of which are (and let me emphasize this) very difficult to do.
Nevertheless I will start with the meat of this by saying I just completed reading a book called 'Car Guys vs. Bean Counters' by Bob Lutz. For those who are unaware of who he is just google him. The book is incredible. I suddenly feel a commonality with him and I. He knows decades of the automotive business more than I but I still feel that a lot of his core values and his type-A personality traits are what I am proud to say have somehow made it to me since my grandfather passed in 2007, when I opted to change directions and go directly to work at a Honda dealer. Things I have learned from then until now have assisted in the molding of a personality that I can only claim is mine. The book, though, highlights the automotive business-particularly GM and his influence from 2001-2010. The highs and lows are what he discusses and the most striking thing that stuck with me was the quote by maximum Bob himself;
"Dont do the right thing the first time. Do the right thing RIGHT the first time. "
I just sat there thinking PREACH IT because that is unbelievably true and I finally had the correct words to attribute to how I did my everyday business back at Honda to today. Never had I before been able to explain why I did things the way I did, when my bosses would ask where I had a good idea for processes. However now (2 years too late) I had it. But that does not mean I can't carry it with me. I hope you do too.
Now other tidbits were new friends that joined the group that I am with that comes to Art Center every day early and stays late. I love the friends I have made and nothing is greater in my life than the networking I have done and the relationships I have made, only a great new group to add to the already amazing set of friends that I have. Hopefully you're one :)
A slight event that happened about a week and a half ago was ( I believe on a Monday) when we received notice that as a collective of student body, we would not be allowed to stay after hours at school (because it is open 24 hours) due to significant messes that were being created by a myriad of factors. From the summer high programs to day program students coming down from hillside to work late, with so many people, messes were inevitable. To receive an official notice though kicking us out (night program mainly) was appalling. I expressed my discontent with this abrupt measure to my friends and to security and no one really had a solid solution or answer as what to do. So I decided to message the persons who were on the letter to get a better clarification into this matter and in all real reality I wanted it resolved as soon as possible. The problem was, the individuals whom I emailed.....were department chairs of the very major I am wanting to graduate with. Luckily enough I approached this is a very calm way and didn't blow up or bitch or whine. I just wanted to inform everyone that Art center at night students are not to blame for this incident, let alone myself or the group I work with (with whom I hound and they hound me if messes need to be cleaned in the rooms which we work). So within one day and a set of email correspondence with the powers that be I had successfully restored the after-hours permission for us. I felt very proud of myself because I opted to take charge in a situation otherwise I would have left alone until the 'until further notice' had been dropped, for all I know could have lasted longer than we all think. Long story short I acted like an adult and was treated like one and it didn't feel too bad! hahaha
I also signed my lease in my apt, to continue for the next three years! woah!
I also DID have a brief and exhaustive chance to go home to nashville and see Mom, Dad and Mamaw. I missed them the most. :'/
Ill make a conscious effort to scan my work the next few weeks to show you my progress.
The rest just needs to be played out in pictures so you'll see :)
Love ya
Follow me on my journey that started with just a dream. From childhood, I have wanted to be a car designer. Transplanted from Tennessee, I feel like I am in a whole different world. Although completed, you can read through past posts to see what it was like in the post-2008 market crash of being in survival mode to pursue a career that interested me. Follow along to see my story of surviving Art Center College of Design.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
Am I Crazy?
I almost named this post 'trimming is the hardest' but I thought it would have invoked some sort of thought pertaining to personal hygiene....
Anyway so Spring term ended and I had a break (3 weeks) to play and be stupid and instead I wound down my PCC classes to gear up for the summer, strictly Art Center at night. The issue with that being PCC and Art Center have about a month of class difference between May and June. So if I wanted to continue with PCC I would have had to put off Art Center until Mid June, whereas the ACN classes started up May 16th. I made the decision to finish the car project at PCC the week before Summer term started and then had a good 5 day break where I could sneak home and I did. It was good to see my parents, grandmother, and friends. I even tried to work for 4 days! I had the opportunity to drive the 2012 Civic down to Birmingham, AL. This being a couple of weeks following the Tornadoes in Tuscaloosa. Man it was crazy to see the here-and-there damage as I made my way south. I had to keep the windows closed because of the residual dust burning my eyes. Cicadas were out too, making their triumphant return to meeting the fronts of windshields everywhere in the south (eyeroll).
So on to the meat and potatoes, I am taking VisCom, Intermediate Transportation Design, and Transpor-tainment. Did that last one catch you? Yeah me too-Its a mix of Transportation Design and Entertainment Design. Without sugar coating it, its basically taking what the designers of video games do, and giving them a car project! I am very very eager about that, however its only an 8 week course so it wont start until the end of June.
Wait where did the month of May go?!?
The only lasting conflict that has been battling me has been time and time with friends. I feel the need to tell everyone to just chill and I will see them when I see them but honest to God I love working at school. I love socializing at school and leaving to get dinner and coming back. It must bee the productive feeling I get but I cant apologize for the work I feel has been good that I put up. I also WILL say that my classes so far look like an exciting challenge. I am wanting to dedicate myself to doing the best of my abilities and so far, I havent let myself down this year at all. Im proud to at least feel like I am growing up and maturing as this process moves forward. I am getting more nervous though about portfolio development. I want to ask all the right people for help in structuring it but I dont know how to ask without seeming like I just want to copy, which I dont want to do at all. I just want to be able to hit on all the key points and stand out in all the good areas and get accepted and move forward quickly. A couple of my friends were accepted into the day program for the summer and its fun to see them put through the ringer but makes me understandably nervous as all hell when my number finally gets called. Soon I hope.
Allow me to dump pictures!
Anyway so Spring term ended and I had a break (3 weeks) to play and be stupid and instead I wound down my PCC classes to gear up for the summer, strictly Art Center at night. The issue with that being PCC and Art Center have about a month of class difference between May and June. So if I wanted to continue with PCC I would have had to put off Art Center until Mid June, whereas the ACN classes started up May 16th. I made the decision to finish the car project at PCC the week before Summer term started and then had a good 5 day break where I could sneak home and I did. It was good to see my parents, grandmother, and friends. I even tried to work for 4 days! I had the opportunity to drive the 2012 Civic down to Birmingham, AL. This being a couple of weeks following the Tornadoes in Tuscaloosa. Man it was crazy to see the here-and-there damage as I made my way south. I had to keep the windows closed because of the residual dust burning my eyes. Cicadas were out too, making their triumphant return to meeting the fronts of windshields everywhere in the south (eyeroll).
So on to the meat and potatoes, I am taking VisCom, Intermediate Transportation Design, and Transpor-tainment. Did that last one catch you? Yeah me too-Its a mix of Transportation Design and Entertainment Design. Without sugar coating it, its basically taking what the designers of video games do, and giving them a car project! I am very very eager about that, however its only an 8 week course so it wont start until the end of June.
Wait where did the month of May go?!?
The only lasting conflict that has been battling me has been time and time with friends. I feel the need to tell everyone to just chill and I will see them when I see them but honest to God I love working at school. I love socializing at school and leaving to get dinner and coming back. It must bee the productive feeling I get but I cant apologize for the work I feel has been good that I put up. I also WILL say that my classes so far look like an exciting challenge. I am wanting to dedicate myself to doing the best of my abilities and so far, I havent let myself down this year at all. Im proud to at least feel like I am growing up and maturing as this process moves forward. I am getting more nervous though about portfolio development. I want to ask all the right people for help in structuring it but I dont know how to ask without seeming like I just want to copy, which I dont want to do at all. I just want to be able to hit on all the key points and stand out in all the good areas and get accepted and move forward quickly. A couple of my friends were accepted into the day program for the summer and its fun to see them put through the ringer but makes me understandably nervous as all hell when my number finally gets called. Soon I hope.
Allow me to dump pictures!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Wednesday.
So to catch you up, here is what is going on lately. In the time that I have started ACN classes I have also begun doing more work at school as opposed to home. Why? I feel like I am able to get more accomplished when its on-site. I tend to decompress when I get home and want to unwind. The negative effects that has had have to be noted too, though. I have become messy! I started doing a hell of a lot more work at school so my time spent at home has become less and less. What started as 6 hours a day has turned into 12+ hours a day at school with breaks sprinkled here and there for dinner and the occasional conversations with others but I basically leave school-come home-shower-sleep-leave for school. Its a process that winners are made of I guess. I need to clean! Haha
Today is the last day at PCC before I have spring break here. Two classes left at ACN before I go on that almost-month long break 'til summer term.
I have 3 projects that I am currently working on, a How-to of sorts for my Adv. Rendering and two car projects that I am working on in the other two classes. Before, whenever I drew cars, I felt embarrassed or superiorly self-concious about drawing cars in front of others or them seeing what I was working on. Mainly because I surround myself with incredible talents that are, what feels like, miles ahead of me. However with the two car projects I am attacking all at once I can feel my confidence growing and my talent too. I am enthralled with the process of properly developing the form of a vehicle of sorts and attempting to forsee what a future within vehicles would be like. There is such a surge of technology out there that attempting to fit it within a car isnt actually too far out of the equation.
A couple new concepts have come out too, the Lexus LF-Gh, the Audi Q3 and the BMW M5 Concept.
I want to address just a couple things about each.
The Lexus: Looks like a bad day. I dont like it I think its unfinished and decidedly un-lexus like. You might scoff and say that it could be the new design language Lexus is trying...well tell them to stop.
The Audi: PLEASE PLEASE tell me this is a joke. If I wanted a jacked up A3 with no more cargo space than the car and the slightest touch of agility, couldn't I just ask for an A3 Allroad?
The BMW M5: I beg and beg and beg for BMW to just look at the M5 line for the past 20 years and take a long hard look at where their 5 series and subsequent M brand is going. Is greater appeal sacrificing the M lineage or am I making this up? When people say AMG or even Audi S-line, you distinctively know that its business and speed. When I think of the new M5 and whatever it'll do, Im scared it is going to be a heavy car with a big engine....didnt GM try that?
I also went to a meet and greet/ discussion with the famous Syd Mead. He is quite possibly the most incredible artist I have met. I bought his book on the spot and he signed it. PLEASE take the time to research him if you have not.
Who is ready for Summer?!
Today is the last day at PCC before I have spring break here. Two classes left at ACN before I go on that almost-month long break 'til summer term.
I have 3 projects that I am currently working on, a How-to of sorts for my Adv. Rendering and two car projects that I am working on in the other two classes. Before, whenever I drew cars, I felt embarrassed or superiorly self-concious about drawing cars in front of others or them seeing what I was working on. Mainly because I surround myself with incredible talents that are, what feels like, miles ahead of me. However with the two car projects I am attacking all at once I can feel my confidence growing and my talent too. I am enthralled with the process of properly developing the form of a vehicle of sorts and attempting to forsee what a future within vehicles would be like. There is such a surge of technology out there that attempting to fit it within a car isnt actually too far out of the equation.
A couple new concepts have come out too, the Lexus LF-Gh, the Audi Q3 and the BMW M5 Concept.
I want to address just a couple things about each.
The Lexus: Looks like a bad day. I dont like it I think its unfinished and decidedly un-lexus like. You might scoff and say that it could be the new design language Lexus is trying...well tell them to stop.
The Audi: PLEASE PLEASE tell me this is a joke. If I wanted a jacked up A3 with no more cargo space than the car and the slightest touch of agility, couldn't I just ask for an A3 Allroad?
The BMW M5: I beg and beg and beg for BMW to just look at the M5 line for the past 20 years and take a long hard look at where their 5 series and subsequent M brand is going. Is greater appeal sacrificing the M lineage or am I making this up? When people say AMG or even Audi S-line, you distinctively know that its business and speed. When I think of the new M5 and whatever it'll do, Im scared it is going to be a heavy car with a big engine....didnt GM try that?
I also went to a meet and greet/ discussion with the famous Syd Mead. He is quite possibly the most incredible artist I have met. I bought his book on the spot and he signed it. PLEASE take the time to research him if you have not.
Who is ready for Summer?!
Monday, April 11, 2011
Soaking in the moment.
I just signed up for Summer term Art Center at Night.
Gonna get my portfolio together tomorrow to submit for scholarship info!!
wish me luck :)
In The mean time, enjoy some pictures my best friend and I took up and around Pasadena in the middle of the night. Should give you an idea of what artists do at night when they arent drawing :)
Oh and the first picture of me is now up, because as an designer-I have to get my face out there.
Work from these past few weeks going up soon!
Gonna get my portfolio together tomorrow to submit for scholarship info!!
wish me luck :)
In The mean time, enjoy some pictures my best friend and I took up and around Pasadena in the middle of the night. Should give you an idea of what artists do at night when they arent drawing :)
Oh and the first picture of me is now up, because as an designer-I have to get my face out there.
Work from these past few weeks going up soon!
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