For this assignment, I was inspired by the game over screens when you fail a game. At first It seems you have hit a stopping point but then you look down and see try again but and you find a new way. Things aren’t over till you give up. Max has hit dead ends all her life, but she knows that It’s only over when she stops fighting. So, until then she will punch through firewalls and bodies. Photos and edit done by me. I made this using a software called Picarts using black boxes to fill in the computer screen and finding a font that fit. Took a but to maneuver it properly though.
I decided to visualize max through a site called Picrew. Artist ne_yolk. With that and the trading card creator it was easy to bring Max to life and flesh her out a bit more. Dirty brown hair, deep dark circle, and unhealthy pale skin due to all the smog cover and being inside. My thought process was of her getting caught eating sugar to keep herself up after not sleeping all night.
Images and edits by me, the image is off certain day on campus that I saw a rabbit and thought it was stunning so naturally I snapped a photo. I try to preserve small moments if I can. This was back last semester when I walked past for work and the light was hitting perfectly, I couldn’t help myself.
This assignment was both simple and challenging for me. I have a hard time deleting photos, so it took me a while to choose a favorite. Honestly, it’s tough to pick just one, but I’d say this is probably one of my top photos. I absolutely adore my cat, and she has this funny habit of sleeping with her mouth open with her tongue out, which I find incredibly cute. On this particular day, she was napping like that while keeping an eye on the family in the kitchen. I decided to add a little hair accessory to her body to keep her warm, and it made the moment even sweeter. I love this picture because it captures her personality perfectly plus, it’s rare for me to get such a good photo since she’s always on the move!
For this assignment I used my iPhone cameras to capture this photograph
This dream house is a newer house that is updated with newer electronics and appliances. This house also provides a constant source of creativity due its abstract nature. It is also in a city that is known for its creativity.
This design assignment is from the app that I downloaded to destress and color it came out better than expected. This is a very bright and colorful Japanese style building. Even though I wasn’t allowed to select the colors myself the color palette they gave me was very easy to use and allowed me to actually relax and complete this assignment.
When picking an assignment, I try to pick something feasible that speaks to me. Like my mother, I am long winded. I can talk about anything for any amount of time if I’m allowed to, so this blog thing has really opened up an outlet for me. So, a captive audience is really my thing.
And so is music! It bothers me when people say things like “I feel things deeper than other people” or “I have a really strong connection to music”. Everyone feels things deeply! Everyone has a really strong connection to music! I think assuming that something is more personal to you or that you understand a general human experience on a deeper level than others perpetuates an idea that our uniqueness is what separates us and not what provides a greater ability to diversify human experience. But now I’m rambling about things that no one is looking to read in a blog post about a song.
The song I chose comes from my 7 hour playlist of songs that I feel in my chest when I listen to them, I could really choose any song on this playlist and talk for a long time about the way that it makes me feel, but the song I chose is Pilot with a Fear of Heights by Felicity.
Felicity, for her 2018 single, Pilot with a Fear of Heights
The first verse she sings about trying to leave a former relationship and its memories behind, hoping they’ll turn into ghosts. She is afraid of someone that she can’t stop thinking about, someone she loves. The first verse is very nice, but it’s the clapping indicating that the chorus is beginning (at exactly 00:45, if you’re wondering) that makes me feel like things are really getting good.
I’ve been thinking ’bout you all night Like a pilot with a fear of heights You got me thinking like ooh, ooh
Singing about a pilot with a fear of heights as a metaphor for someone that you’ve been with and can’t stop reliving the memory of? I just remember hearing that and thinking it was so brilliant. To be honest, I hadn’t really heard the saying about a pilot with a fear of heights before this song, which made the saying especially revolutionary. The line you got me thinking like ooh, ooh may not be particularly unique, but it’s the way that she sings it that really hammers in the feeling. It makes me feel understood on a deeper level.
I’ve been thinking ’bout you all night Like a tiger that’s afraid to bite You got me thinking like ooh, ooh
It’s ironic, isn’t it? The tiger can’t survive without catching and killing (or, biting) its prey. The pilot can’t work without flying an airplane in the sky, but it’s terrifying! And she can’t be happy without a relationship which is full of turmoil. Sometimes when I hear this song I feel like a pilot with a fear of heights myself. I myself have a fear of heights, except I just can’t help but look down. It’s the adrenaline rush, I guess. I would definitely say this song gives me an adrenaline rush.
This is so unnatural That we’re on this level ‘Cause my heart’s surrendering For this new beginning
This verse feels so fresh and wild. It’s really important to hear her vocals in this to really capture the feeling the song gives you. Of course, the audience for this song is probably aimed towards young women and teenage girls, so those in a separate demographic from me may not enjoy it as I do, but it effervescently brings you to the feeling of a new relationship.
I’ve been thinking ’bout you all night Like a fire that’s afraid to light
In the second and final chorus Felicity compares herself to that of a fire which is afraid to light. Jumping into a new situation, whether it be a relationship, job, activity, etc. can be very nerve wracking, but it is that very thing that will bring you joy and life. It is the very thing that brings you to your destiny.
This week I chose a visual, a design, and a written assignment from the weekly assignment bank. I will also introduce my new course character, add some of my weekly adventures from the daily creates with my post and replies, and then give a brief summary of some of the new things that I learned this week.
I can feel and smell the seasons through the pictures!!!
The first assignment I chose was to make a visual collage of the 4 seasons: Winter, Fall, Summer, and Spring. I was drawn to this assignment because I absolutely LOVE the transition of all 4 seasons, and pictures of nature always amaze me. I wanted to use this assignment to start getting used to creating work that incorporates our class themes (Cyber punk and tech noir). I created the two collages using Canva. They are posted below in the order that I will write about them. Hopefully, you all will be able to tell the difference by their appearance!
First, I started searching for pictures of the four seasons that appeared to be normal or with no theme. I selected pictures that I felt we would see in real life. Or when we think of these seasons a picture like this will immediately pop into our heads. I then added them to my collage board and kept their original rectangular shapes and used no filters or editing tools to alter their appearance. Seasons are in this order for the first collage: Spring, summer, fall, and winter.
For the second collage, I chose another batch of seasonal photos that tended to have darker lighting with more intensified colors and are a little animated. For example, a themed photo I chose for the summer season has an animated human figure sitting at the beach. I intended for this picture to have some tech noir vibes to it with notes of cyber punk, while still representing a seasonal picture in my collage. That was really the process for all of the ones that I chose. I added the themed seasons in no correct order, I curved the edges of the pictures, and I added a little saturation to the pictures to make them look a bit more edgy. All in all, I wanted to show our seasonal reality versus a fun imaginative seasonal world with cyber punk and tech noir vibes. I hope you all can see my vision through these two collages!
For the second assignment, I decided to design a Destination Poster using Canva. My destination is of an imaginary place called Dooms-Dale Land that takes place in the heart of Cyber-Rome, Italy. Traveling to Italy has always been a dream of mine, so that’s why Italy was the inspiration for the setting of this technologically doomed place. I chose a few different pictures to put into this poster because I couldn’t choose just one of them. I researched cyberpunk/tech noir Italy, and these pictures popped up. I thought they were absolutely awesome and had to include them all. I cropped the pictures in a way that I could fit them all on the poster. Other than that, that is the only editing that was done to the pictures.
I used a multicolored background color that you can find on Canva using the linear gradient codes #8c52ff & #ff914d. This is the purple/pink/orange multicolored colors on the poster. I chose these colors because they looked appropriate for the setting. In most of the pictures, they have these colors incorporated in them. I used a “vintage” font with a hollow effect on the text. You can see the letters are slightly hollowed out. I chose this font/effect because I felt like it matched the vibe of the images. I looked through probably at least 15-20 font styles and I loved this one. I clicked on the hollow effect one time, and I didn’t even look for any other effects because I knew this one was it. Lastly, I finalized what I was going to say on my poster. At first, I kept it simple, and I wrote “Welcome to Dooms-Dale Land”, that name was a little random, but I felt like it went with the tech noir and cyber punk themes. Then I added the “Located in the heart of Cyber-Rome, Italy!” part. I thought it would be fun and on track with the theme to add Cyber-Rome, Italy instead of just saying located in Italy. Then I figured, why not add something nice at the end, in hopes to add suspense or something of the like. “We hope you enjoy your stay :)”. It’s almost the same effect as the creepy/scary chucky doll saying “you wanna play?”. Because who is “we” and from looking at the pictures, enjoying your stay may not be what will happen if you travel here. There seems to be a lot of technological warfare happening in these images.
For my last assignment, I chose to do a Self-Wellness Check. Personal wellness is very important to me, and I think it is essential to occasionally do self-check ins to see where I’m at, what I’m thinking, and why I’m thinking it. Below are the questions that were asked in this assignment. I answered them as myself and this assignment was not themed like the other 2. Above I created a little poster to go along with the written assignment. I created it on canvas. I found a picture that I felt like represented self-wellness, and I added it and expanded it to the full size of the poster (11 x 17). Then I added a little text box below that says “Self care. Self love. Self-Health.” Below is the Q&A panel, questions first and then answers are below it with a bullet point.
What worries me most about the future?
I worry about what the world will turn in to. I’m worried that all my hard work (College, internship, jobs.) will only get my head above water, and I’ll never truly become stable to where I can enjoy a comfortable and a financially stress-free life that I create for myself. I fear that I will finish college and get a well-paying job but then I still can’t get ahead. I want to be able to have the work life balance and not have to work to live like I have seen other family members have to do.
What am I doing about the things that matter most in my life?
I am nurturing and watering the things that matter most in my life so they can continue grow. I care the most about my education, wellbeing, my partner, my family, my friends, and my community. I study and use my resources to do well in school. I nurture and respect my relationships with my partner, family, friends, and in my community. The hardest thing to do out of all of these sometimes, is to be nice and kind to myself and take care of my wellbeing. Although I do my best!
What do I want most in life?
I want stability, great health, to be well education, enjoy the work I do, and to live a life that I love. I’d love to own a home. I want a garden to grow fruits and vegetables. I also want to grow flowers.
When did I last push the boundaries of my comfort zone?
This is a great question. I’m unsure. I feel like the last time I truly pushed the boundaries of my comfort zone was when I switched jobs. I had been waitressing for 7-8 years and I QUIT! Shortly after I found an internship opportunity that has been life changing. Now to think about it. I want to push my boundaries of comfort again very soon!
What goals do I need to have to get where I want to be?
My goals:
Complete my last semester at UMW, graduate this May 25′, and apply for a permanent position at my internship.
I want to start working out again or taking yoga classes. Something to get me more active and stimulated.
Start saving money. Once I graduate college in May, I’ll have NO student debt. I paid all of it off while attending college. So, this will give me the opportunity to start actually saving the money that I make. I don’t have a specific savings goal yet.
Apply to attend graduates’ school to achieve my Masters. If I get offered the position at my internship, they will FULLY pay for me to get my masters. Then I’ll get another raise.
Be open to moving out of my apartment. I’m scared to move because I’m comfortable here. I feel safe and secure because I know I can afford it because it is cheap/cheaper than anywhere else I’ve seen in the current market. But I want to keep an open mind about moving or relocating. I don’t want to be scared to make a move if it will benefit me.
Are you ready?! Click below to meet her. She doesn’t like waiting.
Name: Sapphria Mae
Archetype: Femme Fatale
Date of Birth: September 16th, 2073
Place of Birth: Somewhere in Greece
Occupation: Self-reliant entrepreneur/Slayer
Marital Status: Single, of course
Physical Description: Sapphria Mae has dirty blonde long hair. She wears down most times or up in a clean bun. Green eyes, long eye lashes, and a stunning face. About 5’4 and 170 pounds. Her dress style changes for the occasion. She loves wearing tight dresses with heels or dress slacks with a button up t-shirt with a blazer and dress shoes. But don’t get it twisted; She has a strong sneaker game too! She always wears jewelry, Sapphires are her favorite BUT diamonds are a girl’s best friend, so they say. Red lip stick looks good on her of course but she’d rather wear a vibrant purple because it really brings out her green eyes.
Bio: “When I’m good, I’m very good, but when I’m bad, I’m better” (Inspired by Mae West)
Favorite Food: Mangos, apples, yogurt, French fries, and salmon with mashed potatoes and vegetables.
Favorite Drink: Water, Ouzo, and fresh squeezed juices.
Favorite color: Doesn’t have one
Favorite book: Women talk “Family, Love, Sex” MONEY, Edited by Rebecca Walker
Favorite movie: Doesn’t have one. Her life is a movie.
Favorite Possession: Her cigarettes, and her weapon of the day. It varies.
This week was the start of my Daily Creates #ds106 #DailyCreates
First of all, I have 3 followers already!!! How exciting?!
For the first DC #tdc4754 (Daily Create) I sent in my secret spy weapon. Which was a picture of a watch, I’ll repost the picture below. I got my inspiration from James Bond, and many other agents. In my caption I said, “Every agent needs a watch!”
My second DC #tdc4755, I sent in captcha humor/sarcasm. On canvas, I created a collage with about 8 different humorous memes or images that I found on the internet. I added them into the collage, and I cropped and edited the memes/images, so they fit in square or rectangular form on the page, almost how a normal captcha would look like. Then I added a text box and posted a caption on the collage that said, “Select all squares with captcha humor”. Image below:
Third DC, #tdc4756 We were supposed to make some kind of art about unexpected coincidences. I created a blank canvas on Canva and found a meme about the coincidence of eating Pie on Pi Day. I also added a caption: “The pie also cost $3.14… Wicked!! A coincidence, I think NOT!” Image posted below:
The last DC for this week! #tdc4760 Create an emoji poem. I found a meme emoji poem that I had to share. It had a bunch of waves, ice cubes, whales, dolphins, boats, and one ship; At the very top right corner it says, “Jack No”. I love the titanic and I thought this was pretty creative way to represent that movie/story. I replied to myself on my post and wrote “Titanic Emoji Poem” just to clarify what the empji poem was about.
Image posted below:
Lastly, each day for our Daily Creates I favorited ones that I was able to see. Everyone else in my class did a great job this week! I made one reply to another student that said “This is awesome! Nice post rylie!” I’m still getting the hang of using these platforms. Next week I plan to make more comments and replies to other classmates.
Dr. Oblivion; Film Review with The Postman
The Terminator
Last week I watched the film The Terminator. From the previous readings, I had already known that some themes of this film were going to be tech noir and cyberpunk. I asked Dr. Oblivion, “What other themes besides tech noir and cyber punk were in the move The Terminator?” His response gave me a deeper insight on some of the deeper themes that I had overlooked. Of course, AI, dystopia, fate/destiny, and time travel are all themes that I had caught onto. But the idea of humanity and empathy, what it means to be human, and the idea that certain events are meant to happen and with changing them creates another set of problems. Then I asked Dr. Oblivion, “What does it mean to be human?” He replied that being human means that we feel emotions, have our own thoughts, we are conscious and aware of ourselves and our surroundings. Humans can also create things that don’t already exist. I had never really thought about what it means to be human.
In Chapter 1 of the Towards Technopoly: The Judgement of Thamus, ““Every technology is both a burden and a blessing”, “therefore, whatever our tendency — to praise or to curse — we should avoid becoming “one-eyed prophets.”” It makes sense that One-eyed prophets are not to be seen clearly. There are many external factors that cannot be accounted for. For example, the behaviors of people are most times unpredictable. We can’t account for the actions of other people because you cannot ever be certain of it. This also ties into the Statement of non-neutrality. Technology is not neutral. There are many pros of using innovative technology – it is used to create and transform but with that comes with many consequences. Just because an innovation is good, and it holds value, and dignity doesn’t mean it always will be and could cause disruption. Competition, dominance, money, attention, and intention is always subject to change and take discourse. I resonated with the concept of who are the winners and who are the losers of this technology? Who will gain power, dominance, money, and control? Who will suffer poverty, hardship, and defeat? In The Terminator, Skynet was originally created for unmanned military use and then became so powerful it became evil, and humans could not unarm it. In this case, humans would have been the losers.
In chapter 3, Towards Technopoly: From Technocracy to Technopoly, the Postman talks about unlimited growth. Which is relevant to The Terminator. Skynet, the created invention by Sarah Connor’s son became incredibly dangerous to humans and would have caused a nuclear death of the masses. This creation was not improving the condition to humanity and had widely caused disruption. This idea of technocracy had created new freedoms and accelerated life but also became the root of evil and triumph. From the reading, “With every new invention some limit was lifted or alleviated and there was less temptation to look back.” The Terminator was sent to look back in time to kill Sarah’s son to eliminate the new limitless technology, including; Limitless possessions, knowledge, science, and progression – good or bad. In this case bad because it was leading to violence, waste, war, and destruction. It also minimized the respect, reverence, responsibility, accountability, and self-subordination for those in power in the future. Which would have AI, robots, and of the sort.
“Technopoly is water we swim in, which is why it’s critical for the flourishing of our local and global community that we know what it means to be wet.”, a quote from ch.3 readings from the Postman. This movie is the perfect example of why humans have to be careful and cautious of new technological creations as they can become dehumanizing.
It was lovely to meet Dr. Oblivion this week and read through Postmans Towards Technopoly pieces. Learning how powerful technology is, what type of effects it can have, and the ideologies behind it was very interesting and I took a lot from it.
Final Thoughts:
This week I got to participate with my classmates through the daily creates. I also had the opportunity to explore and pull out my creative side through the assignments that I chose. I also got to play around with word press and find out how to create tags, insert media, design my writings in my post, and even more.
Over the weekend I’ll be going to the DKC again to dive a little deeper on how to work with word press and how to better format my work on my post. Overall, I think I did a great job on week 2 assignments and activities! My work can only get better and more creative from here!
I decided to work on the 256 Points Assignment this week. I used Procreate to make a portrait of Arnold Schwarzenegger as Terminator. It was an interesting process as I didn’t have a brush small enough to work pixel-by-pixel, so I instead had to create blobs and then erase them down in order to get the shape I wanted.
This assignment is called Pictures are Larger than Words. I had a tough time at the start for many reasons. I had forgotten how to screen record first and foremost but I also had no idea what scene I was looking to do. I knew I wanted to do something in Tech Noir so I looked to the TechNoir/Cyberpunk Films/TV list given at the start of the class and browsed through to see if anything caught my eye as interesting. I thought about doing another Black Mirror episode but the scenes I were thinking of were already without dialogue and were just with sound to tell the story along with the visual aide. So instead I went with Tron: Legacy.
At first, because I had chosen an action scene I thought I wanted to add some action music to the background but the film already had a killer soundtrack and I dont think that I could do better or tell a good story with something different but in the same genre of music. So I went with a eerie background noise and let the scene tell itself. Using a mix of a low rumble and a sci-fi machine noise I was able to create a background noise that is not close to the noise already used AND could even tell a different story depending on how the video and/or the sound makes the audience feel. With the more eerie approach I think that the kind of suspense that the scene gives you is now different than the suspense it used to be.
Click on the image for the video
I used iMovie for Apple to create this video and uploaded it (unlisted) on my personal youtube. I first searched for a scene from Tron: Legacy on Youtube and found one that caught my eye. I watched the video with sound and started to think about the type of music or background I wanted to use to replace the audio in the video. In iMovie I used the free audio they had available and I used the sound files “Drone Dark Suspense 02” and “Strange Machine 02”. These two files mixed together give me the type of eerie vibe I was going for. I didnt want static noise so I have the “Strange Machine” to give some sort of variation in the background noise and then “Drone Dark Suspense” was used to get a low humming noise that is used in a lot of horror movies to give a suspenseful feel.
I had so much fun developing my course character, Bethany Smith (aka a gangster named “Smithy”). As such, I opted to participate in one of the visual assignments but collage Bethany instead of myself. I used Pinterest’s Collage Maker, and had so much fun developing this character further!
Water Bottle: more than often, it’s empty. I just like to have it with me. Decorated with stickers from various events and bands.
Laptop Charger
Pencil Pouch: hand embroidered by me, rarely used anymore. However, it feels wrong to go anywhere without a writing utensil.
Laptop: slowly dying, also covered in stickers.
iPad: my most recent birthday gift, one of my only posessions that isn’t covered in stickers/pins/keychains/embroidery/patches or anything similar.
Earbuds (wireless): I can only wear my left earbud right now because of my piercings.
Carmex Chapstick: should be taken out of my bag, I don’t even use Carmex anymore.
Hand Sanitizer: probably don’t use this as much as I should, but I enjoy having it with me.
Decongestant: helps with my migraines sometimes.
Earbuds (wired): these are for my laptop, and unlike my wireless earbuds, I can wear both of these. These were always my favorite design back when wired earbuds were the norm.
Dongle: just in case all my wireless headphones are dead.
Frog Wallet: I keep most important things in my sticky wallet on my phone, but again, it feels wrong not to have a physical wallet.
Apple: most of the time there is some kind of snack in my bag, today it was an apple.
Mini-Vasaline: my current preferred Chapstick.
Hand Warmers: a Christmas gift from my roommate, one of my most valued posessions this winter.
Crecent Wrench: major contributor to my backpack weight, but needed for work. Used almost every day in the scene shop while I work with the lights.
Giant Receipt: found this in my jacket pocket after picking something up at the store and shoved it in my bag.
Zine Materials: cut up magazines and such for a zine making project in DGST 201 (Tinkering, Hacking, and Making). Won’t remain in my backpack, though.
“Lady Bag”: exactly what it sounds like and contains everything a lady such as myself might need (Ibuprofen, pads, mints, eye drops, ect).
My Bag: purchased for senior year of high school, which was entierly online. Some embroidery done by me, many patches sewn on by me but designed by others. Buttons and keychains galore- you can always hear me coming.
This assignment is the one assignment not related to this courses theme, and its about one of my dogs!
This is the assignment Spread the Word and its all about sharing our furry friends. I have so many photos of my dogs (literally so many) but I love this one photo I have of my oldest dog caught in the act of tearing apart one of her toys. This toy is no longer with us (RIP) and we know exactly why…
Straight from my camera roll onto the digital canvas this project took form. I used Procreate for Apple and created and edited my own wanted poster for Nano and her murderous actions.
So spread the word…she is a danger to the dog toy society.
