Microaggression

I experienced mircoaggression in middle school. I helped a friend with a math question, but he was still unclear about it. So I took the question step by step and explained it to him until he finally understood it. He looked at me and said, "Why are you so smart?" I looked at him and shrugged my shoulders and pushed the worksheet back to him. Another guy in the room next to us said, "Because she's Asian. All Asians are good at math." Since then I knew of the automatic label Asians have. I have been more conscious on how well I perform in math because I'm afraid that if I perform poorly, I'm not "Asian" anymore which is a large part of my identity.

Book Covers

1)

                   

I really like The Kite Runner because of the journey of the servant boy, whether it is with status, or moving to a completely new country. The cover on the right was the one I read(in Contemporary Literature). The cover does capture the storyline and mood because it is very dull where in the book there was war and discrimination. It is also an image of the setting. However, I like the cover on the right a little better because it is bright, which makes me want to read the book. The book was about a boy's journey, so having the servant boy and his friend/master was more fitting for the situation. Yes, there was a dark mood in the story, however, they are kids, and Kite Running is a very fun Afghan tradition. So I feel the brighter, more colorful cover is a little more suitable.

2) 5 Book Covers

I like this book cover because it is simple yet complex. It looks simple, but with the title and image, there seems to be pain and deep emotions in the book. The lock is very makes s avery bold statement because it is unlocked. For the title to be "Faithful" and the lock, unlocked, tells me someone is not faithful which makes me want to read it. This caught my attention because the lock and title as in the middle of the page.

I find this book cover very creative. The image on the side looks like a kind of plan, and the alignment to the left makes it seem like there is more to the design. The font is simple, so it does not divert my attention from the detailed background. 

The glasses caught my attention because it was so large and the only image on the cover were the glasses. Then I noticed the colors in the lens and feel like I am looking into someone else's life. I feel like this book is going to be about life and its reasons, and I like these books. Overall, I like the complexity of the glasses(details) yet the simplicity of the entire cover.

I find this book cover similar to the book cover with a design draft on it. There are some measurements which makes the cover look creative and make me wonder why it is needed. I also find it clever that the title is in a box and the title has "orders" in it. Moreover the background is cardboard, which makes everything fit under the theme of packaging. The slant of the cardboard tells me the book is more casual.

The crow caught my eye, and after readin/seeing the title, I liked how easy it was to understand because it was obvious the bird was a crow, yet it was still well thought out. The title itself is fun to read and look at. Because the title was so smart, there only needs to be the title and the author on the cover. The light pink background tells me the book is not 100% horror/thrill, rather just eery, or not scary at all.

I noticed that I tend to like simple yet well thought out covers because it makes me look at the the cover more, and slowly I will look at the details. It is best when there is only one focal point or even object because then I focus on one thing. What is more important is what I can learn about the book through the cover. When a cover is interesting, I look at it more and then I will start to analyze it, and predicting what the book will be about. Therefore the covers I chose are simple yet complex. Lastly, I realized the titles are either in sans serif or modern typeface rather than decorative to emphasize my like for simplicity.

The difference between these covers are colors and what it tells me about the book. And only the last cover plays with the title. Overall, I feel that my covers have very similar aspects.

Old & New Poster

                                Old Poster                                                 New Poster

Logo Reflection

The most challenging aspect of creating my logo design was getting the letters to look neat and smooth. Because I was creating letters with the microphone cord, I had to use anchors and manually make the curves. That was already very difficult because everything had to look straight and uniform. As I changed the curve thickness and distortions later during the process, I found that just because it looked okay with one setting(thickness) it may not look okay in another. So every time I changed something, I had to readjust the curves so there are no sharp edges peeking out.
I overcame this challenge by being patience because there were no shortcuts available. So every time I tested out a change, I had to patiently readjust the the letters. It was frustrating at first, but overtime I was able to alternate curves and anchor faster. I learned that if an anchor is not working out, the best bet for me is to add an anchor next to it and delete the previous anchor. This can help smooth out my design.
The most successful aspect of my logo was the shade/gradient on the microphone. I spent a long time on it. Not only did I create gradient separably on the mic and handle(bottom part of the mic), I also created gradient on the out line to make the mic look more 3D. The casual line/curves on the top also adds a cartoonish/ casual look to the mic which is suitable for both the club and logo.

My Mid-Winter Recess...

My break was really boring. Before the break, my friends and I were planning on going to a karaoke place over the break. However, there was so much to think about, the price, times open, times available,  song choice, age limit, neighborhood etc. We were unable to pick one place to go to so it was canceled. So throughout the whole week, I stayed home watching dramas and volunteered on Friday, at a cat shelter like I normally do.
The most interesting part was Chinese New Year. We made a large dinner on Wednesday with so many foods I do not get to eat on a daily basis. Then on Thursday(Chinese New Year) my family and I went to my grandma's place to visit her. And that's the end... I continued to watch dramas after returning home.

Museum Experience

I went to The Museum at FIT. The exhibition displayed various pieces like purses, dresses, skirts,and written drafts. This particular dress caught my attention. Around the dress there were both drafts and copied dresses. To the right of the dress there is a licensed copy of the Pierre Balmain evening dress. This evening dress has a similar feather design. The next dress to the right of this dress is another unauthorized copy of a dress. One the other side of the dress I find interesting were four sketches of coats and dresses designed around 1950s.

The dress which attracted me was a licensed copy of Pierre Balmain's "Angel" evening dress. The feathers are hand applied. I was drawn to this piece because of how light and it looked. Despite it being designed during late 1940s, it looked like a dress that can be worn today. This piece reminds me of a wedding gown because of its layered fabric and feathers. COmpared to the more high class or vintage looking pieces I found this piece more "soft" to the eye like a princess of a fantasy. 

I did not know anything about the piece prior because I do not research about fashion so I did not know who Pierre Balmain. However, from the exhibition, I learned that a Cuban department store named Orcilia created the copy of this dress. Cuba was the 2nd largest importer of couture after U.S. at the time of when the dress was created which was from 1946-1947. 

The museum did not allow any type of photography or video so I brought the brochures as proof that I went to the museum.

This was the notes I took at the exhibition.

6 Typefaces

This is a slab serif typeface and it used to advertise. I found it on a magazine. I do not feel the type faced is the best choice because it looked very plain. Because it is a "luxury" there should be a more luxurious type rather than slab serif. But, it is appropriate because thinking in perspective, simple typefaces on the cover would not crowd and overwhelm the reader.  I also noticed that under the slab serif typeface is the sans serif typeface.



This is a sans serif typeface and it is a brand near my school. Like the first example, the logo is very clean-cut which is suitable for the products it is selling. SAFAR aims towards business men who have clean and simple looks, like the sans serif, There is nothing excess sticking out but plain and simple.



This is a modern typeface and it is a brand. It was in a magazine perfume sample. The typeface is very suitable for the purpose especially because it is for a high-end brand. The typeface used as a brand is very eye catching because of the thick and thins of the letters. This adds to the high class sense of the perfume being sold.



This is an old-style typeface and it is the the name of an organization. I found it on my library card. It is appropriate for its purpose because it is legible. As a large organization, the typeface suggests how old the library system is. The website, www.nypl.org,is in sans serif to create a straightforward, easy to read website.




This is a decorative typeface and it is the name of a store I saw near school. It is appropriate for the purpose because it is not a high class store. With round and fun letters, it attracts everyone/ average citizens to enter. I noticed that under "flavors" are the san serif typeface. Contrasting with the store name, it acts as a general description to what the store's goals are.



This is a script typeface and it is the name of a company. I found this in my wallet(card). It is appropriate for the brand and card because it makes the company and chocolate look very elegant. I noticed there was also the sans serif typeface which like the logo before acts as a description to the store and what the card is for.