Kalnins Process Book Fall '22

Cassandra Kalnins

Undercover Business Major Rediscovering my creativity.

Introduction to Design, ART 130, Fall 2022, St. Norbert College

Introduction

Since this was to be my final semester at SNC, it also meant this was my last chance to take a class which interested me outside of credits required for my major. I began college planning to be a nurse but switched to business when I realized chemistry and I would never be friends. I enjoyed my business classes and found them to be very analytical. A lot of time is spent searching for patterns and trends to produce the best results. Several professors have declared business is more of an art than a science – you can follow rules or guidelines but often the best outcome occurs when you develop something which “feels right.”

I have always enjoyed expressing myself through art and using the creative side of my brain. To relieve stress, I draw. However, I rarely share what I create with others. In this class, I had to open myself (and my creations) up for criticism. The first in process critique was hard. I was proud of my draft but realized I needed to keep pushing myself to develop something everyone could appreciate. As the semester continued, I kept going even when I felt I was done, to produce something even better. I applied design concepts but kept searching for the best pattern until I developed something which “felt right.” Combining my analytical business skills with my refined artistic persistence will allow me to make an impact in the marketing profession.

This book is dedicated to:

My mother who, without complaint, was always willing to help me succeed.

My professor Katie Ries who reminded me the world is better with a little weirdness.

CRASH COURSE

Purpose: The goal of this exercise was to learn to work with another person while exploring the basics of graphic design.

Personally engaging with another student helped me with the design process as I was able to easily continue asking questions to narrow down my partner’s needs. Sitting across from each other allowed the conversation and exchange of ideas to flow. I changed directions after modifying my original ideas because once we were able to connect, I gained a better understanding of her interests and needs.

I was nervous to share “non-perfect” work in class as I hardly ever share projects which are actually completed let alone still in draft form. My partner was very receptive to my concept piece, and I never felt judged.

The project had a quick pace. I am torn on how I felt about the timing. On one hand, the abbreviated time frame kept things moving and we were able to maximize our time going over certain specific elements. On the other hand, it would have been nice to delve deeper into some topics and have a bit more time to create the prototype.

If the project continued, I would go back to the drawing board. I would include more components which are specific to my partner’s needs as part of my prototype. However, I would retain the overall “solution.”

My partner wanted to figure out what she wanted to do for her career. The objective was to create a prototype to help solve her problem. After interviewing her, I concluded she wants to be in the cosmetology world, fashion industry, or on social media. I knew she could do any of these, so I made her a phone with apps to ensure she stays up to date in all of these industries before making a choice.

The phone prototype.

DOT LINE

Purpose: This project was designed to have us work iteratively with both words and images. The objective was to create strong abstract compositions using only dots and lines to represent words.

Gestalt was a central theme for this project. I feel gestalt is about proximity and how the sum of the parts equals the whole. We spent hours tweaking, moving, and manipulating a few pieces of paper to convey a feeling or an emotion. Placing shapes slightly closer together conveyed something totally different than if the parts were slightly more separated. Negative space meant just as much to the overall composition and interpretation of its message as the actual dots and lines.

It is difficult for me to make a “wellcrafted object.” I love taking my time on a project to get the small details perfected. Something about sitting down and giving all my attention to a project really helps me get into the creative mindset. I have a “too much” gene. Sometimes it would have been better if I would have walked away a few actions prior to completing an object.

Prior to working on this project, I did not have many thoughts about abstract art. I have been fortunate to tour several art museums in my lifetime. This, I believe, aided in my application and ideas for abstraction. I personally have never tried to create an abstract piece, so this was a learning experience for me. Generating the pieces was out of my comfort zone, but I

drew upon images I have seen in the past to create pieces which represented the assigned words.

I do not think it was difficult to represent ideas without illustrating them. To an extent illustration came out in nearly every piece whether we meant to display this or not. As visual people, I think it is safe to say we rely on our experiences and perceptions to drive our creative expression. It became clear to me after the first critique that one of my pieces looked like people. Although it was not my intention, I knew I had to adjust the paper’s positioning to reduce that image as much as possible.

This exercise taught me I really must be careful with how things may be perceived. How something looks to me may not be how it looks to others. In our final critique for this project, one of my pieces received an array of interpretations. None of them reflected how I personally felt about the piece. This was a revelation. In the future I may benefit from showing a piece to my friends and receiving more input before creating my final work.

Drafts for chosen words

Drafts for exhaustion

Drafts for longing

Drafts for scarcity

LETTERFORMS

Purpose: The intent of this project was to show how the form of letters can convey meaning or content.

By working with letterforms in this way, I learned there are many ways to depict the meanings of words. Normally we take words at face value, but this project challenged us to look deeper. We were forced to be intentional with our pieces rather than just checking boxes.

If I were to continue working with these letters, for my next piece, I would paint my chest to look like I am opening a wound with the word “bare” in it. I think this would be a strong way to depict baring one’s heart or soul.

Word map of selected word

Draft of concept for word of choice

Assignment analyzing the anatomy of letters

ITERATIONS

Purpose: This exercise taught us to understand the essential elements of an object or animal and then represent it using different forms of media.

Through this process, I learned that each object has a few distinctive characteristics which help identify it as a certain object. This project also taught me to keep trying new things. If one iteration did not turn out as hoped or did not quite fit the vision I had, I could try again. It also made me a little more mindful when I created the iteration the first time to make sure I presented the distinctive characteristic.

For me, the most challenging media in this project was the collage. After creating the first three versions for each type of collage, I struggled to find new poses and unique types of material. The most enjoyable media were my master artist versions. The tattoo flash was my favorite as I love drawing in that style. The online program I used to draw the piece for class has subsequently seen many other tattoo designs which I have created for fun.

This project reinforced that I like using Photoshop and think I am a “pixel pusher” at heart. I finally was able to figure out the curves function. In a prior photoshop class, we barely touched on this capability. I believe the curves function is incredibly useful and will find many applications for it in the future.

Black-capped chickadee collage drafts

Typographic collage draft

Typographic collage draft

Collage draft

If the work could support me financially, I would become a tattoo stylist for a profession. I love talking with people, gathering their thoughts and ideas for their piece, and then bringing their vision to life. I have already designed a few creations for friends as well as myself. The tattoo on the top of the next page is my favorite design. I created this following the rules of traditional tattoo style.

The one beneath it, I used a statue for inspiration. She is more minimalist and could be done in the “Fine Line” technique/style. The bottom piece was created for someone who had no idea what he wanted. To direct his thought process, I started by showing him styles, then subject matter, and finally arrangements to discover what appealed to him. I would love to learn how to tattoo, to place my custom designed composition on a client, but I like the ability to erase too much.

If you were guaranteed it would support you financially, what would you want to design or make for a living?

Sketch of tattoo for a friend

Sketch of tattoo for my mom

Healed tattoo on mom

PSA POSTER

Purpose: The intention of this project was to design a text only, impactful message on a poster based on a creative brief provided by a “client.”

I found it particularly challenging to be limited to type only for this project. I believe illustrations provide a hint of what is being said through context clues before a reader has a chance to process the text. Depending on the subject matter, plain text can be “cold.” Including an illustration may make the material more inviting and encourage a viewer to linger.

For my poster, I focused on both scale and opacity to create a visual hierarchy. I wanted the title words to feel heavy. Making the words “weighs” and “stress” darker than the rest of the title, draws attention to those words. In a way, it gives them “weight.” Scale also plays a factor as “weighs” is larger than the remainder of the text. When put together, these two elements draw the reader’s attention, engaging them and encouraging them to keep reading.

This project taught me to work within tight constraints. In the real world, when serving real clients, I may encounter a brief which has little to no “creative deliverables” for several reasons. After completing this exercise, I have grown more confident that I will be able to still create a compelling piece while remaining within narrow parameters.

The stress weighs

down on you

First-Generation college students have a lot expected of them.

The anxiety of doing well and adjusting to college can be a lot. But you are not alone.

Visit https://www.snc.edu/counseling/ for more information.

First iteration

stress

The down on you weighs

First-Generation college students have a lot expected of them.

The anxiety of doing well and adjusting to college can be a lot. But you are not alone.

Visit https://www.snc.edu/counseling/ for more information.

Second iteration

National Suicide Hotline 988

If you or someone you know are experiencing a mental or medical emergency, please call 911.

Call SNC Health Services at 920-403-3266 to schedule your appointment. Location

Mulva Family Fitness & Sports Center 601 Third St., 2nd Floor

Enter the Third St. entrance, turn right for elevator and stair access.

First-Generation college students have a lot expected of them.

The anxiety of doing well and adjusting to college can be a lot.

stress The down on you weighs But not you alone. are

WHO DESIGNS? - Mary Blair

Occasionally someone has an idea which takes their profession in a new direction. They become the inspiration for future generations. Mary Blair is that designer to the animation world.

Mary studied at the Chouinard School of Art in Los Angeles. There she met her husband, Lee Blair, and they shared a common passion for fine art watercolor. Unfortunately, neither could make a living as an artist during the Great Depression so they both focused on commercial art. Mary worked for a few studios before being hired full time by Walt Disney in 1940. In 1941 she and Lee went on a tour of South America with Walt himself. Mary used this experience to expand her artistic vision. Her work became more colorful and eclectic drawing upon the influence of Latin American culture. Walt Disney liked her work, and she rapidly became one of his favorite artists in a male dominated profession. She was promoted to art supervisor for several animated films before being selected as the person in charge of color and styling for a full-length feature film, Cinderella (1950). Following on that success she was placed in charge of Alice in Wonderland (1951) and Peter Pan (1953). As a concept artist for Disney, Mary Blair’s work pushed animation forward. Her bold and colorful designs defined the modern period. She created the concepts which were used as the base for the animating artists. She left Disney but continued to work on several

successful ad campaigns and illustrated Little Golden Book children’s books. In 1964, Disney asked her to work on a project for the New York World’s Fair called It’s ASmall WorldAfterAll . The result, bright colors, and round-faced children from around the world, was so successful it became a part of the Disneyland theme park. Artists continue to study her work in the Disney archives to gain inspiration for their own projects. In a 2003 book about Blair, Pete Docter the director of “Up”, said that in every Pixar production he’s been involved with, “There’s a phase where we say, ‘Let’s look at Mary Blair’s stuff!’”

Something I developed in the last two years which I am extremely proud of is brand materials for my brother. He decided, after his life took a left turn, to sell his house and set off on a road trip. His goal was to attend every NASCAR Cup series race. Along the way, he wanted to build up a following on social media and bring them on the journey. As a business student with a marketing focus, I could support his endeavor by creating materials to establish and reinforce

This project has fulfilled me as I was delighted to be included and support such a pivotal time in his life. I am proud of him for taking a chance and for living his life by removing another “what if I would have...” I am also proud of myself as I was able to reconnect with and strengthen my love for creating art.

What’s something you’ve made in the last two years that you’re proud of?

This book was made as part of Introduction to Design at St. Norbert College in the fall of 2022. The font used was Futura. It was digitally printed, and saddle stapled at the college’s print center.