Final Radio Logo…

alecksonl_radio_logo_print

Radio Logo…. thoughts?

radio_v2

radio_v3

Cover Letter Revised…

November 1, 2009

 

Portland Art Museum
1219 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR 97205
Attn:

Re: Graphic Design Internship 

Dear,

I am applying for your graphic design internship. I have a personal passion for art history and the evolving design industry. I know that the experience and knowledge I would gain from this internship would help further my creative career.  My skills and experience will prove useful as we work together, furthering the Museum’s mission in the belief that the visual arts are an integral part of our lives, serving as an essential tool to educate young and old about your past, present and future.  My contribution to the creative team can be described in three main areas.

Communication.  Through school, work and my personal life I have learned that communication is the key to teamwork and understanding.  Along with two other students, I created a PSA based on respect in the community.  We were responsible for our own communication efforts with each other and our professors.  We created a blog for general postings and laid out a detailed schedule of meetings and deadlines.  Through our efforts we formed a solid foundation of contact to succeed with our project.

Design Skills.  With a fine art background, understanding the principals of design and exploring new software I have been able to expand my knowledge of design.  I am proficient with Adobe Creative Suite 2,3 and 4 including Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Photoshop and Bridge.  I have put these skill to use in various projects including magazine spreads, promotional posters and logo designs.

Education.  The past year I have had the opportunity to coordinate an art program at a local private preschool.  This experience has enabled me to share my knowledge and skills with my students in such a way where they have an understanding of how art has developed and evolved over the centuries.  I am responsible for the curriculum, project preparation and delivering the material specifically designed for each age group.  Seeing children get excited about art and enjoying the process of creating is one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had.

I look forward to getting the opportunity to meet with you in the near future and discussing how I can apply my skills to and exciting team.  I will follow up next week to see if there is a time that works best where we can meet and explore the possibilities.  Thank you for you time and consideration. 

Thank You,

 

Lindsey Aleckson

Interview…

I found Marian Bantjes though other blogs that I follow and began looking through her work. She has wonderful illustrations that incorporate beautiful typography.  She writes different articles for Eye Magazine and has done cover designs for GQ. I sent her an email a while back and she responded with a link to her blog where she had done a similar thing for students before and posted her answers. Here is what I pulled from them…

How would you describe your work to someone who is not familiar with it?

This is really hard, and I hate doing it. I sometimes say “graphic artist” but it usually requires more descriptors like “A lot of custom lettering, ornament, sometimes patterns … a graphic designer but also an illustrator of sorts; a typographer.” Confusing enough?

Who does your work appeal to and why?

I don’t know. I don’t know why, anyway. I’m a little amazed that some of the best people in the industry, who have impeccable taste—and often a very clean and traditional aesthetic—really love my work. I’m also very alarmed that I’m popular with the “unicorn set.” The girly-girls … this is alarming because it’s not what my work is about at all, although it is frequently pretty.

What does a typical day look like?

between 6am and 10am – wake up, turn on the computer, go to the bathroom
3 minutes later – answer email, check the web, do internetty type things
1 to 4 hours later – start work
between 11am and 1pm – eat breakfast (cereal)
then work
5pm-ish – eat a meal: “Dinch”
keep working
between 11pm and 2am – go to bed

… unless it looks like something else.

Describe your style:

My “style” is always evolving, and if you look at my work you can see multiple interests emerge. People tend to think of me in terms of the swirly, pretty vector art, but it is much more varied than that. I’m quite happy that my work is eclectic while still personally identifiable. I expect it to change a lot over the next few years.

Who or what is your greatest influence/inspiration?

Most of the usual suspects such as 14th–18th c calligraphy, illuminated manuscripts, islamic art, art nouveau, the Arts & Crafts movement, typography, textiles from around the world, old lace, Baroque, Rococco or Gothic anything, psychedelic, graffiti, Victoriana, Money, engraving, Persian carpets … the list goes on.

Surprisingly, I’m not a big fan of Celtic knotwork or M.C. Escher.

Less obviously, but just as important, are my interests in Modernist architecture and design, Swiss typography, contemporary art, photography, sculpture (too many forms to enumerate), fashion, writing and any number of things that might pass my way randomly at any point in time.

What reference material do you use?

I will say only this: I have no desire to create something I’ve seen before, and I do not troll books for images to trigger ideas. I already have more ideas than I can handle.

What is your process?

I am one of those people who usually has an idea just “pop into my head.” This is disappointing to people because there’s no “map” to follow. But the idea usually has some reasoning or concept to it … so while I think of myself as largely a visual designer, the visuals have some reason for being the way they do.

I almost always start with pencil and paper. It’s the way I think—visually—best. It’s not uncommon for me to go from one sketch (maybe two) straight to final (after approval). So I don’t do a lot of exploration or multiple working drawings. So i draw and map it out in pencil, sometimes scan and redraw, then take it into Illustrator and trace it, if that’s what the final will be. Other times the finished work is in pen and ink. Or scratchboard. Or photography. Or ballpoint pen … it really varies.

What is your favorite medium to work with?

In a way, pencil. I’m very fond of my sketches, and I’ve been meaning to work more in pencil for a final, whereas currently I mostly use it for sketches. But i do love the control I get in vector art.

What do you consider to be the most important aspects of your work?

Well, it kind of depends on the project, but in general it is very important to me that my work have some kind of structure, logic (both visually and conceptually), that it be intriguing or worth looking at for a long time, or exploring further, and most importantly that it brings some kind of delight or joy to the viewer.

What distinguishes your work from that of your contemporaries?

I think that my work is more adventurous than many people’s, and more structured and considered than most, and if I do say so, it’s also better crafted than most as well.

What conditions do you need in order to work to your full capacity?

It depends on what part of the process, but I work best at home, in my studio; working for a full day on one thing (no distractions); being alone (no distractions); and with music.

What do you see as weaknesses in your work?

I’m very good with typography, but it’s still not where I want it to be. My conservative training still holds me back, and I really want to work on that. Unfortunately I don’t get a lot of type-heavy
projects. I have to make these up myself. People often want to learn “advanced typography” from me, and I don’t know how to tell them I’m still struggling with that myself—and in fact I don’t
even know what that is or how you could possibly teach it.

What motivates you to design?

I really enjoy figuring things out. Some people call this “problem solving” but it’s not a term I care for. In fact, I really like complexity so I often start with creating problems that I then have to figure out how to “solve”. That’s not really solving anything, but the mental exercise is stimulating. Ideally I end up with something that has an “Aha!” moment for both myself and the viewer.

In your own words, what is design?
Figuring things out.

What do you dislike the most in the design world?

The mistaken belief that image+witty tagline = good design.

What does it take to do great graphic design?

Deep interest and commitment beyond expected requirements, plus intelligence, imagination and tenacity.

Do you have any words of wisdom for graphic design students or practitioners starting out?

Learn to write, write well and write a lot. I don’t know a single accomplished graphic designer who doesn’t write.

China Design

One of the main things that stood out to me the most from the China Design Now show is the constant evolution of the designs and how the designers incorporate meaning and historical elements into each concept.  Over such a short time of design history, they have managed to have a solid foundation with the history of their culture and expression of their language.  The expression of their characters through very graphic typography is strong and meaningful.  One image that stood out the most to me is the poster of the legs wrapped around each other.  A very powerful image of blending modern images with historic symbols.  I forgot what the poster was designed for, but I think it was along those lines.

Overall a great show and I had a wonderful day at the museum.  Im looking forward to making many more trips back soon to explore the rest of what the museum has to offer.

Logo Sketches

So I started out with the main idea of a math equation.  Tried different ways of grouping the information and then separating the “HD” out in shaded areas or math symbols.  Had an idea going of making some kind of  abstract type of radio wave.  Possibly two shapes that are transparent.  Not sure if I want to do more with just type and symbols or an abstract image.  Going to start working on the computer to get a better idea of how they will work out.

 

King Lear… background?

So I have added a light background to grunge it up a bit.  I wanted to keep it lighter then i needed cause I’m sure there will be issues when printing of it getting really dark.  The info type at the bottom I’m still playing with but I like the straight rows of the information…. maybe different colors to make the dates and times stand out a bit more rather than stripes?… I also wanted to leave a little breathing room for any additional info that might need to be added… any other suggestions?

 

King Lear…

Cover Letter

November 1, 2009

 

Portland Art Museum
1219 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR 97205
Attn:

Re: Graphic Design Internship 

Dear,

I am interested in applying for the internship offered and know that I would be a valuable asset to you team.  With a personal passion for art history and the ever evolving design industry, I know that the experience and knowledge I would gain from this internship would help further my creative career. I will be dedicated to fulfilling the mission of the museum and committed to providing you assistance through a positive learning experience.  Here are a few skills I can contribute to your team.

Communication.  Through school, work and my personal life I have learned that communication is the key to teamwork and understanding.  Along with two other students, I created a PSA based on respect in the community.  We were responsible for our own communication efforts with each other and our professors.  We created a blog for general postings and laid out a detailed schedule of meetings and deadlines.  Through our efforts we formed a solid foundation of contact to succeed with our project.

Design Skills.  With a fine art background, understanding the principals of design and exploring new software I have been able to expand my knowledge of design.  I am proficient with Adobe Creative Suite 2,3 and 4 including Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Photoshop and Bridge.  I have put these skill to use in various projects including magazine spreads, promotional posters and T-shirt designs.

Education.  The past year I have had the opportunity to coordinate an art program at a local private preschool.  This experience has enabled me to share my knowledge and skills with my students in such a way where they have an understanding of how art has developed and evolved over the centuries.  I am responsible for the curriculum, project preparation and delivering the material specifically designed for each age group.  Seeing children get excited about art and enjoying the process of creating is one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had.

I look forward to getting the opportunity to meet with you in the near future and discussing how I can apply my skills to and exciting team.  I will follow up next week to see if there is a time that works best where we can meet and explore the possibilities.  Thank you for you time and consideration. 

Thank You,

Lindsey Aleckson

Maybe something worth checking out…?

I have been coming across a variety of image and type studies.  This show at the Portland Art Museum looks intresting because of the time period span that they cover.  ( Free admission every fourth Friday from 5-8)

http://portlandartmuseum.org/exhibitions/series/Gilkey-Center/Word-and-ImageWord-as-Image