Draw your creative process

Have a base, somewhere, a word, an idea, or anything.  Then, consider endless possibilities.

I got this idea from a project that my professor is doing.  He said to draw your creative process, so I did.  Here is an individual explanation of those ideas.

C- It is important to be incredibly flexible, like a snake

R- you need to reach for the sky, but have the basics to get there and your idea will take flight

E- There will be problems, controversy with yourself or your peers, but remember that storms have to end

A- make the basic scaffolding first, you need to have a firm foundation

T- you are putting yourself out there, so it is important to scare away the crows

E- you will need caffeine....lots of caffeine.

What is Art?

Did you ever notice that when you are a first-grader, all of your artwork is considered a masterpiece and fridge-worthy? All of it. When you are four years old, you scribble, and it goes right there, next to the baby-shower invite. But what exactly defines art? Because, for me, at least, I have a hard time believing that scribbles are considered art. Shakespeare muses in his work Romeo and Juliet "what's in a name, that which a rose may smell as sweet." Well, my rose of art apparently smells like my car after all this rain (fabric...wet...not a good mix) whereas Jackson Pollock makes a masterpiece by throwing paint on a wall. Who is to say that art is art? My mom likes my stuff...but I bet if my mom were Georgia O'Keefe that would be a different story, unfortunately. Check out jacksonpollock.org, maybe you can be in the Smithsonian, this took me about 2 minutes.

Intertextuality

Intertextuality. The association of something within something else that makes it necessary to understand. Advertising loves it. Now, there are two types of this "intentional phenomenon." The first, horizontal, means the reference to something else in it's same genre (ex. Jack in the box commercials, all relate). And we have vertical, or the leap into comparing with something else (ex. Apple 1984 campaign). The above ad is also an example of vertical advertising. Here, we have a bit of ironic advertising. A toy store ad alluding to a PG13 movie. Wow. Way to go Toys-R-Us, foster in the early exposure of children to dying people, frozen abyss, and...disaster. Though, this does seem to appeal to the poor parents surrounded by barbie and hot wheels. Still, this does seem to add some confusion why toys are groping each other on a boat. However, this ad does provide a clear message that is understandable, even without the knowledge of intertextuality.

Separation of Church and State

Last Thursday, Constitution Day, the day that was the pinnacle of the "Separation of Church and State" idea is remembered. Ironically, SMU seems to have a different idea. As I leave advertising class, and walk toward the quad for Spanish I came across one of the most peculiar experiences. First, a sound, the low sound of a southern bell...tolling (poor allusion but bear with me). Next, one of my particularly patriotic friends running up to me saying "I just touched the liberty bell!" Nevermind that he was wrong...the bell does not tour, though it was a replica. Still, that did not strike my fancy, no...what drove me positively bonkers was the sights looming next to the bell...two tablets, but not just any tablets...a modern-day likeness of the 10 commandments. I was livid. Why? I am a Christian, so this was no unfamiliar sight, but the fact that it was the bread to the liberty bell sandwich! It reminded me of people in elementary school putting cheetos on their PB & J...just not right. A symbol that represents a government free of the church, but now the church seems to be the wonderbread of the government. For some, this may seem right, but for me...I would prefer to eat my cheetos separately.

The Feminist Drive

Feminism. This word is enough to tickle the nerves of anyone. Men fear them because of their "power" and women fear it because of the social stigma attached to the thought. Do I consider myself a feminist? Hmmm...does that mean that I burn my bra, smoke weed, and protest men in any fashion? No...but I do not submit myself to the power of men either. Yes, I can change a tire, but the oil? No way. Yes, I can fix a broken table but install a door? Forget it. Does this mean that I am incapable? No. It just simply is that I have not learned it yet. I believe that women also place this stigma on men. Men can't cook, they can't clean...yeah right. One of my friends makes the best blackened chicken I have ever tasted and as far a nails? My best pedicure was from a man. All too much does society blend gender roles, when reality...We are only different by one tiny chromosome.

H2O

Water. It is so intriguing. You can look through a water bottle and see a whole new distortion of life. It is like a different world. For example, at the lake you can't always see the fish, you just see brown or green (hopefully it's algae) but you know they are there. At the same time, you can look through a water bottle on the table, and whatever is behind it is distorted. It is almost as if water, something that is supposed to cleanse and purify is what hides things. Oh the irony...

Memory

Today marks the 8th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States.  Although not personally affected, this day still seems to have people mourning.  But, it is also weird to think that my age group is one of the youngest to actually remember the tragedy.  Ask just about anyone and they know where and what they were doing when they heard the news.

For me, I was actually at camp with my school.  It is a tradition of Jenks West Elementary to spend a week with the 6th grade at a camp working on "grade bonding."  We were actually supposed to leave that morning but the administration was not sure what to do with us, send us there or home.  We ended up going, but not being told about the attacks.  The counselor parents knew and the teachers, but we were left in the dark until walking in the door at home on Friday, which was to say the least, "surreally shocking."

Now, it seems like people are more somber this day; it is almost as if a fog descends over the country.  Yes, it was a sad day that changed our lives forever but life does go on.  Being from Oklahoma I had experienced this before with the Murrah Building Bombing and it seems to have the same emotions  surrounding it.  People are in mourning.  This makes me wonder, how long do you really need to mourn, until it is all over? At the Murrah Building Memorial there is a tree called "The Survivor Tree."  It represents the idea that life goes on and continues to grow.  I like to visit this time to time, but the picture above is one of my favorites that I have taken. We need to remember that with 9/11, although it was a sad day, babies were born, people got promotions, engagements happened....all good things.  So now, when thinking of 9/11 I will ponder on the new hope, through the image of the Survivor Tree in Oklahoma City.

How's the weather up there?

Why do bad things happen to good people? This question seems to haunt me daily. It is almost as if there is a raincloud following everyone around, and decides to downpour at the most inopportune times. You got a promotion at work? Great, now you have adult-onset acne. Life almost seems to exist in a balance. Like Newtonian physics says, what goes up must come down. But what if something bad happens for no good reason, like something truly bad. On Saturday morning, 4 people whom I knew from my childhood passed away in a plane crash. What justifies that? Religiously, some would say it was their time to go. But dang, in a plane crash of all things? Is this one of those times that that little raincloud may turn into a tornado, spontaniously? It seems to do this back in Jenks, Oklahoma , for sure. So what can we do with this? Embrace the rain. There is always somewhere else to go, always a new journey to take on, and as long as there is life on Earth there will be weather.

Holidays

I recently read an article in one of my textbooks saying that Santa phenomenon is merely a creation of Coca-Cola. Crap. This was not something that I wanted to read...it was probably up there in the realm of dying puppies. But then, I started to think. What if I made my own holiday? What would I do? Who would be the face of it? Hmmm....what about a day that is centered on the Earth! Oh wait, already done. Pluto Appreciation Day? Nope...someone is already on that I am sure. I know...days that aren't your birthday! We can call them unbirthdays! Oh wait, Lewis Carroll already owns that. As Americans, we have holidays for everything...heck, we even have National Talk Like A Pirate Day. So, now I shall make my own holiday. It shall be known as...Be Yourself Day (title is a work in progress...sorry). And, just like Unbirthdays, it will take place all-day, everyday, except one (Halloween, duh!). The symbol, however you decide you feel like today. Honestly, I feel like a Unicorn today so that will be my symbol. Why do I feel like a Unicorn? Because I feel...different, and most likely this feeling will end and I will be extinct from that ideal. All I do know is that "Today is a gift, that's why it is called the present" and gosh darn it, I feel like having a horn today.

First Impressions

Isn't it interesting how much value we, as Americans...or humans for that matter, place on first impressions. If I was to meet someone on the street and they were dirty, smelly, and had grungy clothes, I would go right out and think they were homeless. When, in reality they could be a businessman who just returned from a desert island and is not familiar with society and how it has changed since he has been gone (Castaway, anyone?). From interviews to meeting new friends to exploring new worlds we seem to always have this inherent drive to leave our mark. Humans land on the moon, we leave a flag. Antarctica, for example, the most barren wasteland on the planet and we have to stake a claim and try to build an outpost just so when someone looks at a map, they can look at the American flag there and see that "we must be a powerful nation, we own a chunk of ice." Honestly, I wish I was brave enough to botch a first impression and know that everything would be okay, but I seriously doubt that has ever happened. So now, sad to say, I must go get ready for school...because you never know when you will meet someone new and I better look good, even though I am going to sit for 4 1/2 hours.