The Real End (this is realy it): Presentation Day

So over all i think my presentation went pretty well. Sure my speech was was 45 seconds shorter than I had practiced. And my slide show didn't flow as smoothly as I would have liked them to. But those are all things we can't really help. Those things can happen to anyone even if they practice for 60 hours. But i think I was able to get my point across. I pleased my many fans who had anticipated my fire show.

Speaking wise, I think i did pretty well. I knew my speech ahead of time, I spoke loud and clearly, at least i think i did. I had not cards but i really didn't use them, they were more of a security blanket. By far i think it was one of my best presentations and speeches yet.

When it comes to my power point I think I did okay. Some times I think the page was a little too crowded. They could have been a little cleaner and a little more cohesive. If I where to go back and re do this i would  focus more on my power point, the way it worked, the videos, and the overall content.

The overall presentation i was happy with. i liked how i got to talk about an overall topi and not specifically my project. I liked how i had that "big picture idea" and was able to relate it back to my project.

I feel I stuck to the TED commandments pretty well. I got my point across, people seemed to understand and enjoy it, i kept most peoples' attention, and over all i am pretty happy with the out come. If I was grading myself i would get a 30/30 DUH.

Just kidding, but honestly I would give myself a 27 or 28/30

The End

I don't think i have ever been this stress free so close to an enrichment project due date. I think i have had that feeling throughout the project, it was relativity stress free. The project was probably one of my favorites, it may not have been my parents favorites but I really liked it. Its gonna be a little sad when I no longer get to spray paint whenever I feel like it.

With my TED talk being on Monday, and my scheduled being more crowded then i anticipated, and a lack of materials, I wasn't able to reach one of my goals. So i wont have a 5 foot painting to display at my TED talk like I had planned. To be honest I have no idea what i would have put on it. Getting ideas for my 7 small paintings was hard enough, I had no idea what I would have put on 5 feet of blank paper. That was also part of the reason I didn't do it. With the 7 smaller pieces i was able to throw out pictures I didn't like or that didn't look like they were going to end well. With a 5 foot banner I would have had to commit to an idea and get it right the first time, which normally doesn't work for me. But I am pretty happy with the way my 7 came out.

Oh yah, these are the pictures I talked about in my last post. I figured I would just post them all at once rather than make 2 different posts.

It was allot of trial and error, and trying different techniques. Alot of failure and anger was involved. But that failure was good failure, which I will talk about in my TED talk (get excited! whoot whoot).

And here are my final 7 pieces, I waited to leave them all for my last post so its like a grand reveal. They progress in order they were painted, the first being the first I painted and the last being the last I painted. Some of the techniques I used were from watching videos, others I made myself. 

(He's one of my favorites)

Lets do this TED talk!

Light At The End Of The Tunnel (it's a sad light)

At the beginning of this project 7 weeks seemed like allot of time, too much time almost  But now as we are coming closer to the end it seems like there hasn't been enough time to get done all we want to get done. I wish we had more time actually. This 20% of our time that is dedicated to the project is my favorite time of the day and week. Its the part of my homework where i get to go outside and do something I actually want to do, its something I look forward to doing and makes me want to go home and get all my other homework out of the way so I can just spray paint.

I'm also pretty excited about the TED talk. Normally I'm pretty nervous about presentations and sharing my projects with people. This time I'm excited and happy to do this, I actually wish we were in the auditorium and in front of more people. I have a few ideas about what I'm going to talk about, but I'm really liking one and think I can fill my 5 minutes pretty well with it. Lets just hope i feel this way about it when I'm about to walk on stage and present on the first day.

Anyway back to the spray paint. I was actually able to get out 2 times this week. Surprisingly the snow and rain and wind didn't ruin everything this week. I didn't go out as much as I would have liked but i still got some painting in. In the past few days I've done some more detail work and used some different tools to etch out designs onto the paper. Some were horrible failures where others turned out pretty decent. But i will post pictures of the paintings as soon as i can. As some of you know my computer crashed. So as soon as i can get new pictures of the paintings and as soon as my sister lets me back on her computer we should be good to go.

I also tried some lettering this week, again. Lets just say its getting better, slowly. very very slowly. Lettering is allot harder then I thought. Drawling something out and painting it with airborne color is not the same at all. Mad props to people who are able to free hand 3D stuff, this girl is struggling to get some 2D words to look decent. Having control of a spray can is supper hard. Its not like a brush where you know exactly where its going. Using a spray can is an art in itself. I hope it gets better with practice because I don't want my final project to look this weird.

Well I guess that's it for the week. My vlog is bellow, its supper corny and awkward and I apologize. Pictures will be up soon.


https://vimeo.com/62223812

Weather Is A Pain

It is not suppose to be snowing, or raining, or gross outside. Its not allowed to be. Doesn't the wold understands I have an enrichment project to get done!!!!!

So yes, I haven't been able to get allot done on the project. Due to the weather outside it has been basically impossible to get any work in. The little work I have been able to do was so bad that I raged quieted a little, an crumpled them up and tossed them in the trash.

Instead of actually getting outside and using the paint, I've been stuck in my room drawling out ideas and pictures and letters. 

Lettering has been supper hard. This may have to do with the fact that I am not the best artist. But lettering is actually supper hard and has given me a whole new respect for street artist. The ability to give a large scale painting 3D affects on a 2D surface without being able to see it all at once is extremely hard.

I've also dabbled a little in drawling animals and creatures (that's what i call my attempt at drawling humans) And it has not been easy either. So most of my time has been spent reading and looking at videos of artist doing what they do so well, and what I've done so poorly 

So yes, this post is extremely lacking. I have no photos or no evidence that I did much, but I promise to my many dedicated fans and followers, there will be another post this week of the work I'll be doing.

Lukavics, Amy. "How to Do Graffiti Letters With Spray Paint." EHow. Demand Media, 01 Apr. 2010. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.

 

Theones, Michael. "How to Draw Graffiti Letters." How to Draw Graffiti Letters. Drawlingteachers.com, n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.

People I'm Following

http://streetdancein7weeks.blogspot.com : The journey of a girl, learning how to make a fool of herself.
http://designsbyjennyd.blogspot.com : (insert something clever and slightly offensive here)
http://sundrew.blogspot.com/2013/03/cultivar-news.html: A blog about the kid who will name a plant after me!
http://jennamakesfood.blogspot.com/ : IMA EAT ALL THE FOODS!
http://oneill-luxem.blogspot.com/: Shes kinda funny... I guess

What I Hate So Far

1.) Its cold outside
2.) Its windy outside
3.) Spray paint is supper sticky and cold
4.) Good spray paint Isn't cheep

Now I have to so this all outside unless I want my whole house to smell like spray paint. And my mother is not a huge fan of the smell. And due to the season it isn't very warm out. The wind and cold don't mix well with spray paint. Spray paint likes to blow away, and the metal can loves to make it feel like your holding a bottle of ice.

Spray paint is also supper sticky, like way too sticky. It sticks to everything. My hands, my gloves the can, itself. Basically,it will stick to everything but the paper. And when it sticks it stays. I should have a fun time trying to get it off the bottom of my camera.

Now if you are at all interested in spraypainting I recommend you do not get the $.97 bottles of back and white. You might think yah, sure ill be using this color allot might as well buy the cheep one. Well don't, they are crap. They don't dry fast, they don't cover well, and they hurt you hands when you try to use them

Asides from all that my first attempt was somewhat successful. My first project was HOT! literally. But you will learn about that in my Vlog. My second picture was pretty cool, and everything after that sucked. Like  I cannot do letters for my life.

This is my second picture!

Then this is my first attempt at lettering... it is suppost to be my initials.

Aerosols Cans & No Real Plan

For the next few weeks I have to learn to do something, anything. So I chose to learn to spray paint. Why? Well frankly I have no real idea. Am I particularly artistic? No. Do I know the first thing about graffiti or spray painting? No. Do I know people that know anything? Nope. For the next few weeks I will be documenting my adventures in my attempt to achieve some type of skill in the art of spray painting.

First thing I need to address. I will not be tagging the side of buildings or people's houses. I am trying to get threw at least one project without adding to my criminal record.  I will be spray painting card stock and poster board in my back yard with parental supervision.

I have read several websites on the supplies I will need and why. Before reading it I didn't really thing a fumes mask or safety goggles were all that necessary. "As a safety persecution,wear a respirator over your mouth and nose when you are using the spray paint to protect your lungs from any damaging paint fumes and tiny paint particles that could be inhaled and damage your health."(Johnston,1) 

So what do I plan to do during this project? Honestly, spray paint. I plan to spray paint and that is about it. I hope to learn techniques like how to give texture to paintings, how to give objects a shadow, and how to make it look like I have some artistic ability.

Overall though i'm pretty psyched for the next few weeks because basically I get to sit outside and play with spray paint for a few hours a week. And this isn't all because I want to, its because I "have to". Okay so I don't "have to" but I have to learn something, and there has never been a better excuse in history to get you parents let you by spray paint than "its for an enrichment project". So by the end of this week I will be armed with about 20 cans of spray paint, a fumes mask, poster board and dangerous.

At the end of the next few weeks I will hope fully have a few decent looking pieces to prove to you that I've actually been doing something and hope fully a five foot piece. And, fingers crossed, they wont turn out as a horrific tragedy. But if they do you have something to laugh at.

Wish me luck!


Johnston, Kelsi. "Spray Paint Art Tools." EHow. Demand Media, 27 Mar. 2011. Web. 20 Feb. 2013.