The Importance of Keeping a Notebook

If there is one thing I have come to understand in my many years of art schooling, it's that notebooks are pretty important. Full of sketches, doodles, words, etc., they hold all your ideas and dreams in a nice little bound package. Which is both cute and good for helping you communicate and work through your ideas.

In all honesty, I struggled with notebooks for a long time. This struggle can be traced back to 2 things. 1.) Each class had so many requirements as to what had to be in the notebook that often times keeping a notebook felt like a chore. A chore that was really easy to get behind on and then slap something together right before the due date. 2.) The perfectionist in me was afraid of messing up, of not creating a book that flowed from one page to the next and told a beautiful story. It wasn't until my senior portfolio class that I really understood how I functioned in the realm of notebooks. Because in that year long class, we were only told to keep a notebook. No requirements. No guidelines. No rules. My notebook for that class actually ended up being mostly words. Which is very appropriate because at the time I was having a lot of conceptual ideas and trying to plan out my future... and also I am one of those people who makes lists.

The notebook I kept this summer during my internship at Lilly turned out almost completely opposite from my senior year notebook. Which is crazy interesting when I think about the type of work I was doing and my state of mind during those two different periods. And well... I'd like to share a few pages with you.

Lilly & I: The Tale of an Internship

Recapping an entire summer's worth of experiences in one post? Let's do this. Essentially, this summer I had the wonderful opportunity to intern with Lilly Pulitzer's print design team in King of Prussia, PA. I when I say wonderful, I am not exaggerating. Lilly is a relatively small, close knit company devoted to their brand, and that really shines through in the fun-loving, community-oriented atmosphere that permeates the Pink Palace. (Seriously. I worked in a pastel pink building. How cool is that?)

Immediately on the first day, I was thrown right into the mix, helping to finish up Summer 2012 artwork and send it out to vendors. From there we jumped right into concepting and designing for Fall 2012. The pace was fast, the work challenging, and I loved every minute of it. Whether we were hard at work or giggling around a table, there was not once a dull moment at Lilly. In between designing and cleaning prints, we took an inspiration trip to the local botanical gardens and sponsored a charity event with Oceana in the Hamptons. Okay... maaaaaybe those days spent cleaning prints for what seemed like forever were a little dull, but even those weren't too bad.

When I wasn't working on Summer and Fall artwork, the other interns and I were working on a collaborative project to design and market a proposed line of products for Spring 2013. With interns representing many different departments at Lilly, we had a lot of great minds from a variety of backgrounds each bringing a unique perspective. Large group projects are always challenge.... but we pulled it together and wowed our audience in our final presentation.One of the things I really appreciated was that in my 2 months there I was never just an intern. I was part of the team, working side by side with seasoned print designers. Because I got to work so closely with them, I really did learn a lot this summer. Now I understand better how products become reality. I know I can paint giant canvases with ease (one of mine even ended up in the Lilly store in Ardmore, PA!). Most importantly, I have learned to just do it, also known as confidence in your first attempt. I think that in coming out of art school many of us think too much about what we make. To the point where the focus is on whether or not what we are making is good/right/valuable/worthy of an A and not the actual product. I have learned the value of an idea and the importance of editing. Get your idea out there. Let people see it and give feedback. Adjust from there.

Oops.

I was experimenting with double exposures, and instead of a neat little roll of nice double exposures, I ended up getting some crazy exposure mash up! But I think it looks pretty interesting. It's like one of those Ispy books (remember those?!) in that the longer you look, the more you see.

Fibers Open Studio 2011

Well, hello there. The past 10 days sure have been crazy. Let me tell you why.

Every year the Fibers department puts on a big show in our building showcasing all the amazing work our students have produced. Usually, each room/studio corresponds to a class, and seniors get display priority throughout the building and all the responsibility that comes with it. So as a senior, this was kind of a big deal. The show was this past Friday, and I spent much of last week setting up the building alongside classmates and faculty. And, you know, it was stressful and time-consuming, but I secretly loved every minute it. Fibers Open Studio really unites our department in a unique way, and I love being a part of that. It was incredibly rewarding to be able to help set up not only my work but the work of others.

Alongside all the work, we had demos going on throughout the evening: weaving, spinning, indigo dyeing, screenprinting and more! What's nice about the demos is that people get the chance to interact with us and learn about the processes we've used to create our work.

I even volunteered to do a print demo on Olga during Open Studio because I really enjoy talking to people about what I do. Even though I'm not a public speaker by any means, there's just this satisfying thrum that happens when I can connect with people about the things I am passionate about.

At the end of the night we raffled off a quilt made by various members of the department. All in all, we had a great turn out, and it was a really fantastic event. I am so proud of everything we do!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day is great because it's pretty much an excuse to celebrate pretty much everything cute. Cupcakes included. I made these Chocolate and Blood Orange cupcakes from Love and Olive Oil yesterday for a Valentine's Day party, and they were definitely a hit! Every last one was eaten by the end of the night, which sadly meant no leftovers to feed my insatiable sweet tooth.

Sometimes Olga and I Make Things

After quite a few samples and test prints, I printed my first yardage print on Olga today! This photo was taken before steaming and washing of course, which means my colors have gotten crazier and brighter. All according to plan.

Olga

Internet, meet Olga. (And please pardon the very candid photo of her.)

I've spent the last week or two learning all about her, and today we finally were able to spend some quality time together, just the two of us (and the lab tech). It was pretty great, and I am completely certain that in 8 weeks time we will be the best of friends. Here's what we made today!

Doing It For Effect

Flapper: A Madcap Story of Sex, Style, Celebrity, and the Women Who Made America Modern by Joshua Zeitz.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the 1920's. It's an insightful non-fiction book which explores the character of the flapper and her relation to the dawn of the modern era. Featuring not only brief vignettes into the lives of such celebrities as Zelda & F. Scott Fitzgerald, Coco Chanel, and Clara Bow, but also a look into the role of the everyday woman and the reaction of society. The flapper is misunderstood by today's culture. In actuality, she was so much more than short hair and short skirts. She was confident and brazen in breaking social taboos of her parents. Smoking and drinking. Rouging her lips and bobbing her hair. Going about with young men without adult supervision. She did everything in excess and thrived on decadence. She was petulant, ambivalent, and sexy. Most importantly, she was a symbol of independence, earning her own living and leaving the family homestead for the big city, even if wages for women were scarcely enough to live on. I love the flapper. I think she is fascinating, and I could go on and on about how modern society just wouldn't be the same without her. But really, for all that stuff you should just read the book.

The other day I decided to reread this book just for kicks. And about halfway through I read this "People who were in the know...often objected to being labeled flappers, if only to avoid being rigidly compartmentalized." And that seemed awfully familiar. It reminded me of a common stereotype in today's society: hipsters. Like flappers, general society despises hipsters. Even the people who might fit the definition of hipster, despise hipsters. They are the subject of ridicule and the brunt of so many jokes. The hipster is absurd and often times hilarious, but I don't think there's anything wrong with the hipster.

I go to art school. I ride a vintage bike and sometimes wear vintage clothes. I listen to non-mainstream music. I find mustaches amusing. According to some  definitions, that's enough to make me a hipster, and I'm okay with that. While I don't consider myself one, I recognize the influence of the hipster on the culture of my youth. To deny and ridicule the hipster is to do the same to our generation. Because although kin to the flapper, the beatnik, the hippie and the valley girl, the hipster was definitely our own invention and a unique byproduct of today's consumer-driven and technology-oriented civilization. I wonder how much of an impact the hipster will have on our culture? Like the flapper, will historians 100 years from now write books about the importance of the hipster and their impact on society? And while I can't claim to know, or even guess at, the long-term influence of the hipster, knowing that my generation is contributing something makes me feels intrinsically connected to the whole of history. And that feeling is pretty cool... Or I suppose I should say deck?

Featuring My First Foray into Film

As promised I have photos! These are some of my favorites, but there are plenty more over on my brand new Flickr.  My family and I went on a 4 day Thanksgiving cruise, so there's a definite sea/sky/ship theme happening. All were taken with my Minolta XG1 on 400 ISO film. I'd love to hear feedback, so let me know what you think!