if you hire me

i will please you

Done

I am.

My eyes feel like hard boiled eggs covered in salt

That is the best description I can think of. I have officially been staring at the computer screen for 5 hours straight. xdeathx

So, its crunch time for everyone. Everyone's scrambling to get their IP finished. I'm close to being done. Kind of. Composition 1, VertMelancholia is ready to be printed. My 100ft roll of luster paper came in a couple days ago. Composition 2, HorizMelancholia is... coming along.

My biggest obstacle now is working this thing until it cannot be worked anymore and balancing everything. There is some blending and fine tuning that needs to be done as well. I think in a couple more days this piece will be finished and ready to print!

In other news... school... -____- bleh.
Also, I'm pretty sure I'm getting carpel tunnel... no joke.

Almost there

Click for the larger view. I've only got 20 more inches to go. :)

Survival

I've survived New York. I have more interviews. I now have options.

I am so stressed I could pull my hair out and rip my scalp off with it.

I have so much to finish... so much to refine... people to please... deadlines to make... places to fly to.

I dunno what to do. I don't know if I'm handling things right. I need to not wait for someone to tell me "good job." I've learned that will never really happen.

Tomorrow I'm working a lot... like a lot a lot. My IP project cannot be a flop. I don't want it to be.

Work all day, worry all night

Today I spent a few hours working on expanding my piece horizontally. So, here are the new additions I've made to this horizontal composition.

Hopefully the overall feel of this composition will remain as ethereal as the last.

EXHAUSTED :(

This month has been and will continue to be so crazy busy. I'm super stressed out. I have midterms this week, essays due, and then I have to get a hard copy of my portfolio printed. Next Thursday I am leaving for New York City for two interviews and studio visit. My portfolio has to be OUT OF CONTROL SWEET. AHHHHHH, I'm super nervous.

Also, I will have to look for apartments while I'm in New York. I DON'T KNOW WHERE TO LIVE!!! Then, later this month I have to take a trip to Chicago for an interview with a firm there.

AND, I have to get design work sent out to Grooveshark so that I can hopefully be embraced by praise?! I just want them to like meeeeee. I love Grooveshark and I use it everyday. I would love to be able to represent them with my artwork.

As for IP and art school... that is also kicking my ass. I have worked on my horizontal piece a bit. I have refined the background, took out some parts that felt too heavy and awkward, and added some more textural elements and shapes. It will hopefully begin to balance itself out as a I continue working on it and expand horizontally more.

First Project

Yay! I'm starting my first project with Grooveshark. I'm excited and have big ideas. :)
Also, I got another interview in New York for a graphic design position. I'll be heading out to NYC in March. Three interviews on the 19th. :| Geez. It'll be a scary and busy day.

For IP, I'm finishing up my postcard image. I'm going to continue working on my horizontal composition. I talked to Mark about the feasibility of my final display ideas. He seems to find no issues with it but has asked me to explore a more dynamic or evocative positioning of the two pieces. He thinks they would be interesting if they intersected or were connected. He questioned what a break between the two pieces would mean. I think that to understand each piece, they must be separate.

The progress I'm making at home...

So, as all my professors already know, I have pneumonia and an ear infection. T_T I feel like shit.

My last meeting was with Danielle and Michael. They both gave me a lot of great feedback. We decided that I didn't need to try and make some gimmicky contraption to house my compositions. They can hang freely on their own on a gallery wall. The second thing we came up with was that my two compositions hanging right next to each other would be very awkward as one is very tall and skinny and the other very long. So, I think my solution would be to get a corner spot in one of the galleries where my piece could stretch up and down on one wall and go horizontally on the second. This way they would be separated but together. Hopefully, they won't compete with each other and the formats won't contrast too hard.

Danielle enjoyed the look of my vellum print but I explained how I disliked it because there were no absolute blacks in the print. She suggested I try to fill in the black with a black pen or marker on the reverse side of the print.

I thought that was a good suggestion so I tried it.

But, I don't think this would work. At first I was like "yea this totally makes it super black!" but then I realized yes it was making it so black that it was eliminating the gradients. So, I can't use this method. Also, my hand is so shaky I couldn't make an accurate line.

Progress Report

Here is the progress I've made today on my horizontal composition. I spent about 3 hrs on it.

Danielle and Michael came to talk to me today and they really helped me out a lot. So, I intend to hang my compositions freely, as in no weird set up or kitschy, and they will reside on two separate walls. This is a great idea because then these two very long pieces won't be clashing as much. Hopefully, I can snag a corner spot so my two pieces can be near each other.

I have a lot of experimenting left to do with my vellum print out. I'll put pictures up when I get the chance.

I made a Behance

http://www.behance.net/EileenTjan

I've been super sick lately and work has just slowed down. I am on so much medication that I barely feel like myself. :(

I have been productive though! I started a Behance portfolio to try and get some of my stuff out there on the interwebs.

I'm resuming hardcore work productivity tomorrow. I have to. I'm determined.

Everything I do counts. Everything I make needs to be perfect. I feel so much pressure to impress people... I just want to succeed!

Oh also...

I made this tonight in attempts to overcome feeling sick and drugged up. I thought I was being productive. I like it... too bad I can't turn this in for extra credit. :p

Also, I'm pretty sure today I told John from Grooveshark that, "I like to design space, you know like outer space." T_T omg... medicine is making me loopy.

Infamous

Found this while googling Mickey Mouse for some reason.

I'm going to be designing for Grooveshark!! :D I'm very excited.

I rode into the sunset

Here's my first post on my horizontal composition. Today I've spent almost 6 hours messing around with this thing in and out of illustrator and photoshop.

I'm happy with how its progressing. Its no where near complete. I would say maybe... 20% of it has been illustrated. It has much more of a spatial quality than my other piece and it feels very much like a painting. Its introducing a lot more colors than the other piece, although color is still a minimal element.

Comments welcome!! :O And as usual, click for a larger view.

Paper Problems

I did a test print on vellum.

There is a problem...

When I print on a paper like vellum that is semi-translucent and also plastic-y I cannot print a true black. So, much of the contrast is washed out.

... :(

beautiful

Printing

I've finished edits to my piece and I am spending today doing test prints to make sure the blacks aren't too black. I intend to work on my horizontal exploration as well.

I have yet to call Hiromi about the papers. They're so expensive that I'm shying away from the idea of buying them... but I really love the quality of the washi paper.

I am also starting sketches of how I want to construct my final piece.

Along with work for IP, I am working on my online portfolio. I have an interview Wednesday and career fair Thursday!

Paul Rand

does what you can't.

Another 1

I got an interview with MD70 in NYC as well. :) I really love their work. I hope they like me. I really do...

IP Update! I've got a great idea for final format presentation :D Hooray! Endi showed me an amazing artist who's presentation is really amazing.

This format would be perfect for presenting my project. I still need to contact Hiromi for paper prices. :/

D face all Day

:D

Roanne Adams accepted me as an intern!

Also, Grooveshark wants to interview me next week!

Happiness.

Test Print

I finished my second test print. I have a lot of corrections to make. Mostly, areas are too dark. There is a weird pink... tint going on in my print. I'm not sure if its the plot printer or my file...

In other news.

I ordered an otamatone!! :D

FINALLY

Finally in 300dpi, my finished composition. :) Time for another test print

Update

So, for those of you who don't know. My original version of my composition that I completed was... completed at 72dpi. Not adequate for printing at all! So, I have been redoing the composition at a higher resolution, but it has and is taking longer than expected. My original textures are not large enough for the higher resolution so I've been having to dig and make do with other textures.

I hope to be done in one more sitting at the Duderstadt.

Double Crossy Fingies

I got an interview for an internship in NYC! I NEED to do well and make a great impression. :| I'm nervous. I want it so bad.

SOOOOOO BADDDDDUH! :p

I'm careless

This composition has progressed a lot since my last post. I think its almost done. I've left the breaking through the river area blank because I can't seem to do something that I'm happy with. Tomorrow I want to test print this composition on the plotter printers, for size and resolution test. Hopefully, it'll turn out perfect and I won't have to make too many changes... but I doubt it.

I also have no idea where my student show piece is. Floating around the art school? Who knows.

Here it is, be gentle. I've spent a long time on it. Please, click for the larger image.

Well, it's Sunday

I have pretty much finished the vector illustration and have started integrating textures. I think there is more depth now with the addition of texture and slight color. The image is a work in progress. I hope to finish soon.

I have also started re-working the horizontal piece.

Tonight's Work

*Click for larger view!!

So, I'm really happy so far. I've been enjoying working on the irrational stage. I plan to add more detail and equal refinement to the other stages. Then, hopefully, this vertical piece will be complete. I see it being done by Sunday. :/

I'm playing around with a hand cranked "conveyor belt" to show this vertical composition. I like the idea of having to work by cranking the belt to view the piece (working through the process). AND I love the idea of printing on a more organic feeling paper than mylar but still keeping a translucent quality.

For the horizontal composition, I am thinking of making a surprising shift. :)

ANYWAYS, work work work... think think think. repeat.

Slight Progress

I had a very crazy winter break. My father came home after 3 years of family absence. So, a little uncomfortable but overall break was nice.

Here is what I've completed since last time. I am going to try and finish illustrating this composition, refine lines, and then bring it into photoshop for some raster image layering. Sorry again for that horizontal line, this is a screen shot.

I'm also continuing the horizontal composition.

I'm running into a problem with vertical format. I really love the amount of detail in the linework, but if it is hanging from say the ceiling, a lot of that will be lost because people won't be able to see that high (particularly the first illustration). That's a problem...

I am going to have to figure out final format technicalities. :/
Also, I'm starting to consider the idea of the horizontal composition being a "on medication and doing therapy" timeline. Maybe, for a little compare and contrast action?!

Crosses Fingers

I applied for some grown up jobs over the weekend...
= is hopeful

Also, check out my awesome Christmas present :)