BLOG
Why a Blog?
I’ve always loved sharing my ideas to whoever will listen, especially when it comes to art. A lot of them are horrible or plain goofy, but a couple are worthwhile! This site is a way for me not only to improve my communication and writing skills, but to share my creativity with the world! I hope one day somebody may be inspired by my writing or art and go on to do things greater than I could have ever dreamed of.
Brainstorming some Improvements
I've been thoroughly unable to write down my thoughts about the 4th, 5th, and now 6th Cardboard Club Meetings for weeks now. Whether other things came up, or I sat down to write, only to meet frozen fingers, nothing has been typed until now. I'm almost happy I waited (even though it's been driving me insane) because now I have plenty to talk about…
Prioritizing Creativity
A hobbyist’s observation of priority management.
Asking More Questions Than the Students…
…seems to be a fantastic way to faciliate learning.
Whenever a member of my Cardboard Club asks a question, my first goal is for them to answer it on their own. Of course, I am there to give guidance and provide my expertise… but they are the ones who ultimately do the learning, and my just giving them the answers won’t help grow their curiosity in the long run.
Through leading these workshops (meetings) I am learning more and more about constructive teaching practices; such as leaving room for creativity, constantly adapting, allowing room for a little risk, asking for constant reflections, and encouraging teamwork (to name a few). The list continues to grow as I continue to challenge the group of boys with the medium of cardboard.
“Are you happy with that?”
yes. I am. Quite pleased, in fact.
The first meeting of the Cardboard Club at College Wesleyan Church through WonderSpace (henceforth reffered to as just “Cardboard Club”) was a massive success. It was a “skills workshop” highlighting the four major tools I use in my cardboard endeavors, and I’m happy to say I neither underprepared nor overprepared! I somehow hit it right on the spot with two double-sided documents, including a thorough agenda, and a trifold they could take home and reference…
“So you’re the Cardboard Guy?”
Yup! That’s me!
Even though she seemed a bit hesitant to use the title, I am now ready to fully embrace it.
Blastoff in 3… 2…
Coming into my second semester of my freshman year of college, I feel like I’m on top of things. I went through the ringer of time-management realizations the first semester, almost certain half of the times I was sick were from stress. Re-entering the arena, I’ve reevaluated my degree once again, and redistributed my time accordingly. I’m no longer giving tours at IWU, but the choice to open up my schedule led to it being filled right away with a new, incredible opportunity: WonderSpace
My mom said I should write about the ewok child.
So I’m tempted to discuss anything else out of spite.
Perhaps I could add to the growing number of posts on here discussing the role of social media as an artist, including my recent observation of “reposting” that makes so much sense, but was only noticeable when I finally looked. I could add onto that about the stigma of copying other artists, when that is among the best ways to learn. Or I could pivot and talk about the potential post title that kept me up the other night until I wrote it down: “Shameless Self-promotion and Ignoring the Celebrity Status.” Hey, wait a minute. This is the Christmas Season in America! I could have it all! (Confirming your suspicions: that’s a jab at consumerism) I’ll start with the ewok.
A Checklist Conclusion (Part 2)
If you didn’t read part one, click here for things to make slightly more sense. Read it? Great. Here’s the second part:
A Checklist Conclusion (Part 1)
Finals are this week for my first semester of college, and my Ideation and Interpretation class is taking ours in a way I think fits perfectly with the class, and I might as well talk about it:
We were given three questions to prepare for a one-on-one 30 minute conversation between the professor and each pupil. There is no final essay or big test (the professor said he didn’t even know what he could put on a test) that wouldn’t make sense. Instead—because IWU is a small enough school it’s doable—Prof Soderstrom will conduct an official dialogue with each of us reflecting on the semester and how we have learned and grown as artists and people. We also will construct a detailed portfolio and answer a question regarding the joining of creativity and the kingdom of God throughout, but as a Human Communications Major the conversation is the portion I’m most excited about. (I will post the portfolio pdf on this website following its completion)
I’m writing this post in two parts: The first part (what you’re reading right now) is my form of preparation for the conversation…
SPACESHIP (Visualizing Childlike Wonder and Creativity)
Indiana Wesleyan University held their (I think he said seventh) annual Art & Design runway show this past Tuesday, December 3rd, and I had the privilege of taking part! Out of the 44 submissions, there were awards (via a panel of judges) given for Best in Show, Most Creative Design, Most Structural Design, one other (sorry I forget), and then a People’s Choice Award voted on by the audience. Each of the medals awarded were hand-crafted by our very own Professor Daniel Hall, who did some incredible work, and had the joy of tying each one around a winner’s neck.
Art and “the Media”
There are a few parts to this thought: 1) How I wish art was portrayed, 2) How art is often portrayed, and 3) How I idealize a partnership of media and art (how I think maybe I could make both work) Here it goes:
What Francisco de Goya, Nick Cave, and Nathan Foley have in common.
Since I’m in the academic mindset as I write this, a fun thing to note is the drastic difference in ease of synthesizing topics you already know versus those you don’t. While for classes, I need to research nearly entirely new material for the topics the papers need to address, for this blog I can instead draw from all of the art I am and have already been experiencing. Because I already know so much (relatively, about art), and am actively learning and reflecting so much about art, it’s a whole lot easier to write about. Hence where the strange array of artists comes from…
On Adaptability and Switching Majors
I’ve had to adapt, and need to adapt even more to make the best out of my ever-changing situation. Now that I know more about how life in college operates for me, I should take some time to revisit my goals and plans for reaching those goals—including the ever-present “major” decision.
Meaning in Materials and Autobiographical Art
With college comes a slew of self-reflection, and I have the privilege of being in a class called “Ideation and Interpretation” which prompts this reflection through art. My most recent piece represents a huge part of my life, and while I won’t be sharing the details online for obvious reasons, I will share the generalized takeaways…
I called it! (unsurprisingly)
I’ve written all about how “I want to pursue art for fun, not as a career.” and yet proceeded to attend Indiana Wesleyan for their art program. An incredible program it is, that I will continue to be involved in… but no longer as a major.
(In)Finite Enthusiasm
I want to continue to be as thrilled as now about every aspect of college I am and will soon be experiencing. The food, friends, and faculty that make Indiana Wesleyan University what it is.
Trying Everything (why this website is poorly maintained and I'm okay with that)
I'm going into college with a refined mindset, thanks to my experiences in highschool. I call it the "try everything… specifically" mindset.
In it, I keep an overarching goal such as "I want to improve at verbal communication" when choosing activities, and then jump into as many relevant ones as I can find.
The Deck Box Initiative
To take initiative is to do something even if you don’t necessarily want to do it.
I want to clean off my shelf, but these deck boxes that I made (I think) months ago, are still there trying to prompt me to write an Instructable about the process and the result. I even wrote a draft… that now I can’t find… of course. I titled it “How to make anything is 6 steps” and it went through how I idea….
wait.
I did write that Blog Post. and titled it “Downloading a Virus to make a Cardboard Deck Box” a little over a month ago. What a wild month it’s been that I would forget.
I guess I’ll continue with the idea of initiative. And pair that with spontaneity.
Downloading a Virus to make a Cardboard Deck Box
So I was trying to figure out a way to turn cereal boxes in convenient deck boxes for Magic the Gathering (and other card games) but none of the templates I found were what I wanted. And believe me when I say I really LOOKED. Every site that showed up with a deck box template I clicked on. (Not my best move-hence the title). But I did figure out what design I wanted, and set to work drawing up templates.
From the whole process I have found a six-ish step process for making most things:
“Simple Pictures are Best”
…is a children’s book I am quite familiar with. The story goes something like this:
There is a sweet old couple who lives on a farm and is getting their picture taken with one of those old throw-a-black-sheet-over-the-photographer cameras. But each time, right before he takes the picture, they think of another and another and another thing they could put in it. Eventually, they have their whole hat collection on, produce selection in their laps, and cats by their feet… and then a bull gets loose and blocks the entire picture when it finally does get taken. “Simple pictures are best” warned the photographer.