Pics from Photography Class + Update!

Hey guys! So I know it's been a while. School is hard, life is crazy, and I've been really, really busy. But I still have a lot of stuff that I'm excited to get out there and, at this point in my life, being creative isn't something I can just stop doing. Whether it's doodling in class, or jotting down a quick thought or idea in my sketchbook, I hang on to my need for art and creativity every day. I still have a nearly finished children's book to finish up over Christmas and then try my hardest to get out there. It may seem like things are going slow, but that doesn't mean that nothing is happening.

Today I wanted to share some of my favorite shots to come out of a digital photography class I'm currently in. Most of this these shots were taken as jpegs and could not be edited later, not my idea, just the constraints of the assignments.



On a street close to my house...





Long exposure of my friend Corban swinging a toy light saber around a forest. Yeah, we're pretty cool.



This isn't my favorite shot ever, and the background needs some work, but it was super fun to take.



Taken in the photo studio of Wallace hall. Half of the lights didn't work...



This is, first off, edited and not a final turn in for the class, but also a photo that makes me really happy. For this particular project we had to go up to strangers and ask them if we could take photos of them. It was kind of awkward. I had a few people tell me no, including one man who demanded that I give him my camera so that he could "take pictures of me and see how I like it." The biggest problem was, however, that most people who said yes would paste on a fake smile and then proceed to stare blankly at the camera until I was done. Fortunately, Andrea (the girl pictured) yielded much better results by spending most of our encounter talking nervously about how stressful her new research job was. Way to be open and interesting, Andrea. I hope you've gotten the hang of that new job!

Thanks for your time and will try to post again soon,

-Joseph

Lo-fi Thrift Store Find

Hey guys just sharing some lo-fi photos of a weird/fun thrift store find from a few weeks ago. Hope you enjoy. By the way, I'm back in Design school now, working hard. Also, almost done with the kid's book revision! Super excited. Enjoy the photos.

Welp, until next time..

Love,

-Joseph

ATM Research Project

Hey guys! While I was at the Carlow institute of technology me and my fellow Industrial Design students did a cool service-design related research project. We split into small groups of 4 or 5 people. Our goal was to collect data on the different ways that people handled using a public ATM. We set up shop a ways away from an ATM in a mall and gathered data on everyone who used it. We made 3 final sheets to convey our findings. I was the designated sketcher for my group, and in the observing stage did numerous sketches of the users. Afterwards, I also designed and drew the final sheets from sketches and notes we had taken. It's important to note that I didn't do the marker work here. Also the ATM in the pictures is traced from line-work that another group member did.

So these first two are "Personas" created from observing many different kinds of users and looking at the overlap. We found that men tended to act much more cautiously throughout the transaction, especially when they were alone. We also found that mothers tended to be more comfortable, even though their attention was often split between the ATM and their child.

The third sheet I did is a look at the way various users handled taking out their purses/wallets. It also looks at the way that the cash is collected and put away after the transaction. We found that men tended to get their wallets out earlier and also put the cash into their wallet while walking away. Women tended to do the opposite in those two instances. We also found that mothers sometimes hang their purses on their strollers, or even leave it on the floor for a minute. Generally speaking, women tended to take their time more and go at a slower pace, while men tended to hurry through the process.

Here are some gesture sketches I did while watching various users. Some of these are sequences of use (step by step sketches of the various actions taken by the user). These are just a few choice sketches ones out of many.

I like this sketch a lot. I feel like it conveys a body language well.

Here are some notes that my wonderful group members made!

Here's a photo of me sketching for proof.

Love,

-Joseph Smolin

MONEY EATERZ

Hey guys! It's been awhile. I've been super swamped getting my kid's book ready for print before I have to get back to school. I reformatted the whole book and am also currently doing some new artwork for it. The book (titled Athena and The Golden Bird) should be available to purchase sometime this fall! I'm super excited about it and am gonna post about it soon. Anyways enjoy this ballpoint concept I did last night:

It's titled "MONEY EATERZ." This is a concept I've been kicking around for awhile in my head. It actually combines a few different ideas I've had. I think the meaning is pretty evident. Money is often treated as the primary reason for living life. The amount of money that a man has is often considered an objective statement of his worth. Many peoples' day to day lives can be boiled down to key business transactions. We all have to consume money every single day just to survive. Are we to understand ourselves as nothing more than MONEY EATERZ?

Love,

-Joseph Smolin

Even More Photography (From Ireland):

Hey guys! Got some more photos from my trip to Ireland. I'm editing these completely out of order, so these are are actually from the very beginning of the trip. They're all taken in Ballyvaughan, Ireland, which is in The Burren. Most of the ones today were taken at The Burren College of Art, where we did a project. It's an awesome place. Anyway, enjoy the photographs!

Here's Bekah working on a project in the studio.

Some artwork from the Burren College of Art on display.

Landscape outside the college.

Cool Shot of the sky.

Abandoned bicycle. I like this shot.

Peeling Paint.

"Hellscape"

"Empty Head"

So I really really like this photo. It's a somewhat blurry close-up of a painting. I can't take full credit cause I didn't paint the awesome painting, someone at the College did. I really love the intense landscapey feel it takes on here though.

Be back soon!

-Joseph

Short Film!

Hey! I got something pretty crazy for you guys today! It's a stop-motion short film that I made in collaboration with my wonderful brother, Nathan. It's very surreal and emotional, and it's only 20 mins long! This project means a lot to me, so I would definitely recommend checking out when you get a chance.

Pretty interesting, right? I'd love to hear any comments on the film (positive or negative). I'm really proud of the visual style and character design shown throughout the movie. I also really enjoy the last scene. Big thanks to my brother, Nathan. As well as lending a strong creative hand, he oversaw all the animation, edited the entire film with me by his side, and lip-synced all the characters' dialogue. I simply couldn't have made this without him. So thanks. Before I go, here are a few promotional photos that didn't make it into the final film:

The giant newspaper cigarette used to be an element in a mobile I made for an art class in senior year of high school. Glad it's going on to have a solo career entirely its own.

I love this photo. Good use of groundhog skull.

Thank you so much for reading! This short film has been one of the most fun and rewarding art projects I'm done in a long time, and I hope to see it continue to have a life of its own in the future.

Love,

-Joseph

Nervous Energies!

Hey guys. I got a quick ink drawing I did last week. It's about stress:

It's mostly ballpoint, but the larger, more textured lines were done with the side of an ink stick. For those who don't know, ink sticks are super fun to draw with. This is one in a series of pieces with text I've been working on lately. I love how direct text can be, and sometimes the best way to say something is just to write it down. More of these to come soon.

Love,

-Joseph