Art-i-fact #012313v001

I had a great day in class today. It was great to see the students work and see great potential. I have a really great bunch of students this semester.

Art-i-fact #011513v001

A pewter checkerish pattern. I will print it out and live with it for a few days to see if I like it. I did hear today that my first fabric samples are on the way. If all goes well I will have some new bow ties soon.

Art-i-fact #011113v01

On my way to work this morning all the trees and grass were covered with white frost crystals. It was beautiful.

Art-i-fact #011013v01

The frost crystals on the trees inspired me to try a pattern for todays art-i-fact. There is not much frost but it was beautiful.

There is a beauty in the bare branches of trees in the winter.

Today was the first day of classes so my artifact for the day is my syllabus for the identity design class. Sometimes you just do whatever it takes.

Artifact #005

Just in case you are interested it was a good first day of class. I am looking forward to the semester.

At a movie theater in Colorado a man committed a crime. I am choosing today to tune out of all coverage. I don’t want to know why he did it. I don’t want to know what was in his mind. I don’t want to know because it won’t give life back to the people who are gone. It won’t change anything to give him a soap box to relive his crime. I know my influence is small but I suggesting that you might consider doing the same. Reverence those who lost their lives. Reverence the wounded. Deny him any attention. Please tune him out. No good will come from wallowing with him.

A semester has just ended. Although there are always things that can be better it was a good semester. I had a discussion at lunch with Brian Memmott, a faculty colleague, about typography. My mantra for this semester has been, “Invite the reader into the content.” In the past my typographic mantra has been “You need to learn to see.” I still believe that students of typography need to “learn to see” but the statement itself is abstract and difficult for students to grab ahold of. All of them can get ahold of what attracts their attention and invites them to come in for a visit.

Invite readers to come in for a visit.

While the students are still in the beginning stages of learning about type, I am hopeful that observing typography from this new vantage point will invite and encourage them to learn to clearly communicate the content as they are learning to see.

Painting experiment

The right arm is stiff and sore but doing much better than expected. But for now the experiment goes on.

Surgery went well and I actually have some use of my right hand. But as an experiment I am going to give this left handed drawing a shot. It can’t hurt and could be interesting.

Tomorrow morning at 5:30, I will be having some surgery on my right arm that result in a lack of mobility in my right arm for a short while. So with a pen in my left hand I will start Left Handed Drawings. Stay tuned …

“This past month I started taking a class from Camp Pikaland | The Sellable Sketch, taught by Michelle Fifis of Pattern Observer and have discovered a few things that should have been second nature to me but for some reason didn’t click until Michelle pointed them out.

Camp Pikaland

I have had hopes of designing patterns for fabric without really knowing who I am designing them for. Basically shooting arrows without a target but hoping to score a bulls eye. Luckily I have hit the target once without aiming but can clearly see that if I really want to design patterns, I need to know which industry I want to design for and who my audience is inside of this specific industry.

Wich Industry?

I have decided to target the quilting industry and have learned how little I know about quilting and the industry.

My first research with keywords in Google produced results that were a bit discouraging for me. It all seemed so prepackaged and cute. This experience was a disappointment for me because I couldn’t see myself enjoying designing for it. I could it just didn’t seem like it would be satisfying.

This experience was a disappointment for me because I couldn’t see myself enjoying designing for it. I could it just didn’t seem like it would be satisfying.

This experience was a surprise and left me feeling really lost. The discovery that I knew nothing about the quilting beyond my personal experience with quilts made by my relatives. I tried quilting once and honestly I am not interested in the process at all. It seemed like a lot of work for a blanket.

During my research, I did discover an amazing series of quilts from Gee’s Bend. The quilts are amazing and worth a look. This discovery was the highlight of my research for this lesson.

At the beginning of the chat session for lesson 2, I didn’t know what or who I was planning on targeting with my pattern designs. During the chat, Michelle recommended trueup.net. What a great blog. I went to the blog looking for current trends and found a side of fabric design that I was excited about. It was refreshing and I felt like I could fit into this world. This is a new world that I want to discover.

It was refreshing and I felt like I could fit into this world. This is a new world that I want to discover.

I am going to continue designing fabric for quilting and I am really looking forward to digging deeper and discovering the great designers and their work.

My Jot Pro from Adonit has arrived and it is by far the best stylus I have used with my iPad. It was a project through Kikstarter and it is a great product. The package is hard to open and apparently it sticks to some screen protectors, but it doesn’t change the fact that Adonit designed an amazing product.

If you have ever used your finger of a stylus with the iPad you will have discovered that precision is a bit of a challenge because your finger or stylus blocks your view. Adinit solved this by making a fine point stylus with a flat clear disk on the end. The disk provides the width that the screen needs to recognize the input but because it is clear you can see exactly where you are drawing. An amazing great product!

Pattern as a Brush Texture from Scott Franson on Vimeo.

Pattern as Texture | Any pattern that you create or scan can be used as a texture for a Photoshop brush. This tutorial is a followup to the Repeating Pattern tutorial. If you don’t know how to make a repeating pattern, watch it first.

Doodle | Aug 18, 2011 from Scott Franson on Vimeo.

Doodle: Aug 18, 2011 | A good friend David Molanphy, asked me to record my drawing process for my doodles. I have finally found a use for the video camera in my iPad2. I set it up and began to draw. I hope you enjoy it.

Octopiguin and his pal Owl | He is a cross between a penguin, octopus with 7 appendages and a pig with a three-horned owl as a pal.

I watched the introduction to the Great Recovery last night from Dave Ramsey. He suggests that we need to live with hope in Jesus Christ and with that hope begin our nations economic recovery in our own homes.

I choose to become a part of The Great Recovery and am committed to keeping my house in spiritual and financial order.

The government will not fix the economy until the people of this country take personal responsibility for their small part. Please help our country return to spiritual and economic health.
Start by watching Dave Ramsey’s kickoff event.

Repeating pattern from Scott Franson on Vimeo.

This Tutorial shows how to create a basic repeating pattern.

1. Choose a pattern size and create a new document. (The resolution matters. My default is 3x3 inches at 300 pixels per inch)
2. Draw in the center of the defined area. It is important to avoid the edges.
3. Filter > Other > Offset, check Wrap Around.
4. Draw
5. Offset [command F will redo the last filter]
6. Edit > Define Pattern
7. Name the pattern

Now you have a repeating pattern that can be used in many different ways.

• Apply pattern to a brush [tutorial coming soon]
• Fill with pattern [tutorial coming soon]
• Paint with pattern [tutorial coming soon]

Perennial

by Scott E Franson | size: 5x7 | media: digital

Submitted to illustrationfriday.com

This was the perfect word for me tonight. I have been trying to get a creative project going but keep getting interrupted by the challenges that life dishes out. Now every time I start I want to see the success right away and am a bit frustrated that it isn’t prefect.

I was reminded of a drawing assignment that many of you may have done in class where you draw without looking at your paper. The whole joy of the assignment is in fact they are inaccurate. I did add a small twist on the assignment so that I couldn’t cheat. I created a new photoshop file with a white background then added a new blank layer above it. Then I did the drawing in white. That way I couldn’t see the previous drawing. Upon completing the drawing I locked the transparent pixels and added a darker value so that the image showed up.

It took a few minutes and gave me permission not to be perfect.

Humming is the first of an experiment creating characters with the style I have used for doodling and the A-line series. I am working on their form now. My doodles feel like dead animals for scientific examination. I am hoping along the way that I can begin to add life to these creatures that will be able to inhabit a story.

Squish is sweet and likes hair bows.

Slow and Crunchy | I hope never to step on one again.