I think I now get why some of my professor friends warned me about grad school being hard on a marriage. Though Karl and I physically inhabited the same space this weekend I barely felt present. To be fair, I am feeling extra overwhelmed from being sick, and a heavy freelance load, but just the sheer volume of research and pressure to work at a higher level for grad school is more than enough to cause me to be checked out.
Karl’s taking it well though. He’s being super supportive and is catching up on sleep. He accompanied me to the Library to help me find research material and then helped me rearrange some things in the grad lab. It felt nice to start settling into my work space. We moved my lock, adjusted the height of my desk, and stocked my space up with a few things. I can’t wait to actually utilize the space!
Grad School, Week 4: Tuesday
Art 625
We discussed our first reading assignment. 53 pages of information covering communication models and the nature of representation. Reading over the material earlier this summer helped make it more digestible when I reviewed it this weekend. The material was interesting. I was most interested in the bits that talked about the role culture play in communication, and on various marketing strategies throughout the decades such as the idea of selling someone a projection of a lifestyle.
Art 640
Camera demo! We unbagged the grad camera and it’s accessories, and had a quick demo regarding settings for video. It’s a Canon 70D, has several lens ideal for video, and a mic for recording better sound. I have a 60D which shouldn’t be too different, but I’m looking forward to trying out the sound gear and the wide angle lens. I’m really eager to learn how to capture better sound, and more professional video footage.
We re-prioritized some of our projects. It seems like our web and video projects will be our primary focus. We discussed our topics and began planned a few brainstorming and practice days.
Grad School, Week 4: Thursday
Art 625
Our topic and methodology outline were due today. I was advised to narrow mine back down from How Design Can Aid Victims of Sexual Trauma to something along the lines of How Design Can Help Sexual Trauma Victims Understand Their Legal Options. Apparently I had at least five research papers worth of topics in my outline. Now that it’s been narrowed back down it seems a bit less daunting.
Art 640
We discussed practice video options and settled upon filming each other next week. We’re going to introduce ourselves, talk about why we’re in the design field, and etc. We also discussed touring Longleaf Studio, various equipment demos, each of our specific interest and things we’d like to learn while in grad school, and our Design Entrepreneurship project.
Stefanie is really interested in working as a graphic designer for film like Annie Atkins. With the growing film business in Georgia and Alabama this would probably be a good possibility to introduce to JSU Art students. Laura is interested in how visual communication can improve journalism such as through info-graphics. She also mentioned being interested in design entrepreneurship. Seth’s is currently very interested in photography and typography. He described some really cool work he’s doing with starscapes and a mechanical head. Photographing the stars is still on my photo t0-do list. His method sounds super cool. I’m interested in everything, but I described my primary interests as lying in the realm of public art. I’m interested in how art and design can revitalize communities, and individuals. Basically I’m interested in how art and design can enhance quality of life. It was nice to get a peak into everyone’s interest. I think it will help us work together better as a team.
We had a group brainstorming session for our Design Entrepreneurship topic. We roughed out a general outline and agreed on what to have worked out for our next class. I’m really digging the group discussions and brainstorming sessions. I’m a bit antsy to get started making something, but this class has been fun and interesting thus far.
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