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I have finally caught up to Bleach and watched it last night with Jason and maiki. We are at an exciting part and though does suck to have to wait between episodes, I enjoy being a part of their weekly routine.

Kimi and Justin have also caught me up through Wes Anderson’s anthology. We have watched everything from Bottle Rocket to the Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. The later is definitely my new favorite and I adore how he blends real life with imagination and keeps it intimate with a stage production feel. I am now anxiously awaiting my trip to the theatre to see Darjeeling Limited.

Today I visited the Academy of Art library. I have only been there a handful of times and it really is such an awesome resource. I discovered a large hard bound bound book about the Ray and Charles Eames but found out that it was just a reference book. I did however come home with Stop Stealing Sheep, Tokyo: City and Architecture, and the Work of E.H. Shepard. They should keep me occupied for a few days at least.

Making Mini Books

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Sunday I visited Castle in the Air on 4th Street for a class to make mini books. It was a wonderful experience and my teacher Alice was very helpful. First we painted with acrylics onto the paper stock that we would be using to make the covers. We learned different kinds of techniques for achieving unique results. I was pleased with the way my painting came out despite the fact that my previous dabbling in painting looks like it was made by an eight-year-old. For the most part I tried to be more simple because when using acrylics a little paint can go a long way. When the paper was dry we cut it out using templates for the filler pages of these mini creations. It was a tough decision because they had huge assortment of paper, but I selected neutral colors for the most part with all different textures. Finally we sewed the inner pages into the cover to complete the cuteness.

Also throughout the making of the paper books, we covered, bound, and sewed together an even tinier book. It gave me a new appreciation for the meticulous work that goes into book binding. I am sure that it is a bit easier when working with normal size proportions but just as much love and attention to detail is necessary. I was geeking out on what I had produced that day. For the most part all of the pieces looked elegant and not too crafty. I am not certain what I am going to do with all of them now but I am sure that they will find good homes by Christmas. Also, I will take some photos of the books and post them in my gallery soon. It is my intention to have an album dedicated to my school work and other art there as well as photography.

I love working more hands on and creating things by cutting and pasting. Since I have been focusing more on Computer Arts I have missed this aspect of the creative process. This class was a fun way to get my fix and learn some new techniques. In the spring semester I am registered for printmaking and am looking forward to it immensely. I am not sure why it is a foundation course for my major but I think that it will be a nice balance to my other classes.

A week in the life of a spoiled art student

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I have taken the Bart to San Francisco everyday this week going to classes + labs, registering for the Spring semester of school, adventuring with maiki, and going to my first Creative Commons salon. It has been a week of long, fun-filled days and lots of walking. I am realizing more and more that this is exactly where I want to be in my life and appreciating every moment of it. When not in school and adventuring I have been watching Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. We had to go out and buy disc seven to finish the series but were able to jump right into disc one of GITS: SAC Second Gig after that. It is just an amazing anime series to watch—especially on the projector. I am also still eager to catch up to the Bleach series and am not too far away from watching it in real time. My friends tell me that right now I am lucky in a way because I don’t have to wait for them. I am sure that this is true and when the time comes I’ll be agonizing along with them to have to wait a week to see what happens next. It’s interesting, american television never got me like anime does. I get so excited to watch my favorite anime and I have not watched television for like twelve years. Weird. I am really enjoying the rain that has begun to fall. Even more fortunate is that I have been snuggled in bed the times that it has been the wettest outside. Listening to the rain and cryosleep together is the best recipe for beautiful deep sleep.

Tim visits Cloud Ninth

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Tim visited us in Berkeley at Cloud Ninth this weekend. It was so awesome! I love when people visit because so many fun things happen.

Friday we took a cogmotive field trip to Japantown. It was quite an adventure and required so much walking that I didn’t feel at all the guilty indulging in decadent eclairs and cream puffs for dessert. We did some shopping and stocked up on stickers, notebooks, and other cute finds at the Kinokuniya stationary store. Also at the grocery store I picked up some melon pan and strawberry pocky.

Saturday night we played Magic: The Gathering. Tim and Jason to decided to buy liquor colored red, blue, green, white, and black to correspond with the different colored cards so that when you were attacked you would lose life and have to take a shot. Luckily they didn’t pick up anything too gross. Out of everyone at Cloud Ninth I have the least knowledge and experience of the game so I usually do not participate when they play. However, with Tim here I felt like it was a good time to jump in since he was not as acclimated either. I actually ended up doing really well and stayed alive the longest. I used Jason’s green and white deck and it was so cool. The funny part was that I dreamt about playing it all night because I was so excited. I am such a geek.

Sunday, Justin and I made a veggie stew for dinner. It was great collaborating with him because he contributed so much in terms of spices and such. I have to admit that when I cook I make it up as I go along and I love input from others so that I can tweak with the “recipe.” Our stew this time had onions, garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, 2 kinds of squash and tofu. It came out delicious. I was glad that Tim could be here for a soup night. Later we walked to Andronico’s for cake.

So I guess that I like when guests are around because everyone eats together and there is always dessert. With five people in our house everyone eats at different times. The weekend days seem to be the best times for us to all come together for a meal. Before at the Hanover Studio I made soup on random Sunday nights. It was a favorite tradition of ours that of course had to be carried on here as well. Justin and I both love to cook and enjoy creating fabulous new vegan meals.

Becoming a technical artist

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I have been keeping busy with homework and I feel like I am really learning a lot in both of my classes. I am also discovering how to be just as technical as creative. For my last Illustrator assignment I had to use my ruler to get precise measurements and enter in values for the shapes that I wanted rather than drawing them as I would have done in the past. It was a very different process for me. My instructor keeps reminding me that my beloved paintbrush tool will never be exact and is not preferred. He will draw something and then ask, ‘could you do that with the paintbrush?’ I nod my head and he laughs. ‘Nobody can draw with a mouse precisely.’ He’s right but I am stubborn enough to make it work. Besides before now it is all that I knew. Today we were introduced to the pen tool and how do draw with points and handles. It is a challenge but I am slowly getting the hang of it. For homework we have to draw three Backyardigan characters.

In my other class I am learning how to compose the perfect photograph. At this point we are conversing about the concepts of good design through the critiques of our photo assignments. The critiquing part is not as bad as I had thought it would be, although I am never sure of what my teacher will like or dislike. I guess I am still in training to achieve “the eye.” Most of my classmates are in my first class as well and we are becoming more friendly and comfortable with each other. They usually say what they like more than what they would change in other students work. I find it interesting to hear other people’s opinions of the same piece. The teacher openly admits that he can find fault in anything, even in his own work. He wants for us to continually question and improve through hearing others comments and make changes.

This past weekend I returned my digital camera- a Nikon Coolpix, and got a new one- a Canon Power Shot. I had bought the Nikon last month and was not happy with the pictures that it took. Most of them were blurry and it was really a bummer. I was really excited to have a digital camera again but so frustrated with that exact one. My new Canon was a bit cheaper actually but the photo quality is excellent. I am so happy now! The photos for my next homework assignment will be that much better now.