Digital designs by Jamar L.

http://www.mlsledcn.com/uploadfiles/201031544741518403.jpg

Digital signs are displays we see throughout Chicago. Almost everywhere you go you see digital signs. Digital signs help give people information and give our city postmodern images. I am interested in digital signs because it makes our city look good and reveal information to people. Another name of a digital sign is a digital signage. Digital signage is used throughout the world due to its beneficial value. China leads the world in the number of digital signage, which is 120,000 screens.

      Purposes of digital signage

 . Public information- news, weather, and local information

 . Internal information- Health and Safety
 . Menu information- prices, photos, ingredients, and other food information.
 . Advertising- Digital signage used to reach the audience

1. Do you think digital signs is a good way for companies to advertise? Why or Why not?
2. Do you think digital signs make the city look more appealing? Why or Why not?
3. In what ways has digital sign help benefit your life?

Cosplay Mania

 Cosplay is derived from "costume" and "play" and is a practice where people dress up as a characters from fiction. (Think of it as a specialized Halloween event if you will.) Most cosplay topics are characters from anime or manga who often have rather unusual hair styles and strange
clothing. To imitate the complexity of the various outfits, cosplayers are often skilled in textile, sculpture, face paint and other crafting skills. Of course, because of the cost of the materials required cosplay is also a business management. Some photographers are devoted to this culture and make a living from working with cosplayers. There are stores and websites devoted to selling cosplay items and accessories. To many, cosplay is not only a hobby for fans, but is also a subculture in Art due to the creativity, work and time involved in creating a single outfit. Some people object to the notion of cosplayers devoting time to their hobby because it "takes away them away from reality". Most cosplayers do what they do because they are fans of the characters they portray but some may go as far "becoming" the characters themselves. Some cosplayers wear their art pieces not only at specialized conventions, but in their daily lives as well. There are some who wear them to work or school and act like their characters at a daily basis. They essentially "become" their characters. Critics claim that the obsession takes over their lives and overcomes reality itself. 

 Although I'm not a cosplayer myself, I find the subculture very interesting. The notion of just "being" your favorite character for a day, fascinates me. I chose this topic because it is a way escape from reality into fantasy (without being a psychopath). To incorporate art and design into the culture makes it all the more the interesting. Cosplay is not just a simple dressup game but a way of life where you devote time and creativity to fabricating someone's life into cloth.
http://www.japanlinked.com/Japanese-Culture/cosplay.html




Questions:

1. How far is too far for cosplay's role in real life? Why?
2. Should cosplay be banned because of its affects on young people's lives (time, money...)? Why or why not?
3. Should all ages be allowed in the cosplay conventions?

Angela

The Mohawk

http://www.popularlonghairstyles.com/2011/07/punk-hairstyles-for-men-medium-men.html

The Mohawk

I chose a hairstyle known as the "mohawk" as my topic because, I think it is a cool hairstyle that is worn by many people and in different ways. I think it is different from most hairdo's we see on the street or wherever. I thought a mohawk showed a lot of visual culture in hairstyles. Even though your hair may not seem like a big deal, most people really care what it looks like. I just thought of how weird it was that whoever wore it first in our time, set a trend and now it is very popular. This interested me and I thought it would be something nice to share.

 

The mohawk derived from the Iroquois, and is also known as an "Iro". It is named after the Mohawk Nation. The hairstyle is when you shave the sides of your head and leave the middle long. You usually want it to stand up, you would do this by using hair gel or hair spray. This hairdo was then wore by teenagers who were either goth, rebellious, or punk rock. It has now evolved into a very common hair style that is popular and is the hair style choice of a ton of people. It is said to be a high-maintenance hairdo and is said to be innapropriate at formal events. In general you see a lot of men wearing a mohawk, but girls wear it too!

 Other ways to wear it

According to "hairtostyle.com"

"* 360 Mohawk – Having a mohawk that expands into a fringe.
* Tophawk – A mohawk that is only on the top of the wearer’s head.
* Chelseahawk – A combination between a chelsea cut and a mohawk.
* BiHawk- having two mohawks
* Duohawk- Mohawk is split into two parts.
* Trihawk – Having three mohawks.
* Deathhawk – A teased hair mohawk.
* Fauxhawk – A fake mohawk. Normal hair put up in mohawk style, or one that is less than 2 inches in length.
* Mocombover – A mohawk specifically used to cover the bald sides of the shaven head by combing the long hair over the sides as in a comb over.
* Mullhawk – A mohawk combined with a mullet,
* Libertyhawk – Having a spiked mohawk.
* Inverted Mohawk – Shaving a strip down the middle of ones head, and leaving hair everywhere else.
* Sunhawk – A mohawk where, rather than front to back, the hair extends over the head from one ear to the other.
* Garbohawk – An un-fanned hawk most commonly seen on women."
^
http://www.hairtostyle.com/types/mohawk-hairstyles/facts-about-mohawk-hairstyle.php

This is a video on how to spike a mohawk. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=TPXgpGM_ess\

This is a video with a variety of mohawks. http://youtu.be/9nYktHyMKEQ

?Questions?

Do you think the mohawk is an innapropriate hairstyle at a formal event? Why or why not
Do you think it is meant for both boys and girls to wear?
Would you consider a mohawk of any sort? (There is a huge variety)





-Vinny

Street Art V.S. Graffiti

                                  GRAFFITI VS STREET ART
                                                                       BY: TONY V

Since the beginning of man, cave men have drawn on walls to signal there appearance and to draw objects they saw within there time. Now lets take a trip to the future and stop around the 1960's in Brooklyn, New York where Cornbread was the first graffiti artist to write on walls. Graffiti is a type of art where one writes a name or picture in order to catch attention and get their name "Up". Within the roots of graffiti A specific type of art boomed into the scene, and its name is Street art. Street art is a type of art where spray paint is hardly used but wheat paste, labels and creativity come into place.  I chose this topic for One of two reasons, One: I am a graffiti artist and I believe that what I do is art. two: street artists and graffiti artists have "beef" with each other because more and more street art is being accepted. 

 28:20&32:00http://www.streetartnews.net/search/label/Banksy

Street art and bombing in Chicago

http://www.bombingscience.com/index.php/gallery/viewThumbs/city/1852/style/2

this Video shows how graffiti can be a full time job and how street art and graffiti can form one unit 

http://www.fatcap.com/video/624.html

questions:

1) Would you prefer street art or graffiti to be legalized and accepted within your neighborhoods? Why?

2) Do you think its fair that street artists get no punishment while graffiti artists usually have to do time in jail?

3) If you had to choose to do graffiti or street art, which one would you choose? Why?

Natural Disaster

What's graffiti? The topic of graffiti is interesting to me. Some people feel that graffiti is just spray painting walls, while others feel its just to mark turf for gangs. But to me its an outside museum of art. It also shows how people express themselves. When I was younger I thought graffiti was bad because i never really saw a fully finished piece of graffiti. But later on I saw more and more graffiti but they were all finished thats when I began to like it. I wanted to show how outside (nature), could be represented through art with a base of outside. In this picture there is a 3-D representation of trees, a faucet with water coming out, and concrete. These are all things of nature. In the other picture there is a canvas outside with graffiti on it and trees surrounding it.

Questions

1. Can graffiti ruin some neighborhoods? Or does it fit in everywhere?

2.Do you think graffiti should be considered a criminal offense?

3. Is all graffiti bad? Why or why not?