sulamitajavierb

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One film a week

This is a new series to keep myself motivated to watch beautiful films. If you come across this post and have any suggestions, please let me know! To start off, today I watched Chungking Express by Wong Kar-wai. I’ve loved all the movies I’ve seen from this director and I’m happy to add this title to my favorites list. Can’t decide in which order I like these movies the most ‘Happy Together’, ‘In the Mood for Love’ and ‘Chungking Express’...maybe after all in the order I wrote them.

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Creation.

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Quarantine Week 1

This has been (a very) loooong week. So, I’ve decided to entertain myself by uploading my thesis and non-thesis related things that I’ve been doing during my time in quarantine. This exercise is intended as a way to inspire myself (and maybe others if they ever come across this?) to keep working on my design skills while there’s so much free time.

Learned / Learning make photos look soft and dreamy

Collected retro cake photos, for a personal collection

Updated the Desktop version of my Thesis project + added more fun teen-like elements to it! 

I enjoy cooking a lot so I had fun doing that. These were some of my favorite dishes of the week. L: Sandwich with fresh avo mayo sauce and chicken topped with mushrooms, poached egg, and arugula. R: Did white Dominican rice for the first time with fried tofu soaked in soy sauce, sugar and green onions <3

Currently reading this book that Juliette recommended me. I haven’t finished it yet because TikTok is still occupying most of my time during this quarantine, but I’ve enjoyed reading it a lot. It has a particular language (Dominican Spanglish and NY slang) that I’ve never seen before in a book, and I love it!

Lastly, this is a sad one, I tried learning Cinema 4D, but the program was missing a couple of options (maybe because it was a free version). So, I’m going to try Blender next week.

FIN

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CD Lecture - Isabel Urbiña

This first lecture of the semester was presented by Isabel Urbiña, a type designer based in NYC. Urbiña guided us through her education, her insecurities within the design field and how she managed to find her own way. Isabel Urbiña, as many of us, graduated not sure about what she should do next. Being anxious about not creating amazing work as other designers seem to be doing all the time is a problem in which I felt related in her talk. However, a way to overcome this is to simply have fun and experiment as much as you can. In her case, Urbiña found herself really drawn to typography and until this day she’s still having fun exploring all the possible outcomes she can create. After this lecture, I’ve felt really inspired to keep learning more about typography and being more curious about the things that I enjoy doing. Your work should reflect who you are and what things are you passionate about and Isabel’s portfolio definitely showcases the most of her creative and fun soul. 

Everything she wants to do or has done already. (I also want to do all of that)

Stole this selfie from Millie’s Tumblr

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Thoughts on Thesis Project W7

After last week’s feedback, I came back to understanding that my project is focused on teens. Young Dominican girls are my main audience while their older relatives would only be temporary visitors to the site. Therefore, I’ve realized that I should add younger women into the archive for my audience to relate better with the content and feel more comfortable/familiar within the platform. This doesn't mean that I will change the women I already have, but rather give some room for younger girls. As Juliette suggested, the option of the printing part of the page is a much more familiar medium for my indirect audience (Dominican women) while the website/mobile has to mostly attract and capture teens.

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Thesis Fair Feedback

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Thesis Progress - W3

History of the Dominican Republic (20th Century) 1900-1970

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F1mokpvM73jPGIzr3fjC7HpePbgOmOs4ztfJCYdBO9Q/edit?usp=sharing

Concept and Art Direction for the project, book references, and materials (pdf)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/13VXwR4g4C0_7U6lDzRuF-l4y2oVMtavg/view?usp=sharing

Although I’m not thinking about doing the shots of important women of our Dominican History, here are the ones I’ve picked as most relevant (and least mentioned)

Petronila Angélica Gómez (1883-1971) Petronila Angélica Gómez, a school teacher, and director of Fémina, the first feminist magazine in the Dominican Republic, can be considered one of the pioneers in the development of feminism in her country. Through this magazine, she showcased her ideas about the role of women within Dominican society, promoted the creation of the first feminist organization in the country (the Dominican Feminist Central Committee in 1926)

Objects to represent her: - Femina Magazine - Las Sufragistas Icon/photo

  Andrea Evangelina Rodríguez Perozo (1879-1947) - She established Mother’s Milk Bank (Banco de Leche Materna), cow’s Milk Dispensary (Gota de Leche), vaccination clinic, Society for the Protection of Mothers and Infants (Sociedad Protectora de la Maternidad y la Infancia), tuberculosis sanatorium, and lepers’ asylum, in San Pedro de Macorís.

Objects to represent her:  First women in raise awareness about sex ed in the country, Poetry, Scientific articles for Femina Magazine, Essay ‘‘Social Medicine and Protection of the Species.’

Abigail Mejía (1895-1941) Dominican feminist intellectual, narrator, literary critic and educator, considered a pioneer of feminism in the Dominican Republic, for being the founder of the Nosotras and Acción Feministas movements in 1927, the last one oriented to the formation and education of poor women in the country. Abigaíl is also the author of the Dominican Feminist Manifesto (1932). She is a pioneer of photographic art with a woman's look. She was director of the National Museum and teacher of the Superior Normal School. In 1934, Abigaíl Mejía was entrusted with the mission of organizing the Trial Vote of Dominican women, on that occasion, 96 thousand 424 women exercised the vote and this marked a milestone across the continent.

Objects to represent her: Dominican Feminist Manifesto -Las Sufragistas 

Carmen Josefina Lora Iglesias Piky (1940-1999) Her first name was Carmen Josefina Lora Iglesias, among his close, fellow combatants and for the rest of the Dominicans she became known as "Piky". She was one of the founders of the Dominican Student Federation (FED) and the only woman among the 150 guerrillas who formed the resistance fronts at the outbreak of the war of 65. She worked as an instructor in explosives, arming and disarmament

Piky Lora did not spare the danger to defy a system of repression and political persecution. She knew how to raise her patriotic sense and vocation as a militant of 1J4 (Fourteenth Movement of June). Her voice and her action had repercussions in the heart of the country and she was the only woman who, shot in her hands, closed ranks on the patriotic day of November 1963. For her revolutionary actions and in defense of the constitutional order, Carmen Josefina Lora Iglesias suffered jail, persecution, and exile, which did not break his spirit, reaffirming his revolutionary vocation in April 1965. As a lawyer, he practiced his profession in accordance with the ethical precepts that distinguished his passage through life. She will always be a reference to dignity and decorum.

Objects to represent her: Gun/arms in general -Lipstick/makeup -Fashionable accessories -Photos of her

Sagrario Ercira Diaz (1946-1972) A student leader of the Democratic Socialist University Front (FUSD), representative of the University Council and the Assembly of the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo was struck down by bullets from the Balaguerist repression. After violating the University Law, the police troops unleashed an infernal shooting, one of whose projectiles hit this young university, causing her death on April 14, 1972, fateful date that we remember with indignation. The example of this young woman serves as a stimulus for Dominicans who fight for respect for human rights.

Objects to represent her: Student books

Florinda Soriano Muñoz (- 1974) We know her as "Mamá Tingó", a fighter and defender of women and men who work in the Dominican fields. She only lived for 53 years. In the midst of his fight against the unjustified dispossession of land to the peasant residents of Hato Viejo, in Yamasá, on November 1, 1974, he was killed, during the second government of Joaquín Balaguer, by Ernesto Díaz, who murdered her in front of his husband. Mamá Tingó is a symbol of the struggle for land and an example of rural women in the defense of the rights of the peasantry in the Dominican Republic and throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Her example keeps her alive among so many brave women who fight to be free.

"The land belongs to those who sow it, so this land is mine." The history of the struggle of the rural women has an obligatory reference in Florinda Soriano. His condition as a rural day laborer was enhanced to claim his right to the land he loved and worked from a young age. This leader is known as Mamá Tingó, a community activist defending her right, fell victim to intolerance and political and social violence during the government of Joaquín Balaguer's Twelve years. With his example of courage, he bequeathed to the women of the countryside the tribute of his life as a working and honest woman.

Objects to represent her: Folk house decor

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Three audiences (for Millie)

1) Opposite Audience: Non-aware of mental health

2) Low literacy Audience

3) Opposite Culture: Boomers

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All Projects

Final project presentation: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/1G4UG-kxZz07yYEiexuCyzsNDYqtOSZ-2

(Includes iterations and photos of each medium)

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For my Thesis 1 class, I explored how we could see someone’s identity through their (1) personal objects (2) cultural objects, and (3)experiences. These three mediums translated into a book, packaging design, and lastly an app.

My favorite project this semester was #2, where I recreated and redesigned the objects that people can buy at a Botanica store. This not only represents part of our culture but also adapts its design to make it appealing for a design audience. I am interested in continue exploring popular graphics, redesigning them, and creating ‘sets’ of everyday life. I am very interested in creating a ‘supermarket’ like experience. Where all products are showcased on a shelve or in their plastic bags. 

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Last week at the Thesis Fair most of the students liked my idea for the third medium and had few suggestions and adjustments for it. However, the last girl  I spoke to didn’t really felt driven by this medium. She was the one that helped me the most. She suggested me to follow the direction of my second medium (representing identity and culture with my own product design). This sparked a new direction for me of how I could incorporate everything I have done in my last three explorations into one final possible piece for next semester.

Hopefully, I will be able to polish this idea better after the next class critique. Overall, the Thesis Fair helped me to understand that all my projects had a connection that evolved and got clearer on each new medium. I can clearly see now that I’m interesting in exploring  what identity and culture represents for different people through a very intimate leans.

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All Assignments - W1-9

Week 1: 

• Saddle-Stitched History Book/Pamphlet

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1it4No6BZfh7vBJNuiypeTI6FHuGIsnKA

               • 5-10 images of work from previous classes  

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1K_fcJfYy8a3JChOZu3TI6KuMnW-eFlOy             

• ‘Are We Human’ 

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/187452959486/are-we-human-beatriz-colomina-and-mark-wigley

Week 2:

• 256 images narrative

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1q3vyNpU-x3OiAQmW6rxEniG0x7j-xl6A

Week 3:

• Description of three potential projects (for partner)

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/187828013436/thesis-concept-ideas

• 7x9 saddle-stitched book (with 6 critical essays)

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1puAhaegjjNSlK4Kd7R9AVp_XDkqQgZI2

Week 4:

• 7x9 saddle-stitched book (with 6 critical essays and images)

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1VJFMK62dpAH_wB8sTrqOojp9Rosu9kPh

• ‘What is Design?’

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/188026981771/what-is-design

Week 5:

• 5 examples of work that share the same content and medium

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/188027429561/identity-and-materiality

•Prototype / ‘version 1’

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ANiwLplSgnTWFbQN8R7RQrxDytjlUNdG

Week 6:

• For your best idea, write in your blog the answers to these three questions.

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/188281673151/week-5-questions

• First version of your thing

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ExULiQcVYvFGXSdirMaSYIOytL4Grj5z

Week 7:

• Feedback Sheet

https://sulamitajavierb.tumblr.com/post/188281693546/week-6-feedback

Week 8:

• Final First Project

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1oEs369YYU0juaicX2tsJG-eV5bg8QGqJ

Week 9:

•First Project Research

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1DQ2AShBg0Tau3IjwIIzbUP1AjyAjZIRz

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Week 9

1.

Subject Matter: Objects and identity Q: What’s the relation between what something looks like and what it is? Would it be better to like and get to know someone by knowing the quirky things they posses, instead of just focusing on a photoshopped profile picture?

Medium: App Audience: People that want to meet others (not necessarily in a romantic way)

What if…we create a meeting app were you can only see people’s material collections. Could this possibly tell us more about the person than a profile picture? Do we need to know this much before hand?

2. Subject Matter: Objects Q: What will we become, now that life means living with computers?

Medium: Website Audience: Non Visual persons

What if...everything you write on this website is translated into visual representations. Every word or combinations of word will start creating a collection of related objects and spaces forming a complete scenario for each sentence or paragraph. 

3. Subject Matter: Ephemera and taboo popular culture Q: What’s the relation between what something looks like and what it is?

Medium: Packaging design Audience: Non Dominicans

What if...we create a narrative using ephemera.

Sexuality is a very taboo topic especially in the DR, where people rarely talk about it in a serious manner. However, the provocative colorful design of botánicas* potions, and cabañas* signs attract people to do what’s ‘forbidden’. I’m curious to explore the relationship of visually ‘highlighting’ something that is normally hidden. The Dominican fantasy fed by magic spells and bright neon cabañas rooms. 

*Botánicas= Santeria stores that sell potions and spells (many of them used to sexually/romantically ‘attract’ people)

*Cabañas= Motels that are paid by the hour. People only go to have sex.

(Three Mockups)

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Week 7 feedback

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Week 6 questions

What are the opportunities of the medium/material for your idea/question? Creating a poster allows for the public to interact with the piece and it doesn’t needs as much content as a book would. Also, a series of posters allows for a progression within the treated subject. Using different opacity and texture are one of the opportunities I want to take advantage of when presenting the final version.

Can you make it in the time you have? What are your skills with the medium? I think I can although I don’t have any experience doing posters. I normally only do books. In contrast of what I’m used to, posters have to include everything you need to communicate your idea in one sheet.

I am good picking papers to evoke the message for my projects. I’m not really good arranging a single poster.

For my schedule, I plan on:

2 hours for small adjustments and looking for more relevant content

2 hours picking/buying paper

4 hours extra work or new changes

2 hours for printing 

Is it something that we haven't seen before? Is this the right time to make it? I haven’t seen this idea as an interactive poster. This topic is important to understand why, in a time of massive consumption, we surround ourselves with specific things. For this first project I am trying for people to identify famous characters identify with objects that define their known life struggles and overall personality.

I admire that people that are working on a similar topic are not afraid of stopping strangers on the street for this experiment or creating a big group of participants.

For future projects I will start focusing in people from now. Creating insights like magazines has were celebrities would choose between pizza and tacos.

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Identity and Materiality

Jason Travis - Persona - Date

Artist Name - Project - Date

Artist Name - Project - Date

Marco Gerosa - ToiletPaper Magazine Horoscope - Sep 16th 2019

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What Is Design?

The 2019 New York Art Book Fair showcased designers and illustrators ranging in all sorts of styles. For this particular event, design for me was the overall structure in which the Book Fair was planned. From the chosen publishers to where they should be in the fair, based on the content and style they offer.