Term Long Project

Im collecting information from my community experts on community!! Here's the first email I sent them:

"Hey everyone,

I feel somewhat disconnected from our collective now that I am distracted by school, but that doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about you all.

I am doing a project (for my design class) that is about my interest in growing, making, preserving, harvesting, and generally doing things myself instead of buying it at the store (which, of course, has been facilitated by you all).

My project focuses on my experience with homebrewing, specifically harvesting hops this summer. In one piece, I map how hops have moved into my consciousness. In the other piece, I show how the Prohibition (of alcohol in america) has led to the popularity of homebrewing (and, thus, helped hops come into my consciousness). With my final pieces I want to show how my exploration with homebrewing and hops have connected me to my community and history. I want to stress the importance of people and community.

You are people who are part of my community, so I want to hear from you! If you would write me a little something about why you want to be apart of "a group of folks dedicated to community, economic independence, health (individual and community), sustainability, an openness to bartering, and eventually opening a storefront retail cooperative," that would be really helpful!

Why are you interested in learning about food? How did you come to this interest? Who in your life has taught you about the importance of community? What community mean to you? Write whatever you want- I wana know about you!

THANKS!!!

Jasmine"

learning by doing

Okay, so today I did my first screen test to see what the best time to expose the screen would be. 10 to 12 minutes is good for my light box. That is about normal I think.

I was worried that the lights weren't bright enough.

BAD Idea Alert: If you dont have a dark room, dont dry your emulsion-ed screen in a black plastic bag-- it makes the emulsion dry unevenly and crinkly.

Solution: dry screen in an old hard suitcase. Results to come.

Light Box.

Old suitcase to dry screens in.

Some totems

I made this today

all because i didnt want to clean my room...

two totems

So here are the first two friendship totems. They are the story of our relationship; the silly things we do, from my perspective.

I had a hard time picking what friends to make into totems. Im not going to let you know what totem is what, but I still couldnt decide. Im probably going to end up making a lot of them. Ha ha.

Part of the reason for this project is that I have had a hard time feeling connected to people lately. I want to emphasize the connections I DO have with people. These totems are physical proof that Im not alone.

cristina cano

im going to make an album cover for my friend cristina cano.

i want to put type onto a piece of toast for her.

thats all i got so far.

This is no longer a school blog/ask the internet

I am starting this blog again because there are things I need to get out of my brain. I half-complete projects all the time, and I feel like at least there should be an archive of my process.

I also frequently have questions for the internet and I want this to be a place where I can post the answers.

Today, for example, I was wondering about totem poles. Im not quite sure what prompted my totem pole thoughts, but I suddenly felt the urge to know about them. Here is what the internet said:

The totem carvings tell a story, revealed only if one knows the meaning assigned to various animals, fish, birds and designs and where they are placed on the pole. There were a number of reasons why a particular figure or design was chosen by a clan. The connection between the clan and the various figures carved into the pole may have been as a result a special gift from the animal, fish or bird spirits. Or, there may have been a recent encounter with that figure. Some clans claimed to be descended from certain totem figures.

The meaning of many totem poles is lost with time. Even some of today's totem polescan not be understood except from one person - it's owner. Understanding the symbolism and stories hidden within the totem pole is more than a simple exercise in learning the attributed meanings of the figures. It is possible to know the meaning assigned a figure by the people of the Northwest, but it is not always possible to know its significance to the over-all story.

Totem figures are not Gods. Totems are not worshiped like religious icons nor used as a talisman. They were never used to ward off evil spirits and claims of bizarre, magical "totemism" practices are fiction. A totem pole may be compared to the symbolism portrayed in the Great Seal of the United States or a Coat of Arms. These national emblems are roughly equivalent to the meaning bound up in a totem pole except they identified clans not an entire nation. 

Totem poles are carved today by both native and non-native people. They have become a highly valued art form and a symbol of pride and tradition for the people of the Pacific Northwest.

http://www.manataka.org/page30.html

I want to make a zine. I have also been wondering about my personal connection to people. My friends, family, acquaintances. I think that it is really interesting that the meaning of totem poles cannot be known for sure because the overall story is important. I like the idea of mapping my own connections with people by making/telling totem pole stories.

One of the things I find interesting about the connection between two people is the unimportant secrets they have together. The secrets are just everyday things that happen- things that people dont think are important enough to tell. They dont necessarily need to be kept secret, but they are never told anyway. I dont have any good examples right now. Just unspoken actions that are seemingly unimportant.

Goals: I want to learn to draw my own totem poles. I want my totem poles to tell a story.

Ideas: What part of the story should I tell? Should it be all inclusive, or super specific? Can music be involved? Can i take all the people i know and make a totem pole that tells the story of us?