site

http://ramsites.net/~kershnerak
try to use safari for optimal viewing! (for now)
Thanks!!

l a t e update

I am really pleased with the way my website turned out. Honestly, I did a lot of stressing and freaking out about this project. I am embarrassed that I don't have more for updates, but I did the bulk of the work in two days.
This is the most challenged I've been all year in all my classes but I really am proud that my site turned out as well as it did. I am interested in making more websites and am up for learning more about dream weaver and html codes. Its quite fascinating how complex the world wide web is. Its neat that I am a part of it.
I used my favorite colors in my site because I feel my choices are a reflection of me, kind of like a digital self portrait. Purple is a rich and vibrant color and can be manipulated to change mood (like all colors). I like the feeling purple gives me. Purple is associated with spiritual fulfillment and peace of mind, which I seek. As I said in my artist statement and biography, I am interested in spirituality and death. I think my website shows the dark side of my thoughts. Black represents death in many cultures and I am intrigued with it. White is contrasting with black, they are polar opposites and details show beautifully with them. I used a very dark purple hue to tie the two elements together in a soft way. The purple hue is made with a very opaque watercolor. The black is pen and ink used for cartooning and calligraphy. I was certain that I wanted to have my pages hand drawn with details and a theme.
Bats are one of my favorite animals, they are fragile and very special creatures. If disturbed in hibernation they die. They are also a huge part of a healthy ecosystem which you can't ignore. The same goes for spiders. Being one of my worst fears, they contrast with my bat. But spiders are also a healthy part of an ecosystem keeping insect populations bearable, like bats. So they work together in some aspects and conflict in others. They both are sort of "mascots" (if you will) for Halloween, my absolute favorite holiday. This is also another reason for my little creatures being on my site.
So, after I illustrated my pages, I scanned them into the wonderful computers we have at school allowing me to import them into a digital image. I used Photoshop to edit and compose my layouts. I learned a lot more about Photoshop's little secrets on how to make your life a little easier. It was sweet. I cut my drawings into buttons and applied images and text where they needed to be. Eureka! Pages for my site!
I then imported the pages into dream weaver and started the "nitty gritty" part of my site...html codes, links, pages, pages, pages! It was really beneficial for me to learn dream weaver. I feel it is just another thing I can keep practicing with and eventually it will come easy as pie. I was really confused in the beginning, but towards the end, it was kind of repeating what I was doing from the start. Practice makes perfect!
Unfortunately, at the last minute...murpheys law attacked. When something can go wrong it does. I was finished with everything and uploaded my pages to fetch which uploaded them to the world wide web and ... BAM! Problems erupted. Firefox shows all the borders that I didn't hard change to 0 and it looks terrible. Safari shows it perfectly though, which confused me. Also, my images didn't link the way I programmed them to. The goal was to have my "works" page set up in thumbnails which you then can click on to make the images larger and appear by themselves. I checked my coding, my folders, everything. I even deleted my entire folder that I uploaded on Fetch three times, re-saved everything, uploaded them again and... same problem. I desperately want to fix these problems as soon as possible so I can start advertising my site. I am proud of it and want to use it to promote myself.
In the critique, I agree with what my classmates said about viewing the images in another window for larger viewing. I would like my audience to see every aspect of my work so that I can truly be herd. I also agree with what Gerry Perez said about my site looking a little too playful. My work has an underlying message that isn't always playful and fun. I want my work to be taken seriously and I need a professional website where miscommunication won't be an issue.
I am revisiting my site as soon as I can and can't wait for my next one. I need to stay on it so that I won't forget any of the valuable lessons learned. I thoroughly enjoyed this project and really appreciate the time taken to complete an outstanding website. As a designer, which I feel more comfortable saying now then ever, I am more conscious of everyday advertisements, logos, text, layouts and more. This is a great technique to build from in all works of art.

Critique

This is Ruby, an spokesperson for the Body Shop. She changed advertisements marketed towards women in an in spiting way. It is refreshing to see something different that really speaks to you, as a woman I know. Its discouraging to see size 2 women posted all over cities and malls, television sets and more. "There are 3 billion women who don't look like supermodels and only 8 who do" is a very strong slogan. This makes women stop and think about how they view themselves. The figure in the background, Ruby, is standing in a very confident pose and looks sure of herself and happy to be naked. I respect this more than any size 2 model posted across a window of the mall. This is inviting because it tells you that all women are welcome here. The red background has great contrast with the figure. Unfortunately this was too controversial for many malls and had to be taken down from the shops. Some people thought it was too offensive and inappropriate for all ages. But to me, why? Isn't showing young girls that its okay to have eating disorders wrong? I mean, I am not saying "lets raise an obese society" or anything. I just want to be able to see a little variety in advertisements marketed towards women.

html fun

this is a new experiment.
lets talk bold
and tiny.

yahoo


italics look like this

• here
• here
• here

• one
• two
• three

• uno
• dos
• tres

Ad crit

All I have to say is that searching the web for advertisements can be pretty...well to be quite honest, sad. You search and see these ads that don't speak to you and then you stumble on one. Bam, it hits you.

This is a very powerful ad to me. This is promoting organ donations which I completely believe in. This is important to everyone in the human race because you never know when something deadly is going to happen to you and: A. you die or B. you need an organ to live. What are you going to do? I am an organ donor and believe it is my human duty to help those in need if something were to happen to me.

This is a shocking advertisement because it is a dead person on the street that has just been hit by a car. This works because pretty much everyone who crosses the street could be hit by a car. This also appeals to a wide group of people because it looks like it just happened out of nowhere. An accident can and will happen to everyone when they aren't expecting or planning it. The angle if this shot shows the suddenness of the incident. The people coming out of their cars shows that too. This is a very intense image. Blunt and to the point. The negative space of the asphalt brings your eyes to the focal image of the boy dead on the asphalt. The the cars aren't in full view giving just the right amount of information leading your eyes. The stale, bleak, and dull color that overcasts the image gives a feeling of sadness.

The text proclaiming that you can be a hero after your die is so powerful. I think it speaks to a lot of people, its powerful and true. I love how simple words can work to make the viewer feel something. It touches them. It touched me.

i'm just doing nonsense here...
Where are you?

This is getting better.

whoah... it actually works. neat!

text text

check it...i'm going to be a master soon...whoot whoot

here is the yahoo link...check it, i did it.

Safe sex advertisement

This is a very powerful advertisement in the fact that it is so literal. These people are literally crash test dummies and they are obviously being intimate with each other.
This is an ad for aids awareness. Safe sex is the way to go is the point of these ad's. The amount of people infected with HIV in the District of Columbia has risen 20% in the last 2 years. There really is no excuse for this, its crazy. People should be aware that there lives are in danger when you aren't practicing safe sex when not in a monogamous relationship. Your life is literally on the line when you aren't safe.
This ad is effective in getting peoples attention because of the dummies that are in it. It is really eye catching to see them this way because they aren't in a car being smashed into a wall. They are being sexual with each other. It is interesting to see the people figures as plastic dummies in two ways. The first being they are plastic, plastic representing condoms and its funny that they are generally called "dummies". The point of this is to show that you are a dummy if you don't practice safe sex.
The position of the people in this ad is to show that they are being sexually active and the point is to be safe. The red background is sensual showing intimacy and the red ribbon is the model for this cause. They are both effective in this ad because of the meaning. "Its your life, Not a crash test" is a very powerful statement in how it is so real. You have one life, and one only, so why waste it on not being conscious of the decisions you make?

Thank you!

New School Advertisement

Adidas Advertisement

I love this Adidas advertisement because of the awesome design. The use of color is really eye catching and appealing with the contrast of the black background. The word "Adidas" is the perfect contrast in that it is white, against the black background. The colors in the trail of the shoe are reminiscent of one of the Apple computer screen savers. Extremely fluid and vibrant in movement and color bring this advertisement to life.
The size of the shoe is appealing as well because it doesn't fill the whole layout. I feel that it would be too distracting with all the colors and movement. The negative space filled in with black has just the right amount of space. The placement of the shoe is great too, centered and aligned with the text moves the eye in just the right areas.
This also has a young and fun appeal to it. This generates a free spirit feeling. It says you can wear vibrant colors in all shades and hues with just about anything. I get the feeling that if I wear these shoes I feel young and fresh and could wear these "kicks" with just about anything and get away with it.
I think that this advertisement is strong in the movement of the "tail" with all the vibrant colors. The contrast of the black and white versus the colors is eye popping and interesting. This advertisement is appealing to youth and I'm pretty sure that statistically, more youth see advertisements every day that market towards them. If these are successful, thats good news for business.

Can Logo

Osbourn Park Logo

This is Osbourn Park high schools logo of a yellow jacket. This is the high school I attended and it was a great. I really like this logo of a yellow jacket but, as Gerry and I were noticing, it is so overused. As I was looking around at other peoples old school logos and they seem at least a little original. The logo looks great to me but it is so cleche. A lot of pro sports teams use this image and it would be refreshing to see something a little edger and creative. I feel that the best logo of mine is the most simple for of the yellow jacket. I like how it has a contemporary new feel to it with out screaming an image. A big part of high school is trying to feel unique around people. If your high school is being represented by a used up logo how can you feel original and new? I think a fresh new appeal will give other local high schools a run for their money. I feel like this new logo (with a little tweaking) could really represent something new and exciting. The school colors are blue and gold and incorporating them in a more artistic way shows fresh unique ideas, which would be a great way to represent your high school.

Logos

Logo Sketches

illustrator

Design Crit

I chose this advertisement because of her use of design. Her color use is strong because it is in the same family of color, the shades of brown used in the picture reflect the background color. The hint of blue is fitting for this because there is an element of contrast and movement across the page. It draws the viewers eyes to the font. The use of proximity is in effect here with the placement of photos. The big picture on top is balanced by the three lower pictures. The lower pictures are creatively placed with one another with a balance of background color (light vs. dark). Alignment is shown is this advertisement with borders being strong and even as well as creative in the placement of the two smaller pictures to the right of the second biggest image. The corners still match each other making them fit together but the designer is still making a conscious decision to break it up and be bold. Over all, I think the composition of this piece is strong and appealing. The only thing I really have a problem with is her centered text. Like Robin Williams said "Never Center!". Its too safe and mild. The word Lace can be centered but it may be visually stronger if she broke the contact information up a little bit. Maybe place text on the lower bottom right and left sides of the page.

New portrait

Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo (July 6, 1907 – July 13, 1954) was a mexican painter who used vibrant colors and a mix of cubism and surrealism to express herself. She painted numerous self portraits with personal life experiences incorporated in them. This portrait above is one example. She was in a terrible accident with a bus and a trolley car leaving her bedridden for months in a full body cast. She used this time to learn how to paint and used herself as her subject matter. Most of her work was self portraiture. She suffered terrible bouts of pain throughout her back and legs from the accident all her life. Her work was twisted and kind of creepy which I really like.
I chose her because of her influence on me. She is emotionally inspired and I love her creativity. She used a simplistic approach to her work and it works. Not a lot of shading and blending to create depth but has great attention to detail. I am attracted to her work also because it speaks to many women. When she was pregnant and miscarried she was depressed and expressed herself through a series of paintings which a lot of women can relate to. Its very raw, sad and personal. As an artist, she has greatly influenced me and my ambition to express myself. I love how her work is aesthetically appealing due to its graphic nature and awkward approach. Its originality is unique to her and will forever be influential in the "art world". She is political, honest, raw, beautiful and forever immortal.

Design Crit 2

I chose the apple ipod image that really speaks for itself.  I think this photo is visually intriguing because of its use of color contrast and negative space.  The colors are strong against the black silhouette image of a girl showing movement having a fun approach to advertising.  Her movement shows that she is definitely feeling her music and action is important with music advertising.  The simplicity of the stark white background is strong against the layer of colors and the layer of the black image.  Simplicity is appealing to me because it makes a strong point.  You don't need a lot of "stuff" to get your point across to the viewer.  The logo apple uses and the small text "ipod" next to it in the upper right hand corner is all you need.  I also thought it was cool that the actual ipod is white making the background come into play without overdoing the product.  Overall its a fun image that conveys movement, music and artistic freedom from the norm.  

Photo Essay

...Originals...

...Edited...

I am working on an acorn in my ceramics class and I was inspired by the life I am giving to clay. I think its interesting that you can create something out of nothing. Just like these photographs. They are merely just documents of our memories but can be read as so much more when you edit them to say what you want. The story you can tell by editing photos is really interesting. In this photo essay I wanted the viewer to see a peak of the process of my project. Everything from just seeing a ball of clay, shaping it, refining the details and finally the finished piece...an acorn! I thought that my original photographs were nice but very "documented" looking. I wanted to show the fun you can have making art with clay so I decided to crop the areas of interest so it was more detailed by using photoshop. I love color so I incorporated it by playing with hue and saturation as well as the photo filter option on photoshop (which I love). I also had a hard time only choosing only four photos to tell a story, I took quite a few and really had to edit them down. I hope to gain more insight on the use of photo essays as an art and manipulating the readers attention by using photoshop.

Design Crit 1

I thought this image from the Body Shop was strong in many ways so I chose it for this critique. I work at the Body Shop and have always appreciated the advertisements because they are so powerful and unique in their concepts and ideas. They don't want to just "fit in" with competitors, they want to stand out and have a voice. I love that about the company.

This image in particular is appealing to me because of the contrast in colors. The bright blue sky and the pure white clouds make the foregrounds green cactus really pop. It really makes me think clean, crisp nature. And that's absolutely what this advertisement is trying to say. Nature is strong, but is also in danger, and promoting the preservation is the goal. The angle of the photograph is appealing to me as well because it makes the cactus look extreme, tall and healthy.

I think this is a strong, unique and appealing advertisement and is successful in its outreach for customers.

Besty in Purple

Origional Betsy

As the story goes...

This is no ordinary hero friends, but more, much more. She is a protector of all beings, whether or not you are in need. See, my friends, she protects all creation because she knows that without her power, all would be lost. She has the great duty of protecting our mother, mother earth that is and without our earth all would be lost. She has the unique power of communicating with all living things. Her magnificent snakes act as interpreters for every living thing on planet earth. If everything on this planet communicates with her, she will know just what to do when harm comes to destroy. She helps us all because she protects the foundation of life as we know it, earth. Her name is Lodi and she will be here, through thick and thin, to guide us all into making the right decisions about our one and only planet, earth.

For us all.

Lodi

Hippo Hero

My first Day of class

hey this is neat oooo