Tuesday, November 25, 2008

M U L T I M E D I A E X P E R I E N C E : portfolio site concepts

  1. Horizontal movement: macro - micro view of work
  2. divid all content into two parent categories: emotion/logic
  3. homepage randomly choses a portfolio piece each time it is refreshed
  4. each page (content type) is a room in a house. different types of work are contained within different rooms
  5. hallway with multiple doors dedicated to specific content
  6. night skyscape: constellations are formed through navigation
  7. subservient curtis: user can command me to present certain work as well as do other things
  8. filters determine given content (color, creation date, emotion, type, etc)
  9. site framed within actual eyeglass lens: focus blurs during transitions. left lens= nav; right lens= content

Thursday, October 30, 2008

V I S U A L L A N G U A G E : social/cultural research [sweatshops]

Footwear and sweatshops [SOCIAL/CULTURAL]

PRO-SWEATSHOP LABOR
  • economic theory of comparative advantage which states that international trade will, in the long run, make some parties better off.
  • Developing countries improve their condition by doing something that they do "better" than industrialized nations
  • Benefits developed countries because workers can shift to jobs that they do better
  • Although wages and working conditions may appear inferior by the standards of developed nations, they are actually improvements over what the people in developing countries had before
  • If the factory jobs did not improve the workers' standard of living, those workers would not have taken the jobs when they appeared
  • Sweatshops are not replacing high-paying jobs but rather offering an improvement over subsistence farming and other back-breaking tasks, or even prostitution, trash picking, or starvation by unemployment
  • Critics of sweatshops compare wages paid in one country to prices set in another
  • The $0.15 that a Honduran worker earned for the long-sleeved t-shirt was equal in purchasing power to $3.00 in the United States
  • Offer substantially higher wages and better working conditions compared to their previous jobs of manual labor
  • Sweatshops are an early step in the process of technological and economic development whereby a poor country turns itself into a rich country

ANTI-SWEATSHOP LABOR
  • harmful materials
  • pollution
  • birth defects
  • difficult and dangerous conditions
  • few rights or ways to address their situation
  • hazardous situations
  • extreme temperatures
  • abuse from employers
  • long hours for little pay
  • no overtime pay or minimum wage
  • violated child labor laws
all information found at wikipedia.org

Monday, October 27, 2008

V I S U A L L A N G U A G E : comm models: partner interpretation/response

The way Mark chose to respond to/re-interpret my original goal of the postcard is working really well. With my concept I wanted to communicate the functionality of the boot and its utilitarian qualities by focusing on the important components of the boot (harness, sole, etc) and by placing it in an environment that would be similar to an actual place this boot would be worn. Mark has suggested the purpose of the boot by putting it in context of other footwear that each has a specific purpose. The boating shoes for its breathability and functionality on wet surfaces, the basketball shoe for its speed and shock absorbent sole, and the military boot for its durability and cleanliness. 

I really love this idea. I am skeptical about the military boot however because its purpose is very similar to the biker boot. Maybe some other footwear would be more effective in causing people to consider the purpose of each form of footwear (diver flipper, ballet shoe, track shoes, snow shoes, etc.) Using the shoe's natural environment as a background might help communicate the functionality of the individual shoes a bit more. But then again, maybe I can get away with the white background if the shoes are able to speak for their purpose themselves. 

On the other hand, I can also interpret Mark's postcard as an attempt to show the range of ways shoes are fastened or secured. The biker boot uses uses a harness, the basketball shoe uses a velcro strap, but the boating shoe and military boot both use laces. 

Mark's postcard could could produce a shoe exhibition, a shoe store, or even lead to the creation of a strange multi-purpose shoe that could be worn for anything!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

V I S U A L L A N G U A G E : comm models: object postcard

final postcard


process
top lit


soft light


side lit





motion






low angle


high angle






hard light





flash


eye level






directional lighting




close-up



backlighting