Fractal Dreams

When I last left you guys, I got into trouble when I called some other people’s work “it sucks” and I was left in a quite a fix. In order to save my soul from total damnation, I was tasked to propose a design for our department’s new logo. That was six days ago.And now, I’m back.

My initial plan was to illustrate the logo by following the rough draft I posed in the article entitled “Logorithmic”. But I tried a different approach- using real pictures. I was skeptical at first, but it turned out all right, I guess, so I think everything is fine.

Here’s the logo: (You can click on it to load a 800×600 version on a new window)

As with the internet and in the subject of royalties, I had to make sure that the images I used to make this logo were, royalty free. The best solution: use a camera. Here’s a breakdown of the stuff I used.

1.) Hands: Me. (yep. both. And they were both my left hand, mind you.)
2.) Long Sleeved Shirt.
3.) Crucifix given to me when I was ordained as an altar boy, all those years ago when I was still in the Light Side of the force.
4.) A pencil “nicked” from my brother.
5.) Ditto for the pen.
6.) A 2006 hardcover spiral planner.
7.) An old hardbound book about the history of civilization. (Obscured by the cross)
8.) A 3.5 diskette containing a copy of “The Prince of Persia.” Quite Moldy.
9.) My 128 mb usb thumbdrive.
10.) A cd I borrowed from Arath that I still haven’t returned.
11.) And a free metal texture I downloaded from the web. (Small pic, I had to merge it multiple times to create a larger plate).

And since I had changed the hands (both were now male), I had to come up with a new explanation for it. At first the hand on the right was supposed to represent the female students. But I was lacking a female model at the time, so I photographed myself. The theme now is that the hand on the left represents a person while he is still a student, and the right hand is when he is already a professional.

And there we go. First proof of concept finished. This was designed for the web, I may have to downgrade it a little for a print version.

POST SCRIPT>
And while it’s too late, I apologize for the “it sucks” comment I made last year. That was too harsh, I guess. But I still would have to say that the clean-up of the line art is still not clean. And I think it was because the colorist colored over my line art. May I suggest that next time, they try creating a layer of color under the line art? And a little pixel-hunting of stray dirt wouldn’t hurt as well.

There. Said it nicely this time.

Finally done with the thesis program. While there’s still the documentation left, it’s good knowing there won’t be any more presentations in front of an audience. While writing in a
blog is similar to speaking in front of an audience, the audience cannot see me, and that alone makes it different, per se.

Anyway, speaking of blogs- Do not diss someone in your blog when you know they’re reading it. Hell, even if they’re not reading it. Trust me, even if you think what you’re saying is something akin to a slap in the wrist, to them it’s not. Way back then, I made a scathing comment about some people who colored my line art (see PICPOEPRO section for reference). Well, it wasn’t that scathing (I said it was kinda sloppy and the clean up wasn’t that great), I think, but still, it offended people. If I have a gift, maybe it’s throwing the wrong comments at the wrong time.

And so, they gave me a challenge to see if I’m worth fussing about. They asked me if I could PROPOSE a design for the new logo for our department. Wow. THE LOGO OF OUR DEPARTMENT. It was like, “Go Carry the World, Atlas. Watch out for the Banana Peel.” To design a logo that will adorn every letterhead, banner, tarpaulin, whatchamacallit, thingy-majingy that our department will issue, without making it look that we’re a bunch of idiots. (We’re not, of course. Who in their right mind would say that?)

So here’s my first thought: “Oh, man. Now why did I write that?”

Then a few seconds later, came the next thought:”Wait a minute…” First of all, I don’t want to be a programmer all the way, even if I actually studied to be one. Sure, creating weird algorithms can be fun, but I’d rather see pictures than lines and lines of code. I wanted to be a graphic designer, who undoubtedly will handle some kind of work like this. Why not start now?

So I switched into the long-hidden “Salesman Mode”. To add to the effect, I whipped out my Personal Analog Organizer (…All right, a small pad of paper), and asked for some specifics.

Theme? “Gaining Technical Knowledge for Career Development in a Catholic Constitution”.
Size? 800×600 pixels.
Any Desired Overall Shape? Circle or Square.
File Format? JPEG.
Colors or Textures? Grayish-Blue, Metallic/Silver, Gold.
Others? Design must look formal. Cheap for Printing.
Deadline? February 26.

Whoa. Steep, Man. I actually had a problem with the instruction “Keep it Cheap” and “Metallic Finish”. That’s conflicting ideas right there. Anyway, I’ll fix it somehow.

The first thing I did right after I was given the order was to examine the existing logo. It actually followed the slogan to the letter. You can create a comparative analysis like this:

It’s probably good as it is, but a change of some elements may be a good option. For me, it’s not important to actually capture the slogan or theme literally. It’s more enthralling if you coax the viewer to find an idea in your logo that suggests a theme. So that became the reinforcing idea in my design.

I remembered an inspiring theme I saw multiple times in the web and in magazines- Fists high in the air. Most of the time I saw it was in communist posters. It was a forceful sign- an upraised fist is a bold statement about something. But also read about a mural featured in a part of Chinatown somewhere in the US- this time the hands were holding flowers and a book of Mao Zedong’s quotations. This time it was a sign of hope and belief- when we believe in something, we don’t want to let go, we hold on to our ideals tightly. So, I’ve decided- hands rolled into fists, clutching something. Not as a symbol of violence or defiance, but rather as a symbol of firm belief and resolution.

So what would this fists of hope hold? That’s a good question. What elements in student life can be clearly translated into objects? And there’s the technical knowledge part too. What objects hold knowledge? I know it sounds cliche, but books seemed to be the best thing to represent age-old analog knowledge. And some pens and pencils to convey an idea that students have the freedom to express themselves and use what they have learned. So that’s one hand ready. I decide to make the hand sleeveless, to represent the short sleeves in polo shirts that male students in our college wear.

The next fist, facing in an opposite direction as fist#1, should represent the techie stuff. Again, knowledge is the theme, and in digital terms, what is knowledge but DATA, or better yet, INFORMATION? And where on earth is the digital data stored? In storage media! So hand two holds external storage devices- a microfloppy, a CD and a USB Thumbdrive- to represent the trend of media storage through the years. I decided to put a sleeve on hand 2, to represent the long-sleeved blouse of the female students in our college.

Then there’s the religion thing. This is where I felt that I should keep from the old Logo. A crucifix is a universal symbol- it signifies Christ, which is related to, well, God. So it’s a given. The cross went in between the fists, its edges stretching past the logo borders. After all, religion reaches everywhere…

If you were really observant, you might ask, “Where’s the career advancement?” This is where the subtle idea part comes in. The fists are angled in such a way that they point to the intersection of the crucifix. In a way, they are offering the knowledge to God. That’s what career advancement is about- offering your knowledge and skills for a greater purpose. See?

Anyway, here’s a rough draft of the logo I doodled in MS Paint. It will serve as a template for the final product. The gray color represents a metallic texture and the yellow colors, for gold. I still have a lot of things to finish for this week, so the final logo might be a task for the weekends. So,expect it to appear here next week. Until then!

When we first talked about the artwork I’ve done for the Adamson University Computer Science Department Website, I mentioned that they only uploaded the male student. (If you haven’t read part one yet, you’d best check the ‘doodles’ category at the sidebar for the first article.)

Finally, they have uploaded the female student. And the line art clean-up still sucks. Honestly, without any intention to offend. I mean, it takes me about 30-minutes to 3 hours to clean up my scanned drawings. And, I also take into consideration what file format to use and what color settings are in place. (What are the settings? Like I’d tell you.) The color’s a little bit nicer though. Not the way I’d do it, but nice nonetheless.

Well, anyway, I can’t really complain whether it sucks or not. Since I handed it over to them, I’m not really responsible for what happens next. Pfft. What a way to debut, huh?

I finally created my first commissioned illustration, for the Adamson University computer science department’s website.

I don’t know how the professors got a hold of my name, maybe it was during my stint at the computer science freedom wall (another story for another time).

Well, anyway, they asked me to draw an anime-inspired illustration of a male and female computer science student. I obliged, drawing on-the-spot for an hour or so, using a mechanical pencil. I didn’t bother inking it, because the pencil art was crisp enough, and I left my drawing pens at home. They were also asking me to color it, but I was pressed for time, because the ITRP1 thesis defense was due in two days. So, they tasked someone else to color it for them. When I saw the finished product, the clean-up for the line art was a little shabby and the colors were somewhat stale (No offense, Jane, if you’re reading this). Too bad I didn’t do it myself. And they only uploaded the Male Student. Pfffft.

Well, here’s the URL of the site. Opens in a new window.
http://adamsoncompsci.com/students.php

But in case they have already changed the content, here is the thumbnail… click on it to enlarge.

Still alive and kicking… all made on the PC, no scans in them, so they’re butt ugly.

Neko 3 (Filipino Language) – Waiting for the Blob

Neko 4 – Dire Warnings

Neko 4.5 Filler Issue- Know your OS

Geez. Making comics, even crappy ones like these, is so hard. Took me around 4 hours again. This issue is featuring my ‘illustrated’ version.

Click on the link, you know the drill…

He blogs at night
You’d wonder why he might?
Is it because he liked
The deafening silence of night?

It’s called the ungodly witching hour
Midnight, at one, two, three, four
The time most of us dream and snore
He’s still writing, his eyes listless, hands sore

Why you ask
Why would he undertake such a pointless task?
But to him it’s not pointless and droll
The only thing bringing comfort to his soul

But on the funny note
If in the earlier words your heart broke
The real reason of this wretched bloke
is because in the morning his ISP chokes

PSYCH! (Just kidding. Omit the last stanza)

Welcome to the first issue of the Fractal Dreams webcomic,Neko Neko Pancake! Took me four hours to do this baby! Hopefully I can release one strip every week… hopefully.

Click on the thumbnail to see the full image.

No theory can ever match to a life that was lost due to human selfishness.
No speculation can ever comfort a girl who has lost his father.
No reason can ever clear the guilt that resides in the heart of the man who pulled the trigger.

Excitedly, I grabbed the phone, dialing in my cousin’s number.

He answered, as I expected. I had so many plans, so many ideas I wanted to share.
Everything was in detail, everything was perfect.

Then he asked: “So, when are you going to start?”

That was the hardest question I had in my entire life.