Yeah, reading through that first paragraph makes me sound like a bitch doesn't it. I guess I was just really put off by the initial situation. I could say VISUAL 2013, which I attended last February 9, 2013, fared better with the flow.
But when the event started though. I didn't even want to stand up to pee else I missed anything.
The speakers were fun, inspiring and really talented, the hosts were engaging and overall, although not perfect, the event was a success.
And best of all, they were local!
Special thanks to Paolo who was really accommodating and made me not as bitter as I originally was (along with some UIC yearbook staffers that were in front of us as we lined up for entry to the cinema. Awesome meeting you guys!).
Here are the speakers and some highlights I really liked during their talks:
Alduane Maño
"I finished an engineering course but I followed my heart and pursued my passion for art and design" -Alduane Maño-
HE DOES SOME WORK FOR FREE and for a cause! That's what really caught my attention during Alduane's talk. I mean I guess I can understand some designers doing work for free (like me for instance) for portfolio or networking purposes but wow. That amount of quality and detail and it's for FREE!! He does it for various causes, mostly humanitarian reasons, I forgot which specifically, and does it with so much HEART.
His style has a unique feel to it. Like a "clean sketch", if you will, with thick outer lines and varying strokes which really make it fun and dynamic to look at. He enjoys making flyers and poster for concerts and lively events, he even does some apparel design and CD covers, if I recall correctly. What I'd give to get a shirt designed by him.. Shaaa~
He made a Concert poster for Paramore and got the band to sign some so he could auction it off for the benefit of Yolanda survivors. And I got one usigned copy!! :D
Words of Wisdom:
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with so much"
"Make use of what you have"
"Take risks"
"Put your works out there"
"Surround yourself with people that are better than you"
"Find your identity as an artist"
"Your talents and skills will get you to the top but your character will keep you there."
-Proverbs 27:17 -
Humility is your Best Friend
I couldn't even take any pictures, notes or any reference material for this blog during his talk. I was just sitting there like
Works that inspired Him:
Metropolis
Fantastic World
Metropolis
La Jeatte
Space Odyssey
I got these at least. I'm planing on watching them myself during the holidays. I've seen Metropolis when I was younger but I definitely need to re-watch to get a better perspective on its story.
Alben Tan
"My dream is to become a great artist and be part of something BIG!" -Alben Tan during his ghost fighter days-
He was really fun to listen to with a bunch of funny stories. He had this easy going inner kid aura that I liked so much and all his topics were both inspiring and helpful. He gave us references he uses and what he used to improve his skills when he first started out like being part of Dave Rapoza's Crimson Daggers, doing CGHub Challenges and posting his art on DeviantArt.
"You HAVE to be at least good enough with a traditional pencil and paper if you want to SUCCEED in digital artistry. Learn the basics again."
Basic tips in starting out or pursuing your dream as a digital painter:
Watch a lot of tutorials (did fan arts)
Apply what you learned
Experiment with brushes
It's all about values (lighting, toning, shadows, midtones highlights)
Take your time
Accept criticisms & failures
Wow rainbow! Such colors! (Familiarize the color wheel. warm and cool colors. Easily set the mood of your paintings)
Always work in 300+ dpi
Fliptops! (Symmetry and proportions by flipping canvas horizontally or vertically)
Practice practice practice!
We all started somewhere
Creative process:
the blood, the sweat, the cheers
Okay as a human female well in her teenage years, I would say !nodoro was the best-looking speaker a the event and I bet most would agree (even my perfectly straight hetero friend thought so too).
His style of delivery was cool and laid back. Inserting a few jokes here and there. Not as fun as maybe Alduane's or Alben's but just as informative and inspiring. His works revolve more around shapes, texts and out-of-the box mediums of different types of art. He does CD covers (some for the group in the picture below), apparel designs from FISH18 and various other clients. I really liked how he can play with patterns and mix them together to create something totally unique and out there.
Medicine for Anti-Creative Block/Explore other interests:
Music
Films
Books
Emotions
Beer
Communication
Communication
Go Out
!nodoro's Tips for YOU:
Break the Rules
Know your Value
Know your Value
Apprentice yourself in Failure
Never be contented to to what you have accomplished. Aim for growth and development
Embrace Criticism
Embrace your passion. Be aggressive.
Embrace your passion. Be aggressive.
Meet with your clients
It was a blast listening to him again, hearing his "I like Coffee and Toron" intro put me in a really good mood. He's a great speaker and very fun to listen to, talking about topics he personally in interested in. His art style consists of geometrical shapes with vibrant colors and the signature texture he uses. He can manipulate them into whatever he wants them to look like: humans, animals, landscapes, cartoon characters, anime and anything in between. He animates and illustrates, among other things, and leaves a unique, quirky, story-esque feel to any project he works on. I would love to have a mural by him at my house, if I could.
Dan's Tips for YOU:
Always do your best
Dan's Tips for YOU:
Always do your best
Don't forget your dreams
Work harder
have other interests
Be nice to everyone
Take risks
NICKAUTOMATIC is a pretty popular brand at my college, which isn't surprising. Bold outlines with even bolder colors and outrageous designs, I mean, what teenager wouldn't want to have their very own collection (Even I have my very own proud set). I got into this brand thanks to Clint, heavily basing his own design work on t-shirt brands that revolve around that genre. And again thanks to him, I found out Nicolo is also putting up his works on Designed by Humans and Threadless, if I'm not mistaken. Nicolo was a laid back speaker, much like !nodoro. He does awesome typography (which I plan on practicing on in the coming year) and even more awesome illustrations in the bold outline style I mentioned above, and a mature (not M-rated) design work consisting of nitty-gritty detail in large hand-drawn subjects.
I'm an aspiring clothing brand, What should I do?
Keep going never stop
Accept failures
Be different from others
Put more idea into your work
Be happy of what you're doing
Be inspired and be an inspiration
"Design is the silent ambassador of your brand" -Paul Rand-
"Think more, design less" -Ellen Lupton-
"Do more of what makes you happy" - Johnny Cupcakes-
This was by far the highlight of the night, as the organizers planned. This is the first time I've heard of "The Acid House" and I bet this won't be the last. The most whispered quote during their talks was most probably:
"They did that?!" said with awe and admiration.So much work on something that lasts for 30 seconds, THIS TALK IS WHAT MADE ME QUESTION MYSELF. The quality of their work was spectacular, as they were generous enough to show us their most recent never-before-seen works for myincheoftheearth.com, Tigertranslate (my favorite), MYX and My Movie Channel, and the way how they presented everything was just huuuunggggghhhh. But what got me most was not their spectacular work, but their PERSEVERANCE. I mean hours, days, even months of work on something that will be seen for only a few seconds or minutes. All the little nicks and bugs they have to go through to make everything perfect and not to mention the stress, from the project and the team themselves, they have to go through to get the job done. At my level right now, I can't even TALK to anyone else when I'm working on a simple logo design, so much more a motion graphic for such high-end clients.
I had to say I was really impressed with the stuff they were able to do and I think they should be the standard for any aspiring motion graphics team out there, at least in the Philippines.
The Acid House's Tips for YOU:
Present your ideas clearly and confidently
Get the client to trust you
But do not over promise
Again, the event was a complete success and I was glad I got the opportunity to attend. It was really something. Even though I've seen Alduane and Dan at VISUAL 2013 before, listening to them again was still as refreshing and inspiring as the first time. I just hope I can eventually reach their level, you know? I think everyone at the event felt that way. Should I feel inspired and strive to be just like the awesome speakers or just freaking give up because everybody's so much better than me? Artist issues. GraphiCon Davao 3 was held on December 7, 2013 at Cinema 4, Gaisano Mall of Davao.
I have a few shots of the experience and am working on compiling it into a short video. Again, sorry in advance for the bad camera work. I was using a Samsung Galaxy Duo this time and everything was mostly either shaky or blurry. I need a GoPro to share more stuff with you guys. I want a GoPro for Christmas. D:
From (far)left to right: Alben, Alduane, Megan, Mr. & Mrs. The Acid House, !nodoro, Dan, Nicolo
Me and Clint at Davao Airport(top left); My Alduane Maño PARAMORE poster (top right); G3 Davao goodies (bottom)
Interesting blog in the past year's event. So you won't be joining this year, I suppose? I will talk about photography in GraphIcon 4. :-D
ReplyDeleteThanks, ms Jojie. I will be, actually, along with a few others. (We just bought our event shirts haha) Hopefully our flight doesn't get delayed/cancelled. Excited to hear your bit, and how the event will play out this time around. :)
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