suburbia ends.

Suburbia began as a solution to living in the slums of the city. Suburbs became this oasis of “country living” with a short commute to the city and a lifestyle of spending. The documentary End of Suburbia labeled those who traveled to these ideal home settings “happy-go-spending.” The suburbs were the antidote to city life.
Before WWI suburbs were centered around streetcar stops and commuting city workers could easily walk to these transportation systems and make their way to work. With the continued growth of houses and the suburbia promise of security, streetcars were used less, and individuals used their own automobiles to commute to work. Automobiles simply became an efficient way to travel. As of now, without cars, suburbia is not possible.
Cheap oil used to be in great abundance and the automobiles suburbanites used to get to work were the perfect solution to the use of this cheap oil. The amount of consumption, spending, and use of energy suburbia includes, considered “normal” in our world, is truly an excess of energy that is now depleting.
The amount of oil that our world can access is based on a bell curve. Once the peak of this curve is hit or the level of oil produced is as its highest, this amount begins to decline and never increases again. The peak of our world’s oil supply is predicted by or before 2020. Suburbia will feel the effects of this change in oil availability and scientists insist that these “happy-go-spenders” must downscale everything they do. The world must ultimately change the way in which it runs currently.
End of Suburbia contains frightening information that the public world is not exposed to. Even though the huge problem of oil depletion is in the near future, the media has not shown evidence of the preparations individuals should make. At this point the United States is in Iraq basically for the oil they may own. If there is any huge amount of oil left in the world, it would be in the Persian Gulf. If the Persian Gulf has already peaked in its oil production, then the world has peaked. The American public needs to realize that with the lack of cheap and abundant energy, suburbia can no longer exist in the ways it has been.
I love the idea of “new urbanism.” In the documentary, this concept of moving back into the cities, building new walk-able communities that are also great living environments, is outlined as an alternative to the excessive use of oil by commuting suburban dwellers. Living locally and in sustainable communities is going to be key in the future. This shift back to the city life will create a new kind of suburbia that can be more self-sufficient and locally owned and operated. Suburbia must be “repaired” by evolving to become urban villages.
Suburbia accounts for a huge percentage of those living in the United States and their ways of living, spending, and using an energy source that is depleting at a rapid and continuing pace is a devastating issue that has not been fully realized by those it will effect the most. After oil peaks, the reverse of globalization will occur. Instead of relying on the products of foreign countries to fill the many needs of American citizens, local energy sources must begin to sustain local communities through their own local production.
In all, I feel this is a wake up call to the “American way of life.” We must begin to sustain ourselves in a much less excessive way. The energy Americans consume is far greater than it needs to be. While the depletion of oil may be seen as a disaster or an end to the suburban paradise, I see it more as a needed change. The way of life suburbia has created is one that I would rather not become a part of. I hope that my generation will have a dream of life that is less excessive and more responsible. It’s with the desire for change that change can occur.

preliminary research

I'm attempting to pick one subject to research more in depth. I think at this point I've narrowed it down to two seperate ideas. I'm trying to keep in mind that the design breif is to "examine the original impulses of body adornment." I want to also focus on something I could make with an interesting material. First, a topic must be chosen.
I'm really interested in buttons and their history. I guess this subject would be focusing on the history of American buttons, from manufactured military, uniform buttons, to fancy civilian buttons. Seems like the metal button would be a good starting point and something I could perhaps use as inspiration and maybe use the casting process to make a form with possibly a new material.

The second topic I'm interested in pursuing is Ancient Egyptian jewelry. I've found some really beautiful stuff in a few books and through some initial online searches. I think it'd be an extremely interesting subject to explore further that could inspire me to work in a variety of ways through a variety of designs.

At this point I'm trying to figure out which topic will retain my interest and motivate me to create something I like.

look.

fire hydrant as squared circle on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

I was jut searching in flickr, found some stuff I liked. The hydrant is my favorite. I like the texture on the wooden knob and in the wonderful green yarn.

green is my favorite color.

Even though green happens to be my favorite color, I don't know that much about green design. I did a little bit of research this morning and found a couple sites that are really awesome.

http://www.greenbiz.com/resources/design
This site is just a good resource I think to see what's going on in the area of green design already and the continued efforts of those incorporating green design into their work.

http://www.ecolect.net
I absolutely love this site. It is a directory of sustainable materials. Such a great resource to help me search for materials I may be interested in using in a variety of ways. Really great site...

I think the idea of creating a relationship between people and the natural environment is such a good one. By creating objects with green or sustainable materials a new concept exists within the peice. It no longer is simply a conceptual design in form but also in the choice of material. I think choosing materials that minimize environmental impacts or are easily reused or recycled is so clever and will create a new realtionship with the viewer or user of the object. Sustainable materials will instill a new idea or thought in the viewer's mind that they perhaps never had.

green is such a pretty color.

response to podcast.

So I listened to the post cast of Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and his conversation with Terry Gross, the host of Fresh Air. I thought it was an interesting show; an artist’s insight I think is always fascinating. Grohl obviously has a specific style in the majority of his work. The story he shared about the miners in Tasmania I thought was really amazing. Basically the fact that these miners who got trapped in a collapsed mine requested an IPOD with the Foo Fighters album on it explains the role music plays in people’s lives. Knowing the impact of your work can completely change the creative approach you take. Grohl also talked about Kurt Cobain and how dedicated his was to his work. I thought it was cool that Kurt would basically lock himself up in his room alone every night just so he could write more. I think that shows how much he loved what he did. His dedication was intense and he apparently needed this “alone time” to be creative.When I think of my creative process, I don’t really know where to begin. I feel like every idea, every inspiration is different. Sometimes an idea will immediately pull me in a certain direction while others leave me with numerous options and I’m confused as to where to go. I feel like I dive into some of my ideas by first writing about them. I need to figure out my own thoughts on whatever subject I choose and then go from there. I really want to work this year on making each piece I make my own. I haven’t quite made my own style and I’d like to discover it.

Thoughts.

Over the winter break I took an art history course that focused on the history of modern design through the exploration of product and graphic design from the 1920s to the present. I started to think about one of the last papers we wrote in there during my special topics class yesterday. This paper focused on the role that digital design has in graphic design, and through comparisons of mid-century modern graphic design show the drastic changes or even similarities in this new technologically advanced age. Digital design has obviously affected almost every field in art, not just graphic design. In this class I was able to examine the changes in tools graphic designers used to create their work and how these tools changed the aesthetic these designers used in their work.
This semester I’m taking a computer 3D modeling class and hope to be using this technology in the work of my other studios as well. I think it’s amazing to hear people talk about how to print a 3D design from a computer screen out in a variety of materials. I am a crafts major and I know that everyone in all of my studios stress that we are people who like to use our hands to make things. I’m excited because I see the computer as simply another tool that craftspeople can use to create more. When digital design allowed graphic designers to create new typefaces just by putting an old typeface into a new computer and allowing the program to automatically enhance it, they were allowed even more to incorporate into their work.
I hope that I can carry over my own aesthetic, or at least find my own aesthetic, in my computer studio and in all my studio classes this semester. I’m really interested in looking back into the history of certain aspects of art and body adornment. I feel like I get inspired by the work of past artistic movements and would love to incorporate my impression of these references in my own work.
There’s just so much to learn, so much to do, and so much inspiration everywhere. I’m excited.

blood diamonds. conflict diamonds.

an initial online search begins.

http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html

http://www.stopblooddiamonds.org/what-is-conflict-diamond.asp

http://www.stopblooddiamonds.org/international-terror.asp

http://www.worldpress.org/Africa/2193.cfm#down

http://geology.com/articles/blood-diamonds.shtml

http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=Minisite_Generic&content_type_id=52827&display_order=2&mini_id=52826

http://www.globalwitness.org/pages/en/conflict_diamonds.html

I don't think I fully realized the role the illicit diamond trade plays in the civil wars existing in Africa. It surprises me that this has been going on for as long as it has. I read about how these blood diamonds are tried to be kept out of the market obviously to discourage the violence their sales bring about. But I can't help but figure that they get to the market regardless of any certifications these stones require. I feel like untill the wars end, blood diamonds are going to continue to sneak into the market. But the war is funded, and thriving, through the sales of these diamonds. It's a vicious cycle.