The saying “a 5-year-old can do that!” is often said about most abstract art pieces. Russian artist Kazimir Malevich’s The Black Square is no exception – it’s quite literally a black square on a canvas. Well, not quite. How many squares are too many squares? Malevich created four different black squares, each one still being exhibited in… Continue reading Is Black Square Considered Art?

Thinking about shooting a film or taking a photograph seems simple enough. A simple tap or click of a button will instantly produce an image or record what we wish to capture. While reading through the survey timeline, I was immediately drawn to knowing the history behind motion pictures and filmmaking when seeing the Lumiere… Continue reading How the Lumiere Brothers Changed Film History

I spent about 6 hours creating my zine from the research stage to completing my zine booklet. I quite liked researching about my topic, just because this is a typeface that I’ve always wondered about its history and why it’s been used so much. When it came to creating the final product, composing it all… Continue reading Zine Project Rationale

As most periods in history, women were often denied opportunities to pursue what they wanted, whether it was getting an education or a career. Really, the only options were to marry another man or devote their life to Catholicism. Elisabetta Sirani was an exception, as she’d become a prominent artist during the Baroque period. Although… Continue reading Baroque, Dutch Golden Age: Elisabetta Sirani

A dive into the history of Caslon and it’s impact on Western design Caslon is undoubtedly one of design’s most recognizable typefaces, mostly derived from its early popularity when it was first released by William Caslon. Started as an engraver of gunlocks and barrels, he was quickly familiarized with engraving letterforms as well. Soon after,… Continue reading Design Rule #1: “When in Doubt, Use Caslon”

Although I chose different events, I learned that a key similarity between all my research topics was the power of art and design upon activism. I was most interested in researching Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice through a feminist lens, mainly because the work that she had done must’ve been revolutionary in the eyes of… Continue reading Moodboard Rationale

Although he lived a short life, Raphael was considered one of the most important figures during the Renaissance period, alongside Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. At a young age, Raphael was already exposed to art through his father, as he was the painter for the court of Urbino. Later on in his childhood, he attended… Continue reading High Renaissance & Mannerism: Raphael

Often when we think of the afterlife, concepts about heaven and hell pop up in our minds, assuming we’re basing it off Christianity, which is predominantly practiced in Western countries. Depending on an individual’s beliefs, they may have a different idea of what the afterlife looks like. For instance, Hinduism believes in the idea of… Continue reading Book of the Dead: A Cheat Sheet to the Afterlife

Principles of Design The artist incorporates contrast mainly through color and scale. The pink values of the background and the cat in the foreground contrast with the figure being bitten from the cat’s mouth. Although the figure itself is comparatively small, our eyes are drawn to it due to its use of primary colors, red… Continue reading Visual Research II: Principles of Design & Gestalt Principles