Tag Archives: sean lahey

Follow-Up: Gilles & Cecilie Workshop at Parsons Illustration

Class Projects, Current Students, Education, Follow Up, Illustration Industry, Inspiration, News, Talks/Lectures, , , ,

[slideshow]

The dynamic duo of Gilles & Cecilie recently visited Parsons Illustration Concepts III classes to hold a collaborative workshop with students.  Below is their write-up about the experience and you can see pictures from the workshop above.

BRIEF:
What is your uniqueness when all is unified?
Are we going towards the same currencies/ unions of countries/ mega corporations/ mass productions/ same social networks/
listening to the same music/ dress styles/ same level of educations/
SCHEDULE:
20 min brainstorm (messy and non-critical)
15 min selecting ideas (critical and relevant)
1hr10 min visualising ideas (quick, enjoyable, experimental)
40 minutes presentation (6 min per group) (clear, concise, contextual)
ORGANISATION:
45 students divided in 5 groups. Each group had three tables and a selection of materials (papers/ tape/ rope/ pencils/ markers/ glue.)  We asked all the students to take their chairs out of the room so that they could move and interact better during the process.
THE IDEA PROCESS:
challenging, frustrating, profound, exciting, hard work, collaborative, wild, questioning, curiousity, breaking borders, mind-blowing, intellectual, involving, intuitive, world changing!
THE EXPERIENCE:
During the process of the workshop we visited each group with help from Isabelle, Guy and Sean to motivate the students to interact with each other, be working together as a whole group, be curious, develop new ways of thinking and drawing.
The students made different stories and answers to the brief and one group also involved volunteers in their presentation of an interactive puzzle on how to fit in.
Group 1 were illustrating the female with animalistic characters; group 2 developed a new way of high five human reproduction, group three made a puzzle of creatures to represent: with some alterations we all fit in, group four illustrated each other within the group visualising how they see eachother as forexample a cartoon character or just a lot of beautiful hair (as this was one students way of recognising her friend in the street) and in the end group five where making a twist on the game exquisite corps by creating several unique people with elements from all the students within the group.
As designers, we often use this speed workshop in our studio to get as many thoughts and ideas as possible about a brief from a client.  In this way we often find themes or elements to continue the conceptual process.
Thanks to Gilles & Cecilie!

Follow-up: All that black tape!

Current Students, Follow Up, Illustration Faculty, Randomly Intriguing, ,

lahey tape 1

Guest entry by Sean Lahey, Jr. Concepts Instructor

What’s with the tape on the floor?

The Junior Concepts class bombed the hallway outside the illustration department office a few weeks ago as the final piece of the classes in-studio project that week.  Students were asked to start the project by writing a list in their sketchbooks.  Things that excited them or scared them or got under their skin. Things that motivated them to go out and change something.  Hot topics.  Buzz words.  Whatever.

Then they selected one, and were asked to imagine the call had come.  The biggest city daily newspaper has requested a small spot illustration for a piece on your most passionate topic.

Three inches by three inches.  Black and White only please…  They were asked to make their illustrations strong.  Give them visual impact despite their size.  Be attentive to balance and weight.  This was their shot.

Lastly, the hook… and the fun part of the lesson.

3 inches by 3 inches translates to 3 floor tiles by three floor tiles very easily when your line weight is suddenly one inch thick.

Enter the plumbers tape, selling at every corner bodega for about 90 cents a roll.

lahey tape 2

In this extremely cluttered visual environment that we all compete in, a lot of getting yourself out there is just making the leap and trying to figure out a new way to get noticed.  The “Concepts” agenda for this project was think big and different, think public but non-permanent, and as always, keep it cheap.

Your word is out.  Or, in this case, at least the illustrated version of your word.

And it’ll be seen by everyone in the department for, ohhh…  about the several weeks (or months).

Give or take the strength of the cleaning solvents used by the janitors.

Thanks to Sean for the explanation and his students for the art!