...done.

so after 5 years of education and the past 8 months of excruciating work, the thesis show has opened. last friday we all piled into the basement of bird library to celebrate the end of an era. it was fun, exciting, exhausting, and rewarding. but it can always be better described for those that are visual learners with pictures...

a weekend of idsa.

one of the things we look forward to in the spring is the trip to the northeast idsa conference. this year the conference was held in cambridge, ma and it was a great chance to meet professionals in the field as well as a bunch of id students from other schools in the northeast.

it's also always our first opportunity to show of the idsu t-shirt! every year the fifth years design a t-shirt to represent the department. this year's is by sara...

flash mobbing

a lot of the 5th years have been doing small experiments and other activities in order to further research and help explain their concepts. one of my classmates conducted a flash mob a few weeks ago. check out his video of the event: SU flash mob.

...and shake 'til you feel better.

it's officially danceworks week! after four months of rehearsals we are finally ready for our spring show, but oh will this week be killer.

even though we're in rehearsals every day this week starting at 5:30 this is always my favorite week of danceworks because the whole cast gets to spend so much time together. there's more opportunity to get to know everyone and hang out...and I can't believe this is my last one!

we also have a ton of alumns coming up for the show which is really exciting. danceworks builds the kind of community that even once you're two, three, or even four years out of syracuse you still want to come back to see the show we've created each year. fun can't even begin to describe what this weekend will be.

so get your tickets! and welcome aboard DanceWorks Airlines 2009!

amidst the madness...

so four weeks of classes, four 5th year birthdays, three home games and a cold later...I'm still here to tell about it. although thesis is still a mystery for most of us (ok, maybe it's just me) we've started to get deadlines for the rest of the semester already which is terrifying. I'm anxious to nail down a product that embodies all the ideas of naming, forming emotional attachments to objects, and nostalgia that I've been researching the past five months. when I do, you'll hear all about it.

in the meantime we are fortunate enough to have sharon labella from chase design teaching our professional practice (translation: how to get a job) class. it's great having her tell her stories about great and not so great designers she has interviewed and her insight is really invaluable. we've already covered resumes, cover letters, sample books, teasers and portfolios...and that's with missing a week of classes to the charrette. even though doing all the assignments and looking at job postings is emotionally taxing (yes, I keep telling myself, you are graduating in may) it's been a lot of fun.

as a point of interest, here's something that was being exhibited at MoMA in nyc this winter and I came across in researching technologies for thesis. if you like lasers, light and graffiti, you'll like this. even if you don't, it's really cool so check out l.a.s.e.r. tag.

home stretch...

only one semester to go!

it's officially disconcerting to be on campus this semester knowing that after may I will no longer be a student at SU. but this semester should be an exciting one and I'm looking forward to finishing up.

this past week (the first week of classes) was a little different for us because our professors (in industrial and interior design) had us all participate in a multidisciplinary design charrette for a metropolis magazine competition. so classes were canceled in the design department and we worked in teams of 6 to solve the country's addiction to energy. it was a really interesting process and I'm glad to say I really enjoyed working with students I normally wouldn't have had the chance to work with or even meet. despite that, it was a very tiring week and I was glad to have a weekend free of homework (which is something I probably won't see again until after graduation).

on another note, danceworks is gearing up for our annual performance at he end of february and since I am working on the graphics team we spent a lot of time this week taking photos for our posters and program. our theme this year is danceworks airlines, so each dance in the show will represent a different city and airport. going along with the theme we were able to get permission to take our photos in hancock airport in syracuse, and on a jet blue plane after hours. again, very tiring but we had lots of fun. it'll be great to see how everything turns out.

that's basically a recap of last week. now for real classes to begin...

nine tenths done...

it's hard to believe that I'm almost finished with my last fall semester, and my ninth semester out of ten before graduation. but even with only three more days before I go home it seems impossible how much work is left to do.

thesis has needless to say been the bane of my existence, but I'm really excited with everything I've researched and discovered this semester. I now know that naming inanimate objects can actually be a psychological disorder that people may have, and any type of naming is not only about giving something an identity, but also defining how a person identifies him/herself in relationship to the object. it's been really intimidating putting all of this information together, and I still have no idea what I'll actually be designing next semester for thesis, but I'm glad that my biggest fear was not realized...I am definitely NOT sick of this subject.

danceworks has also reached an exciting point. all of the choreographers are nearly done with their pieces as we leave for winter break, and going along with our airline/travel theme this year we have permission to do our photo shoot for the posters in hancock airport AND on an actual plane. things to look forward to when we return in january.

and finally my website is up and running! it will take some time to get all of my portfolio on it, so don't judge me too harshly!

...enjoy the snow!