-11.3-

Assignment: Search at least 3 words that you like in a google search. Share a link that interests you.

Attempt 1: I searched "science, paper, craft" and was lead to this link. A periodic table paper craft! But...the website didn't explain what the varying heights of the elements represented...perhaps its electronegativity (I see Flourine is 4.0 and it's EN value is 4.0.)?

I hadn't really thought about it, but using paper craft as learning tools could be a fun way to teach science. It's easy for students to make, and is extremely interactive. Now that I'm thinking about it...I remember making DNA mobiles in 7th grade. That was fun, and I still remember what parts of the mobile represent!

Attempt 2: Since papercraft is really one word, I googled "
An Atlantic article came up (one of my favorite magazines) so I had to click on it!

http://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2013/01/one-kids-sci-fi-short/267320/

One man wrote, directed, and animated a science fiction short at the age of 22 (I don't see why the age matters). The plot of the film is simple, machines fighting against man, but I liked the twist at the end (Slight spoilers here: the ending was painful, since you know a catastrophe is going to happen.) What really amazed me was that one person animated the entire short. The level of detail in the animation was incredible. The article said that it took him 7 months to animate 5 minutes of film. Drawing upon my experience at self-animating, that's a short amount of time!

-10.4-

I liked doing the psychogeography assignment in school today. (I wish I could have snuck some abstract photos during class, but I didn't get the opportunity.) The assignment fit with my general approach to photography: take abstract photos in order to redefine the world for others.

A photo I took a few months ago (A glass with juice in it)

-9.4-

A small observation. Aka "Aha, I think I found some stealing in progress!"

While watching the anime Shingeki no Kyojin, I noticed that a scene in the second opening had the exact animation sequence to The Avengers credits. It amused me that the animators directly took the style from a comic-book movie.

-8.4-

A mini-project I'm working on is a cosplay of Loki (Avengers):

Motivation: I really liked the design of the outfit. The suit with the long coat has a crisp look to it, and the scarf is such an unusual pattern...the bold decals, and color combination of green and cream appealed to me.
Goal: Be finished by NYCC 2013 (october 11)
Status: WIP
Reference:

Process so far:

Although I really liked the design of Loki's battle armour, his midguardian attire was easier, and more accessible. I already had a white dress shirt, black dress pants, long winter coat, and last Christmas I received the "lokiscarf" for casual wear. I already had a vest, but I found another one that was longer and better fitted the look. The only thing I'm missing is the tie:

 

Now, for the sceptre. To distinguish myself from other cosplays -aka. I wanted a challenge that would be more painful than the normal route- I changed the design so the sceptre would be able to "morph" into its other form (something resembling this). School has kept me busy, but I managed to make some progress beforehand (aka the last week of summer). 

I found references of the sceptre online and printed them out. I then bought some plywood from Michaels and traced the design onto it. Using a jigsaw and drill (my Dad and I had some fun bonding time), I cut the pattern out, and voila!

To do: For the outfit, all I need is to get a black tie.

For the sceptre, I need to find an extendable pole (3'-5'+), which would help the illusion of the prop "changing" forms. Then I need to paint the pole and blades, and attach the blades to the pole (I'd do this by putting a bolt through the middle of the pole and securing the blades to it with wingnuts).When I want to change from cane to sceptre, I'll flip the blades up and extend the pole.

I also need to figure out how to create the blue light. I bought an emergency blue glowstick, so I'll go from there.

-7.4-

I'm the public relations officer of Herrick's GSA, so this weekend I was making a poster to hang in the cafeteria.
This led me to search up colors that attract the eye, and I came across an interesting study by Standford: Link

The study showed that color choice results in the creation of tone, and noticeability. For example, "before and after" ads often have dark, neutral colors in the before section and bright, hot colors in the after section (the after section also incorporates more white space).

The most interesting thing I found about this article was that energy bars mostly use blue and brown hues. I thought energy bars would want to use bright colors to emphasize feelings of alertness, but it turns out that the darker hues symbolize health, appealing "to the lifestyle choices that energy bar users might make." The advertisers focused on the long-lasting effects of the energy bar rather than short-term effects.

We can certainly incorporate this into the STAC crowdfunding we're planning!

-6.4-

I was talking to my parents about my day in STAC, yesterday, and we got on the subject of marketing. I realized that the PBS station and we have similar goals, so perhaps we should analyze their marketing strategies (except for their giveaways, of course.) I also realized that we could market STAC as a program that picks up where school's leave off. The phrase sounds nice in my mind. (The phrase from last year was very good, too, but I forgot most it...something with dreams starting when it's STACtime, is all I can recall)
Some brainstorming:
STAC is different because:
-more freedom to pursue own interests
-we work with working artists (when workshops were around...)
-CONNECT areas of art and REALIZE WHY LEARNING IS IMPORTANT
-very hands on
-great field trips
-a big commitment to the arts (3 periods a day for 4 years in my case)
-a multigrade community (the only other classes I've experienced this was in 11th grade AP Bio, 12th grade health, and gym class)
-a supportive community
-ability to fail/experiment
-more independent group projects
-more real-life experiences (responsibility matters more than grades when you take on a project)
-we learn to market ourselves
-lots of connections to history and modern culture (we watch youtubes, but we also watch silent films)

-5.4-

I looked at the link to Google's branding, and here are some patterns I noticed:
-The product was flat, and had simple shading
-Most icons were geometric shapes
-They used a simple colour palette
-Logos/icons had to be recognizable with any dimension size
-They even took account of the amount of padding around the logos!

I also looked at what others were posting. While looking through a blog (I forget who's) the person mentioned that the educational section of Gofundme didn't have much. I checked it out, and I found this funding project:
http://www.gofundme.com/4890wk

I was puzzled how she got $2000+ in 8 days, since there are many other kids like her that need help, so I decided to analyze her page.

Techniques:
-A short, but sincere background story as to why she needs the money (positive outlook)
-A photo of the person in need
-Credentials (honors student)
-FACEBOOK and TWITTER share button

I also looked at the given site 11 Tips for Crowdfunding and the line "people invest in the filmmakers as much as the project" stood out to me.

I'm not sure how this connects to our goal, but all this talk about crowdsourcing reminded me of this science game, Foldit (Wikipedia link). The game is a 3D puzzle game in which the user folds proteins into the most efficient configuration possible. If I remember correctly, a few hundred thousand users are playing this game. Scientists are using the results for various experiments, getting results faster than if computer software did the work!

-4.4-

I added a link to "My Videos" on the Links sidebar if anyone is interested in films I've done in STAC, and for other subjects.

Note: I do not have the video presented at STAC night 2013.

-3.4-

When I came home, I still had a headache, so I took a nap, and put on some background noise  in the form of listening to episodes of Welcome to Nightvale. Before I drifted off to sleep, I realized that there were a lot concepts that could be stolen, and that I should blog about this. I also thought the concept was very interesting and wanted to share it with everyone.

Welcome to Nightvale is a podcast in the format of a (fictional) radio newscast. The news covers various events in the desert town of Nightvale, USA, and is divided into two parts with a musical "weather" forecast as a interlude.

Events in Nightvale are more than slightly off-kilter; hooded figures and angels wander around the town, a "glowcloud" is a member of the high school PTA, and many odd events are hushed up by "the sheriff's secret police,"...the casual tone of the show's host only brings out the show's eccentricity. The podcast also parodies aspects of our daily life such as the "word from our sponsors" ("That word... is carp!"-Episode 7) It's amusing and slightly creepy at the same time.

The music is excellent. The style of both the background music and "weather" song fits the strange tone of the podcast.

This show is enjoyable for those who like something out of the ordinary that's slightly sarcastic, slightly creepy, slightly humorous, slightly quirky, and slightly Orwellian.
I'd really like to steal the idea of creating fictional news. I also like how simple the podcast is. The cast is composed of one person, the show's host, and I imagine this makes production relatively fast. Definitely doable.

Official website
Soundcloud Official Playlist

Marketing: Surprisingly, the podcast is free. However, the company have a store on their website, and links to other books they have produced.
When looking at the website, I saw that they sell tickets to live shows (I never knew they had live shows before!) And they're in NY! I'm not sure if we'd be able to sell tickets to STAC live...perhaps a special event?

-2.4-

Kate Bush Assignment:

“Them Heavy People” by the singer Kate Bush. Listen to the song, watch the video and read the lyrics, etc. Find yourself in the song, find the song in you, and write another verse to the song that is your specific verse, that is about your connection to the work.




Now that I'm rolling, that I'm on my way

I've got to keep it up my newfound strength

Keep on building keep on filling

until I overflow then spill - on someone else. Haha!

-1.4-

A short artist's biography:

Born in China, Shiana Skye Mainarich is currently a senior at Herricks High School, New Hyde Park, NY. Since a very young age, Shiana has visited many art and history museums, sparking a wide range of interests over the years. However, there are three art movements that have heavily influenced her: Surrealism, Manga/Japanese woodcuts, and Mid-20th century Modern Art - specifically modern art with primarily geometric/biomorphic shapes such as the works of Mondrian, Rothko, and Barancusi. The school experience has also served as a theme in Shiana's work, especially in her animation Monday. Currently, Shiana is interested in the artist, Alphonse Mucha, and the voice synthesizing program, UTAU. Shiana has also been heavily influenced by the many hours she spent playing pretend with her friends, causing her work to be mainly fiction and have dream-like elements to it. Through her art, Shiana portrays the world in different perspectives, and allows others to appreciate the world in a new way.

At Herricks High School, Shiana is part of the gifted arts program, STAC. On her own, and through STAC workshops, Shiana has experimented with a diverse number of mediums including: painting, papercrafting, sculpting, drawing, dancing, acting, singing, playing the trombone, playing the piano, composing, writing, and filming. She has directed, acted in, edited, and written four films for Chinese class. She has also performed in the school musicals Urinetown and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, the former as first trombone, the latter as second trombone. Shiana has also completed a "365" practice, in which she utilized line drawing in order to draw a portrait every day for a year. Her most notable work to date is her animation, Monday, which follows the struggles and triumphs a student faces throughout one school day. Her current projects involve finishing a Mucha-inspired digital painting and mixing an UTAU cover of the song Scattered Cherry Blossoms -Elegant-. Over the course of the coming year, Shiana plans to create short films, create an abstract instillation using paper, and hone her drawing skills in realism.

-0.4-

Ah! A new year of STAC. And the final one.

Before I start off with our assignment/introduction, I'd like to reflect a bit on my summer (I didn't have a tremendous time to catch up with others, or reflect on the past few months, so I feel the best way to accomplish these two is to post on here.)

This summer was very busy. To start things off, my friends and I went into the city and attended the 2013 Gay Pride Parade! It was my first time going, and I gathered a lot of good material to share with the GSA here. I had to say, I wasn't as shocked as I was expected to be (what has the media done to me?!)

Since I am a senior, the summer was filled with college-related business. I took a physics class in Flushing in order to make room for Wind Ensemble, so now I know how to ride public buses. I also visited colleges in Ohio (Weslyn and Denison), New York (City College, Hunter, and Purchase), and Maryland (McDaniels). At the colleges in Ohio I sat down for interviews, which was scary, but I think I handled myself in a calm manner. I also studied a lot this summer for the ACT.

I'm trying to narrow down my college search, and finding a small, liberal arts program with a good bio program and low tuition/scholarships is ideal for me. Although I plan to major in Biology, continuing with band and the arts is a must, so the college must also have art programs and music programs available for non-majors! I feel that the Macaulay honors program at Hunter is promising. I also plan to visit Queens college and the University of Puget Sound this semester.

Besides school, I worked at the Women's Fund of Long Island, where I edited videos for them and wrote scripts for a possible PSA project (which I hope to continue this fall, if I have the time). I also attended a week-long leadership school geared towards creating worships for Unitarian Universalist congregations (hopefully I can use some of the more general skills to get projects done this year)!

I was so busy I felt a little stressed, but I had some time to wind down by drawing, mixing music, taking pictures of interesting outfits, watching a lot of art/science documentaries with my parents, and going to the bookstore. I also managed to hang out with friends by going ice skating and swimming three times...the only regret was that I never got to swim in the water (today I got to put my feet in when I visited my old town in the Rockaways, but I found an interesting way to photograph the beach via. the new telescopes they put up!)

I also attended "International Cosplay Day" with my friends, and we sang for a contest (we didn't win, but it was still exciting to perform)!

Not from the actual day, but this is what we wore

When my cousins from Texas came up to visit. We went into NYC and went to the Natural History museum (a special whale exhibit was on display, but we didn't get to go! I hope to go back soon...) Even so, I was fascinated by the hall of biodiversity...I had forgotten how expansive their collection was.

Overall, the summer was a lot of work, but I feel that I worked hard and played hard. I'm a little nervous about being a top dog, but I'm looking forward to carrying some of my summer experiences into STAC, and having a productive senior year (especially after all-things-college-related are done)!

...I'm pretty sure that I wrote down all that happened, but I feel like I'm forgetting something...

Add.3

A list of topics I wanted to write posts about, from last year, and I never really got to:

Thor review (Ok movie, but good casting)
Acting (It seems appealing, but I'd never do it professionally...that world is tough.)
John helping me with how to approach chordwriting (I have a sheet he wrote out for me with some tips!)
STAC live
Writing poem for UUU (The subject was love...I tried to expand the definition to all types of love)
Posture and changing it
Possible working w flash (Which I actually ended up doing for my QUEST project Link)
Pitt (a bit trouble hearing where notes are sometimes)
Bad art
Improv (Sometimes when I'm walking home I pretend to talk on the phone with friends/family. It's quite easy to improv, then.)
Making a gift for my friend Nadira (I love making gifts for people...it's fun finding a theme and making the envelopes and present for that theme ex. Nadira loves movies, so I printed out a picture of a clapboard and made it into an envelope that held the gift)

-52.3-

Trip2
In January, the Friday after break, STAC took a spontaneous trip into the city to see "The Event of a Thread" by Ann Hamilton at the Park armoury. After a few hours, we separated and explored the city until 7:30 where we met up at the Crane theatre (which is quickly becoming a STAC haunt) to see HorseTrade Radiotheatre's production of King Kong.
Park armoury:
My favorite trip. I loved the exhibit! The gentle movement of people swinging back and forth, and the curtain flowing by the mechanical breeze was quite calming. Many people were taking a nap under the giant curtain!
The constant movement and the large crowd made the exhibit very photogenic, too. I took a lot of pictures/video: Link (Note: Facebook albumn only friends can see)

Exploring:
I was in a group with Ellen, Danny, little Katz, Lex, Emily, Jessica, Ishna, and Scott. After we exited the armoury, we walked down 5th and looked at the post-christmas decorations, including the tree.
-couple of pics-
Then we took a train down to The Village, where Ellen showed us an authentic Ukranian restaurant (I've seen it before -the building across from 16 Handles- but I never knew it was a restaurant.) I ordered perogis and they were delicious!
After that we walked around and settled on 16 handles for dessert. By then, it was time to head to the Krane theatre to see the show!
King Kong production:
We've been to the Krane theatre to see a few shows from The Futurists, and from those experiences we were all eager to see how this show would be.
The show did have excellent voice acting, but...it was a bit too dry to taste that night. It was clever how the actors used a huge picture of King Kong, and let a lot of the scenes up to the viewers imagination, but I think we were all looking for something more...exciting.
All in all, it was a relaxing trip. A nice come back from break (I love doing spontaneous things...)

-55.3-

A short posting of my initial reaction to Hugo (I watched it about a month ago):

Hugo vs. The Artist
Hugo:
-made it fun for both kids and adults. Modern and ppl who knew old films
-focused on filmmaker and the joys of filmmaking/directing. Showed how old films inspired others, too
-also showed how great old films faded into obscurity
-but now are beig brought back and appreciated
Didn't try to be a silent film
Artist:
Was authentic in looks
Effectively conveyed a story through silent film techniques
Some creative points, such as the dream sequence (the main character dreams about sound ruining his silent film career)
Tried to be a silent film (both good and bad things about it)


Overall: I feel that Hugo paid the better tribute to silent films.