Meghan Shawn Alter Ego

For my Alter ego project, I created a super hero that could read minds. Meghan Shawn’s back story is both her a her mother are mind readers. A secret government agency took Meghan’s mother to run tests on her. Meghan’s mom anticipated the agency coming and left her a map in which to find her. The illustrations on the outfit are key points on the map creating a deep connection between Meghan and her mother. Only Meghan will know how to decipher the map and will learn about herself along the journey to find her mother.

Each symbol is symbolic of my own mother. The illustrators and hair color represent both her favorite things aspects about her personality and charms from an old charm bracelet of hers. The jacket itself was originally her jacket she had custom made while studying abroad in Italy. This project was to honor my mother while creating a superhero in the process. I think my mom is a superhero so I wanted to create one based on her. For the “social media” component I created instead an adventure journal. The journal chronicles the journey she takes to find her mother and explains how she encounters all of the symbols on the clothing map.

Alter Ego Mood Board and Logo

My alter ego is a mind reading superhuman. This entire creation of an alter ego is represented in symbolism that has to do with my own mother. The roses are her favorite flower, the eagle is representative of where she went to college, and the scale is a symbol of her being a lawyer. I wanted to create a person that has the power of mind reading because I’ve always wanted to be able to read my own mom’s mind. For the continuation of this project I am creating a representative outfit where the illustrations are both a map for the character of where to go and symbolic references to my mom’s own life. Accompanying the costume, there is a hand written “diary” of the character with sketches related to her adventures to find her mother.

Hand Ax Exploration

Figure 1. Hand Ax. Egypt, Lower Paleolithic Period (300,000- 100,000 BCE). Flint. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Found in Egypt during the Lower Paleolithic Period (300,000- 100,000 BCE), the Hand Ax is a remarkable object. Being the oldest item in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it shows the historical background of what is considered art. This object was used in ancient Egypt as a tool, weapon, or other useful object. Although not seen as an art form in the traditional sense this and other objects of its kind provide a backdrop for western art. It shows a historical basis for further tools and objects of later creation. The shape and texture have not only a functional purpose, but also a historical meaning. The grove edges could have been used to cut or crush other objects. Additionally, the grove edges could have been created to allow the hand to fit around the ax comfortably making the ax more functional. Now, a fully functional object is considered a form of artistic expression. It set an artistic background for ceramics, pottery, and other crafts to come about. The Hand Ax proved art can be  both beautiful and functional.

The primitive men were creators, investors, and artists. As there is no historical writings from the time period, there is only speculation about the Hand Ax. It is fascinating because it shows the first steps in technological advances. It shows the homo sapiens curiosity with the world around them and their need to create objects for survival. They created this object and others like it not only to use but also to last. Hundreds of thousands of years later the Hand Ax is still in existence. It was not built for temporary use; it was built as a tool of survival.  This work of art provides somewhat of a beginning for the definition of  art, and allows us insight into the mind of those who came before us. This ax was a catalyst for minds to continue to grow and invent new objects that show the history of man. Human curiosity in art was shown as early as 300,000,000 BCE, and is continually shown throughout the remainder of art history. Technology continued to grow and evolve as the human race grew and evolved. Humans looked at the past for inspiration for the future and the ax shows that connection. It is a work of art, a tool, and a reminder of the capacity of the human mind.

Meditation Ritual Project Contribution

For this project my group and I created a meditation themed ritual inspired but internal healing. For my section of the project I am the main performer and costume designer. I created a reversible jacket where one side is inspired by a straight jacket showing the person is feels trapped within themselves. Through the ritual the jacket gets turned around to the flowing white robe showing the light after the dark. It shows that you can take your harsh emotions with you and grow from them. The white zipper on the front of the black jacket is to hint at the process itself. The pants are another transformative aspect of the ritual where it starts them being partially untied and ends with them being fully tied up. It is supposed to represent stitches and the person being physically and emotionally stitched back together. The ritual is accompanied by interior design, video, other 3D aspects, and is interactive for the entire class. I started with a mood board, moved to sketching out the design, and then created each part piece by piece. I started with the pants and then the under shirt and finally did each part of the jacket. I finished the garment by making the jacket reversible.

Sexual Stages of Relationships in the 21st Century Emojis

Set of Emojis

Final Illustrator Emojis 😉

For my section of the classes emojis I got assigned to create a set of sexual stages of relationships in emojis. I decided to make the emojis a commentary on commonalities in stages of relationships in the twenty first century specifically with the college age group. For example, the emoji with the rainbow hearts is to show the fully accepting nature of my generation and age group. Doesn’t matter who you are or who you like you are excepted with love. The I love you signs are to show the common theme of hanging cards and pictures of your significant other or loved ones on your wall usually on a clothes line and pinned up to a wall. The emoji with the man and the woman taking the money out of his pocket is to show the common theme of young girls having a sugar daddy to provide for them. The others are self explanatory actions and my version of satire towards my generation and their ideas of casual relationships that they don’t even call relationships at all. I chose to draw them by hand all fitting within two by two inch squares with markers and watercolor pencils.

Personal Currency Final With Color Palettes

For the final draft of my personal currency I kept the idea of symbolism in mind. All of the symbolic patterns representing my friends and family stayed the same. Now my currency has two different color palettes. The cool toned color palette is color from a picture of a day of healing in one of my favorite places in Boston, The Museum of Fine Arts, and the other picture I picked colors from is from when I fell in love with New York City. My best friend Meg and I walked around the city that day drinking Dunkin Donuts, we are from Massachusetts after all, and went to her show. It was an inspiring day so naturally I made it a color scheme for my money. The fronts of the currency are related to my South African heritage, my dad, and my friends. The backs of the currency are related to my hometown in Massachusetts, my lack of importance of physical money, and patterns I draw in my sketchbook. Overall this currency is a self portrait. All of the places and people blend together in the patterns of the currency making up my money and myself. For this project, I used both illustrator and photoshop both of which were very much a struggle for me. These are programs that I was not very familiar with before hand, but now I feel like I have at least more of an understating about them. Overall a very rewarding project.