Working on our 'online presence'

equals photoshop and dreamweaver and a scanner and hours of html.

we decided on a simple grid design for the front page, and then two columns for the pages.

slowly but surely.

Yearbook U.S Department of Agriculture, 1907

I bought these pages on Etsy a few months ago, we thought they were a really nice way of presenting images. They are microscopic images of different starches, peppers and adulterants. We really liked the idea of zooming in on a small part of a bigger picture. 

MANIFESTO PAGES

Finally here are some of the scans of the book - minus the cover.

New record longest day!

11 hours in college today. Ali, Anna and I signed up for screen-printing and printed some postcards to go with our manifesto book (we also did some lovely two and three colours prints of other work for ourselves). After printing Kim joined us to work on the group work of  sorting the postcards into packs and putting them in bags which will have the stickers we printed (with potato printing) the other day. We also folded all the books that we printed last week.
Here we are working away in the canteen. Sorry if the grammar of this post doesn't make a lot of sense its been a long day.

Risograph printing of the book!

On Tuesday we printed all of the book (except the cover, and the riso is now unfortunately broken so the cover may have to wait for a while). Heres a few photos of us printing.

Potato Prints :: The Making Of...

This afternoon we gathered at my house (mainly because it's comfy and I have a rather large array of ink pads) to do a bunch of potato prints. Here are some in progress photos and some shots of the potatoes themselves.

Some of us had never done them before and it was really fun to try! Obviously some were more successful than others, but it was useful to have the time to figure out what worked better in the carving. I think we all channeled our inner kid, and reminisced about craft projects that we used to do when we were younger. It sounds silly, but I think that helped us get more accurate results (our creatures are childlike, young and naive).

Potato Prints :: The Prints!

There are more of these in our sketchbooks, but here's some of the loose paper ones (and the ones we printed on sticker paper for the packets of our Manifesto! (Above was three separate prints.)
Ali and Alice above. And because I did all mine on loose sheets, mine are below:
And these mountains are by Anna. She made loads of these until she found the most successful! I'm in love with these mountains. [:
We wanted to try different techniques of printing and as our characters are quite childish, we channeled our creatures and thought of the types of things they might do. Potato prints seemed an obvious and fun choice!

Ultra long day!

Today we made lots of progress with the manifesto and we will definitely be ready to print tomorrow. At college from 8.45am to 7pm today. This is Anna as we were leaving. Its dark outside.

Revised Manifesto

We've had a few setbacks this week so we had to alter our plans for the manifesto a bit. We were thinking of making three books - the first would be a text only typewritten book of the manifesto (an early copy that our creatures may have come across?), the second would be a scrapbook/ collage interpretting the first book using just one colour risograph printing - fun and rough and the third would be a scientific beautiful book studying amoeba and subtley looking at things liek creativity etc in the amoebas, taking a step back this would use circles (like the ones from old scientific documents showing cells etc) for the images and would be risograph printed in two colours.

The revised verison of this plan is to make just two books - the first one the same as the previous plan and the second one similar to the previous plan but using the idea of circles (that multiply and expand like amoebas) to hold the images and it will be a two colour risograph print (images one colour and text another). In this revised version we have also edited our manifesto text.

Here is the edited version!

INDIVIDUALLY, WE ARE A DELICATE INSTRUMENT, TOGETHER, WE ENDOW YOU WITH LIFE. 


WE ARE MADE FROM THE LIVING MATERIAL OF OF ALL THINGS. 

WE HAVE LIVED FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.

WE HAVE COME TO REALISE THE THINGS WE VALUE IN LIFE AND THE BEST WAY TO PROGRESS AS LIVING THINGS. iN OUR SOCIETY WE VALUE WELL BEING, COMPANY, PROGRESS, COMMUNICATION. WE HAVE SPENT MANY YEARS GATHERING KNOWLEDGE FROM THE WORLD TO TEACH US HOW TO LIVE BY THESE VALUES. 

HERE IS WHAT WE LEARNT.

1. BE ACTIVE IN AMELIORATION

2. INFORMATION IS FOR SHARING

3. ALWAYS QUESTION

36.WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT?

4. ENCOURAGE SHIFTS IN THINKING. OPEN MIND IS A HEALTHY MIND

5. BE PEACEFUL TO YOUR FELLOW LIVING THINGS

8. EXPAND YOURSELF BY ABSORBING YOUR ENVIRONMENT

15. CONSTANTLY COLLECT

16. LOOK BEYOND

17. DISCOVER

18. RESPECT PRE-EXISTING IDEAS OBJECTS PLACES PEOPLES

19. WE DO NOT DWELL ON THE PAST, WE ONLY LEARN FROM IT

20. THINK LATERALLY. 

21. WE DO NOT EXIST IN A VACUUM

22. MISTAKES LEAD TO ORIGINALITY.

24. OBSERVE

25. IMAGINE

27. APPRECIATE THE CURIOSITY OF LIFE

31. THERE IS NO LEADER, THERE IS ONLY POSITIVE INFLUENCE

33. BEAR IN MIND, UNPREDICTABILITY

34. VALUE WHAT YOU DO

37.  ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE

(this list obviously needs re-numbering but to make the way we've grouped images easier I'll leave it like this for now)

Wednesday in the studio

Here's a few (poor quality) photos of what we did in the studio today. We collated all the imagery we've gathered so far and put it all on the wall so we could get an overview of it all and decide which images went with which phrases.

Today we also started a (secret) facebook group to share ideas/ images etc and keep everyone in the loop as quite a few of us have been unwell this week or unable to come to college.

Taking a step back

We all got some feedback individually from tutorials today which helped develop our ideas a bit more. After speaking with Geoff Kim, Dave and I thought more about editing our manifesto so it is more concise or really emphasising how long and unwieldy it is.
And, from their tutorial with Jim, Ali and Anna thought about looking at it on different levels - possibly three books. The original text, our creatures interpretation and then a scientific study of our creatures/ amoebas. So the last book would be really taking a step back and getting out of the amoeba world. It reminded us of this episode of the Simpsons. (see the video at 7mins 30 seconds)

Hidden Imagery

Today some of us talked to Goeff about using hidden imagery in our manifesto. Looking at colour-blind tests and optical illusions is pretty relevant. 

The Giver Chapter 9

Re-listening to this book (which is written for young adults).

It's about a society with lots of rules and it is peaceful. The story follows a boy who is singled out at the Ceremony Of the 12s (or coming of age), when duties or roles are given out (jobs).

Appreciation of individual talents.

Roles given to individuals so they can serve their community best.

Precision of language.

Rituals- The telling of Dreams, Sharing Feelings.

Suppression of 'love/lust' (called Stirrings)
No doors in are ever locked.
Family Units. Dwellings. Sleeping Room. The book of Rules.

The language and words used to describe things may be helpful when writing our manifesto.

This chapter is quite a good one if you've never read it- it's right after he is given his special job.

p.s. I just re-listened to Gathering Blue and The Messenger, which are sort of 'sequels' to this. It's really darn good (partly about a girl with a physical defect who has 'magic' in her fingers and makes threaded illustrations... yeah, i know!...). I've also started listening to The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It's another one about different human societies. It's great hearing how resourceful humans could be- how they get by, what they make... the way they live. Interesting to be sure!

Manifesto Draft

1. BE ACTIVE IN AMELIORATION

2. INFORMATION IS FOR SHARING

3. ALWAYS QUESTION

36.WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT?

4. ENCOURAGE SHIFTS IN THINKING. OPEN MIND IS A HEALTHY MIND

5. BE PEACEFUL TO YOUR FELLOW LIVING THINGS

6.CONDUCT TRANSFERS OF KNOWLEDGE

7. EXPAND YOUR CREATIVITY

8. EXPAND YOURSELF BY ABSORBING YOUR ENVIRONMENT

9. BUT REMEMBER YOUR ENVIRONMENT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAT YOU….RESPECT (SEE NATIVE AMERICAN IDEAS)

10.  FULFIL POTENTIAL

11. RECOGNISE THE BENEFITS OF CHANGE

12. REMEMBER, REALITIES EXIST ON MULTIPLE PLAINS

13. FOLLOW YOUR HEART

14. CONSIDER ALL LEVELS OF MEANING.

15. CONSTANTLY COLLECT

16. LOOK BEYOND

WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

17. DISCOVER

18. RESPECT PRE-EXISTING IDEAS OBJECTS PLACES PEOPLES

19. WE DO NOT DWELL ON THE PAST, WE ONLY LEARN FROM IT

20. THINK LATERALLY. 

21. WE DO NOT EXIST IN A VACUUM

22. MISTAKES LEAD TO ORIGINALITY.

23. INTELLIGENCE IS DYNAMIC AND INTERACTIVE

24. OBSERVE

25. IMAGINE

26. CREATIVITY IS SOMETHING YOU'RE BORN WITH- YOU MUST RE-CONSTITUE YOUR CONCEPTIONS OF YOUR OWN CREATIVE CAPACITY

27. APPRECIATE THE CURIOSITY OF LIFE

28. DISCOVER YOUR TALENT

29. BE PREPARED TO BE WRONG, DO NOT STIGMATISE MISTAKES.

30. EVERYBODY STARTS FROM THE SAME PLACE.- WE ARE MADE FROM THE LIVING MATERIAL OF ALL THINGS

31. THERE IS NO LEADER, THERE IS ONLY POSITIVE INFLUENCE

32. DON'T MAKE HEIRACHIES BASED ON OTHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS OF STATUS AND IMPORTANCE

33. BEAR IN MIND, UNPREDICTABILITY

34. VALUE WHAT YOU DO

35. INDULGE IN THINGS YOU ENJOY

36. HONESTY PREVAILS

37.  ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE

Manifesto Introduction

INDIVIDUALLY, WE ARE A DELICATE INSTRUMENT, TOGETHER, WE ENDOW YOU WITH LIFE. 


WE ARE MADE FROM THE LIVING MATERIAL OF OF ALL THINGS. 

WE HAVE LIVED FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.

WE HAVE COME TO REALISE THE THINGS WE VALUE IN LIFE AND THE BEST WAY TO PROGRESS AS LIVING THINGS. iN OUR SOCIETY WE VALUE WELL BEING, COMPANY, PROGRESS, COMMUNICATION. WE HAVE SPENT MANY YEARS GATHERING KNOWLEDGE FROM THE WORLD TO TEACH US HOW TO LIVE BY THESE VALUES. 

HERE IS WHAT WE LEARNT.

THREE INCHES IS A VERY GOOD HEIGHT TO BE!

Life cycle of a caterpillar

Lovely!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Snodgrass_Schizura_concinna.jpg

Risograph test prints

On Thursday we spent a few hours trying out the risograph printer as we are thinking of using it to print the final manifesto. It prints in layers like a screen print but is faster and inexpensive so would be ideal for our project as we are hoping to print quite a few with a view to selling some.
We wanted to experiment with how the colours overlay and what colours/ textures/ original material copies best. As well as different types of paper. Here are some of our experiments.

Altermodern Manifesto

ALTERMODERN
MANIFESTO

POSTMODERNISM IS DEAD

A new modernity is emerging, reconfigured to an age of globalisation – understood in its economic, political and cultural aspects: an altermodern culture

Increased communication, travel and migration are affecting the way we live

Our daily lives consist of journeys in a chaotic and teeming universe

Multiculturalism and identity is being overtaken by creolisation: Artists are now starting from a globalised state of culture

This new universalism is based on translations, subtitling and generalised dubbing

Today's art explores the bonds that text and image, time and space, weave between themselves

Artists are responding to a new globalised perception. They traverse a cultural landscape saturated with signs and create new pathways between multiple formats of expression and communication.

The Tate Triennial 2009 at Tate Britain presents a collective discussion around this premise that postmodernism is coming to an end, and we are experiencing the emergence of a global altermodernity.

This is a section from the Tate Britain website

Also the suggested manifesto of the Monster Raving Loony Party.

And the Declaration of Independence 

Also I like that this manifesto (cyberfeminism) states everything they are not about.

Another student's manifestos -thank you Joe Egan

My friend Joe had a project to graphically represent two manifestos earlier this year and I thought it would be relevant to look at the way he has done this.