300 is an American film based on the historic battle of Thermopylae, and the graphic novel of the same name. This bloody battle was waged over three days in which a band of three hundred Spartan warriors held off an army of ten thousand Persians until the rest of Greece could mobilize for war. With…
All the guest speakers we have had this semester were so different in terms of the kind of work that they do and I was introduced to so many different perspectives, ideologies, methods, processes. I was wide-eyed what this new lecture would be about. I had gone through the description but there wasn’t much I…
I have always found this logo (1960) to be mesmerizing, and as I was two years old when it was introduced, it has been ever-present in my life. There are a number of interpretations of Rand’s abstraction but I want to give this a new spin. Someone wrote the look was that of circuit boards…
In the cultural mix (or mix-up) that was Studebaker-Packard, two once-proud auto manufacturers fell into market decline against GM and found themselves in a marriage of convenience between two very different cultures. Studebaker had made wagons and jeeps before moderately-priced vehicles in the 1930s; in the 1940s it had two post-war hits in its 1946…
There was a time in the late 1970s when generic brands first appeared in packaging that looked exactly like this (see Michael Nesmith’s Repo Man for the final scene in which the suburban punk is shot in the convenience store). I received this recently from Indiana. Does this appearance now constitute an historic style? See…
This Wild Design is featured on the building of the company Crude Bitters and Sodas in downtown Raleigh. I thought it was pleasant in both its color and form, which played off of each other to enhance the overall whimsy. The color was an interesting decision because pink is a playful color, and is not…
Since I have watched almost all of Orange is the New Black, I am able to understand the message that the directors were trying to get across with their opening title sequence. This show follows women in jail along with their stories and progress/digression in the system. Some get out, some die, some get in…
The physical space that I chose to review was the Pigcasso play piece located at the North Carolina Museum of Art. This piece was originally designed by Spanish artist Jaime Hayon and it was part of a series of large-scale whimsical sculptures. This piece sits fresh off one of the museum’s many trails and is…
I recently went to Richmond, Virginia to visit my sister at VCU. While there, we went to the Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA). One of the exhibitions there was called Provocations, and was created by artist Rashid Johnson. When I first entered the Provocations exhibit, I immediately felt like I was transported to another…
Grocery shopping is something everyone has to do in their lives, at least a few times. Just about every week or so I’m at the grocery store. I’ve gone back and forth between all the different chains, but I keep finding myself going back to Trader Joe’s. Honestly, the biggest reason comes down to money…
Leazar Hall, the building NC State’s design students know all too well. In this building is where first year design students start their design career, where some have creative breakthroughs and others cry. This is also the building where many all nighters are pulled and critiques dished out with no mercy. Nonetheless, I will be…
Located in Raleigh, North Carolina, the PNC arena hosts nearly 20,000 people for basketball, ice hockey, and concerts. I personally was able to experience the “VIP Lounge” area for a few hours before The Mumford and Sons concert that was held March 17th for St. Patrick’s Day. For those who paid for VIP tickets, the…
I chose the Reedy Creek Greenway. The Reedy Creek Greenway is a Navigational system that runs along part of Meredith College and is used by runners, walkers, and cyclists. The Greenway starts at the corner of Faircloth St and Hillsborough St, and ends at the corner of Trenton Rd and Reedy Creek Rd. It is…
The physical place that I chose to examine is a museum from my home town, the Maritime Museum, located in Beaufort, NC. Growing up I loved this museum because it was not only fun and interesting, but it was also where a lot of community events were held that I participated in. The Maritime Museum…
Stuart Candy, in his lecture titled ‘To World a Better Design,’ describes his work with experiential futures. The sheer aspect of reality and its relation to design led me to become both intrigued and puzzled by the vast array of problems that design can solve. He led me to realize that a good designer doesn’t…