So, I skipped my electronic publishing class.
I had insomnia last night. After five hours of sleep, the last thing I felt like doing was going to a class where half the period would be spent explaining how to save something to a disk.
So, I didn't.
A relaxing day put me in good spirits for my drawing for animation class.
I'll have to retract some of my earlier statements about my teacher. He's really good, and I don't think he's an LA transplant. Near as I can tell, he's either from this area. Well, I guess if you were living in the midwest, with the limited animation industry that's here, you might glamorize California a bit. I know that I've met a few who do.
But he really knows his shit.
Every day, we do some life drawing sketches. It's great, because it will really help my portfolio. He showed me a technique that allowed me to completely break through my mental blocks and do some great gesture drawings. And he's really excited about animation. So, any differences in taste aside, I think I'm really going to learn a lot from this guy.
I think I did offend one of my classmates, though, with my opinionated style.
She had come to ask me about the MTV project I was talking about in class. (The teacher had asked about our introduction to animation.) She asked me if they ever used it, and I said that I didn't know. She said that she wouldn't know because she didn't like MTV.
"There's too many shows on it," she said.
"Ah see, I don't watch it too much. I just sometimes watch Daria and Celebrity Death Match."
She made a face.
"My sister watches Daria. I don't like it. I like VH 1. Do you ever watch VH 1?"
"Not if I can help it," I replied.
"Oh. Well--I like it, but then I'm older, I'm 26...so you know...
"So?"I asked, wondering if there was some weird genetic strain in Kalamazoo that made your musical taste go to shit after the age of 24. "I'm thirty."
"Oh. Sorry." She said, and quickly ran off.
So, I no doubt offended my classmate but any guilt is washed away by the vain satisfaction that someone four years younger than me used how "old" they were to justify why they liked something and I did not. What can I say, I take the compliments wherever I can get 'em these days.
Anyhow...
After feeling morose for a few days about my difficulty with design, I have a newfound determination and sense of direction. I even find myself less intimidated at the prospect of applying to schools with high admission standards. I'm spending so much time on my art nowadays that I can see the improvement on a weekly basis. I think by the time January rolls around, I'll have some good work to choose from. I even find myself doing artwork outside of my assignments. I thought that I might feel stifled and not do my own work, but that doesn't seem to be happening.
Today, I stumbled upon a catalog I had downloaded from the Pratt site awhile back. They displayed a photo of the Manhattan skyline. As I looked at it, I felt a pang of sadness.I saw the World Trade Center towers that are now no more. From now on, this will always date photos of New York. You will always be able to tell whether a photo was taken before last Tuesday or after.
Tomorrow is Tuesday. A week feels like a lifetime ago...