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Spencer Glenn – spenceglenn@gmail.com https://www.instagram.com/spenceglenn/ Tim Clark – timothy.o.clark@gmail.com Todd Durboraw – todddurboraw@gmail.com

Blog Assignment #7 take a photograph of a product and create a visual “little world” or “story” around it.

Let Me Manifest This Mystic Mood

Come in closer, mortals. I’ve been cultivating my spirit realm vibes again through curated decor. This photo captures some meaningful artifacts for awakening our inner ancient pasts. Everything ties back to preparation, protection and eternal possibility.

Centered is Lush’s Karma blend which reminds us that all energies eventually return full circle. I sourced the perfect engraved leather backdrop signifying past life memories buried within our DNA. Don’t the etched symbols seem faintly recognizable? Like you’ve been initiated before…

Fanning shadows nearby: slivers of selenite, beaming silver. Representative of lunar cycles, death/rebirth and spirit communing. They beckon softly.

My beloved crystal ball asserts future sight – if you have the gift to Scry like ancients. Coiled around, an enchanted uraeus serpent guards this visionary power. Behind, wings of Horus as the golden beetle promises renewal when we honor natural law.

And so I’ve composed an altarscape both elegant and storied. Its details should resonate with your soul as well. After all, the occult hides in plain sight 🧿🔮

2024’s Top Super Bowl Ads: Nostalgia Reigns, But Do Brands Finally See Us 40-Somethings?

M&M’s leans into beloved SNL icon Maya Rudolph for some wacky candy mascot drama. We’re here for the satire, but could this jesting alienate those timeless candy brand devotees?

Pepsi Zero mines our 80s Dodgeball nostalgia with Ben Stiller and Steve Martin. We enjoy the throwback laughs, but shouldn’t brands evolve beyond our aging pop culture glory days already?

Bud Light gives us another worn out wedding gag with Miles Teller. We get it…we’re the settle down demographic. But we still have some edge leftover from our youth!

Workday’s odd couple Billy Idol and Ozzy screams try-hard to middle-aged skeptics like us. Enterprise tech will never seem hip, no matter how hard you Gen Z gussy it!

Michelob Ultra trots out active athletes again. Yet our dad bods now thirst for more fantasy and escapism when kicking back, not just sweaty fitness inspo!

Doritos attempts music mashups with today’s artists to push…new BBQ chips? Our Spotify playlists may need some updating too then!

Heineken shrinks forever-young Paul Rudd into silly beer can hijinks. We adore our Gen X icon, but shouldn’t 45+ viewers see some graduate level storylines occasionally?

Booking.com serves us another trite hotels dot com song and dance routine. We dig Melissa McCarthy’s fearless comedy, but give us some substance! Maybe deals for our middle income travel budgets??

Hey brands – while we remain hip to digital buzz, isn’t it high time you look beyond millennials and zoomers to see the spending power and savviness of Generation X? We’re the tastemakers who paved the way! Just a thought from some still kickin’ elder influencers here!

BONUS REVIEW: When Sobriety Meets Super Bowl Ads: A Skeptic’s Take

Confessions of a Non-Sports Elder Millennial Assignmented to Review Budweiser’s 2013 “Brotherhood” Commercial

As someone who has only watched part of one Super Bowl in my 41 years, professional American football is hardly my specialist subject. But as a reforming participant in late stage capitalism and 5-years sober ex-beer drinker, critiquing an emotional Budweiser ad for a class assignment did force some unexpected personal introspection.

Could a cinematic story about the bond between Budweiser’s classic Clydesdale horses and their returning trainer transcend my usual corporate advertising cynicism and disdain for mega beer brands? I pressed play on YouTube, tissues at the ready just in case those manly Super Bowl tears needed dabbing.

As a non-drinker for going on 5 years now and complete sober person for over a year now, I’m no longer Bud’s target demographic. And this ad supporting a mega alcohol brand gives me pause in my efforts to disengage from late-stage capitalism.

However, I found this cinematic story of a trainer surprising Budweiser’s Clydesdale horses with their old friend rather emotionally affecting. The soaring orchestral score and slow motion capture of the horses recognizing and galloping towards their long-lost buddy got me, I’ll admit it!

Maybe it was the sweeping views of horses running free. Or the basic story bringing up memories of my own treasured friendships. Regardless, sneaky ad-makers…you caught this anti-Super Bowl elder millennial off guard by striking a heart string with timeless themes of undying friendship. R.I.P AYLA BUGGY…

I still believe we must thoughtfully examine the messages and worldviews corporate advertising can instill. But artful visions reminding us of love’s enduring power can momentarily transcend the sales pitch, for skeptics and sports-haters alike. Well played, Budweiser. Now back to my usual media diet of YouTube graphic design tutorials and listening the this song Red Lorry Yellow Lorry ‘Heaven’ 1989 on repeat for 3, or is it day 4? I need some sleep././.

https://visionspdx.bandcamp.com/album/visions-2https://visionspdx.bandcamp.com/album/visions-2

Background: Over fall break between first and second quarter, I took on a freelance design project for a popular post punk goth punk band from Portland, Oregon. The band reached out needing branding and promotional materials to establish their identity and promote their second album release. This included designing their logo, merch, and visual assets for their website and social media.

Actions: I had complete creative freedom over the concept and direction, so I carefully reviewed the band’s lyrics and musical style to understand their aesthetic and vibe. This inspired me to create a timeless, versatile logo design that aligned with their edgy yet poetic punk sound. I sketched out ideas combining symbolic visuals with their band name in a way that would stand out. After rounds of iteration, I landed on a final logo concept using Illustrator. I then applied this logo to create merch and digital assets using Photoshop and InDesign that were cohesive with the branding.

Results: The band absolutely loved the final designs and felt I completely nailed capturing their vision and brand identity. The logo visuals connect deeply with their music and who they are as artists. Since revealing the designs, they have been receiving an enthusiastic response from fans who are excited to sport their merch. They were so satisfied that they posted about my work on their popular social pages. This promotion led to a fair paycheck of $750 and interest from other bands looking for design work. Overall this project shows my ability to design impactful branding and is something I am proud to include in my portfolio

For anyone who hasn’t heard of it, Cards Against Humanity is a grown-up party game that’s super easy to learn but pretty much guaranteed to make you crack up. Basically you fill in the blanks to unfinished sentences using funny, and kinda offensive, phrases.

I gotta say, after playing Cards Against Humanity in my 30s, I never went back to Apples to Apples. It’s just way more hilarious with the no-limits humor. Me and my friends were crying laughing all night long playing it over the weekend.

Just a FYI, if you are easily offend, this game isn’t for you. But if you like boundary-pushing jokes with friends, I’d definitely check it out. It’s a total party and the $25 starter set is an affordable way to get the fun going.

Just a heads up – I also recommend getting the expansions for 10 bucks if you see it when you’re out. Those extra cards will keep you laughing game after game.

Overall rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Good stuff:

• Crazy funny card content
• Simple rules
• Gets conversations going

Bad stuff:

• Humor goes too far for some people’s taste
• Gets repetitive after lots of replays
• Need to keep buying expansions to keep it fresh

Let me know if you end up playing Cards Against Humanity! I’d love to hear what you think. It’s been my go-to adult party game for years and it always delivers laughs, even with a few flaws.

I chose to generate images of fly-fishing for rainbow trout in Montana using Ideogram. While there were some interesting results, none precisely matched what I had envisioned.

I see AI image generation as still being in early stages – it can spark ideas and provide inspiration, but lacks the nuance and intentionality of human creation. As the technology continues advancing rapidly, I’m eager to see it become more versatile.

This experiment highlighted both the current capabilities and limitations of systems like ideogram. It seems better suited for sparking creative ideas rather than final polished work. As designers, we retain an irreplaceable role in bringing thoughtful direction and purpose to visual media. Overall though, I’m intrigued by these AI tools as complements to human creativity rather than replacements.

Inspired by Halloween, I used Aero AR to craft a ritualistic Samhain scene filled with symbolic objects drawn from Celtic lore. The focal point was a stone altar topped with a human skull and a melted but still flickering candle representing the closing harvest. Around this altar floated transparent ghosts along with forest creatures like an owl peering wisely, a nervous squirrel, and a rabbit darting between dead trees. Fog and a full moon blanketed the background.

I was successful in fully building out and positioning these detailed assets within Aero to achieve the atmosphere I envisioned. However, upon trying to preview this completed scene, crashes soon followed. On desktop, my intricate Samhain world would materialize seemingly perfectly for 7-10 seconds before glitching and seizing up. On mobile by QR code, I could select a surface and glimpse everything in place just as planned, but 20 seconds later a crash would halt the experience dead in its tracks.

While proud I brought my imagined objects – skull, candle, specters, animals, trees and all – to (fleeting) virtual existence, it remains impossible to fully stable preview let alone share this hard work with others. Though as a creator, seeing it flicker to life at all feels like an honor to the ancient traditions of Samhain that inspired me. Someday I hope to stabilize this AR scene to fully immerse people in Celtic rituals reimagined.

Technology Report: iPad Pro and Apple Pencil

Overview: The iPad Pro is Apple’s high-end pro tablet line featuring their most advanced mobile processor for robust creative software support. Paired with the Apple Pencil stylus, it offers an integrated digital canvas and tool for graphic design and illustration.

Key Features:

• Liquid Retina display on 12.9” model provides large canvas with ProMotion for silky smooth drawing
• Powerful M2 chip enables full Adobe Creative Cloud app support for desktop-class design
• Apple Pencil attaches magnetically and charges wirelessly, offering low latency input
• Thin, light tablet design with all-day battery for portability between studio and location

Usage: Together, the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil transform into an on-the-go digital sketchbook perfect for graphic design work including sketches, icon design, illustration, etc. Its portability enables drawing anywhere when creative inspiration strikes. The pencil tools in apps like Illustrator and Photoshop are very robust for professional work. Files integrate seamlessly via iCloud and Dropbox with desktop projects.

Who Would Benefit:
This mobile package would allow any design student ultimate portability to develop ideas, create concepts, or start projects from anywhere. Tablet skills are demanded by studios, and Apple’s pro ecosystem leads for creative industries. The ability to design on an iPad Pro demonstrates versatility across devices and platforms needed in digital arts careers.

I have been wanting an iPad and stylus for quite sometime now and still haven’t pulled the trigger, but when the time comes it will be this one or whatever comes out next from apple.