Modern Car Design

Customization: color, shape, and vinyls

Car customization has been alive and well since the inception of the automobile. However, more recently, aftermarket car parts have taken off, and many car owners are looking to the almost unlimited amount of options to make their car their own expression. Beginning with the car itself, including it's unique shape and design, is like the pallete for which a driver can begin to apply his or her artwork.

The first thing somebody notices about a car is it's color. From vibrant oranges to lime greens, the color decides how the rest of the customization will be. For example, the second picture deals with a green car, and a blue vinyl (sticker) on it. This combination looks quite natural because both of the colors are cool colors, and blend together easily.

Some cars have extravagent designs on them, ranging from the actual of the body to the car to even the windows themselves. I really like this design on a Lamborghini, it realy fills out the car; however i thought it was interesting because this is such a fast car, it perplexed me to have such intricate artowrk on something that wont be seen on the road.

Skateboard Deck Design

The Possibilities are Endless

Take a guess at who desinged these skateboard decks...it is not a leading skateboard company, or not even somebody who is associated with skateboarding at all. It is none other than British artist Damien Hirst, who came together with 'Supreme' to release a series of 3 Skateboard decks. Hirst, who is known for spin paintings and graphic spot paintings, has added this to all decks. I know Hirst is not known for his paintings, as we plainly witnessed for oursleves in class; but I thought this spin desing of paint worked marvelously with the theme of skateboarding.

How all of the colors interact with one another and look as though they have just been thrown onto the piece of wood. It may not be a usual approach to deck design, but I think it represents skateboarding as a sport almost perfectly. The combination of tricks, fast movements, and the spinning sensation the rider gets when flying through the air....it is all represented on the bottom of the deck. I really like Damien Hirst's design here, and although I dont really like much of his other works, I found these to be quite intriguing and appropriate for this medium.

Impermanent Art

Car Window Art

Scott Wade is a very unique artist. His medium is dirt and dust...on the back of car windows. When I first saw his work I had to do a double take, because I didn't quite believe what I was seeing. His artwork is incredible. To be able to create such detailed shading and realsim out of a thin layer of dirt, it perplexed me. He uses many painting tools, and he says it is similiar to working with charcoal, taking the dirt off to show the image within.

I thought Wade's work is similiar to Goldsworthy's, in that, they both create artwork that they know is not permanent, and will be literally washed away in the near future. However, both artist's feel that the impermanence is a good thing, and makes them appreciate their work that much more.

He has replicated many famous paintings, to show just how incredible this form of art really can be. The first picture was of "The Girl With a Pearl Earing" and the last picture contains Leonardo Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" overlapping Van Gogh's "Starry Night". I think to be able to do this is a testament to Wade's skill and passion for this form of artwork, and trying to show people that beauty can come from anything.

I am including a link to a video that shows just how Wade paints these car window masterpieces:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1wfWPtjxMA

New Means of Artwork

More Public Art

I was looking around online for more forms of public artwork, for which I did one of my earlier blogs on, and I found an interesting video. It was similiar to a motion flip-book, where a person turns the pages and a series of images create the image of movement. This was different however, because the video showed the same flip art perspective, but with using stickers on the part of an escalator where people put their hands to hold on. It really intrigued me because I had never thought about anything like that, and I though it was an ingenious, if somewhat time consuming, way of expression.

I posted the link to the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCQZ2TbYdMQ

I liked the imagery that the person used in this video, because it showed transforming objects and shapes, which would be perfect for such a medium.

Graffiti POV

Whenever I make my way into the heart of the city, graffiti is plastered on the walls. It is all around, covering the sides of buildings, trains cars, local businesses. Many people consider it a nuisance since it is viewed as vandalism and/or gang related. This may be true, and I do not support that reason for it’s use, but I have also been a witness to some incredible graffiti art that can be seen in a positive light.



Personally, I think graffiti looks ridiculously hard to create from just a can of spray paint. The precision and control it must take is really something to admire. Now what someone will do with the gift of a steady hand and a can of paint is up to them. If more people created influential works then this form of art work may start to be re-evaluated and seen as a viable option to express oneself.

I think most people would consider the following pictures as true, amazing, and inspirational works of art. The word graffiti has a negative connotation, but if more images of this nature starting appearing in the cities, people might have second thoughts about the power of spray paint and an open mind.

Logos: Marketing or Artwork?

I was recently watching a professional hockey game on television, and I noticed how intricate and laid out the players jerseys were. How their gigantic crest, showing what team they played for, took up their whole chest. How the color combinations on the uniforms flowed and made them appealing to the eye. I usually don’t pay any attention to these details, but I started to wonder: how are creating logos and jerseys for teams decided upon? And if the players were living, breathing artwork?


I started thinking in depth even more; a professional sports logo has to be meaningful and it has to be an easily recognized symbol that people can associate with, while making sure it looks good. I went to some of today’s modern sports teams for comparison. For example, the Colorado Avalanche hockey team has a picture of a big letter “A” with a swirling avalanche coming through it, which fit’s the criteria of being artistic, recognizable, and meaningful since actual avalanches take place in the state of Colorado.



Another example would be our local baseball team, the Colorado Rockies, whose logo may not be as artistic as some, but is meaningful because of the real-life Rocky Mountains, and is very recognizable.



In the end, I think logos are made for association and fan connection more than for art’s sake, but fortunately many sports logos are very artistic in their own right.

How Art is Influencing us Today

Artwork from times in humanities past has a way of influencing people today, and forever into the future. Either it be a direct correlation or a sense of inspiration to think about thinks differently, even possibly creating new art from it. I know in the Renaissance time period artists directly gained inspiration from their peers of the time, and looked to change their own work using new found techniques or styles being created. Today I think people continue to look into the past, even if it is to just completely go in the opposite direction with their art; because the past is vital in decoding the future. The only way to find out what is new is to first know what is old. It gives us perspective about the world around us.


Having taken several art classes during my time as a student, without a doubt many artists have influenced my thought process about pieces of art, and art as a whole. Different art gives me different emotions, and all art makes me stop and think, even if I don’t necessarily like what I am looking at. I’ve learned my thought process is continually shifting, changing every day, and how I view the world can change through art work.






These two pictures are just another example of how art can be a direct influence throughout time.

Street Art

Joshua Allen Harris

I found this video on youtube about street art that reminded me of the video we watched earlier this semester in class about Andy Goldsworthy's work. I saw a connection because Goldsworthy used the materials around him to create art out of everyday objects, and the artist in this video did the same. However, the difference is Goldsworthy used natural materials and Joshua Allen Harris used man-made objects in the city setting to create his artwork.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH6xCT2aTSo

I especially found it interesting how the creations that Harris made were directly influenced by their environment, having the air from the underground subways inflating or deflating them at different lengths of time.

The Importance of Setting

Video Game Level Design

Video games, like movies, and books, and other forms of artwork are apreciated because they sometimes bring an audience into a far away world, where the imagination can run wild. Where the senses become overwhelmed with color and vibrance and realism. However, video games somewhat differ in this experience because instead of just watching the action unfold, the audience controls the action right in front of them, with a push of several buttons.

The idea is to combine exploration and functionality with entertainment. For example, the first two pictures show very different settings; consisting of a possibley abandoned artic station to an Earthy romantic tone in the second image, with nature starting to overwhelm the man-made structures. Both are intriguing in their own way, drawing in the audience with a unique sense of wonderment and curiosity, while at the same time knowing they are no the first to step foot there.

This third picture adds a sense of depth to the environment, really provoking the audience and opening their imagination to interpretation of what and where this place is. I know when I was looking at these level designs I started to ask myslef these questions: What is this place? Why is it important? Does it serve a function? And why am I here?