Day One: The Start of Summer Studies

The overcast blanket of clouds hanging over Manhattan this morning forbode of rain. Despite my warning to bring an umbrella, my suite-mates left without one, leaving three girls to fend for themselves against the fierce, pouring elements with just one form of protection. Nonetheless, we arrived at orientation saturated to the tips of our hair in water, but with one more New York adventure under our belts.

After repeated warnings of Parsons' strict attendance policy at orientation, my roommates and I used our DiningDollars for the first time in the Cafe at 55 West 13th St. With stomachs full of both of food and butterflies, we laborously climbed the stairs to our 8th and 11th floor classrooms in lieu of subjecting ourselves to the elevator traffic.

As first impressions go, I felt notably overwhelmed. In the spanse of 4 weeks, groups are to create from start to finish a magazine; fully furnished with the successes of our time at Parsons, it will feature a dress fabricated from an unusual material and be inspired from a self-taken photograph of NYC.

The leafy greens and the tiny, foreshortened dots of orange
provided a fresh, organic contrast to the otherwise geometric
lines of Union Square

My partner, Gabby, and I left the building before 4, as Paul dismissed us early to walk around, be inspired, and take pictures. My first class focused greatly on the many aspects of design within a composition (mainly photographs). I learned a lot about what to look for when finding our inspiration locations, and how to look for contrasting forms, colors, and textures in photographs. We took many shots, but fell in love with the textures of the Union Square farmers market. Especially considering the New School's pledge to become carbon neutral and promote sustainability, we believe that the use of organic materials will contribute to the life of our piece. Of course, the concern is that creating vegetable dress is a time sensitive project. Hopefully, we will be able to see our plan out through to the end and fulfill our vision without fear of it wilting.

There are so many components of this photo - the texture
of the stone, the bright contrast of the cone to the street,
and the accent of red in the ground of the composition.

Tomorrow, my morning session will consist of a three-hour figure drawing workshop. Something I learned today is that the human body is at the top of hierarchy drawing difficulty, with horses and trees following respectively. I can't help but feel nervous, but more importantly, excited for this experience; dry media are my favorite to work with and the blendability of charcoal lends itself to my needs. Despite having to carry my very heavy supplies to class, tomorrow will be a good day, because I will have pencil in hand and my focus on creation.

Highlight of the Day:

> I met some really cool fashion design students while buying supplies in the (endlessly long) line at Utrecht. Artists are definitely my kind of people.