7/7-9 Goodbye London

I can’t believe our time in London is over! We have all looked forward to this trip for so long and now it’s over! I can definitely say I have had an amazing time here, experiencing the culture and also getting so much closer with my friends in VC. I have made some wonderful friends and I know I have a support system as well, which is great because we all go through the same things on a daily basis back at school.

I met up with Gemma one last time to say goodbye, I gave her the hand-painted fan I bought her in Barcelona and she loved it. It was so nice spending so much time with her this summer, I really do hope I can come back to see her soon.

We all had to spend a lot of time packing and cleaning up, I personally am the slowest packer in the whole world so it took me forever to get organized. I was stubborn when I left and just brought one big suitcase that was at the maximum weight limit, but with all the papers and magazines and STUFF I collected I had to buy another suitcase to go home with!

Our flat and the boy’s flat went out to Hoxton Square for our last night together in London. This is a trendy little area I wish we had found sooner, but we enjoyed our last night together, which is what matters. I think the late night dance parties at the flat, our frequent runs to the 24 hour store for hummus and chocolate, endless hours of listening to Girl Talk and my random 80’s music, going to hear speakers and actually realizing what they were saying applies to your life, the massive amounts of Tortellini that Alicia and I survived on, and running to catch the tube at 11:55, 5 minutes before it closes, are what I will remember most out of this summer. I feel so lucky that I still have one more year to have experiences like these and I am NOT going to take that for granted.

Cheers!

(Photos are of Alicia, Larry, Martin and I out in Hoxton Square, One of my favorite dance parties in the hallway of our flats, Our VCUK Club Soccer in Russell Square, and Laurel, Alex and I being silly in our masks)

7/5-6 WIMBLEDON

Not realizing how late it was in the tournament bunch of us packed our bags, bought a tarp, stopped at Sainsbury’s and headed to camp out for tickets to Wimbledon. We got there at noon to find that we were the first people in the queue, and would be the only people there until around 7 pm that day. We lost two after a few hours, they decided sleeping on the sidewalk just wasn’t worth it, but those of us who are tennis fans wanted to stay the whole time. While in line people going into and leaving were looking at us like we were nuts! The people that worked at Wimbledon sent special staff over to check on us and make sure we were all right. To be honest, I think I might have met some of the friendliest people while waiting in the queue. They would all stop to talk to us, ask if we needed anything, it was great.

Slowly the temperature began to drop, and the rain started. At one point they had handed us tickets that said “I’ve queued at Wimbledon” but these stickers suddenly began to say “I’ve queued in the rain at Wimbledon.” Other people had started to line up behind us, but they were experienced and had brought tarps. All we had was one tarp which we were allowed to put up an hour after all matches had ended. 2 rolls of duct tape, 2 boxes of garbage bags, and probably 40 heavy rocks later, we had constructed what could be considered a shelter. At this point we were freezing and thank god we had made friends with a bunch of 18 year old boys behind us who had a big tent because they let us cram in there for a while. When it came time to try to sleep, we all headed back to our sad little tent and crammed in like sardines, cold and miserable, with the wind blowing hard.

6am rolled around and the rain had stopped and it was time to get our queue cards! These would be our place-holders to show how long we had been in line. I asked nicely and the man handed me the first card in the pile, 00001! I was so happy! We eventually started moving towards the courts, and at 9am they opened the gates it was a free-for-all to get to the turnstiles. We got fourth row seats on Court 1…absolutely amazing. When we walked into the court my jaw dropped at how close our seats were.

The first match was Djokovic verses Baghdatis, and I immediately took to Baghdatis. He had a huge following there, and they would chant “Marcos- Bag-Dat-is!” the whole time it was great. They wound up playing a 5 hour match, I have never seen anything like it. The sportsmanship each player displayed was wonderful, they were gracious and even joked around. At one point a ball boy hurt himself and Baghdatis helped him walked off the court! They were both very scrappy players, diving for every ball, which on grass courts is hard because you move slower. In the end it was so close that either player could have won, but Djokovic wound up winning the match.

Next was Roddick playing Gasquet, which I have to say was not as good as the first match. Roddick is all about his serve, and he doesn’t dive for the ball the way other players do. He is just too big to play tennis, he can’t do it. I think their match lasted 3 or 4 hours with Gasquet coming back in the third set to beat Roddick 3 in a row.

At the end of the day I was absolutely exhausted and we got stuck on the tube for half an hour which did not help. Wimbledon was a wonderful experience, I think I would return to London just to stay and watch matches for a few days. I’ve loved everything here so far but these might have been two of my favorite days ever.

(Pictures are of Jill, Jillian, Eric and I in front of the queue, our pathetic attempt at shelter (yes, we actually all slept in there!) and also my new boyfriend Marcos Baghdatis. I didn’t even zoom this picture we were that close to all the players. I love Wimbledon!)

7/3-4 Togas, Greek Food & Boat Rides

We decided that since we all have white sheets on our beds, why not have a toga party? What I have learned over the past few years being an art major is that we do everything a little more creative than other kids our age. When we all sit around and doodle in class, they are not your typical doodles, some are really nice drawings. Therefore when we have toga parties you are dealing with the most intricate togas you have ever seen. We had so much fun, it was definitely one of the best nights of the trip and we never even left our flats!

The next day was July 4th although there wasn’t much celebration considering we were in the country we declared our independence from. Yeah. Bill and Ashley (and Jen!) took us out for our farewell lunch at Lemonia, an authentic Greek restaurant. This might have been one of the most exciting meals of my life. Course after course, it just kept getting better! There were olives (my favorite) hummus and warm pita, different kinds of Greek dips, spanakopita. Cheese, Greek salad, and then Rachel and I split lamb and Seabass for dinner. Sooooo good!

After lunch we walked to Strawberry Hill, one of the highest points in London. It wa a clear day so there was a nice view of the city. Then we all took a boat ride on the canal that runs by Camden market. It was pretty cold but we all had a nice time. It was weird because I had to say goodbye to Bill and Ashley because I wouldn’t be seeing them at the airport. I think we all had a nice last day together as a group, I know I will remember the lunch for sure.

7/2 Studio Morag Myerscough

We met as a group this morning to talk about our breaks and also the situation with the bombs that were found at Piccadilly Circus. Basically Bill and Ashley told us to just stay alert as always, and to try and enjoy the rest of the trip. I’m glad I got most of the touristy stuff I wanted to do done earlier in the summer because I didn’t want to be going to any crowded places anytime soon.

We headed over to the studio of Morag Myerscough who is a multi-disciplinary graphic designer. Her studio was a great space, and I felt totally at home with all the clutter. I decided to write my paper on her which basically sums up my time at her studio, so here it is:

It didn’t occur to me at the time that Morag Myerscough had changed my perception of design, but looking back on it I know that she did. I remember stepping into her studio and instead of feeling overwhelmed by the books and the clutter, I felt at home. The massive screen prints that hung crookedly on the wall, the plush patterned pillows piled in corners next to expensive China teetering on the edge of tables, the hot-pink tubular lighting hanging from the ceiling; I could live in this kind of organized disarray forever.

Morag Myerscough started Studio Myerscough in 1993 and it has since become one of the most respected and sought after design studios in the UK. She herself runs the studio and has two to three designers working under her at one time. When she can’t do something in-house, she knows exactly where to go to get the job done through the network of contacts she has built up over the years. Her cross-disciplinary approach to design keeps her work original, and also means that she hasn’t fallen into one type of work and one type alone. She once said, “Challenges keep my design fresh and I am always open to the unexpected. I never approach a job with any preconceptions; it is important to find the best way to work on a project and not be constrained by set formulas from the outset. I relish in productive collaborations and trust.”

Her work can be seen all over London, Her most recent success being the branding for the Royal College of Art’s Great Exhibition, in which she designed everything from the logo to the building the show was housed in. She has done work for the Design Museum, the Barking Learning Centre, Derwent London, Westminster Academy, and that’s all just in the past year! Even when she takes on an annual report, which can be dry and boring, she finds a way to liven it up, making it really interesting piece of design work. When we visited her studio there were printouts all over the wall of poster designs and logos for the city of Barcelona. I had just returned from there and typography and colors brought me right back. The pillows and dishes I talked about before were all for a hotel that she was branding through her choices in home goods and product design.

A few years back Morag took her love for graphic design to a new level, opening a store/gallery in her own home called Her House. In this store Morag displayed and sold work from new emerging artists who may have had trouble finding gallery space elsewhere. She presented these works to the public as a part of her personal lifestyle, and even developed new products under the Her House brand. Although the store is no longer open, at the time it was a staple for new and innovative home and design products. She proved that as a designer you don’t have to be stuck in one facet of design, and that branching out is very possible.

At the time we visited Morag she was very honest about the fact that she works long hours, and spends most of her time in the studio. She is not married and does not have children. In our society there is a tendency to feel bad for people who work all the time and don’t raise families, but the truth is everyone has different goals and standards for what makes them happy. As a female heading into this uncertain industry, I truly wonder if there is a happy medium, although I already know the answer to my own question.

I won’t know what I am capable of until I try. If I have the drive, the talent and the passion, and I make good decisions, I know I can make something of myself. I am young and in a position where I am only responsible for my actions and no one else’s. I don’t have to worry about what I can handle in the future; I just need to worry about how creative I can be now. Seeing Morag’s work spanning all different criteria was so inspiring to me, and for the first time made me realize I don’t have to conform to something I am not. I don’t have to force myself to pick a specialty if I’m not ready. I have so many ideas that I will never be able to express the way I want to if I am constantly trying to make them fit into a specific category.

I am determined to spend my senior year channeling my creativity in the right way. If I can truly be interested in what I am doing, I know I will be better off. I know what it’s like to go through the motions of getting work done, and with one year left I’m ready to hit the ground rolling, but also to slow down and spend my time wisely. Seeing Morag’s success was not what inspired me. It was seeing that she is out there in the real world, doing what she loves to do. There are so many so many different ways to be creative, and instead of choosing just one, I want to make my own path that combines them all.

6/29-71 Barcelona Part II

So basically we spent every day at the beach because the weather is just so gorgeous. I was still sick at the beginning of the trip but I think by the end the warm weather knocked my cold out of me. Erin has been great, she speaks Spanish fluently so I don’t think we could have survived without her. We decided one afternoon to go on a catamaran boat ride because Rosie did it last year and said it was amazing. We found an evening boat ride with a jazz musician, and it was a highlight of the trip. We sat out in front where the water splashes up on you, and just enjoyed the ride. There were two bachelor parties on the boat at the same time. Some of my friends were surrounded by the one from Manchester but Alicia, Rosie and I were with the one from Italy. Donatello, the groom to be, became my new best friend, connecting straws together for me so that I had one really long one for my sangria. Haha. I don’t speak any Italian but I have found it really fun to try to talk to people who speak other languages because you have to find other more expressive ways to communicate. Maybe all Italians never understand each other and that’s why they all use their hands?

We went exploring on Las Ramblas and discovered a huge market right off of it. I have never seen so much food in my life. Alicia and I wound up spending way too many euros on chocolate but oh well, chocolate is never a bad thing. We hit up a flea market at the end of the day and got some great gifts for our friends and families. I got my roommates handmade bracelets and this really cool drum/instrument thing in a coconut for my dad. I don’t know what I think he’ll love it but he will. On the way back we passed the different artists in the street and I wound up buying my first piece of art! I passed this guy a million times and I decided it was something I really wanted. It’s an acrylic scene of an alley in Barcelona, but on a rainy day, and even though it didn’t rain while I was there it reminded me of my time there.

In our hostel there was an ‘International Stencil Convention” which when I got back from the beach one day I found meant that all these graffiti artists had come and spray painted the roof of our hostel. These compositions were out of control, I couldn’t believe I missed watching them do it. Lucky for me Rachel got some cool pictures of them in action.




On our last day there Alicia and I went up to see the Sagrada Familia, the Gaudi Church. It was immense, and although we didn’t go in (there was lots of construction) the outside was enough. Then we went to Park Guell, Gaudi’s park that he designed. There was mosaic tile covering every inch, with trees twisting to the sky, and caves curling in on themselves. It was unreal. I could have spent the whole day there but we had to get back to catch our plane home.

Unfortunately the trip home did not go as smoothly as it did going. Laurel got pick-pocketed on the way to the airport, and once we all went to check in we found that Laurel and Alex were not on our plane and they were going to have to stay in Girona and leave the next day. Ugh. So we sadly said goodbye to our friends and then waited for our delayed flight to leave. We got into London’s Stansted so late that we missed our bus back to central London and had to pay for a different bus and then take a cab and collapse in our beds when we got home.

Barcelona to me felt very authentic, and I hope I have the chance to go back because I was really happy there.

(The pictures are of our Jazz musician on the catamaran ride, Alicia, Rosie and I on the boat, the market off Las Ramblas, The ridiculous graffiti on the roof of our hostel, the Sagrada Familia church and pictures from Park Guell.)

6/27-28 Barcelona Part I

How do I even begin to describe my amazing trip in Barcelona? Here goes:
We took two buses to get to Stansted airport, where we suddenly found ourselves surrounded by about 25 women in bright pink boas and feather cowboy hats, all wearing sashes with their names. It was a hen party, or bachelorette party as we call it. We ran into Bill and his family which was fun, and then finally got on our hideous Ryan air flight. I think it was only a 2 hour flight and once we got into Girona, where the airport was, we hopped on a bus into Barcelona. Somehow we all spoke enough Spanish combined to make it to our very colorful and funky hostel. The rooms were hysterical, we were all literally on top of each other. Somehow I got one of the beds on top meaning I had to climb a ladder every time I wanted to go to my bed or get my stuff. We made two new friends immediately, Erin who was a 22 year old teacher in Texas, and Jeff who was from Canada (Toronto I think?) and also was a teacher. We all headed out to lunch together and to explore our area, which was so beautiful and very close to Las Ramblas and about a 20 minute walk from the beach. We had some delicious Gelato (mmm!) and headed to the beach even though it was late it the day. After being in London in the cold it was so nice feel warm weather and see water. That night we all had dinner at La Crema Canella which was one of the best meals I ever had. They were small portions because they were rich, so I had duck on top of sweet potatoes with strawberries. Sooooo good! And the funny thing is mid trip I checked my email to see if my friends from home(who all studied abroad in Barcelona for spring semester) had sent me an itinerary, and that was the first restaurant my friend Amy had suggested so we did good.

We made it back to our colorful hostel where everyone was really friendly and social, and we all hung out in the common area before heading out. There were also vending machines with beer for a euro so I think that made everyone want to hand out thee too. We met some nice guys from Colorado who were just beginning their backpacking, and Alicia, Rachel, the boys and I headed down to Port Olympic which is down the beach. We found a very chic club called Shoko, which had a whole indoor dance floor and an outdoor lounge area with white couches along the beach. VERY cool. We hit the dance floor and I was amazed when the DJ mixed Lloyd’s “Get it Shawty” with Technotronic’s “Pump Up the Jam.” Hahahaha I haven’t stopped talking about it, it was just that good.

The next day we woke up and had breakfast in the hostel. Breakfast consists of eating as much cereal and toast and fruit as you can in the morning, and then taking as much as you can carry up to your room so that you won’t have to buy lunch that day. We headed to the beach immediately and settled in for the day. The weather was gorgeous and we were all ready to catch a tan. Unfortunately our bliss was cut short by the women that walked by us every 5 seconds asking if we wanted a massage. “MASS-A-GEE!?” they would scream in our ears, especially when we were sleeping. There were actually people selling stuff all over the beach and the only person who I didn’t mind was the guy selling coconut because it was soooooo good! Actually at one point the coconut man was next to us and all of a sudden dropped to the ground in front of us hiding. There were cops patrolling the beach and selling things there is illegal. We didn’t want to get our friend the coconut man in trouble so we let him hide for a while.

That afternoon a few of us went to the Picasso museum which I had been dying to see. We were living right near it so it was really convenient to get it. I didn’t realize how much of his early work would be there, but the majority of it was from his youth and time in school. I absolutely loved it, I knew I would. Picasso saw things like no one else, and he wasn’t afraid to change his style and try new things. The thing I have always respected about Picasso is that he had talent as well as passion. He could draw a portrait completely in proportion, no problem. He just chose not to, and to be abstract and I just have always loved his work.

(Photos are of me in front of the Hen Party, Barcelona Harbor, our beds stacked on top of each other in our hostel, us girls at the beach,and Rachel and I at dinner one night)

6/25-26 LCC Show & Letterpress Workshop, also Tom Eckersley & Stanley Kubrick Archives

We saw the London College of Communications show and I have to say my absolute favorite part was the illustration. I just couldn’t get enough of it. The line quality, subject matter, and different mediums used were all so interesting. There was also some interesting web design, which I got to check out on a million different computers that were set up. There were sound-based projects that I thought were awesome, one had goldfish that would swim around triggering chimes.

The Letterpress workshop with Alex Cooper was a lot of fun, and the man is a genius. He is very creative with letterpress, and explores different uses of the type, such as using the blocks backwards to create blocks of color. He helped our group a lot, because for whatever reason we could not get the press clean and screwed it up about 4 times. Dave, Rosie Alicia and I worked together and we used a newspaper headline that read “I’m bad at DIY.” Our concept was to flip the apostrophe on the “I’M” to look like we screwed it up, but it actually looked really beautiful the wrong way.

We had a lecture by Paul Rennie on the Tom Eckersley Archive. Tom Eckersley was a prominent poster designer in the 1930’s famous for his work for Shell and the London Transport. Actually, he had a relationship with London Transport for over 50 years, his posters being very recognizable in regards to LT. I really liked one he did for the Victoria Line (shown above) I thought it was very clever. I love the graphic style he uses, I know as I continue screen printing this year I am going to draw inspiration from his work.

We also saw the Stanley Kubrick archive which was basically a freezing warehouse with everything Kubrick had saved through the years that had to do with his films, etc. Jill and I had bought Clockwork Orange t-shirts earlier in the trip and were excited to wear them to the archive but we forgot/it wouldn’t have been appropriate anyway. Oh well! It was cool to see the amount of stuff he had amassed over the years, but since most of it was in boxes we couldn’t really look at it in depth.

6/24 Camden Market

Today I met up with Gemma and Dan and we headed over to Camden Market which is by the Chalk Farm tube stop, close to where they live. They are moving into a new apartment soon so it was great because I could shop vicariously through them! We picked up cool lamps and they showed me an awesome leather couch they were having delivered. They told me it could be my bed for when I come back and visit! We walked through the thrift stores and found a cool gallery that had photos signed by Buzz Aldridge from when he landed on the moon. Very cool. We walked along the water and I got to see the floating Chinese restaurant in action, which was funny to watch. I’m bummed because I forgot my camera though! Gemma took me to another authentic pub and my dad called while we were there having lunch so they got to chat for a bit which was nice because I know it made him feel better to talk to her and have her tell him I’m ok. Ohh Dad, always worrying about me!

6/23 Portobello Road & Fabric

Rachel, Alicia and I embarked on Portobello Road today, and it was SO MUCH FUN! We looked at all the antiques especially jewelry, ‘oohing and aahing’ because we knew we couldn’t afford them so it was ok to try everything on. I found an olive stand which is my idea of heaven, and had some olives stuffed with feta for lunch. I wound up getting a few things there, like a jazz CD collection for my parents which looked really eclectic so I think they will love it. I got a bag for myself that was really colorful so I know I made the girls proud. I also got this really funky stainless steel ring that I absolutely love and it was cheap so I don’t feel bad about it at all. We also ate fresh fruit from venders on the street and found a crepe place and the three of us shared a Nutella and banana crepe on the sidewalk. I think the girls will agree that crepe was a highlight of the day. The atmosphere at the market was cheery and everyone seemed to be in a good mood, I absolutely loved it there.

At night we all got dressed up because we had been waiting to go to Fabric forever. My roommate studied abroad in London last winter and I received a three page email telling me about this club. Eric looked over the DJ set for the night and Goldie who is supposed to be incredible was going on at 3 so we had to be there for him. I usually trust Eric’s taste when it comes to house music so I couldn’t wait. We went over to the other flats because they were on the way to the club and then we headed over.

Oh my god. This place was ridiculous. There were three different rooms, some with hardcore drum and base others with American hip hop. The music was sound loud I thought I was going to die…seriously. I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. A lot of our friends left early because it was just getting to be too much, but somehow Rosie, Alicia, Eric, Martin and I made it until Goldie came on and then I had to go home. It was probably the most intense place I have ever been to and ever will go. I am defiantly glad we went because club like Fabric are a huge part of the music scene in London.

6/22 Richard Kindersley

So I am finally feeling better which is good because this weekend we are going to Fabric, which is supposed to be one of the premier clubs in London. Oh boy. Anyway, today we visited Richard Kindersley at his studio. He is a stone carver and makes beautiful stones for memorial purposes, many displaying inspirational quotes. This work demands that you measure twice and cut once, so to speak. If you mess up, you can lose up to weeks of worth. They take time to lay out the typography, paying special attention to any ligatures they can include. Actually carving the stone is a very slow process, and we saw a woman who worked for him chipping away rhythmically the whole time we were there. It was actually very relaxing to watch.

6/20-21 Wendy, John Brown Publishing, Dr. Kohn my HERO & Wicked!

Today we met writer and overall creative person Wendy Scott in Hoxton Square. I love Wendy. She had crazy red hair, papers flying everywhere, and was just all over the place. But I love her because he was so excited about everything. She had passion pouring out of her. She wanted to do a writing workshop with us but then decided she wanted to do about 10 other things and the whole hour just become a discussion about writing and the creative things she had done with it. She told us that in all of her work she has a thread running through that ties everything together. She likes to use keywords that draw you in and create an image. Jill and I loved Wendy so much we skipped Sehmi (sorry Sehmi) and stayed for Wendy’s second talk, and boy am I glad we did. This homeless looking man came and sat down in our group (right next to me) and asked if he could join. Wendy was courteous and obliged. He started interrupting her and yelling at us telling us he was a gangster. That he was Charlie Kray and was famous and everyone knew him. This went on for about half an hour until he asked Wendy if she could get him a job and she gave him the phone number for the British Embassy. The funny part is that after he left she told us he was actually the son of one of the famous Kray brothers, and that he really was Charlie Kray because she had seen photos of him before. Crazy!

The next day we went to John Brown Publishing, which is a custom publishing house. We learned about entry points in a magazine, and attracting people who will read different lengths of articles. They also designed some beautiful books for children, one called “Pick me Up” that I know my niece would love if I ever get my hands on it. Unfortunately I was coughing the whole time so I missed a lot of what he said, but I definitely could see there is a lot of creative work to be done working for a place like that.

I decided that I wasn’t getting any better and that the free clinic was just a waste of time, so I found a doctor all the way out by the Ealing Broadway tube stop and headed over there on the tube. I had no idea I was headed to the country, but once I stepped off the train I knew it was time for me to take my first taxi because there was no way I would find this place. Dr. Kohn was the nicest doctor EVER and he completely took care of me! One inhaler and pack of antibiotics later I was good to go!

I rushed home so I could make it in time to see Wicked with my friends. We had wonderful seats, and although it was my second time seeing the play I was blown away. The costumes, the set and especially the music are all out of this world. I snuck a quick picture of the set before they told us no cameras; I wish I could have gotten a playbill to take home although I don’t think that is the custom in London the way it is at home.

6/19 Whitehouse

So I woke up unable to move this morning and my darling flat mates would not let me leave to go to the first meeting. I guess it’s time I come to terms with the fact that I am really sick. Boo. I headed to the free clinic in Noho or wherever I was and sat for almost four hours until a nurse finally saw me. She made me cough a few times and told me I should put my head over a pot of hot water and breathe in the steam. And she also said she wasn’t going to give me any antibiotics. Wow.

Feeling slightly better I made my way over to the afternoon visit at Whitehouse, where John Smith talked to us. He said the bread and butter of his company is editing commercials, but he is known for his work editing Leaving Las Vegas and Sliding Doors. He showed us a bunch of different clips that he had edited and the different versions he came up with from the footage. He told us that with al the new technology today, there are often too many versions to choose from; we are constantly changing our minds. When the process was slower the work was more intentional. I like doing things by hand and it does slow me down but I like this feeling, so I completely understood where he was coming from. I coughed through the whole meeting, which was pretty embarrassing but oh well, apparently I just need to put my head over a pot and I will be cured!

6/18 Serpentine Gallery & RCA Show

Today we went to the Serpentine Gallery which had an exhibition based on light and shadow. We then headed to the Princess Diana Memorial which was very peaceful and beautiful. The big visit of that day thought was the Royal College of Art Great Exhibition. The minute I walked in I was drawn to the beautiful pottery on display, because it was smooth, intricate and some pieces had really interesting functions. There were illustrations that were so simple and beautiful and many were made into books with stories that went with them. My favorite was called “Drawing You” because it was edgy and beautiful and sad and true. A lot of the work applied to things we do with the environment; biotechnology was a hot topic this year. There was fashion, photography, jewelry, video, glass blowing, architectural design, furniture, you name it! I didn’t want to leave, I was so inspired. Seeing the show made me realize how many creative people are out there, and that what I want to do really as no limitations. By the time I got home I had collected well over 100 business cards and mementos of the student’s work, just so I could remember how I felt being there at that moment because it was unreal.

My cold has gotten progressively worse, but because I cancelled dinner on Gemma the night before I sucked it up and took the tube up to meet her and her boyfriend Dan for dinner. She made me a delicious home cooked meal which was so wonderful and definitely made me feel better. I don’t think I realized how hungry I was until I had eaten everything on my plate. Then they took me to a local bar in their neighborhood; the kind you need to walk through 7 unidentified streets and alley ways to get to. Once we got there I saw it was packed, and that we were at a truly authentic London pub! Dan is a musician and writes for a website so he was really interesting to talk to, and as always it was so nice to catch up with Gemma. I rode the tube back feeling sicker than ever but feeling very free and independent. I love this city!

6/17 Sunday at Southbank

So I don’t regret going to Bath at all because it was great, but it definitely made me sicker than I already was. Today I was supposed to go to Leeds castle but I just couldn’t do it because I was too sick. Rosie was really excited to wake up and find me still there, and I felt well enough to head down to Southbank to check out some galleries so we woke up Martin and headed down there. We went to the Hayward gallery which was absolutely AMAZING. Antony Gormley’s “Blind Light” exhibition was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. The main attraction was this huge glass room filled with dry ice that made the room one big cloud. You could walk inside the room, but you would bump into people because you couldn’t see more than a foot in front of you. It was also interesting to look in from the outside and see people walking along the walls. You just have no sense of where your body is in relation to anything else, it is a very unique experience. Rosie literally held my hand the whole time because she was too scared to walk on her own! I also liked capacitor and allotment, and especially event horizon where he placed iron-life size casts of himself all over the tops of buildings in the city…check out the website to get a better idea of what I mean!

http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/gormley/

We left the gallery and walked along Southbank to find that there was a huge festivals going on. It was to raise money for refugees worldwide. We checked out some of the stands, found a huge book sale, and then the best thing ever happened. We found a Jamaican BBQ pit! It was horrible because I was so sick that I couldn’t really taste my food, but deep down I knew I was eating the best thing I had ever tasted. BBQ chicken, fresh corn, and to top it off at the end I got a whole coconut to myself! I think today was one of the best days I have had here so far because it was all about exploring and just seeing what happens.

(These pictures are of Antony Gormley’s Event Horizon, Martin in Blind Light, the Jamaican BBQ pit, and of course my delicious coconut.)

6/16 Bath

Today Alicia, Jill and I hopped on the train and headed to Bath. I was so excited to see this city, especially after Rosie (who’s family is from there) told me all about it. The weather wasn’t the best but the city still looked beautiful in a very old kind of way. The streets were lined with cute restaurants and shops, but there are also long stretches of grass and water that make you feel caught between man and nature. We had lunch at a fun little pub and then headed to the Roman Baths. I have to say I was really disappointed. I thought I would see the Baths in their natural element but instead a museum was built on top of them. I understand it was done to preserve them, but it just felt completely out of context in the way it was presented. Hopefully when I meet my parents in Rome at the end of the trip I will be able to see the ruins in a more natural setting.

Although we were not happy with the baths it didn’t ruin the trip, we had come to see the city first and foremost. We spent some time browsing the shops and I found a great birthday present for my dad…it’s an autobiography kit that prompts you to writing down different memories from your life. He has a big birthday coming up so I think he’ll like it. We ended the day having a great dinner at All Bar One where they have delicious Tapas, and then headed home to our flats.

6/15 Baseline Magazine

Woke up this morning earlier than usual to head to Victoria Station to buy tickets with Alicia and Jill to go to Bath on Saturday. We had to meet Bill and Ashley there for our visit to Baseline that day and for some reason it did not click in my head that baseline wasn’t in Central London and that we would be taking a train for an hour to get to East Malling.

Annnyway we made it out there and found that Baseline magazine operates from this gorgeous estate where Hans Dieter Reichert and his wife live and run the magazine. They set up a snack for us in the dining room and talked to us about what it was like to run the magazine and how it got started. Baseline is pretty expensive and definitely something worth having in your collection if you are a designer. They were really nice and offered to sell us copies for 5 pounds apiece. I got to talked to Hans’s wife about one of the issues that had these beautiful screen printed labels, and it turns out it was issue 20 which is waaaaay old and she offered to let me have it! I could not stop thanking her, it is so beautiful. Overall baseline magazine was a great trip, and it was SO NICE to get out of the city for a change, I didn’t realize how much I missed fresh air.

6/14 Abbey Road & Lunch with Graham Fink

The next day we went to Abbey Road and did some Beatle-esqe posing. I feel bad for people that have to drive down that road ever day because they have to stop in the cross walk every single time a pedestrian walks through. That would not fly in Manhattan.

Then I was lucky enough to go out to lunch with Graham Fink who would be speaking to us that afternoon. Jess Bogart, Jillian, Bill and I met him at his office and then we walked through Golden Square to a Tapas restaurant. I LOVE tapas! Bill just seemed to order everything on the menu and we had a nice talk with Graham about Alan Fletcher and about how he got into the industry. He said he brought his portfolio to different agencies and never got a job even though they liked his work, and at one of the interviews the person said his book was horrible and told him to come back in two weeks with more work. This continued on for a while until his mentor finally told him he was ready to go out and get a job, and he did. He asked me why I wanted to go into advertising and I told him I wasn’t sure that I did. I still have a lot to figure out. He told me he always knew that’s what he wanted to do, but that it was ok if I wasn’t sure. I think every person has their own path and no one necessarily does it right or wrong, you just have to go with it and see where it takes you.

Later in the day we all met him at his office which had really cool graffiti drawings all over the lobby. Here are some words of wisdom from Graham Fink:
-“A thought is often original, though you have uttered it a hundred times. It has come to you in a new route, by a new express train of association.” (The Art School)
-Don’t try too hard, you need to stumble upon great work.
-When you take a break from it, you are able to let things in and get new ideas.
-“Only those with short term memory claim originality.” (CoCo Chanel-she had the idea to put women in trousers which revolutionized how we dress today.)
-Brutal simplicity of thought-it’s easier to complicate than simplify-in this century we need to be as simple as possible.
-Visit stumbleupon.com

6/13 Barbican & Faulkner’s

We went to the Barbican gallery today to see the Panic Attack exhibit which was all about art during the punk years. The picture I put up is of one of the huge black and white drawings that looked like a photo. The exhibition showed worked produced from about the mid 70’s to the mid 80’s both in Britain and in the US punk scenes. These times periods are known a lot for their music and fashion, but there were also a lot of artists exploring new areas during that time. It was more about documenting the process of creating than the final result.

Some of the Artists in the exhibition:
Keith Harring, Steven Willats, Martha Rosler, David Lamelas, Adrian Piper, Peter Hujar, Robert Maplethorpe, Jamie Reid, Victor Burgin, Tony Cragg, Barbara Kruger, Robert Longo, Richard Prince, John Stezaker

Robert Sheppard of Faulkner’s book store set up a cute little cocktail party for us at the art worker’s guild, and then gave us a talk about bookbinding. The main story he told was of the very expensive book, The Great Omar, which was worked on for years and years and when it was sold sailed across the ocean in the Titanic, and that was the end of that. The man working on it tried again to replicate the book, and when it was almost finished it was destroyed in a bombing in London. I think it was his nephew that eventually completed one, although it was never as perfect as the original. It was almost like a sad love story!

6/12 Johnson Banks & Eye Magazine

Today we went to Johnson Banks and spoke to Michael Johnson. I immediately spilled a glass of water all over the table but lucky for me designers are human too and he didn’t get mad at me. His company does a lot of work branding and re-branding other companies. They created a new logo for Save the Children, for example, that was based off typefaces created from children’s handwriting. They also created a new logo for the British Film Institute that followed the idea of a flexible corporate identity. This makes it easier to use the logo because it is not as static and can be placed a lot of places. My favorite piece they showed us were the stamps they created for the British Postal Service using vegetables that could have stickers added to them in a Mr. Potato-head-esque way. Michael Johnson whipped out his guitar when he was done talking to us and played for a while. He also walked around his office in socks the whole time. I hope I am in a position to walk around in my socks all the time one day.

After leaving Johnson Banks, we headed over to Peppertree for a Thai lunch. Living on Sainsbury’s yogurt since we arrived in London had made me very hungry so being exposed to so much food was great. I had chicken satay, pad thai and then the best part was dessert. We couldn’t decide so Martin and I shared the yellow bean cake and white chocolate ice-cream. SOOO GOOD!

After lunch a group of us headed to meet John L. Walters at Eye Magazine, although not before a quick stop into Harrod’s to stare at the cheese counter. Once at Eye the fire alarm sounded which sent us scurrying into a nearby park where we all sat in the grass and had the meeting. John was really interested in how our minds work, and our feelings on modern design forms overlapping. It was nice to get to talk to each other for a change, recently we had been doing a lot of listening.

(Images are of Michael Johnson playing guitar for us, John L. Walter's holding up a copy of Eye after the fire drill forced us outside, and a cool spread from one of the issues of Eye that had a nice use of typography.)

6/11 Longest Day EVER

This morning we met Phil Baines and Catherine Dixon at the British Library.
Quick Facts:
-British Library is the Nation’s Library
-You need a PhD or to be a research scholar to have full access
-The library has every book published in England

We saw the Sacred exhibit which was about making connections between Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith. I found it very interesting considering I come from different religious backgrounds and I know it is very common today to do so. One of my favorite books there was an “Itinerary to the Holy Land” which made me laugh. The bibles were all gorgeous and there was a video playing that showed us the gold leaf process.

After our typographic walk we headed to Central Saint Martin’s to hear a talk by Phil and Catherine. They are professors at CSM but also do a ton of work themselves concerning typography. I really loved the book covers they designed for Penguin books Great Idea Collection. They were simple and showed a great understanding of typography. After our talk with them we headed downstairs to visit the photography studio where we saw some great work. I really liked the ad created for designer Paul Smith that was a photograph of a hat in a frame, and it was called small pith, which is a small hat. I thought it was very clever and shows that you can do more than just think of the ideas or take the pictures, you can be behind both.

That evening we met with Peter Seville who is a legendary graphic designer in London. He has clearly had a successful career but is at a point where you can tell he is jaded and wants something different. He knows he’s done great work, but now he seems to wonder what the point is if you can’t make a change in the world? Here are some nuggets of wisdom from him:
-Designers seem to care about the look of things; they want to make the world better.
-How do you do great work for something you don’t care about?
-if you have the courage, you have a lot to take on.
-What makes brilliance? Caring and trying.
-Socio Cultural Democratization (He made up this term)
-Things that are your hobby, you lose them when they become your job. Things that you love, you lose them when they become your job.
-THE SOLUTION IS IN THE PROBLEM
-Talk to each other, be proactive, email less, get together to talk in person

6/10 Ministry of Sound & The London Eye

Last night we ventured into London’s club scene at Ministry of Sound, a very famous club that basically revolutionized house music into what we know today. There were 3 separate dance floors although I only made it to one, and thank god the guys were there to rescue us from the shirtless men that seemed to outnumber us! At one point a man came out on a trapeze and started doing tricks. Eric tells this story better than I do, but basically I thought the man was the ‘phantom of the ministry’ because I didn’t have my glasses on and instead of realizing he was wearing a rabbit mask I assumed he was disfigured. I thought that it was sad he was in the club but at least some nice person had taken him in and taught him tricks. WOW did I get made fun of for this.

Anyway, Sunday I took it easy before heading down with Alicia and Jill to Southbank to ride the London Eye. It was around 9 pm so the sky was beautiful and we had a clear view of all of London. We spent the evening walking down Southbank and ended the night listening to live music sipping sangria outside.

6/9 Design Museum, Borough Market, Tate Modern

We got to the Design Museum Saturday morning to find Bill outside really excited about something. This was good because we were really late and thought we’d be feeling his wrath that morning. Instead, he told us that he had walked into the museum café to see none other than Luigi Colani (who?) sitting there having breakfast, and he has agreed to give us a private tour of his show which was the main attraction of the museum at the moment. I wondered how bill recognized this man until I saw him sitting there with his dark hair and mustache clad in a white polyester suit…then I knew.

Luigi Colani is an industrial designer who is world renowned and I didn’t even know it. He designs trains, planes, cars, and basically any other kind of streamlined machine. He showed us videos of sharks and other animals and told us he is very inspired by nature. He also showed is the first Canon camera design that he was responsible for. He had the very first camera there and I asked him if he had ever actually taken a picture with it… and he said no! It was great to watch him go through his own exhibit because he would let us sit on things, and he would knock things over and it wouldn’t matter because it was all his.

After the museum we headed to Borough Market for lunch which was AMAZING. Alicia and I got completely lost in the world of free samples, but finally decided on some falafel and smoothies. We also wanted these delicious looking grilled cheese sandwiches but decided 2 lunches in one day was enough and we just couldn’t handle it.

The Tate Modern was in the afternoon and I have to say I enjoyed the Dali & Film exhibit more than many I have seen. I never realized that Dali was a director, and it was so interesting to see his style in film. It just has such presence, and is so recognizable. Some of my favorite paintings were preliminary pieces done for movie sets that were eventually filmed. The picture above is my favorite painting of the movie still. My other favorite part of the exhibit was finding out that Dali & Disney at one point had teamed up and created Destino, a surrealist cartoon that was never made into a full length film. Seeing this blew my mind, it was Dali and Disney all in one. I was sitting with Brian and some of the other kids majoring in illustration and I could just see the wonder on their faces. I know I felt the same way they looked.

We also saw Helio Oiticica's Body of Color which on the whole I also enjoyed. I think having the opportunity to display abstract work like that in a museum setting is what gives it impact. They were patterns and blocks of color and they were often repeated which I liked. Overall, it was a very good day in London…AND I had my first sighting of London Bridge!

6/8 Stonehenge & The Tower of London

After 3 years of seeing other VC kid’s pictures of these giant rocks…it was finally our turn. We rolled out of bed and onto the bus at 2am in an attempt to make it up to Stonehenge to see the sunrise. We got there and met with Busty Taylor, the Stonehenge master who talked to us for a while before we were let in. I didn’t have my glasses on and mistook a sheep for one of the stones until I realized HOW BIG they actually are. They are HUGE. The time came for them to let us in to see the rocks and even though there was no sunset that day it didn’t matter because we were finally there and it was breathtaking. The texture on the rocks was so cool to look at up close, and once you are there you really wonder how anyone could have created it. Eric and I wandered off and did a video diary that I am hoping to get my hands on soon, because it is definitely cool to have some footage of us there in the moment. This is really my first time traveling, and I am feeling very lucky to be seeing these places although it is weird to think that the more I see means that these are just more places I might never see again. I’m not trying to be depressing, just thinking out loud!

That afternoon Alicia, Jill, Alex, Laurel & I all headed to the Tower of London. We had a great tour guide who was called a "beefeater" and he told us in order to be a beefeater you had to be in the service for at least 20 years. Alicia surprised us all by asking him if he was single during the Q&A. We also got to see the Crown Jewels and lthough they were fake they were a sight to see. It was a great place to spend the day and the weather was beautiful so we had a fun time.

6/7 British Museum & Greyworld

This morning we went to the British museum which was a lot of fun. There were these adorable little schoolgirls in uniform on the steps of the museum taking pictures I just wanted to steal one of them! Inside the museum the main room had a beautiful glass ceiling with lots of light. We saw the Rosetta Stone which for some reason I thought was small enough to hold in your hand although I guess I missed something important in Social Studies all those years because the thing is bigger than I am. The Parthenon Sculptures were really cool and I was really interested in the detailed friezes that they had depicting battles and mythological creatures. Alicia and I found the Mexican art exhibition and stayed there for a while until we decided we needed art supplies and went in search of a store.

That afternoon we went though London’s little India and found ourselves meeting with Andrew Shoben of Greyworld. Listening to Andrew talk was so inspiring because ideas literally poured out of him. He had to write things down while we were there so that he didn’t forget. He asked for our opinions on projects, and was just so exciting to watch I could have at there all day. I don’t know if anything could top this visit. Greyworld is a group of artists who create work in urban spaces. Their work is for the public, and much of it is sound based which has a lot to do with Andrew’s background in music. They have made pieces where if you run a stick along a fence the girl from Ipanema starts playing. They carpeted a bridge with a blue rug and every step a person took on it would coincide with the sound of leaves crunching or something water flowing. They created the sculpture that sits in the center of the British Stock Exchange that has balls moving up and down telling the time. They created an electric tail. Yeah, and it really works. They gained a lot of fame for creating the project for the stock market, and were commissioned to other projects like that but turned them down simply because they didn’t want to do the same project twice. They also told us that their projects have really simple names, like “Park Benches” and “The Source” (the balls). They said if you have to put a fancy name on something maybe something clever is lacking in their work.

Words of Wisdom from Andrew Shoben:
-More than making a thing, it’s making an art system (speaking about their work).
-“Anything written in Latin sounds clever” (referring to their sculptures that move according to your movement, Monument to the Unknown Artist).
-Don’t edit the idea before it comes out of your mouth.
-Water your geek…be nice to the people that help you.
-Ideas are all cheap; don’t quantify them because they can be endless.

(The pictures are of Alicia and I at the British Museum immitating the sculpture, and also of the gorgeous ceiling in the musem.)

6/6 Pentagram and Saatchi & Saatchi

Big day today. Big big day. We started by walking through the famous Nottinghill towards Pentagram where we met with Debbie Taffler. This woman could have sold me my left leg she was just that good. Some quick facts:
-Pentagram was founded in 1972
-An organization based on ‘design’
-People know they are being advertised at but they don’t really understand or realize when they are being designed at. Why do they make the choices they do?
-Partner led, with each partner having one team working under them in a very collaborative atmosphere.
-Idea based
-75% of their business has to do with Brand Identity; Citibank, Saks Fifth Avenue, One & Only Resorts
-They have done packaging for Espa, Tiffany & Co., Callaway Golf.
-Product Design for Dell Computer, Nike, Krug (not making better branding, making a better ice bucket) Bloomberg signage, Pierson airport in Toronto (moving large groups of people) very successful.
-Architecture- Alexander McQueen fashion stores, Muzak, EAT.

Everything they showed us at Pentagram blew me away. I was in awe of the branding they did for EAT. and very inspired to do a project similar to that on my own. I also like how the work we see at places like Pentagram has such a presence in everyday life, I feel more connected to the brand that way. I asked Debbie how they approach a brand when there is a ton of literature that already exists for the brand. She told me that changing the literature for a brand has it’s place if it has to be done, otherwise they aren’t going to make more work than they need to.

We asked them advice on what to put in our portfolios, and they told us:
-3 Flushed out projects, problem solved along the way
-Outside of your portfolio shouldn’t be too much of a design statement if that’s not how you are.
-They want to see three wonderful things from you that show your passion and YOU.
THEY WANT TO KNOW HOW YOU THINK.
I think Pentagram is one of the coolest places on earth.
(All the photos are of Pentagram and the one of the doorknob that looks like a face is just one of a series they had on their wall of different things that look like faces)

At Saatchi & Saatchi we met with Creative Director Kate Stanners who told us advertising was the “best job in the world” and that you have to be curious; you can’t get stuck. Saatchi works on ads for Toyota, Lexus and Doc Martins to name a few. There was actually a Doc Martins ad featuring dead rock stars wearing the shoes in heaven that caused a lot of controversy not long before we visited Saatchi, but Kate told us that although handling the backlash can be tough it actually can give the brand more attention. It was also really great to see Kate as a successful creative director as well as a wife and mother. It’s just not that often that women can be all three and I hate saying that but it’s true, so seeing women like her is always inspiring.

Her tips for portfolios:
-Make every page exciting
-Listen to people’s comments
-Have thoughtful ideas
-Show progression of ideas; HOW DO YOU THINK? (Wow, 2x in one day…maybe they are trying to tell us something?)