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Jan 31, 2009

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A few months ago I attended Multiverso, Icograda Design Week at Torino- 3 days of workshop and a 2 day conference. The workshop I signed up for was called "Afrikan Alphabets" with Saki Mafundikwa. We had to create letterforms inspired from Afrikan writing systems.

I chose a Jokwa pictogram that tells the story of life.



image from Saki Mafundikwa's book Afrikan Alphabets


This was my character set at the conference.


Was reworking it this week. Here are sketches+w.i.p
I know it looks like a kolam, but that *points to jokwa pictogram* was my reference point.
Fine and also kolam.
(international integration I call it)



I'm still missing K, Y, X. It still needs a LOT of fixing in terms of form, but this is where it's generally heading.

Feedback please!

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edit:
feb 16

R suggested the possibility of the characters being open like the jokwa pictogram as opposed to the closed loops that they are now. This was a doodle amongst many before choosing which direction to proceed in.

With this one, I was trying to go with a more squarish form as in the jokwa, while keeping the open ends to add some interest. BUT, we decided on the kolam-like one since it was more do-able in the given time.

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Jan 28, 2009

twentyone, twice over

once by IST.
then by Milan time.

This is the longest birthday ever.

me and the blog.
well almost, for the blog.


:D

Jan 24, 2009

jules et jim


assignment for class.
I like only the portraits.

For better view and better explanation go here.

Bleh.

another window


The view today reminds me of the day I reached Milan. Two windows offer me two different skylines. Asbestos roofs and brick ones. A clear blue sky carries cutout clouds. Still clouds that don't drift, float or move. It's as if the day decided to hold its breath.

23.Gennaio
lunchtime, CS 2.2
Politecnico

nameless faces/faceless names





Jan 22, 2009

Totato Pomato

I slept at 4.30am, only because she was acting cranky in her half-asleep state. After she realised I was oblivious to her tossing and turning, she sat up in her bed, rubbing her eyes like a child being woken up for school on a Monday morning. "Ow long you will kip working?", she managed through her closed eyes. So at 3.30am I turned off the smallest light in the room and plonked myself in semi darkness. There's only so much one can do in the dark, especially since I needed to draw out somethings. I slept. Was going to wake up at 6 which I did (Igot my dad to wake me up, international calls for alarms. Yes, shameless) but decided it was too dark and went back to sleep asking appa to wake me up in a half hour. At seven I realised my phone was on silent and I had many missed calls. Bah. I'm back at my desk now. It's still dark and she is squinching her eyes against the light of my laptop. Sigh, why is she such a light sleeper? Streetlights and moonlight kill her sleep. She doesn't seem like she will survive the night if there was a glowworm around.

The sky is slowly fading from grey to bluegrey. The only way you can figure out if it's morning is by the number of cars on the streets. There is a thick fog outside. L wakes up at 8.30 yawning huge yawns, trying to send me on a guilt trip that I refuse to go on.

*

I had so much coffee, I'm going to have cappuccino instead of blood. Less sleep makes me crack up at stupid things. By stupid I mean anything can send me into a fit of laughter.

*

In Italy, a potato also means punani.
(Those who don't understand, go away, I'm not explaining)

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Oh, I also had the scanner running for a while through the night. buwahaha.

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I've had enough of writing eloquent tosh, someone save my funnies please. I need to get back to my Sarcastic Self.

Jan 12, 2009

Jan 9, 2009

buongiorno

Short days. Long nights. If I had to sleep and rise with the sun, I would be in semi-hibernation. It sets at 5pm and rises not sooner than 8am. The past few days the sky has been grey. A dull flat grey, starched and pressed. A sky so flat and grey it feels surreal. I sleep.

The sky was blue today, the sun was out. I take it as a sign. Outside looks deceptively sunny but I feel the bite of the cold less. After a very long time, morning seems like the beginning of a day. I feel likeI have a whole day ahead of me.

It's beautiful, being able to see the sunlight. This winter sunlight is orange, the dawn-dusk variety. I'm frozen in time.

Orange light on wood. I align my feet with the diagonals on Azzurra's floor. The black flowers on my socks look like shadows. Davide paces about on the wooden floor. Az and Lorenzo sit before me on the table, silhouetted, their faces glow with their macs' special soft light.

A shot of bitter espresso wakes me up. I drink it resisting the urge to dunk a brush in it. I can feel the brownness still in my mouth, it will keep me awake for a while. I look out, the shadows are getting longer. But the sun will not set today, it will abruptly become night. There are still a couple of more hours for that.