internet zero

I've never been forced to ask myself the question of how much I really use the internet. The biggest thing I've learned about myself since last class in thinking about the world of media around me is that almost none of it comes from the computer. There was a statistic we read about how much information was on the computer and how it rapidly increased with the availability of the internet, and now its somewhere close to 100%. For me, the last time I used the internet was Monday for the Dig. Lit. quiz and using google for a helping hand. When I think about where my inspiration comes from and the images I see that I put in my design, it all comes from the environment that immediately surrounds me.

I have seen the direction where the world is going with technology and for better or worse I know that personally I do not fit there. As the world has grown more complex in technology and average life I think I push farther away from that world. I need something more simple, something that gives my senses a tingle and lets them know that they are still my first line of response to how I interpret the world.

#2 Ola

The sport I watch most is surfing. The professional tour pretty much goes year around and they travel to different spots all around the world to get all kinds of waves from huge thick meaty slabs to long point breaks. When swells line up perfectly for these contests it makes for some spectacular performances. Now the tour is in Tahiti at place called Teahupoo; this is one of the biggest stops on the tour, literally. The wave is easily one of the gnarliest in the world and the footage captured at this spot is some of the most seen in surfing history. The add for this contest is simple in design and almost lets the picture do all the talking with small print on the top and bottom for essential information (where, dates, sponsors, etc.). For people who surf and like the ocean a wave is a very mysterious thing, pure energy trapped but constantly moving within the ocean. When it comes together as it does here in Tahiti creating waves 20 feet tall and 20 feet thick throwing over a dangerous reef only a couple feet below the surface it can put your mind into a divine trance. The add displays a side shot from the channel of an absolutely massive wave relinquishing raw power. To me the image was almost exploding off the screen and if this is what is to be expected in seeing the contest, I'm sold.

#1 Gone Fishin'

Today as I was walking back from a huge pancake breakfast at Stacks in Hayes Valley, I saw a familiar man in the same spot that made me feel at home. He is a homeless man that has sat next to the same vacant lot on the corner of Hayes and Octavia for as long as I've lived here. I have never seen him ask anyone directly for money, but he has an interesting advertising technique that lours people in throw a visual appeal. Hooked to the fence he leans against as he reads, is his fishing pole, and tied to the end of the string instead of fish bate, is a cup that has the words "Gone Fishin'" on it. For someone how has little to work with I thought this was about as clever as he could get, and combined with his strategy in location to set up shop in the well off highly popular shopping area of Hayes Valley. For most by-passers walking along I could only imagine this catching the eye of every single one, and most tourists more then willing to throw the man some spare change for the clever gimmick and visual appeal.