[ ⊙ △ ⊙ ] letter project reflection

1. Describe your process when creating your letter project. How was the process helpful or not so helpful to you? 
   
   When creating my letter project, I first began to sketch out 25 thumbnails for ideas.  Despite not having so much detail, I was able to map out so many concepts.  This gave me a lot of ideas to choose from.  After the sketches, I chose two designs (a banana arrangement and a simplified skittles arrangement) and created initial drafts for each them.  Usually, this step would be the most helpful to me in creating a design, however, I wanted to photograph it so any experimentation would have to be done in real time, not on paper.  I then decided to use Skittles as my media and bought about $10 worth of Skittles so that I would have more colors to choose from and more Skittles to use (also more to snack on, but nobody has to know).  Taping four sheets of white copy paper together and drawing a backwards S on the back, I arranged my Skittles into a rainbow-like display and then photographed it.  This was the most crucial part of my project since the arrangements affected the outcome of the project directly.  It was also the most helpful since I was able to alter my designs as much as I wanted.  Lastly, I had to edit the picture of my letter on the computer in order to clean it up and bit and make it more presentable.
   
   
2. How did you arrive with your concept/idea for your letter? How did you represent this concept visually in your design? (Give 2 examples) 
   
   I originally chose the letter S since I loved how there were so many curves in it.  It was basically one of the more non-boring letters to me.  On the other hand, the Skittles concept I decided to go with was pretty much random since I thought of animals, words or food that started with S.  Instead of just photographing a random arrangement of Skittles in an S shape, I wanted to clearly illustrate the slogan of Skittles, which was "Taste the rainbow."  To do this, I created a rainbow pattern with the Skittles in the shape of an S and reversed it at the bottom as well in order to emphasize more on the rainbow aspect.  Not only that, I also tried to represent the Skittles concept by creating a Skittles cloud with the same colors because usually, rainbows are visualized as peeking through clouds in the sky.
   
   
3. What was the most challenging aspect of this project for you? Why?
   
   The most challenging part of this project was thinking of more ways that would clearly show my concept towards my audience.  At first, I had a different idea, but I had to change it since I couldn't come up with a more effective way to depict the concept.  I settled with the Skittles idea after choosing a more simpler idea, however, I still wanted to challenge myself to take the project further.  And because most of the trial-and error had to be done in person instead of on paper, I had to change my arrangements several times in order to portray my idea clearly.
   
   
4. Are you satisfied with your project? Explain your answer.
   
   
   Despite its simplicity, I'm actually satisfied with my project because I spent so much time brainstorming ideas and ways to convey my ideas in addition to actually arranging the Skittles themselves.  I really liked the amount of color there was and I liked being able to create art on a medium I've never explored before.  This exploration into unknown territory gave me the most satisfaction.
   
   
5. If you can change anything about your design, what would you change or do differently?
   
   
   Instead of arranging the Skittles into an S, I would create a rainbow-flavored Skittle with a S-shaped empty space in the middle so that it could potentially emphasize the Skittles aspect even more.  I would also play with different sizes for the Skittle in order to put incorporate detail in the design.
   
   
   Work in Progress + Final:
   
   

First Arrangement

Second Arrangement

Third Arrangement

Final Arrangement