For my creative coding class I was tasked to improve upon four projects from the semester. I found this to be a simple task as most of my projects I could think of something I would’ve liked to add onto them.
Our most latest project was to create a clock and at first I really liked the product I had created but after seeing my classmates projects it was clear to me that I could do more. My original clock design featured clock hands that spell out their values and two if statements that would change the clock from saying ‘am’ with a light gray background to ‘pm’ with a black background.
My improved version had many more if statements to change the background according to the time of day. I try to attempt to simulate what the sky looks like throughout the day
My next project I chose to improve was the screen saver as I was never satisfied with what I had done. I originally had a simple move and bounce screen saver with a ball that I eventually had change from a square to a triangle periodically. I also wanted it to change color periodically but that was surprisingly difficult for me to do. My original design would randomly change the background and shape color on a strange parameter that wasn’t very periodical and instead seemed like random time intervals.
My new version I scraped the idea of trying to change the colors based on time intervals and instead changed them based on their bouncing position. So whenever the shape changes directions on the y-axis it will change to a random color and when the shape changes directions in the x-axis the background will change to a random color. I liked this a lot better because it is a more predictable pattern and really is easy to just sit and zone out while it’s running. That was my initial goal and my original design didn’t really accomplish the color change was so random it was occasionally jarring to look at.
My third project was more of something that I wanted to complete. Originally I had a hard time with the novel project in which I wanted to replace a number of words in Dante’s Inferno to make sound a little bit nicer down in Hell. I was stuck up on a couple issues and never really got it fully finished. Eventually, I was able to get it to work how I wanted and now I have a book about big doggos, friendos, and hungy boys hanging out at the Walmart owned by Bob Ross. I also made sure use the cutest looking fonts I could find on Google fonts and that’s how I finished that project. Below is the link to my code for the project as well as the full pdf of The Nice Inferno
https://colab.research.google.com/drive/1DiXlqR5sHOkGy6xjPw2p7rAL5U9Za7AK?usp=sharing
Finally I wanted to improve upon my favorite project and even my most content with project: the glitch art project. Originally I found the glitch art project to be fun because it was less about how well you did the project and more on the artistic direction. I took mine in the theme of music and musicians. I originally loved how my gallery turned out. Especially, the art using pixel sorting but looking back I felt like I could’ve added even more to my original theme.
The first picture of Kurt Cobain was edited in Audacity and tries to convey that grungy garage feel of his music as well trying to turn a smiling photo into something more melancholic to show how he was a broken individual during his life
The second picture is of Jimi Hendrix and I pixel sorted that using a broken glass pattern. I used this to signify how Jimi was one of the pioneers of psychedelic rock and he was one of the first to really shatter reality using his guitar. I think it gives the feel of a person looking into a broken mirror and just observing how different reality looks.
The third picture is of the band Slayer and I pixel sorted it using a pattern that is very sharp and jagged. I think this also shows their vibe well as they’re a very heavy and fast thrash metal band. Not only does the sharp edges give off the same feeling as their heart-pounding guitar solos or vocals but it also matches well with the sharp design of their logo.
The fourth picture is of the band Tool and it has been pixel sorted using the cover of their album 10,000 Days and it also conveys the feel of their music well. All of Tool’s albums have very weird acid trip type of artwork and it matches the poetic and cryptic lyrics that they perform. Using this to pixel sort their picture gives off a similar feel to their lyrics because you can almost make out some of the artwork from the album kind of like how when you look closer to their lyrics you can find a bigger picture.
The last picture is of Kevin Parker the mind behind Tame Impala. I pixel sorted him to one of his albums as well. I used the art for his album Currents and grayscaled it in order to be able to pixel sort with it. This one came out good also as it once again gives off the same vibe as his music. Slightly weird and a little psychedelic. The fact that he’s looking off into the distance adds to the picture because his music is very the type of music that you can get lost in.
Overall, after completing and improving my projects to my liking I found that this class was not only very fun but it showed me that there is always something more you can do. My screensaver, my clock and my novel were all not fully to my liking so it was obvious to me that I wanted to do more to them but for the glitch art project it was less of a “I’m not content with this product” and more of a “I can do even more”. I think the idea of going the extra mile is important for all aspects of life and this class has showed me that even more.
