The below is an article that I wrote closer to Avalonstar’s first “rebirth” stage. It’s hard for me to believe that is as old as it is, but the meaning that I had intended to portray still holds true more or less. Granted, two years is an eternity in the life of a website, and like pop culutre, internet culture changes rapidly. However, if I were asked to write an article on this very issue today, I doubt that my answer would be much different.
Question One
“What is your view of internet culture in this day and age?”
Being in the business for 6 years, more or less, I have seen internet culture change drastically from one form of art, if you will, to another. The funny thing to see is, with every new change in the “norm”, you see the thousands upon thousands of designers move to try and perfect that type of design while leaving the world they could have mastered in the dark. It is sad to see, because this classifies the world of design as one huge bandwagon.
Sure, there are a few designers that have picked one genre and stayed with it, and those are the ones who are either looked upon as revolutionary or crazy. But everybody else tries to mimic the “the really cool deisgns” while not focusing on what style they have themselves. They have no sense of what can come from their own minds and are only driven to copy the work that stimulates them (copy is a strong word, but I’m not using it in a strong context). So where’s the originality? If you look at my “Inspiration 101″ transcript (note: if you would like to view it, please ask me), you’ll see that I say that it doesn’t exist.
There are those people who can annoy the hell out of you by the way they think their “all that.” Thinking they’re so experienced, but not even living one fifth of their natural life, how can consider themselves “perfect” and take it out on those who have been in the business and are truly experienced in it.
Overall, with all the annoyances and frustrations, there is enough support for people out there that people like me can continue to design… you just have to ignore those “little voices” sometimes.
Question Two
“How does your culture affect the way you design?”
As I have grown older, my love for my culture has grown as I was able tounderstand it more. Living in America for all your life and then going to a place where everything is run differently obviously has an effect on you. I was inspired by the strength of the people, how they lived their lives each day, and how they didn’t bother with so many things that people back home do bother with. My design style has been concrete for a while, however, these experiences have added some life to the way I design; giving it a more tranquil overall feel to it.
I consider myself a person with an open mind, and many things in both cultures affect me in different ways. For example, I am a huge fan of electronic music and futuristic styles of artwork and architecture. Most people can say that my style is more futuristic than anything, probably because of a “dream I wish to carry out but never will” kind of thought.
Culture is something that changes as the days go by, and I will always be influenced by different aspects of it. This is what inspires me and keeps my ideas flowing when it comes to the electronic canvas.