Category: Graphic Design Process and Reflection
Division: 6-8
Student: Emma G
Title: Where Is my Liberty: If She Could Speak
Reflection and Process:
NOTE: I changed my title after I submitted my project for STLP. I just wasn't satisfied with the title Where Is My Liberty? It didn't really go with my write-up or with what I was feeling when I created this art piece. My STLP Coordinator told me that she would allow me to change it, but we had to note the change. So, I changed my title to IF She Could Speak. Therefore, on the title, I put the title I submitted and the new title. We put a colon in between the two so you wouldn't be confused during the judging.
America has been a symbol of hope. People throughout history have always wanted to come to our great country for this hope, for the American Dream, for freedom. Are people still going to think of our country the same way based on the choices that some Americans are making? Lady Liberty questions our Future and our Forever. This is why I created a digital Forever stamp with a drawing that I sketched and digitized for my graphic design project.
Should we really be proud of America? This is what I wondered when making this piece. I drew the Statue of Liberty hiding her face around the time that American Citizens broke into the Capitol. I wanted to encourage Americans and people around the world to be their best selves. I wanted to create a piece that speaks to the audience. What would Lady Liberty be saying about the country she symbolizes if she could speak? I wanted to create a work of art that would speak for her. Can you hear it? Can you see it? Can you feel it? I did not mean any disrespect to Lady Liberty or what she stands for, but instead I wanted to bring awareness to the “real” America. I wanted to create a visual that would represent how many Americans feel. Will we still have the same hope, liberty, and freedom that our country once had. I know Lady Liberty has doubt and may be questioning our “Forever”. Are liberty and justice really represented in America? How can we be better as Americans? Should we be proud of America? Of course, we should. America is a country that we should love and be proud of, but the choices that some Americans are making are quite embarrassing and scary? This is why I had the statue of Liberty positioned with her head down and her hand over her face. IT is as if she can’t bear to watch. The Statue of Liberty represents freedom but is freedom really represented in the United States? Do all people share the same freedoms? Recently the answer has been clear. People of color are being discriminated against and women all over the country do not have the same rights as men. These are things I care greatly about and I wanted to represent that in my piece.
Does Forever really mean forever? Where will our country be if we continue down the same path we have for the past few years with riots and aggression toward one another? Will our country forever be recognized as a country with liberty and justice? We must ask ourselves these questions in order to evaluate what is going on and where the future of our country is headed. Lady Liberty is waiting. It is like she is saying “Forever? I am yours if you still want me.”
Process
I created a pencil drawing of the Statue of Liberty on a piece of mixed media paper.
I scanned my drawing on a copying machine.
I used the editing software on pixlr.com/editor/. I transferred my drawing there and removed the background by adding a transparent layer behind my image and then using a combination of the wand select tool and an eraser to erase the paper from my scanned image.
I saved my edited image as a png file so as to save the transparency.
I then opened up the PicMonkey website.
I added the png file of my transparent drawing to PicMonkey.
I then added red #741717 as the background color.
I then added a faded stone texture to the background.
I then added the words Liberty and Justice? To the bottom right corner in Meddon font in size 278 in the color grey # b0b0b0
I created a stamp graphic by layering multiple circle graphics. I added a USA circle graphic and changed the transparency so that together they formed a watermark. I changed the blending mode to "difference" to match the color of the watermark to the color of the fonts.
I added the text ¨forever¨ vertically on the side to represent a forever stamp. I used a bold Shapiro Cruiser font in size 540 in the color grey #b0b0b0 to match the other text color.
I saved the file as a PNG