Talk about a giant screen to watch today’s inauguration on! As Obama was talking today (don’t know why) I was thinking they would be presenting the event on the jumbotron @ Full Sail… See? They did it.
If I may, I have to say I thought his words were perfect for the time we are going through. He was inspiring as I haven’t seen a world leader being in a long time.
By now, some of you have heard the news.
I will be leaving Full Sail soon. Starting Jan. 15 I will be starting at a new position in the heart of Silicon Valley, surrounded by some true legends of the Web industry, helping others create and develop social networks at Ning.com. Ning is the platform that powers TuDiabetes.com, in case you are unfamiliar with it.
This will make Jan. 4 my last day at Full Sail.
At the same time that I am happy for this new opportunity (and this you can believe to come from the bottom of my heart), part of my heart is sad to leave behind such a great team of people.
I have been in Full Sail since July 2003. This is the longest time I have been in any job in my life (thanks in no small part to the Internet bubble that burst a couple of times in my face!)
I have grown not only in years while at Full Sail: I’ve grown as a manager, I’ve grown my understanding of web products, and most important of all, I’ve grown in friends.
Now, I look forward to working in Ning, helping others accomplish what we have done in TuDiabetes.com and continuing to develop as a professional and a human being.
Today and the days up to Dec. 5, we are in the Bay Area, looking the place (or at least an area where that place will be located) that we will start calling home soon. Any tips are welcome! 
My friend Gustavito brought Basecamp to our lives a year ago. Today, I can’t imagine managing web projects without it.
I want to share with you a fun video he did showcasing the power of messaging through Basecamp. We exploited the tool as much as it would let us, to stay on the same page with designers, developers, project managers and representatives from several different departments throughout the school, as we made Full Sail Online a reality this past October.
Full Sail Online finally launched today. The project we’ve been working on for the past two years (me directly, since December 2006) finally launched today.
Oct. 1, the first ONLINE group of Entertainment Business Master’s of Science students at Full Sail is starting their classes. We designed and developed a world-class online education platform from the ground up to deliver the education.
It’s been a rough last few months, but the product is finally live!
Read more about it here.
This is an article about a Full Sail instructor whom I had the privilege of meeting yesterday, written by Christine Baker.
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Fatima Lotfi-Rice wants to encourage more installation art in Orlando.
Fatima Lotfi-Rice, an Assistant Course Director for Typography & Page Layout, has big ideas about the future of art in Orlando. She has equally big paintings – which she’ll be unveiling in one of three art installations she is presenting Sept. 20-22 in downtown Orlando.
In fact three of the Brazilian artist’s original paintings in the show are 60 feet by 30 feet. All of her works are abstract and infused with bold, vivid colors and strokes and feminine themes.
“I come from Brazil, and color is really important to me,” said Lotfi-Rice. “I don’t know, maybe it’s the sun.”
Opening night is Thursday, Sept. 20 from 6 to 10 p.m. On Friday and Saturday (Sept. 21-22), the exhibition is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event takes place in the “Say it Loud!” studio in the VMI Design District at 1121 North Mills Ave. in Orlando. Refreshments will be served.
An art installation, for those who don’t know the term, is an art show that revolves around a concept or idea, and incorporates a variety of sensory and narrative experiences to convey meaning.
The Exhibits
Lotfi-Rice is doing a series of three art installations for her show, which will include elements like sand, live music by a cellist, printed words, a woman’s voice reading Dante’s Inferno in Italian, and a surprise pop art experience. (We can’t tell you what that is).
Her grant-funded installation, “In Search for Identities,” incorporates the work of lovers kissing in “The Kiss” by Gustav Klimt’s, Auguste Rodin’s sculpture of lovers Francesca and Paolo from “Dante’s Inferno,” and an adaptation on Rodin’s sculpture called “The Distance” by Cornelia Parker.
Another of her art installations was inspired by classical paintings and sculptures of the Gratiae (the Graces) from Greek mythology, who were the daughters of Zeus.
Although she does point out the works that influence her art, she doesn’t like to “explain” her work because she wants people to find meaning in a personal context. “I want you to go there and be inspired and bring your own experiences,” said Lotfi-Rice.
Panel Discussion and Documentary on Grants
As part of the exhibit, the Brazilian artist has brought together a discussion panel of local art experts who will talk on “Change and Growth for the Artist, the Viewer and the City of Orlando.” The panel discussion takes place on Saturday, from 2 to 4 p.m., and students are encouraged to attend.
The panelists include Julio Lima, the artist and owner of the “Say it Loud!” studio where the installations take place; Michael Lehman, a UCF Humanities professor; Philip E. Bishop, and Valencia instructor and Orlando Sentinel arts writer; Triesta Hall a Full Sail Course Director and digital artist; Megan Bardoe, and independent curator; Chris Scala, a sculptor; and Michele Wright, a TV anchor acting as a mediator.
Lotfi-Rice is also screening a documentary on how to get an arts grant. She said that she wants to give back by teaching artists and students how to pursue and win arts grants, since they are not well-advertised.
“You really don’t know about these things,” she explained. Lotfi-Rice heard about the grant opportunity with the local United Arts organization through word of mouth. “It’s very closed.”
Lotfi-Rice said that things are slowly changing in Orlando with regard to art, but that the city has not traditionally been an arts city.
“When I arrived here 10 years ago, nobody really understood my work,” she said. “Abstract, for some people, is kind of scary. If there’s no form, they don’t accept it.”
Originally from Sao Paulo, the artist notes there are few galleries and museums in the Orlando area and almost no art installations – unlike major cities like Miami, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
Lotfi-Rice is hoping her ambitious art installations next weekend will help to inspire more projects like it in the community.
“Art for me is sacred,” she explained. “I hope the students and teachers go.”
For more information about Fatima Lotfi-Rice and her art, or to find out more about the Sept. 20-22 art installation, go to: fatimalotfirice.com
I work with a Six Foot Giraffe… well, it’s not actually a six-foot tall giraffe, but rather an incredible artist who goes by the monicker Six Foot Giraffe. His name is Kyle Smith and he went to school for Digital Art and Design, here at Full Sail.
Now, he works as an Illustrator in our Publishing Team (the good people that put our Course Materials together). I just LOVE his style: it’s got a very raw and urban feel to it.
See what you think. Check out his work at SixFootGiraffe.com
A while back I shared in here the story of Jorg, a YouTube celebrity that was the brainchild of Brett Novak, a Digital Arts & Design student at Full Sail. Today I was amazed to see his most recent piece: a gorgeous compositing job done in Adobe After Effects, with some great music by Lemon Jelly.
Enjoy…
Full Sail Recording Arts Graduate and Neptunes Engineer, Andrew “Drew” Coleman recently worked on the track “Hey You” for the Neptunes with Madonna in London.
Over the next seven days, every time the song is downloaded (for free), Microsoft will donate twenty five cents to the Alliance for Climate Protection, in support of the upcoming Live Earth concert on 07/07/07.
Follow this link to download the song for free: http://liveearth.msn.com/green/madonnadownload
