There comes a point in almost everyone’s career where one gets a little lost. I wouldn’t necessarily call it a midlife crises, but I was feeling some kind of aimlessness. I didn’t know what I was going to do with the knowledge I have been gathering since I have been in school. I felt like I didn’t really have any real work to show for my efforts. I was not happy with where I was and the lack of direction I was going in.
I think I have figured it out. And I am going to be able to use some of the technological knowledge I am accruing to my advantage. First of all is this laser etcher, because it won’t be powerful enough to actually cut anything, I am making. It is the beginning of a studio space. It will be something I will be able to use in my everyday practice.
So that’s where my brain is at. I have a motivation point. And I feel that this is very important for me. I have something I can throw myself into. It’s a real starting point and a slight change in mentality for me. Especially because the lost feeling was truly pulling me down. Now, I feel like a bit of the weight has been lifted from my shoulders. It’s the little things in life that really make a difference.
On that note I am going to talk about my short term plan. Bunnies… Bunnies to the point my friends may become tired of hearing/seeing them for a little while.
Things I am going to collect for my project:
- 12″x12″x1/8″ sheets of white acrylic (inventables sells some that are white with a black backing so I may not need the printmaking ink.)
- black printmaking ink
- very very thin transparent acrylic sheets in colors such as red, green, orange, yellow, and blue.
- diode that is 200mW or more and is glass. (higher will be better because then it will be able to cut through more than just a dark piece of paper. Although the dark paper may be necessary to absorb some of the laser and not reflect it. I will also need to consult someone about picking one out.)
- 2x ULN2003 Electronic Connection
- 1x Prototyping board (RadioShack)
- 2x 3/8″ Aluminum Rod Home Depot
- 1x 3/8″ Aluminum Tube Home Depot
- 10x Brass Brackets Home Depot
- 1x 2″ cube of wood Home Depot
- More patience than I probably have
I am a little hesitant about my ability to do this, but I am going to be putting forth my best effort for it. Wish me luck because I worry that this project will end up costing more than I expected previously.
And look, bunnies…
Some are original concepts, others are remediated from other sources. I am working on digitization of the images now. In doing that I will decide on eight that I am going to use for the final project. The final eight will be 12″x12″ and framed in a shadow box. I may or may not choose to put a light behind them, I haven’t gotten that far in the plan to know if it is feasible.
