Original vision:
TWO ONLINE CERTIFICATES
ILLUSTRATION
Describe Illustration
CONCEPT ART
Describe Concept Art
ROAD BLOCKS
(and what we should address and solve).
Previous administration has tried to use my drive to bargain an online gaming program.
I was told “we can give you that if you gave us an online gaming program”
My thought from this is that I am not trying to bargain, I am trying to give shape to a vision! I am not doing this for myself, so why trying to bargain? If SSU doesn’t want what I have to offer in order to grow, I can just teach my classes, do some service, and relax in my tenure seat …
I was told I couldn’t ask for a new faculty hire.
So I asked for the ability to hire international adjuncts, and was told it would happen. Still waiting.
A current art department that behaves like a rock, gatekeeping and resisting against new opportunities.
We have let go of Quintin Gleim, a former student of mine and prestigious illustrator. He was teaching with us as an adjunct, but left because he was offered a full-time position at Buffalo University to BUILD AND ILLUSTRATION PROGRAM.
Last year, Quintin’s program accepted 70 students, out of 120 applications.
THE ANSWER I RECEIVED WERE GIVEN TO ME OUT OF COURTESY.
THE REALITY IS THAT THE PROJECT WAS NEVER SUPPORTED BY THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION.
I WAS JUST TOLD IT WOULD BE. BUT IT NEVER WAS.
SO I WORKED HARD FOR NO RESULT OTHER THAN A BURNOUT AND A WOUND IN THE FABRIC OF TRUST.
YEARS HAVE PASSED, AND WE MAY HAVE MISSED MANY TRAINS.
IF WE HAD STARTED 5 YEARS AGO WE WOULD BE BOOMING TODAY!
MY EFFORTS HAVE ONLY BEEN LOOKED-AT IN COMPARAISON TO A GAMING PROGRAM THAT ONCE WAS A HUGE SUCCESS
INSTEAD OF LISTENING TO MY POINT AND SEE THAT ONLINE “CONCEPT ART AND ILLUSTRATION” WERE THE NEXT GOLDEN CHICKEN!
IF THE CHICKEN STILL HAS, MAYBE, A FEW GOLDEN EGGS, IT NEEDS TO BE GIVEN THE MEANS TO EXIST!
(OUTSIDE OF THE CURRENT GAMING PROGRAM’S SHADOW)
At SSU, I have seen it all.
People being trusted with jobs, responsibilities, advertizing money and full support, while all my efforts were shut down.
I have tried to make people aware of this issue, and of how detrimental it is for the institution.
The list you are about to read is not meant to brag, but an attempt to make you realize who I am, and why I should have been trusted long ago.
This way, if I eventually have to let go of all these ideas of things that could be, it will be with the certainty that I tried with everything I had!
Humbly assuming that I would be seen.
I AM AN AWARDED ILLUSTRATOR WITH WORLDWIDE RECOGNITION
I HAVE MORE CONTACTS AND RELATIONS IN THE FIELD OF GAMING THAN ANYONE ELSE AT THE UNIVERSITY
I AM REPRESENTED BY SHANNON ASSOCIATES, IN NYC, THE BIGGEST ILLUSTRATION AGENCY IN THE WORLD.
MY WORK IS FEATURED IN THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PRINTED MAGAZINES
I WORK WITH THE BIGGEST GAMING COMPANIES IN THE WORLD!
BLIZZARD, HASBRO, RIOT GAMES, UBISOFT, ETC
I AM A PUBLISHED GAME DESIGNER
I AM INVITED TO SPEAK AT EVENTS ALL OVER THE WORLD! BERLIN, PARIS, LA, SPAIN, POLAND, ETC.
I AM NOT A JACK OF ALL TRADES WHO JUST DOES A BIT OF EVERYTHING.
ILLUSTRATION
CONCEPT ART
GAME DESIGN
ART DIRECTION
TEACHING
CREATIVE PROCESS
I AM A RECOGNIZED EXPERT IN EACH OF THESE AREAS!
AND FOR SOME REASON, OF MY LIST OF EMPLOYERS AND CLIENTS, ONLY SSU FAILS TO SEE IT!
THE NEW VISION
FINE ARTS & ILLUSTRATION
Transitioning STUDIO ARTS to a new era, aligning with modern technologies and what we teach in Illustration, Concept Art, and Gaming.
We keep teaching the Fine Arts, yet, we adjust our angle to serve what SSU could specialize into!
Studio Arts becomes
FINE ARTS & ILLUSTRATION
TWO ONLINE CERTIFICATES
Creating two online certificates based on popular fileds and areas of growth.
These two certificates would run under my supervision and expertise, without being limited by the things that aborted them in the past.
autonomy from the gaming program.
autonomy from the art department
trust from the university
allocated founds for hiring adjuncts, and advertising
ENGAGED ADVERTIZING
With the right advertizing, we can reach far beyond SSU’s current range, and offer an extremely attractive set of certificates, at competitive costs!
TWO ONLINE CERTIFICATES
ILLUSTRATION CERTIFICATE
Learn from experts illustrators, working in the publishing, entertainment, and gaming industry, including, D&D, Magic: the Gathering, National Geographic, Blizzard, etc
Illustration
Digital Painting
Publishing
Networking
Creative process
GAME - ART CERTIFICATE
Come and study with field experts! Build your skills in 2D and 3D art, for careers within the video-games and movie industries!
Intro Concept Art
Character Design
Environment Design
3D
Illustration
Game Design
Creative process
WHAT DOES IT TAKE?
Creating two online certificates based on popular fields and areas of growth.
These two certificates would run under my supervision and expertise, without being limited by the things that aborted them in the past.
This implies:
autonomy from the gaming program.
autonomy from the art department
trust from the university
allocated founds for hiring adjuncts, and advertising
I INVITE YOU TO SEE THESE CERTIFICATES AS THE ENTRY DOOR TO SOMETHING BIGGER!
I SEE THEM AS A COST-EFFECTIVE TEST-DRIVES FOR A WAY BIGGER PICTURE:
FULL STRONG ONLINE PROGRAMS, ATTRACTING STUDENTS FROM ALL OVER.
YET SERVING OUR LOCAL MISSION!
CRUISING PAST THE ROAD BLOCKS
HIRING PRESTIGIOUS ADJUNCTS
I have many friends who would love to come teach for us!
I am talking about people who are working right now on games that our students love!
They come here with dreams, I have the power to make them learn directly from the artists they admire!
IMAGINE THE ADVERTIZING WE COULD MAKE OUT OF THIS!
TAKING THE 3D CLASSES ONLINE
And have them taught online by adjuncts who are top-gun experts/artists in the gaming industry!
IMAGINE THE ADVERTIZING WE COULD MAKE OUT OF THIS!
THIS COMES ALMOST AT NO COST!
Just work, effort, and willingness!
AND A LOT OF TARGETED ADVERTIZING
THIS WOULD GIVE SSU AN ACTUAL
GAME ART
ONLINE CERTIFICATE
MAYBE THE FIRST STEP OF A BRAND NEW ONLINE PROGRAM?
WITH A BRAND NEW TEAM OF ADJUNCTS SHARING THEIR EXPERTISE WITH OUR STUDENTS!
A SIMPLE FORMULA
STEP 01
Studio Arts becomes “Fine Arts and Illustration”.
Transitioning 3D classes to online.
Hiring 2 high-profile american adjuncts to teach Digital Painting, 3D and Concept-Art remotely.
This would lighten the load on Greg Lyons shoulders.
Mike Reynolds can focus on Game Design and Concept Art
I focus my classes on Illustration and Creative process, wich are required classes for these certificates.
STEP 02
Because I take care of the Creative process classes (See Step 01), Matt Cram and Chuck Davis can focus on their area of expertise: Graphic Design, and the strong program they developped.
Next full time hire should be Quintin Gleim to come teach essential classes currently left to adjuncts: Drawing, Painting.
These classes are foundational, and a huge priority. The well-doing of our students in the classes above depend of the quality of their foundations!
Having Quintin, currently full-time at Buffalo University but wanting to move back in the area, would be a true step up!
STEP 03
From this, we grow!
Creation of a full Game Art program online!
Our students would have their foundations taken care of by Quintin.
I would be focusing on building a Game Art online program, at the crossroad of Gaming and Visual arts, which are both my areas of expertise.
Mike reynolds remain the perfect hire as he also navigates between both sides. (He was hired for this reason!)
We can benefit from Greg Lyons experience in building the succesful on-campus gaming program we all know!
This is what I have to offer,
if you give me the keys.
YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND ME
ADDITIONAL NOTES
In art, we learn to draw the forms and shapes of our subject. Let’s say we are drawing a greek temple.
To understand the temple and its shape, we must look at the temple, but also at the space AROUND the temple: Its distance from the ground, the space between each pillars, etc.
This space is refered to as the NEGATIVE SPACE.
Observing the negative space allows us to get a better perspective on our subject.
Condisdering the negative space here, brings the question:
WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DO NOTHING?
We may:
Miss growth opportunity in a field that grows fast.
Fail at making our programs attractive in comparaison to more current programs from other institutions.
Fail to benefit from the quality of our current on-capus gaming program in order to transition and grow!
Take the risk to see the current gaming program fade, without a new rising star program in the horizon. This proposal can be the strong heir of the on-campus program!
Keep missing more trains until they just stop coming.