Newswise — The first android candidates for 2048 President of the United States invite everyone to visit their new campaign booths on the University of Arkansas island in the virtual world of Second Life.
Students in Visual Design: Web 2, taught by art professor Tom Hapgood, have created a convention hall, of sorts, on the university's island. The nine students in the advanced Web design course were assigned to study the 2008 presidential candidates' graphic identity and create a visual identity for their particular android candidate, or 'andidate,' for short.
"I asked them to create the 'andidate' from the ground up — the name, slogan and visual language of the identity," Hapgood said. "I then had them use Adobe Flash to render an animated logo for the andidate, followed by some time in Second Life creating a small branded presence for the andidate."
To explore the andidates' booths, enter the Second Life virtual world at is http://www.secondlife.com and navigate to the University of Arkansas island, either by entering coordinates or searching on the map for "University of Arkansas." The art department's section of the island is at the following coordinates: 158.218.27.
The project assisted the visual design students — most of whom will go on to work in design firms on projects such as corporate identities, movie trailers, motion design, posters, books and other projects — to create an identity, learn the techniques of motion design and 3D modeling, and then explore successful environmental and signage design.
Hapgood is an assistant professor of art in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. More information about the art department's site is available at http://www.uark.edu/ua/hapgood/courses/webdesign/?page_id=6.
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