Art design talk

This is especially for young people. (Hi again...)
I've written before about detoxing and thus regaining some genuine originality and peace of mind in works of art (including writing). By detoxing I mean from the lurid, depressive and morbid mindsets and hence output of much art. Here is a case study I leave for you to read and study about how it used to be. Each of the USA states has a great seal. Idaho's is the only one to be designed by a woman. Look at the art work and read the description here:

www.netstate.com/states/symb/seals/id_seal.htm

I found this website when doing a little research to find images of the flower syringa, and thus got the idea of this as a case study for purifying your minds and adjusting more to reality when creating your art.

Read her motivations for each image. Now remember, this seal was designed before people became so nutty that they think each selected symbol has "hidden" meaning. That's my main point. The artist selected symbols that the vast majority of people could relate to, no secret, and when there was symbolism (about the roles of men and women and the question of women's voting rights) she is open about how she artistically deals with it.

She's not working depressive symbolism into it, such as cult imagery or, heaven forbid, as so much art is today, showing like peeling skin and the bones and skull beneath. I mean, why? Why are young people so morbid? Because they learned it from the most depressive, warped and morbid of all generations to date, their parents and teachers. Abandon that mindset because it is not truthful and it destroys your authenticity (what you think is original you are just parroting of depressives).

Here's an assignment. I was looking at cornucopias (cone shaped baskets that hold flowers and produce) at a store just in the past several days. It's a traditional symbol of the holiday of Thanksgiving. Notice that the woman in the seal has one at her feet. Sketch or computer produce a cornucopia filled with items of your own selection, including anything, not just fruits, flowers and vegetables. For example, if I were designing one, I'd try to work in something like a heavy rain cloud. I'd make other suggestions but don't want to skew your own work. Think about your motivations as you select each one, and how you would visually represent it. Use that as a way to question whether any item is truly selected to be interesting and edgy (which is good), or to be depressive and bring either yourself or the viewer down in mood and erode peace of mind. Swap any items like that which you find with something else and journal your thoughts. Save it because that will be cool to revisit each year and think about what might change in what you place in the cornucopia.

I hope you find this interesting and helpful!