CODEWORDS
jackie learns code things
Hello! Welcome to my SKO for the Code + words studio run by Andy Simionato and Karen ann Donnachie ☻
I knew before I chose this studio that I was interested in code, especially as Andy had teased Tiger Dingsun’s Reading Machines in last semester’s AR studio that I absolutely fell in love with. I didn’t know, however, that I would end up being so fascinated by it that I’d plan to use and continue to learn it for the rest of my life.
Learning code in conjunction with typography and reading has been an intriguing experience. As a reader who struggled to even consider an audiobook as ‘real reading’, this studio with research has widened my perspective on what reading can be, and how powerful it is when it isn’t limited to one physical form. Though the tangible experience of a book is beautiful and nostalgic, there are other ways to experience reading that offer heightened interaction, immersion, and surprise.
To learn p5js was unexpectedly thrilling and liberating, and felt like a refreshingly new way of creating, that is never constrained by expectation, one that thrives on mistakes and surprises. I’m already itching to use these new skills in my future work.
Compiling all of my progress, research and resources into this SKO has been enormously encouraging. To be able to reflect on where I started, in both code and my understanding of reading/typography, reassures me that I really have the capacity to learn and grow so much in the span of a semester — and I have truly witnessed this in all my classmates too.
The SKO is organised in weeks, in which I record what was done in that week’s tutorial, followed by any relevant research or experimentation I was working on. At the bottom of each week page you can navigate forwards or backwards one week. Because I was too scared of Github earlier in the semester, I compiled many anythings in a Milanote board whenever I found a helpful or cool resource. Everything there will already be included in the SKO, but the Milanote is like a version with only links, photos, and without my ramblings, so take a look if you’d like :)
Thank you so much to Andy and Karen, for creating such a warm, understanding and generous environment. It’s an emotional rollercoaster every time I open Processing, but this studio has been a true highlight, and a treasure trove of discoveries. Thanks guys :)