IxDA’s Annual Interaction Gathering Fosters Professional Development

A UX designer in San Francisco, California, Polly Zebrowski is a senior visual interaction designer for Wells Fargo. In this capacity, she works on authentication experiences for the bank’s customers. Active in her professional community, Polly Zebrowski belongs to such organizations as the Interaction Design Association (IxDA).

Since 2003, IxDA has provided thousands of members with fee-free involvement in the interactive design community. The association hosts several events throughout the year, but its main annual event is Interaction.

Daring professionals to figure out how human interactions are affected by their environment, the IxDA’s flagship event brings together 1,000 student, leaders, and professionals in the interaction design industry. Attendees have numerous opportunities to learn about changes and developments taking place within the industry at workshops and talks.

The IxDA has scheduled Interaction17 to take place February 4-8 in New York City. Building upon the unique combination of people and experiences in the city, the 2017 event will be hosted in the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan, near IxDA’s education partner the School of Visual Arts. The event is open to professionals from around the world.

Exercises for Improving Your Painting Ability

Based in San Francisco, Polly Zebrowski serves as a senior visual interaction designer at Wells Fargo. Polly Zebrowski enjoys a variety of creative activities outside of her professional design work, including painting.

As with many things, practice is the key to becoming a better painter. During your painting sessions, try the following exercises to further improve your abilities.

Start by painting one piece a week, but only use one color. Doing this helps you become more familiar with varying tones and shades as you paint. It also makes it easier to take the time to paint if you only focus on one piece a week. If you are already familiar with color shades, then try eliminating black and white from your available colors. Instead, use primary colors to create more vibrant shadows and highlights. Always complete the painting you start.

As you practice with your colors, you can work on improving your ability to paint various scenes. Try making a master copy, a painting copied from one of the Old Master artists of the past. With a painting to reference, you can recognize specific areas that need improvement. The more master copies you produce, the more you will improve your weaker areas.

Finally, take the time to do things other than paint. Although practice is important, you can easily get burned out if you spend multiple hours a day painting.