BuddhaCam.com!!
Check out BuddhaCam!!

I consider BuddhaCam as my escape from Sarasota, FL. My first semester in college was at Ringling School of Art and Design as an illustration major. I will say, politely, that is just wasn't for me. In my art history class, if you were among the top six you were rewarded with exemption from the final exam. Missing the final exam meant leaving three days early. If I wanted to finish in the top six, I knew my final project had to be something different.

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My professor had a sense of humor, so I took that as an opportunity to take a more playful approach. I spent two nights looking through design books in the library, searching for inspiration for a concept that would make the golden age of Japanese art more interesting. I eventually stumbled upon a book with a section on personal web sites. There were a number of web cam site profiles and I immediately knew what I had to do.

While there wasn't much in the way of social networking back in 2002, there were little things like guest books and mood indicators. My favorite part of the site is the little mood indicator up top that says "Buddha's Current Mood: Enlightened." While the web site details an actual history of the golden age of Japanese art, it is interspersed with web cam shots of Buddha and his friends, a photo gallery, and, of course, fan mail.

When I created the site, I wanted to come up with a design that not only looked bad but also focused on traditional elements and textures of the time period. The site was designed to look old while maintaining that amateurish &lsquoI just learned HTML’ feel.

In the end I was in the top six and got my wish. While I definitely learned a lot and came up with some neat ideas in Sarasota, I was also very glad to leave just a little bit sooner than planned.