I suppose I should begin with an introduction. I am Matt Yoder. I recently graduated from Goshen College, where I studied communication and graphic design. (For more about my academic career and work, see my portfolio and résumé.) In addition to Web and graphic design, my interest include skiing, singing, reading, crafts, and the Mennonite church.
I designed this site in the fall of 2008 as part of an independent study at Goshen College. I wanted to explore Django, a Python-based Web development framework. I had initially intended to use Ruby on Rails, but I was drawn to Django’s powerful template system and all-around flexibility. In addition, I expected that Python would turn out to be a more useful language than Ruby, especially since it has made recent appearances in several Web development products, such as the Google App Engine. In the end, I was pleased with what I was able to do with Django, and I continue to explore its capabilities in the Center for Mennonite Writing project.
For the design of the site, I settled on a bird theme, rendered in a lighthearted, almost cartoonish style. I wanted to create a space that was both fun and professional, both beautiful and functional. (To what degree I was successful, you can be the judge.) The tree form on the home page was inspired by a decorative tree that I got from IKEA several years ago. The “comment wires” at the bottom of the page are my response to a painting exhibit that I saw last year in Chicago.
I hope to use this blog space as a testing ground for some of my design and programming ideas. As I work on projects, I’ll be posting updates about particular challenges and the ways that I have solved them. As readers, I welcome your feedback, either through the comments feature below or through the contact page.
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