My Work – natcheng

2DII – Zine Process + Final

i had a few inspirations in mind for my zine. i wanted to design my zine learning towards the experimental side, rather than a straight forward photo + interview one.

here are a few inspirations i had in mind –

taking these inspirations into consideration, i came up a few layouts variations –

i consulted mimi and she told me to try out with the real content out because i didnt have anything out yet so it was hard to comment on.

and so i came up with my first layout mock up –

however, mimi wasnt a fan of my layout because she mentioned that my images weren’t deserving the little attention as how they should be as they were well taken. she also didnt like the unnecessary geometric patterns and elements that i was adding into my zine as they have no purpose.

mimi gave me a few helpful and insightful tips that i should work on. she told me to focus on the people, and my zine should be one that people would want to keep looking at the images. my zine should be humanistic, and story orientated. she told me to look at magazines such as TIME.

i researched on those magazines and here are some insightful

i understood what she was referring to and i realized i was lacking in some portraiture, so i went back to beauty world for another time to take their portraits.

unfortunately Lilian from Sew Easi wasnt comfortable to have her picture taken, so i could only use the previous photo i had of her back to substitute as her portraiture 🙁

getting a layout was actually quite difficult mainly because of the lack of pages!! as i had 3 craftsmen to showcase, it meant that i only have 1 spread for 1 craftsman. the tough part was squeezing the images into one spread, and have a write up with it too. i had struggles on the arrangement because i didnt want to make my zine as just a photo journal, but more of it being content related.

i wanted to have a full page of their portraiture, however that leaves me just 1 page of images + text. that. was. a. challenge.

i didnt know where to place my write up because there was just too much going on one one page. i wanted to experiment with the overlaying of write up on my images to make it look “experimental”, but that’s not a way to do graphic design because aesthetics shouldn’t be the main reason to design. design must make sense, then comes aesthetics.

after much painful processes of rearranging in the middle of nights, i finally settled on a layout –

however there are some elements that i felt should be worked on –

the placement of the quote on the first page. it was hard to read because of the colour of the text and background, and the arrangement of it was wrong. it didnt make sense. my eye doesnt lead me to the quote.
the title of the place. “lucky star hair dressing saloon” was at the wrong place because it makes people have the impression that the write up starts from the right column, but it is not.

i tweaked them again and here is my final layout! –

i preferred the way it looks now because the images dont look too stagnant and systematic. they are overlaid and i feel that way they look more organic, but also pleasant to the eyes.

aaaand thats a wrap for 2D! i really had fun the projects for this semester because they were more visual communication related. i really enjoyed the process of doing site research because it opened my eyes and created a whole new perspective of bukit timah as a whole. i am also thankful that because of this project, i managed to find out about these artisans, and their stories be it their life, their business, or their philosophy on things in general. i am also glad i had the opportunity to land myself photography project as well because it has always been my passion to document and photograph artisans and their craft.

designing publications has been my favourite because i find the excitement in the challenge on how placements of elements could affect the readability and the feeling. this project has definitely provided me the experience and trained me well.

and im really glad that mimi brings her professional industry background into class, as telling us how the graphic / advertising industry works in class. i believe that is important and essential for us, especially for budding designers.

thank you mimi for your guidance for this sem! i have definitely learned quite a bit!

before i end off, here are images that didnt make it into the zine. enjoy!

2DII – Zine Process #1

my zine concept is going to be documentating the forgotten of beauty world. i narrowed down to 3 store owners that caught my attention the most during my first recee – Cushion Specialist, Sew Easi Alteration and Lucky Star Hair Dressing Saloon.

prior to the visit i made, i crafted a few initial questions to ask them. they were mainly questions on their thoughts of bukit timah and their thoughts when people associate it as an atas area, but forgetting this part of bukit timah.

Cushion Specialist

jenese, vanessa and rogan were really friendly people to talk to. jenese is a 60 year old lady who runs the business together with her son and daughter in law. it was a business started by her late husband but took over upon his passing. throughout the whole conversation, it was really heartwarming to hear her speak continuously and so passionately about her job.

vanessa told me that they do animal rescues on the side, and it was the reason why they have 4 cats in their workshop (and 10 more at home). it was really really nice to meet and know there are kind hearted people like them that exist.

images below are insights that i got from the interview.

Sew Easi Alteration

lilian came to singapore from hong kong in 1989 due to the Tiananmen massacre in china. she runs the business for her husband because he holds a double degree – TCM and Alteration (she runs it because her husband cannot cope with 2 jobs). i was glad that i found out she came from hong kong because i was able to communicate with her in cantonese (that made the converastion more comfortable for her and casual). however she was really uncomfortable to be infront of the camera, so i could not get any photos of her face and her colleagues.

images below are insights that i got from the interview.

Lucky Star Hair Dressing Saloon

this place was a challenge for me to get an interview with them. they were closed the previous 2 times i went to beauty world plaza for recee. during the 2nd time, i asked vanessa (from cushion specialist) if they’re always closed. turns out they are closed on every tuesday. the third time i went on a thursday to specially interview them, i waited for 2 hours because they were busy. afterwards, the old man (Mr K Palani) told me to come back tomorrow morning (around 10am) because he cant speak english but his son will be there tomorrow to hold the interview. i agreed and came back the next day. on friday, i came in 10am and Mr Palani told me that his son wont be here until 2pm. (i was really discouraged at that point of time because i have been wasting too much time). luckily i came back at 2pm and his son arrived and agreed to do the interview with me.

they were really nice people to talk to, especially Mr Palani (we commuicated through simple english) and i could feel his pride in his craft. i learnt that their business has been around for 60+ years. during the 2 days ive been there, customers kept coming in and they were extremely busy. turns out they’re really famous. Mr Palani was so passionate about telling me how long his customers have been going to him. he told me some of his customers have been with him for 30 years, and now hes starting to cut for theit grandchildren. he also told me how the relationship between him and his customers is more than just a business interaction, but a bond. i could feel his sadness when he told me some of his customers have passed on, and some are sick.

Mr Salvam and Palani showed me a book on the old bukit timah they were given from PAP when i told them my proj. (talk about the real originals of bukit timah!)

here’s a video on them in action! (pay attention to Mr K Palani’s hand movements and the sound of his scissors. definitely an old professional indeed.)

images below are insights that i got from the interview.

i really enjoyed the interview process. it broadened my perspectives on knowing the stories behind these craftsmen – they’re really passionate in what they do, and they put their customers’ needs more than their attempt on making their money. this is probably because they’ve been doing it for many years, and making money from their regulars is the last thing that they want. their customers also add on to the fact why they are unwilling to move. (reasons include their customers are familiar with their location, or because their customers live around the area and its accessible for them).

some behind the scenes images

2DII – Zine Recee

BUKIT TIMAH

an afternoon of recee-ing at bukit timah was enjoyable because –

1. i was alone exploring.

1b. exploring is my favourite past time. i enjoy dicovering new things and people watch.

2. i had the opportunity to take pictures / do photography.

2b. photography is my second nature / job.

3. bukit timah isn’t my hood and it’s a chill area and that made my experience even more enjoyable (+ point!).

i started the day of recee-ing with gorgeous weather. it was a sunday afternoon, the sun was covered by the clouds and it was windy. i alighted at botanical gardens and started my recee there.

bukit timah is basically a residential area, but for the rich. there are no HDBs, only condos (quite a few actually), and mainly landed property. there are quite a few small malls (do not be confused with neighbourhood malls) to cater the people who live nearby. you’d see supermarkets, laundry mats, small bakeries, cafes, bike shops, wine shops, small restaurants, etc. houses are expensive but gorgeous. its a mixture of old houses and newly designed built $$$ ones. it

it wasnt too quiet when i was there because it was a sunday afternoon. there were quite a number of people running around the hood, walking their dogs, doing grocery runs.

i started my route at botanical gardens and walked towards cluny court.

lots of shops and bistros at cluny court. theres a cold storage here as well.

the next few malls include serene centre, crown centre and coronation plaza. they’re the small malls i was referring to.

you’d pretty much most of the things you need nearby. eg, clinics, cafes, bike shops, banks, etc.

i walked to Tan Kah Kee and started my residential recee there.

my route for my residential recee started at Coronation Road > Duchess Road. then i crossed the road and covered Watten Estate > Greenwood Avenue.

because its a residential area, i captured photos of the houses, and the life in the hood. the houses i captured are mainly the really nice and expensive ones, but i didnt forget the old ones too.

apart from the beautiful houses, a few things i captured as well – the life, and cars. i saw a number of them doing their afternoon run and walking their dog. expensive cars caught my attention too.

cars –

a few raw ideas for the zine currently:

the architecture of the houses? (old vs new)
the life in bukit timah? (running, animals (dogs, cats, idk what else), walking dogs, people biking, people dining, …)
different types of gates? (the different patterns, geometry, old vs new)
cars?

HMM.

2DII – Que Sera Sera Final

taking in comments from Mimi from last consultation, i decided to do food styling with photography for my final pieces.

the art direction with my final approach is a clean, not overdone, simple straight to the point styling.

before doing it, i had to study more on the kitchen environment of chefs, and their choice of utensils.

1. Pasta Chef

i looked at some images on pinterest to look at food styling but i felt that they were very rustic image driven, which is not the direction im heading for.

instead of looking at stylized visuals of food styling on pinterest, i looked beyond them by studying videos of chefs cooking pasta to see what type of utensils they use for their cooking.

i started seeing crockery such as tongs, spoons, the pan used for cooking the pasta, a white plate.

some of my process photos of executing my final work –

final outcome –

i used penne this time because it was way easier to control than spaghetti. i stylized the plate with tomato sauce (in reality its actually chilli sauce in a squeezable bottle), black pepper and corriander to give it not only a pop of colour, but also because they are relevant to the dish. the pan, tongs and spoon are placed halfway at the corner of the image so to not steal emphasis of the image. the cloth is placed because chefs usually clean the edge of the plate with it. i decided to place the ladle on the cloth because when i tried placing it on the bottom right during the styling process, it looked odd as there were too many silver cutleries on the bottom of the image, making it look heavy and uneven.

2. Pastry Chef

for pastry chef, it was slightly easier because there were a standard few crockeries that are mainly used. before researching i knew some elements that i could already play with – flour, eggs, whisk.

process photos-

final-

my name is created using whipped cream. the whole situation of the image shows the process of a life of a pastry chef. the supporting elements- whisk, bowl of batter, baking paper and tray, cracked eggs, flour and spoons. i scattered flour on the surface to create a more natural visual look of the image.

3. Grill Chef

in my previous 2 attempts (see previous 2 posts), they were names cut out from pieces of steak. as Mimi mentioned it was too direct, and creating grill marks on the grill is not possible, i decided to go towards a different approach this time by cutting my name on the piece of steak after cooking it. prior to this, i tried cutting my name when its raw, but it was impossible because of the tendons on the meat that made it impossible to cut through. i used a black background for this because i felt that it gives a better contrast with the green herbs. it also allows the steak to pop better, and i felt that it fits the mood of a grill chef – ‘dirty’; ‘unclean’ so to speak.

process photos –

carving the letters out on a raw piece of meat is impossible

i studied on how chefs cook their steak and the proper way of doing it is to baste it with melted butter with herbs, hence the herbs and butter on the grill pan. the types of saucers used for the butter and salt & pepper is for contrasting purposes. i felt that yellow butter on a black saucer would fit better, and salt&pepper would fit better on a white one.

final –

4. Executive Chef

executive chefs are the ones who plate the food before serving. this was a fun one for me to do actually because i had the chance to plate food and make them look pretty for the first time. but before doing it i have 0 knowledge on it so i watched some videos on how to do it.

i used a piece of meat from the steak i cooked for the grill chef because dont waste food!! i decided to rummage through my fridge and found half a un used onion, some cherry tomatoes and blueberries. and there, a dish is created.

process photos –

final-

the tomatoes, blueberries and mustard gave the entire dish a pop of colour, which is what i wanted. the herbs are used for garnishing. the char on the onions gave another level of colour and depth to it. the plate is surrounded with the sauces and garnishing because i realized that chef needs their elements close to them. i also realized that the elements are given in an entire serving. i came up with the idea of using the sauce to form my name because sauces are always used during plating, and i felt that it was the most interesting and relevant to the entire job scope of an executive chef.

some research ive done –

““Aside from taste, we eat food visually. The first thing I think about is coloring: You want to have a nice balance of color on the plate. For example, we serve a skate wing at Hinoki & the Bird that is served with bright orange sambal sauce on top and plated on top of a banana leaf. The skate wing doesn’t need a banana leaf on the bottom, but it’s nice to have a contrast of color—chili sauce is orange and green sets it off. It brings the plate to life.”—Kuniko Yagi, chef, Hinoki & the Bird, Los Angeles”

https://www.fastcodesign.com/3050217/how-to-plate-food-like-a-3-star-michelin-chef

the plate is surrounded with the sauces and garnishing because i realized that chef needs their elements close to them. i also realized that the elements are given in an entire serving. i came up with the idea of using the sauce to form my name because sauces are always used during plating, and i felt that it was the most interesting and relevant to the entire job scope of an executive chef.

i plated my food on the side of the plate because its creates a good composition and visual pleasantness. i also used a white plate to create a fine dining look.

–

to conclude this project, i felt that this was the most fun as i get to work with new mediums. ive learnt how to art direct a food shoot, and also get to experiement with food + learn food styling. i’ve also learnt that “its all about the idea, followed by a well executed job.” – Mimi

2DII – Que Sera Sera Process

prior to this, i had a few different ideas on my job scope. some examples such as florist, photographer, barista, etc.

i did some research on some examples i could find on the internet and had some ideas.

florist –

photographer –

i had an idea of using the edges of signboards to form my name using photos i recently shot of during my trip to Hong Kong during the Chinese New Year.

i wasnt really clear on how to proceed, but it was just an idea. i asked my friends about it and they mentioned that its gonna be tough because of the angles of my signboards, and also it doesnt really protray me as a photographer, but more of a neon light artist.

after a few days of conceptual thinking, i had an idea to focus on one type of job then branch it out. finally, i decided to focus on a being a chef, but branching it out to 4 other different types.

i did some visual research on pinterest –

there were a few chefs i had in mind:

sushi chef, steak chef, sous chef, pastry chef, executive chef (the one who plates the food), pasta chef, vegetable chef.

i settled on pastry, pasta, executive chef, grill chef.

i felt that my knowledge on the types of chef werent strong, so i decided to do a research on the different types of chef. these are some examples of what i found.

from this, i decided to focus on Grill Chef, Pasta Chef, Pastry Chef, and Executive Chef.

i did some studies on pinterest hopefully to get some inspiration from existing works.

i appreciate the cleverness in the play of words with the visuals. unfortunately this project is based on our names, so creating a clever play on the words is out of scope.

i did some initial tryouts –

1. Pasta Chef

natcheng-adm-foundation-2d-typography-020217-2586 — pasta chef

this is an initial idea of a pasta chef. i had an idea of having pasta in a pot of boiling water as the concept, but Mimi advised me to have it more complex and not too direct. she also advised to use different types of pasta because spaghetti is a difficult medium to control.

my classmates gave me some advice that i could experiment with other types of noodles like ramen or penne. they also said that i could use tomato sauce as a background to make the image pop (yellow on red).

i had an idea on playing with the alphabets found in alphabet soup.

i could try and elevate this simple concept into something more visually appealing.

2. Pastry Chef

natcheng-adm-foundation-2d-typography-020217-2636 — pastry chef

natcheng-adm-foundation-2d-typography-020217-2626 — general visual

this is my initial version of a pastry chef. i really liked how it came out but Mimi said that it only looks pretty; there is no deeper concept behind it. she also pointed out that tearing up a croissant to form my name doesnt prove my role as a pastry chef because (which pastry chef tears up their work?), which i agreed with her.

3. Grill Chef

natcheng-adm-foundation-2d-typography-020217-2591 — after cutting

natcheng-adm-foundation-2d-typography-020217-2601 — frying process

similar to the previous 3, Mimi said that my outcomes didnt really have any conceptual depth to them. she suggested that i use the grill marks to create my name because all im doing now is approaching the execution too directly, and thats too simple.

generally, Mimi told me to think of my concept in a depeer context, and create that ‘ah-hah’ moment.

4D II – Silent Love

in my previous post on characterization, i’ve picked Jamie Oliver and My Dad as my 2 characters. but upon much consideration, i’ve decided to change them to My Dad and I.

as mentioned in my previous post on my dad, the love my dad shows is selfless and unconditional. he is a person who gives more than receive, which is something i admire about him.

but the funny thing about the love relationship between my dad and i is that we never express them loudly. we hardly open up to one another, but we express our appreciation through little acts of kindness. you could call it Silent Love.

just like my dad, i am an introvert. i tend to keep things to myself. prior to this assignment, i’ve taken a personality test (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) and my results came out as an…

this was really accurate to my personality. i’d say im generally a shy person, sometimes i struggle when expressing my feelings to my close ones because of shyness, hence resulting in being misunderstood.

so in this assignment, i thought it’ll be a good idea to cave out and portray the relationship between my dad and i through the act of giving. (because saying i love you for us is… tough.) this act of giving my dad my food silently is often a routine, knowing he hardly think twice of giving me the best and his all.

–

Silent Love

https://vimeo.com/202785910

4D II – Alter Egos

Fictional Characters

Walter Mitty
Hachiko
Chihiro
Einar Wegener
Dory

Public Figures

Jamie Oliver
Alice Gao
Ed Sheeran
Ellen Degeneres
Martin Luther King

People I Know

Dad
Grandma
Yan Long
Winnie
Carissa

TOP 3 CHARACTERS and TOP 2 CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:

Walter Mitty

Walter Mitty is a guy of excuses, low self-esteem and dreams about things but doesn’t take action. Walter Mitty is often described as “an ordinary often ineffectual person who indulges in fantastic daydreams of personal triumphs”

Walter Mitty is a negative assets manager at Life magazine who daydreams of adventures. His social life isn’t something to talk much about because he’s quite a boring person. He, however zones out and dreams about personal achievements during the moment.

Walter Mitty has a crush on a coworker named Cheryl. He tries to impress her whenever he can.

Need:

Walter Mitty tries to change to become a person without excuses. He tries to say yes to things.

Jamie Oliver

James Trevor “Jamie” Oliver is a British celebrity chef and restauranteur. 41 y/o. Born and raised in a village named Clavering, Essex, England. His first job was at a restaurant as a pastry chef where he gained most experience in Italian cuisine. That got him noticed by BBC and resulted to his first tv show – The Naked Chef and got his book #1.

Jamie’s parents, Trevor and Sally ran a pub/restaurant, The Cricketers, where he practised cooking in the kitchen with his parents. Jamie has 2 siblings. He left school at the age of sixteen with two GCSE qualifications in Art and Geology and went on to attend Westminster Technical College now Westminster Kingsway College. He then earned a City & Guilds National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in home economics.

Jamie Oliver is an activist to have children eat right and healthily. He often initiates campaigns for these purposes.

Jamie Oliver has 5 kids. Jamie also suffers from severe dyslexia. He read his first novel, Catching Fire at the age of 38.

Video on Jamie’s Food Revolution –

Need:

To revolutionize healthy diets to children through changing school meal systems. To challenge the junk food culture by showing that healthy eating is possible. To prove to the world that cooking meals from scratch is healthy, cheap, easy and quick.

Dad

Larry Cheng, 52 y/o. His profession is a business manager. He has 3 siblings – 1 elder brother, 1 elder sister and 1 younger sister. He came to Singapore from Hong Kong for work in 1991. He was 27 years old. He studied at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, obtaining a Professional Diploma in Company Secretaryship and Administration. He regretted not spending an extra year to obtain a degree.

My dad used to work as a banker. He then changed his profession as a business manager in 2004 just so he could spend more time with me. My dad ‘baokaliaos’ in his job. He does most of the work – admin, HR, etc. He is a busy and hardworking person.

My dad and I are quite similar in personalities. He isn’t much of a social butterfly. He has a few groups of close friends and they do catch up once a while over dinner and wine, or tennis sessions. My dad is a reserved person; he keeps his feelings to himself. My dad is an introvert.

My dad loves to cook. He enjoys cooking for the family on weekends. He likes to experiment with new recipes. He is proud with his cooking capabilities. During his free time, he enjoys listening to his Cantonese oldies, or watches astronomy-related videos on youtube. He will get excited when he discovers new sightings of aliens in this world. My dad is a Star Trek fan. My dad plays the piano during his free time as well.

My dad is an all rounder sweet and caring dad. He sacrifices and loves unconditionally.

Need:

To provide the family. Be a happy carefree person. To always be there.

ego – execution

my concept is time based on the 4 seasons. its a series of development of myself through situations in the idea of time passing.

in spring, i start off as a seed. as spring is a season of personal growth, i put myself as a person that grows through making decisions. as im an indecisive person, i require friends to make decisions for me. from that, i can fully breathe and have a clear mind.

spring –

triadic harmony, monochromatic harmony

the colours for spring is quite pastel like, pretty and colourful. because my colour scheme is triadic, i had to keep it low tone so it won’t be too jarring.

i took this opportunity to apply some knowledge on colour emotions, previously studied from my study on colour emotions for my presentation.

this box depict me as a decision maker. the pattern of circles represent my choices; often overwhelming i cant make up my mind. the scribbles in the dream bubble represent me overcomplicating my options although they are as simple as ABC.

the little blue seeds represent my friends. often, i require people to make decisions for me. hence, we see here the little seeds answering my question.

the colour red represents anger. red is also a colour for something to stand out. hence i used red mostly in this situation because it’s a heated situation of debating, thus i feel its a great colour out of the other 2 to represent what im trying to communicate.

i used blue instead of using a darker shade of red as the shadow for the speech bubble in my 2nd box because it gives it a subtle pop of visual interest.

in this box, we see a germinating seed. the background is half applied to represent that i can finally breathe. the flowers represent the beautiful aspect of spring; in this context they symbolize a depiction of a clear mind through the flowers.

in summer, its a season of energy and vitality. i feel energized whenever i have my camera with me. the colour scheme rotates around mainly with yellow because it being the recognized colour for summer. also yellow is a symbol for happiness, which is what summer is about.

summer –

analogous harmony, monochromatic harmony

the symbols of lightning represent the energy whenever i have my camera with me. also, building up with the last box from spring, the germinating seed gives it a pop of emphasis with a yellow background because they’re complementary colours.

this box represent the act of photography-ing. the mountains and trees represent scenic views, which is what i enjoy taking most. the colours used here are kept to their original natural colours.

a flower has bloomed here! it represents me as a person who has grown, full of energy, because of the amount of new photos taken that i can use for my portfolio.

autumn represents middle age, knowledge and wisdom. hence i feel that a good way to represent this is when i travel. i gain knowledge from learning about the city’s culture, talking to people, eating local food, etc.

autumn –

analogous harmony warm, monochromatic harmony

as described, i do love to travel. the stamps at the background represent the collection of stamps. as orange is a colour that symbolizes “energy” and “excitement”, i feel that this colour scheme is appropriate for my context of travelling.

this box represents my setting of travelling. different world icons are illustrated and are set on their appropriate continents.

the darker shade of orange as used for the continents gives it a level of depth to the composition. it brings out the monument icons.

me, the flower, has bloomed even larger! it depicts the amount of knowledge i absorbed, causing it to grow larger as a person.

the foliage represents my amount of knowledge collected. the colour of the leaves harmonizes one another, giving it a pleasant visual interest.

winter represents death; the end of a cycle. in literature, it can also symbolize sadness, which is what i did in this last equation. the colour scheme for winter is the most perfect for my context as well. the colour blue represents sadness, calmness, stillness.

winter –

analogous harmony cool, monochromes harmony

since orange and blue are split complementary colours, my flower definitely stood out.

the red strands represent my emotions (hur hur, project 1); frustrated, emotional; emotional pain. the circles being blue, they complement my emotions too, and also since circles are organic shapes.

i wanted to create a setting of quiet and stillness. from the window at the back, you can see raindrops. this creates a mood to the setting. the lighted ray shines at a corner of nothing-ness, which is what i create to depict a scene of emptiness. i do like how the dark blue is able to create a mood of stillness.

in my final box, i finally caved in to nature’s work. the “depressed me” is withered, and this is shown by petals falling. the blues definitely create a somber aesthetic look to it. also the emphasis is still kept despite the contrast of white (snow) in the background.

aaaand thats it for this project! it started off difficult for me but i enjoyed the execution part. i enjoy illustrating and im glad i managed to do it for this project. i’m looking forward to improving my skills and to create great work just like from my artist research.

time to get a wacom because i cannot tell you how painful and limiting it was to illustrate with a mouse and touchpad.

ego – WIP

so in this project, i started off with deciphering who i am as a person.

NATALIE CHENG –

introvert

enjoys quiet time alone

emotional

bubbly

outgoing

enjoys travelling

amateur photographer

there were lots of pre-planning and research that i had to do before starting on the execution of the project.

from those traits that i discovered about myself, i came out with some rough initial equations during the earlier start of the project –

me + quiet alone time = refreshed

me + photography = a happy me (and because i have new content for my portfolio)

me + travelling = eye-opened, knowledgeable me

me + clouded in emotions = cloudy / blurry / blue me

then the tough part arrives…

i wanted to break away from the normality and direct way of approaching this project. instead of being something that i like, or being “my favourite animal / food”, i wanted to approach “me” in an abstract, conceptualized and have in a deeper meaning to it.

….. but i couldn’t think of any.

this project started to get really difficult and brain sucking. it was tough to think of something that symbolizes me yet tell a story about my personality.

so i thought, i thought, and i thought hard.

i started to list out the things that i like.

NATALIE CHENG ENJOYS –

food

flowers

photography

styling

cooking

travelling

so from these points, the most apt subject that i could work with that also holds a symbolism to things would be flowers!

also, since this is a colour project, i could definitely play on the colours of flowers to tell my story.

hence, i came out with this concept of me being the different type of flowers in different settings that holds a symbol of importance as well.

me = flower.

white chrysanthemum + funeral = me crying, drowning in sadness

sunflower + graduation = me happy, joyous

red rose + date = me feeling infatuated, in love

pale muted colored lilies + wedding = a bloom of new life

i was inspired by one of my reseached artists, Pam (refer to previous post) on her usage of illustrations + photography for her paintings.

i was also inspired by mostly exhibition works like these

since this project is super open to mediums, i thought of using real flower petals to represent “me” as a flower. i also wanted to use photography in my setting, and a mixed of both for my final outcome.

however, shirley said that it is a bad idea because the flower petals will rot and it won’t be a pleasant sight after 🙁 she also mentioned that taking photos of the settings will be a challenge (eg, funeral), how will i able to capture it in the right manner to suit what i want to communicate. she also told me to think about my concept harder and bring it higher because it currently doesn’t represent me.

~~ARGH.~~ i ~~wanted to rip my hair apart for the next few days because IT IS SO TOUGH TO CRACK THE BRIEF IN MY OWN SUBJECTED MANNER.~~

(but never give up)

so, its another round of research and thinking.

i am going to keep my flower concept because it is okay. but how am i going to improve it to keep it relatable to me? okay, i remembered that my original initial equations are good. so i will combine them both together.

the tough thing now is to relate flowers as a symbol and back at me.

there are 4 seasons – spring, summer, autumn and winter. i thought of a really good idea to use this concept of time to represent me as a person whom grows overtime as time passes.

SO. i did a research on what each season symbolizes.

SPRING

The cycle of life is beginning.

Youth & childhood.

New life emerges from plants. Rain nourishes new life.

Buds, flowers, birds, butterflies, sunshine…all good.

Think: A fresh start. A new beginning. Rebirth.

Another transitional season, spring is a time of phenomenal renewal. The earth reawakens from her slumber, and explodes with new life. In our own lives, Spring can be symbolic of starting new projects, sewing new seeds and coming forth with new ideas. This is also a time to contemplate health and physical well-being too. Be refreshed and prepare for your soulful debut!

SUMMER

Life is in full swing.

Young adulthood

Energy & vitality is abundant.

In a word – ‘PARTY!’ And our host is the sun whose presence is fierce and utterly forthright on the scene. Days are longer and the rays of the sun dissolve all shadows in our lives. No hiding, no secrets, no darkness. Summer is a time of light, joviality, expression and wholehearted action. To be sure, this season is symbolic of the vitality inherent within every heart.

AUTUMN

Life is reaped and winding down.

Middle age.

A time to count one’s blessings.

It’s a season of transition, it embodies a culmination – it’s Nature’s ‘last hoorah!’ before retiring into winter’s slumbering mood. This is a hustle-bustle-boogie down month as preparations are made. Autumn is symbolic of the activity inspired by the fire-glo radiance of the changing foliage we see this time of year. This is a time of taking stock of all the bounty and provision we’ve been afforded. A time for itemizing our blessings and recounting our joys.

Autumn in the Pioneer Valley region of Massachusetts

WINTER

Life is dormant or dead.

Old age & death

It’s a season governed by the recluse, the hermit. Activity gives way to dormancy. Life is still, indwelling and silent. This is a time of introversion, contemplation and going within. Symbolic winter invites us to quiet the mind, still the soul, and crystallize our inner workings. This is a time to ice skate through winter whites as a means of gaining purity and clarification.

research info extracted from

http://lzmarieauthor.com/seasons-in-literature/

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/symbolic-meaning-of-seasons.html

then i realize that my original equations are able to tie to the 4 seasons!

spring = a new life

indecisive me + friends making decisions for me = able to think clearer and breathe

this symbolizes me as a person whom make decisions that enable me to grow as a person.

summer = energy and vitality

me who has the passion for photography + photography-ing = a very energetic and happy me.

i get super energized when i take photos because it develops my skills and passions and i enjoy what im doing. also i get new photos for my portfolio!

autumn = middle age, which can represent knowledge, wisdom.

me who loves to travel + traveling = knowledgable, eye-opened me

i definitely learn heaps while traveling. the people, culture, the city. it definitely makes me grow as a peson and widens my horizon of knowledge.

winter = death

emotional me + alone time = depressed me

i realized that i need people when im having one of those days. however if im left alone when im feeling super emotional, i’ll feel really crappy.

AND MY CONCEPT WAS APPROVED.

so i emailed shirley with some quick initial sketches and these were her comments.

i took some time after to work on them.

here are some of my final sketches.

also i took some time to work on the colour palette.

i researched on the colour palette for the different seasons as well.

okay that’s it for my research phase!

the next post will be on my execution process.

forrest gump – movie quotes

this week we had to prepare 4 movie quotes for our upcoming project 2 on compositional visual studies using digital methods. im actually quite enjoying the process so far because

1. we get to do digital work (which i usually prefer because its more liberating)

2. we get to silkscreen our own totebags!

ok so lets started –

quote #1

“to die by your side is such a heavenly way to die.”

this quote is from the movie 500 Days of Summer, but also extracted from the song There Is A Light That Never Goes Out by The Smiths.

apart from picking this quote because i like it (and the movie), i think it is a fun one to play with because of the imagery present. also i think it is interesting because of the oxymoron present that creates a contrast in mood/theme/emotion.

quote #2

“i had a dream my life would be so different from this hell im living”

this quote is extracted from the great Les Misérables. i think it will be create something great out of it although the imagery to this quote aren’t as obvious as the previous one. however i think it will be a fun challenge to look for and create something interesting to suit the adjectives, hence eventually a composition from the quote.

quote #3

“live long and prosper”

star trek! this is definitely one of its classic quotes known to most of us. i would think this will be a more challenging quote to work with because it will be difficult to ruin a visual (spock and his hand in this case) that is familiar to people. but i guess thats the challenge?

quote #4

“if i like a moment, for me, personally, i don’t like to have the distraction of the camera. i just want to stay in it.”

i enjoy this quote because i can relate to it and believe in it. this quote is adapted from the secret life of walter mitty (which was really beautifully shot). the imagery to this quote are quite obvious so i think it’ll be fun to work with especially since i believe in the quote too.