Category Archives: Project 2 – Final Outcome

終 。 始 – Zine Final

This is my final design for my Zine.

Page 1 & 8

I decided to design the cover page with reference to the traditional Chinese calendar, as it was a subtle message to indicate that it is related to the overarching theme of time. Since it was a 2 way zine, it does not matter which way the reader starts off from. 

終, zhong – end

始, shi – start

The usage of using Chinese words is to represent the saying of the end is the start of something new. In the box, I drew out the map of Telok Ayer. I decided not to include the location in because it would be a little tacky, hence I included the map.

Page 2 & 3 (1920s – 1940s)

Thian Hock Keng Temple:
One of Singapore’s oldest temple. Though it was not built during the 1920s (but earlier), the idea of new immigrants coming in to Singapore, and using the temple as a place of worship, gave it life, creating its mark during the era.

Bull cart:
Chinatown is known as “gu chia zui“, in hokkien. “gu” – bull, “chia” – car/cart, “zui” – water. Hence, I felt that it was significant to draw the bull cart, to show how Chinatown got its name.

Immigrants:
I wanted to show the jobs that the immigrants were doing, hence the variation of jobs, from carrying the lantern, to selling food by the road side (man sitting down).

Red:
The usage of red connotes the meaning of blood, and blood represents life. Hence, the red patches represents the new life that settled in Singapore. In addition, I made it a point to highlight the time stamp in red, to represent how the time and era is significant.

page 4 & 5 (1950s -1970s)

Chung Hwa Free Clinic:
It started in 1956, after WW2 ended. It was a significant building as it was the headquarters and main clinic of SCPA. The clinic provided TCM to the citizens, and helped the needy and poor, serving the community, making it a better place.

People’s Park Complex:
It was the first of such shopping complex in the whole of Southeast Asia during the 1970s, and hence making it significant in the history of Singapore. Furthermore, its iconic building and colour makes it difficult for people to forget.

People:
There are 3 distinct group of people in the drawing itself.
Man holding buckets(right): Indicates the mode of transport back then, and how it is common to be walking around barefooted.
A group of men talkings (centre): The idea of interracial forming, which makes up Singapore’s today multi-racial culture
Man on trishaw (left): This shows the evolution of transport, from foot to trishaw.

Red:
The red patches in this case represents the life loss during WW2, and the start of a new country where Japanese have withdrawn from Singapore. The placement of the red patch in the centre, mimics the Japanese flag, indicated the previous invasion by the Japanese.

Page 6 & 7 (1980s – today)

Background:
I fused both old and new together, as Chinatown is a representation of co-existence of old and new. I combined the Thian Hock Keng Temple, with the new Buddha Tooth Relic Temple as one. In addition, I included Chung Hwa Free Clinic and People’s Park Complex, as they are still buildings that exist today. However, the usage of it did change. Chung Hwa Free Clinic is now a hipster cafe, whereas People’s Park Complex is a place that consist of many travel agency, with a cool carpark where youth goes to take pictures.

People:
It consist of 3 different generation, starting from the left.
Left: The New Moon Umbrella reminds me of the uncles that sit under it, hence it represents the oldest generation.
Centre: Middle age man that is glued to his device, showing the transition from nothing to electronic device.
Right: A father with a child. The idea of it is to show the passing of generation, and how people from our grandparents generation have since passed on Chinatown to us, for us to preserve it.

Red:
This time round, the red represents the new life, which is us, the new generation.

Reflection:

The process of developing this zine was not easy, and I encountered many problems along the way before churning out this final product. However, despite the errors along the way, it was a fun journey, and also an assignment that forces me to get out of my comfort zone. I explored into this whole new drawing style that I never thought would work out for me. The challenge of exploring a new place, to be away from where I was comfortable in was indeed tough but also a fruitful one.

Hence, this concludes my zine, and also my final submission for Year 1.

Signing out!

xx

Thanks Mimi for your guidance this whole academic year!