Research

Haunting recurrences

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A mishmash of experiences, faces we’ve seen and fears that we all encounter, replayed in our dreams. Dreams are sourced from the deepest depth of our memories, sometimes random and sometimes intentional. And yet , certain dreams tend to always recur, haunting us especially when we are at our lowest.

 

This project is inspired and based upon recurring haunting dreams , dreams that wake us up in fear and recollection of the dreams and specific past experiences themselves.

Centred around a few themes and shot in first person perspective, i had hoped to recreate the emotions and feelings these dreams of mine have brought to me through these 90 images and transformations.

Black and white, colour. What do we truly dream in? The first theme of transformation plays with how colour fades in our dreams. How the world seems to be in black and white, and that colours only appear to be prominent only when you focus into details.

The ideas of cycles that occurs during our dreams. Sleep and dreams follow the REM( Rapid Eye Movement) sleep cycle. A cycle which alternates between deep sleep and periods of REM between, throughout the whole night of rest. Reflected by the awkward change of darker and lighter overall lighting and tones throughout all the 90 images, I recreated how it would seem throughout the whole journey i have taken while dreaming.

The last element I’ve presented is fear. Fear guides us. And fear is ever present in our lives , with it being more prominent and exaggerated in our dreams. Represented through a mirrored image of myself seen and imposed each and every frame, sometimes blended into background and even shrunk down. It represents how fear guides me through my dreams and eventually facing it .

This project certainly opened my eyes to the boundaries of interpretation by my peers and certainly the scope and the diversity of mix-media styles I could have employed in the frames. Although enjoyable, I have my regrets about pushing my creative boundaries as I played with a safer method.

4D Project 1A

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The series of images were curated to introduce myself and the sense of time , something I hold dear, and yet it is understood that with time , we have to accept the changes that come together with it.

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The first three images was used to introduce myself , it symbolizes different phases of my life as well as my ultimate desire.

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Introduced and placed in the shape of the clock face, it is a signifier to explain the periods of time in my life.

1a6“5pm” this picture is the first of the series. It plays with the concept of time with the close up framing and angle of an iconic clock face to show 2.55pm while in fact the photo was taken at 5pm. Its a symbolism of my desire to always live in the past, and turn back time.

This is then sets the tone for the following two photos in which are reflections of my past. 1a5

 

“9am” signifies my childhood , identifying myself with the boys that are playing a popular game called ” Pepsi-cola”. With the use of the pillars to block out the faces of most of the players, it signifies moving on from friends as well, people in your life you have touched and yet forgotten. It symbolizes youth, and that you are the product of the influence of all the people and environment from your past.

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“12pm” signifies growing up and accepting change. It largely reflects my teenage years, the need to accept that the world you come to love will always eventually change. This is shown from the contrast of the modern blocks behind the old Chinese shelter.  The photos also shows a period of time in which I was xenophobic, and yet it shows acceptance of change.

To sum the series up, I feel it has a dark overtone about the past and loss, but its these things that make us who we are.

 

The second series features an item that I hold importance to, which are a pair of shoes that I am unable to part with although I do not wear them anymore.

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Viewed in an order from left to right in which it shows the literal feelings of attachment I have the shoes. A dropping motion and close of up the shoes and the inevitable end to the shoes.

I chose this item due to its significance to me, because of the precious memories it holds and all the events that I’ve been to.

 

The place I featured as the third and final part of the series is the place I’ve spent most of time for the past half a year. It shows the different perspective from the back of house as well as the viewpoints of the bartenders.IMG_0717

The series of photo are blurred, darkened as well as edited to show higher contrast to bring out the colors, to play of the perspective of people under the influence of alcohol.

Different techniques are used in the photos in which the top left , lines from the laptop and booth are used to frame a certain angle of the lounge. While on the bottom left , the faces of the crew are intentionally darkened and taken from a lower angle. The bottom right uses the reflections on the windows of the bar to transpose the location of the place on the view.

The intention of using and placements of the photos as shown is the signify that the essence of the place is ultimately the people that is accompanied by the memories you share with the place and that it is what anchors you to a place.