Category: Pattern, Art, Design & Arch. 2017/18 Sem 1

improved banner + soul-sucking

Went ahead to add details to portray the soul-sucking theme. I also resized the motifs slightly (as per Ina’s advice) so they wouldn’t be overlapping each other too much. There are a few minor changes I intend to make to the individual motifs but this is what I have to test print today.

 


 

(as the semester drags on, i feel like my soul’s being sucked too… home stretch!)

Pattern: update on motifs and banner

Been a hot minute since I updated this space. Here’s a rundown of what’s changed.

Refined concept

Initially, my concept for the banner was to portray ghosts in a more human light, by incorporating human traits into ghosts from Asian mythology and folklore. But after working on it for a few weeks, I felt that the concept lacked depth. I decided to tweak the idea a little — to portray us humans as ghost-like, like our souls have been sucked out of us because of the destructive rat race mentality in modern life. (essentially it’s not a huge concept change, but I feel better about the idea now)

As for the style of the motifs, Ina and I agreed that the illustrations looked better without a black comic-like outline, so that’s what I went ahead with.

Motifs

T O Y O L

Originating from Malay and Indonesian folklore, a toyol is a mischevious child spirit invoked by a witch doctor from a dead human fetus. The toyol is often described to have green/gray skin, big red (alien-like) eyes, pointy ears and rows of sharp teeth.

O I W A

The story of Oiwa originates from Japan. Oiwa was a young, beautiful woman whose husband had an affair with another woman. He poisoned his wife to get rid of her, resulting in her disfigured face. I drew Oiwa as a teenage school girl, impressionable and easily heartbroken.

P O N T I A N A K

Another ghost that is popular in Malay and Indonesian folklore is the pontianak. It is a female vampiric ghost who died due to childbirth. She is often depicted to have long black hair and pale skin. She is also associated with banana trees, where she resides in them during the day.

D I A O  S I  G U I

The Diao Si Gui comes from Chinese folklore, and is also known as the “hanged ghost”. He represents spirits of people who have committed suicide, hence the name. The Diao Si Gui has a long red tongue that hangs out of its mouth.

J I A N G  S H I

A Jiangshi is a reanimated corpse in Chinese mythology. He is often dressed in official garments from the Qing Dynasty, and in popular culture, depicted to have a paper talisman stuck to his forehead.

 

Layout

I have a few ideas on how to portray the idea of soul-sucking, but I’m still working on them. Here are some preliminary layouts for visualisation purposes.

  1.  Repetition: to show the idea of a factory line, pumping out soulless humans to keep society going.
  2. Soul sucker: showing how humans’ souls are being sucked away, leaving ghostly, empty bodies.
  3. Just experimenting with the motifs flowing in an upwards direction.

 

Will keep working on the layout for test print next week 🙂

Pattern: sketching motifs

After last week’s presentation, I decided to go with my second idea — a city of modern ghosts, combining aspects of our contemporary lives with characteristics of ghosts and spirits from South East Asian myths. I’m aiming for the final banner to feature ghosts of various ages, from office workers to school children. Here’s what I have so far.

PONTIANAK OFFICE LADY

I wanted to bring out specific common characteristics of the pontianak, like her long black hair and white dress. After drawing this old-fashioned, frilly dress, I felt that it didn’t go with the office lady archetype that I wanted. So I redrew the outfit.

This look fits the office lady stereotype better, complete with an office pass lanyard. Along with the long black hair and white top, I also added a banana because pontianaks are often associated with banana trees.

DIAO SI GUI BUSINESS MAN

The Diao Si Gui’s distinctive feature is its long red tongue (I think I should have exaggerated the length). This iteration is a stumpy, dull-looking version of the hanged ghost. I tried a slight variation of styles for this sketch, one with a black outline, and the other with less harsh outlines and a stippling brush for shadows. I’m still experimenting with different styles, and I might try one variation without outlines next.

 

I have a lot more drawing and sketching to get to!

Pattern: reimagining the supernatural

Cover photo artwork by Gillian Wilson

Growing up, my parents didn’t emphasise heavily on the practices of the 7th month and the superstitions involved, so my interactions with the Hungry Ghost Festival have been minimal. I’m also not naturally drawn to stories and myths surrounding the supernatural (perhaps I’m sub-consciously afraid of ghosts and spirits). Despite that, I’m intrigued by society’s fascination with the paranormal.

Because of my disassociation with the supernatural, I’ve decided to reimagine the world of ghosts and spirits to help my brain join the dots. We know the supernatural world for its horror, terror, gore and fright. What if these spirits were portrayed like fun, strange and totally non-creepy beings? What if they felt things the way we do? The idea of imagining an offbeat realm where the non-living displays traits of the living really appeals to me.

IDEA #1: FRIENDLY GHOST

The idea involves illustrating a curious ghost character who is eager to interact with humans (friendly and excitable ghost, contrast from the usually depicted scary and horrifying ghosts). He lingers around when humans carry out traditions like burning paper money, offering food, and organising getai events, but they can’t see him, and it makes him sad.

The banner would be designed to convey a narrative/sequence of events, featuring a series of different repeating patterns.

IDEA #2: IMAGINING A CITY OF GHOSTS

What if ghosts led similar modern-day lives like us? This idea would involve illustrating common South-east Asian ghosts in a typical city scene like the CBD. I’m interested in exploring how they would carry out human tasks like using a smartphone, smoking, or walking about town, coupled by recognisable traits that still make them ghostly. Some interesting ghost characteristics I’ve gathered after researching are:

  • Pontianak: pale skin, long hair, clothed in white
  • Ap (Cambodia) or Krasue (Thailand): floating head with innards attached
  • Diao Si Gui: Meaning hanged ghost. Long red tongue sticking out of their mouths
  • Jiang Shi: Zombie

ARTIST REFERENCES

I really love Andy J Miller‘s work for its quirky charm. There’s so much to see in one artwork, and each creature is different from the next. I’m inspired by his imagination, and his ability to use a myriad of colours in a tasteful way. His illustrations portray a sense of wonder and goof, while maintaining a somewhat mystical quality. I also like the wavy and fluid style he went for in one of his works (pictured above this para).

I love how Geraldine Sy illustrates human figures, with intentional disproportion. It might be a style worth trying when creating weird supernatural beings for my pattern banner. The mixing of patterns and textures is really interesting to look at, and will help to add interest especially when our banner will be pretty huge. Her landscape illustrations have that surreal, mystical quality that I appreciate, and might help me when creating a background for my pattern to exist on.

Andrew Rae illustrates creatures in a comic style, often with thin black outlines. They are less cute and cuddly than my first two artist references, but it could be helpful to look into a more realistic style. His works have a vintage quality to them, whether it is the way he chooses colours, or the attention to detail.