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.