Month: April 2018

” SMELL. “

by

Heng Tong  x  Hong Sheng

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Abstract

The theme for a permanent installation within NTU takes us to explore the sense of smell. The sense of smell is an interesting notion that is discovered, though perhaps underdeveloped. It is primitive – for, in the presence of smell, smell molecules will always trigger. Yet it is subsidiary – due to nature of the other more overpowering senses. The sense of smell is important to dictate the experience of an individual. Such is also a subjective concept that is able to drive an individual a point for reminiscing but only depending on the very individual- alone. All these interesting pointers lead us to ask ourselves, “What if a scent can be amplified to be the defining element of a given space?”

Take a deep breath, and dive into [smell] as an exploration of a permanent installation.

[Click here]

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Reminiscent the scent sculpture

Reminiscent is a wooden installation that emits smell through its natural scent. It explores the notion of smell being a primitive, yet subjective sense to a human being. By amplifying smell as the defining element in our installation, we aim to allow the NTU students a point for reminiscing about their journey in NTU through the sense of smell, an experience that is unique to each individual. Reminiscent is constructed through the use of untreated natural cypress wood. Inspired by the Japanese folding screen, Byōbu, Reminiscent exist in the form of six panels. The undulating form is inspired by the elegance of a drifting cloth, visualised through the extrapolation from the 3 keywords of ‘Smell’ – Dispersal, Dissipation and Porosity.

Mock-up Construction

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Presentation Poster

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End.

” SMELL. “

by

Heng Tong  x  Hong Sheng

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Feedbacks from the previous session

The envisioned hanging structure having the quality that drifts with the breeze of wind is not feasible due to safety regulations and naturally heavy weight of wood | Structure needs at least 3 contact points | Chosen location for structure needs to correspond to theme | Relocated structure to be placed beside Tan Chin Tuan Lecture Theatre due to the high ceiling and wide open space | Chosen sculpture to act as a divider while possessing the quality of scent-diffusing | Chosen material locked in at Cypress Wood | 

 

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WIP

Chosen Location:

Tan Chin Tuan Lecture Theatre

Prototype WIP:

Proposal:

 

Installation to be hung using ceiling to floor wire kit

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Action Plan

Prototype Construction:

CNC Prototype, scale 1:15 (in progress of contacting supplier) | Buying of materials (Wire, Casing, Wood, Acrylic Sheet, foam boards)

Presentation Board:

In progress

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be continued.  

” SMELL. “

by

Heng Tong  x  Hong Sheng

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From the consultation in the previous week, we had really constructive comments from our Professors. This is what we have developed.

Membrane

The concept of the membrane is our chosen concept, and also one which have been resonating within both Hong Sheng and myself. In conceptualizing, we initially decided on smellscaping a walkway through the walls. 

In it comes multiple issues due to our lack of knowledge and expertise regarding the technicalities of preserving and flowing a base scent.

 After our consultation, our idea of incorporating our installation to a wall is shifted to an independent hanging installation.  

Below lies our visualisation.

Through the reference of dividers and Japanese Byoubu, our installation lies in the notion of a paper drifting in the wind. We made use of our keywords extrapolated from the words used to describe smell – dispersion, porosity and flow – into a form of smell.

We intend to make use of untreated natural smelling wood as our material, placed within an open air space. By having the wood structure left untreated, the natural scent of the wood can be maximized in diffusing into the surrounding space. We intentionally allow the wood to be situated in an open space for it to be open to weather conditions such as wind and rain. 

The exposure of wind will allow the installation to drift, showing a contrast with the natural sturdiness of the wood material. 

The natural scent of the wood will diffuse to the surrounding. Yet the smell will change with time, through exposure with the surrounding, moisture in the air and the variable students that walk through the space. 

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Considerations

MATERIAL – As the notion of smell is the catalyst of our project, we need to source for a natural wood that has scent. Through our research, we look to the use of the Yellow Cypress Wood for the chosen material. Yellow cypress wood has a distinctive scent that is strong 

 

yet inviting. We chanced upon the material in the form of a bottle and upon further research, we find out that Yellow cypress wood is a durable softwood that is also suitable for outdoor furniture and we feel that the wood is a suitable material for our installation.

CHOSEN LOCATION – We have chosen the walkway in between the lecture halls at North-spine for our installation.

SCALE – The scale will be determined by the location, and the installation will hang about the body length of a person.

ATTACHMENT – The attachment of our installation will need to be determined by the material, and also the number of attachments for each of our 4 panels. TBC

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Mock-up Construction

We look to constructing our mock-up for a better visualisation of our concept. TBC

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To be continued.