Project Update 1
Initial stage of laying out of the fabric
Sketching and planning out of the draft
Cutting the fabric
Process of the front of the dress sewed
Testing the fit
Sewing the dress
Figuring out the back part of the dress
Dress shape completed (back view)
Dress shape completed (front view)
Dress in progress: Still needs to poof the skirt, make the underlying tulle.
Sound 1 – Thriller
Narrative: Man runs away from a mysterious enemy during a rainy night. He manages to hide in an underground sewers. As things are seemingly calmer, he then removes a wound from his flesh painfully and tries to make contact via his communication device but it fails. Suddenly, something menacing approaches from a distance. He loads his gun and awaits in fear…
Sound 2 – Fantasy
Narrative: Breaking down a cave wall with magic, a group walks inside, treading carefully. The sound of creatures lurking in the dark echoes the area. Soon, they get ambushed and fight the vicious beasts with weapons and magic.
Music used: Jesper Kyd – Approaching Target
Audiomachine – Earthshaker Drums
Acherontic Dawn – Tales of Dust
Breakdown and Process – Technique
Layering: Overlaying of different sounds to created layer effect
Sound 2 working file, focusing on the action sequence
Panning: To suggest positioning of character/object and movement
Music: Cueing sounds with the music was imperative to create the intended feeling, e.g. when the music rises in tension, the scene is expected to take for a more intense turn and thus the sound effects have to suggest that as well
Volume – Background and Foreground: I suggested depth in the sound in terms of softer background noises and louder sounds to show the distance.
Volume – Emphasis: To emphasise certain scenes, I would increase the volume either abruptly (via Touch) or gradually (via Latch) for build up.
Sound mastering: Overall, toggling the volume of the different sounds was important to create a balanced master mix. Even if some sounds were meant to be louder, I made sure that no particular sound was jarringly loud and all sounds would flow for a cinematic and professional feel.
Experimentation of Sound recording
I experimented with various sounds through Audacity. I recorded some of creature sounds and loud thuds. Here’s a video of the process of editing of sounds to get intended effect.
Research – References
Sound 1
I mainly looked like survival horror elements from games and films (e.g. The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner) whereby the character is helpless, fearful for something unknown that is to come. The element of suspense would be stronger through the music and sound effects (e.g. ominous sound from a distance) to imply fear.
Prologue scene of a game, ‘Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain’, where protagonist wakes up in a hospital that soon turns into a bloody massacre. Sound design is done very well to show immense feeling of helplessness and weakness, along with fear for life.
Suspenseful scene in ‘War of the Worlds’, a Steven Spielberg sci-fi movie where the characters are hiding away from a terrific robot in the basement. Sound design like heavy breathing, light steps and doom suspense music are all used to make the viewers fear for the characters.
Sound 2
Fantasy epic films often make use of music to emphasise certain scenes. Lord of the Rings is the example I will highlight.
A scene whereby the characters walk into a cave and discover enemies hiding in the cave (orcs and cave troll), then proceeds to fight them. It can be seen how the music score is timed very nicely with the sound effects for dramatisation.
Another reference I used was fantasy game trailers, in which this is ‘The Elder Scrolls Online’, because of the great sound design and particularly even with the lack of dialogue. With no speech, the emphasis was purely on the sound effects and music to tell a story.
Concept
‘Futuristic Fantasy’ was the underlying idea behind my narrative, thus the aesthetic I was for my look was futuristic, edgy yet at the same time elegant and delicate. This is to convey the fantastical beauty in the technology, the wonderment in the third space. To add on to the fantastical look, I might use embellishments. I designed two different pieces, with some experimental preliminary sketches included. Most of my colors consist of black/grey/white as I was going for the high-tech look(though color palette is not confirmed). Regarding texture, I want the contrast as well – soft chiffon/organza ruffles alongside the smooth and crisp.
References
For inspiration, I looked at futuristic fashion. These were the pieces that striked out to me:
Anouk Wipprecht’s Smoke Dress – I was intrigued by the high-tech yet elegant look.
Chomat’s Boning Dress – The architectural and geometric element in the design inspired me.
Designs
Design 1
The main highlight for this piece would be the boning structure, which I plan to use boning as the material. Its rigidity and geometrical structure purposefully contrasts with the soft and flowy costume underneath.
I plan to use comfortable fabric for the top, preferably cotton or lycra. For the skirt, I plan to use grey, slightly shimmery organza. In terms of wearables, the boning structure has many possibilities. It could expand via sensors, or perhaps LED lights used to light it up.
However, its rigidity might be challenging due to movement from dance. A possible solution would be to make the piece malleable, or structure it in a way that the arms will not be impeded during the performance.
Design 2
Once again the clean structure will be used to contrast with the delicate ruffle skirt. The ruffle skirt can be expand via sensors, and the look can be achieved by the boiling of fabric. The color of the dress could be an ombre from white to grey, and the material more stiff. Once again, boning can be used as the shoulder pads to add the edgy, futuristic look.
Other sketches
Exploration – Thoughts on ‘Touch’
During my exposure to the subject of ‘Touch’, interacting with one another via the third space, I explored my thoughts regarding the topic.
Looking into virtual space made me realised how it was something that we take for granted. It is so integral in our everyday lives, yet we often do not observe how it affects us inside. Only when we started consciously taking note of the third space then we realised how it matters.
My main takeaway from the virtual touch was that it is not real. No matter how close and seemingly intimate, it will never be or replace the real tactile feeling. Something magical is missing in virtual touch compared to physical touch, might in fact leave us a little empty in the communication.
Yet, the feeling of ‘touching’ or even ‘hugging’ someone virtually, while not having physical contact – it very surreal and interesting. It even challenges the boundaries of what is real, the distinction between physical presence and telepresence. These statements were strongly referenced by Paul Sermon’s ‘Telematic Dreaming’.
Paul Sermon’s Telematic Dreaming, first exhibited in 1992.
The installation questioned the physical presence and telepresence. Though they are separated by geographical locations, this piece allowed the users to exist beyond their own time/space and create an alarming sense of touch. Also, the use of speakers allowed intimate conversations to kickstart. A vivid interaction between Paul Sermon and the audience was thus created, giving an out-of-the-world experience to the participants. – Research Critique on Telematic Dreaming
Therefore, this was a thought-provoking piece that tested the boundaries of distance, whether the sense of intimacy can be crossed over to the third space (and even invade on personal space), and the topic on reality versus virtual reality.
At the same time, the third space is very susceptible to imperfection. There will always bound to be glitch in the media, at times when we had virtual classroom we might face connection issues e.g. someone would disconnect, or their screen would freeze/glitch at times even. It would often cause us some annoyance. Yet, sometimes this glitch might be a beautiful thing as it produces nice results aesthetically, like ‘The Glitch of PAL’ by Rosa Menkman.
The Glitch of PAL by Rosa Menkman, example of an aesthetically interesting glitch.
Therefore, these were my thoughts about ‘Touch’ that I am very keen to explore in the performance. Next, I started to conceptualise for it.
Conceptualisation + Narrative Overview
Overall narrative: Transcendence into the Third Space, a fantastical “utopia” > Disillusionment > Possible endings (closure – fading away/open-ended – entrapment)
Telematic presence is a constant theme that needs to be addressed on. Moreover a strong, surprising sense of touch needs to be established whereby the audience should feel that the performers are even transcending their own time and space. This can be achieved using the wearables. During the interaction with Angeline, our actions should transcend our current space and make the audience feel as if we are in the same plane as them. It could be like as simple as making her dress interact when we perform a trigger action. For example, through a hand movement (performing magic gestures/switching on a button etc.) we can ‘trigger’ her dress, which then lights up with LED lights. Thus it might seem that we ‘magically’ lit up her dress through a hand movement, and as if we are in the same room as her physically, though we are not. This would then challenge the physical presence and telepresence, creating a deceiving reality that is more surreal.
Performers can look very intrigued and in wonderment, because the third space is a very interesting concept and transcending across space feels like a fantasy.
In ‘Hakanai’, there’s this sense of fantasy being established with the movement and the dancer’s expression.
Aesthetics wise, I thought of this piece like a ‘futuristic fantasy’. During the interaction between the performers, a surreal feel can be suggested through the fluid moves and aesthetics of the set/costumes.
I thought it might be interesting if halfway in the performance there is a staged glitch, which the performers can act like they are in dismay too. This is to show the reality of how the media is always imperfect and we often face unforeseen circumstances which makes us annoyed. Yet, at the same time the glitch needs to still look aesthetic, to prove that it is spontaneously appealing. Therefore, the concept of an imperfect third space might be a climax.
Moreover, the performers could convey the lack of reality in the third space that leaves one empty, through sad dance movements and music.
The ending of the performance might be a closure or might not be. It could end with a proper conclusion to the narrative, for example fading away in sadness when the connection goes off slowly. Another option would be it going somewhere new with the narrative that leaves the audience to probe further. Maybe it could be as if the performers got so immensed and they went into the virtual reality itself. It could bring out the sense of entrapment. Then the audience would ask, did they get trapped there? What happened to them?
There are many possibilities with what this item can encompass and there options are only some considerations regarding the direction we can go towards.
Task #1:
“Thinking Herself Back” is a personal narrative of Angeline Young, using the body to explore the plight of refugees and their displacement. The piece looks almost like a ritual, it being referenced by Daoist ritual practices. The role of the personal narrative brings out the issue further as it is relatable to the artist and this makes it more convincing to the audience.
The question I have for the artist is: What is the significance of the white powder, what does it symbolise in relation to the narrative?
“Reaching out for my father beyond the bamboo curtain” is regarding the distance that Angeline Young faces with her father, and thus the idea of absence. It contained recorded conversations with her and her father which drew on the idea of absence further. The role of the personal narrative brings an intimate quality to the piece, makes it very heartfelt and relatable to audience
The question I have for the artist is: How did you come up with the motifs for the piece?
Task #2:
Dream recording
Task #3: Translating journal entries into video
Password: glad0009
Dream Sequence: I was in a beautiful, divine sanctuary. It was a magnificent glasshouse that had influences from the Greek architectural style. In this fantasy, I was awestruck and left wandering in amazement. Outside the glasshouse was a garden that looked very grand. I was simply socialising with my friends inside this glasshouse, and decided to take a stroll on the gardens outside with a friend. We walked down the main stairs to go towards the garden.
However, something was strange.
Suddenly, it was extremely dark almost as if we were in a basement. The plants were dried, the vibrant colours of the flowers were no longer present. The air was stale and dreary. Then, we heard a shrill. A hoard of creatures started charging towards us, they looked like ghouls. My friend yelled in shock but promptly took out his weapon, “Quickly! We need to eliminate them as demon hunters!” Then we just started killing the ghouls. It was an intense experience.
Thought process:
Password: glad0009
Dream Sequence: Earth was slowly falling apart, grounds were collapsing. The sky cracked wide open to reveal a glimpse of the solar sky. Gravity was no longer holding Earth in place and I saw a school bus lit on fire, as it got dragged slowly into the solar sky. I was terrified, I could not do anything to help and could only stand there. I ran down to the subway station and strangely, I saw Japanese restaurants still present with staff inside. They calmly did their jobs. I was bewildered and continued to run on, to nowhere. Then, something enlightened me saying that there would be a safe haven and I need not worry. I simply followed where my heart and that enlightenment led me.
Thought process:
Eiko and Koma, My Parents
Eiko (left) and Koma (right), as featured in “My Parents”
This piece was created by their son, Shin Otake, serving as a documentary about his parents’ upbringing and forming of relationship in post-war Japan. That period was a time of political strife and disorder. A prime featured piece in the film was “Land”.
“Land” explored the interaction between the human body and nature by merging themselves into the environment through their washed and faded costume that mimicked sand. They depicted themselves as mountains in a desert.
Eiko and Koma performing “Land”
Movement was very slow and careful, to create the illusion of stillness. They spread across the floor and slithered, all with gradual movements. In relation to the box, they were moving freely but at the same time it was very controlled in the space and slow, which shows the rootedness of a mountain.The “box” is very spacious and the lighting, this gives a sense of depth like the vast sky.
They even used sound to emphasise the piece. The sound of a drum was used to highlight some points, for example heartbeat of the mountain and the birth of a new mountain.
Motion Control
Liz Aggiss, the performer in Motion Control
This piece explored the synergy between the camera and performer. It challenged how the relationship between the Motion Control camera and the dancer, camera and sound, camera and space can be pushed further.
The movement of dancer was very emotional and expressive. In the small “box”, a sense of entrapment seemed to be created with her movements that “filled” the box entirely. In the spacious white box, her movements from her upper body were big. Her big movements made the box seem smaller than it is, with her energy being projected widely. This contrasted with lower body, seemingly showing constrained movement due to the dress rooted to the ground.
Behind the scenes of “Motion Control”
Sound was very significant in this piece as well, the usage of foley was apparent. Electro-opera was used for dramatising the dance piece. Sound effects were linked very well with the movements to emphasise them, for example the sound of a CD scratch when the dancer moves her leg. Another example would be the sound of the red dress squeaking as she dances.
Riot is an alternative web browser created by Mark Napier during 1997, inspired by the cosmopolitan nature and melting pot of cultures in New York. It broke the rules of Internet software and deconstructed the websites, blending vastly different websites with each other, e.g. Playboy with whitehouse.gov, CNN.com with NPR.org. This opened up to new interesting interpretations and outcomes, due to the most unimagined combination of the vastly different websites together.
“When the mixtures of banner ads, government reports and personal declarations are taken as a jumbled whole, meaning falls apart. More becomes less.”,
– The San Francisco Gate, Glen Helfand, July 22, 1999
It was also a multi-user browser whereby people would see the websites they were surfing, being merged with others. Riot was exploring the fragility of personal boundaries. It also showed how information can be distributed in many possible situations.
Visually, Riot browser produced highly random yet stimulating aesthetic results due to the amalgamation of various websites. It captured the essence of glitch art very well, showing the element of controlled chance in the artwork via parameters set by the artist. It broke the conventions of Internet browsing as well, as explained above.
I describe the ‘glitch’ as (actual and/or simulated) break from an expected or conventional flow of information or meaning within (digital) communication systems that results in a perceived accident or error. – pg 9, Menkman, R. (2011) “Glitch Moment(um)”
Glitch using TextEdit
Original Image
Business buildings
Experimenting with different combinations of colors
More abstraction (more tiny glitches)
Complete Abstraction
Glitch using Photoshop
Original images
While compiling a series of photos on Photoshop, it glitched and produced this set of interesting images by chance. I thought it was interesting as it successfully amalgamated three different portraits of myself, thus conveying the sense of hyperactivity. It also had a cubist touch to it, which I thought was intriguing.
Glitched by photoshop
The glitch exercise showed new perspectives to a certain picture, opened up different viewpoints which I would not imagined the picture in, especially the accidental distortions. It might be sometimes too random which makes it difficult to control. At the same time, it also showed that accidents and unintended effects in art can sometimes be even more exciting due to its spontaneity.
Telematic Dreaming was a telecommunication project, originally commissioned for summer exhibition by Finnish Ministry of Culture in Kajaani, and supported by Telecom Finland. This piece was first exhibited in 1992.
Telematic Dreaming is an ISDN installation. Two participants would share the same virtual bed via ISDN video conference technology, one being projected to the other’s bed through a live video. The two participants hence perform and interact with each other’s virtual bodies. An example of an interaction would be that, in a room, there would be a projection of Paul Sermon lying on the bed in the center of a dark space. The audience would naturally go closer to the bed, to get a clearer view. Paul Sermon, situated in another room, would be aware of their presence due to the conference system. He would gesture to them assuringly to come closer to the bed. There are also speakers underneath the pillows, enabling a live voice connection between the audience and Paul Sermon. An conversation between Paul Sermon and the audience can thus begin.
The installation questioned the physical presence and telepresence. Though they are separated by geographical locations, this piece allowed the users to exist beyond their own time/space and create an alarming sense of touch. Also, the use of speakers allowed intimate conversations to kickstart. A vivid interaction between Paul Sermon and the audience was thus created, giving an out-of-the-world experience to the participants.
When the movement moved through us in this way, based on openness and trust, the distinction between which bodies were real and which were virtual became irrelevant – pg 217, Virtual Bodies
Hence, Teelmatic Dreaming was an interesting piece that drew parallels between physical and virtual reality.
‘Intimacy White’ (2009) by Daan Roosegaarde, V2_Lab and Maartje Dijkstra. An example of smart textile
Wearable Kinesthetic Systems, Alessandro Tognetti, Federico Lorussi, Mario Tesconi, Raphael Bartalesi, Giuseppe Zupone, Danilo De Rossi (2005)
Example of a health sensing garment developed by Athos
Sensing garments monitor the movement of the muscles and posture of the body. Human movement is analysed with anatomic segments like electromagnetic sensors. However, conventional sensors in wearable sensing systems are often rigid and uncomfortable, obstructive due to the requirement of mechanical plug. Thus, newer systems like Upper Limb Kinesthetic Garment (ULKG) and the Sensing Glove are developed to improve these drawbacks.
Both utilise Conductive Elastomer (CE) sensors which is made by combining silicon rubber and graphite, then spread across an elastic fabric substrate (Lycra) that is capable of customising shape and dimension for sensors. Metallic wires can be avoided in which are uncomfortable and inconvenient.
For example, ULKG detects posture of the various components of the arm. With around 20 sensors spread across the shirt, information is obtained regarding the joints of the arm. This is beneficial for patients to perform rehabilitation in unmonitored environments, where the physician is not present. Error by the sensors are often almost negligible.
The main advantage gained with this new technology is enabling people to wear for longer periods without discomfort, less obtrusive devices in the garments and accurate performance via the trial tests.
Wearable Electronics and Smart Textiles: A Critical Review, Matteo Stoppa and Alessandro Chiolerio (2014)
Smart Textiles are created with the integration of textiles and electronics, with the electronics being interwoven with the fabric.
There are 3 different types of smart textiles and the materials used also differ between each group of smart textiles.
1. Passive smart textiles: purely sensory, only able to sense environment and the user
Makes use of fabric sensors, e.g. thermocouples for temperature sensing and electromyography (EMG) sensors for tracking muscle activity. Also makes use of actuators which reacts to a signal given by a central control unit. Both are crucial to development of passive smart textiles.
Example of Electromyography (EMG) sensor used to track muscle activity.
2. Active smart textiles: sense and react to environment
Combines both an actuator and sensing device. Requires power to function, in which could be generated through piezoelectric systems. Categorised into 2 active systems: input devices and display devices. Input devices might include shape-sensitive fabrics that is able to track manipulation to fabric like stretching, flexing. Display devices might include electroluminescent yarns that emit light for aesthetic visuals.
Electroluminescent yarn used in Algae Lyrae collection (2008) by Vega Zaishi Wan
3. Very smart textiles: sense, react and adapt behaviour according to differing situations
Smart materials are being integrated into fabric via varying technologies. Examples of technology include embroidery or knitting. Combination of various source materials results in wide array of possible textiles. Early attempts are made for the textile itself to be used for electronic function for higher comfort.
Smart Textiles are being further developed for various fields like medical and sport. Research is being done for sensors and interactive elements to be incorporated into the clothing.
