The Experience
Media
Video Recordings
Audio Recordings
Music in MP3 Player
Process
Audio Editing
Behind the Scenes
Installation by: Jun Ming, Jia Jun, Nok Wan
Category: My Work
Project 3: Ego (Research)
Episode 1
For this last assignment for 2D, we were required to come up with 4 x 3 panels to describe ourselves. This is similar to the previous assignment, except this time we need to come up with 12 instead of 4 compositions. Besides that, this time round we will have to play with elements of colours and its different combinations.
ME, MYSELF & I
Before starting, I need to think of the various personalities, characteristics or things that describes me.
ARTIST REFERENCES
Because I am not really confident with doing illustration or using traditional methods I decided to approach collage style for this assignment. One style i really like is the vintage surreal collage style.
- Karen Lynch
Karen lynch uses vintage pictures and piece them up together creating a vibrant surrealist collage which I really like. Her collages style mainly focuses on creating imaginative settings by layering different images together.
- Eugenia Loli
Similar to Karen Lynch, Eugenia Loli also does Surreal Collages. Her collages really wows me because they are so creative. She is able to find the correct moments to piece with the correct settings creating a really fun and amazing compositions.
- Julia Geiser
Another surreal collage artist is Julia Geiser where most of her collage involves a person. She creates a surrealist composition by slicing and dividing the body parts and adding different images to it. Although it looks creepy, but I think this is an interesting style to show the me portion.
COLOURS
Playing with different colour combinations can help to make your composition stand out and make them pleasing to look at. Below are some examples on the different ways we can play with the colours.
Monochromatic color schemes are derived from a single base hue and extended using its shades, tones and tints.
Colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel are considered complementary.
Analogous color schemes use colors that are next to each other on the color wheel.
The split-complementary color scheme is a variation of the complementary color scheme. In addition to the base color, it uses the two colors adjacent to its complement.
A triadic color scheme uses colors that are evenly spaced around the color wheel.
Reference from: http://www.tigercolor.com/color-lab/color-theory/color-theory-intro.htm
MA’s CiTY of VOiDS (Individual Moodbox)
Sketch Model
Research on Modular Structure
Mnemosyne’s Scent: Planes and Plastic Model
PLANES
A plane is an element that has surface direction and slant unaccompanied by mass. And there are two- and three-dimensional planes.
2D planes:
- Straight axis plane
- Bent axis plane
- Curved axis plane
- Complex axis planes
3D planes:
- Curved plane
- Broken plane
- Twisted plane
- Grouped planes
The first part of this assignment requires us to make us of 3D and 2D planes to create an interesting visual composition. The planes are cut from art-board and each strips measure from 8 cm to 0.5 cm in width.
Things to note when doing the models:
- DOMINANT, SUB-DOMINANT, SUBORDINATE relationships
- PROPORTION & RHYTHM : Inherent, Comparative, Overall
- VISUAL STRUCTURE: Tensional design of axes of surfaces
- GROUP MOVEMENTS: Dependent, Independent, Precarious balance
Sketch Models
Sketch Model 1:
Sketch Model 2:
2D Sketch Analysis
Model 1
Improvements:
- Conflicting SD and SO (Introduce another element: 1 D, 2 SD, 1 SO)
- Apply tapering on strips
- Reduce Size of SD via Tapering
Model 2
Improvements:
- Extend the length of D (Make it obvious that it is the dominant)
- Add in elements of 2D planes on both ends of D
- Trim 1/3 width of SD
- Taper ends of SD
- Make SO thinner (Make it obvious that it is the Sub Ordinate)
- Leave one end of SO dangling to create a sense of levitation
Revised Final Models
Model 1
Model 1 has 4 different elements – 1 Dominant, 2 Sub-dominant and 1 Sub-ordinate. Each planes have contrasting proportions and extends in different directions. When viewed, the dominant plane acts as a stationary while the 2 sub-dominant planes curl and warp around it creating voids between the 2 elements. The sub-ordinate is added to fill up the emptiness at the front making it look more visually interesting.
Model 2
Model 2 has 3 different elements – 1 Dominant, 1 Sub-dominant and 1 Sub-ordinate. Compared to model 1, the dominant plane in model 2 extends horizontally with both its ends touching the base. The ends of the dominant plane is folded to bent axis planes and broken planes. The sub-dominant extends vertically and creates a void between it and the dominant plane. The sub-ordinate wraps itself around the sub-dominant, like a free flowing form making the model look more interesting.
SCENT
Smell and memories
Smell belongs to one of the five senses that we humans have. We use our nose to smell and by definition it means the power to perceive odors or scents by using our nose. According to science, smell is relatively more capable of triggering certain emotions and memories than our other senses.
Incoming smells are first processed by the olfactory bulb, which starts inside the nose and runs along the bottom of the brain. The olfactory bulb has direct connections to two brain areas that are strongly implicated in emotion and memory: the amygdala and hippo-campus. And our visual, auditory and tactile information does not pass through these 2 brain areas hence explaining why smell is so capable of triggering certain emotions and memories.
Mnemonic devices
According to https://psychcentral.com/lib/memory-and-mnemonic-devices/ , Mnemonic devices are techniques a person can use to help them improve their ability to remember something. In other words, it’s a memory technique to help your brain better encode and recall important information.
Some of the Mnemonic techniques include:
ACRONYMS
VISUAL
CHUNKING
Chunking is simply a way of breaking down larger pieces of information into smaller, organized “chunks” of more easily-managed information. 10 digits broken into 3 chunks, allowing almost everyone to remember an entire phone number with ease.
ORGANISATION
Organizing information into either objective or subjective categories also helps. If you can divide a list of items into a fewer number of categories, then all you have to remember is the categories (fewer items), which will serve as memory cues in the future.
THE METHOD OF LOCI
It’s based on the assumption that you can best remember places that you are familiar with, so if you can link something you need to remember with a place that you know very well, the location will serve as a clue that will help you to remember. You go through a list of words or concepts needing memorization, and associate each word with one of your locations.
From: http://health.howstuffworks.com/human-body/systems/nervous-system/how-to-improve-your-memory7.htm
Plastic bottle models (Reference)
SMELL
For this assignment, we were required to bring 2 smells that bring back both pleasant and unpleasant memories.
PLEASANT MEMORIES
To me smell of trading cards brings back pleasant memories as it reminds me of the excitement of opening up new booster packs when I was young. Buying cards and collecting them were my childhood hobbies and hence the smell of these cards bring me back in time to the excitement I had when I was young.
UNPLEASANT MEMORIES
The smell of the groundsheet brings me back unpleasant memories. It has a very distinct “Plasticky” smell and the smell reminds me of my time back in the National Service. The smell of the groundsheet becomes a reminder for me to move out field and to sleep in the forest. It also reminds me of a time when I had to build a shelter with my team mate but we were unable to get it set up properly hence when it rained in the middle of the night, we were drenched and cold and were unable to sleep.
WORDS ASSOCIATION
Final Model
The model is first viewed from the bottom portion of the model. As the saying goes, “bad memories are easier to remember”, therefore I wanted to create something that is striking compared to the other parts of the model. The main idea that I was trying to bring out was the idea of irritation which was the unpleasant memory I had when I smell my groundsheet. To create this, I cut out sharp edges and poked many holes and used the heat gun to make it curl to an organic shape. Hence when viewed, the Aichmophobic edges and Trypophobic holes gives out a sense of irritation, the idea that you do not even want to touch or see it.
The “unpleasant memory” is then connected to a twisted form which was created by twisting and melting 2 different plastic parts together. It acts as a bridge fusing 2 of my smells and memories together. At the other end of the form comes a thin piece of planar plastic which protrudes out from the opening.
The thin planar plastic represents the “pleasant memory”. The “pleasant memory” is represented by the smooth surface and the wavy and curvy form it has. It extends diagonally and when gives the idea of a ‘flowy’ and calming feeling which was what my object reminds me of when I smell it. The length it has represents the nostalgic and lasting memories it belongs in my mind.
The “pleasant memory” then extends and hovers above the “unpleasant memory” creating a sense of void between the 2 elements.
Foundation 2D: Forrest Gump (Movie Quotes)
Everyone loves watching films and everyone has their own favourite movie lines/ quotes. Here below are 4 of my favourite quotes which I am going to be using for my “Forrest Gump” assignment. I try to use quotes that are not too long, probably around 7 words so that it is easier to break it down and piece into a visual.
“No man can walk out of his own story.” – Rango
“You mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger darling.” – Inception
“Beautiful things don’t ask for attention.” – The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
“The dead know only one thing, it is better to be alive.” – Full metal jacket
My Line Is Emo
My Six Emotions: Playfulness, Hate, Love, Lost, Worry, Depression
Playfulness – the quality of being light-hearted or full of fun.
For me the word playfulness draws connection to the word cheerfulness which links to the word bubbly. Hence, I try to convey playfulness through circular patterns which is done so via dripping paint.
When you drip paint, you create circular shapes with additional splatter patterns. The splatters represent the liveliness when one is full of fun. The contrasting tones and sizes further adds into the element of excitement.I Dripped paint from different height to create splatters of different sizes using a straw while controlling the ratio of water and paint to create the different tones in the splashes.
Hate – feel intense dislike for.
Hate is a very intense feeling. When you hate you feel the inside of your heart burning up, tearing and opening up slowly. As you hate, hatred will slowly consume you letting the dark side take over, turning you into someone else.
I used a coil and used the burning end to slowly burn through the paper creating the line. The line shows how hate burns and tears up our soul and heart. The line opens up the with a dark background to show like the dark side is coming for you.
Love – a strong feeling of affection.
Love is a strange thing it can make the strongest person or toughest person in the world to go weak, to go soft. Love makes you vulnerable. The use of wood and rope signifies toughness in a person. I purposely create the holes to show the vulnerability when love comes about. The slowly snapping ropes also helpings to show that love slowly breaks you apart when you do not know it. My interpretation of what love does to you in a visual way.
Lost – to describe the uncomfortable feeling of being in an unfamiliar situation
For this emotion, I was trying to creating a dreamy setting whereby a man is trapped in a place (limbo) where he is unable to escape and find his way out. The emotion lost was also inspired by a soundtrack called “Theme” from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In my opinion, the piece sounded like a man being trapped in a world where he is trying to escape but it always goes back to a loop. The dreamy setting is created with the use of baby powder. I spread the baby powder out on the black board to create like a misty and foggy scene.
Worry – anxious or troubled about actual or potential problems.
I am a thinker and sometimes I feel like I think too much. I over analyse things too much and most of the times, the things I worry about do not even happen at all. So, I feel that worrying always leads to nothing or it leads to further emptiness.
For the interpretation of worry, I used crushed paper to create a very messy composition to represent the chaotic mind i.e. looks like brain cells working. Next the crushed paper mark making will slowly fade off as it moves from right to left symbolising that worrying leads to nothing or that it just leads to more emptiness. Besides I crushed the right side to add further bring out the messy state of mind.
Depression – feelings of severe despondency and dejection.
Victims of depression are mostly unaware that they have depression. Depression is an illness, it is not a choice. Sometimes people we think are fine are the ones that need our help the most. From the outside they might seem fine, but sometimes they are suffering deep down.
I created this by using pen knife and my finger nails. The cuts were made by pen knife which represents self-harm. And as you look closer, you can see the marks made by my finger nails, these represents the pain they are suffering from the inside which we do not understand.
Overall, I think this mark making project is very fun and interesting as it is a very open project whereby you can share your ideas through creative means. Beside, I think it is very cool how everyone has their own unique and distinct styles and very often you can point out a person’s characteristics and personalities through their mark makings. I also feel that sometimes aesthetically pleasing works are not necessary good because I feel that the stories and interpretation from the artists themselves are more important and gives the artwork a life. (In my opinion) One thing I learnt from doing this is the importance of referencing. Sometimes when you reach an idea block, referencing from other sources for creative ideas is actually useful. However, it is good to reference and pick out certain good points from other sources but I try not to refer to it too much as our idea will start becoming similar. Another thing I learnt is patience. Actually I am not really a patient guy, so during the process, I got quite annoyed and frustrated on a few occasions as I was unable to achieve what I wanted. But oh well, life is about success and failure, and only through failure will you learn. Success and learn!!! 😀
Mark Making: Week 3 (Process)
Week 3
For week 3, we prepared the rough idea of the mark making we are going to do for our emotions and experimented it in class.
The emotions that I had in mind was regret, peacefulness, lost, playfulness and worry.
For regret, I wanted to create a mark making using my finger prints. I used finger prints to signify the things that we do that we regret on are pulling us back in life. I wanted to have my finger prints swirl on it, but the ink was either too thick or too wet hence I was unable to create the product I wanted.
For peacefulness, I wanted to create the idea of flowy gentle tall grass by using thin brush or thin tools. To me when I think of peacefulness, peaceful the image of standing in a field of tall grass field popped up my mind instantly. Standing in the field as the breeze caressing your gentle cheeks as you stand there looking towards the endless horizon without worrying about anything at all. I cut out some bristles of the bottom of the broom to do the mark making.
For lost, I decided to use mono printing to create the work. I wanted to recreate something like what I had last week but using a a string or rope that is much thinner in dimension. I wanted to also create a rather dreamy landscape that looks like a limbo hence I used a wetter ink. The problem I faced when doing this was the control of the ink, I was not really sure how wet it must be and some of my pieces came out totally black as well. But I was quite satisfied with the result using the rope creating an abstract piece of a man trapped inside a world.
For playfulness, I tried dripping paint to create a bubbly and cheerful piece. I played around with different tools for me to drip the paint from using a brush to using a scoop. In the end I found out the best tool to drip paint is by using straws. Next I also played around with the mixture of paint by adjusting the ratio and paint accordingly to create different tones. However, I was unable to created splashes that are bigger. Need to experiment more.
For worry, I decided to use last weeks experimentation with crushed paper. I crushed the paper and mixed it with ink and dabbed it on paper creating a very messy look. Satisfied!
Week 3.5
Before confirming my 6 emotions, I realized that my works are mostly using inks and 2D stuff hence I need to experiment with the use of more materials and techniques maybe play around with 3Ds and textures.
Further improvements on current works:
For playfulness, I am sticking with the same concept but to further improve my work, I made some adjustments like changing my tool to straw, adjusted the ratio of water and paint accordingly to achieve different tones and adjusting the height where I drip the paint to get splashes of different sizes.
For lost, I wanted to recreate it but by using different materials instead of ink. Hence, I thought of using my dental floss and place it on a black background.
The hard part was trying to stick the string on the black board as I do not want to use too much glue because the glue stands out after it dries. Hence I have to use toothpick to slowly glue the string on the black board.
Other interesting methods that I tried out was to create burn holes. I was looking through interesting patterns and I stumbled across this method.
At first I used a lighter to create the holes, but the whole paper caught fire and it failed. I tried it out using a joss stick and paper and holes came out looking similar.
I was interested in creating layering in my work piece after doing some research on layering art as it can help add the 3D element into my works.
Texture art paste on canvas:
Paper Mache:
Folding art:
All 3 are creative ideas and I feel like the folding art idea can help to create layering effect on the background hence helping to accentuate the emotion even more.
Other interesting method I tried was using string and on wood.
Failed experimentation:
These are the more interesting methods that I tried out with. After some experimentation and research, I feel that mark making is actually very fun as it enables you to express your ideas through creative and artistic means. Its cool… but super messy 😀
Assignment 1: Picture Story – Curating Self
OBJECT AND REPRESENTATION OF SELF
My object is my pair of running shoes. This pair of shoes has been with me for 4 years and it has been my buddy through my best and worst times. I had ankle issues since young and a good pair of running shoes were essential to provide support and stability when I exercise and when I go for adventures.
I love running and one of the highlight of my life was running my first half marathon. My running shoes were my partners in crime as it guided me safely through the half marathon and subsequently the second, the third and so on.
My running shoes follow me everywhere I go, braving through every adventure together. Slinging my shoes in this manner kind of resembles the action of carrying a rucksack. I love to go on adventure and I need my shoes with me if I do so. I shot it with a deep focal blur with my back against the camera to show the idea of “me and the shoe against the world”.
Even when I am resting, my shoes will still do its best to protect me by allowing me to put my feet on top of it, regardless of the terrain. The reason why I placed my feet in such a manner is to show the scar which represents the ankle issues I have. Hence this shows my reliance I have towards my shoes; I need it.
Through different weathers, conditions and terrains, this pair of shoes has done its best to protect me. It has been 4 long years, and the wear and tear can be seen clearly on the shoes. For this image, I applied a darker tone with the use of a grey background and low lighting to create a very moody setting to symbolize the parting between me and my shoes. I purposely focus on the hole to emphasize on the battle scars my shoes received while protecting me.
Although it is just a pair of running shoes, it painted a huge part of my life. It has been 4 great years, and you have serve me well. A tribute to the best running shoes. Thank you.
My World
A place that is significant to me is my home, my room which I have been staying in for 20 years. My room makes me feel comfortable and safe from the outside world, it also serves as a place for me to rest my body and soul and to regroup myself from reality. It is also a place for me to think for ideas and reflect about life.
I like being neat and tidy and like to keep things simplistic. When you walk into my room, the only features visible are my closet, my bed and my study table.
My bed is my favourite feature in the room and the reason is obvious – sleep. Sleep is everyone’s favourite thing, nobody dislikes sleep. I like to sleep because I can rest and because I can dream. I love dreams and I love dreaming as it enables me to escape from the real world and create my own world. Personally, I am a heavy thinker and my bed is where my thought processes runs the craziest. Sometimes I think too much to the point that I could not sleep and just start staring at the ceiling light.
My room is also a product of negative and depressing thoughts. I like staying in my room, but sometimes the more I stay in my room, the more I feel that my room is like a cage and keeps me thinking that my life is not interesting. Very slowly the feeling of being bounded starts creeping up on me. The irony in that is that the inner me seeks for thrills and adventure of the outside world but at the same time I crave for the sense of safety and comfort.
The best way to describe my feeling I have of my room will be the song “The Big Ship” by Brian Eno. The following is quoted from David Foster Wallace, an American writer, on the song “The Big Ship”.
“This song is making me feel both warm and safe, as though cocooned like a little boy that’s just been taken out of the bath and wrapped in towels that have been washed so many times they’re incredibly soft, and also at the same time feeling sad; there’s an emptiness at the centre of the warmth like the way an empty church or classroom with a lots of windows through which you can only see rain in the street is sad, as though right at the centre of this safe, enclosed feeling is the seed of emptiness.”
Foundation 4D: Assignment 1 (Process)
Object + Place (Process)
Initially when I was thinking of an object to use, I was thinking of using my Chou Chou (臭臭), a tiny pillow which has been with me since young. I already had several ideas on the pictures I planned to take with my Chou Chou, but decided to change it to my running shoes instead last weekend.
Last weekend I was very tired but I could not sleep as I kept searching and thinking of ideas for Assignment 1. However about 1 hour into trying to sleep, eureka struck and I quickly wrote down the ideas that popped up for Task 1: Objects.
For my mid body shot, I planned to use my bag as well in the picture as I felt that it could give a hint of symbolism of adventure. However, after taking a few shots, I decided to remove the bag as I felt that it is taking away attention from the shoes, which is not what I wanted. Therefore, I removed the bag so that the centre of attention can be drawn to the shoes and me.
For the location wise, I initially wanted to choose a better location to represent adventure. Something like the 2 pictures which I took last time. However, because of the weather I had to make last minute changes to it and decided to change to a car park instead.
Another shot I wanted to try was a full body one-point perspective shot from bottom up. However, I could not achieve the shot no matter how I try so I skipped it.
For my shot of my object in a plain background, I was experimenting between using a grey or black background. I decided to use the grey one instead of the black one. I was thinking of using the black one at first because my shoes are bright so a black colour background will probably bring out the features of my shoes even more. But after experimenting with it I felt that it did not look that good, it looks like my shoes are falling into a manhole.
While I was taking pictures of the shoes in a plain background, the Sun came out of nowhere and casted a shadow of my shoes. A Eureka popped up, and I thought it was rather cool that the shadow can signify the idea of objects have life.
For the topic on PLACE, I feared using my room because it is very limited in terms of angles and things that I can take picture. 
One element that I could play with is natural lighting like Rinko Kawauchi. So, when the light casted shadows of the window grails and patterns on my wall, I instantly took a picture of it because it looked cool. I really wanted to put this inside one of the 5 images but felt that it might be too abstract to talk about.
Another experimentation that I did was to play with flash at night. I wanted to take night shots of my room at first but my camera could not see anything so I had to experiment with the use of flash. However, for most of the shots, I was unable to create the perfect brightness of the flash and the shots looked horrible, but I managed to capture one of the shots that was acceptable enough to be in the Task.
Because of the small space, I looked for every single aspect and angle I can take to achieve what I wanted.
My bed with soft lighting
Using a ladder to take pictures (Dedication)
Blurry shot from the top corner
Can you guess what these are?
These are fall ceilings…
The mood I was bringing out in somewhat like a Saturday rainy mood where you just feel like hiding yourself in the home cocoon in your bed. A depressing, gloomy mood.
Mark Making: Process (Week 2)
Process
The second week of Foundation 2D was filled with fun. We had the chance to experiment mark making with different tools and techniques. For me I kept to my word and brought the garlic bread snack that I had back in hall and also brought a roll of toilet paper that had nice patterns on it.
Garlic bread:
I dipped the garlic bread into chinese ink and started sliding it across the paper and also started dabbing it on the paper.
Toilet paper:
I thought it would be interesting to twist the toilet paper to create more sophisticated patterns. However it was a complete disaster as the toilet paper got stuck with the roller as I rolled over it. Worst thing was that the ink turned the toilet paper into a soggy mess. Failed experimentation.
Noodles:
Initially when I first saw the Syam bringing in the noodle I was literally laughing about using noodle as a mark making tool as I thought my garlic bread was already outrageous. However, when I started to experiment with it, I was surprised by the beautiful patterns it created on the paper. By dragging the noodle across the surface, you can create long wave-like lines and by dabbing it on the surface, you can create short curvy patterns. Both of which looks really amazing.
Crushed paper:
One of my favorite tool that I experimented on was crushed paper. It created a messy yet interesting pattern and when the patterns overlap each other it did not look too overwhelming. Might be using this for my project 1.
Chain with metal beads:
Another interesting mark making design was produced by a chain that has tiny metal beads attached on it. I dipped it in ink and started spinning it on the surface. It created symmetrical circular patterns that reminded me of the growth rings of trees or space galaxies. Besides spinning, you can also drag it across the surface created layers of wavy patterns that are spaced consistently from one another. Great tool!
Dish washing scrub:
The scrub when dipped with black ink looks like a sea urchin. The spiky scrub created a rough looking texture on the surface. Maybe this tool can be used for emotions representing anger. However this tool is tricky to use as you have to apply the correct pressure when sliding it across the surface – when too much pressure is applied, too much ink will be produced.
Cut out sponge/foam:
Another cool tool was a cut out sponge/foam that has a flower shape to it. The holes from the sponge/foam created small dots of different tone when pressed against the surface. I also tried to spin the tool creating swirly circular patterns that looks like the stars in the painting “The Starry Night”.
Mono-printing:
I also tried to do mark marking using the mono printing technique. I think this technique is cool for tools that have really interesting patterns.
Other cool experiments:
Socks + Rubbing:
Paint brush + Random Stroke: 
Fruit Wrap + Punching: Look like Criss Cut (Waffle) Fries
End Results:
Dish washing scrub
Chain with metal beads
Cut out sponge/foam
Noodles
Fruit Wrap
Paint Brush
Garlic Bread
Sock