HOW SPICY ARE YOU?

Is an initiative project in collaboration with mothership, young parents and MOE to promote healthy parenting for young adults with the use of chilli as a metaphor for parenting. Chilli, it could make us cry, it is good for our health, but we can’t eat too much. Parenting is just like chilli, it makes the kid cry sometimes, appropriate parenting is good, but too much parenting is bad. Singapore parenting is usually “appropriate”, but can be “too much” sometimes. Pick the right spice at the right situation is a direct representation of punishing the kid in the right situation.

FINAL DELIVERABLES

With an initiative project in collaboration with mothership, young parents and MOE, here are the final deliverables to promote healthy parenting for young adults.

1) Mascots

2)Four posters showing the 3 different chilli as a representation of parenting

3) A parenting guidebook 

4) Stickers

 

1)Mascots

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 3 mascots represents the different parenting style through the metaphor of parenting as chili.

– The green chilli is represented as a simply mild green chilli

– The yellow chilli is represented as a nicely hot red chilli

– The red chilli is represented a crying hot chili chilli (Chilli Padi)

 

2)Four posters showing the 3 different chilli as a representation of parenting

The final paper chosen for the print was a canvas textured paper to fit into my crafted style of the chilli. Each chilli is represented with individual caption showcasing the personality of the chilli. The chilli padi is represented as the massive parenting with the caption “Does your child dream of chilli mum at night”. The posters aims to promote healthy parenting.

 

3) A parenting guidebook

The parenting guidebook digital format.

This will be the back of the accordion parenting guidebook, each of the captions represents the different personality of the individual chilli.

The parenting guidebook will sum up the entire project with an introduction to the project, following with the different personality of each chilli each having a caption of its own and finally ending off with a caption “pick the right chilli for the right situation.

 

4) Stickers


 

Reflection

Overall, I am glad that I came that far and I am happy with the end result of my project. Metaphor as a brief is a challenging subject, I remember the time I was so blank on how should I even begin with. This metaphor project got me thinking deeper into the subject that I am going for and it pushes my boundaries. Pairing parenting to chilli, it was a pairing that I would not expect. It was a unique point of view and also something out of the common thinking. Doing illustration for my final was also out of my comfort zone. It was my first time creating mascots for my deliverables which I was quite satisfied with. I remember the time when I was having a chat with Hui Zhong, I remember telling her I don’t see myself doing illustrations as it will confirm look bad. I would say, without trying you will not know what the outcome will be.

 

How spicy is a metaphor~ I would say it’s not spicy and scary anymore!

Thank you Prof Nanci for guiding me through this semester! This sem has also allowed me to explore and also it has allowed me to explore a subject out of my comfort zone. Finally, a great thanks to my classmates for giving me feedback throughout the semester.

 

HOW SPICY ARE YOU?

 Project Statement (Concept) 

Is an initiative project in collaboration with mothership, young parents and MOE to promote healthy parenting for young adults with the use of chilli as a metaphor for parenting. Chilli, it could make us cry, it is good for our health, but we can’t eat too much. Parenting is just like chilli, it makes the kid cry sometimes, appropriate parenting is good, but too much parenting is bad. Singapore parenting is usually “appropriate”, but can be “too much” sometimes. Pick the right spice at the right situation is a direct representation of punishing the kid in the right situation.

Target Audience

Young Adults who are becoming parents

 Research Studies 

Disciplining a child is a combination of emotional and mental wellness. The kind of disciplinary action carried out on a child might make or break his/her emotional and mental state of mind.

Be it by authoritative parenting or permissive parenting, every parent just wants the best for their child, but the right type of disciplinary method a child should receive is very ambiguous. If the type of disciplinary technique fails, it can result in temporary or permanent negative psychological impacts on the child which they will probably have to live with as they get older, it can inconvenience themselves and other people around them.

Parenting is tough! In Singapore, there is a heavy emphasis on academic excellence, kiasu parents may push their young ones hard. Some may labour unrealistically high expectations and are likely to drive their children to achieve good grades or over-react when they make even slight mistakes. Especially Asian parenting, they raise their offspring with whole lot of physical discipline and an abundance of tough love. Asian parenting may sometime be considered as child abuse. “Why Chinese mother are superior” Chinese parent demand perfect grades because they believe that their child can get them. If their child doesn’t get them, the Chinese parent assumes it’s because the child didn’t work hard enough. Picking the right spice for the right situation is important

The phenomenon of stress arising amongst young children and adolescents is commonly discussed in parenting forums, newspaper, and social media. The sheer volume of discussion has led to parents scrambling for techniques to alleviate their children’s stress levels while ensuring that they continue to do well in school and life in general.

Final Deliverables (Collaterals)

  • 4 Posters
  • 3 mascots (Green, Yellow, Red Chillis)
  • ” Are you a chilli parent” guide-book
  • Stickers

 


Initial Ideation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I came out with 2 concepts one is a literal concept where the chilli will be represented with different style of hands picking up the different chilli with the Asian dish to show the different parenting style. After consulting Prof Nanci, this concept is too literal, so the concept that I will be going for will be a concept where different chilli illustration (red chilli, green chilli finally the chilli padi)


Mascot Development

After getting the direction I wanted, I developed further into the mascot design.

 


Final Style that I will be going for

I started off developing the chilli mascot, with many version, keeping the context of Asian parenting through the consistent look of the highly defined Asian eyes.The final style that I went for actually gives off an Asian vibe to it with each of the eyes actually symbolizing the Asian essence in it (the calm, the just right and the massive parent).

After developing the motif, I further explore on the colour scheme to suit the look and feel of Asian parenting. Here are the 2 styles.

Style 1 (The vector look)

Style 2 (The crafted look)

 


Development
Throughout the developmental process, I developed a personality for each of my chillis. Here is a breakdown of it:

 

The personality of a simply mild green chilli:

–  Parents might want children to be positive about themselves and their relationship with others as they mature. Such parenting style try to balance high expectations with empathy, and this is associated with the best outcomes.

– The pros of a simply mild green chilli parenting style , it provides a comfortable environment for a safe haven of love and respect in which to build the child’s relationships and from which the child can safely experience the world.

– Nurturing the kids by creating a balance of explanation and strict rules for the kids.

– Allowing the kids to learn from their mistakes with a clear structure of guidance.

 

 

 

The personality of a nicely hot red chilli:

– Expecting nothing but the best from their kids. Enforcing vigorous routines with a strong emphasis of academic success in mind. Setting strict rules and high expectations.

– The pros of a crying hot chili padi parenting style , it raises a child in a way in which it could lead them into being more productive, motivated and responsible.

– The cons of a crying hot chili padi parenting style, the child could struggle to function in daily life or in new settings, which might lead to depression, anxiety and poor social skills.

– Kids tend to have lower self-esteem.

 

The personality of a crying hot chilli padi:

– Expecting nothing but the best from their kids. Enforcing vigorous routines with a strong emphasis of academic success in mind. Setting strict rules and high expectations.

– The pros of a crying hot chili padi parenting style , it raises a child in a way in which it could lead them into being more productive, motivated and responsible.

– The cons of a crying hot chili padi parenting style, the child could struggle to function in daily life or in new settings, which might lead to depression, anxiety and poor social skills.

– Kids tend to have lower self-esteem.

 

Posters layout development

Getting the mascot confirmed, I went on to develop the posters. Each of the posters will come with a caption representing the parenting style.

 

 

 

 


Final Development

Comments from the final critique:

  • Comparing the nicely hot red chilli and the crying hot chilli padi, comments given was that the nicely hot red chilli seems more fierce compared to the chilli padi.
  • Comparing the nicely hot red chilli and the crying hot chilli padi, the colours look similar, making the 2 mascot blend together.

Taking into context from the feedback given, I decided to switch the eyes of the red chilli and the chilli padi. Not only that, to differentiate the look between the 2 chilli, I will be changing the colour of the red chilli. Heres the latest version of the final chilli mascots.


Final Deliverables for Print (Developing the accordion parenting guidebook)

Getting the mascot confirmed, I developed on my collaterals. To go along with the mascot, it will come with a guidebook on parenting for young adults following the metaphor chilli as parenting. I decided to go for the accordion style for my guidebook.

This accordion style parenting guidebook will consist of the personality of each of the chilli with an introduction to parenting in Singapore and also an introduction to my initiative collaboration project with mothership, moe and young parents.


Mascot ready for print

The mascot is ready for print at the fabric printing factory.

 

 

 

 

 


Head over to my final project for all the deliverables. 

“Supercycle”

So what is fusing plastic? Getting plastic and ironing them flat?

This is what I question myself, is plastic really pretty? I tend to throw plastic away for example after getting fruits that are wrapped with a protective wrap, or normal plastic bag. It is a waste of space in the house.

I never knew that plastic can be so pretty in a form of art.

One of the inspiration, when I was googling what is fusing plastic, is this fashion designer Jane Bowler. She uses plastic to make her art pieces and not only that, they are wearable. Sustainability as her key concept and overarching theme, her ideation is to make garments that last forever.

Jane Bowler Fusion Collection

Jane Bowler is a recent graduate from the RCA.

“With her unique inspiration of that plastic, rubber bits, bath mats or old shower curtains that we would throw, instead it is her primary sources for extraordinary and beautiful work and it is easy to see her pieces becoming an instant hit in the ever mutating and challenging the world of fashion.”

http://www.dazeddigital.com/fashion/article/8234/1/jane-bowlers-plastic-fashion

———————————————————————————-

There are so many tutorials for fusing plastic bags with each tutorial having the individual method of how to fuse plastic.

Step 1: Here is what you need

-an iron

-an ironing board

-baking parchment paper

-plastic bags

———————————————————————————-

Getting started on fusing plastic, I tried random layering of plastic and ironing them. I think my first try was a disaster as the plastic did not really stick and there is no contrast in the whole form of plastic. (First try)

(The Failed Project during lesson)

Later I tried playing with the creating lettering by fusing them individually. (second try)

On my next post, I’ll will be posting more creation on the fusing plastic technique:

FIELD TRIP

(Week 3)

National Museum of Singapore: Modern Colony (1925-1935)

During the eve of Chinese New Year, Prof Galina arranged a field trip for us to study the textures and materials that were used during the olden period. Bringing back the Nostalgic event.

Heading down to the National Museum of Singapore for the Life in Singapore: Modern Colony exhibition. It is an exhibition that is permanent in the National Museum of Singapore and admission is free to Singaporeans and PRs, showcases the different kind of clothing’s and valuables that was used during the British colonial rule. Learning about the different way of life compared to today’s modernism is an interesting knowledge to gain. The different kind of objects used and the different kind of dressing that was worn during the time was so intricate and unique in their own way.

What caught my eyes straight away was the intricate design of the clothing’s that was place right at the end of the exhibition overlooking the entrance when I enter. The heavily beaded and sequin gowns and also the heavily embroidered with flower buttons shows what the wealthy British and Chinese wore when that go for parties.

The whole exhibition is filled with love and devotion not forgetting that every objects holds an important value to it. 

The intricate design on the individual clothing’s (shown above) shows the uniqueness of the craftsmanship during the days. Not overly done, the designs are just right. Prints and embroidery all shows a different balance and movement. Its an art piece on its own. The used of colours complements each other making the overall design during the days special for the wearer. The motif and prints of the clothes, an inspiration.

Not only the clothing, the accessories also shows great meaning.

From beading to embroidery on the shoe itself, as compared to today shoe, it is full of details. Hand sewn embroidery is one of a kind. Now trends of bringing the embroidery back into the market is rising. Many people love the embroidery fashion statement, especially me!

Each object tells and important story. Just by looking at the objects it brings back the memories. How people interact, how the women did the sewing and how garment came about, it all started with all this objects. Keeping the history alive, is what all this objects wants to say.

Overall, it is a learning experience, gaining more insights into the past. As compared from now, the nostalgic look and the intricate look of the design brings and inspires current designers. It will indeed help me in my upcoming final project.

This marks the end of the exhibition tour.

Featuring the Surface Group!

Happy Chinese New Year!

WHAT NEXT FOR SURFACE DESIGN?

FUSING PLASTICCCC

BY MELISSA

———————————————————————————————–

Preview Collection #1

FULL COLLECTION

Explosive “2017”

———————————————————————————————–

 

 

 

 

This technique got me inspired and got me crazy over the prints. Through this process, I got to learn how to balance and also how to layout the prints while transferring onto the fabric so that they will not look so cluttered.

 

 

 

During the first and second week of the lesson, Prof Galina let us explore the different types of heat transfer method.

“Wet” and “Dry”

(Heat Transfer)

A means of transferring a design to a substrate using an intermediate step.

How does heat transfer go about:

  • In heat transfer printing, a design is printed in reverse (typically by screen printing) on a special release paper using a plastisol-based ink (or another type of sublimable dye).
  • The printed image is then placed against the desired substrate (commonly a fabric, such as a T-shirt) and subjected to high temperature (commonly 375ºF) and pressure for a short period of time.

 

Short Tutorial by Galina:

Turn the temperature to the kind of material that we will be using

Wood can be use for heat transfer too.

Needs to let it cool down, for few seconds before we peel it out.

Fabric, the common kind for heat transfer

 

…TIME TO START EXPLORING…

 

SURFACE DESIGN

The best definition of Surface Design encompasses the colouring, patterning, and structuring of fibre and fabric. This exploration involves exploration of processes such as dyeing, painting, printing, stitching, embellishing, quilting, weaving, felting and papermaking.

skjdshajka

Surface design in the fashion industry plays an important role.

For example the haute couture collection;

 

 

Echoes of the City 

(The Official Theme)

Echoes of the city aims to explore our relationship with the city and brings viewers through diverse narratives such as the human condition, interactions with the built environment, and movements within the city.

The art works employ a variety of techniques ranging from digital animation, generative art, as well as interactive data-driven pieces that were developed using processing, the unity game-engine and TouchDesigner.


 

Oriental and Occidental Culture By melissa

The Chinese tale evolved into the modern era, where traditional culture meets modern influence, bringing a whole new form and structure to the contemporary artistic expression and aesthetics.

Echoes of the City is inspired by the rich Chinese culture and its many traditions and beliefs. Influenced by Chinese artistic creativity, illustrated motifs overlap and interact. Like clouds they are ever changing, coming together and moving apart, symbolizing nostalgia for the long lost culture. The blend of Oriental and Occidental culture merge as one, bringing a whole new abstract form into the modern context through the use of colours, balance and harmony. It is in between the mix of these cultural influences and extremes that the art work starts dialogue about origin, differences and diversity to be appreciated by viewers of various cultural heritages.

 

fullsizerender-9 img_5541


Featuring one of my classmates work where he draws people with their selected favourite object. I requested for a poster with hot bod. Thank you Toby!

screen-shot-2016-11-24-at-11-20-36-am


Marking the end of Pattern Art and Architecture, it was an interesting process overall. I was actually afraid when i heard that we need to play around with the after effect software as i was a complete noob in digital software. When i initially started, the process was slow, but after awhile of exploring, it was quite easy to catch up with the pace. This whole pattern class taught me something new which i never thought i will learn it. An exciting module which i will greatly miss after this semester ends. I was glad that the whole event went well and successful. Below is a video which i made to mark the end of pattern, art and architecture. Thank you Professor Ina

 

 FUTURE WORLD: WHERE ART MEETS SCIENCE

An interesting exhibition which I visited recently and i felt that its a need to post here. Making use of graphics to interact with the people. An exhibition that made me went “WAH”.

Inspire your imagination at Future World, the new permanent exhibition at ArtScience Museum. Explore a fully immersive 1500-square-metre digital universe, where 16 spectacular art installations are brought to life and evolve in real-time through visitor presence and participation. Be amazed as this stunning interactive world responds to your behavior, and changes according to your creative input!

img_5327-2 img_5339-2

screen-shot-2016-11-23-at-11-02-08-pm

Flutter of Butterflies Beyond Borders

Walk through a field of luminous flowers that seems to go on forever. A combination of three different artworks, this stunning virtual environment is inspired by the interactions between humans and the natural world.

Depending on where you stand, the flowers either blossom before your eyes or fade away, recreating nature’s endless cycle of growth and decay. Keeping with the theme of perpetual change, the installation evolves throughout the year with the four different seasons, so no two visits will ever be the same.

 

img_5343-2

img_5340-2

100 Years Sea Animation Diorama

Get a glimpse into the future wrought by climate change in this larger-than-life installation film, based on scientific data derived from the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF). 100 Years Sea Animation Diorama offers a unique and provocative way to reflect on the long-term environmental effects of climate change, and educate younger generations about its impact.

Watch a fascinating film that conveys the prediction of the world’s rising sea levels over a century, with 100 years condensed into a ten-minute time frame. At the film’s climax, the borders between you and the screen dissolve to create the illusion of eventually being swallowed by the rising sea.

This whole exhibition is an inspiration. Art going into technology, into the digital life.