Building of exhibition diorama (Team 4)

It was an interesting process building the small diorama for our exhibition proposal. We decided to go with the layout and look inspired by the format used by Art Science Museum for their exhibitions. Since this is an exhibition proposal to be shown in Singapore, thus we took this approach.

Materials:

we decided to use foam board as it is light weight and easy to transport around

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A foam cutter was used to cut the L shape sides which enables 2 foam boards to form a corner.

 

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We used sculpey clay to do the clay ceramic miniatures. Usually people will bake the clay. I found a method which I prefer to use,which is to boil it for 1hr. This method is safer than baking as there is no issue of over baking and burning and odor.

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We decided to use felt for the floor carpets. We wanted to distinguish the different space in the exhibit. A drastic change in the carpet flooring’s colour will definitely establish that.

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Once the items were in place work started on the building process.

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We faced a lot of challenges during the building process. One major issue was the the glue. We used hot glue to connect the panels together. Usually all glues will corrode the foam. Hot glue does too is used while it is hot. We glued together when the glue was slightly cooler and still sticky. This did not corrode the material.

IMAG0406 IMAG0407 IMAG0409 IMAG0410 IMAG0412Finally the diorama was done. We Painted the clay miniatures with acrylic paint and applied glossy sealant to give the glazed shine to it. We tried to paint the miniatures close to the actual objects with a fine tip tiny brush. Its not exactly the same. Just looks close to it we hope. :<)

During the presentation a lot of great feedbacks were given to us. Thanks for pointing out issues and ways to make this diorama better. Some of the inputs given was to shift the position of the connecting passage ways so that people wont jus walk past the chinoiseri dining room. And also to place object along the way in the entrance so that visitors are not loaded with all the text on the walls.

This was a fun project to work on. Thanks to all our peers in this class, group mates and our tutor for making this a memorable class.

Week 8 Journal

What was your favorite object from today’s visit to the Asian Civilizations Museum?

My favourite item has to be the carved skull. It was hauntingly beautiful. A lot of questions came to my mind. Why would someone carve a skull? was the main question. The skull is from the Dayak Tribe. Came back home and researched on them to get some answers to my questions.

Dayak people are known as natives of Borneo. There are at least 200 sub-groups but this term is being generally used. Although they have their own culture, language, customs and law, they do have some common traits amongst them. The picture on the right displays a man and a woman from a sub-ethnic group of people from Dayak in their traditional costumes.

Headhunting is a practice where a person’s head will be cut off and preserved. This was in practice in the historical times and the Dayak tribe were one of the few tribes that had this practice. Headhunting was done for several reasons that include, capturing of enemies as slaves, looting of valuable properties, intra and inter-ethnic conflicts and territorial expansion. Skulls were also used to carve and given to the family of the deceased as a form of remembrance. It was also given as prizes. It also served as a “measurement” for people to know about a person’s status in the society. So the more heads a man collected, the higher his prestige and social status was.

 

Week 7 Journal

If you could have a room of your own, how would you set about decorating it? Chinoiserie? Japonaiserie?

Neither to be frank…hahaha. If I could have my way to design my own room I will definitely have a room based on Batman as I am a huge fan since young. As a collector of figurines, I will have glass showcases lines up along the walls to display my figurines and statues.

Victorian Bedroom Canopy Bed Red Painted Wall Traditional Bedroom Furniture

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But I have always liked the victorian look. My favorite colour is maroon. I will definitely have a room which is black and maroon with victorian style wallpapers and a canopy bed with net draped over it. I really  love stained glass. Might even throw in a stained glass window to bring in the surreal feel to the room. :<D