Ego in Different Settings: Final Work

Hello! Project 3 is finally over and 2D is finally done with! šŸ™‚ It was a tedious and scary project because it seemed to involve so much within a small timeframe but we all pulled through! Here’s a runthrough of my process and final result.

INSPIRATION AND BRAINSTORMING

Art direction was something I pretty much struggled with as I wasn’t comfortable with my usual art style. Normally its pretty sketchy so I didn’t think it would go together with colours well. So I thought about simplifying shapes to make the colours stand out, and I drew inspiration from Dorris McComics, who is the artist behind the Blobby series!!

My main idea is that each figure takes the form of a blob, including me, while I shift colours every row. Each row has a singular main colour as I wanted it to have a uniform feel. Here’s my final presentation to get a gist of it:

Final Presentation, Ego.

Continue reading “Ego in Different Settings: Final Work”

Ego in Different Settings: Colour Harmony Research

henlo friends here is Big Wheel of Colours:


MONOCHROMES HARMONY

Occurs when theĀ colours of a monochromatic palette all share a single hue, but vary in brightness and saturation.

Image taken from www.xboxhut.com
this is so pretty but there were no credits to the artist!! šŸ™ make sure to credit artists pls Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/506021708124150955/
By Jenny Wichman. Image taken from www.jennywichman.com

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Forrest Gump: Final Work!

Hey guys!! Here’s my final write up on my final work for Foundation 2D Project 2: Forrest Gump. So far this was the longest project we’ve had and I think it really shows haha. Here’s the earlier post that detailed my research and brainstorming for quotes:

Forrest Gump: Research

Anyway no more rambling, let’s get straight into it!!


[ T H E M EĀ  :Ā  S C I E N C EĀ  Ā F I C T I O NĀ  Ā F I L M S ]

dunzi dunzi dunzi dunzi

In my previous post I did mention that I had like a sci-fi theme in mind, so I just went with that because the sci-fi genre is the genre that I’m the most fascinated (and confused) by and I just really love them. I actually was also considering doing a series starring quotes from Quentin Tarantino films instead because I’m a really big fan of his film direction and aesthetic, but in the end that was more limiting so I decided on the sci-fi theme instead.

I decided to go with a more serious and sullen vibe for the pieces, and wanted to bring in the reoccurring theme across many sci-fi movies of human nature, and ‘what does it mean to be human’. (I suddenly thought of Ex Machina and now I’m sad I didn’t research on it help) I also wanted to involve the design principle of unity and variety, so I decided to use hands as a motif across all my pieces. My general approach for formulating the visual interpretation of the quotes was to draw upon the themes of the movies and at the same time, look at the literal aspects of the quote.

was not supposed to put this in but i legit love LOVE harrison ford yall

[ G A T T A C A ]

“You want to know how I did it? This is how I did it Anton; I never saved anything for the swim back.” – Vincent Freeman, Gattaca (1997)

Forrest Gump: Gattaca print, Niki Koh

This was the first print that I did for the project. To be honest I spent way too much time on it – almost 7 hours?? After that I decided to reduce the intensity in the designs for my subsequent compositions cos I honestly didn’t (and still don’t) have a lot of time HAHAA.

Plan for Gattaca print

The literal aspect of the quote that was in the final print was the usage of water as a nod to the word ‘swim’, in the form of a stormy, dark sea. The original hands were supposed to be cupped, but none of the cupped hands I found online looked good when in threshold, so I substituted them for a pair that looked like they were praying or giving something up, as a reference to the phrase ‘I never saved anything’. The themes I drew from the film to put into the print was the theme of intergalactic travel, as the film’s plot is about a man who is genetically disabled, but still dreams of pursuing a career in space due to his extreme passion for it. Hence, the numerous mythical representation of constellations located within the circle of stars in the print.

Gattaca (1997). Image taken from www.joshldavis.com

Initially I also wanted to place a rocket within the cupped hands but I figured that would result in too many elements within the print.

Initially, the print was like this:

First draft of Gattaca print

The feedback that I had gotten was that there were too many cluttered figures in the circle and it was hard to figure out what they were. (Also I forgot about following the dimensions and it was really big LOL) However because I didn’t have time to edit the print before silkscreening, I decided to just silk screen this original print on the bag, which I will go into detail about later!!

Yup but for the final presentation I decided to put less figures into the circle and increased their scale so they would be more obvious. The difference isn’t very big though so maybe my efforts were futile?? :’)

Nevertheless, this print is the one which I liked a lot as well as a bunch of other classmates too so I’m glad about that!! (A friend told me it looked very bengz though lmao she’s not my friend anymore humph)

Continue reading “Forrest Gump: Final Work!”

Forrest Gump: Research

10 September 2017 (This post was kept in my backlog for some reason)

Hello!!

It’s only been a day since I posted lol but I gotta keep working this week or else I’ll drown in work. :/ And it’s raining….gotta get back to hall….life sucks. JAYKAY (not really) but it’s time to move on to the next project: Forrest Gump, where we’ll be picking four movie quotes and creating prints from icons and dingbats and things like that to be silkscreened on tote bags omg. I think lots of people are super excited about the silkscreening :3c I’m more excited about being able to pick movie quotes though! Never really mentioned it to people in NTU for some reason but I’m quite the film enthusiast although recently I’ve not been able to find time to watch anything. šŸ™ Anyhow, we’re supposed to conduct research (and supposedly watch films but there are only 24h in a precious day I can’t afford that) about the quotes and pick pictures based off that.

I already have some ideas about the quotes, but I’m thinking of maybe picking a theme, like picking quotes from sci-fi films, or maybe I should go contrary to that and pick a movie from four different genres. Anyway,

[ QUOTES ]

[ 1 ]Ā  “You want to know how I did it? This is how I did it, Anton: I never saved anything for the swim back.” – Vincent Freeman, Gattaca (1997)

Gattaca is my all-time favourite film!! I could watch it forever hah. :’) But this quote seems a bit like it needs a lot of context for those who don’t know the film :/ Am I supposed to explain the plot here? (edit: i watched the second half of it again and i cried again help im dead on the inside) Alternatively, I could use this line:

[ 2 ]Ā  “For someone who was never meant for this world, I must confess I’m suddenly having a hard time leaving it.” – Vincent Freeman, Gattaca (1997)

Gattaca (1997). Image taken from www.wondersinthedark.wordpress.com

 

[ 3 ]Ā  “Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others – past and present. And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future.” – Sonmi-451, Cloud Atlas (2012)

[ 4 ] “No matter what you do, it will never amount to anything more than a single drop in a limitless ocean.”

“What is the ocean but a multitude of drops?” – Adam Ewing, Cloud Atlas (2012)

Cloud Atlas (2013). Image taken from www.archdaily.com

 

[ 5 ]Ā  “I don’t know if we each have a destiny, or if we’re all just floatin’ around accidental-like on a breeze, but I, I think maybe it’s both.” – Forrest Gump, Forrest Gump (1994)

Forrest Gump (1994). Taken from www.gifimage.net

 

[ 6 ] “Now watch closely, everyone. I’m going to show you how to kill a god. A god of life and death. The trick is not to fear him.” – Lady Eboshi, Princess Mononoke (1997)

Princess Mononoke (1997). Image taken from www.moviemezzanine.com

 

[ 7 ]Ā “You talk about redefining my identity. I want a guarantee that I can still be myself.”

“There isn’t one. Why would you wish to? All things change in a dynamic environment.Ā Your effort to remain what you are is what limits you.” – Puppet Master, Ghost in the Shell (1995)

Ghost In The Shell (1997). Image taken from www.thterrortime.com

 

[ 8 ] “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the TannhƤuser Gate.Ā All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain.” – Roy Batty, Blade Runner (1984)

Blade Runner (1982). Image taken from www.filmschoolrejects.com

 

[ 9 ] “Good morning, and in case I don’t see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!” – Truman Burbank, The Truman Show (1998)

The Truman Show (1998). Image taken from www.aceblackblog.com

 

[ 10 ] “I hope life on Earth is everything you remember it to be.” – Gerty, Moon (2009)

[ 11 ] Gerty, we’re not programmed. We’re people, do you understand?” – Sam Bell, Moon (2009)

Moon (2009). Image taken from www.billysteele60.wordpress.com

Continue reading “Forrest Gump: Research”

My Line Is Emo: Final Work!

Hello people!! Monday was the presentation for the final work for the first 2D project: ‘My Line is Emo’ and so with all the feedback and past experiences in making my lines, I’m reaaaady to conclude the project with a final write up about everything! šŸ˜€

[ FINAL WORK ]

My Line is Emo: Final Work by Niki Koh

 

[ THEMEĀ  + PROCESS ]Ā Leaving Tokyu Hands

So during the holidays I decided to work at a shop that I frequented a lot called Tokyu Hands (at Suntec), and I really learn’t a lot and made a lot of good memories and friends with my coworkers there. Despite trying to continue on with the job for a month in NTU, I decided that I couldn’t work and study at the same time and decided to quit and left like a week before this presentation. Lotsa tears were shed okay :’) and there was a lot of emotion involved, so I decided to focus on this current event in my life as the theme behind my work.

However, I wasn’t really sure about how to exactly execute this. I had a strong concept behind my ideas but I had no idea how to put these ideas out on paper visually. I made a mindmap to try and consult Joy with the previous experimentations I had done last time:

Mindmap for My Line is Emo, Niki Koh

Joy’s feedback was that since I had such a strong theme behind my lines, why not try to incorporate as much of that theme into the work itself as possible, by using things from the workplace to create marks? Like my name tag (which I had to give back so), my shoes, receipts, coworker’s hands….and I thought the idea was really good (and I also wondered why I hadn’t thought of that HAHAHA). So on Hari Raya Haji I went back to Suntec to try and hunt for materials. However, all I managed to get was sample paper that the customers wrote on to test the pens, and a receipt from MY OWN PURCHASE LOL sigh >$20 flew away from me. So I had to try and make do with those materials and other things that I already had, and actually I managed to pull it off okay!

Also, I thought it was a requirement to have one emotion from each emotional category but apparently that wasn’t the case LOL so I could’ve gone with other emotions but instead I limited myself. :’) But I think that’s okay because it made me think harder about how to portray certain emotions that I wasn’t very sure about.

My Line is Emo: Beginning My Mark-making Journey!!!

Hello!

So on Monday we had our second Foundation 2D class where we got to make our own mono prints with things that we brought from home/hall/anywhere! Because I was kinda in a rush I just grabbed a bunch of random rubbish from my room like tissue paper, wrapping tissue, string, cotton squares, and some cloth. I was really out of it that day haha I wish I had thought of picking up leaves and grass on the walk to school but it totally slipped my mind. Catch me in the 2D room with armfuls of grass next lesson.

Anyway, we were shown how to make the mono prints using linoleum squares, ink, and paper. Here’s a more detailed process for my future reference (or anyone’s future reference hehe):

  1. First, transfer the ink evenly onto the linoleum square using a brayer.
  2. Place your objects onto the inked surface, arranging them however you like.
  3. Place the sheet of paper onto the surface, making sure to press down when you carry around the linoleum square to prevent stuff from falling out.
  4. The fourth step, the creation of the print, has various methods. The press machine is one, where you place your square onto a board. The square is then squeezed evenly under a rolling metal cylinder, creating an even mono print. The second method is using a small circular plate to manually press across your linoleum square, giving rise to other interesting effects like circles or straight lines, depending on how you move the plate around. The last method is one that I found on my own (if I wasn’t supposed to do this, sorry to Joy in advance WHOOPS). I just took a clean brayer and rolled it over the surface of my mono print and it created lines and grids!
  5. Remove the paper from the square and let it dry.

Here are some examples of the mono prints I made in class:

Mono-print, Made with latex gloves
Mono-print, Made with latex gloves
Side by side comparison of the mono prints made with the latex gloves

These were the first prints I made with a pair of latex gloves that I brought! I thought the idea was cool but frankly I think the first one looks quite silly. Like someone’s hands with super extra fat fingers. The second one was an inverse print where you just remove the objects and re-roll the linoleum square with a fresh sheet of paper to capture the textures of the items itself, and I think the inverse print looks more interesting because it managed to capture the folds of the gloves. However, this print just felt like me just plainly whacking with whatever items I had, without much thought. But the first one was just a tester I guess!

Mono-print, Made with a long piece of cloth

This one was super stupid HAHAHA I thought using the cloth piece would show some cool effects but I forgot that all that happened was that the cloth would block the ink and it just came out to be a rough blob and I was so disappointed. :/ And then I wanted to do an inverse print but I mixed up the steps and ruined my chances of mono printing the cloth’s textures hais. I’ll keep cloth in mind for future mono printing! On the bright side it looks like a screaming stingray? ://

Mono-print, Made with cotton squares
Mono-print, Made with cotton squares
Side by side comparison of the mono prints made with cotton squares

This one I was quite happy with, especially the inverse print! It looks kind of like cells hovering around in space and minding their own business. I’m not even sure what the extra lines around the squares were but they look cool.

Mono-print, Made with torn up wrapping tissue
Mono-print, Made with torn up wrapping tissue

This one is slightly diifferent as it was done using the small circular plate! I moved it around across the paper as well as in circles. These are actually my favourite prints! I love the cloudy effect the inconsistent pressure has on the ink. Also the tiny dots speckled around (from what I don’t even know) remind me of stars, and the shapes of countries. However I can’t find them right now as I think I forgot to take them šŸ™ Hopefully Tricia still has them!!

Mono-print, Made with my own bare hands covered in ink whew
Mono-print, Made with my own bare hands covered in ink whew

I think these also looked quite interesting hahaha I was running out of materials to use so I just thought about using my own hands! So I covered the linoleum square in ink, and pressed my hands into the ink. To not waste the ink on my hands I just pressed it all onto a piece of paper. Then I used a clean brayer to press the paper to the square, and out popped this print. Looks quite haunting to me, like some ghost is trying to push their way out of the paper hehe.

Mono-print, Made with a long piece of cloth

This one was made because I thought it was such a waste to throw away the long cloth after one use, so I tried to rearrange it on the square again and went through the whole inverse printing process. I used a brayer and it produces a super interesting effect I feel, with the sudden lines and grids appearing! I did not expect that effect at all, but I really like it.

Mono-print, Made with a string and leaves (credits to Dhanu lol)

This one was made in a RUSH but I think it’s really cool!! I used the brayer again to roll the paper, with a string arranged and a leaf I borrowed from Dhanu. I think it sorta looks like those prehistoric fish fossils from far away!! Or maybe it’s just me being weird at 1 AM whoops. :’)

I didn’t really have the idea of emotion in mind while I was creating the mono prints on Monday. I was more preoccupied with just experimenting with the prints and everything and I hope that was okay. Which I think it was because I think certain prints do express certain emotions! I’ll explore the theme of emotions more thoroughly when I go down to do the mono printing in my free time with new items. It’s super fun yall haha. See yall next post!

  • Niki

My Line is Emo: Mark-making Research

Hello world!

Okay this is very scary because I don’t write blog posts and I tend to run my mouth so I have to keep a watch over what exactly I’m writing in these posts because it’s open for the WHOLE INTERNET TO SEE haha.

Anyway, it’s my first week in Year One in ADM (and such a big workload already dear god) and we’re going to be starting the semester with mark-making! We were given a list of artists we can draw inspiration for mark-making from so I’m going to be documenting my research on a couple of these artists so I can make really marky marks.

 

The first one on the list is Ed Moses, specifically his drawings from the 1960s and 1970s. He was considered a central figure internationally in innovative artwork, and experimented wholeheartedly with different styles and ideas. I think a lot of his work involves layering and grids.

Ed Moses – Mouse. Picture taken from RadiusBooks.

This piece is titled Mouse. I really like the colour scheme that reminds me of a marble texture, with stark geometric shapes interspersed with the background. Despite the contrast, I don’t feel that the geometric shapes interrupt the piece, but rather complement the rough and textured feeling of the rest of the piece, resulting in a soothing yet interesting piece. I may use the idea of contrasting shapes and textures in my mark-making. No idea why it’s called Mouse though but whatever floats your boat Mr Moses

Ed Moses, Untitled colour lithograph on two sheets. Picture from Simultaneous Visions

This next piece from Moses inspires a really different feeling! However I think the theme of contrast and shapes still run through this piece. The harsh, angled black lines form a grid over a blue backdrop. The idea of the overlap suggests a form of transition in emotion from tranquility to something akin to rage or anger. I like the grid pattern a lot and I might try to replicate it in my mark-making!

 

The artist I’m researching next is Emma Kunz, who was a Swiss spiritual healer and artist. Her drawing are really interesting and abstract, and were meant to inspire healing, and were even drawn using radiesthesia, something that refers to the spiritual aura/radiation from our bodies. Too chim for me to understand LOL

Emma Kunz, Unknown Title. Taken from www.ruthhoggerresearch.blogspot.sg

This really looks so carefully drawn oh my like one line out of place would simply ruin the whole thing. I can see why her drawings are linked to healing! The orderliness of the lines and geometric shapes are super satisfying and the colours picked like the light blue and yellow really are also calming to look at. It reminds me of Ā light refracting out of a raindrop, you know like that rainbow diagram. Not that Kunz was thinking of raindrops when she was drawing this but it just looks like it to me :v

Emma Kunz, Unknown Title. Picture taken from Invaluable

This one I think is really pretty! It looks like some sort of gemstone with rays of light shining out of it. Again there’s that theme of geometry and precise line placement that makes this amazingly soothing to look at. I notice that her drawings generally have a center around which the rest of the drawing springs/slowly connects from. Perhaps that brings about a sense of stability and tranquility. That would be useful for mark-making emotions :0

 

The last artist I’ll be conducting research on for now is Julie Mehretu, who is a renowned American artist known for her abstract works of art.

Julie Mehretu, Black City, 2007. Picture taken from www.nytimes.com

THAT IS DAMN BIG WOW I think if I tried to upload the picture in its full quality my com would crash. Anyway wow!!! That’s really something. Like while the painting is technically a bunch of intersecting lines, there is a very clear feeling of crumpling and folding of a certain mass, and the splashes of colours and lines makes me feel like I see life in the painting, and not just in a detached way, but perhaps in the sense of a busy society or city. What an apt name. I really like the sense of chaos travelling-on-a-highway thing. Don’t ask me about the highway thing I just feel like there are highways in the painting :// I feel like her line placement is unexpectedly careful. I’ll perhaps use this as a reference for the emotion of excitement or life in my mark-making!

 

Okay that’s all for now. I can’t go on any longer or I’m gonna pass out and shut down lol good luck to me for the rest of the semester!!! Dream sweets :)))