Forrest Gump

“But better to not know which moment may be your last.  Every morsel of your entire being alive to the infinite mystery of it all.” – Captain Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)

Concept

My interpretation of the quote is how humans will go through their life and eventually, everyone will meet with death.

Methodology

The different clocks represent the different times in your life. I scaled the clock from small to big with the smallest one behind to give depth to the print. A silhouette of a person can be seen leaping from one clock to the other, this represents us moving to different phases of our lives. The final clock in the series, the wristwatch is the biggest in scale as it is the emphasis of the print. The placement of the clocks and the hands of the clocks are position as to bring our gaze to the wristwatch. The face of the watch is replaced with a deep hole which represents the end of life. Another silhouette can be seen falling into this hole. The contrast in colours between the two human figures shows the distinction between life and death. Also, the background depicts a warping clock which adds depth to the composition.

Initial Idea:

My interpretation of the quote in Ver 1 & 2 was about knowing when you are going to die.

Version 1: I wanted to display this in Ver 1 by having a clock and magnifying glass, the wormhole represents death. During the first consultation, the comment I received was that the composition was too literal.

Version 2: I changed the subject to a wristwatch with a deep hole and a person falling into it. The background was changed to question marks in order to relate it back to the idea of mystery. In the second consultation, general comments from the group were that the background was not necessary/relevant and that the arm was not obvious.

Version 3: I added more clocks to the mix, and this concept was used as a basis for my final print. In the final consultation, the group mentioned about not having enough depth and contrast. Another advice they gave me was to adjust the sizes of the clocks to build greater emphasis.

“Dreams feel real while we’re in them. It’s only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange.” – Cobb, Inception (2010)

Concept

Being pulled away from reality to a strange dream.

Methodology

For this composition, I was inspired by Salvador Dali’s works such as Persistence of Memory (1931), which exudes this unearthly, other dimension themes.

The boy can be seen being pulled away from earth in order to show the idea of being dragged from reality. For it to be a strange reality, I thought of using floating islands, big butterflies (that are bigger than dolphins) and people riding on flying dolphins. The placement of butterflies and dolphins helps to guide the eyes to the centre of the composition. Also, the couple floating in mid-air is placed in the centre to further give emphasis to them.

Initial Idea:

I initially wanted the emphasis on the idea of floating islands as an alternate universe. Hence, I placed 3 different sized islands. The person was portrayed to be on the moon.

Ver 1: I used this design for my first experimentation silkscreen printing. The threshold outcome of the islands appeared to look completely black and details within the island were lost. During the consultation, Joy advised on adjusting the contrast to help with this.

Ver 2: I further edited the images of the islands so that there was more contrast between the black and white. I changed the big island and moon to something that was much clearer. However, I realised that the composition did not create a strong enough impact and storyline.

“I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”— Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Concept

A marriage between irony (protagonist vs antagonist/ hero vs villain). I broke down this quote to two parts: solemnly swear; no good. You normally associate “no good” with villains rather than heroes. However, this quote was spoken by the hero of the show – Harry Potter. This is ironic because he is supposed to be doing good as a hero, not doing “no good”. “Solemnly swear” means to make a promise and I thought promises are most common in weddings.

Methodology

I selected the main male antagonist of the show – Lord Voldemort, and the main female protagonist – Hermione Granger. Fortunately for Hermione, I was able to find an image of her in a dress, dancing. However, this was not the case for Voldemort. In order to give the impression of him being at his wedding, I added a bowtie to his outfit. Also, I had to edit his arms slightly to make him appear as if he is dancing. For an extra touch, I gave Hermione a veil. Both of the characters can be seen staring at each other dancing under the wedding arch. I wanted the emphasis to be on both of them, thus I scaled them to be the main subjects of the composition. Their gaze at each other also helps to guide our eyes to the pair.

Initial Idea:

Ver 1: A combination of half of Harry Potter’s face (protagonist) and half of Joker’s face (antagonist) with a background of a map and footsteps to relate to the story behind the quote (Marauders Map). Also adding two hands in a pinky promise gesture to represent “solemnly swear”. After the first consultation with Joy, I realised that it was too literal to actually include Harry Potter’s face.

Ver 2: Through the feedback, I decided to dismiss the idea of using his face, and instead represent him in some of his popular characteristics – lighting scar and glasses. This was where I decided to include the idea of marriage. However, I thought that this composition did not express the idea of marriage well enough.

Ver 3: This was my final concept. During group consultation, many mentioned about some technical adjustments I should make such as making Voldemort’s head more apparent, using a different veil and making them stand out more. I asked the group whether I should use Harry Potter characters or more relatable characters that everyone knows, and in reply, they said that it was more interesting to use Harry Potter characters.

“The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all.” — The Emperor, Mulan (1998)

Concept

A ballerina who represent rarity and beauty facing adversities in order to bloom. For this composition, I wanted to stretch the idea of adversity in different methods. Firstly, the mountains she is on has sharp spikes. Secondly, the flower was replaced with a Venus flytrap which can close on her and devour her at any time. Lastly, “blooming” in the night when it is commonly associated with the day. The blood splatters represent her struggles she faced while climbing to the top.

Methodology

For this composition, I mainly had to get a good balance because I was using many different images. The moon at the top helps to balance the mountain and Venus flytrap at the bottom. Also, the ballerina is looking/pointing at the direction of the moon, this helps to balance it out even further. The emphasis for this composition was placed on the ballerina by scaling her bigger.

Initial Idea:

A blooming ballerina in a flower on a mountain.

Ver 1: For this composition, I thought that there was too much emphasis on the moon, whereas the ballerina had the least emphasis.

Ver 2: During group consultation, some mentioned that I could flip the ballerina so that she is facing the moon to have a better balance. Also, the blood stains appeared to be in a mess and had no clear direction.

Experimentation

This was my first time silk screening so I really did not know what to expect. During the process of silk screening, everything was going well until I started jet spraying my screen. I brought the nozzle too close to the screen, which caused it to lose its details and also resulted in peeling. Lesson Learn: Don’t bring the nozzle too close.

When printed (setting aside the jet spray mistake), it lost all the small details and the shape of the island was not clear. After printing, I realised that I need to work on the contrast of my images in order to include the small details.

Final

Learning from my mistakes during the first experimentation, I created more contrast in my final design. To make it stand out on the tote bag, I used threshold for all my images and altered it so that it is completely black and white with no grey.

During the jet spraying, I was extra careful about the distance. PS. I freaked out when I saw other people going too close with the jet.

I first tested the print on paper which came out well.

I was ready to try on a tote bag. But I wanted to be extra careful so I experimented using another tote bag. Oh boy did I made the right decision.

The mistake I made was pausing halfway through the paint coating process causing an uneven coating. Also, I didn’t put enough paint. Lesson Learnt: Don’t pause halfway, finish it with one clean swipe.

Finally, taking all this into consideration, I did my final print and it turned out well.

 

Research

Surrealism

Surrealism started in the early 1920s. Similar to Automatism, Surrealists artists allows the unconscious mind to express itself as a way to unlock the imagination. Their artworks show no sign of rationalism and realism, they believe in how the rational mind suppresses the power of our imagination. Artists of the surrealism movement created paintings out of their imagination which may appear to not make sense but with photographic precision. Their work features the element of surprise and unexpected juxtapositions.

Salvador Dali

Dali opted for his own style of automatism by making use of the unconscious mind, termed “paranoiac critical”, where he simulates delusion while maintaining one’s rationality. Dali himself referred to this form as an “irrational knowledge”.

Some of the themes that are reflected in Dali’s works are eroticism, death, and decay. His drawings were influenced by autobiographical material and childhood memories. His work contains many ready-interpreted symbolism, ranging from fetishes and animal imagery to religious symbols.

One of his famous works include the Persistence of Memory (1931)

Image from: https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/1168-2

Dadaism

Dada or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century.  This art movement was developed in reaction to World War I. Dada artists, similar to Surrealist Artist, rejected the idea of logic, rationalism, realism and aestheticism of the modern society. Hence, their work reflects nonsense and irrationality. Since this art movement was closely tied in with WW1, Dada artist reflects their discontent with violence, war and nationalism in their work.

Hannah Höch

Most of her work focuses on criticising gender issues such as androgyny, political discourse, and shifting gender role. In her works, she gathers photographic elements from popular forms of media, such as newspapers and magazines, and collages them in uncanny ways. The fact that these elements she included in her works were taken from this sources, further validates her message about gender issues. For her works, she dismembers and reconstructs these photographic elements.

One of her popular artworks is the Cut With the Kitchen Knife Through the Last Weimar Beer-Belly Cultural Epoch in Germany (1919-20).

Image from: http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_image.cfm?image_id=4209

 

Project 2: The Subverted Object

“Bucket”

Task 1

Bucket in a toilet”

Idea was to display the bucket in its “natural” environment. Buckets are usually found in homes either in the toilet, kitchen or garden. Specifically for me, my buckets are situated in the toilet. Fortunately, my toilet was all white, which contrasts with the bright blue bucket, thus emphasising the attention on the bucket.

“Water Bucket”

For this photo, I wanted to highlight the purpose/use of the bucket.Buckets can be used to hold all sorts of things such as sand, fruits, cement, etc. One of the most common use of a bucket in a usual Singaporean homes is for holding water. In general, “bucket” and “water” are closely related to one another. Notice how the background was blurred, and the focus is on the water ripples/droplets in the bucket. In order to create this effect, I used shallow focus.

“Bucket Splash”

Buckets can prove to be useful in times of emergencies such as a fire. When loaded with water, buckets can be used to put out fires usually in a home, where there are no fire hose or hydrant in sight. Other than emergencies, it can also be used for having some fun time, like splashing water at one another.  In the recent years, there was the ice bucket challenge for raising awareness for the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease (ALS) which is an example of how a water filled bucket had been used. This shot was tricky because I needed to ensure that I took the photo at the right time by making use of shutter speed. Also, had to ensure that the angling of the water splashing was just right.

Task 2

Time to activate my imagination.

“Fashion Bucket”

Subverting an object which is commonly used for cleaning or gardening, as a fashion piece. You do not normally see people carrying around a bucket as a handbag. Usually, if you do see someone carrying a bucket, it contains some household items, water, sand, etc.  In this photo however, the model is displayed to be out shopping with a wallet in hand and a bucket as a handbag. To display the normality of carrying a bucket as a handbag in the society, I photographed this in a public place.

PS. the wind was on point that day.

“Crying Buckets”

 

Metaphorically, cry buckets means to cry a lot.  I thought why not make it literal by having the buckets cry. Thus also subverting the object, as buckets are inanimate objects that are incapable to express emotions. I printed out some crying faces and attached a different crying face to each bucket. I decided to go for more than one bucket to emphasize on the plurality of “cry buckets”.

“Bucket List”

 

When I first thought of bucket and subverting a bucket, the first thing that came to mind was bucket list. Bucket list refers to the things that you wish to do before you die. Culturally, we associate a bucket list with a handwritten piece of paper, full of all things you want to do.

My idea was to have the list of things we want to do ON the bucket itself. So I gathered some of my classmates’ bucket lists and cut them out into small pieces of paper. I then proceeded to paste this pieces of paper onto the bucket. Thus, creating a list on the bucket, hence making a  bucket “list”.

I wanted to spruce things up a bit and added a balloon into the mix. The balloon is trapped inside the bucket, this represents how all of our bucket list has not been fulfilled yet. Hopefully, one day we will be able to let the balloon go and fulfill all of our dreams.

Task 3

The photo I chose for Task 3 is the “Fashion Bucket”.

In the poster, I added the title “Feel confident with Bucket™”.

I wanted to give the “Bucket” a branding and display it as a high end luxurious handbag such as Chanel, Gucci, thus I decided to add the trademark.

My concept for this was to display the bucket handbag as a new fashion trend. In the photograph, the model appears to look confident and proud despite the fact that she is carrying a bucket as a handbag. The idea was to “sell” the bucket handbag as a tool for customers to boost their confidence, hence the “Feel confident” in the title.

I wanted the poster to look like an advertisement that you can find in a fashion magazine. Thus, the overall image of the poster gives off a chic & edgy vibe suitable for a page in a fashion magazine such as Elle, Vogue or Harper’s Bazaar.

Brainstorm

During class, we went through a brain-storming session. Below are some images and ideas from the session.

This brainstorming session proved to be useful as I derived the idea of “Crying Bucket” through this exercise.

Challenges

Initially during my test shots, I found that most of my photos of the “Water Bucket” appeared too dark even though I used a bunch of light from my phones and a torchlight. During my consultation with Lei, she explained to me how high shutter speed images needs to be taken with strong lighting. She advised me on either using strong spotlights or take the photos outdoor for as much natural bright lighting. Taking Lei’s advice, I managed to capture the image the way I wanted it.

Conclusion

A common comment from the class and Lei was that I could have pushed the idea of “high-fashion bag” even further by photographing it in front of a branded shop such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, etc. Through this comment, I realised that I’m still trapped in my comfort zone in Foundation 4D and I should challenge myself to step outside of the comfort zone for my future projects.

Gaia Final Model – Flying Soba

“Flying Soba”

Why Soba you ask?

Soba is commonly associated with summer in Japan. Eating cold noodles in a hot, sunny day, who would not want that?

So why did I choose Soba when my theme was winter?

Winter in Japan falls from December to February with many festivals happening during the winter season. After some research, I found an interesting Japanese custom where they eat Toshikoshi soba noodles on New Year’s Eve. This custom derives from the belief that the thin, long noodles symbolises a long and healthy life.

Why “Flying” Soba?

Why not?

I was inspired by the recent trend of flying noodles.

After Project 1, I thought that I was overly ambitious in trying to create a dropping marble effect which proved my demise. However, I think if I am not ambitious and do not attempt to step out of my comfort zone, then I will never learn. Hence, I decided to take on the challenge but also trying not to repeat mistakes from Project 1.

Materials

I wanted to challenge myself to create the model entirely out of food. This proved to be quite a feat as most food does not resemble a cone, cylinder or a sphere. Hence, I selected my ingredients carefully and moulded this ingredients into the shapes required.

Dominant Cylinder – Soba noodles

There were plenty of videos on YouTube showing how to create flying noodles. Unfortunately, there were no videos showing how to make “slanted” flying noodles. So, I attempted this, without knowing whether it would be successful. During my experimentation, I managed to keep the noodles floating.

That was me, when the model stood on its own

I wrapped the soba noodles around the support to resemble the shape of a cylinder. In order to keep the structure standing, I had to use a clear thick straw which was poked into a potato, that acts as a sturdy base.

For the noodles, I used the dry soba noodles. I boiled the noodles and proceeded to leave the cooked soba in ice water to stop the cooking process.

 

Sub-dominant Cone – Ebi tempura

I thought an ebi (prawn) tempura resembled a cone. In order to ensure that the prawn remains straight instead of curling, while frying the ebi, I poked a satay stick through the prawn. Below was the tedious steps I took in order to make the ebi.

Subordinate Sphere – Quail Egg

To ensure that the egg is a subordinate, I used a quail egg instead of a normal egg. Usually quail eggs are in an oval shape. In order to shape it into a sphere, I wrapped the egg in cling wrap and moulded it into a spherical shape.

Initially, I wanted to create the soft runny egg yolk like those Japanese eggs you can find in ramen. However, I realised that in order to attach the egg to the model, I would have to poke a toothpick into the egg. Thus I did not see a point in doing so, since I would need to poke through the runny yolk.

Sub-dominant Something else – Wooden Chopsticks

Since I was creating flying soba, I thought the addition of the wooden chopsticks will give it a nice touch as now the chopsticks also appears to be floating in the air. I chose a wooden chopsticks to blend it together with the branch and acts as an extension of the branch. However, I think I could have made this more apparent by painting the wooden chopsticks the same colour as the branch.

Dominant Branch – Upright Branch

The flying soba created a vertical extension. I chose to utilize the upright Ikebana style and use an even longer branch to challenge the verticality of the flying soba. The height of the branch was around 2.5 times higher than the flying soba.

To suit the idea of winter, I chose a barren branch with no leaves. I added the cotton balls on the branch to represent the snow in winter. 

2D Sketch Analysis of Final Model

Conclusion

I am super glad that my model manage to stand. To be completely honest, I thought Murphy’s Law would strike me, and my model would topple during the presentation. I think I was (still am) traumatised by what happened in Project 1. Learning from my mistake, I secured it properly. And, Yay it worked! All in all, it was an enjoyable experience being a chef and a florist!

Links to previous post

Research – https://oss.adm.ntu.edu.sg/nora0020/gaia-research-ikebana-tastefood-seasons/

2D Sketch Models – https://oss.adm.ntu.edu.sg/nora0020/gaia-2-sketch-models-2d-sketch-analysis/

Gaia 2 Sketch Models – 2D Sketch Analysis

PS. One more final post to come

1st Sketch Model

For this sketch model, I decided to challenge myself by using the sphere as my dominant. My sub-dominant being my cone and subordinate being my cylinder. I pierced the subordinate (cylinder) through my dominant at an angle. After which, I placed my sub-dominant at another angle facing away from the subordinate.

2nd Sketch Model

For the second sketch model, I used a cylinder as my dominant with the cone as a sub-dominant and sphere as a subordinate. I wedged the dominant (cylinder) into the subordinate (sphere). I think I could have made the subordinate even smaller to differentiate it against the subdominant. Nonetheless, I decided to work with this sketch model for my final model.

Links to previous post

Research – https://oss.adm.ntu.edu.sg/nora0020/gaia-research-ikebana-tastefood-seasons/