FINAL WORK
Below are 2 sketch pages of my planning for the final strips I am submitting:
And here is the final 6 strips of emotions I wish to portray:
I decided to use black and white mounting boards, with white containing pieces of positive emotions and the black containing the negative ones.
Here are the details on how I come up with these emotions:
Frustration
“At first, you made a small mistake. You got slightly irritated at yourself. You redid your work again. And again. And again. You are getting increasingly angry at yourself, for the multiple mistakes you have done. You are running out of time. You tried to control your own emotions as they are not helping you progress. And then you give up. You can’t stand it anymore. You ripped your work apart.”
This is the story I based on when working on this piece.
On a aluminum covered paper, I started out with a lone scratch using a metal ruler smeared with black acrylic paint, as the beginnings of ‘frustration’.
Slowly the scratches increases in volume. They are close together, as if they are being restrained. As the scratches increases in volume, stray scratches start to go berserk, as if they could not be controlled anymore, and then in one sudden moment, all the frustration cooped up inside is released.
I tried to crush only some parts of the foil, but it gives out feelings of being “hurt” or something similar instead.
This is the first sample I did. The increase in volume is too abrupt ,the scratches on the right are too close together and there are too many intense sharp lines, making it seems like anger instead.
This is the final piece.
Working on these ‘frustration’ pieces make me feel frustrated.
Curiosity
The feeling of wanting to know everything, of wanting to discover the unknown. The feeling that stirs within every human being.
Initially, I tried to make my own canvas. I first wrapped a piece of cloth tightly around a thick and hard piece of paper. Next, I painted the cloth white using acrylic.
However, the surface of this ‘canvas’ is too rough, and hence it is hard to experiment on. The end piece looks too sloppy.
Hence this is the final piece.
For the black mixture, I mixed these with ink and acrylic:
I feel that curiosity is the desire to try exploring and experimenting on everything you get your hands on. Hence I want to use different materials to create an interesting texture to the piece. I also used different mark making ways such as using a metal ruler in different positions and pressure. I also used twine to create long line lines to show an explosion of ‘creativity’ that comes when one is curious. I used the twine to create what seems like “sparks” of eureka moments as well.
The round markings, which are achieved by dripping ink mixed with water, represent the positive emotions that comes with the feeling of curiosity.
Some of the markings seem to go out of the paper, showing the notion of “thinking out of the box”.
This piece is indeed really fun to make.
Disgust
What makes you feel disgusted? For me, it is bird shit all over the walls I want to lean against. Imagine all the bacteria that reside in these little splatter of black and white. Imagine the possibility of contracting bird flu when you get in contact with them. Or any weird diseases. Gross.
For this piece, I decided to make my own poor quality paper. I rinsed a piece of drawing paper ( I got it from popular) several times, and painted it over with watery black paint after that. This creates a really rough texture to the paper.
Next, I placed it on top of a slab of badly chipped styrofoam:
The sides look like a old wall now. ( Imagine a wall that have not been maintained for many years. Imagine the amount of germs it has accumulated… Yuck! )
Next, I mixed these materials with black acrylic and ink:
The only difference the mixture is from the one used for ‘curiosity’ is the addition of hair ( This is clean. But just imagine the hunk of hair in the bathroom). I feel that there is a fine line between being curious, and going overboard by making something disgusting instead. Hence, the use of similar materials.
I dripped white acrylic paint onto the poor quality paper, and added in the black mixture. I then unevenly mixed the black and white ink.
I also dripped some ink at the side to make the final product looks even more disgusting. ( another reason why I used the Styrofoam block)
The end product looks like a fusion of bird poop and vomit.
Hopelessness
It eats you up. Slowly. Inch by inch. Then it consume you into darkness. Into the abyss. Into the void. By the end of it all, you will never see the light of the day again. The loss of any desire. The loss of any hope. This is hopelessness.
For this piece I decided to use a Styrofoam block (again) covered by a piece of soft foam.
The reason why I used the soft foam is because I wish to create a smoky effect later on, like a fog. Personally, whenever I feel hopeless, everything around me seem dark and hazy, as if there is a fog hindering my vision.
Next, I started to cut out the Styrofoam block:
As this is a negative emotion, I cut the Styrofoam in such a way that it is generally going in a downward direction. This shows how the feeling of ‘hopelessness’ consumes a person’s soul.
Then I painted the carvings black using a paint brush while the sides with a cotton wipe.
And this is the final piece.
Euphoria
It starts out with anticipation, and a bit of excitement. You feel like something even better is about to happen. You already feel quite happy already. You are quite enjoying the moment. Then excitement exploded. You are in a state of extreme happiness. You are in the state of euphoria.
.
.
.
The excitement is over. You are tired out. Drained. Mentally.
I used a black background as I feel that the intense happiness portrayed will be more pronounced when contrasted with darkness.
I decided to use a Styrofoam piece to create the work as it creates the kind of texture I want : lines that are not too soft, to show the intensity, but not too sharp either, as it will be interpreted as a negative emotion otherwise.
I started off with drawing round semi-circles that increases in volume progressively, to show the increasing excitement and happiness. The semi-circles are small to show containment. Then the feeling of excitement and happiness explode in intensity, hence the sharp long strip of white line. For me, euphoria is a feeling that is short-lived. Hence the increase is temporary. Thus, the abrupt decrease that follows. The lines gradually becomes broken and disappear as one starts to feel drained and tired out.
And this is the final piece.
Calmness
The sound of the flowing water. The sound of the waves at the beach that seems to wash away all your troubles. The sound of water dripping. The presence of water always makes me feel calm. Relaxed.
Hence, I decided to use the ‘flip cup’ technique to obtain a piece that resembles flowing water.
I used the black and white acrylic, and mixed them seperately with water to give it a liquid consistency.
Next, I poured a small amount of black paint into the container containing the white paint. I then covered the top of the container with a piece of drawing paper and flip the container around. I let the paint flow from right to left. here is the end result:
I let the paint flow from right to left for a reason. In the past, the Chinese tend to read from right to left. It was during that period that the pacing of the society was slower then it is now. Hence I hope that this flow of water will give viewers a change of pace, and perhaps make them feel more relaxed and calm.
This is the final piece.
As viewers see the piece from right to left, they can see that the flow of the paint becomes slower gradually, before going to a stop. This decrease in flow show the progression of entering a state of calmness, and I hope that viewers will enter that state as well.
Reflections:
This project has helped me to understand my own emotions better, and helps to portray my own emotions in a much more effective way then just words. I also had a lot of fun doing this project as I get to explore many different techniques.