The Flower

The Flower 76172, 2007, Copper wire, 172x172cm

A copper wire frame shaped like a flower, with a complex system of thin, metallic wires, forming what seemed like the map of the many vein structures that can be seen on the flower petals. This is Cheong Kwang Ho’s artwork The Flower and it is hung on one of the walls in the Singapore Art Museum, leaving for various interpretations from the viewers.

When I first saw this artwork, I remember asking myself, “What is this?” for it seemed like an artwork that is neither a sculpture nor a drawing, but something in between. After much thought, I realized that it could be seen in both ways, depending on the observer’s point of view.

Cheong Kwang Ho has adopted a unique way of creating his art piece; he ‘drew’ inside the space using wires. When viewed as a drawing, the thin wires represent pencil lines, blending into the air. It hangs in mid-air, giving it a rather mysterious feeling to the whole piece. This also makes it more unique and different from the other paintings on canvas. When viewed as a sculpture, The Flower is a see-through 3-dmentional piece, which is quite empty and is filled with much space. It has no body, thus, giving it a light and buoyant sensation to the artwork.

The use of thin copper wires as the main structure of the art piece makes it look delicate, fragile and almost evanescent, but at the same time, sophisticated and of much importance. In my opinion, this probably suggests that nature, as represented by the flower, can be easily destroyed by us, with the swipe of an axe. Yet nature is in fact important and deserves our utmost respect. Through his artwork, Cheong Kwang Ho conveyed such a familiar message, but not in a monotonous fashion. A picture indeed speaks a thousand words.

I liked this piece because it stood out from the rest of the artworks, which were mostly paintings on canvas. I also enjoyed the quietness and the tranquility of the piece in contrast with other pieces which are rather intricate and elaborate. I admired this piece for even though it is simplistic, it holds an important message for the viewers, and the message is conveyed rather effectively.

Unpretentious, yet sophisticated, The Flower is indeed one of a kind.

Here're his other works:

The Pot 51191, 2005, Copper wire, 91x91x91cm

The Leaf 81170, 2008, Copper wire, 170x165cm

Same median, different feel

The Singapore Art Biennale, a once in two years event, is the largest contemporary art biennale in Singapore. In conjunction with the theme ‘wonder’, this exhibition holds over a hundred artworks, from both local and foreign artists. Yet I was most drawn to a specific artwork, ‘I Wonder Why?’

A room filled with sculptures of children’s tricycles, urns, a bed and other everyday objects, layered with a coat of charcoal. A video of a large fire is shown on the walls, as if the room is engulfed in flames, licking every corner of the room. This is Prasad Srinivasa’s artwork, I Wonder Why?

With the ‘fire’ as the only light source, the room is set in darkness, the charcoal-coated sculptures as shadows of the already burnt objects. Indeed, the artist has set an atmosphere where viewers seemed to be a witness or even a victim to the merciless fire. Both sight and sound contributes to the atmosphere and aids in delivering the message the artist intended.

When I first entered the room, I was overwhelmed by the sound of the fire, and the conversation with my friends, which I was so engrossed in, stopped abruptly. I stared in awe as my eyes adjusted to the sharp contrast of the brightness from the flickers of the flames in the video and the darkness of the room. Some of the objects were laid on the floor; others were kept suspended in the air by some wires. The charcoal-coated objects were sewn everywhere, and I had to pick my way across the room in order to avoid touching the objects, and damaging them.

Why did Prasad Srinivasa create this artwork? What contributed to this idea? What is the message he wanted to send across to the viewers? These are some of the questions I pondered over as I entered the room.

After much thought, I figured that ‘I Wonder Why?’ brings to mind a burning society and a burning family; one of passion and tragedy. As fire spreads across vast areas in seconds, it is hard to control and foretell the outcome after the fire. Therefore, it is feared. Similarly, in this modern and fast changing world, it is difficult to predict the rise and fall, tragedy and happiness.

While fire is a powerful expression that stirs our emotions, it also relates to creation, spirituality and the origins of the world. While fire kills and destroys, plants and nature still thrive on the ashes and remains of the fire.

One other similar artwork that uses charcoal as one of its medians is ‘Everytime We Say Goodbye 好久不见’ by local artists, Tang Ling Nah and Willie Koh.

This artwork features three interconnected rooms and a corridor, covered with charcoal drawings of different parts of the rooms, like pipes, windows and doors. A video of similar photo shots is shown in the third room. As charcoal is used, the rooms are generally dark and are pictured in black and white in the video and drawings. The drawings are also given much shading, giving it a 3-D look and a life-like appearance.

Despite the two different medians used, charcoal drawing and video, both artists tackled the same ‘feel’ of the site, and worked on their artwork in similar ways. As this site used to be a housing area for soldiers in the army, it is very much rundown and has a sense of hardship and sorrow, which is similar to the ‘feel’ evoked by the artwork. Therefore, there is a link between the two medians and the site chosen.

I admired the great amount of detail and effort Tang Ling Nah put in the large charcoal drawings. Willie Koh’s video, also shown in black and white, captured the architecture elements in the different rooms.


Why did they create this artwork? Why does the artwork have such a unique title?

In my opinion, the general ‘feel’ of the artwork is of sorrow. With reference to the title of the artwork, ‘Everytime We Say Goodbye好久不见’ I figured that the artists probably wanted to portray the longing and depression when one’s loved ones die or leave us for a long period of time; the longing and depression of separation.

The artists of the two artworks used similar medians yet the message they convey are different. This is probably due to the different ways the artists used the medians.

Both artworks, ‘I Wonder Why?’ and ‘Everytime We Say Goodbye好久不见’, used charcoal as one of their medians to convey the message the artists were trying to put across. It turned out that both artworks evoked a similar yet unique ‘feel’ of darkness and sadness even though charcoal was used differently in the artworks, one as coatings for sculptures and another as drawings.

Both artworks also showed a video. The video of the fire gives the artwork its meaning and without it, the artwork will be incomplete and incomprehensible. Whereas, the video used in ‘Everytime We Say Goodbye好久不见’ adds to the sad atmosphere and enhances the sorrow evoked from the artwork. Video is used in both artworks, yet the purpose they serve differs from one another.

Indeed, ‘I Wonder Why?’ and ‘Everytime We Say Goodbye好久不见’ are both unique in their own ways, even though the medians used are similar.

Pinhole photography

Concept...
Walk past the Nanyang track and one would surely see several students training their stamina for upcoming competitions. And every time I am running on the track, I would push myself, " one more round, just one more". Just like how Nanyang pushes us to our limits and unleashes our fullest potential.

But Nanyang does not just 'throw' us tasks and leave us clueless. Instead, through lessons, discussions and assignments, we are guided by our teachers and peers, who do not hesitate to help us in whatever task is given. This spirit is portrayed in the photograph by the Nanyang clock tower, which overlooks the track giving a sense of security and ease.

With the help of teachers and peers, we are then able to work towards the goal---the goal of "Every Nanyang girl a respected member of society". Four years in Nanyang leave us better prepared for the challenges ahead. though I have yet to complete these four years, it can be proved by the achievements by our senior, who have already left Nanyang's 'walls of protection' and stepped into the much feared society with confidence.

Improvements...
If I were to retake this scene, I would use a larger pin-hole camera and a bigger piece of paper. This is so that not too many details are being cut off; such includes the Nanyang clock tower and part of the track. Being the main objects in the photograph, they should have been fully captured and not cropped.


More works...

taken after a heavy downpour. The floor of the quadrangle is thoroughly wet, and thus acts as a great 'mirror', showing the reflections of the buildings.

More detailed photograph. Probably due to less shaky hands when handling the pinhole camera. But not very well composed: the trees, bushes and buildings took up most of the photo.

Taken outside the general office. it was much brightly lit as compared to the natural lighting outside, thus the strong negative contrast in the foreground as compared to the background.

 photo of the classroom taken from the 'ant's perspective'.

Failed Tryouts...

Lessons learnt...
One thing that I have taken away is to estimate rather accurately. For instance, the position that the camera should be placed such that the composition would be just right. Many times I have captured a scene which is rather different from what I had in mind and ended up retaking the scene. I also had to estimate the number of seconds to expose the paper, because most of the time, the EV calculator 'disappears' Therefore, I had to estimate based on trial and error, as well as by comparing the brightness of the current scene to the previous scene.

Another important take away is that one must have patience. More often than not, the photograph turns out to be either overexposed or underexposed. In other words, it is very difficult to find the perfect exposure time especially without the EV calculator. Thus, one must be patient enough to try repeatedly the various timings in order to get the exact exposure time.

Cezanne's 172nd B'day :D

It's Cezanne's 172nd birthday!
......or at least it was 2 days ago.

Paul Cezanne is a French Post Impressionist painter, whose artworks and unique ideas were played a major part in the aesthetic development of many 20th-century artists and art movements, especially Cubism. Unfortunately, Cézanne's art was misunderstood and discredited by the traditional public during a large part of his life. His works were adaptations of the Impressionist movement, which eventually challenged all the conventional values of realistic painting in those days. Cezanne's art emphasized on the artist's personal expression on the subject matter and on the integrity of the painting itself, instead of blindly painting according to reality.

In this painting of Mont Sainte Victoire, for example, shows much influence from the Impressionist movement. The colors of paint are not blended together at all, as a typical traditional work ought to be. Instead, paint is applied in blocks of pure colors to be merged by the viewer's eyes at a distance.

Well, it's accepted by the public now (in fact the original work will sell for millions or even billions!), but in his time, it was considered wrong and incorrect. It appeared sketchy to many; no well blended paint strokes, no realistic depiction of the subject matter. It was nothing like the Romantic or the Neoclassical works that the artistic world was so used to.

So much of his fame only came after his death.
I guess that's the life of artists, and the money goes to art museums and investors. That's probably why many parents discourage their children in taking up artistic careers. But if you're very interested and passionate in art, then I suppose one should pursue it, and one would find many wonders and joy ahead in life
:)

contour drawing tryouts

Last year Mrs Tan conducted a practice during AEP lesson.

First, we were to sketch our hand, with all the lines and shadings, based on observation of our hand.

Here's what I drew:

Then, I was rather pleased and satisfied with my sketch.

Next, we were told to stare at our hands and draw as our eyes trace the contours or any wrinkles of the hand. The hard part: without reference to the paper on which the hand is drawn. Here's what I did:

Well, I tried. But it turned out to be a mess of swirly lines...

Finally, we were allowed to look at the paper while we trace the contours of our hand with our eyes and sketching it on paper. 30% of focus on paper, 70% on the actual hand, and...

TADA...

It wasn't shaded, but the lines were more sensitive, with more wrinkles shown in the sketch as compared to the first sketch.

Yup, most of the time, we would usually tend to draw/sketch something based on memory or our impressions of the subject matter, instead of paying attention to the actual subject itself. This would lead to less accurate drawings of the subject, which would more likely turn out to be idealized and modified to become more perfect (e.g. less wrinkles and other details). I suppose that's why many artists paint with real life models and set-ups so that their paintings and drawings would be more realistic.

Shadow art

I was wondering what to do for coursework over the december holidays and I decided to try something different. So I typed in junk art in the google image search box. and this is what I found:

Upon first look, one would see nothing but a pile of junk, as if one had paid for a ticket to a rubbish dump. But when light is projected against them, one would be amazed at the shadow image which is entirely different to that seen when looking directly at the deliberately disguised pile.

This is one of the notable pieces made from piles of rubbish, deliberately positioned to form shadow images of recognisable forms. British-born and -based artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster have skilfully skirt the boundaries between beauty and the shadowier aspects of humanity, playing with our perceptions as well as our notions of taste. They have indeed given junk a new lease of life.

Next, I googled 'shadow art' and tada:

Kumi Yamashita is Japanese artist who is creating amazing artworks based on shadow rather than light. He has an amazing sense for shapes, thus being able to create everyday objects and recognisable subject matter from the shadows of letters and numbers. Most of his installations are made of some specially positioned objects and the most important part of his artworks is the light source which, when is confronted to those objects from a proper angle, creates shadow images on the wall. Essentially, the Yamashita is using shadows as an artwork, a fascinating and creative idea.

In this case, wires are twisted to a 'controlled mess' to form words. Entering the artistic space of Fred Eerdekens forces the viewer to ponder over words which what one had thought of as stable meanings are continually twisted and turned. In this sense, this piece is interactive as the viewers would have 'twist and turn' and trying to make sense of the objects.

Shadows are indeed a fascinating and different medium to create art. What appears at the surface may not be what it seems. This applies to shadow art, where the objects are a scattered mess while the shadows are neat and recognisable. Similarly, we may not really understand our closed ones. I was inspired by this and have decided to investigate in this area as an option for my coursework:)

anti drug wallpaper competition 2009

final composition

other compositions

The final composition shows a drug addict being sucked into a capsule. His face is distorted with agony as he tries to reach out for help. The other hand, which represents the viewer, tries to save the drug addict but fails. The other capsules in the background suggests the other addicts being enclosed within, with no escape. Once a drug is taken, one will be pulled into the world of addiction and be permanently trapped. With this concept in mind, I suppose that the ultimate aim of this painting is to warn the viewers of the detrimental effects of drug addiction, both mentally and physically.

I chose this composition as I felt that the message comes across more strongly. This is because the 'sweeping' brushstrokes of bright yellow and white effectively creates the suction force, which pulls the person in. Bright colors are also used to attract the viewer's attention, thus engaging the audience more.

straw mushrooms (water color)

My first water color painting assignment in sec 2. We were given several mushrooms to choose from, arrange it in an interesting way and complete a water color painting on it. I chose the straw mushroom (don't ask me why). The caps of the mushroom is too dark, but the stems are fine, esp the horizontal one. I suppose more practice would do me good >.<

Random Sketches

 

I felt rather bored over the holidays so I went to the library (cos it was really hard to concentrate at home, with all the screams and shouts) and settled down with a notebook. My favorite sketch is the last one of the lion which seems tamed and even appears to be motherly. It's amazing what changes an artist can do to the character and features of the subject matter.

water color tryouts

some water color tryouts done over the holidays. In my opinion, water color is one of the hardest medium to master, as it gets dirty easily when unsuitable colors are mixed together and too much black is used. Once paint is applied, it cannot be removed or covered. But the effects of water colors are natural and realistic.