Saturday, August 31, 2013

IVP4404 - Visual Literacy (2)

This course aims to familiarize participants with common modes of interpreting visual information. USing examples of wide-ranging historial periods and geographical locations, they will learn the fundamentals of relating the visual elements of an image to the context of its creation and reception. They will also gain an understanding of how visual elements of an image to the context of its creation and reception. They will also gain an understanding of how visual mages work in tandem with nin-visual forms, such as he written text and sound, to generate meanings. This course will also explore how knowledge of visual literacy can contribute to the teaching of art in the primary school classroom. 

Lesson conducted by Yow Siew Kah on every Friday at 930am - 1230pm in NIE-3-B1-06
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Lesson 2: 22 August 2013


lesson focus on formal analysis of images with reference to formal elements of art. 


(1) Lines can exist on a 
a. planar surface - canvas, wall or the ground or
b. virtual space - identification of item/ object based on its feature on the paper of pigment. eg. the sand in the picture below is a representation of sand in virtual space (cheem right???? actually, i also dun quite get it... wahahahaha......)
Two women on the beach by Chang Yu (Sanyu)
the curved lines used gave the picture a more feminine feel  

VS

Self portrait by Ren Xiong (1823 - 1827)
the use of straight lines in the clothing and angular shapes depicts a more masculine figure

there is also greater emphasize on the shoes to depict stability




What Do You Want From Me? by Claude Cahun

the removal of curvy lines (hair) removed the feminine aspect from the picture. so does the picture become more masculine just because the feminine curve is removed??? 

"Two heads, coupled in a monstrous union - Siamese twins generated by the camera - confront and struggle with each other. One face is alert, anxious, sympathetic: it looks out of the picture, towards the world, wanting to participate in it. The other head is turned inwards, towards its twin, and we catch only one hooded eye in a face that seems drugged, disconnected, vampiric. The shaven heads add to the sense of strangeness, of pathology. We might be looking at a picture in an old medical textbook. This is a violent image of a self divided, with the "normal" woman on the left haunted, preyed on, and somehow chastised by her nocturnal twin." - source


Farmer with farming tool by Liu Kang

 

the intensity of the lines to show light (and shadow) shows mass + volume in the picture 



The Fifer by Edouard Manet 
 there's a lot of margin around the picture hence we see the character as a whole. the character also seems further away from the observers. 


VS

On the beach by Paul Gauguin 
the picture is cropped in such a way (fingers cropped off and shoulder leaning against the edge) that the 2 large shape (women) are squeezed in a frame. this technique brings the objects closer to the observers and is commonly seemed in advertising  


(2) Colours 
The Calling of St Matthew by Caravaggio 

artist is famous for painting light effect on people who are drawn in great details. there is a gradual change in hue/tone to show the light effect (shadow). This artwork shows the light of an unknown source illuminating the room. 

formal analysis available here

VS

Whaam by Roy Lichtenstein 
 there's no gradation change in colour to show shadow as compared to the previous artwork. any changes is denoted by a total change in colour (pink and white of aeroplane - yellow, red and white of fire) 

this artwork is an example of monumentalizing (super big painting) the trivial (comic strip) 


A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte
by George Seurat 

colours are applied directly from the vessel without prior mixing. the different hue were created by placing the dots very closely together (pointillism) to let the observers dissolve the colour based on their own vision. 


Alexandrian Rose from WIlliam Farquahar Collection of
Natural History Drawings 

naturalistic colours - colours used are as close to the real object as possible as can see from the different hue on the flower petals and leaves


VS

Going to the Market by Hendra  Gunawan

there's a separation of objects with the actual colour as seen in the colour of the face in the lady in white. it is the artist's aim to not duplicate what is seen but what is imagined. 


(3) Texture 
Textile sensation is created when light is reflected off a surface into the eye

The death of David by Jacques - Louis David 

framing effect of the picture makes it look like a real happening behind a glass pane. the effect of painting (visible brush stroke) is completely smoothened out by the technique - licked finish where excess paint is removed tediously by mini brushes. this allows the observers to focus on the likeness of the content and not on the painting techniques. 


reminds me of Luciano Ventrone's oil painting which i saw at Gillman Barrack the last round. You just have to agree that the painting was so smooth and fine that it looks like a real picture. 


VS

Number 8 by Jackson Pollock 

colours used are very random, expressive (warm + loud colours) spontaneous and very obviously handmade 





untitled by Donald Judd

minimalist to the extend that observers will start looking at the hard + smooth texture of the material (aluminium + glass) which is a common material from every day items. it's an example of making what is not art into art. 


VS


Untitled by Eva Hesse 


Some of her artworks were in response to Judd's above.  She uses repetition and the same form (squarish) to show the connection between the two's works yet opposes everything other concepts that Judd's work depicts.  

She uses flexible, soft (oppose to hard) material to represent feminine.  She created multiple textures with one material (oppose to different material with the same texture - smooth) and using material which are not permanent (disintegrate with time) as oppose to solid material such as aluminium and glass



i really dun understand how can a piece of work remained untitled???? did the artist die b4 naming??? most of the time, the answer is negative.... means the artist was too lazy to name it/ cant be bothered/ can't find a suitable title for it???? 


(4) Spatial Depth, Perspective & Scale 
View of a Corridor by Samuel van Hoogstraten


direction of lines, diminishing point, relative size of objects (chair vs broom) to differentiate between far and near, foreground and background


VS
Woods and Valleys of Mount Yu by No Zan

this is a hanging stroll which is meant for group appreciation whereby a hand stroll (horizontal) is meant for the purpose of individual appreciation (by parts). 

The relative size is not established to differentiate between foreground and background. 



Alexander Visits the Sage Plato, a leaf from the
dispered manuscript of the Khamsa of Amir Khusrau Dihlavi

main character are placed in the centre of the picture. object/character of importance are usually drawn bigger with relation to others. eg. the sizr of the seated duo is the same as the standing character and larger than characters in the foreground which translate to them being at least 2 - 3 times the height the average characters in the painting.  



Hamlet in the Autumn Mist by Shi Tao

the objects in the foreground are drawn clearer  while those at the background are blurer, creating an atmospheric perspective. 


Harmony in Red by Henri Matisse


 using cool colours to show objects in the background through the window and warm colours to depict the interior of the house


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

This module is like the logically science & math in art. Very factual in terms of observable facts (lines, colours etc) as compared to the stories and experiences an artwork can make us feel.... in other words, kind of boring yet interesting that artwork can be interpret it in such a boring manner.... =P 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



this is part 4 of 7 parts to the series "Advanced Diploma in Primary Art Education". A series of blog posts that are updated weekly (from aug - nov) to document the activities, progress and learning point(s) from the week's lessons... =) 


Part 1 - IVP4401: 2D Exploration (1)(2 - 4)
Part 2 - IVP4402: 3D Exploration (2)(3)
Part 3 - IVP4403: New Media Exploration (1), (2)(3&4)
Part 4 - IVP4404: Visual Literacy (2)
Part 5 - IVP4405: Artistic Development of Children
Part 6 - IVP4406: Methods and Materials (1)(2)(3)
Part 7 - IVP4407: Curriculum Development and Assessment 



Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Singapore's N stands for Night festival 2013

Invited the chuas along for this year's night fest and enjoyed the unique experience of visiting museums (National museum and the Singapore Art Museum) together.. of which i think was a first for mummy and alfred...

cute gummy family outside Plaza Singapura


interesting logo along the way



Title: Paper planes
Artist: Pitaya Design
Venue: SOTA's entrance 



Title: Type Light
Artist: Trafik
Venue: The Cathay entrance
a very large (super brightly lit) led display screen
look out for facilitators with ipad who will let you key in messages to be displayed on the screen... 

saw someone nicked fatboy using this as a marriage proposal too oh... =) 




Title: The Magic Melody 
Artist: Tigrelab
Venue: Singapore Art Museum

a video mapping prologue on the facade of Singapore Art Museum which aims to establish a dialogue between architecture and people 


since museums are free for all, we decided to pop in for the aircon... heeee






these two works are part of the Terms & Conditions exhibition till 8 September 2013 which features rather morbid work about war and suicide... definitely not for happy people like us.... =P 


met mr tall guy along the way 

the bat infested tree outside National Museum 


poem formed with balloon letterings right at the entrance of National Museum 



蔡 mummy had lots of fun reminiscing her childhood in the National Museum's Singapore Living Gallery - Films & Wayang 

this was what  蔡 mummy was watching and listening to

The gallery exhibits the production and consumption of films in Singapore from the 1950s to 1970s where the social history of leisure is traced through a display of cinema related paraphernalia such as tickets, handbills, posters and magazines. The select display of Chinese and Indian-language materials show the different types of films that were watched in Singapore. In addition to the commissioned montage by Royston Tan featuring a brief history of the early development of cinema in Singapore, visitors can look forward to seeing clips from the films Lion City (1960) and Singapore (1960). 


Intricately sequined Chinese opera costumes and accessories worn by the opera veterans were also on display. Witness the spectacular Xin Sai Le Puppet Stage that belonged to Xin Sai Le, a Fujian troupe which came to Singapore in the 1930s from South China, and trace the development of Chinese opera and the emergence of home-grown films as popular entertainment in Singapore. 


we din have much time to explore all the galleries as we were more interested in the performances at the façade of National Museum 

overall, i had a great time because of the people who enjoyed the night with me... i just feel that this year's performance dosen dazzle as much as compared to last year's .... =( 

Hopefully the performances on 30 and 31 August will be better and if time permits, i might go for a second round to explore areas which i had left out... =)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


other posts in the Singapore's A to Z blog challenge series:


Sunday, August 25, 2013

IVP4406 - Methods & Materials (2)

new art terms for the day:


"Cold press paper has texture. Little bumps and groves holds in the water and pigment. It really sucks up the water pretty quickly. Cold press is a good choice when you want to convey texture in your subject.

Hot press paper is super smooth. No texture with this paper. This paper doesn’t suck up the water as fast as the cold press, allowing you to play around more, like re-wetting edges of pigment.
Colours painted on the hot press is more vivid and bright. The cold press is a little more dull even with the same paint. It could be that the pigment gets imbedded in the cold press paper and soaks thoroughly and perhaps the pigment on the hot press dries closer to the surface. Or maybe the tiny groves in the cold press creates an overall shadow to the eye." - source


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

it was a back to basic, back to nature lesson...


first, we were given a disposable chopstick to be sharpened with a penknife to be used as our writing/drawing tool.... 







in addition, it was mentioned that a fresh broken twig/ branch makes a even better tool for writing & drawing. Due to its fibrous nature, it can hold more ink than the processed chopstick. 




using the 5 pen techniques to create different intensity 

David's version


Candy's version



online version 


then we had to practice drawing solid figures with shadow using the 5 pen techniques



Candy's version



expert classmate's work



online version 




youtube version



Drawing on cold press paper which i made the week before  


seriously need help with drawing and shadowing... =S  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Natural dye vs Synthetic dye 

David demonstrated how to create blue dye from blueberry fruit



Procedure 
1: crush the blueberries
2. boil the blueberries 
3. add a few dashes of fixer (table salt) just b4 switching off the fire
4. filter to remove the pulp

and tatatata... u will get blueberry dye that is not blue but will oxidise and continue to change and only finally stablise into a nice shade of blue approx a week later... 

natural red and yellow dye can be made from strawberry fruit and turmeric power respectively 



(i know i had painted the green and orange in the wrong section hence, the mini arrows... heee)
the natural and synthetic dye on cold press recycled paper




natural and synthetic dye on cold press water colour paper 

i like how the combination of natural and synthetic creates a shimmer effect when applied to hot press paper and the pastel like colours of natural dye.... =).... just hope that they dun grow mouldy after some time due to the presence of living organisms in the dye... =S




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


this is part 6 of 7 parts to the series "Advanced Diploma in Primary Art Education". A series of blog posts that are updated weekly (from aug - nov) to document the activities, progress and learning point(s) from the week's lessons... =) 



Part 1 - IVP4401: 2D Exploration (1)
Part 2 - IVP4402: 3D Exploration (2)(3)
Part 3 - IVP4403: New Media Exploration (1), (2)(3&4)
Part 4 - IVP4404: Visual Literacy (2)
Part 5 - IVP4405: Artistic Development of Children
Part 6 - IVP4406: Methods and Materials (1)(2)(3)
Part 7 - IVP4407: Curriculum Development and Assessment 



Saturday, August 24, 2013

IVP4403 - New Media (2)

based on the 9 types of photo compositions which we studied last week, we had our on-site photography lesson at Yuan Ching Road this week .... =)


sharing the pieces which i had submitted as this week's assignment


(1) alternative viewpoint - my robotic frend



it's an angle shot taken of this letter box



(2) asymmetrical balance 


another asymmetrical balance photo, not for submission, but as attendance taking.... wahahahaha 




(3) framing - my homeland
 love how the shapes of the 2 holes ofa dried leaf which i picked up from the ground formed the shape of Singapore island



(4) imbalance - perspective matters
....not there yet there... 
a weightless line painted on the ground giving so much weight to the right side of the photo.... 

i think this photo can be classified under 'leading lines' too




(5) leading lines




(6) minimalist - selfie
 i thought this should be classified under 'alternative viewpoint' but tutor said that it should be 'minimalist'...


i had wanted to submit this 'self realisation' photo as a minimalist photo initially de
i m 32





(7) pattern 





(8) rule of 3rds





(9) symmetrical balance - i wish 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

though the sun was so hot that it gave me a headache, i had fun viewing my photos as well as those from my coursemates.... am really looking forward to more photography lessons... hopefully can learn how to adjust shuttle speed, photoshop etc ... =) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



this is part 3 of 7 parts to the series "Advanced Diploma in Primary Art Education". A series of blog posts that are updated weekly (from aug - nov) to document the activities, progress and learning point(s) from the week's lessons... =) 


Part 1 - IVP4401: 2D Exploration 
             (1)(2 - 4)

Part 2 - IVP4402: 3D Exploration 
             (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7 - 9) 

Part 3 - IVP4403: New Media Exploration 
             (1), (2)(3&4)(5 & 6)(7 & 8)(9 - 12)

Part 4 - IVP4404: Visual Literacy 
             (2)

Part 5 - IVP4405: Artistic Development of Children

Part 6 - IVP4406: Methods and Materials 
             (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6&7)(8)(9)

Part 7 - IVP4407: Curriculum Development and Assessment