VizCom

According to the lecture, Dadaists used collage and ‘found’ materials as a central focus in their work, recognising the potential for juxtaposing images in startling and violent ways as a means of highlighting t he perceived irrationality of modern life and responding to the horrors of war. Many aspects of their style, technique and aesthetics were borrowed from Futurists, in particular the art of typography. The Dada publications established the movement's visual identity, and its strong design signature, with a rebellious nature of Dada. Essentially, Dada was the first conceptual art movement where the focus of the  artists was not on crafting aesthetically pleasing objects  but on  making works that often upended bourgeois sensibilities  and that  generated difficult questions about society, the role of the artist, and the purpose of art. (In Progress)

Today we were tasked to find a photo and replicate it with lines to convey information. This is the photo I eventually selected in the end after much contemplation. Besides capturing the first ever untethered space walk in the history of mankind, it is perhaps one of NASA’s and space travel’s most iconic photos, being reproduced on calendars, books, magazines and merchandise even till this day. Photograph of Bruce McCandless II untethered in space, captured by Robert Gibson First, I traced the silhouette of the astronaut using a market ignoring contours. Next, I traced the details and the contours of the astronaut, and overlaid it over the first outline. Now, we can see the image of the astronaut in greater clarity. Even though we can tell very clearly that it is an astronaut, the face of the astronaut is obscured. And that’s the beauty of this image, that it could be anyone and not just NASA officer Bruce McCandless in the spacesuit. It is a representatio...

Contrary to previous journal entries, I will be using more bullet points, instead of writing in prose throughout… a departure from my usual style! For this week’s content, however, I find writing in this manner more comfortable, more structured and easily relatable :) This week, we visited Visual Representations, which are recognised as representing people, places, or objects by the viewer. We focused on two aspects of visual representation: Abstraction and Semiotics (the study of Signs – attributed to Charles Sanders Pierce!). Firstly, signs convey elements of a message perceivable by the receiver, through one of these senses Auditory (communicated by hearing) Visual (communicated by seeing) Tactile (communicated by touch) In fact, signs are everywhere around us – oftentimes they take the form of icons, symbols, and indexes. Icons (resemblance)   Symbol (convention) Index (existential connection/suggestion) Retrieved from: Koreaboo (2016). Here's why Ak...

Isabella Giancarlo Eat Your Heart Out 2016 Interactive Photo Series Response Love at first sight. Or is it love at first bite? Food and feelings are highly intertwined in various ways, whether it’s a cake associated with happiness and celebration, or a homecooked stew that evoke warmth and nostalgia. I was attracted to this piece at first because of its vibrant colours, and pleasant visuals (also because who can possibly resist desserts?), but was further drawn in when I realised the jarring contrast of breakup phrases on sweet treats. I chose this crowdsourced online photo series also because I thought as a form of Web Art, it was emblematic of how art forms are evolving today. It is important to note that this piece was done as part of an Instagram-based project by the artist herself – hence it will be good to view it the entire collection in full at https://www.instagram.com/eatyrheartsout/ to better comprehend and further understand the nuances behind food, dati...

What is it? Got a writer’s block? Can’t find the solution to your problems? Or simply just in need of a device to enhance your creative and critical thinking? Fret not for the Invincible Vacuum Pack is here to save your day! Just like how creativity is often found by rediscovering the extraordinary in the ordinary, the Invincible Vacuum Pack turns the mundane, everyday household equipment into a cognitive device of superpowered levels. Perhaps subconsciously, I was trying to drive across the point that creative thinking should never be seen as something impossible – they often say self-doubt is the greatest barrier to creativity – and I truly believe it is never beyond the ability of the everyday man. How does it work? My dream device the Invincible Vacuum Pack, or more shortly abbreviated as the IVP works almost like an evolved version of the conventional vacuum. It is painted in bright red to embody the passion, bold thinking and trailblazing inventiveness that I thin...

Today’s lecture was quite a content intensive one, we went into greater detail on the field of visual communication, and how composition is the placement and arrangement of visual elements or ingredients which is distinct from the actual subject of the work. This is often found in ‘good’ design or work. In particular, we covered the Fibonacci numbers, the Rule of Thirds, and Subject Composition. This week, due to the nature of the content, I’ll be giving a bullet-pointed summary first before going into application, reflection and takeaways. So sit tight yeah! :) Fibonacci Numbers Fibonacci Numbers First 21 numbers The beginning of the sequence (Fibonacci sequence): 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8… each number is the sum of the 2 preceding numbers Fibonacci number in a way is the basis of space division/growth in nature E.g. petals on flowers, geometry of crystals and chemical compounds, skeleton of animals and branching of veins Use of proportion in artistic endeavours/visual c...

Image Reference: Evarisitti, M. (2001). Helena . Retrieved from: http://artelectronicmedia.com/artwork/helena-by-marco-evaristti Mario Evaristti Helena 2001 Goldish, Moulinex Optiblend 2000 Mixer Mixed Media Installation In today’s tutorial, we had each brought a piece of artwork/design for the constructive critique exercise. Helena is an art installation from the early 2000s and even though some time had elapsed since I first saw it in a class back in Junior College, it’s still a piece that is very much etched in my mind (maybe because of the shock effect that it had. I’m still not over the trauma. I kid.) Response A goldfish. And a blender. Doesn’t quite sound like complementary things, or in facts words that you would even place together in a single sentence, but prolific contemporary artist Marco Evaristti managed to. Consisting of mundane household items – a blender, a household pet like the goldfish – confusion and disbelief will set in once you realis...