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Learning Journey Reflections

National Gallery Singapore (Semester 1 Week 2)

For our first learning journey, we when to the National Gallery of Singapore to view the exhibition: Ever Present: First People Art of Australia. This exhibition is meant to display the historical and contemporary works of over 150 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists from across Australia. Through their work, we do not just get to experience the native culture and history of the Aboriginal people. But we also see how the complex history of oppression has impacted their art and have used their works as satire to confront these realities. This exhibition has been split into 3 sections that help to document Australia's past and present-day and draws out its link to Southeast Asia.

Palunya: that's all - Dr Pantjiti Mary Mclean

Children’s Games - Bruegel the Elder

One of the first few art pieces that caught my eye was this painting called: Palunya: that's all, by Dr Pantjiti Mary Mclean. I think that it was a very captivating piece that captured the day-to-day life of the artist when she was small, playing with dogs and seeing men hunting, women digging, and singing and dancing all night. It is a very

nostalgic piece of art that harkens back to much simpler times of the artist's childhood. But as I look at this piece, I was reminded of other artworks which also depict many people going about their various life. I guess the first one that came to mind was The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch. It is a rather disturbing piece of art but the main point that I related both pieces to was the various details given to the people in the painting. Other more light-hearted works would be Children’s Games by Bruegel the Elder and a more modern example would be Where is Waldo? by Martin Handford. I think from this I can see the influence that other artists have taken from the past and how they have deviated from each other. Additionally, it also reminded me of the recent class on observations and just how much things can be observed if we keep our eyes open to them. But to also be able to filter out what is important.

The Garden of Earthly Delights - Hieronymus Bosch

Where is Waldo? - Martin Handford

ASH on ME - Tony Albert

Another piece that stuck my curiosity was a piece called ASH on ME by Tony Albert. It is meant to be a politically charged piece that speaks on the way Aboriginal people have been objectified by others. It is honestly very degrading to have an image akin to your own self be used to be filled with ash, which is like dirt. And truly I cannot imagine the utterly horrible reality that these people were living in that has continued to seep into our present day. Media and marketing play an important role in shaping our thoughts and perspective of our world. And that is especially so at a young age. Seeing such items at such a young age can really change the way children perceived not only others but themselves. Sadly these types of propaganda are not just present for the Aboriginal peoples. 

When I first saw this piece, I was reminded of the Jim Crow Museum in America which also collect similar items showcasing the objectification of African Americans in the past.  The sheer amount of items and variety is really disturbing and shows the extremes that propaganda and media can result in. All this imagery that the people were surrounded by painted a very wrong and hurtful stereotype of this group of people. And just like for the Aboriginals, it perpetuates the terrible beliefs of others and degrades these people. As someone that does design, it is important that I know how my designs are impacting others and how it is used. Design is not only used to create good things, it can be used to bring others down. And it is only up to the individual that designed it to decide its use.

Truly this exhibition has really been an eye-opening experience for me. Previously, I had not really seen much of this type of art and my knowledge of their history and culture was rather shallow. But through looking at the many different art pieces, I have a better understanding of them as a people and has given me the curiosity to find out more. I am also just struck by how similar we all are and how even though we live miles apart, their culture and way of life have so much in common. And truly make you shift your perspective on why we still create a system that oppresses others that are only minutely different from us.

Natinal Gallery Singapore (Week 2)

Creative Presentation (Semester 1 Week 4)

Mandy Goh - Talent Development Director

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On the fourth week, we were given a presentation from Mandy Goh and Loo Yong Ping. Mandy Goh presented first. She is a Talent Development Director for TBWA\SG. TBWA promotes itself as a disruptive company who take pride in the fact that they don't do things the common and traditional way. She first started by asking us why we would join a creative company. Ultimately it boils down to 3 things:

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  1. Passionate about creative work

  2. Surrounded by creative talent

  3. Love Challenge

As her company is a advertising company, she will receive cilent that wi.. come to her with a business problem. And their goal as designers is to create solution for them.

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So the have theeir own approach to how they do their design business. It is sumed up below:

THE CONVENTION

THE DISRUPTION

THE VISION

Some examples were given to illustrate how they demostrate it. The first one shown was the AirBNB. Below are the key points that they have taken for this project. The end product they decided to present was an advertising video that showcase may different location around the world. The set was all hand made giving a more natural vibe that though imperfect in some area was still beautiful. Which relates to the message of AirBNB desiring to give users a more authetic and real experience in the country they visit

Stranger are people you avoid, ignore or fear

A World with no stranger

Use the power of human hospitality to open up the world so people feel that they can belong anywhere

The second example she showed was from Gatorade. They didn't want to compete with other sport drinks but wanted to compete with sport wear brand. Based on their aproach, they decided to instead of thinking it is the items you put on to suceed in sports. But something coming from within is greater than what is worn on. "In is better than On" It was re-phrased into this slogan for Gatorade: #Win From Within. The reason it was re-phrased is that with slogans, it has to be inspiring, Hence the wording matters and it has to have a strong insight & angle.

Training & Equipment -

The thing you put on are all you need to win

IN is greater than ON

Athletic performance is driven from the inside

Their company locate and involves brands in moldern cultur. Their competition is everything in our culture. They introduced to a cultural intelligient unit powered by the global TBWA collective called Backslash. What it does is that helps to spot triggers and trends in our pop culture. These trends and triggers can help to level us up to a global edge. It is a good way to bring conversation to their cilents and idea for the creative. 

Loo Yong Ping - Creative Director

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During the next half of the presentation, Loo Ying Ping took over. The first thing he said was to Be Open, Be Awake, be Present, No Phone. Even though we were from different domains, let's put Creativity first! And don’t let domain or anything define you. This presentation as about public speaking. Many, including me, hates public speaking. But it is important as creatives to present our ideas concretely. We should present like a creative, in a way that is relevant as a creative from the heart. The question we have to push are how far can we push the client, how far can we market it? Everything add ups, from our experiences to texture, etc.


So what is advertising? Advertising is the art of convincing people to spend money they don’t have for something they don’t need. How do we sell it? If we can’t sell it and convince others, its going to end up saved in your phone and no one will see it. He showcased some examples like the Singapore airline commercial he filmed. He gave us some pointers on how to prepare for a presentation. They are as follows:

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  1. Building decks --- it is your way to make a first impression to the company, to other

  2. Because people are judging --- so give a good impression of confidence

  3. 16:9 --- ideal screen size

  4. Avoid PowerPoint. Use Keynote. 

  5. Put effort into it --- You want to “Spoil Market”

  6. Make it special  ---- Be memorable

  7. Make it stand out


Where do you start when you design a deck?
Next he gave us some tips on how we should create our deck to look nice and present clearly. Here are the pointers he gave:

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  1. Cut the Fat. Leave only what is relevant.

  2. Be clear. You need to captivate them. So don’t put so much info

  3. Connect your point. You cannot jump between point. Story telling. Natural progression and a recap at the end

  4. Digestible content

  5. Be memorable. It is a presentation of your idea.

  6. Less word = more pictures = better video = Best 

  7. Must be legible through front, colours layout. Be consistent unless it is intentional

  8. Follow a grid + have guideline 

  9. Stop only when it is the Deadline or you are dead. Crafting till the end. If you are satisfied with my first idea, that means I’m lazy or a genius (I’m not)


How to present?

Afterwards he shared some tips on how to present things clearly:

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  1. Be confident. If it is your turn, it is your turn to shine. Have a clear confidence

  2. Rehearse. I can’t just go on the fly. Even if things go wrong, you still need to be able to present. No one will no I have gone wrong, only me. So just wing it pass them

  3. Add cues in your slides. Land Key Points. Just use it if you need so you aren't staring at it all the time. 

  4. Do not copy and paste your entire script in the slide. Allow for flexibility. If not, the punch line is lost.

  5. Make eye contact. 

  6. Use your voice. Don’t worry about your volume, accent, pronunciation 

  7. Read the room. It allows you to arrange your body language. It allows you to see if everyone understand. It is an art.

  8. Work together in a group

 

How to be creative?

Lastly, he went through some tips on how to be creative:

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  1. Take pride even though others don’t know what we do

  2. There is no formula

  3. Research. Because we are not an expert on the topic. It gives us insights

  4. Experiment. 

  5. Empathy. Insight comes from the inside. It allows us to feel.

  6. CATS 5CS of a Creative

  7. Coffee, Curiosity, Courage, Crazy, 

  8. GRIT. “The secret to outstanding achievement is not talent, but a passionate persistence”

  9. Do not beat myself on what we can do today. Have your own personal belief. Surround yourself with friends who will build yourself up

  10. It is the idea not the speed. The core is the idea. It is the hardest part.

 

Working as an individual is easy if you are good individual. You can manage yourself and push yourself. As a team, you have people at different percentages of putting themselves in. It is how to push the rest to the same goal. A team has more brain, more ideas but can have more trouble. 

Creative Presentation (Week 4)

Building a Sustainable Beauty Brand (Semester 1 Week 5)

On the 5th week, we had a sharing from Hann Chia, Founder of Fawn & Co. It is a sustainable beauty brand in Singapore. She first started by sharing about her past and how she started out as a dancer, before moving into the fiance industry, before moving on to be an entrpreneur, starting her own business. The first half of the presentation was about Entrepreneurship.

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Entrepreneurship

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The first point she said was to not lock yourself into one area of study. She used her own life as an example of thi. Entrepreneur is not about finding a problem to solve, it is about learning and investing yourself in the situation. The most difficult decision is when to start. If you hold yourself back, you will never learn about anything. So don’t be afraid of change butembrace change instead. They say to think outside of the box but why not don’t have a box at all and always try to think out of it. When you see something that is positive for your development, don’t wait for something to push you. Take the first step yourself. Keep changing & changing your mindset.

 

The second point she mentioned was to invest in yourself. With whatever you do. go with an intent to learn first. You DO not underestimate the other’s person’s emotional intentions. They will know what you have come here to do, people will know what you want from them. If you approach with no interest towards the other person, then they will most likey not be willing to share anything with you. Basically the attitude you should have is one that questions what can I learn, what can I give. It is through you giving that you are able to grow. So never stop wanting to grow and learn.

Starting up a business related to sustainability

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The next half of her presentation went through the process of starting a business to do with sustainability in Singapore. She first provided us with more contextual information on Singapore. In Singapore, less than 4% of what we recycled are actually recycled. They are send to other countries to recycled, we don’t know what actually happen. Other waste gets incinerated. She gave us a situation where we had to chose what type of beauty product to choose. The difference was one was plastic, glass and biodegradable material. You would think the glass or biodegradable material would be more sustainable but that is not true in the context of Singapore. Since almost all our rubbish gets incineraed, glass and biodegradable material produces a larger carbon footprint. So plastic is better in Singapore because it leaves less of a carbon footprint than glass in terms of breaking glass down. With compostable material, it is not composble without an Industrial compostable, so ultimately it doesn't really help in being sustainable.

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In order to start a sustainable buisness, you have to make sure everyone in the brand understands the pillar of your business and embrace them. This means that you should encourage your employees to have genuine conversation with the consumers so that they also understand your key values. This way you can better inform them.


It is not easy to be sustainable in SG. We don’t have the resources to recycle. What is the most important steps for sustainability? It is to reduce & reuse. As there are many difficulties in being a sustainable brand, be prepared to start a the business imperfectly. More people need to start being sustainability so learn to forgive yourself if there are areas that still need improvement. Many people doing things imperfectivity is better than just one doimg it perfect. It is more effective.


Elaborating on recycling in Singapore, she carried on telling us some more ground information on the topic. For recycling, anything that is 6cm or less don’t get recycled, coloured plastic can’t recycle, anything with label or substance cannot be recycled. Hence, Recycling is difficult in SIngapore. So think of ways of reducing first. The consumers have the loudest voice. So be creative in reducing waste.

 

Next you can think of recycling. Recycling your old packaging is one way, even though using new packaging is cheaper. Recycling is hard because of the use of resources. Be more aware of how much resources will get wasted in the process. Listen to the customer and be glad to change. Change your own mindset even if it is imperfect. Think of reduce first, then recycling. Because it is often out of sight, out of mind, plastic has become the standard in packaging due to its convenice. Plastic is something for convenience, but when sustainability comes in, you will lose one thing which is ease.

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You also need to think on how to educate your consumer. Don’t just think of how good your product, think of the good it does for the community. Communicate to your consumer the good and the difficulties behind it. You cnnot hide and do something like Deliberate Greenwashing. Don’t look sustainable, be sustainable. Even if it is not perfect, communicate that to others. Be honest.


Budgeting will also be and issue to look at. Be prepare that budget wise will be tough. that is because being sustainable isn't cheap. 

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Lastly onto ethics issues. Try to be more knowledgeable and read news on the topics you are working on. Within your own means to check. Why is it cheaper? Being sustainable also gives the responsibility to look into the sources of your own product,

Asian Civilization Museum (Semester 1 Week 7)

This week we went to the Asian Civilization Museum to view its exhibitions. We were here to see the Batik Kita specifically: Dressing in Port Cities exhibition but we also went and saw the different exhibits on Faith and Belief (Level 2), and Material and Design (Level 3). The Batik Kita exhibition showcases the rich history and culture of batik and batik making, from its traditional roots to contemporary designs. It showcases the batik textile from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds. This will be done by showing the dynamic possibilities that batik can be brought to fashion from designers, as well as how they have shaped the identities of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. 

During the first half of the trip, we were brought to the Material and Design (Level 3) exhibition. Basically, this exhibit consists of three sections: Ceramics, Fashion and Textiles, and Jewellery. For me personally, I was really fascinated with the Ceramic section. I have allows love looking at ceramics and the intricacy in its design. And looking at the beautiful craftmanship displayed left me in awed and the amount of dedication and years of practise and work goes into a simgle piece of ceramic. Truly the work of craftmen are one to be admired.

The next part of the museum I visited was the Faith and Belief (Level 2) exhibition. If I were to be frank, not all the part were interesting to me as I am unfamiliar with a lot of the deity present in the first part. But I do admire the effort they put into each of the relics that is dedicated to their own Gods. I really love this stature of Garuda from Tibet. At first glance, I kind of thought of it look like a cute pokemon. But this a Hindu diety ,that is also found in Buddism as well, which the people of Nepal and Tibet used as their guardian diety. With his name using a metaphor in the Vedic literature for Rik (rhythms), Saman (sounds), Yajna (sacrifices), and the atman (Self, deepest level of consciousness), it is a God that has a lot of history and isn't just an interesting "animal". It is a diety that holds respect from the people that worship him and regard him as sacred.

The last part of the tour, we went to the Dressing in Port Cities exhibition. When I was there I was stunned by the beauty of the batik fabric and clothing displayed. Truly the artisans from Indonesia are such talented and creative people. Pattern making often scare me as it requires a lot of attention to details and a solid base design to pattern with. But all the pattern shown on the various Batik prints were bold and outstanding, showing the level of mastery displayed by those who have worked tirelessly for their craft. It was also incredible to witness the fashion design displayed by the various designers using this batik prints. 

Art Science Museum (Semester 1 Week 9)

The week after our term break, we visited the Art Science Museum. We were here to see 3 different exhibitions that were being displayed: 

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  1. Patricia Piccinini: We are Connected

  2. Future World: Where Art Meets Science

  3. MENTAL: Colours of Wellbeing

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Overall I really did enjoy the exhibitions that were there. Below are the highlights of my trip there.

The first exhibition I visited was the Patricia Piccinini: We are Connected exhibition. It offered a very surreal, fascinating and often weird journey through Patricia's bizarre universe filled with hybrids and strange new creatures. The hybrids she creates are a combination of mechanised animals, mutated human beings and unknown and uncanny creatures made to look hyperrealistic. In this way, it challenges the viewers to understand what is true care, genuine empathy and naturing instinct for creatures that are so unlike us. Her artwork also gives us fruit for thought on the technological age that we live in and explores our relationships with other species and ecosystems. I think the piece I found the most interesting was this set of art pieces called The Weaver's Suit. It despicts humming bird using human hair to build their nest. Humming birds are seen as signifier of fertility in many culture and it is common for them to make use of human hair to build their own nest.  With them being striped from a human head, they lose their aesthetic value. Human hair folicles are dead yet only on an alive person do they grow. A dead thing is beautiful in one way and yet not in another way and just deemed as a functional object. Hairs growth signify to us that something that alive yet they are only dead object. Hair is used to defined a person's aesthetics but their main use is for human is protection. When taken off the person's head, we can see the actual simplicity of hair and how  even though we take care of them effortlfuly for aesthetics, it is also easily discarded. But it is interesting the new life that can be given to it by humming birds who take of them carefully to provide a home for their offsprings.

The second exhibition I visited was Future World: Where Art Meets Science exhibition. This exhibition was basically a collection of digital interactive installations exploring the world of art, science, magic and metaphor. Truly this one was a breathtaking experience that I ever had. I really enjoyed the lighting and how they use it to create different illusions.

The last exhibition I visited was the MENTAL: Colours of Wellbeing exhibition. This exhibition was the most interactive of the three exhibitions I had seen and hence the most fun one out of the branch. This exhibition was not about mental illness and how to treat them. It was instead about confronting societal bias and stereotypes around mental health and focusing on each individual's own unique thoughts and feelings. The different installations were done by either local or Southeast Asian artists to explore mental health from their unique perspectives. The installations are divided into 4 broad themes - Connection, Exploration, Expression and Reflection. The various exhibition made me think of my own mental wellness and have I really been caring about it. Actions such as answering the phone is now seen as a very daunting task nowadays so having to pick up a call from a total stranger was nerve wretching. So the exhbit in which we had to answer a call from a total stranger who asked about my day and what I was doing was really scary. And I think that the whole time my friend and I was trying to figure out if it was real or fake. But truly show how scary it is to just talk to people regarding my own mental well-being. Another interesting exhibit was this collection of wigs that would occassionally turn. To me it seems to represent strangers that we don't know as they are without faces. And that is something scary especially when they first start to turn since the interval between them turning are pretty spread out. But with each person there are so many unique points within them that we don't know just like all the wigs are of different colours and designs. The last exhibit that I will talk about is these huge square cushion things that plays music when you go under it. With all the noise and daunting tasks that we need to do in our everyday life. So it is a nice thing to have momments where we can escape and relax from the world which these head things gve us a momment to.

Enabling Village (Semester 1 Week 12)

This week we went to Enabling Village, an urban space which supports universal design and accessibility, social innovation, training and employment. It has repurposed architecture extends beyond the physical through a considerate offering of amenities, disability, community and assistive technology services to promote connectedness and enterprise among inclusive communities and social businesses. We were given a tour of the place and these were my take aways from the tour.

The first thing that was mentioned was 

Placemaking: Between People and Places (Semester 1 Week 13)

This week's talk was by Stella Gwee, Founder of Shophouse & Co. They are a company that helps others realise their vision to create lovable places for people to live, work, and play. She started by asking us what is our favourite place? Some can immediately know but others don’t. The reason that places are more interesting is because of Place Making. It allows people to really experience of their neighbourhood. Allows people to have really have a interesting view of the places. She got started her career by hosting a festival. She then did Design Trails which build a community of designers. After that she did Heritage Trails, Art Trials & Public Art curations

They will start out with the prototype stage that tests out the transitional space. They will test ideas and prototyping them in the space. Becuase of how these places are intentionally planned out, the people living on the street do not know that they are indirectly influence by government. Hence we need to observe and read what the government is doing as it will come down to affect us and ask if that would it be something you would like to have. There needs to be an awareness that a community and people will use this place. And that is what Placemaking is. It is a process centered around people that builds up the character and quality of place. It focuses not on the what but the why. The reason behind a space being build is more impactful then just simply installing an art mural to attract people. The process for placemaking comes with 2 parts:

 

The Place: Hardware, software, orgware (The people running the place. Policy, finacial)

Making: Iterative, Active, Innovative

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They have to tackle the question on how do you weight emotional memories of places. We can’t do every good thing.

She also emphasis a must to develop your curiosity and critical thinking. Currently the issues they have to deal with are what cities are like post covid. Some things that were deem as neccessary in a city are now being questioned if needed. Additionally, she also emphasi the fact that we win by changing mindset.

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