Art Museum Visit 4: Ion Art Gallery

For my fourth museum gallery visit, I decided to see local artworks that were originated in Asia, and specifically, Singapore. I realized that I've never actually got the chance to appreciate the art that belonged to the country I've lived in for most of my life. I have to admit that I was a little hesitant upon visiting the art gallery in Ion, largely due to the fact that I had low expectations about what artworks a shopping mall would be able to offer me. However, I'm surprised to say that the Ion gallery is my favourite museum visit in Singapore so far because the pieces that were displayed really suited my taste in art. I also noticed a common trend among all the paintings; they were all very modern, simplistic, and most of them were painted with cool colors (blue, purple, green, etc).

Takeaway 1: The complexity of black and white pieces are often underestimated and overlooked as minimalist and simplistic

The painting above was the first one that caught my eye. It was completely unexpected for me to be attracted to a black and white painting, usually because I prefer artworks that are quite bright or have a lot of color. What I like about this piece was the fact that it didn't need different colors to show contrast. Instead, the artist focused on line and shape. There's also something about this piece that makes it very intriguing to look at, which I think is because of it's complexity. The piece seemed really simple at first, but when I look at it a little longer, I finally see how complicated it actually is. I noticed how black and white artwork are often overlooked as very simplistic and minimalist, but these two colors are rarely used to make paintings that are more complex. I would have always automatically chosen colorful and contrasting paints, but this painting's composition shows just how important it is to use the white and black spaces next to each other.

Takeaway 2: Creating abstract art can be as simple as changing the color

After visiting and reflecting on three different art galleries, I've always observed and written about abstract art and how intriguing they can be. However, I haven't actually tried doing something different and weird with my artwork. When I saw the painting above, I noticed how the first thing I was drawn to was the purple sky. I realized that the reason why I was interested in it was because of how the artist changed the color of the sky into a color that is unrealistic and unexpected. I was attracted to the piece due to the fact that it was different and unique. I often associate abstract art as something that is completely unexpected and strange, but I realized that a piece can still stand out just by making a bold move and changing something as simple as the color of the sky. 

Takeaway 3: Colors with muted and cool tones give relaxing and elegant vibes (The paintings in this gallery is what I would want displayed in my own home)

If I had my own house, the paintings in this gallery would be the artwork I want to have displayed in my home. I love colors that have a cooler tone, such as the blues, greys, and greens because it's a lot more relaxing and peaceful to look at. It isn't necessarily the landscape or object that's being painted, it's more the lasting and main color that's given off from the painting. It's interesting how different colors can make people have different moods. Other people might view paintings with muted and cool colors to be boring and dull, but it's beautiful and calming to me. 

Takeaway 4: There's a lot more variations in art that I haven't experimented with

Relating to my second takeaway, I haven't really tried anything completely new to me yet. I've tried different mediums and surfaces, but that's about as far as I got with experimenting. I barely tried different art styles as I mostly stuck with trying to make my artwork as realistic as the image I took it from. I've always tried to find my own personal artistic style, but I shouldn't settle until I have tried everything I've wanted to try. For instance, I haven't tried out art within three dimensional pieces, printmaking, or photography. It was eyeopening to me when I realized I'm never really confident with exploring new ways because I always think I don't have enough time with everything going on at school. 

After visiting multiple museums this year, I now have a whole new appreciation for them. Even though I've always loved art for as long as I can remember, I was never interested in visiting art galleries because I used to think they were boring. However, ever since I took art in high school, it's a lot more exciting to go look at artwork done by professionals, knowing that I can learn from their skills and apply them to my own pieces. 

Concentration 10

Manipulation of Materials:

For the mural, I chose to paint something outside of my concentration, partly because I had finished all of my pieces, but mostly because I wanted to try something new and different from what I usually did. I had originally planned to do a usual acrylic painting, but then Mr. Correa advised me to do something really big, obvious, and colorful since it's going to be viewed from a distance in the library. So I chose to do a palette knife painting, something I've always found interesting but never got to try. Using a palette knife is a lot more different than what I usually do, mostly because I usually stick to painting lots of details. However, it was so refreshing to do something kind of messy and quick, and I'm glad I tried it out, especially because I had so much fun with it. The palette knife created effects that made it have a lot more texture and dimension, which made the colors pop from a distance. 

Problem Solving: 

Because this was my first time trying out a painting with a palette knife, I had to experiment and try new techniques to find what suited me. I had to repaint over the piece a few times, mostly because I wasn't sure what I was doing the first time. I definitely underestimated the level of difficulty with palette knives, thinking that it would be a lot easier to manage. One of the biggest problem I had was trying not to blend too much. The problem with palette knives is that if you paint too much, the colors get mixed in together more than you want it to, resulting the entire piece to have less shape and contrast. It was also hard to get used to the thick texture and waiting a longer time than usual to wait for the paint to dry. Despite all of this, it was a refreshing piece to do and I would love to do more paintings like this one in the future. 

Concentration 9

Manipulation of Materials:

For this concentration piece, I decided to use watercolor for my medium because I thought it was the most suitable for the reference photo. This picture is quite different from what I've usually drawn for my other concentration pieces, mostly because there isn't really a single central focus or point of the picture, which are usually a monument or building in my other pieces. It was definitely a fresh shift from my usual rapidograph-on-created-surface pieces, especially because I had to paint the entire paper. With watercolor, I made sure to leave a few whites to show contrast within my artwork, but also to exaggerate the dark and light areas from the reference photo. I also like how the watercolor was perfect for adding the moldy green color on the orange pillars, because the water helped create the same effect like the actual photo. 

Problem Solving:

A problem that I always have when painting with watercolor is laying too much water. Sometimes, I use too much watery paint that it makes the paper start to fall apart. This is partly because I keep on trying to make the piece better by adding more paint, but unlike acrylic, adding more watercolor just kind of ruins the previous work instead of replacing it. Trying not to paint over and over again on the same areas was definitely one of my biggest challenges, mostly because then I had to make sure I didn't paint over it too much that the paper is ruined. Lastly, another problem I had was painting the written characters on the pillars of the temple. I definitely underestimated the level of difficulty for painting the words. I needed to focus a lot more than I thought to write all of them down, especially because it's hard to correct a mistake with watercolor paint, especially when it's black paint. 

Concentration 8

Problem Solving:

With this reference photo, the hardest problem I had was trying to figure out how much of it to put down on paper. Because I chose to do rapidograph and created surface, the entire building would be too much for the whole piece, and so I ended up deciding on drawing separate parts of it. The building itself also had really intricate details that were aligned symmetrically and proportionately, which was also quite challenging to draw, especially since I drew the buildings in different pieces. Although it seems harder, more detailed structures such as temples or mosques tend to be easier to draw. On the other hand, European buildings are a lot more challenging because everything is always very straight and clean-cut. 

Cultural Competence and Connections:

Out of all my concentration pieces, I have only done about 2 or 3 pieces that had buildings designed with a more Western style. This is mostly because it is actually more difficult for me to draw compared to other unique and old structures such as temples and mosques. It's interesting to see and compare how different cultures' architecture also reflect on the people from different countries' way of life. Through drawing numerous unique historic monuments, I learned how countries that are more conservative and structured had buildings that were more neat and put together, whereas countries that were more exotic and tropical had buildings that were more messy yet creatively built. 

Concentration 7

Problem Solving:

For this concentration piece, my biggest problem was trying to figure out how to add more depth and texture to the building, especially because it barely had any in the actual photo. Since it's pure white with barely any shadows or contrast, I wanted to try something a little more different than what I usually do when working with rapido and created surfaces. To make it more difficult and interesting, I only colored in the building with vertical lines, adding more or less depending on the darker and lighter areas. When I finished, I could see that it gave the building a more unique aspect than the actual photo. The building ended up looking like it had more texture with an older appearance. However, making this piece was a lot more challenging than I thought because I had to make up the shadows that weren't on the original picture to give contrast to the drawing. 

Cultural Competence and Connections:

Taken in Abu Dhabi, this mosque is probably one of the best monuments I've seen because I love the simplicity of how pure, white, and clean the whole thing is. Although I didn't draw the building with the same kind of brightness as the original picture, I tried to recreate the calm atmosphere from the original into the drawing by adding blue watercolor to contrast with the splash of deep red. Instead of splattering the blue paint, I added more water so that it would surround the drawing of the mosque with a more peaceful vibe. 

Art Museum Gallery Visit 3

Shoji Hamada Museum in Mashiko, Japan

During interim semester this year, I went on the ceramics excursion to Japan while also visiting a couple museums. I learned so much about the making of pottery, how to make it, and the history of it all. One thing that definitely surprised me was how even though ceramics is usually associated with Asia, other places in Europe also have a long history with their creations of potteryware. Our ceramics mentor in Mashiko, Euan Craig, talked about how the pottery that were being displayed also came from other countries besides Japan such as Korea, China, England, Germany, and many more. I remember Euan telling us that although the pots came from different places, it's not separate, different, or about cultural commission. The pots from contrasting cultures come together, while also representing diversity.

From learning to make bowls through the pottery wheel, I was able to understand and relate to the artists' that created the pieces presented in the Hamada Museum. The beautiful part about ceramics is that they are born from the collaboration of an artist's hand and the forces of nature. Euan Craig told us that with the pottery wheel, the purpose of our hands are not to make a piece, it is instead used to help sculpt a piece into the shape we want it to be.

Another aspect that I learned is that unlike other artistic works, ceramics is a form of art that also has a function. It plays a huge role in everyone's daily lives, from plates, pots, cups, vases, and so much more. I often overlook the importance of ceramics in my life because it has become ordinary yet essential objects that we use everyday. It was interesting how with ceramics, it is both finding a function within an artwork and also creating art from an object of function. As I had the chance of working on the potter's wheel during this trip, I remember how I wanted to create something beautiful for its purpose. It was more important that the objects I created will not only be looked at, but also be appreciated for the usefulness in my life.

Because of this trip, I now also have a deeper appreciation and understanding as to why ceramics is so greatly acknowledged and practiced all over the world. It's a form of art that is creative, three dimensional, yet functional at the same time. While listening to both Mr. Pabotoy and Euan Craig, it was eyeopening to listen to the both of them talk about their love for ceramics and how passionate they are about it. After everything I've experienced during this interim, I now have a new curiousity on the whole topic of ceramics and I will definitely love to join Mr. P's classes to be able to create more artwork. 

Euan Craig sitting with Mi Le and Joanna at the Hamada Museum Cafe.

Concentration 6

Cultural Competence and Connections:

In all of concentration pieces, I noticed that I tend to make the buildings more perfect and symmetrical than it actually looks from the reference photos. Somehow, it looks better with all the dents and flaws that the structure actually has as it makes it look more realistic and meaningful. I feel like by leaving out the imperfections in the buildings that I draw, it doesn't have the same old and historical feel to the whole work. For the next few concentration pieces that I'm making, I want to try to make it less clean and even though it's hard to do at first. 

Problem Solving: 

For this piece, I actually had difficulty trying to get the motivation to do work. Especially with the reference photos I choose to do, the art I make are always very meticulous and detailed, so I always have to put a lot of attention and focus when working. Eventually, this can get quite repetitive and boring, even with music on. It was hard for me to start working, but once I worked, I can continue for a long period of time. To keep myself working, I always had to watch a ton of movies or episodes even though I might not have my eyes on the screen all the time. Another problem that I had was trying to add in as many possible little dents and imperfections of the building to my piece. I usually tend to stick to drawing the structure as neat and clean-cut as I can, but from drawing my timed drawings, I realized that making my piece messier makes it look more real. 

Timed Drawings 2017

Manipulation of Materials:

For the three timed drawings, I had already planned to do rapidograph on created surfaces. Personally, I get the best rapido on created surface work when I'm under pressure because I don't have to worry about the background or composition and I can focus on a certain object/subject. Compared to my other rapido pieces that I did for assignments that weren't timed drawings, these three pieces are definitely a lot messier, but in a way, has more substance. Most of the time, I don't lift the pen off the paper because my hands are working faster than usual to be able to finish the pieces on time. Using rapido during timed drawings are like continuous scribblings that are sometimes thicker or thinner on different areas to define the shapes or darkness. Out of all the materials in the art room, the rapidograph and created surface combo will always be my favorite because of how the simple and black drawings stand out from a background that is effortless but also beautiful and complex.

Problem Solving:

Surprisingly, these timed drawing assignments were the first ones that I didn't struggle with timing. However, a problem that I faced was trying to make a composition less boring or plain. With the two building structures that I drew, I had a hard time trying to figure out where to place it on the page or how big I want it to be. The size especially became a huge problem for me when I did the piece with the two bicycles. I wasn't sure how large the drawings would end up to be so I didn't plan the sizing as well as I should have beforehand. In the end, I made the composition less empty by adding bricks on the ground to add more to the whole piece. 

Concentration 5

Cultural Competence and Connections:

I took this picture at a temple that I visited in Japan during winter break, and I knew that I wanted to draw it for class using rapidograph. It was a beautiful building that was perfect to draw on its own because of the amount of detail and structures that it had. The best part about my concentration and creating art from pictures of buildings and monuments is that I had to pay more attention to every detail of every structure. It made me notice all the small but beautiful pieces that makes the building as a whole. By drawing the temple piece by piece and detail by detail, it made me understand how the building was built and even how much time and effort it could've taken. 

Manipulation of Materials:

Because we were given the option to do 12 by 18 inches, I decided to do rapidograph on created surface. The picture was very detailed and had no clear background, so the rapido pens were perfect for getting in with all the specific details, while the created surface substituted as a background. Rapidograph is much easier to grip and get a hold on when drawing compared to other mediums, which is why it was easier to handle the complicated parts of the building. Especially since drawing in rapido has no color, the pens were perfect for highlighting and tinting the shadows with darker and lighter areas. The only problem I had was that with every line I drew, I had to really concentrate on trying to make no mistakes, because if there was, it can be really obvious in the overall piece. It was difficult when I tried covering up my mistakes, for example, when I drew lines that was off from the actual contour line drawing, it took me a long time to cover it up by cross-hatching and realigning the entire building. Overall, creating this piece was a really repetitive process that ended up being therapeutic for me. 

Exaggerated Perspective

 Cultural Competence and Connections:
For this assignment, I incorporated my concentration theme in it because I had a really good picture for it. My concentration is infrastructure and buildings, but not necessarily the typical day to day modern ones you see wherever you go. I choose to draw buildings or structures that are unique to the different cultures that they came from. For example, for this assignment, I chose to paint the temple called Borobudur in Indonesia. Although it seemed really detailed and too complicated at first, it took me to a different turn because I've never drawn this type of structure before. So far, I've drawn European style buildings, temples, and mosques, but this temple was very different in the way it was created. I'm glad I chose to do this for my concentration because it got me to understand a variety of different cultures through their architecture. By painting the distinctive structures for my portfolio, I actually got to learn more about the cultural background it came from based on how they formatted and designed their monuments.

Problem Solving:
The first problem came up before I even started painting, and that was deciding on whether I wanted to use this specific reference picture. The amount of detail in this picture is insane, and I didn't know whether I would have enough time to finish it all. In the end, it didn't take me as much time as I thought it would, because although from afar this temple seemed like it had a lot going on, it was actually simple and very repetitive if you looked closely and broke down the picture into smaller pieces. The next problem I had was with the background and how I was worried that the sky would be too bland for the piece as a whole. I've had this problem with my final pieces last semester too, because the buildings in all my references stood on its own without any composition for its background. However, I ended up liking the grayish sky tones for the background in the end because it didn't make my piece too crowded or took attention away from the actual temple.