Final Project - Collage

Here is my final triptych :) The movie I chose to base the project on was "Mongolian Ping Pong". The theme I extracted was modern society imposing itself onto the main family in the film.

In the story, there is a member of the community who often visits the different families and brings them modern goods to trade. (ie. a coffee pot, a television.) The family has to sacrifice so much for each item, that what they end up with seems very special and valuable. They relish in the moments of making coffee, and try for hours to receive any sort of signal on their television :)But in the end, I'm left with the question of "Would they 'need' it if they didn't know it existed?" Basically asking whether or not advancing technology is a necessary thing to have in order to live comfortably or be happy.

Mongolia is very flat and arid in appearance, and the images of the green horizon under the light blue sky were the most memorable for me. I tried to translate that landscape's feel to my triptych by using these colors (in fabric and raw silk)in a very horizontal way. Then I used my sewing machine to attach a slew of catalog advertisements to them, my way of representing the encroaching "modern world". Technological society seeping into their landscape.

I put a very simple sphere shape in the middle panel to represent the Ping Pong ball, which was the main focus of the film. I layered different textured sheets of paper, and a small catalog clipping in the center. I was attempting to prompt the viewer to investigate the image further. To take a closer look, much like the children did to the ball they found floating in the river.

Final Sketch - Collage

Here is the image I presented in class last week. The basic layout ended up staying the same, but the proportions are different in the final outcome.

Bubble Chart and Collage Subject

I'm hoping to base my collage project on a movie called "Mongolian Ping Pong" by Ning Hao. It is a touching tale of friendship, family, imagination and adventure. The story revolves around a ping pong ball that a young Mongolian child finds floating in the river. The child brings it back to his friends and they begin an investigation of sorts to find out what the strange object is. They ask everyone in the village, and receive an array of answers. The child's Grandmother offers the suggestion that it is a "glowing pearl", treasure from the spirits that live up the river. They eventually find out that their treasure is called a "ping pong ball" and that it is China's "national ball". The children then feel obligated to travel to Beijing to return the ball to "the nation"... since it was certainly being missed :) They embark on a short-lived adventure which results in some strict discipline from the children's families when they return home, unsuccessful.

Although the ping pong ball is the center focus of the story, the landscape imagery is equally as intriguing. The families in the movie live on land that is so flat, almost every image in the film is horizontally divided between land and sky. This is what sticks out at me the most... the vivid colors of the grass and vast sky next to each other, with a long, flat horizon.

The idea I have for my collage is to have all three panels be split between sky blue and field green, but have a variety of media. Either one panel would be made of photos, the second of fabric and the third of paper. -OR- Each panel would be made of all three... I haven't decided that yet. I thought the middle panel would have a a large white sphere in the center (to symbolize the ping pong ball), and have the colors around it be lighter,giving it a glowing feeling. I'm sure I would end up adding more detail, but I wouldn't want it to get too busy, because the imagery of the film itself is quite simple. I would love to use the sewing machine to assemble each panel's media, in hopes that it would create a sense of harmony between all three. I'm also toying with the idea of using embroidery to add some simple details, and hopefully some variety.

Well, that's the idea :) I look forward to hearing if Nettrice gives it the go ahead!

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE!!!

j.

Batik Batik Batik...

I thought it would be fun to post a picture from each step of the batik process.

Lightest Value and First Wax Layer:


Medium Value Dye:


Darkest Value with Second Layer of Wax:


After Ironing/ Finished Batik:


I decided to experiment with crazing and splattering to make it more "batik-like. I also changed the color choices from the sketch, and I'm happy with the way it turned out!

I had a great time with this project, and I think there will be many more batiks in my future :)

Color Selections for Batik Project

I might be in over my head... we'll see I guess :)

Batik Design/Shape Assignment (2nd Attempt :)

This is the shape design that I've decided to use for my batik. Happy 4th everyone!!!

Shape Assignment

Keeping with the theme of "Illusion and Abstraction", I took a portion of my line drawing and cleaned it up in photoshop. The result felt reminiscent of the wrought iron fences and window bars in my neighborhood. That gave me the idea to layer it on top of a photo I took of my street sign. To me, the combination feels harmonious because of the mental connection I have between the two images. Also, the photo of the sign is taken at an extreme angle, and I feel that making it the background adds depth to the image as a whole.