journey of hope final ppt
TRANSCRIPT
Journey of Hope Works by Chng Seok Tin
Presented by: Joseph Joo, Shalynn Chua & Arfah Rahman, DSA231 Contemporary Southeast Asian Art.
http://journeyofhope-2011.posterous.com/
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Overview
Exhibition Description
Rationale of Exhibition
Key Points of Analysis
Q & A/ References
Exhibition Description
Artist : Chng Seok Tin
• Admire her as an artist and a person who has experienced much in her life and career
• Impressed by the scope; breadth and depth of her artworks
Title : Journey of Hope | 希望之旅 |
• Based it on Chng’s life journey of much trials and tribulations
• Despite her struggles, Chng maintains her resilience and never give up attitude
Artworks: Selected Works from 1985 to 2011
• Selection is almost chronologically portraying Chng’s life struggles and turning points
• Also displays variety of media forms and techniques she’s experienced with
Selected Works
(i) Gone With The Water
浪涛尽千古风流人物,
1985, Lithograph 5/6, 30
x40cm
(ii) Self Portrait 自画像,
1989, Drypoint and
Etching A .P. 60.5 x 40cm
Selected Works
(iii) It’s Okay to be Blur!
难得糊涂 , 2009, Mixed
Media on Canvas, 127
x98cm
(iv) Looking Up to Danko
仰望丹科 , 2011, Bronze
and Stainless Steel,
H220cm, Weight 148kg
Rationale of Exhibition
• Life challenges and inner strengths
• Sub-theme of nature and human behaviour
• Sub-theme of an artist is also a writer Theme
• pay tribute to Chng's versatility as an artist
• celebrate the scope of her literary perspective
• highlight the different challenges experienced and her resilience
Objectives
• Attitude of RESILIENCE as an artist
• To instill character building values
• Exposure to various media, techniques and contextual issues raised
Learning Points for Students
Analysis
(i) Gone With The Water 浪涛尽千古风流人物
Title in Mandarin means “no matter how successful the past heroic figures may be, they are still subjected to fade through time”
Artwork is divided into 3 sections:
o Bottom – dark/ intense marks
o Center – fill of facial images
o Top – stretch of landscape linked by 3 parts
Most figures not well defined - fade into the lines and marks, depicting a river flowing.
o great or not, fade by the current of the river of time
Analysis
(i) Gone With The Water 浪涛尽千古风流人物
Top section is made up of 3 parts
o ten circular structures
o connected by bold marks
o a stretch of landscape
Question: Is this Chng’s way of depicting heroes
forming a landscape of history for the current
viewer to learn from?
Analysis
(ii) Self Portrait 自画像
not a realistic representation of self
o emphasis of lines, texture and layering of images
Main image: the dark dense patch of lines
o Contrast with bottom area
o portray sense of frustration and confusion
layering of lines to define the face
o uncertainty of artist impression of herself
Analysis
(ii) Self Portrait 自画像
background of small rectangular shapes
o Images of different portraits
o fades off towards the center
o Looks like graffiti
non-figurative illustration of self
o Convey her thoughts and emotions
Question: Can you feel her struggle in facing
adversity?
Analysis
(iii) It’s Okay to be Blur! 难得糊涂
Colors consist of:
o mainly earthly tones
o main Chinese texts are in gold
o figures are in various colors
lower half consist of 3 mountain-like piles of figures striving upwards
o Portray rat race urban lifestyles
Main focus is the inverted banner - meaning of texts (by Zhen Banchiao, 1751):
o “It is difficult to be clear minded, it is difficult to be vague, it is more difficult to transcend from clarity to vagueness. Let lose a little, take a step back, be at ease in present moment, not seeking future good returns”
Analysis
(iii) It’s Okay to be Blur! 难得糊涂
Ancient Chinese coins symbolise material wealth
o Figures playing with the coins
o wealth may not be the only thing human seek
“When spring wind blow, grasses will grow again”
o resilience of wild grasses
o resilience of humans to survive
o in relation to our present urban lifestyles
Question: Is it really alright to be vague and
blur in life?
Analysis
(iv) Looking Up to Danko 仰望丹科
man-size sculpture casted from bronze holding up a red stainless steel heart
o Slavonic literary tale by Maxim Gorky
o Self-sacrificial hero, Danko, who plucks his heart out to rescue his tribe from an inhospitable place.
Notable features of sculpture:
o Surface - heavily textured, uneven, almost crude
o Contrast – smooth even-shaped vinyl red heart, central hole in his chest
o Stance - steadfast and powerful
o Gestures - hands reach out skywards, upturned open facial features
Analysis
(iv) Looking Up to Danko 仰望丹科
Nature’s materials, hand-made feel & guided by the moral story
o scale of work and striking contrasts in materials, colors and treatments
o dramatic and endearing impression
self-sacrifice for the good of others
o inspired role models who went through hardships to contribute to society’s survival and progression
o What is our personal threshold for that?
o To maintain our resilience in our life pursuits
Question: Does this work bring to mind any
role models that you greatly appreciate in your
life?
Q & A
References:
Artist’s book: Chng, S.T. (2011). Uncommon Wisdom: Works
by Chng Seok Tin from 1966-2011. Singapore: Nanyang
Academy of Fine Arts.
Artworks viewed in exhibition; Uncommon Wisdom: Works
by Chng Seok Tin from 1966 – 2011, Nanyang Academy of
Fine Arts, Galleries 1 & 2, on Oct 1 2011.
http://www.chngseoktin.com/