Reflections
For the most part of my life, a scanner is like a 'touch and go' equipment. Its sole purpose is to scan - that's it. I came into class one day and was introduced to scanography. The topic was familiar yet it was still unknown. I recall layering different items on the scanner at home when I was a child just for fun. Going through scanography was like revisiting my childhood. I had to be creative with what I have and be unafraid to experiment.
I worked with the basics first, discovering interesting outcomes from modifying the settings of the scanner to shifting the objects around. What I enjoyed most about scanography is how a 3D object can be captured as a 2D object. There were challenges such as the limited canvas size which required me to work on my composition skills. Other challenges include my fear of working without a concept. I had a mental block for few minutes as I did not want to continue without having a concept in mind. Besides that, I was also picky in choosing my materials to scan. In the end, I realised that it was no use standing around waiting for inspiration to strike but to actually DO something. I learnt what worked and what did not and I had a few ideas from my existing scans. After much thinking, I finally had a direction.
I looked up on Jim Goldberg and immediately connected with the subject in his works. His topics include poverty, runaway children and refugees. Goldberg's works are raw and honest. The use of text in his images, which are written by the subjects adds a personal touch and voice. As Jim Goldberg has said, "The photographs are about asking questions, though, not answering them."
Source: O'Hagan, Sean. "The Photographer Who Caught The Heartbreak On Both Sides Of America's Social Divide". The Guardian. N.p., 2014. Print.
Assignment 1: Scanography
Brief: To listen is to feel
There's a reason why music is played in parties. Music is a mood maker, it creates ambience naturally. Music affects our emotions too. In this project, I aim to use movement to depict my mood when listening to various genres of music. Each of the music represent something unique in moments of my life. The handwritten lyrics convey a personal touch and portray the mood in words. Various movements of the album CD portray my emotions and thoughts when listening to the respective music.
Process
Layering of various objects on the scanner allows me to get a brief idea of the outcome.
Experimenting with different movements of the object: The CD follows the movement of the scanner light. The outcome depicted a stretched image with warped text, giving the impression of quirkiness.
Written lyrics are randomly placed to allow a clear and concise reading of the message. At the same time, it is being dragged around to convey the meaning of the lyrics. The lyrics read," and we try and try and try and try". In the song, the lyrics are being sung innocently but in a drag to show the helplessness while still holding onto hope. While repetition of the lyrics could work, I felt that this image worked better as it represented the emotion of the song very well.
Lyrics from various songs are written but remain static. This allows the words to speak for the emotions instead of having to rely on movement of the images.
Final Images
1. Justin Bieber, My World, 2009 The Island Def Jam Music Group.
The music from Justin Bieber's debut album represented my preteen years that were full of excitement and foolishness. It was a period of time where Bieber fever was hot and expanding worldwide. My friends and I were avid fans of Bieber. As I listened to this album, the memories playback. There were happy moments that dragged on for what seemed forever as seen by the stretched visual of the CD. The visuals are straightforward almost like the one-track mind I had in my preteen years. The yellow background justified the mood of positivity and beginning of youth. The line 'me plus you, imma tell you one time' is from his hit single, 'One Time' which is definitely the moodmaker of the entire album therefore making various appearances throughout the artwork.
2. The Grand Budapest Hotel Original Soundtrack, Music by Alexandre Desplat, 2014 ABKCO Music & Records, Inc
Personally, I feel that the soundtrack is a musical representation/alternative to the movie itself. As different tracks come on, various scenes from the movie play in my head. I was calm and at times intrigued due to the traditional instruments or the solemn voices of choir in certain tracks. The CD moved in a smooth vertical manner down the scanner to depict the serenity I had while the wavy distortions portrayed my curiosity towards the different sounds in the specific tracks. As this is s soundtrack largely based on orchestra and instruments, there are no lyrics to it. 'Take your hands off my lobby boy!' a line said by one of the lead characters in the movie, pops out in my head often as I listen to this soundtrack. Purple is one of the important colours in the movie as it is part of the colour palette.
3. + Deluxe Edition, Ed Sheeran, 2011 Warner Music UK Limited.
This album is timeless, it is one of the few CDs that I can play at any period of time. It is a mood maker and chills the atmosphere. I feel calm, quiet and happy when I listen to this album. There are not much distortions to the image and the CD seems to flow effortlessly. As the visuals overlap each other, it is very much like my emotion, I feel a sense of whole-ness and at one. The line, 'this is the start of something beautiful' from the song 'This' and the sky blue background could justify my mood for the entire album.
4. If you were a movie, this would be your soundtrack, Sleeping With Sirens, 2012 Rise Records Inc.
The album is a time capsule of my trying times, 2012 - one of the toughest and unforgettable year of my life. I began to delve into youth angst, heartbreak and emotional distress. It was not only an album that reflected my pains but it helped me get through it. The sharp and continuous distortions of the CD represented my frustrations as I associated the album with my confusion and struggles. While I felt angry, I also felt dead inside and unnerved as portrayed by the cut-off and sparse visuals. The sharp changes of the visual depicts the feeling of trying to make sense to a sudden feeling of distress. These visuals overlap each other as there is no one emotion at one time as I listen to the album. The white background represents the empty void as I occupy it with the emotions. 'If it ain't you, the who's gonna love you?' a line from the song Roger Rabbit, rings a lot in my head and has a large impact as I listen to the album.
