My First Phase In Making (Video)

A rough sketch showing my idea for my installation of how it will going to be put up with measurements that are simply a hard on the brain. It took me a week to produce a piece of installation at this size where it reaches up to 2.5 meters tall in height. It is interesting to see that sometimes, our ideas on the paper made sense but when it comes to making it actually by hand, the look differs a bit due to its processes in the making towards the final piece. Mistakes can bring learning and learning can bring experience in hand in the end.

A video that I have produced showing the process in finishing my first phase of my installation where it was installed in an Art Exhibition at University of Brunei Darussalam. I used the color of White for the frames because for me, the color of white represents an object that turns or transform into another meanings and structures. This installation, I want to let the people to focus on what is around and within the installation and not focusing more on the frames. That is why, less is more to be described as always.

I Thank You to my sister and my extra helper in finishing up the installation piece.

Prototypes On The Silent Destruction

Sketches of ideas for my first phase of my project where I want to create a meaning about what will happen when biodiversity overtook by the invasion of consumerism and how can I made this as an interactive work that kindly describe my point to the people.

And so, I produced two different layout to present my work through prototypes experimentations.

For the first phase of my project, I created a prototype where I used a white mounting board where I attach every part of the wall with mini needles to let the strings connect from one point to another. This was a different layout of how I will present my research in an opening wall display.

I want to create this prototype a sense of being within the strings where it creates a look of a spider web. This prototype describes that biodiversity is a complex world where every part within the ecosystem is connected. However, it does not create a sense of interacting with the work but more like a display of a work where I then further out doing my prototypes.

Next prototype, I created a hallway space where we can actually can go through from one end to the other. Here, I made three displayed door frame shapes with the use of wood and nails that were nailed around the door frame.

For this prototype, it made us to be able to communicate with the work where it has a sort of a hallway as it welcomes to us to go through it with strings that were attach like a spiderweb and go through it like a mission impossible.

Connection With Strings

Looking onto the third idea where I will be mainly using strings that creates the backbone of the outline of a tree and leaves.

Drawings of ideas of how the strings were to be attached around the outline of a tree. Here, I showed different side of views how it will be looked like and how it will stand upright. With cut edges along the outline of the tree to secure the strings as it goes around and about to create the backbone of the tree.

One of the prototype that I have made where I used a mounting board as the outline of a leaf as it is fairly strong to hold onto the strings that wraps around it through these cut edges at the sides of the outline of the leaf. However, the previous strings that I have attached to it somehow became loose and making the leaf into a unique formation.

And so, I started to use metal as it will hold the strings better. Using a used lamp as part of my experimentations where I started off cutting the shades cover. The lamp has two separate sections where I try to make an abstract of a tree where the shade acts as the tree top whereas the bottom part is the bottom part of a tree.

I then started making the shape of the lampshades with strings until it is evenly covered. The strings are in green color so as to made it looked like a tree.

The object then becomes a new meaning with the application of a new material being introduced to it where it opens up many narratives possibilities. The lamp expresses a feeling and sentiment by virtue of the lights that displays an array of shadows from the strings that creates an effect around it.The lamp is trying to somehow explain, in times full of arbitrariness, that it can be beautiful when the shapes are there, not just because I like the looks of it, but because it has a meaning and another alternative interpretation of the lamp that it kindly describes how we interpret the biodiversity world.

Prototypes On The Chair

Looking through at the ideas on the chair, I made few prototypes with different materials as part of my experimentations and how it will looked like in 4D instead of looking only from a sketch view.

Here, I have made a chair model using used cardboard boxes where I basically layered it all together securely with double sided tape as part of my prototype model experimentation. This ideas is actually represents a series of layers that has been bundled up in an un-even layer as it describes that every part of this model have a degree that we can imagine what happens when these layers are no longer holding up from one layer to another. This meaning implies on the biodiversity where in the long run invasion of consumer's demand, the biodiversity and the ecosystem will be unable to meet the needs for consumers and therefore will be wilt and die.

For this chair model, I used white paper where I carefully glued them together with double tape. As for this model, I made it as part of display for the viewers to be questioning about it and judging about our actions towards overtaking biodiversity and the ecosystems at an alarming rate that we can see today. In other words, the chair will be made with clear resin as stated on my sketch where it displays all the nature's wildlife, branches and trees where it kindly tells us as to how many species and wildlife have we killed to make just a simple ordinary chair and how this will affect the biodiversity in the long run?

Prototypes of Leaves And Such

My Inspirations.

Here, I started off myself with making various prototypes in relation with my project statement. I used few layers from an old book where it shows the flora and fauna within the ecosystem and how it tells stories and the importance of every meanings within the layers. Here, I want the object to tell the stories as how beautiful the forms within the ecosystem.

I then further out my experimentations with papers where I cut papers and created a leaf shape. The leaf were suppose to be in a bundle of leaves where it creates a lighting motion inside the leaf itself. My intention for this prototype is to show the flow and the movement of the system within the leaf and also it shows the flow within the biodiversity.

Using different material to create this prototype where I wanted to show the skeletons of every part of the leaf and how it holds onto the leaf and also the whole tree. I cut out the cardboard with a cutter, and was fascinated with the outcome as the thickness of the cardboard shows the leaf in a very interesting point of view.

Furthermore, I played with a kitchen roll where I cut out shapes of leaves and roots in an abstract motion. This prototype describes how a tree supports itself with what is around it, with the flowing motion of the leaves creates kind of like by the wind blowing by.

Throughout creating various kinds of prototypes in relation with the leaves, I am trying to find ways in removing these vital components and apply it into in a form that the user or the viewers can interact and understand theoretically and being judgmental of the awareness around us through the process of my work.

Ideas That Interpret My Story

My first idea comes from a gravestone that interprets the remembrance of the death that are usually stated on the surface of the gravestone. From there, I created a sense to stir up discussion and justifies on the object as it shows the lists of animals of all kinds that are considered to be extinct throughout these past few era. The idea is to create an impact to the viewer as to what might be the main cause for these animals to be extinct.

From my part of research, here are the possibilities and the most common reason as to why extinction has rise at a faster rate:

- The impact of introduced ("alien") species

- Pollution

- Disease

- Excess hunting, harvesting and exploitation

There are large numbers of habitat destruction that has caused mainly by human actions. The best known groups of organisms that are birds and mammals.

In my records:

Since year 1600 onwards, there were about 113 birds and about 83 mammals were to be known extinct. Approximately 70% of the known birds species are extinct in Hawaii due to the rise of human needs. So, I designed this gravestone encrypted with species that have extinct and recently extinct.

Why this idea I have brought up?

To see how many have had it's last breath virtually and statistically form and to give the viewers the awareness and to justify on what our doings have made them extinct.

The second idea is perhaps to be seen as no theoretical, aesthetic, methodological or anthropological reason which justifies the idea of displaying the dead plants and animal's last breath where I purposely created in a form from an everyday object that is a chair. The idea is perhaps cynical and pointless as it is simply turning the torture of a dead figurines into entertainment.

Though sometimes, in the field of art, the epic sacrifice of an animal expresses the mythodology of human violence can be transformed into language and the object speaks for what it is.

For this idea, I wanted to use clear resin where plants and animals can be clearly seen as to how many of these have been killed to just make a simple chair. This idea gives out the message and the awareness that We all should do every small steps in making the biodiversity at ease. When making small steps; We all in the end made a big steps to make it happen for the better.

The third idea was using the outline of what made biodiversity going; and one of them are the trees. Here, I created a sense of connection where I used strings that connects from one point to another. It symbolizes the role of everything within the biodiversity that it all connects in a very complex form.

Within the biodiversity world, between 5 and 40 million species are to be known alive today and approximately 1.7 million have been identified and cataloged.

A single tree may have as many as 1,200 - 50,000 species in making the tree to grow. If hundreds of species died due to high deforestation and climate change, the tree too cannot live long as well. The 'web' shows how everything, every little things connects around within the ecosystem.

Just imagine, if one of these strings cuts then all of them might be loose and fall apart where the form of the tree then looses its formation of an actual tree. In a way, it describes as to what will happen when a tree or hundreds and thousands of trees were cut down?

Looking at these three different ideas that have all in relation with my point, I have find ways of reintroducing us to objects we no longer see by removing vital components that force us to become intimate with the object in a new way and also to find new poetry in the mutual existence of person-object, to renew the vigour of the relationship.

After Two Weeks...

After two weeks of letting my Red Box hung at University of Brunei Darussalam, I had all the feedbacks back.

Here are the most common answers that were being written out by the students at the University:

What Is Your Necessity?

- Handphones

- Food

- Car

- Money

What Is Your Luxury?

- Games

- Laptops

So, basically these are the most common answers that were being brought out from the students where what they need kindly relates to what they need throughout their everyday needs as a student in order to keep them going.

On the other hand, they want laptops for their means of study and games as part of their entertainment.

From here, it shows that nowadays there are high demand in all these things that have been stated. High demand means high rate of exploitation and high exploitation means decrease of biodiversity due to consumerism.

As human domination of ecosystems leads to a clear decline in biodiversity within many habitats and accelerates the process of extinction throughout the world. Although the extinction of species is a natural process, the current speed with the invasion of human intervention is 100-1000 times faster than the speed of natural extinction process.

It can be affected from the change of the ecosystem conditions and the reduction size of the natural areas due to exploitation, agriculture and illegal poaching. On the other hand, also affect the climate that has been changing drastically throughout the invasion of humans.

The Red Box

I created questionnaires give-away for the students at University of Brunei Darussalam to answer it anonymously. Here, I want to know what they might answer and what are the most common things that they really want and need.

These are the sketches that I put my design ideas on in creating this box and how will it be displayed without any damage to the property.

Started off designing a wooden box with two slots for them to put the questionnaires into the box. I then colored the box in red as it will give full attention and being noticed easily from afar.

Finally, I hung it securely at night time as it was the time when no one is around along the walkway from the CLT towards the library as it is the most common area where students passes by and installed it for nearly two weeks.

What Is Necessity And What Is Luxury... Actually?

I then further out my main topic and choose a question that I want to focus on; that is:

"What is necessity and what is luxury?"

First of all, this question have it's relation with and how it affect the biodiversity through consumerism. From this, it questions that how much We consume and how much We demand over the things that are around us that keeps us going, a place to live, places to go and to be alive.

So, what IS necessity actually?

- It refers to what We need in everyday basis that we could not actually be un-attach from it. For example, a toothbrush that we know we all need one to clean our teeth everyday of our lives.

And what IS luxury?

- The state of giving great comfort and extravagant living as to what we want. An inessential and desirable things that We even perhaps dream of wanting that sense of luxury. For example, having yacht for having a cruise around the open sea.

From this, I then wanting to know what people might give me the answer if I ask this question and how many answers are commonly given out here for the students in Brunei at University of Brunei Darussalam...