Design Principles/ Final Project

04/06/2021 - 02/07/2021 (Week 10 - 14)

Ngu Kah Shin / 0347666

Design Principles / Bachelor of Design in Creative Media / Taylor's Design School

Final Project: Visual Analysis

LECTURES

Week 11:

Dr Jinchi explained the importance of visual analysis, observing designs and recognising the choices a designer made to better understand the formal properties of good design work. I have made my written lecture notes in reference to Dr Jinchi's lectures attached below.

During the online class session with Dr Charles, he showed us examples of artwork done by HR Giger. HR Giger is a Swiss artist who is best known for his airbrushed images of humans, machines and aliens. In fig 1.1, the first artwork is a piece by H.R. Giger, Li I, 1974. Below it, Fig 1.2, and Fig 1.3 are interpretation work done by Genzoman on Devianart.

Fig 1.1 Screenshots of lecture (HR Giger) (08/06/2021)

Dr Charles also reminded us to choose artwork that is richer to analyse, with room for expansion and imagination. Less ideal choices would be concept illustrations and perspective drawings like landscapes or cityscapes.

Week 12:

No classes were held

Week 13:

This week, Dr Charles went made sure we understood the main key points of the project. We must be able to analyse critically and constructively, breaking down information based on that analysis we made on the selected design work. With that analysis, we create a response. Our work could be applying the particular style of the selected work or emulating its approach. It could also be consciously applying design principles, focusing on the composition of the piece, find the main objective or depicting the relevance of layout or arrangement of elements and countless other ways to craft our design.

INSTRUCTIONS

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FINAL PROJECT

VISUAL ANALYSIS

Observation:

Death of a relative is an illustration composed by artist Betsy Walton. This acrylic and acrylic gouache on 8x10 paper was illustrated for German Philosophy magazine Hohe Luft in 2015. Right off the bat, we can see this mixed-media portrait artwork is exhibited with vibrant pink and blue amidst some dull tones like grey and black. In the centre, there are 4 characters- the one in black, the grey, the pink and the grey baby. They are surrounded by botanical features, leaves with cooler tones on the left and with pink-purple chromatic on the right. Between the two groups of vegetation though, is separated by a black streak. On the left, there are 2 pictorial elements drawn in white. The one on top is a pair of spectacles and the one below is a bowl with cutleries. Many of the elements in this piece are drawn in a clumsy manner; wonky strokes and tottering outlines. The background is made up of 3 colours- white, light turquoise and greyish blue.

Analysis:

The use of the design principle emphasis is highly evident in this piece of work. At first glance, the 4 human figures standing in the middle is likely to catch the viewer's attention. This is achieved by the use of contrasting colours, a great disparity from the single hued background. The figures are the main focus of attention in this piece. Repetition is also exercised and can be seen in the botanical elements at the bottom of the canvas. Though the 2 groups are of different hues and tonal values, their similarities are in their shape, creating consistency and a sense of rhythm.

Now, looking from the lenses of Gestalt Theory, the 5 categories can be observed. Similar elements are visually grouped together. For instance, the human figures are bound together by their shapes and seemingly moves as one. Similarity and continuity go hand in hand with the proximity of the individual groups. Overlapping of the elements creates a stronger proximity effect, as practised in the plants on the ground. Closure- the complex arrangements of elements with parts missing, can still make sense to the audience. This is executed several times in this piece of work, especially on the baby. Despite the body of the baby is not drawn, the audience can still depict the baby hugging the pink figure Lastly, the human figures- foreground, and the background are distinct from each other because of the difference in shades and brush strokes carefully done by the artist.

Interpretation:

Focusing on the grey human figure in the middle of the artwork, we can see the feet are still on that of the pink figure. However, it is being carried away by the black figure. From my perspective, the dull blues and the spectacles and cutleries represent a normal, mundane life of a working adult, work and meals. This may represent the grey figure who has to go return and move on with the daily routine of his life. The black figure may be resonated as reality, fears and bouts of depression, something the grey figure is yet to face after departing the pink figure. As we look at the pink figure, it can be depicted as a mother. Her abdomen has a round patch which could be interpreted as her now empty womb, after giving birth to the child. The baby on her back is being carried away with her, into the afterlife. Her hair, eyes and lips are icy white, cold and lifeless. They are both stepping into a vibrant, fantastical and what seems to me as 'paradise' or heaven'. In this regard, I believe the mother (pink) has lost both her life and the baby's during childbirth. The baby is in the same shade as that of the grey figure. From here, we can understand the human figure in grey is the father of the child.

DESIGN INSPIRED BY SELECTED DESIGN

Fig 2.1, 2.2 first draft and progress work (26/06/2021)

Video time-lapse (26/06/2021)

As a response to Betsy Walton's Death of a relative, I decided to compose a continuation or a part 2 of her narrative whilst applying her art style. In her work, she painted from what I have interpreted, a man grieving over his deceased wife and newborn. In the sequel I have created based on my analysis, I used the same human figures. The concept is that the widower (in gray) visits the deceased wife and newborn child in his dreams when he sleeps at night. The black figure in bed represents reality, exactly like the one in Betsy Walton's version. This time however, his chest does not have a shape of a house, but an empty door, indicating he has a gaping hole in his heart after the loss. His surrounding has the same foliage of the same cool colour scheme as that in Betsy Walton's which symbolises actuality of his existence. In his dreams, however, I resolved with vibrant pink hues, rich of plantation and other details, which meld into the surreal backdrop. This to represent the grotesque fantasy he wishes to live in. ANother small detail I added in is that the wife reached her hand out to the husband but they never really touched because of the gap they have between their fate- one is alive and one is not.

Now, let's view the piece from a designer's standpoint. The hierarchy of the elements in this composition can be determined by the size. The main objective is the human figures, which all appear very large, signifying their importance. Emphasis is created due to the size and contrasting colours. A sense of balance is also achieved despite the skewed position of the triangular shape. The traingle, although weighted more on the left side, is counteracted with the heavy use of floral elements on the woman on the right. Other than that, balance was also accomplisheddue to the repetition of the same foliage details all throughout the piece, which can help create a sense of rhythm between several frequencies. This then brings us to movement. The use of sharp lines helps guide the audeince'seye to a predetermined path, from the element with the most contrast, the widow, and then the next brightest element, the deceased wife, then the triangle points towards the black figure in the bed.

FINAL DESIGN OUTCOME

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Ellis Ngu Kah Shin [0347666]

Design Principles/ Final Project

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