ヴァネッサ's Contextual Studies : 2012

Tuesday 13 November 2012

SILHOUETTE

A Continuation from my previous movie review, here's the final outcome of my Silhouette project! =D

THEME : (Loosely based upon Silent Hill series) Encountering unseen enemies while in a ghost town.

I had this setting picked out to depict the drab scenery that I have watched in Silent Hill 1 & 2. Revelation which was the movie I reviewed about in the previous post has the strongest influence on my grayscale silhouette as the movie consisted mostly settings shot during the night, especially towards the ending. Even daytime in Silent Hill is dreary. I chose the nurse and pyramid head as my inspiration as they appear to be instinctively the antagonist, as they kill without remorse. The footprints that you see suggests an apparition who follows the wandering man in the background. Based upon Silent Hill, this is what I interpreted from the story, that once a person enters this ghost town, you are going to encounter enemies that you didn't even know exist, or the fact that you didn't know that THEY KNEW you were there, even before YOU KNEW they were there.

MORAL OF THE STORY : Always be cautious, watch your back & it's better to know some self-defence/be smart in your actions.

Now, here's how I did this Silhouette piece. I wished I had pictures for you to see but, getting so caught up in creating this artwork made me forget my camera. But, let me at least explain through a rough squiggle sketch. =)

STEP 1 : Sketching out my idea by finding the perspective point and filling in the empty spaces.

STEP 2 : Coloring the white spaces with black permanent ink.

STEP 3 : Coloring the sky with monochromatic poster colors.

That's All For Now Folks! This Assignment Will End the First Half of the 2nd Semester...Look Forward for more after the 19th! =D HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

INDIE FOR THE PEOPLE

LISTEN TO ME WHILE YOU BROWSE THIS BLOG! =D And Here's To Indie Music =)
* recommended to be open in another browser*

FOSTER THE PEOPLE - WASTE

GROUPLOVE - LOVE WILL SAVE YOUR SOUL

ONE NIGHT ONLY - DAYDREAM

PASSION PIT - TAKE A WALK

PASSION PIT - IT'S NOT MY FAULT, I'M HAPPY

THE DRUMS - I NEED FUN IN MY LIFE

*ALL VIDEOS ARE IN COURTESY OF YOUTUBE*

Friday 9 November 2012

MOVIE REVIEW

POPCORN HOUR!

Thanks To Our Super Cool & Sporty Lecturer, Mr.Charles, the FID september intake got to have a movie excursion!! But, of course it wasn't just for pleasure sake, in fact, it's a film study to help us get inspired to produce a SILHOUETTE! I'm certain you know what this word means but, just to clear the air a little, a silhouette = the outline or general shape of something against a lighter background. It's often filled with a solid color ex: black and the interesting thing about silhouette is that it can represent almost anything from human figure

---> objects ---> anonymous shapes/sceneries...in other words, it's very flexible =D

So, let's get down & dirty...

We've managed to grab tickets to watch the newly released 'SILENT HILL: REVELATION'.

Here's the official poster:

To Understand the 2nd Installment of the Silent Hill Franchise, it's better for you to watch the 1st Installment to get a better understanding of the entire plot/scenario. However just a brief re-cap, the protagonist of the story, Rose is concerned about her adopted daughter's nightmarish dreams about 'Silent Hill'. She then sets out in search of this place with Sharon (her daughter) in hopes of curing Sharon. There, she unravels the mysteries of the ghost town that is rumored to be 'alive' even after the coal seam fire that destroyed the town. Rose encounters creatures and dark evils that surround the 'demon child' known as Alessa. Alessa controls Silent Hill and she's out for revenge...if you want to know why, watch the first installment =) I have no intention of being a spoiler.

SILENT HILL REVELATION : still maintains a mysterious quality about silent hill.

REVIEW (MAY CONTAIN SPOILER) : In the 2nd installment, we get to meet new characters such as Vincent (Sharon's lover) & The Order & The Wolf Family. This story is the continuation of Sharon/Heather who is now all grown up (18-yrs) and her dilemma of having to move around the country & attending different schools because someone from her past wants her BACK in Silent Hill. In order to keep his step-daughter safe, Christopher did everything he could to keep Sharon safe, as a promise to his wife, Rose who is stuck in Silent Hill. Christopher is later kidnapped by a mysterious cult group and Sharon goes on a mission (with Vincent) to save her father, and there she gets to know more about her TRUE SELF.

MY OPINION: The Silent Hill Franchise is not so much of Horror to me, as I'm a super horror junkie! And I must say that it's really hard to find a great horror movie! On a scale of 1-10, I would give Silent Hill a '5'. Silent Hill is mostly a psychological & supernatural horror movie with a hint of surrealism. It doesn't hit me with so much of a

but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Personally, I think that the mystery shrouding the town is what keeps the viewer in suspense and glued to their seats. I admit that the curiosity of exactly what the term 'THE DARKNESS IS COMING' is what grips me and even after watching the 2nd installment, I am still puzzled about why that even happens, especially the part where the walls begin to peel away. It's as if the walls and doors are burnt and peeled away to reveal the truth & the ugliness/dark side of Silent Hill. I do prefer the2nd installment over the 1st and here's why I enjoyed the 2nd installment :

1) I never expected this creature to appear in the 2nd installment and I have to give credit to it...because in the 1st installment, the creatures that exist are mostly 'FLESHY' and perhaps bloody but, this creature is made up of mannequin arms & heads!! It's so bloody awesome & totally different! It's UNEXPECTED!

2) Also, there were the scenes of the NURSES & The Pyramid Head Monster. The aesthetics of the visual portrayed of these nurses were really unique, and the Pyramid Head Monster is only introduced in the 2nd installment, which is a little weird if you think about it...if he's Alessa's guardian, shouldn't he at least appear in the first installment?

THE NURSES

PYRAMID HEAD

3) IT'S LESS DRAGGY THAN THE FIRST...The reason is because more interesting characters were introduced and there wasn't so much running around and ambiguity as the first installment. There was a little more 'action', as in the fight between Claudia & The Pyramid Head.

Now, Here's Why I Was Left Dissatisfied:

Alessa plays an important role in the entire SILENT HILL FRANCHISE right? It's quite unsatisfying the see Alessa go down without a fight with her twin 'Sharon' in REVELATION. I mean, she's portrayed to be the Greater Evil/Demon Child, making her sound formidable and fearful but, in the end, she gets absorbed by Sharon, a normal teenage human (combining the two halves into a whole, as Sharon is Alessa's good side) without as much of an interesting struggle. I think it would make the storyline better if there had been some sort of struggle be it power or inner struggle endured by Alessa/Sharon. Also, Alessa doesn't look very much like a 'ghost' that would stay in your mind for a long term because her appearance is similar to those typical ghosts you get on other horror films...to put it critically : it looks rather fake.

Basically, psychological horror isn't my cup of horror, but it's a nice watch to pass the time, although others may not agree with my point of view because of the contextual meaning/concept of SILENT HILL. After watching SILENT HILL & REVELATION, it can leave you dazed and puzzled...it even gets you to think about it after the show...the 'How's & Why's' bombarding your head. A similarity of both installments is, they have ambiguous or open endings...For me, I like to be a hedonist when watching horror, not something I would be likely to indulge in the mental area too often. According to RottenTomatoes, SILENT HILL REVELATION currently holds only a 7% rating but, I have to say that the one thing that keeps SILENT HILL 1 & 2 in my mind would be the audible siren signalling that the DARKNESS IS COMING.

VINCENT & SHARON

Although I'm not overly crazy about SILENT HILL: REVELATION, the scenes depicted in the movie were no doubt helpful in giving me inspirations for my Silhouette assignment. The dark scenes with minimum lighting really stimulates the imagination and the different views help me to understand the perspectives applied. In REVELATION, there are many inspiring scenes to help portray them in Silhouette and I think it would be a challenge & fun to work on it! =D

Thursday 8 November 2012

UNMASKING VINCENT (updated*)

WHO ARE YOU?

http://www.nolaimports.com/store/venetian-mask-c-69.html?alpha_filter_id=85&

In General, Masks Are Used To Disguise Or Conceal The Identity Of The Person Wearing It.

The TEXTBOOK VERSION : A mask is something used to cover all or part of the face in order to conceal one's identity.

In fact, there are many kinds of masks from different cultures all around the world. If you realize, the designs on the masks of different countries are interesting and unique, even the function of the mask! However, the similarity of all the masks, doesn't matter where they are from, is for the purpose of being anonymous.

SO, CAN YOU NAME ALL THE KINDS OF MASKS ON PLANET EARTH??

TRADITIONAL MEXICAN MASK - DIABLO

MEXICAN NACHO LIBRE MASK

http://mauivents.com/2010/03/23/nacho-libre-mit/

HAWAIIAN TIKI MASK

Function(s) : To Ward of evil spirits, To induce fertility, Successful Harvest, Protection

http://musicals.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1194286

AFRICAN TRIBAL MASKS

Origins : Paleolithic Era
Made of : Wood, Leather, Metal, Fabric

FUNCTION(s) : For Celebrations, Crop Harvesting, War Preparations, Peace & Trouble Periods

http://www.overstock.com/Worldstock-Fair-Trade/Sese-Wood-African-Tribal-Mask-Ghana/2182946/product.html

VENETIAN MASK

Function(s) : To indulge in promiscuous & chivalrous activities due to religious oppression (in the past)
TODAY : For carnivals & hedonistic street fairs

Advantage : Social Class is disregarded

http://flemmens.deviantart.com/art/Venetian-masks-7-81699511

NATIVE AMERICAN MASK

http://www.masksoftheworld.com/NoAmerica/Native%20American%20Mask%20Kwakiutl.htm

JAPANESE NOH MASK - HANNYA

http://www.nohmask21.com/eu/hannya.html

JAPANESE KABUKI MASK

http://avaxhome.ws/graphics/vector/MaskKabukiOpera.html

AMBIGUOUS/FACELESS CONCEPT

http://www.internetismyonlyfriend.com/page/24

http://xmadyax.deviantart.com/

THERE ARE MANY KINDS OF MASKS IN THIS WORLD AS YOU HAVE SEEN, AND THERE ARE QUITE A FEW FAMOUS ARTISTS WHO HAVE CREATED MASKS...

by ALYSSA RAVENWOOD @ http://people.tribe.net/4cea87b1-8437-4ac8-a59f-137b116f74ac

BY LAUREN RAINE

by ROBERT FAUST @ http://www.faustwork.com/performer/robert-faust?option=com_content&view=article&id=13&Itemid=57

OUR WORK......

For this contextual project, we were required to produce a video about our understanding of "MASK". So far all you've read tells you that masks were used for various purposes but still...is there any literal meaning to it? Focusing on reality, if you think about it, people wear masks everyday. No matter where, at work, school, university or at home...we are ALWAYS wearing a mask...don't deny it...

It's true, everyone strives to be authentic but, then again...if you claim to take away the mask you are wearing, what's to help you say that underneath your mask...it's your REAL self? How Would You Know?? So, for this purpose, our group has conjured a concept to portray our understanding of a 'MASK'. For this project, we have decided to base it upon 'bandage concept'.