V54 artist residency students’ works review

the photo took from 16Aug, which is the beginning of final week of their stay. with some individual tutorial in-between, and another teacher commenting their works, finally, some of them changed idea (with limitation?) and some of them keep moving on with the original ideas (which I am happy to see the path and result). here I recap their works process with some reflection for my teaching experience.

Heaven’s work with the story with a friend from Italy, met when they were small. And castle sculpture representing the playground which also named as castle. the weathering decay effect he observed would apply on the castles to show the timeline that he met and disconnecting with the friend. recommending him to buy some small-scale-figure, showing the scale of castle, and also the situation of them, Heaven and his friend. think the narrative is funny and somehow romantic. hope he is ok to handle the changing of decay painting. 🙂

Sopia’s work with a canvas of V54 window’s shape and would paint the morning atmosphere, in an abstract way. Is a nice canvas, and she will use spongy to paint, I agree the spongy would be a good way in painting like fog or like…impressionism’s painting….something presenting lights.

ar 秋’s work with the melting wax, and painting in black/white, the street, representing he feels hot and melting walking around here, since so many slopes and he not knowing the transporting well. the black/white also represent his dizzy feeling. recommending he focus on the wax sculpture as that should be the main item. so far he got much idea

David’ work keep in a secret mode, hope everything’s alright…XoX

>>>no photo……-_-

Leah’s work, happy to see she keep going with her initial idea, which is quick drawing the people around Happy Valley, inviting them to post it back with sharing written on the back. when I visit Leah that day, she receiving many of the return postcards. could see how exciting she was. The next step for her is just wait for the postcard, and thinking how to display well in the exhibition, guiding people to see how she connect the community with drawing postcard.

Julie’s work using picture frame to imitate window frame, drawing classic building around happy valley. she try to use watercolour as it is soft and pretending some older times. Adding horse as happy valley got some horse walking in old days, she said. recommended she to use various size of picture frame, like from small to large. to enhance the visual impact instead of really imitating the windows. well but, she still buying same size frame….-_- anyways~

Ellis seems confusing since he got another tutorial that not supporting him to make 3D mixed media. and he is not confident to keep going on that…..so he was told to stick with his drawing skill, drawing something, still, related to his findings, birth and death, for me, I think that’s ruined the chance of staying here…well but that’s another topic that I would like to write/ record, in another chapter…or actually could be a topic for studying doctorate. yea…back to here…he’s drawing something about that, and I recommend him to break the frame with some installations, like, putting something out of the frame. to enrich the idea of birth/death…like eggs, leaves or sth else.

summer’s work is similar, at the beginning she would like to do something abstract about illustrating sounds, she already recorded and would like to use the sound wave to do the works. however, tutorial with other teacher and saying she better illustrate something real….then she draw…ladys….on each canvas, and she not feeling happy about that, she also questioned why I really need to draw that….I agree and found she is not very happy if the final work is like that…and I suggested her to make use of the exhibition wall, enlarge the “noisy” she illustrated by the mixed-media…she still a bit unhappy and hope her final work would got some excitement.

all their works are now 70-80% completed, hope to see them all satisfy the final work in the exhibition on 19Aug2021.

V54 artist residency tutorial part 2/2

continue the tutorial this morning,

Summer, one of my illustration students, she observed the environment here about street or lane is narrow, seems not as clean as where she living, Shatin (I agree this as actually Shatin is really a cleaner place as the density is lower), more car and traffic jam here. however, these would not be a very specific point to express, or not unique. Keep listening to her until she said she found a scene one day, with a foreign kid at an old traditional stationary store, playing/ screening the old toys, in which, the big contrast of new and old generation, western and east culture impress her a lot. and I am recommending her to observe more about this, e.g. contrast of old man and new store, contrast of foreigner chilling life with hongkongers’ busy life, or even contrast of traditional V54 building with some new cars parking outside, all could be a scene, painting, illustrations or photo to be developed.

Leah, same, illustration HD student of mine, she can’t say a lot deep impression at the beginning, just normal observation or what they did throughout the week. She also mentioned the guy who join V54 before, called Man, they met him on a day when ah Man setting booth to deliver origami course to the community, I asked her to record the impact about the function, like…what is community art? why he doing that? what he actually delivered. the answer is….connecting the new generations in this district, with old and traditional stuffs. and I asked her to research and think of what community art is. Somehow that show involve the community. Instead of an artist keep working on 1 artwork, community art is always welcome for all people to join. and Leah keep sharing her feeling that she like writing, the real paper and writing strokes made her feel warm and sweet. Thus I recommended her to research on writing or paper artist. and at the same time should start or think of some action to do, could be drawing of humans in the community or pets or whatever, and trying to post to herself, may involve the people she drew or else, in order to generate a funny diary or journal the connecting the dates, locations and feelings.

David, student from VAC, he said walked along the hill and picked something, would like to make/ develop something out as an artwork, he said the object could represent the district somehow. and yea, he is not willing to say what is that and I am a bit worry, worried about his direction or worried about if that object is really representing the district. However I am not forcing him to unveil that. On the other hand, I am asking him to research on natural art related to community, and also clear up the mind to think if that “object” is right on the track. if yes…could pick more, if no…please give it up.

jan vormann: dispatchwork; one of the artist I suggested David to research on, see what story behind.

so far that’s the 7 students’ progress, looking forward for next tutorial and the final work they developed.

V54 artist residency tutorial

Currently I have some students who are lucky and got the opportunity for living in V54, artist residency in Hong Kong.

been one week they living in, asking them to record what happened, what they learnt, observed and something really impact them these days.

here, I help them to record as they are quite loose or no direction at the moment.

Ellis, one of my students in illustration class, he observed two main topics and would like to use 3D printing<<< he said; for my advice is, 3D print is a presentation method only, when you are not sure the topic yet, don’t frame it. and the two topics are…1 is the poor people who living in tunnels and the setting of it<<<which makes him think of contrast about rich and poor; the other topic is about cemetary, religion and happy valley itself, >>>”the merry go round” representing the happy valley while the horse inside may decorated in different culture. I think the idea is impressive and messages could be delivered in a fun way (death topic), and I recommend Ellis to research on more about death issue or cemetery. And…is “merry go around” suitable? or could use Ferris wheel to represent? or the whole presentation is a Carnival? will be interesting but I afraid of the production time~ will discuss with him. and I suggested him to research on some media artist so that the presentation method not framed by 3D printing~

HK artist Angela Li recommending Ellis to research on.

Julie, another Illutration students from my class. she founded buildings worth to record. And I am asking her to research on what is common in Happy Valley, by using the common image covering the valuable old building drawings, that would be an interesting presentation. so she could research on the flat price problem? the common of bar? or many cafe? all could be direction. same way I am suggesting her to present in a special way, e.g. nice drawing under beer bottlesss, to illustrate the common of bar, and the impact of finding nice building through barsss in Happy Valley. and yea, again, I hope the student go beyond me, not using my ideas to work on the project.

Heaven, student from Visual Art and Culture (VAC), he seems a bit slow in process or may need more time to observe. but, at least he found something he want to observe, is the weathered sculpture he saw in cemetery. what he said is the surface facing light is somehow more damaged<<< and this is inverted situation when we draw a sculpture. I think that observation is good and recommending hi t observe the buildings around Happy Valley, which may have the same problem on the traditional building surfaces. hope he could find the way.

Sofia, another VAC students, she did talk about some alley and lane that hidden in this district, and she found they are quite beautiful and worth to capture. she took some photo and will post in blog. and we keep talking on what she experienced in these days….and finally she said something she feel very nice, which is the morning scene of the Happy Valley, she described that with sound and colours, etc. and I also think that is something really touched her mind and would be a nice path for the project. so I am asking her to research on “morning record artist” and “abstract paining” <<<as abstract painting is what she wanna do. and the artist I want she research is to inspired by various presentation or recording method of “morning art”. For presentation method, e.g. canvas of her views, like windows shape, or negative shapes between building are interesting, again….just suggestion and hope they got better ideas than mine. 🙂

recording these and letting them read again, hope they won’t feel so lost while living there.