Task 1

TASK NUMERO UNO.

CREATIVE WORK.

Cabbage Flower.

Above = result of not being all that creative. Despite my past(failed) artistic endeavours, this work is one of my most creative. It was part of a black and white photographic series I did. The task was still life and instead of choosing something crazy and weird to make it seem like my photographs were somewhat interesting, I decided to photograph what you see here. A cabbage flower. I utilised studio light in dynamic ways, changed background, varied composition, had different numbers of flowers in shots etc etc. The usual photography stuff, but done creatively - of course. I then became more artistically involved with this task in the dark room. I experimented with many filters, exposures, sizes, using borders within the artwork, inverting the image tra-la, tra-la. The outcome - mundane still lifes with evocative and powerful connotations. Not that I think of myself as Edward Weston reincarnated, but nevertheless I do think I approached a still life task rather creatively. 

Apologies for the poor quality. I am yet to invest in a scanner.

ARCHITECTURAL GREATNESS.

Sketch by Frank Gehry.

Exterior of WDCH.

Frank Gehry's Walt Disney Concert Hall. Sublime. Or Frozen Jazz as Gehry himself described. For me deconstructivist architecture can sometimes look messy and, to be frank, ugly. But here, here is the style at its best. The building houses a hall for the Philharmonic Orchestra, making "frozen jazz" a perfect description - tying both the aesthetics and the purpose together. In terms of shape, line and texture the building is a combination of smooth and dynamic. The curved lines and fluid shapes are enhanced by the sleek texture. However, the direction of every exterior section is oblique, suggesting a sense of movement and action. Also, The sizes of the section vary, creating a sense of imbalance and disproportion as well as a sense of freedom. It is also interesting to note the metallic colour of the stainless steel for it creates a life of its own, absorbing and reflecting sunlight. Overall, a swell building.
 

A SNIPPET OF BEAUTY.

Gosainkunda, Nepal.

A village above the clouds is hard to come by. Perhaps my judgement is bias, having visited the above scene but nevertheless I shall stand by my opinion and declare this as beautiful. This photograph was taken while I was trekking in the Langtang region of the Himalayas in late 2012 and although all the happy snaps I have of that trek, this is by far the most striking. Why? Well after trekking for 8 hours, ascending what I think was close to 1000m, arriving here was, well bloody beautiful. But aside from my associations with the photograph, it truly makes me gasp. I am spellbound by the crystal clear lake located 4000+m above sea level. Not to mention the village resting on the clouds. Oh and the sheer size of the mountainous landscape. Artistically, the photograph itself is also rather captivating. Most evident is the symmetry created by the lake. Not only is the village and surrounding area reflected but the sky, almost suggesting that the sky and lake are one.  Also the colours have the effect to stun you. The cerulean blue clashing with the oranges and browns is bold and beautiful. The bold and the beautiful, shall we say? I could blabber on but I shan't. So, yes. Yes this is beauty...at least to it's beholder.

SHINYA KIMURA. 

1957 Triumph "Needle".

Dynamic. 
Machine. 
Rotating.

ANTONIO STRADIVARI.

Violin, 1709 ex "Viotti-Marie Hall".

Majestic. 
Veneer. 
Breathing. 

Jiro Ono.

Shima-aji (striped jack fish)

Delicate.

Experiment.

Layering.