Win's Portfolio
Project 1
Local Artist and Environment
Title: Banned
Medium: Acrylic, Wood, Plaster, Clear Plastic Tape, & Television
Size: 148.5 cm x 97cm x 47cm
“X” is not a symbol of hatred or disrespect. In 1985, the first Nike Air Jordan was banned from the NBA since it failed too meet on-court dress codes at the time. In 2011, Nike re-released the Nike Air Jordan 1 and placed a red “X” symbol on a re-release version of the shoe (named “Banned”) in memorial that it was once banned from the NBA.
Thailand had been facing long-term political unrests after Thaksin Shinawatra (ex-prime minister of Thailand) refused to accept his court’s charges and went in exile. Thaksin’s sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, soon came to power after her brother’s exile. A long-term controversy rose whether if Yingluck Shinawatra truly came to power by democracy or not and if she is nothing more than her brother’s marionette. However, living in Thailand, the media has dominant power in influencing Thai people’s political views. And I’ve noticed that the long-term controversy was barely mentioned.
I decided to investigate and point out the long-term controversy that Yingluck, the current prime minister is nothing more than a marionette for her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra; and that the Red Shirts are their direct supporters through my artwork. I decided to focus on how the content was banned from the most popular media outlet, the television. Since television is what carves the people’s perspective (thinking, vision, or even taste), it became sensible for me that the television is what represents a regular citizen’s mind. I also wanted to give a feeling of action and movement on the television screen and therefore I’ve selected photos of Yingluck, Thaksin and the Red Shirts (Red Shirts are Thaksin and Yingluck’s supporters) in action. The photos are also filtered to be in black and white and arranged in a grid composition such that it looked like footage from a surveillance camera, which adds to the doubts of the controversies that Thailand has towards Yingluck and Thaksin. A big red “X” is rapidly painted on the T.V. screen (the citizen’s visions) to symbolize censorship done by the government of what might confirm Thaksin’s power through Yingluck. The reason that the “X” or the banned symbol is in red is because it is painted by the government, themselves which in this case Yingluck’s party (since the color that symbolizes them is red). The body of the sculpture is then posed in a falling motion in relevance to what happened to the person’s visions; blinded from the truth due to censorship by the government. The T.V.’s plug is also plugged into the middle of the sculpture’s back (where the spinal chord would lay inside) to emphasize how the media has influenced common citizens and how it affects their taste (where tastes are delivered by the human senses, which is monitored by the spinal chord). Last but not least would be the red footprints presented which are made using cheap sandals. The sandals are to symbolize that even if Yingluck’s government were to do something, they wouldn’t get their own hands dirty and therefore, they would pay the poor to do what they wish.
IB Art High Level Year 1 Studio Pieces
Project 2
Intimate Portrait
Title: Grz.
Medium: Clear Acrylic Sheet, Sticker, & Wood
Size: 180 cm x 82 cm x 57 cm
Growing up as a fashion enthusiast, it is inevitable to not fall in love with fashion photography. Fashion objects owned by the individual express his/her tastes and interests. And therefore, for the Intimate Portrait Project, I’ve decided to bring fashion photography to life.
This is Grace. Grace has been my friend since middle school and had inspired me about all the latest fashion trends. Fashion changes all the time and so did her appearance.
I decided that I wanted to show the stages of me getting to know Grace to the point we became friends through fashion photography with Grace as the model. Grace’s clothing will represent time (fashion trend at the time) and her mood (by color & type of clothing) at each stage, which gradually changes as I get to know her better.
I started out by dividing the time between me getting to know Grace to the point I became friends with her into four stages and assigned clothing combinations I knew she has in her wardrobe to represent time and her mood at the time.
Therefore the photos will be aligned in front of each other by having it printed on a transparent material (sticker on clear acrylic sheet). I then took portraits of Grace and photoshopped the background out so that it is transparent. I also adjusted the levels of opacity of each photo starting from small values to the maximum so that the last portrait can be seen through all four stages and that each stage could still be visible after the other, creating an effect of change.
The Four Stages are:
First Impression: My first impression of Grace would be how she is a really tough looking and arrogant. Therefore the clothes she would be wearing would be almost all-street gothic/black streets wear total look to express a negative attitude that I see in her (but also keeping a great sense of street style). I asked Grace to wear the long sleeve tee, slim fit jeans and a matching cap, so that more of her body is to be tightly masked which emphasized how I did not truly know who she is in the inside yet. At the time I saw Grace, street fashion in Thailand was at its peak, especially sneakers.
Knowing Each Other’s Existence: When Grace started noticing me and knowing my existence, I got a chance to talk to her from time to time. The first impression I had of her then vanished. Grace appears to be a nice person but I still have doubts if she is truly sincere. To represent my impression of Grace in this stage, I asked Grace to wear a grey t-shirt with a more relaxed baggy pant rather than slim fit jeans. The clothing she wears in this stage is much a more relaxed combination of street clothing than the first one, which is my purpose to make it obvious. Another indication of time I added in this stage was the sneakers Grace is wearing which is a Nike SB Dunk, the most popular kind of sneaker at the time I started to talk to Grace.
Formally Knowing Each Other: Entering High School I had Grace in my chemistry class and therefore we got a chance to familiarize ourselves with each other. Therefore I would say that we are formally knowing each other at this stage and therefore I asked Grace to put on formal clothes, but still keeping her rebellious attitude I decided to have her still wear shorts and a beaten up converse while also keeping a classic look with her hairstyle. At the time, Thailand’s fashion was also changing its trend from Streetwear to a more formal kind of fashion such as Indy or elegant looking clothes.
Became Good Friends: After sharing our interest for fashion and other things such as music, we became good friends and always help consult each other from time to time. I definitely wanted this photo to stand out than the ones in front and therefore not only that it has a maximum opacity level, but the clothing too were very much different than the first three in front. At this point Grace is one truly sincere friend who always helps me. And therefore a huge contrast can be seen comparing this last stage and the first stage. This is where the photo becomes timeless, because there is no trend influenced at this point. I just wanted to bring out the sweetness inside Grace has as much as I can.
Project 3
Found Object
Title: Container of Values
Medium: Shoeboxes, Wire Mesh, Zinc, & Wood
Size: 273 cm x 92 cm x 120 cm
In this project, I had to choose an object and turn it into something meaningful. My life has always been about searching for the most anticipated shoes, but I often overlook the importance of what brings that happiness safely to me. I then chose to give shoeboxes a meaning rather than leaving it as a worthless container like most would see.
I wanted to present what the shoeboxes bring to me. Literally it brings shoes but as a sneakerhead bringing shoes means bringing happiness, confidence, solid protection, courage, and all I need to brighten my day. Therefore I had a Chinese dragon culturally represent the prestigious feelings a shoebox brings to me. I also wanted introduce triangular structures by using it to form the piece; not only that it gives a really cool texture to the design of the project, but also is functional as it helps the material bend in any desired shape. I definitely wanted to include a movement into this piece, especially with the transformation from a running human into a Chinese dragon (which is what happened after he wore the sneakers that came in the shoebox); therefore, I took advantage of the triangular structures made throughout the piece and used triangular pieces to smoothly connect the two in a flowing motion.
Last but not least I would like to mention a primary challenge in the piece, which was to make the human sculpture raise one foot as a running motion. This took a lot of trial and error methods with materials such as zinc and wire mesh in order to make the sculpture as a whole be stabilized.
Project 4
Choice Project
Title: Telephoto Lens
Medium: Photography
Size: 60.5 cm x 75 cm
During the winter break I had a chance to experience photography through my father’s telephoto lens. Telephoto lens are mainly wide-angle lens and are meant for shooting a large scenes or landscapes. Having some prior knowledge about photography, I noticed that the telephoto lens has the ability to take in larger amounts of light (in order to create a photo) than any other lens I own. I was so intrigued by its abilities that I’ve decided to create a photography piece to emphasize the feature where the light would be pulled in by the Telephoto Lens.
Project 5
Found Object Video Project
Title: Found Object “Container of Values” Video
Medium: Film
Size: 363.6 MB
As an extension to my Found Object studio piece a motion picture has been made to compliment it.
In the video I would like to capture the movement, origin, and message of my Found Object piece.
In order for this to happen, I had to find all the objects I could to describe the time and mood to the audience in each scene. I also had to think about where my ideas came from in the first place and how it all related to me.
I chose to include cultural things such as the Chinese orients and vases in my house to represent who I am and how it lead to the idea of constructing a Chinese dragon; not to mention the hip-hop song used which hip-hop had been influencing the sneaker culture for a long time.
Emphasizing movement, I chose an instrumental version of one of my favorite songs “To The World” by Kanye West Featuring R-Kelly. The reason I chose this song was purely because of its beats, how it starts with bits of notes scattered around like the triangles used to form my studio piece, the pounding of the drums to give a prestigious feeling and last but not least, the subtle violin that carries the song throughout. The footage of the video is also aligning to match the song, which again enhances how I wanted to emphasize movement in my Found Object piece.
The shots I used were mainly pan-shots and close up shots to bring out the details of the piece. One interesting thing about the pan-shots would be how I figured out a way to film a steady pan-shot and get around the Found Object piece using a skateboard and a friend to push me steadily giving a great 360 degree view of my work.
Project 3.1
Found Object in 2D
For this art piece, I was to present my Found Object two dimensionally in an interesting perspective.
I decided to emphasize the Chinese culture based on the Chinese dragon in my Found Object studio piece by using the patterns that I found on my Chinese vases and orients at home. This made me decide to create two separate worlds, before and after.
Before: The Chinese dragon started off as a two dimensional representation in a Chinese traditional style that could be found on Chinese vases and orients.
After: The shoeboxes had transformed the traditional Chinese dragon into my Found Object piece (which is made of shoeboxes).
The shoeboxes then becomes a portal to reality, the actual Found Object piece.
Project 7
Wardrobe of Filters
Project 8
Effects of Branding
Project 9
The Scapegoat
Project 10
Dubious Beggar
Project 11
Trapped.
Project 12
Never On Time
Project 6
Social-o-matic.
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Size:
I would like to portray a girl that has given up herself (her mind) to the higher society in order to earn respect and acceptance. This idea was formed from my observations at dinner parties with my parents. It can clearly be seen who really is desperate to be a part of something they initially weren’t.
In contrast to the figures in the background, it can be seen that the girl’s clothing represents the poor and as well as being untrendy. The traditional clothes are not worn in cities and definitely not in the higher society; therefore this represents her rural background as well. The brain is used to represent the mind of the girl and how she holds it up is a sign of willing to give it up. This shows her will of how she wants to be a part of something she was not destined for.
This is also my first time painting in acrylic ever in my life and I wished I had much more practice.
Medium: Clear Acrylic Sheet, Sticker, Wood, Mirror, PVC Pipes, & Spray Paint.
Size: 160 cm x 68.5 cm x 158.5 cm
I would like to present the idea of how photo filters are becoming an essential for almost everyone on social media to the point that they are as important as our clothes, since we put on clothes in order to express ourselves in the way that we want people to appreciate us for.
I love playing Instagram on a regular basis and therefore all of the photos I see are usually inevitably filtered to fit the owner’s perception of beauty. However, there are people who use the “inappropriate” types of filter for their photos making their photos lose the appropriate balance, where appropriate balance is the common perception of beauty. This is just like how people overdress or underdress.
Therefore, I decided to make the connection between photo filters and clothes. In my art piece: a minimalistic, modern-looking wardrobe is filled with seven unique filters. It is important that the filters are unique, such that it resembles the various options of filters available in mobile applications. The piece is highly interactive, which means the audience can come try on the filters, just like how they would try on clothes, in front of the mirror provided to see what fits them best. The piece therefore stimulates what is virtually done to photos inside mobile applications and carries out my view of the situation.
Medium: Colorpencils, Water-colour & Copic-markers
Size: 55 cm x 37 cm
Branding is something that I am very interested in. Strong branding has the power to deliver so many messages to its consumers, however, what fascinates me is trust. Trust is immediately felt by consumers when they see respectable brands, which greatly affects their decision-making. Which lead me to wonder, how would we feel if there was no branding in this world? It would be insane. Would you dare drink Coca-Cola if the bottle doesn’t say anything? The amount of trust consumers give to branding is amazing. Therefore I would like to portray a situation where branding is absent from this world.
The lady in my art piece is in state of shock when she saw the absence in branding. This is portrayed by the film-negative effect on the blank wrapper that is dropped on to her face. The cool and warm color swirls are also to expressed conflicting feelings, just as you would still think that the Coca-Cola in the example was coke but still have doubts that it might not be so. The background is filled with iconic products that had their branding removed from them as well as black stripes in reference to the caution lines. The giant hand that released the wrapper was to represent the aspect that branding is something manmade.
Medium: Photography
Size:
Being a Buddhist, I’ve taught to do good, so that good things will come back in return. The idea of karma has been something that had prevented a lot of people from doing bad things. It might just as well explain how people say, “what goes around comes around.”
I really do believe that karma (our actions) will determine the fate of our future and therefore our lives is in karma’s hands. I decided to represent this idea by using the karma knot. The knot is designed such that if one of the loops is moved, the others will be affected which really represents the aspect of action and reaction in the idea of karma. The knot is also presented to be translucent since it is something that is always present but not visually present. The circular structure is to portray the idea of “what goes around comes around,” which means what you do will affect you at some point in your future.
Medium: Colorpencils, Water-colour & Copic-markers
Size: 60 cm x 46 cm
In Thailand, the rich and powerful often gets away with the crimes they’ve committed by having a representative take the blame for them. Such representative is called a “scapegoat” which is a term that is widely understood. Therefore I would like to culturally present this on going issue in Thailand through this art piece.
I decided to portray a scapegoat in the middle of an interrogation while showing the owner of the crime turn him in. The owner of the crime is represented by a water-monitor lizard. In Thai cultural context, the water-monitor lizard is used to call someone that is evil and shameless of his/her actions. In order to show the difference in wealth, I decided to have the clothing and setting of this piece be dated back to the time Thailand still has its feudal system. It can be explicitly seen that the water-monitor lizard is wearing government official clothes which shows wealth and power, while the scapegoat, not wearing anything, is poor and weak.
I also decided to create a variety of textures from the media that I am using. The colorpencils really creates a rough texture for the skin of the watermonitor lizard, as opposed to the markers that create a smoother texture for the clothing and interrogation table. Watercolor is used in the background in order to separate it from the subjects.
Medium: Photography
Size: 5472 x 3648 (Resolution)
One of the things that parents in Thailand always threat children what would happen if they got lost would be to get kidnapped by strangers. They also would tell the story of how the kidnappers would sabotage the kidnapped children and place them on the streets to beg for money. Unfortunately, the world does not know that, a lot of foreigners think that those people are on the streets begging for money on their own will. The system is ran by mafias in Thailand and it is something the locals and the police knows but decides to not take action out of fear.
How the beggar is not on the streets beggar for money on his or her own will really is something I would like to present in this piece. By applying cubism, which is opposed realism: I intend to portray that the lady isn’t there for real, where “real” meant on her own will.
Even though the beggar lady allowed me to take a photo of her, I was yelled at by a local who thought I was a foreigner. “NO!” the man shouted in his Thai accent, luckily to my senses and ability I replied to him in English without the Thai accent about how this is for my art project. Looking away from me, he grinned, “Ok…ok…” I guess I’ve just proved it for myself that the beggar wasn’t really there on her own will.
Medium: Markers, Pencils, & Cutter
Size: 56cm x 56cm
Sometimes I wonder if I am a perfectionist myself. I seem to have identical traits of what a perfectionist would be, such as spending too much time on the unnecessary details or trying to perfect all aspects of a task. Therefore I often do my work to the very last second before its deadline and therefore, I struggle to complete my assignments on time.
To portray how perfectionist spends too much time on the unnecessary details and therefore are never “on time,” I decided to literally place the hands of the perfectionists “under time” as well as using measuring instruments to help portray my message.
The measuring instruments in this piece are used in a way that regular people wouldn’t use them, such as using a tuning fork to tune personal music or using a ruler to precisely smoothen nails. The measuring instruments are presented in gold in order to show the aspect of how perfectionists value the instruments.
The stopwatch is at its reset position indicating that it is out of time. I also decided that the stopwatch design should have both conservative and radical elements in order to show how perfectionists take their time in contrast to how time does not wait for them to take their time. To achieve this, I added more curved edges to the typography of a conservative dull-looking sharp font as well as made the design modern by joining the indicator lines. The shading of the stopwatch is also done in a pop-art style to give a rebellious and radical attitude, which is something that time has on perfectionists.