growth, by han sai por, depicts five seedlings slightly white/beige in colour. the forms are well-modeled and well-defined. the top of the seeds seems to point towards one another, suggesting growth of seeds and its transition. the surface of the sculpture is extremely well-polished and smooth, with gentle and fluid curves. the sculpture is also rather minimalist and the artist chose toe eliminate and reduce the sculpture to its bare essentials.
the seeds depicted are much larger than those in real life. standing 11.2 x 88.5 x 40cm, they are easily up to 10 times the size of normal seeds. this perhaps suggest growth in a way that the seeds grow in size and height.
the sculpture gives a rather pleasing and pleasant feeling, slightly tranquil in a way that han sai por chose to use marble as her medium.marble is usually smooth and cool to touch, and the fact that the seeds are white gives a rather pure and peaceful feeling and atmosphere.
looking ahead, by ng eng teng, depicts a human form, eliminating most of the body parts, leaving only the essentials, like the head, arms and thighs. the hands of the sculpture are placed on the head, with one elbow resting on the thigh. the head seems to look into the distance, as suggested by the name of the artwork ' looking ahead'. ng eng teng chose to use bronze as his medium hence the sculpture is grayish brown in colour. the forms are rather well-defined and mostly polished. yet the artist left visible marks on the sculpture, giving it texture and roughness. the thighs of the sculpture is extremely exaggerated in a way that it is being blown up to nearly twice the normal size.
the artwork seems more somber due to the grey tone of the medium and also because the look in the eyes of the sculpture gives a mysterious aura. the hands placed on the head of the sculpture seems to suggest that looking ahead is stressful, like having a headache, perhaps depicting human suffering.
2b)
for both artworks, the artists choose to simplify the forms and eliminate the unnecessary details. for growth,only the shape of the seeds are depicted, without extra receptacle and seed coat, while for looking ahead, the body of the sculpture is removed leaving only what the artist feel is important, which are the thighs, head and forearms.
however, for growth, han sai por choose to deliberately and carefully polish and smoothen every in ch of her sculpture, making it very fluid. as for looking ahead, ng eng teng left numerous visible marking on his sculpture, giving his artwork textures
both artworks have clear and well-defined forms
han sai por chose marble as her medium which is a rather unforgiving material as compared to bronze as it chips away easily, hence requiring a high level of skill and patience. as for ng eng teng's looking ahead, it is made of bronze which is a very durable material, and is more malleable than marble hence giving more space for mistakes. han sai por feels that her art need to connect with nature and allow the viewer to feel and experience the energy of nature, for people to be " a part of nature and not apart from nature", hence the forms are rather organic. she enjoys her physical contact with her medium as she feels that understanding the material is of utmost importance. as for ng eng teng, he believes that durability and endurance is the key to his choice of medium. having worked with clay and marble, he feels that his artwork needs to withstand time and last long.
for growth, the smoothness of the sculpture gives it a very organic feeling, like real seeds. as for looking ahead, the dull colour and rough texture seems to give the artwork a rather forlorn feeling, with a tinge of sadness in it.
ng eng teng has huge interest in the human anatomy and in this artwork, he seems particularly interested in the limbs, especially the thighs, enlarging ti to become the base or f the artwork, giving it a foundation.
2c)
i would choose han sai por's growth (1985) to be displayed in nanyang girls high school as part of our permanent art collection and it could be exhibited near the foyer, beside miss han's other artwork, spirit of nature.
firstly, han sai por is a former art teacher of nygh and it would be more suitable and more likely for her to be willing to give her artwork to the school. also, 3 other pieces of artwork my miss han are already being displayed around the school compound, hence her style of artwork will be more easily accepted by the staff and students.
"growth" could possibly suggest the students growth physically and mentally as they receive education here in nanyang. the well- rendered form and purity of the artwork goes well with the school motto : simplicity
the artwork could be placed outside the foyer as there is a grass patch there. miss han strongly believes that her artworks are part of nature and needs to interact with nature. she created her artworks in a way that they seem very organic and stylized and i feel that it would fit well with our school compound.
as for looking ahead, i feel that is is less suitable as it depict what seems like a human butt which may not be suitable ans appropriate to be placed in a school compound. also, the sculpture is more dull and gives a somber feeling, while a school should have a cheerful atmosphere to encourage students to study hard. although the title of the artwork is " looking ahead", i feel that the sculpture gives of a feeling that what is ahead is something unpleasant. also, the positioning of the hands, placed above the head, seems to give the art a sense of anxiety. the pressure on the head seems to suggest stress which i believe is unsuitable for a school.
miss han focuses her art on the harmonious relationship between man and nature. she fee;ls that technology advancement has caused people to feel distant from nature. she feels that we are too self conscious and not being ourselves anymore. by growing closer to nature, we would be able to find our true selves, which i think is something school should also encourage.
also, the placement of each individual seeds is in such a way that they interact with one another. they seems to show the transition and stages of growth, suggested but the different heights and positions of the seeds. it seems to suggest that nanyang girls should work hard and grow, mature, and in the end stand up proud and tall like the last seed which is visibly taller than the others. it could also possible mean that nanyang girls would become the best and respectable leaders of singapore.
this is such a boring post
i should end of with a cute baby :D
