This report describes my activities during my SDL weeks, 26 March till 20 April, an opportunity and challenge for us to break away from prescribed processes by the department and define our own activities that serve our personal development goals. In the first week, I visited United Kingdom, experiencing their cultures. In the second week, I have been introduced to video editing, together with creating effects to the videos. In the last week, I visited Milan, Italy for the Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano (Milan Furniture Fair) 2012.

Report SDL2011/2012Semester 2

26 Mar - 2 AprUnited Kingdom trip.

Yayoi Kusama Tate Modern Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese artist and at the time when I was in London, her works are featured in Tate Modern. I like her obession with repetitive process, especially with polka dots and nets. I specially likes one of her work, Infinity Mirrored Room (bottom right image), where she turns these polka dots into 3d with hanging led lights and making use of mirror to create the infinity and endless feel. As you enters the room, you are been immersed and overwhelmed by it. With simple objects like different coloured led lights hanging and the use of mirrors, the ambi-ence that it creates can be so breathtaking.

Wansfell Lake District At Ambleside, Lake District, we chanced upon this mountain which we decided to climb up, despite being unfamil-iar with the route. The view at the top was amazing, overseeing the Windermere Lake, as the sun sets. We met a local at the top, where we had a long conversation with him. We had common topics as he has been working in SIngapore, my home country, for a few years. He educated us a lot about lifestyles, cultures, festivals, geography and even recommended us food in Lake District.

9 Apr - 13 AprVideo Editing

Videos being another form of presentation, is an useful tool for us, designers, to express our ideas, concept or even process. My experience with video-making was one year ago, back in Singapore where I used videos to illustrate my concept with relate to the original way of doing. Back then, I used Window Movie Maker to edit my video, the video turned out alright, but I feel that there are limitations to what I can do with the editing. So, this semester, I chosen an assignment DG629, Communicating with Moving Images, where I will get to learn film making. To have a headstart, I decided to learn video editing and get myself familiar with the interfaces.

When choosing which programs to use, other than Windows Movie Maker, I decided to try out other video editing programs. As video editing is time consuming, I need to find out which programs suits me best. I chose a few programs to give it a try - Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro or Elements and Corel VideoStudio Pro. As I am using a Windows laptop, I could only try out the user interface at my friend’s Mac instead. I went further to find out what are the differences between Premiere Pro and Elements. Pro is the full packed video editing software of Adobe while Elements is a toned down or simplified version and Elements lack the advanced features found on the Pro. So, in the end, I decided to choose between Adobe Premiere Pro and Corel VideoStudio Pro. After trying out with the two programs, the main difference, other than some of the features, is the user interface. I have chosen Adobe Premiere Pro to work on as I find the functions more intutitive and easier to handle.

Adobe Premiere Pro on the left; Corel VideoStudio Pro on the right.

As I had some experience with video editing, I picked it up within quite a short time. I challenged myself to pick up another programs, Adobe AfterEffects, where it can be used to create motion graphics and visual effects on top of the videos that are filmed using a camera. It allows me to bring my videos to another level. Tapping on the strengths of both programs and using them interchangeably.

I started familiarising the interfaces of Adobe AfterEffects, and learning to create effects with the basic mo-tion tracking function, which allows an object that I created to follow an object as it moves around from frame to frame in a piece of footage.

Understanding how it works make me know what are the things to look out for when I am coming out with my plans and angles to shoot. Having the knowledge of the softwares, I am not being restricted by my igno-rance of not knowing what it can do or not, able to fully express what I want to show through my videos, be it ideas, scenarios, concepts or products.

the motion tracker - required to be as con-trast as possible

the outer box locates the neaby surroundings that aids the tracking,.

17 Apr - 20 AprSalone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano

This design is by LIXIL Corporation, coming up with a theme, ‘A New Desire - Discovering Bliss’. Using its unique technology to control water and air, proposing new possibilities of the living environment and area. How I feel that Foamspa is a well balanced of form and function. Together with the technology they developed, with the concept inspiring from bathtub from Japan. What I like about this is how it redefine new way of bathing. Through observa-tions of how people listening to music, reading a book, enjoying outside air while bathing. Instead of bringing these to a bathroom, they bring a bathtub out of the bathroom. Its a new, innovative way of bathing, but yet still being able to connect and allow the user to relate back to it.

At Temporary Museum for New Design 2012, an instal-lation that I like is “Neoreal in the Forest” by Canon,

dividing into three parts. “Spring”

“Fall in Pop”“Super Nature”

“Spring” makes use of the combination of lights, colours and sound, together with a self-supporting thin wired frame, creating the ambience of being in the middle of a forest. What I like about this is that how it creates the am-bience, mimicking the experience a person gets while in a forest, without having literally the presence of elements of trees, leaves and stuff. I took a video of the experience that I had while I was inside this installations.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76NYV5WY-Rg&feature=plcp

“Fall in Pop” makes use of the colours and light projection through a structure like the photo that I have taken, casting reflections on the grossy floor. Initally, I did not know what is the structure made of, and I decided to walk closer to have a better look. I was quite surprised when I realised that it is fabric because with the light projection through it, from a distance, it does not look like its fabric and when I realised it is, I was amazed by how it actually works. I took a video of the experience that I had from a distance and walked closer to take a better view.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe48TnLddKM

“Super Nature” makes use of sounds and a screen with photos inside a forest, bended in a certain angle, together with a mirror directly below it, reflecting what is shown on the screen. Mimicking the effects of river, reflecting what we see on top of it. I like the simplicity of this idea, nothing fancy, just a screen and a mirror. Simple yet able to con-nect the audience. I took a video of the experience that I had while I was inside this installations.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe48TnLddKM