Mixed Media-Final
Concept: How To Live With Plants
This mixed media final is based on how I've been coping with stress during my time in COVID-19 Quarantine. We all have different methods of dealing with stress and anxiety. Some people exercise to relieve stress, others indulge in comfort foods and create bad habits of overconsumption of drug and alcohol. Others turn to playing video games or watching too much TV.
But luckily, there is one highly effective method of dealing with stress that can help both your physical and mental health: surround yourself with Plants. It might seem too simple, but eating, smelling, and planting plants may greatly impact your general well-being. This is why I have created a body of work that includes plants. Some of these works include an accordion fold coloring book of plants, a wall terrarium/ wall art of plants, plant poster, etc.
The main idea of this collection is to push a healthy lifestyle in a time of stress and anxiety and one way of doing that is to enjoy nature from the comfort of your own home.
PROJECT NO.1 - Reworked
Title: Discover-A Plant Discovery Book
Dimension: 5inx5in Folded 18inx18in Flat
This is a redo on project #4 book binding. In this book, I've created patterns made of the different plants that I keep at home. The purpose of this project was to learn more about the plants and to create a deeper connection with them through working and researching about them. The book includes a calendar system to help bring back the awareness of time and the space around the environment. With this COVID 19 pandemic, we have so much disoriented daily routines and time management. The plants represent the bringing back of the perception of time and order because when you tend to plants, you can keep track of when you take care of them and inspect their growth according to time. The plant patterns within the book represent the labor of love that is put in the process of the art making.
PROJECT NO.2 - Reworked
Title: RELEAF-A Leaf Embroidery
Dimension: 6inx6in
This is a redo on project #3 "You Are What You Eat". This is a simple and refreshing embroidery of a single pressed Elephant Leaf. The purpose of this window sill installation is to help foster a moment of appreciation. It's there for people to take a moment from their busy lives and help them see the beauty of the leaf. Ever heard the quote "You got to stop and smell the roses?" This piece does exactly that.
It is a minfulness exercise. The longer you look at it, the more you see in this fabulous plant. You forget all about the stress, pain, and worries in your life while looking at this beautiful leaf. Green Leaves are also a symbolism for hope, renewal, and revival. Dried and dead leaves represents death and sadness.This dried pressed leaf is a symbolism for our hardships that we've been going through with the COVID-19 events and the green background represents our hopes in finding relief from this epidemic.
PROJECT NO.3 - Large Installation
Title: Inner Bloom
Dimension: 28inx36in
Inner Bloom is the headliner for the Living With Plants collection/Final Project. This installation piece represents the home and space that I live in, which is a safe and pleasant abode. Because of it's circular shape, this piece also symbolizes unity, harmony, and protection. Within the canvas, you will see a harmony of plants and fiber living in the same space.This is symbolic for my living space of plants living with human kind. It is essentially a blend ship painting of uniting humans with nature. It is a piece that reminds us all the importance of connecting with nature by yoking or uniting with it to our daily lives. That plants and green things has the power to heal the human body, mind, and soul. It is a unique, raw, and three-dimensional mandala that is pretty to look at and is soothing for the soul at the same time.
PROJECT NO.4 - Large Installation
Title: In Touch With Nature:
Social Media Graphics For Earth Day
Dimension: 6.5ftx3ft
An Earth Day social media post about bringing nature inside. The purpose of this project was to simply remind people the importance of going outside and enjoying the beauties of nature especially during this COVID 19 pandemic where we are so deprived of stepping outside. What better way to promote the idea to go outside more than Earth Day? The installation is placed under a doorway. The concept of this installation is to step outside to get in touch with nature. First, I decided to install a plant suspended curtain where there should be a door to represent the breaking out of the door idea. Next, I went outside and gathered my plants and researched and documental what all plants I've found on a app called PictureThis. Then, I attached my plants on a shiny streamer which represents the light of the sun that stands for the hope for a better future. Finally, I decided to include this into a social media post for Earth Day to make it a practical application to remind people to "Go outside and get in touch with nature."
PROJECT NO.5 - Existing Piece
Title: Gaia, Mother Nature-A Collage
Dimension: 10inx12in
I have decided to include this collage from project #1 because it ties so well with the plant theme because Gaia, the woman who is in the collage is the soul representation of mother nature. This three layered piece covers the concept of the spirit. She is the ancestral mother of all life on Earth. She is the mother of the sky, the sea, and earth, all of which are displayed here. Not to mention she is the mother of all plants. In the image, you see her holding onto a bright orange balloon, which represents hope. The two flesh colored rectangles making an abstract shape of an equal sign on the bottom left corner represents order and is seen as an earthbound element to emphasize peacefulness and equality. Finally, the crab symbolizes the need to change the course of action to a new direction and remind people that we cannot take this beautiful blue marble planet for granted; that we need to take steps to protect earth from environmental destruction.The transparent layered square represents our clouded vision, that for those of us living in a landlocked area, the ocean and the mountain is out of sight and out of mind.
PROJECT NO.6 - Large Installation/ New Medium
Title: Projection Mapping
Dimension: 48inx36in
This projection mapping project started as a simple performance art piece. Instead, I decided to apply the video onto other installation piece, Inner Bloom. Each and every video plays with different element in nature including air, fire, earth, and water, reflection back to the specific emotions we go through this COVID 19 pandemic. I used the Mad Mapper software to map out the video into geometric and circular shapes to help project the images onto the installation piece. May this installation help you want to connect to nature and heal you with its sympathetic values.
PROJECT NO.7 - New Medium
Title: Plant Labels-A Digital Illustration
Dimension: 2inx5in
Being a graphic designer and illustrator, I had the urge to produce some digitally. I love coming up with products that come to life. This is a series of digitally illustrated plant labels designed to give the apartment a more botanical garden feel to it. By creating labels, it help both me and future visitors to know what plant they are looking it. Plus, it gives the plants more attention. I've designed each and everyone of these labels with the name, how much sunlight they need, and how often they need to be watered. It is also useful when I am not at home and someone can take care of the plants when they house set for me.
