Project name:
The Great Wave of Kanagawa 2.0 | Graphic
Duration:
3 Days project in July 2016 at Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST)
Overview:
Use of Pointillism painting technique to redirect viewer's attention to the often neglected Mount Fuji
Team:
With Sung Soo Han and Fangying Chen
Role:
Graphic Design, Design Developments
The Great Wave of Kanagawa 2.0 | Graphic
Duration:
3 Days project in July 2016 at Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST)
Overview:
Use of Pointillism painting technique to redirect viewer's attention to the often neglected Mount Fuji
Team:
With Sung Soo Han and Fangying Chen
Role:
Graphic Design, Design Developments
Background
The module educates us with the principles of brain functioning and its process of visual information as manifested in art works of various cultures. Each team is tasked to choose one of the many techniques of painting to be applied digitally to any painting artwork. The techniques of painting are Impressionism, Pointillism, Cubism, Expressionism and many more.
Overview
Our team decided to analyse how Pointillism can be applied to The Great Wave of Kanagawa. We break down the artwork into parts and how possibly can we use Pointillism to highlight Mount Fuji?
The Great Wave of Kanagawa
The Great Wave of Kanagawa is a woodblock print by the Japanese ukiyo-e artist Hokusai. Woodblock printing is a technique used for printing text, images or patterns used widely throughout East Asia and originating in China in antiquity as a method of printing on textiles and later paper. It is the most common printing method until the 19th century. Ukiyo-e is the best known type of Japanese woodblock print art.
Elements of the painting
The image depicts an enormous wave threatening boats off the coast of the town of Kanagawa. There are three main elements in the image: the sea whipped up by a storm, three boats and a mountain.
The module educates us with the principles of brain functioning and its process of visual information as manifested in art works of various cultures. Each team is tasked to choose one of the many techniques of painting to be applied digitally to any painting artwork. The techniques of painting are Impressionism, Pointillism, Cubism, Expressionism and many more.
Overview
Our team decided to analyse how Pointillism can be applied to The Great Wave of Kanagawa. We break down the artwork into parts and how possibly can we use Pointillism to highlight Mount Fuji?
The Great Wave of Kanagawa
The Great Wave of Kanagawa is a woodblock print by the Japanese ukiyo-e artist Hokusai. Woodblock printing is a technique used for printing text, images or patterns used widely throughout East Asia and originating in China in antiquity as a method of printing on textiles and later paper. It is the most common printing method until the 19th century. Ukiyo-e is the best known type of Japanese woodblock print art.
Elements of the painting
The image depicts an enormous wave threatening boats off the coast of the town of Kanagawa. There are three main elements in the image: the sea whipped up by a storm, three boats and a mountain.
The print portrays two contrasting aspects of existence. The wave in the foreground and Mount Fuji in the background are symbols chosen not only to provide a perspective effect, a European-style technique he had adapted in a very inventive way, but also to represent the unpredictability of life. Mount Fuji, on the other hand, signifies stillness and eternity; it is the symbol of Japan and, as a sacred object of worship, holds a significant place in Japanese beliefs.
Changes to original art
Although Mount Fuji is also one of the main elements of the image, it is often neglected due to the similar luminance and color of the wave. Hence, the background of the image was kept at high resolution to set aside the vigorous wave and the still background. This would emphasize the stillness of Mount Fuji in the midst of the crashing of the vigorous wave. Also, the luminance of the waves was varied to match the luminance of the sky. Hence, allowing Mount Fuji to be more apparent in the image due to the difference in luminance.
Changes to original art
Although Mount Fuji is also one of the main elements of the image, it is often neglected due to the similar luminance and color of the wave. Hence, the background of the image was kept at high resolution to set aside the vigorous wave and the still background. This would emphasize the stillness of Mount Fuji in the midst of the crashing of the vigorous wave. Also, the luminance of the waves was varied to match the luminance of the sky. Hence, allowing Mount Fuji to be more apparent in the image due to the difference in luminance.
Comparison between the original and black-and-white version of the original painting
Comparison between the orginal and black-and-white version of the painting after changing the luminance of the waves
Because of the low resolution of the colors, the colors of the individual elements can merge, even at the same time that you can still resolve them. As you move your eyes around different parts of the paintings switch from being dominated by the dot pattern to looking more like surfaces, the rapidly changing appearance makes it more compelling and lively, and giving them a dynamic quality.
Since, in real life, the dark blue part of the wave represents a huge body of the waves, and the white part of the wave represents smaller water droplets, different sizes of the points were used to make the waves as dynamic and as realistic as possible.
The sky and Mount Fuji was intentionally left untouched to preserve the original beauty of the art, and to capture the moment and the instant of the crashing wave, thus amplifying the dynamism of the art.
Conclusion
It was a fresh change for me in taking an art module and the project enable me to translate my Industrial Design skills to art. Really like the edited The Great Wave of Kanagawa!
Conclusion
It was a fresh change for me in taking an art module and the project enable me to translate my Industrial Design skills to art. Really like the edited The Great Wave of Kanagawa!
Team
Team Members - Sung Soo Han, Fangying Chen & Hayley Han
Illustration Editing (Illustrator & Photoshop) - Hayley Han
Project Proposal (Microsoft Word) - Fangying Chen
Slide Design (Microsoft Powerpoint) - Sung Soo Han
Team
Team Members - Sung Soo Han, Fangying Chen & Hayley Han
Illustration Editing (Illustrator & Photoshop) - Hayley Han
Project Proposal (Microsoft Word) - Fangying Chen
Slide Design (Microsoft Powerpoint) - Sung Soo Han