WEEK 5

Before talking about my ongoing experiment on my project, I want to mention the artist who inspired me to take the next step of how to deal with images I’ve worked with, which is Daido Moriyama.

As a suggestion from Michaela last week to look up to his practice and his exhibition, Moriyama’s work inspires me in the act of the relationship between publishing and photography. He uses the method of bringing together dissociated images through curation and arrangement. He also uses super harsh, high contrast, fragmented and dark grain to reshape narratives and tell stories.

Like a high-contrast picture does, the topic of sex holds the same feeling in Thai culture. Whenever mentioned, it is often presented as bold, raw and explicit. So inspired by that, I decided to edit images in my publication the same way Moriyama did.

So, this week, I decided to divide my contents into different volumes. The first one that I picked out to make is about “Euphemism”, which is how Thai people refuse to talk about sex directly, so they have to make up words/phrases to talk about it. This publication consists of all the makeup words/phrases about sex and its meaning presented on a dual page.

As a way to show “Dual”, I made use of the spread by giving them different colours (red/white) and different visuals as well (photograph/illustration). I also use red transparent film as a way to reveal and conceal the real meaning of the phrase, which seems to be too explicit for Thai culture.

I then ask myself again what do I want to communicate through this publication?

• Provoke reflection and challenge the existing relationship between sex, individual and society
• To inspire an open conversation about sex
• Push the limit of publication? (how the audience engages with content)

FEEDBACK

• Is there another way of depicting the picture? Right now, the illustration is not working too well
• Maybe try using the light as one of the elements? As mentioned before, during daylight hours, Bangkok resembles majestic monasteries and temples, but as night falls, the city unveils an ungodly appearance
• The design choices weren’t really reflecting on the topic of sex or not being sensual enough