itchy mouth « My Itchy Fingers

Itchyfingers is Going MAAD….

May 25, 2012 at 12:02 am | Posted in itchy mouth | Leave a comment
Tags: Animals, Arts, Cats, Design, Museum, Uniquely Singapore

Yes, you didn’t read wrongly and Itchyfingers didn’t type wrong either….Itchyfingers is going MAAD! Hahahah….Not MAD lah…Itchyfingers is still sane…

“MAAD” actually stands for “Market of Artists And Designers”. It’s for “artists, designers, architects, craft makers, illustrators photographers, performer, song writers, musicians, singer or anyone with a creative passion” to participate and show your work of love. If you are not aware, Itchyfingers has been exercising those itchy fingers during her free time making little furry animals. Have been planning to showcase and promote these creations for the longest time and finally signed up for the upcoming MAAD this coming June. However work commitment and deadlines make it tough to find time to create more pieces, or even to blog often…(Itchyfingers apologize for missing in action lately!) But I guess everyone has to start somewhere…so Itchyfingers is gonna start small… :p

So if you are from Singapore or happened to be in town and have a bit of spare time, do hop down to the Red Dot Museum to say hello to Itchyfingers on Friday, 1 June from 5pm till midnight. It’s the former Traffic Police Building and the nearest MRT station is Tanjong Pagar. It takes you no more than five minutes to walk to the dark red building opposite the famous Maxwell Market. Besides handmade products, you can also enjoy free music and sample or buy yummy food or even have your portrait drawn!

We hope to see you there!

Remember Ely and Mo, Itchyfingers’ first customised miniature woolly cats? Read about their
story here and here…

iLike. iLight

March 29, 2012 at 12:31 am | Posted in itchy mouth | Leave a comment
Tags: Arts, Design, Festives, Uniquely Singapore

Itchyfingers finally found time to visit this year’s iLight Marina Bay 2012. This is the second year the outdoor sustainable light art festival is held. We visited the inaugural festival in 2010 but found this year’s installation much better and more interesting. However, we didn’t manage to finish viewing all of them as we were tired after a long working day.

Some of the more interesting light installations include these…

This was the first one we saw just outside Marina Bay Sands…Not particularly
impressed by this though there was a lot of writing on the concept…But I
like how people interacted with it…

The Light Dam consisted of inflated blocks with LED light panels installed.
Dunu why it reminded me of Berlin Wall though the artist is Taiwanese…
Maybe it was due to the fact that there were holes within the inflatables and
you could look through to see what’s on the other side…So imagine two
person separated by the wall, looking and keeping in touch with each other
through the holes…

Like this…A lot of people were doing this, so did Itchyfingers! Haha….

A deck of eight chairs were set up along the waterfront. When you sit on
one of them, it lights up. The lamp was supposed to transmit some sound,
but it was quite soft that we could hardly hear anything…especially since
it was a busy night with lots of visitors…The chair was comfortable though…
hahah

If this reminds you of a sea creature, you are right. “5QU1D is a hybrid
squid-like creature embedded with blinking lights emerging from the sea to
merge itself with the skyscrapers. This work references the rapid changes in
our modernising world and the effects they have on the natural environment.”

It changes colours at interval too…I quite like this…

As we walked along, something caught our eyes…Why were there red light spots on the people? Then we saw this…

Rays of red light seemed to be passing through the bodies of these people…

These path of lights came from this door or gate…It almost felt as if it was
from another realm; or even from another dimension….

It felt almost like you were being sucked into the light source, into another
dimension…almost like the effects in those horror flicks where you are
pulled into the other world… :O

The light source was accentuated by the mist…This was one of the most
popular installations…It is simple, yet the idea is complex and it draws
the attention of visitors almost immediately…I like!

There was a gigantic bun-like structure at the first iLight Festival. This
time, we have a similar dome-shape igloo. But this is much more pleasant.
A lot of people posed in front of the igloo made of jerry cans to create
interesting silhouette effects. But as we noticed there was a photographer
standing by waiting for free models for his pictures, we were more discreet
and moved to the other end to pose for our photos. Hence we have Tisu Girl
doing this conservative pose instead of more exaggerating ones…hahah…

This is a beautiful one…Titled, “Coral Garden”, it “raises awareness about
efforts to reform damaged reefs.”

The coral-like sculptures were made of re-used cocktail stirrers which promote
“the beauty and importance of coral in the functioning of natural ecosystems.
The cocktail stirrers are a symbol of consumerist society, which is indicted as
an element polluting our seas.” Actually from far, they also look like
magic mushrooms! I like!

Then we saw people standing near the river as if waiting for something. It was not long that we saw some words being projected on the wall…Then we realised that we were supposed to see something in the river…And we saw it…

Two huge creatures appeared swimming just under the water! They were so
realistic that the first thought that came to mind were sea monsters! The
work was “inspired by the artist’s interest in the history of creature sightings
documented and discussed throughout the world.” Interesting and it really
looked a bit scary especially when the water was so dark although the
reflection from the nearby modern buildings kind of killed the effect a little.
I thought the words were a bit too dim and small for half blind people like
me and there should be some sound effect to build up the climax when the
creatures appeared. Otherwise, it may lose a lot of impatient audience especially
when it took a while to loop the video projection…

The grand finale for us was seeing our Singapore icon being transformed by light and colours!

The beloved Merlion in a coat of white and red, the same colours on our
flag! The colours of light changed and it was fun looking at the transformation.
I Like!

The rainbow-coloured Merlion spewing fiery rays on the integrated resort…
The Merlion is already a tourists’ favourite during normal days and with
its bright coat of colours painted, it was even more popular and crowded
with people…

We ended our night here at the Merlion. Shall definitely return to see the remaining ones before it ends in four days’ time. Do head down to view the many innovative light installations from artists around the world before it ends on 1 April!

Year of Dragon – It’s Play Time! #6

December 31, 2011 at 11:52 am | Posted in itchy mouth | Leave a comment
Tags: Animals, Architecture, Arts, Culture, Design, Nostalgia, Uniquely Singapore

Tomorrow will be the start of another new year, and in a few weeks’ time, we will say bye-bye to the Bunny and usher in the Dragon. So what’s more apt than to end our “It’s PlayTime!” series with the most numbers of surviving old mosaic playgrounds design, featuring the Dragon?

The first Dragon playground we visited was this one at Toa Payoh. When we spotted in from the car, I was so excited as it was the first time I saw it as I have never played in it before…

The big brother of all mosaic playgrounds…龙头老大…

I thought the design was great!! This had the original sandpit too! The
rainbow-coloured body made the playground look so cheerful!

龙马精神…Dragon is an auspicious creature in many cultures. To design a
slide using the dragon as the theme was simply brilliant. Most of the old
playgrounds were much more interesting as they encouraged children’s
imagination. They are unique as they were all locally designed by Mr Khor
Ean Ghee, who worked in the HDB during the 70s. Even the choice of the
“side-kick” springy animal ride (the seahorse) was well-thought of, as both
of them reside in the sea…

In his own words, Mr Khor said, “We wanted to create something that was distinctive. My boss said to me that all the buildings along Orchard Road were not designed locally. So at least, our playgrounds should be.” Coincidentally, Mr Khor happened to be my tutor at LaSalle College of the Arts and it’s a pity that I didn’t know he was the one who designed the many wonderful old mosaic playgrounds then…

The gaps in between the metal bars of the body made it challenging for
children to run or walk fast but they were also made narrow enough so that
no children will fall down from there. With the many twists and turns, ups
and down, you almost won’t get tired of climbing and running through it!

The swing was missing…

Glad to see young children still playing with it! The Dragon playground is
such a unique landmark that should be kept, just like the Pelican!

Another big Dragon playground resides at Ang Moh Kio…this one I haven’t visited yet…Tisu Boy secretly went to play alone…

This Dragon is only duotone in colour, so not as colourful and attractive…
It looks like a more mature dragon…hahhaah..The sandpit had been
replaced by those synthetic rubber foam…

The body is so much duller in colour

They didn’t paint the metal steps here too…

Mosaic tiles were plastered over the entire slide for this Dragon, unlike the
previous one which left it plain in the original stone (?) material. I prefer
the plain one cos your bum felt much cooler and it was smoother sliding
through it…hahah…

These people with itchy fingers can vandalise on anywhere and everywhere!
And if you have to write and love two persons at the same time, at least
get your grammar correct!

This older Dragon has two stairs on its body…ideal for playing catching
around the body where you can run up and down easily to escape…

Itchyfingers also visited two other mini Dragons….

A much simpler design probably for younger children as you don’t have
the uneven metal-barred body to negotiate…Itchyfingers tried this slide,
and it was really fun!

Sand covered the spiral stairs…I supposed spiral stairs were rarer in
those days so it must be such a thrilling experience for children then

The old playground and the newer fitness area

Peeping through the Dragon’s eye

A second mini Dragon on a rubber foam mat

Most of the old playgrounds had this kinda notice…Made it sound so scary
and dangerous to play

Rubber foam mat are used now probably cos of safety concerns and easier
to maintain…But somehow it just lacks certain character…

Old versus new…Ok, let’s vote…which would you prefer to play with?
Would you choose a majestic Dragon slide….ok, maybe not as majestic
since it is a mini one…hahah…

Or a boring, run-of-the-mill and straight-forward new slide that doesn’t
encourage imagination?

The old mosaic playgrounds had been part of our collective memories. Many children of the 70s and 80s, even to the 90s, grew up playing at these old playgrounds. It would be a shame to let them be a thing of the past when new development calls for their demolition. Help to preserve these unique landmarks by simply visiting and playing with them if you have children, or if you are still a kid at heart. At least when people use them, then there will be more reasons for them to be kept for future generation to enjoy and appreciate.

For now, it’s Play Time! Let’s welcome the Year of the Dragon!