Adrianne Tolentino from Lasalle College of Arts created her own fantastic version of our animation. We love it.

Another version of our animation created by Adrianne Tolentino

We have completed the final puzzle. Lost in the City at the National Museum is such a long exhibition, after our trip to Japan, we still have time to include the animation sequel and documentation of our community workshops into the existing installation.

Our mission is accomplished, we have managed to bring FT4 back home!

Documentation of 4th Fukuoka Triennale art workshops

Joo Choon Lin and Chun Kai Qun

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green

Stop-motion animation and diorama installation, 2009

Lost in the City, National Museum of Singapore

At the 4th Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale, we created a sequel to From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green, titled Part Two: The Rebirth. The combined animation  was exhibited as an installation with its miniature setting.

In the sequel, a creature named Planter rejuvenated a destroyed land with the help of over more than 600 old toy figurines.

From Green To Brown To Black To Brown To Green

Stop-motion animation

11:32 mins

The completed installation was exhibited at another venue of the Fukuoka Triennale, Renovation Museum (Reizensou). It consisted of a miniature landscape where most of From Green… Part Two: The Rebirth was filmed and also the animation itself, this time in its entirety, with Part One as well.

Joo Choon Lin and Chun Kai Qun

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green

Stop-motion video installation

4th Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale

2009

The sound in the animation was recorded from voices of students making sounds of struggle and victory.

We were involved in art workshops with about 300 students where they created miniature trees and attached them to toy figurines they had brought. The Fukuoka Asian Art Museum also provided simple materials for the workshops, mainly beads and decorative items from 100-yen shops. The materials were laid out in buffet-style and the students would queue up to select their favourite items. The trees were made of painted twigs and branches found in the local parks.

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green

Art workshops

4th Fukuoka Asian Art Triennale

2009

For the art exchange programme at FT4, we had two art workshops with about 300 students in total. We decided to create a continuation to the animation shown at the National Museum of Singapore. This part of the animation was titled From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green: The Rebirth. Essentially, the students would help us create miniature trees and then attached them to toy figurines that they brought to the workshops. We would then study all the works made by the students and try to develop the animation around them.

We had chosen to use the toy figurine as a symbol for the future generation.  The origin of the toys collected also suggested the cultural background behind the work, in this case, it was Japanese because there were large proportion of well-known characters from animation series such as Ultraman and Dragonball. We felt a national representation in the work was important because the issue concerned was a global one, and that we needed to emphasise on the role played by everyone in helping to resolve the situation.

As mentioned above, each toy figurine carried a tree that was made by students in the Art Exchange Programme workshops. In the art workshops, students were encouraged to use simple and expressive methods to create the trees, as each individual had a unique approach, the students were also creating a representation of themselves in the form of the trees. We also thought that it was important that the students could see the little effort they spent in the workshops could amount to a greater cause.

Very much often, the actions that are taken to save the environment, are often minor adjustments to our daily activites, such as taking the time to sort the trash, and we do not know or are not able to envision how much help they can really be.

The making of From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green. The animation was filmed with very lo-fi DIY-style blue-screen technology.

Part One: The Destroyed has its setting in the parks around Singapore such as the Botanical Gardens and Fort Canning Park. In the animation, the creatures are going about their daily routine, playing hide and seek, police and thief and getting busy with genetic mutation, until the arrival of excavators and big trucks bringing about an end to their joyful lives.  One of the creatures managed to escape, surviving to fight another day.

Artist/Director/Sound – Joo Choon Lin

Artist/Producer/Editor – Chun Kai Qun

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green, Animation stills, 2009

The installation is sited at a staircase rotunda, it is a rather challenging space, and I think we are the first to create a work there. As construction is rampant in our city, we have chosen to replicate a construction site in the National Museum. These trails of development are always around us  and  we wonder if our everyday behaviors are subconsciously affected by them. The installation will  also be on site for a lengthy duration, probably leaving people wondering when the ‘construction’ will ever be done.

Joo Choon Lin and Chun Kai Qun

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green

Stop-motion animation and diorama installation, 2009

(Image by ChrisP. Courtesy of National of Museum of Singapore)

From Green to Brown to Black to Brown to Green – Wasteland (Details of diorama)

(Image by ChrisP. Courtesy of National of Museum of Singapore)