Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Study Abroad: Design in China

Student Name: Joel Mertz
College: University of Oregon
Major: Digital Arts
Web: http://www.joelmertz.net/

Day 1

When I was flying into Shanghai, I was intrigued by the landscape below. Vast fields of dark blue gave way to various, indistinguishable landscapes of color. Beneath a heavy fog, small bright green islands dotted this mysterious land with the occasional boat sighting. Fishing boats perhaps? I immediately began wondering what was in store for us as I watched the unfamiliar scenery pass beneath me.

After exiting the airport, I was startled at how humid the weather was. It was in the evening and the warmth was a welcome change from the damp and cold rains of Oregon. The cab ride to the hotel was very strange but exciting. I remember looking at all the large billboards with unfamiliar images and even less familiar characters.

Day 2

I woke up early the next morning, eager to explore Shanghai. Edwin and I went for a walk around the hotel. There was much to see… towering buildings, streets packed with vendors, bicyclists, armies of commuters and a symphony of car horns filled the air.

The market we visited later that day was also busy and very exciting. It was sunny, and again quite hot. The buildings that enclosed the market were traditional in style. Adorned with elaborate detail and intricate designs, these buildings gave off an eloquent and powerful feel. A beautiful lake dotted with hyper green plants rested peacefully in the middle of it all. We later ate dumplings near this lake. They were the best dumplings I ate all trip.

The garden we visited was surprisingly quiet and calm given the chaos surrounding it. I enjoyed the water sections, which were used in conjunction with the surrounding architecture seamlessly and very organically. Paths broke apart as they led visitors across ponds, areas for sitting near the water were abundant, and hundreds of bright orange fish made the garden stand out in my memory clearly.

The top of Jin Mao tower later that evening was spectacular. The impressive display of lights was beautiful, and seeing the wide palette of colors scattered across the darkness reminded me of a painting.



Day 3

The museums we visited today presented a wide range of interesting and important cultural items. From coins to sculpture to contemporary painting, it was a show not to be hindered by the pouring rain. The art I was most intrigued by from our first stop was in the calligraphy section. The seemingly spontaneous and erratic marks of ink that had been made by the calligrapher’s patient hand were inspiring. The final museum showcased several impressive, well-designed graphic posters. I took pictures of most of them, and was impressed by the unique color choices and use of line made by the designers.

A series of contemporary paintings at the museum were also memorable.
Abstract ink blotches covered large white canvases in a random, yet structured fashion. The artist created a unique harmony and interaction between limited colors and abstract forms. The free flowing motion of each mark was playful, and hinted towards other abstractionist painters I was more familiar with, like Jackson Pollock.


Day 4

The visit to the artist’s district was an important part of Shanghai for me. I enjoyed seeing how an artist’s community looked and felt. I was envious of the designers who had such large studios and open gallery spaces. It would be invaluable to be living and working in such a creative and supportive environment. I imagine there are many partnerships within the community. I envisioned all artists’ sharing their ideas and working together to improve the quality of their lives and the life's of those around them.

I noticed the markings on the walls surrounding the studios. Street murals of sorts, all filled with bright colors and interesting characters. I enjoyed seeing how the artists in the area interacted with their physical surroundings. It was particularly interesting to me because other areas I've visited in Shanghai were entirely absent of such graphitti -esk markings.

The artist we met was very articulate and had many interesting ideas on the mixing and blending of traditional ways and ideals with contemporary practice and theory. I enjoyed his treatment of the large banner and the “flying symbol in the sky.” It was very imaginative and created a unique narrative for me. The size of the piece worked well. I was also impressed with the large stone carvings this artist had made… a very ambitious project to say the least.



Day 5

River town was a lesson in a simpler way of life. The buildings were aged and peaceful, completely untouched by the flashy and gaudy modern amenities that Shanghai was so accustomed to. My favorite part of this section of the trip was interacting with the people and seeing how they lived along the river. The experience gave me a broader understanding of the peoples of China and how they lived. It also gave me a greater appreciation for many of the things I take for granted back at home.

We ate breakfast in River Town in what can only be described as a hole in the wall... the actual appearance of the structure became meaningless however, after the owners of the shop greeted us warmly and served us terrific food! Locals from the area were amused by us and seemed eager to say hello.

After breakfast, we got lost! This too however, became part of the adventure. Even though Rachel thought otherwise… We found numerous duck farms and other agricultural areas. Asking for directions was quite a chore. We used the picture on our ticket stubs to find our way back. The sight of five lost Americans on the side of the highway was obviously quite comical to the locals because many of them pointed and even honked their horns. It was funny for us as well.



Day 6

I spent the free day working on my project and taking photographs in the city for inspiration. I was experimenting with a style earlier on the trip that I felt would be a fun and colorful way to capture the busyness of Shanghai. The photographs were mostly of the tops of buildings. I also took shots of smaller details I found on the street that I wanted to include in the drawing as well. In the end, there were too many other students that wanted to use the computer that my photographs were on. I was unable to use my photographs for the final drawing unfortunately. Being limited by materials was a part of the trip I felt particularly challenging.



Day 7

Traveling to Jinan in the sleeper car was fun. I got to know many of the other students in the group even better, and we stayed up late drinking peejo. The reception the next morning was quite exciting. I was not expecting such a welcoming from all the students. There were even videographers on site to start filming the action right away!

The welcoming dinner that night was also incredible. Eating in a Chinese palace in such a decadent setting was definitely a highlight of the trip in my opinion. It really felt like we were royalty. Jackie and the other faculty members welcomed us eagerly and I was pleased that they were all a part of the program. At dinner, I enjoyed how people got up to socialize during the meal. It was a great icebreaker for introductions, and I quickly became comfortable conversing with our hosts.

Day 8

The lectures from Professor Wong were interesting, but the amount and weight of the information was rather overwhelming. It was difficult trying to keep up with everything that was going on. However, with the opening of the group activity, much of this tension was put to rest. It was fun and enjoyable drawing on the walls with the Chinese students. It was a great, simple idea for a first project that really confirmed my notion that art was and will always be—a universal language.

Meeting my partner was exciting, but ultimately quite unproductive. She seemed to be frustrated attempting to communicate with me whereas I was much more open to trying. She was very vague about what she was interested in, and didn’t have any of her own work to show me. I had literally no idea what we were going to do for our project! She kept on saying she wanted to go to the top of the mountain, so we ended up spending the afternoon hiking and playing ping-pong and pool with some of the other students. Later that night, I came up with several ideas that I thought might work for our project. They were all based on small comments she had made earlier that day. I assumed they were things she was interested in, but I could only guess…


Day 9

Today we took a trip to a palace. The colors were vibrant and exciting. I vividly remember gold’s against royal blues, deep red walls, and intricate geometric patterns created with vibrant greens. I didn’t care much for the awkward tourist fences that separated viewers from the art—they really detracted from the over feel and aesthetics of the place. I also noticed how awkward the small, cheap, tourist shops seemed to feel within this space.


Day 10

Confucius’s tomb was similar to some of the areas we had already seen. I liked the tombstones however, and felt they had a powerful presence. Red characters that stood out strongly against heavy, smooth rocks. Often the tombstones were complimented by their surroundings. One for instance, was framed by the structure behind it.

The real highlight for the day however, was Mt. Tai. The view was absolutely spectacular. The air was quite refreshing, and the city had a sort of fantastical feeling about it. The entire setting seemed to be from a movie. It was refreshingly peaceful, and I would have liked to have had more time there. Time was not on our side however, and I had to leave wanting more of Mt. Tai’s incredible experience. I hope the memories of Mt. Tai will influence my work later in life.



Day 11

Today I met my new partner. Her English is decent and I’m very excited to be working with her. We had begun with a late start, so we decided to choose an idea for our project right away. Symbols are always what I think of when time is limited. If symbols are made well, they can be large and very interesting. My original idea of using only symbols was altered a bit but we came up with an idea for a quilt, which we were both very pleased with. Ansy (my partner) was very nice and I always enjoyed how she said, “very beautiful” every time she saw something she liked. She was very positive and we bonded as a team quickly.

Day 12

We visited an exhibit today, which ended up being rather interesting. It was all contemporary work and some of it was good, and some of it wasn’t. I particularly enjoyed the yellow design that resembled a Georgia O’Keefe. It worked on multiple levels and was fun to look at for a long time. There were hidden figures in the piece, Chinese characters and even English words. These elements aside, the aesthetic look of the piece overall was enough to easily make it my favorite. It gave me ideas for my individual project. I have started thinking about a project with symbols and characters that has multiple layers to it as well.

Today we also visited the springs. The water was beautiful and you could really sense that life was almost radiating from the springs. It was enjoyable to walk around and take photos. Again, the incorporation of the water into the architecture was very seamless and unique. I remember seeing people swimming in a nearby river. It was a tradition to do so, and despite the appearance of the river, the tradition was still living on.


Day 13

Today I decided not to go to the workshops so that I could take care of some other things including blogging, laundry and my project. Unfortunately, the free day basically turned into another scheduled day of sorts, and I wasn’t able to get half as much done as I would’ve preferred. It was still fun and interesting nonetheless. We climbed the mountain near the old campus and discovered many interesting sights. I found an older man doing calligraphy on the street with water. He seemed to be drawing in quite the crowd, including a small group of children. His “performance” was rather beautiful. As we worked our way up further, we came across an exercise group for older folks. I thought it was great that group exercise programs like the one we saw in the park today are common in China.

The large golden Buddha was very impressive. I sketched for a while with Kaitlyn here, and we both noticed a roller skate rental shop. We joked about how fantasy like it seemed to see people roller skating around a giant golden Buddha with ice cream in hand. It made for an interesting image.

When lunchtime came around, some of us were missing the taste of western food. We wanted the students to eat lunch with us at Pizza Hut, but they opted to eat at the school instead. It was an interesting decision in some ways because we thought they might be opposed to western food. Some people also suggested that they preferred to stay in a group, rather than separate themselves as was more common for the American students.


Day 14

The finalization of the project was hectic. It was difficult to find all the materials I needed, but I made due with what I had. We worked all day and into the night to finish both the individual and group projects. I definitely spent more time on my individual project.

Day 15

The big show made all the hard work worth it. It was very exciting to see so many people browsing through our work. I was not entirely satisfied with the way the quilt came out. I left many of the design choices (including the color scheme) up to my partner. She was very decisive during the process and I went along with it due to time constraints. In retrospect, I probably should have stepped in more because color is an area I feel I excel in.

My card game however, went over very well I feel. I’m glad I remembered to print out directions in Chinese; otherwise I don’t think people would’ve spent the time with it that they did. The craftsmanship of the cards was not necessarily where I wanted it to be. This was the result of a lack of materials and resources. The concept however, I feel was very strong because there were numerous layers to the project. I never got to discuss this so I would like to take this opportunity to do so. On the surface the project is about photography. The photographs are images that stood out in my mind for one reason or another. The project is also about color. By blowing up colors that stood out in each picture, I was hoping to create a sort of palette for China. The real message of the game however is revealed when the game is played with someone who speaks another language. You and that partner must communicate to decide what colors should fit with which images. Although technically there are correct answers to the game, these are irrelevant and choices are left primarily to interpretation. This idea of communication is reinforced by the symbols that are created on the back of each card. The symbols are either half of a Chinese character, or half of an English letter. This is obviously to signify a communication connection between the two cultures. Lastly, all letters and symbols represent specific themes or concepts that may be able to be deciphered if both partners work together.

The show was great and I especially enjoyed working with the president on the large mural. Later that night dinner was fun, but also awkward when we were nearly forced to drink and dance in front of everybody. Nevertheless, there were some great performances and all the toasting was quite fun (very strong alcohol).



Day 16

It was good to move on to Beijing. We were all ready for a change and hopefully a slower pace than Shandong. First we visited one of the top design schools in the world. Their work was very impressive and it was great to see so many designers working on such a high level. It was inspiring to see what all the students were doing. The layout of the school gave me inspiration for a new website I’m planning on constructing for myself. The school’s layout was sleek and modern. It was very clean and minimalist.

The Great Wall later that evening was beautiful. I took several pictures of the sun with a zoom lens. I hope the pictures come out well. Sleeping on The Great Wall was amazing and I will never forget it.


Day 17

Waking up on The Great Wall was such a remarkable feeling. Again I took pictures of the sunrise with a zoom lens. The greatest part of The Great Wall was how I felt walking across it. It was terrific exercise, and the fresh air was exhilarating. It was rather amazing to be trekking across such a historic monument. The way the wall snaked over the mountains and into the fog was beautiful. It was a very fun day I’ll always remember.


Day 18

The Forbidden City was beautiful but also very touristy. I can't believe there used to be a Starbucks in the middle! There was quite the crowd despite all the rain. I enjoyed seeing all the deep red walls set against the soft grayish sky.

The artist district we visited next was fun. Again, it was great to see how artists were living and working together on some very interesting stuff. The street murals and graphitti marks were even more abundant here. Drew and I spent time photographing all of the different colors and exciting marks people had made on the walls around the area.


Day 19

The temple of heaven was alright. The rain made taking pictures nearly impossible for me, and the structure itself was similar to Forbidden City but not nearly as massive. It was still worth seeing though. I went home early that day to work on my individual project, a sketch of the Forbidden City.



Day 20

The flea market was interesting. It was fun to barter with people, and I definitely got a lot of great gifts from my friends. At the flea market I decided to take advantage of all the busyness by photographing people. During most of the trip it felt awkward and impolite photographing people on the street. I didn’t know whether or not they wanted me too, and sometimes people appeared to be upset after I had taken their picture. I managed to take a lot of people’s pictures at the flea market. No one seemed to notice or mind. After the flea market, I went home to finish my project.



Day 21

Going home was bitter sweet. I missed my girlfriend, but China was beautiful and I knew there was still much left to see and experience. Besides the 8-hour delay in the airplane, the trip home was fine…