Karen Qiang
Masada College
A WAY OUT
Time-Based Forms
Digital drawing, editing apps
When we see what happens in our subconscious as reality, it forms a unique, individual imaginative world, although it may be twisted or exaggerated. My body of work explores the struggle of stepping out of my comfort zone. Such a ‘small’ thing as raising a hand in class is an extreme challenge of overcoming fear, expressed in my work as a battle, facing the distorted self as the enemy who always laughs at the cowardly, pessimistic past. The door which represents courage is close at hand. The character exhausts all her strength to reach it, but her run will continue.
Marker's Commentary
This body of work demonstrates the complexity of animation, sculpting a compelling visual narrative in time and space. There is an in-depth knowledge of the conventions of Anime which have been competently ascribed in this conceptually engaging work. The narrative that unfolds accounts for the psychological difficulties HSC students experience during their studies. A Way Out fuses this narrative with the dynamic scene transitions found in anime film, that effectively employ dynamic camera angles, switching viewpoints and effective use of close up. The submission hybridises real life with the animated world to further extend the credibility of the world that has been fabricated. The sense of the uncanny is extended with the use of non animate objects that have been given life and the use of the monster as the antagonist who transforms into the subject’s doppelganger while symbolising her self-destructive being. The array of complex visual references, well scripted plot and sophisticated narrative of the confrontations of student’s overcoming their own self doubt highlight the prowess of the candidate in creating a surreal animated world that clearly connects with the real world of an HSC student.