Relaxation
(2010)
makers: Thomas Yeoh, Yi Ying Tung and Pei Huan Tan.
Four thumbnails that don't quite align with anything, reasonably large that then crowd the main video. No title, but from the submission documents I know it is called "Relaxation". Tiny text that sits no where in particular. If we take the title at its word what is relaxing about this work? The content might be about relaxation, but most of it is hand held, low res, and misakes showing what might be relaxing things as being the same as relaxing things. In the same way the design of the work, how it is presented, also works against this theme. It is busy, unsure, crowded, muddled. No way around it, this is a poor project.
Imagine if the thumbnails were smaller, and set to one side, or across the bottom, giving the video some room? Almost discrete. They might be black and white to help with this. And if the only devices available to film on are low resolution, then what could be filmed to suggest or provide the experience of relaxation? Making sure the camera is still might help, slow motion? More specific colour? Close ups that are just about colour and texture? Or is the idea of 'relaxation' in a format where the user has to choose things actively just the wrong form altogether for relaxation?