Archemist Blog
This is a space for my own architectural related musings. Sometimes it is about a movie, a book, a show, or even something that I’ve come across online. Happy reading!
Words of Affirmation : A Year On
It’s been a while since I’ve written here.
It’s also been a while since I’ve written another reflection piece for the public to read as well. (Currently I’m trying to rest my shaky hands because I was so close in winning in Hades - but unfortunately, I lost at the very last minute!)
Evidently, this year hasn’t been the smoothest for many of us - especially for those who’ve been jostled by the ins and outs of lockdown restrictions and being confronted with uncertainty that has been magnified more and more by the curveballs that we’re faced with everyday.
Diary Archived in 35mm
I came across film photography near the end of my secondary studies. At that point, while I was still aspiring to be a costume designer (possibly for the Australian Ballet), my friend had introduced me to the mechanics of film photography. Added with film portrayals of people taking their analogue SLR’s and reading Susie Salmon* taking that photo of her mother in the morning - I slowly dreamed about obtaining these mechanical wonders someday.
It would be right before I decided to move to Hong Kong for my first job that film (or 35mm) would properly cement itself as my constant hobby. After an impulse decision to visit Hong Kong as a graduation trip, I took my family’s latest point and shoot with me and dragged my friend to Choi Hung Estate to fulfil that particular Instagram Photo. It didn’t take long for me to become enamoured with the process, and soon after working in my first job in my hometown - and after the hasty purchase of my trusty Canon Ae-1, as well as constantly being asked to get out of the house to explore what the neon city has to offer, it didn’t take long for it to become my preferred photography method.
In the Mood for Love - Stitches in time through lenses tinted with neon nostalgia
After the podcast with Adrian on architecture and film, as well as being a 35mm analogue enthusiast, my friend and I found ourselves on a weeknight sardined among eager film enthusiasts (or HK enthusiasts) to watch the critically acclaimed In the Mood for Love (2000). A quick synopsis: In The Mood For Love is about two characters Su Li-zhen (played elegantly by Maggie Cheung) and Chow Mo-wan (played by Tony Leung, very handsome might I add) who have come together after discovering their respective partners are having an affair with each other. Already a well-known film and being partially aware of the ending (heck they already give you written spoilers at the very beginning), I wasn’t confident in how I would feel about watching two isolated souls would make me feel. My friend, who also shared a similar sentiment decided that we would become each other’s anchor throughout the narrative.
The Personal Relationship of Architects
A few weeks ago, on my 25th Birthday, I stepped forward with a mic to host a public event.
It’s been a while since I’ve found myself speaking publicly in front of an audience, not to mention standing on my own and chairing a conversation. Even though I’ve been through the process of coordination of events - this was the first time where I was able to take ownership of a subject I’ve cared deeply about for a long time…