My poster is a digital representation of a tarot card created using PhotoShop. Tarot cards also often have words that are associated with imagery displayed on each card, and for my art piece I chose to use the same concept. The words apparent on my poster are “The Trinity” which represents the three ethnic groups (Bosniak Muslims, Croats, and Serbs) because they rely on each other to make the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina what it is (despite the fact that peace is still something that the nation is striving for). I chose to incorporate the Latin Bridge as another main element to show the concept of withstanding and persevering through hardship. Finally, the Sarajevo Rose is representative of an objective for peace. Sarajevo roses are all over the city because they are an important part of culture in this country, turning something tragic (missile scars) into something beautiful (red roses). In the same way, the sun in my poster is a Sarajevo rose because it sheds a new light of peace on a country that still has lingering ethnic tension. 

In this three week long personal project, I went on 6 dives (pool diving, shore diving, and open-water diving). During this process, I learned about physics related to the body underwater, safety protocols, how to set up equipment, and the importance behind the "buddy system". I then got to embark on several dives ranging from 2 meters in a pool to 17 meters in the Pacific Ocean off the shores of Melbourne. By the end of the project, I obtained my SSI "Open Water" certification which will allow me to dive up to 18 meters anywhere around the world in the future. 

In this module, we got the opportunity to embark on excursions including a day trip to the Lume, Melbourne (an immersive Aboriginal art museum) and Narana Cultural Centre (a centre that educates visitors about Aboriginal culture and hosts animals including emus, kangaroos, and wallabies). We also had the opportunity to interview Prof. Wayne Quilliam, an Aboriginal artist who is also the curator of the Lume, and Aunty Sherri, an Aboriginal woman and author. Furthermore, over our WeXplore trip to Innesvale, Cairns, we experienced living with the Goondoi Aboriginal community where we witness a traditional initiation dance, experienced a saltwater welcoming ceremony, learned about indigenous animals and wildlife, went on a night boat tour of the surrounding land, and interacted with children at Radiant Life College, a local school. In the process, we learned about traditional hunting and cooking practices. Through information gained from our experiences, excursions, and interviews that we conducted, we created short films including footage shot ourselves and animations that we illustrated to explore the concept of "land" while understanding the depths behind Aboriginal art. These films were displayed through an immersive experience at our in-country showcase including projected media, indigenous diffused scents, and both traditional and modern Aboriginal music.  

LINK TO SUMMATIVE

Throughout this module, I explored nature conservation in Brazil through bioacoustics and intersected it with creative writing. In order to learn about these topics I went on a series of excursions including a full-day boat outing to learn about the use of bioacoustics in marine conservations, the history of Salvador, and the benefits of marine protected areas. I visited a reserve that was transformed from grasslands to a rainforrest through agroforestry. I also engaged in a singing and poetry workshop in which I learned about vocal, bodily, and instrumental expression. 

My absolute favorite part of the module was our WeXplore in which we took a five day trip to Santarem and experienced Brazil's Amazon forrest in a variety of ways. We partook in a mushroom inventory to keep track of the various species in the area, did a frog inventory to study frogs native to the area, did a fluorescence and bioluminescence inventory in which we looked for scorpions, bioluminescent mushrooms, and other fluorescent organisms. We learned about the importance of salvaging islands in the Amazon by planting trees on one of them, and followed this experience with a relaxing swim in the river surrounding the island, learning about the "moon-walk" technique used to avoid sting-rays. We also spent at least twelve hours on a boat during which we did a bird-watching inventory by taking pictures of birds from the boat as well as from numerous islands that we stopped to walk around. Furthermore, we set up camera traps in a reserve in the Amazon forrest and collected data from them, tracking the abundance and variety of animals in the area. We completed our stay by watching and participating in a Carimbo performance, a dance/ musical style which has a combination of Afro-Brazilian and Indigenous roots. Our last meal was a variety of Indigenous foods ranging from shrimp soup to arrowroot. 

In order to wrap up our learning, we created a summative that intersects bioacoustics, conservation of the Amazon, and creative writing/ music. My summative partner and I created a story that personifies nature by transforming it into a woman who experiences numerous exploitative relationships before becoming irreparably ruined. We used various songs as a source of inspiration including "You Know I'm No Good" by Amy Winehouse, "Copacabana" by Barry Manalow, "Girl From Ipanema" by Stan Getz, and "Cherry Wine" by Hozier. We also used inspiration of a story told through song by the women from the poetry workshop. Here is the performance that we did at showcase. 

My personal project was based on the driving question, "How can the sensory experience of the scenery of Hanoi be translated into a visual narrative to deepen cultural understanding through a perspective collage piece?" In order to answer this question, I did research on the different types of photo shots as well as a tutorial on how to use canva. I then took over 300 photos of both Hanoi and Hoi An based on certain aspects that I believe to be significant to Vietnam including, Street food, Train street, Coffee, Conical hats, Motorcycles, Communist flags/ Vietnam flags, Pho, Lanterns, Nature, and Rice fields. Next, I created a first draft, received feedback and created a final draft which will be printed out and displayed at showcase. 

The background of my poster is composed of a few extreme wide and wide shots. I included a picture of Train Street in Hanoi for the top half at the back because I believe it captures Hanoi’s busy, vibrant, touristic essence to the fullest. Above that is a picture of a street in Hoi An with several rows of Vietnamese flags. I included this image because I noticed one staple of Vietnamese culture: the inclusion of Vietnamese and communist flags along the streets. The bottom left of the poster includes a medium close-up shot of a man on a motorcycle. I duplicated it twice and used different filters for each layer to give the illusion of the man popping out of the poster. I also added a cut-out of three basket boats in the rice fields. I placed them in a picture of a bowl of pho which a cut out of mountains and sky behind them, to make them seem like they are floating. The bowl of pho is relatively central because I see it as a staple in Vietnamese culture. I also added a stop sign that I left in color, making it stand out in the foreground. The odd position of the stick man showcases the bizarre details that I have noticed in certain aspects of Vietnam, such as the organized chaos of the streets. At the bottom right is a hand holding a coffee. I included coffee because of Vietnam's evident and rich coffee culture, particularly in Hanoi and Hoi An. Above that is a woman in a conical hat carrying something on her shoulder and smiling. This symbolizes the friendliness of the locals I have experienced and the culture of selling goods on the streets. I replaced the original fruit basket with a basket of hibiscus claw clips because this is something I have seen sold in various places. The center/ middle of the poster includes a couple of women doing a traditional dance that I watched in Hoi An. 

To the left is the official final poster.