Reaching the end of first semester I think the whole master’s project becomes more and more tangible. I started noticing details and making thematic connections by talking with tutors or colleagues and thus the project is elevated at a higher level.
My personal tutor mentioned that the cardboard figures would be more diverse if each one has a significant attribute, an element that distinct each one from the other. This observation triggered a series of thoughts in my mind. I remembered the visit I had two months ago in the marinetime museum where I came before a room which had the title The Scottish Samurai referring to Thomas Glover, a merchant back in the 19th century who played a prominent role in the industrialization of Japan and the opening of the country to the wide global trade. At some point he was personal advisor of Mitsubishi and played an essential role for the development of the company. Glover became obsessed with Japanese culture and thus he acquired the nickname the Scottish samurai, actually Mitsubishi sent a Samurai armor in Scotland for honoring the memory of Thomas Glover. This armor stands in the marine time museum in Aberdeen.
The story of Thomas Glover I addition to the observation by my tutor for bringing a character and personally to each figure gave me the idea of crafting samurai warriors . The armor of the samurai is an excuse for bringing color to the composition. The colorful patterns creates a dynamic figure in addition to the difference of scale and the hiding of the warriors identity by the helmet gives the figure a status of demigod in comparison to the Scottish Highlander’s regiment. When you place them side by side, It feels like the samurai is an imminent terror behind the lines of Scottish soldiers.
So the project enters into a second faze where samurais invade this weird narration. I am aiming to blend the samurai and the Scottish culture by adding little details which brings depth to the characters. For example in the first samurai I added a flag that curries the emblem of Aberdeen city , or in the second one I added a British medal from the first world war. In general I aim to keep incorporate small details that blend the two cultures and creates an interesting relation between them.
In the future I am planning to add figures from different eras. An idea is to make aristocrats from the 18th century that have painted their faces in the same way ancient English tribes did. Or even add characters more famous and recognizable like Queen Mary of Scotts. Whether this is going to happen or not I will figure out only during the possess.