Stockpiles in Singapore.

• Main Author: Chan, Poh Ling.
• Other Authors: Paul Kohl
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: DRNTU::Visual arts and music::Photography
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/15572
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Stockpiles are storage sites for bulk materials. These images are taken at stockpiles for sand, gravel, crushed stones, cement powder, etc. Some of them are important commercial materials imported from neighbouring countries like Malaysia, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietname and China to support construction and are used to make concrete. Once they are unloaded from the trucks, they are pushed into heaps with machinery. These stockpiles tower over me and their heights range from 15 to 30 metres. Besides forming expansive and barren landscapes, the stockpiles are often wrapped with man-made materials like heavy plastic sheets, perforated netting and fishing nets to prevent erosion when it rains. The stockpiles are situated in various parts of Singapore; an extremely urbanized yet land-scarce modern city. Even though I have not had a chance to visit many countries with natural and scenic landscapes, I drew from my memory landscapes I have come across in books, magazines, television and movies. By manipulating the exposures for some of the photographs, these man-made landscapes can resemble picturesque landscapes. They also become my own psychological landscapes as I attempt to construct artificial, romantic landscapes in this urban environment. With a tad of imagination, beauty can be found in the mundane and right at home. Imagination can transform reality and translate into illusion.