SCOPE BULLETIN editor in chief . abigail wong luca thompson / pei yu suen / victoria tse mansie tam / kylie chong / stephanie wong jia thadani / karma samtani
SPRING ‘19
FROM THE
Editor’s Desk Once again, thank you for your continued support for SCOPE. With this issue, I say goodbye to our magazine that has taught me so much the past three years. Our Spring ‘19 issue tips a hat to new beginnings and beauty, to explore the potentials in the world and what could be. Big thanks to Ms. Van de Broucke, our supervising teacher, for advising us and for being a great friend. Thank you to the SCOPE team for putting this together. Until next year!
Dreamer
by Jackie Chan, 2017, Acrylic, 45cm x 30cm “Dreamer” is an abstract painting that explores the concept of painting through emotion. While the use of expressive brush strokes illustrate my emotions, the birds which uses a different style of painting portrays pressure from family and peers. The colour palette added and the features such as the clouds and wash create the fantasy of having my “head in the sky.” Hence, illustrating the endless cycle of over thought and frustration, while dreaming for the impossibility of something better.
The Shape of Water
Reviewed by
Mansie Tam
It pains me whenever people refer to the Shape of Water nonchalantly as the movie with the fish-man love story. Every movie contains depth, and the Shape of Water contains a sea that’s waiting for someone to dive in. The fairy tale of Shape of Water follows Eliza, a cleaner at a Cold War-era government facility born with scars on her neck that prevent her from speaking. It is here that she discovers the Amphibian Man. The Amphibian Man is a mysterious creature brought in from South America and Eliza gradually forms a bond with him that transcends language. However, Eliza can only watch in mute horror as the Amphibian Man is tortured by the Americans in a desperate effort for a breakthrough in the Cold War. With the help of a Soviet spy doctor, her helpful if reluctant coworker, and her closeted gay roommate, Eliza manages to rescue the Amphibian Man and keep him in her apartment. One of the themes of the Shape of Water is rebirth and awakening. Eliza follows a strict schedule everyday, timing herself as she showered and got ready in the morning with an egg timer. She prepares a meticulous lunch of boiled eggs and heads to work, where she’s greeted by her coworker. Her routine continues until she meets the Amphibian Man. She starts visiting the Amphibian Man in secret due to her fascination. Eliza experiences an awakening when she meets the Amphibian Man and starts building a connection with him, unique to them as neither can speak. She starts to take control of her life, a far cry from her old timid personality. Where she would previously take care to avoid trouble whenever Strickland approached her, she begins to fight back when Strickland harasses her. The Amphibian Man’s entrance into Eliza’s life symbolises her awakening, seen at the end of the story where her scars open to reveal gills and she is reborn into a creature similar to the Amphibian Man. Shape of Water is a moving fairy tale exploring a woman’s transformation into something greater than herself. Despite the blandness ascribed to it by the masses, the magical story of Shape of Water is definitely worth a watch.
wooden footprints arabella sharkey
The sails sheathed the ship’s occasional misfortune, yet basked in its glory. Though they had pilgrimed far from home, the luminous waters provided a familiar hold. Zheng He counted the stars, for hours upon end, as he kept up his guard. A slave aged eleven, yet he ruled his own heaven, emperor of the seas. His mind wandered East, then tumbled West. One could not understand the salted wounds of an explorer’s soul, Struggling to stay buoyant whilst commanding the voyage. The seas captivated his men’s souls, and carried them to amends. Acts of discovery, curiosity, tenderness and brutality, captured only in stories and wooden footprints. Alagonakkara’s treachery had struck like a shipwreck, but with a mighty grip, the crew tied onto better ends. Whilst friends and foe sought value in the jewels onboard, during a storm the men fled with what precious they had. With their comrades and empty pockets, leaving the jewels to the sea, sunken in their caskets, it was not meant to be. The demons they fought, some settled in their minds, some pioneered on land, but inevitably they invaded their shade. Now those shadows are gone, and the planks that were walked are nothing but dust. On the deck through embarkment and swathes of feet, those wooden footprints are forever lost, And their tales have spread to the four corners of the world, across seven seas, with the gust. The fleet and the tides, have all come to peace. Yet the remnants of their ghosts, still together, sail as one, jewels gone, forever, like gods, with Zheng He.
Pebbles on the Beach Sonia Chan
Imperfect spheres of granite flashed the ebony sands, seen as a nuisance, we were still. Sapphire waves crashed upon us, some followed. most stayed, Our rough edges, carved by our mother herself, imperfectly perfect. Far, we look the same, near, we are different. Each a different shade, a different shape, a different place. So simple, yet beautiful.
“
If you love me, you will be my shade, and I will be yours.
To the Oak
- a response to Shu Ting’s To the oak
Hermonie Tang If you love me, you will be my shade, and I will be yours. You will extend your verdant branches, I will sing with my songbirds. If you love me, our twigs will never intertwine, forcing us into one. Instead, our leaves will be brushing, as we extend our horizons, seeing the most beautiful sunset, as oak and kapok. Campsis flowers will climb up our branches, storms will shatter our leaves, pulling us in opposite directions. Termites bite, soils drain, but if you love me and I love you, we will always hold on as oak and kapok, sharing cotton and acorn. Because you love me, not for my sturdy trunk. Because I love you, not for your vigorous leaves.
Hobi Abigail Wong Photograph
Hades and Persephone Madi Wong Digital Painting
it’s time to stop making excuses for abusers. here’s why: It is highly problematic that this occurs, and by justifying and denying these claims without any merit, these fans unknowingly contribute to the culture of victim blaming which was the reason that many victims of this abuse did not speak up until now. In justifying this abuse by speaking about how these people founded or were pioneers in their respective field, one is invalidating the dignity and the importance of these vic im’s claims. It is also invalidating the significance of these victims in relation to the star-studded offenders of these acts. As the #MeToo movement gains traction, a more pressing question has arisen: whether or not we can, and should, separate art from the artist. Consider the example of the song “Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number”, written by R Kelly and sung by Aaliyah, R Kelly’s illegally underage and now deceased wife. Is this song really something that can, and should be enjoyed and sung along to once the true meaning and message of the song have seen the light of day? Is this song, R Kelly’s musical justification for having sexual and romantic relationships with underage girls, really something that we can listen to and be able to separate from the actions of R Kelly?
R Kelly. Harvey Weinstein. Chris Brown. Kevin Spacey. Do these names ring a bell? If they do, it’s most likely because this is a list of famous people who have been exposed as abusers of women and men. The catch here is that these people have used their power and money to stall the (hopefully) inevitable: justice for their victims. Part of the reason for this are their masses of fans, who are ready to, at any moment, defend these abusers and lash out at any person who dares muster the courage speak up and bring these horrible people to justice. Now, I am not asserting that these allegations should be believed without evidence, but the people in question here are not only bound to these actions by claims, but there are multiple video footages and recordings, witnesses to corroborate these claims, but to also bring forward stories that further incriminate the alleged person and prove that these are not isolated incidents of these abusers. Yet, the fanbases of these parties remain blind and indifferent to the trauma and injustice experienced by the victims of these heinous acts.
By Karma Samtani
mothers
LUCA THOMPSON
I remember my mother holding me to her bosom, feeding me with wishes; they rest in my belly, dormant, waiting for the time to burst alight.
My mother’s mother is like a willow, strong and unyielding. She plants her roots deep into the ground and holds on, even as the river washes away the soil and leaves them bare.
[when i’m 7 I pick pieces of her off the shelves; they paint my face, cover my legs, adorn my sleeves. i have her voice and it’s strange hearing her words escape my lips. i search for traces of her in every line. ]
[but someday, when i’m grown i will peel off what’s left of them from my skin see it ripen like orange peels, scent heady and cloying; think of the pieces of themselves they once pressed to my cheeks and leave it all behind. ]
Spiderman Into the Spider Verse Reviewed by
Pei Yu Suen Click here to listen to the original soundtrack, and here to view a sneak peak of into the making of Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse.
It was no surprise that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse had won the Golden Globe Awards for Best Motion Picture - Animated this year. I highly recommend this film to both teenagers and adults alike. Why does it stand out from other animated films? In the past, when Disney and Pixar ditched 2D cell-style animation to pursue 3D CGI, their goal was to create a hyper realistic space for the camera to move freely within the modelled space. For instance, WALL-E’s cinematography constantly shakes and mimics a camera that is handheld in live action films. In contrast, Japan’s anime still persists with cell-style animations, most notably due to influences by Hayao Miyazaki, Mamoru Oshii, Makoto Shinkai and more. Cell-style allows for more control in art style, composition and allows every single frame to be taken into consideration. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse had managed to achieve was essentially a marriage between CGI and cell-style. Although similar attempts have been made in animated series, ie. The Dragon Prince series on Netflix, RWBY by Rooster Teeth and Land of the Lustrous by Takahiko Kyogoku. However, the difference is that rather imitating cell-style, Spider-Verse mimics the aesthetics of multiple Marvel comic books. For example, the studio consciously removed lens blur and replaced it with CMYK off-setting, added halftones to establish textures and lighting. To bring each Spiderman character true to life from the original design, they rendered their models in their respective styles. The director’s decisions for the animation style, on top of the narrative and sound design merges beautifully that immerses the audience in a refreshing, yet nostalgic experience.
Poetry & Spoken Word
emi mahmo
HOW TO
TRANSL
by Luca Thompson
Halal If You Hear Me
NEW RELEASE
from spring 2019
This new release compiled by acclaimed poets Fatimah Asghar and Safia Elhillo dispells the expectations associated with Muslim identity and explores its many complexities. In a time where space is a luxury little afforded, this collection is a reminder of the humanity and vibrance of identity outside the Western normativity. Containing works by Warsan Shire, Sahar Romani, and Hala Alyan, it’s a must for this spring! / Available now from Haymarket Books.
“REALISE [...] THAT TH
ARABIC HURTS JUST A
In this poem, Emi Mahm through a brutally honest ways it unifies us all throug women. Mahmoud’s eng audience hooked as sh roots of our humour. / W Button Poetry’s Youtube
u d ’s
LATE
a Joke
HIS JOKE I HEARD IN
AS MUCH IN ENGLISH.”
moud walks the listener t look at humour and the gh mutual violence against gaging manner keeps her he examines the darker Watch the performance on e channel.
f r a n ny c h o i ’s OUTSIDE, THE COLORS LEAPT FROM THE TREES. HERE, INSIDE, SOME NEW WORD WAS BLOOMING IN MY UNDERWEAR—DARKER THAN I’D EXPECTED.
Franny Choi’s Perihelion: A History of Touch, has captured my heart beyond its four seasons. An exercise in intimacy, Choi moves between the startlingly familiar and a distance that seems unnatural in the former’s wake. The poet begins with the twelve moons of the Farmer’s Almanac, constructing a monologue that tracks the passage of a year. Opening and closing with the cold, the poem is cyclical but transformative, exploring youth and desire and longing and loss. After over a year and half with this poem, I find it impossible to pick favourites. This spring, though, I’m holding on to Pink Moon—growing into myself. There’s a moon for each season here, and they all have something different to say. / Read this poem on the Poetry Foundation website.
A HISTORY OF TOUCH
Perihelion
Love It If We Made It
6 Summers Anderson.Paak
The 1975
I Didn’t Know
Seventeen Troye Sivan
Skinshape
I’M STILL HERE
Simon Says NCT127
HAWAI
Entertainer
Drown
ZAYN
Cuco, Clairo
Window
Tequila
Noname (ft. Phoelix)
Dan + Shay
Ripe
Forest Fire
Tamara Qaddoumi
Brighton
hope is a dangerous thing...
Young Hearts NoMBe
Lana Del Rey
Years
Evig Ung
BANYK
TØFL
Thank you for stopping by! Be sure to keep an eye out for our future issues! See you next year :)
- THE SCOPE TE A M @wearescope