What is Reality?

This is not a question that I ask from a strictly subjective point of view. We are talking about Reality from the ' observer's' point of view. The 'observer' here is a reasonable person who perceives reality through his/her five senses. Because our ultimate goal is to reproduce this perceivable environment inside the virtual space so we can safely omit the definition of reality from the relativistic point of view and can only consider the space-time as perceived by a normal person living in the reference frame of our Universe in the present broad slice of time.
So the basic question is how in the given conditions this person refers to something or some experience as real? The key to the answer, is in the very statement, that people observe their environment through their five senses. And what in turn tells their brain that the experience they are having, is a real experience? The answer is when the perceptions co-inside with the experiences they have from the very early stage of sense development and their logical follow-ups. So it is important, that we consider the point, that our observer is a 'reasonable person'- as stated earlier. If suddenly someday our observer, say Mr. X, sees a pig fly, he will know for certain that this thing is not for real, it's either an artificial pig, or a dream, or as a last resort he might consider seeing a shrink! Obviously, this kind of bizarre phenomenon can happen in some other Universe, situated at some other dimension, having entirely different laws of physics, but to eliminate that possibility, we have already limited our framework inside our Universe. So this is how Mr. X, is able to differentiate between reality and non-reality. So now the question is, how Mr.X ‘s perceived experiences, are proved to be in accordance with his past experiences?
Consider the five senses, through which Mr. X relates himself to his environment. Most important is the eye. Human beings have binocular colour vision. Through eyes this Mr. X can perceive the object flying as pig, and his past observations will tell him that he never saw a pig with a pair of wings. So the first doubt that will come through the visionary sensation is the mismatch of shape. The next will be the ears, which will receive the sound of the wings, and will try to relate them with the past experiences again, and the sound memory bank will return some data. For example the sound is like the fluttering of a butterfly wings? Or maybe flapping of bird wing, or buzzing of bee? etc. Immediately the brain will tell Mr. X that pigs don’t have wings those move making such noises. Eventually like this, each and every senses of Mr. X will separately, or in combination, will perceive data, but will constantly conflict and contradict with his existing experiences, in order to tell him that the experience he is having is unreal. So in order to prove something as real, the brain(as in combination of all the parts) will not only have to perceive convincing sensations, but will also have to match them with existing past experiences. It’s simply marvelous to realize and appreciate the beauty of human intelligence- such a long process of judgment happens almost immediately, with all the senses working more or less simultaneously and without giving it any ‘real thought’, to help the person arrive at the conclusion!
So if this is how strong the method of reality check is, how do we convince Mr. X, that the visual he is seeing is real (actually happening)?…simple: fool his senses through virtual reality!

Information Mapping of Visva Bharati, kala Bhavana

A short experiment with available objects

This is an experiment with some 3D objects and the physical map of Kala Bhavana. Basically I sketched out the map on a large full size paper and then put matchboxes and cigarette packets to represent the sculptures and murals that exist in and around the campus just to understand the scale and distance and how it actually works in a walk through. What are the objects the visitor will look at while walking through? Am I taking the decision or it is upto him what he wants to see first?
Through this short exercise, I had to take decision on If it would be a panorama or a simple walk through? What are the limitations in a walk through which I might face? Similarly how effective will be the panorama? If panorama how many sets I have to click finally? Which are the area of concentration in the space? What are the objects I would want the viewer to concentrate or get interested in the panorama itself?

Setting my Target group

An Excellent Example of a Panoramic Virtual Tour

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

What is a Virtual Tour?

Virtual tour is a reflection of an actual space. It is a combination of sequence of images, sound effects, narration and text. Virtual Tour of an existing location gives a real life feel of the space and the viewer experiences the detailed knowledge of the space without visiting it.
There are several ways to construct a virtual tour. it can be either represented as a panoramic view which is a series of photographs stitched seamlessly panning video footage or a simple walk through where the spectator is walking through the space and experiencing everything on his own.
A panorama is a 360 degree view or representation of a space in any medium. it is a very wide angle image or a composition of multiple images put together. through panorama the viewer is experiencing a 360 degree wrap around image of a space which gets a little static at times. Where as a walk through of a space allows the viewer to experience and discover the original space on his own. The viewer has a real life feeling while navigating through the space, as if he is moving through the space like it happens when we actually visit a museum or any historical site.

New & Revised Timeline of my project

Walked on a guided tour around Visva Bharati

I spoke to a guide as a tourist and hired him and went on a guided tour around Visva Bharati campus just to crosscheck my knowledge about the place and also to figure out what all information they give to the visitors while on a tour.
My guide was a young guy, very humble and friendly types. He took me for a tour around the campus for almost One and half hours and charged me 200 bucks and was saying they are very less paid because tourists generally bargain a lot. Altogether there are twenty guides in Santiniketan. None of them are Government appointed authorized ones. Many of them are from outside and recently came to this profession but the rest are from Santiniketan and followed their family profession. Like my guide(Sajal Biswas's)father also used to work as a guide for Visva Bharati. Sajal learnt all the background and the dates from his father. The kind of information I got from Sajal was very superficial but put in a very poetic and over dramatic manner. It was extremely funny initially when he started elocuting one of the Tagore's poems aloud but I guess its a very common gesture with all the guides. They try to make things very interesting, describe everything in a story telling mood.He told me that he doesn't really know the history much but he could educate me with almost all the important dates. It was very funny that he kept pronouncing K.G. Subramanyam as 'k.P. Supraya' and Mural as 'Mooral'...... :)
While talking about the background of the sculpture 'Sujata' by Ramkinkar Baij, he described Sujata as Buddha's mother.
So these type of improper information and misguidance often reach to the tourists.
Also its very difficult to get a proper guide because generally these guides can be hired from the main gate of Rabindra Bhavana(Museum) but there are also rickshaw pullers as self claimed guides, who would want to take you on a rickshaw ride cum guided tour around Santiniketan. Theses rickshaw pullers always give wrong information and misconception about the place to the visitors who come from outside.
Overall the guided tour experience was very helpful for my research and interesting also because its been really long I have walked around a place with a guide.
Outside Rabidra Bhavana gate the guides sell these information booklets/guide books of Santiniketan. These thin, printed in very low quality paper with most uninteresting cover and overall look provide not so bad information and a map of Visva Bharati campus but I guess the content and the writing can any day be improved a little!
These books in English and bengali provide information about history of Santiniketan, other religious places and visiting sites around Santiniketan, biography of Rabindranath tagore, available courses along with admission rules to Visva Bharati campus, Tourist map of Santiniketan and a map of Visva Bharati.

Physical Map of Kala Bhavana

Project took a new direction!

The scenario of my diploma project suddenly turned upside down!

The Client suddenly backed out stating since I was the one who proposed this project to Kala Bhavana, therefore they won't take any responsibilities involved in this project.It was being told to me earlier that the fund can be decided upon once I start the project and when the total budget is fixed. I was not promised a full fund though, but definitely a portion, which is possible by the University to bear.
But due to a sudden notice of unavailability of fund for my materials and prototype explorations and many other unfortunate incidents,I decided to change the direction of my project.
So instead of signage design as my final deliverable I am making a virtual tour/exhibition of the space. In this way people would be able to experience a real life feel of the space. The site will also educate them about the history and aesthetics of the sculptures and murals of Kala Bhavana.
The only fortunate thing is that this decision of mine helped me to save most of my research which I have done during month long stay in Santiniketan. I think my research would definitely play a relevant role in this new direction also.
For more details: Please go through my revised brief.

Signage Study in Indian Museum Kolkata

Signages in Kolkata Indian Museum is basically trilingual, Bengali, English and in Hindi.There is no particular style which has been maintained to develop the signage system inside the museum, so one can see a various range of styles. Like printed sunboards, paper printouts on transparent acrylic sheet casing and then mounted on elevated wooden and stone base at different angles depending on the height of the base for information about the sculptures.































































Also there are letters cut out of plywood mounted on wooden panels out of which few letters are chipping off, even though it is kept indoor. This has happened because lower grade of ply with poor intralayer adhesive has been used.






























Paper printouts for outdoor signages, brass letters mounted on black vinyl sheet,handwritten type on wooden panel are also there.

A Visit to The Victoria Memorial Hall

In spite of living in Kolkata through out my life, I visited Victoria memorial only once when I was a kid and could hardly remember anything. So today felt the need of visiting it again when I am doing research and studying on how signage system works inside the exhibitions and museums.
If you look at the whole space around Victoria Hall, you won't be at all impressed by the signage system which are existing right now. Outside around the main Hall there are some dos and don'ts signage which are not at all meant to be weather resistant and vandal proof. If you see the 2nd photograph down you'll notice the information is hardly readable because it is partially washed off by rain.For few, materials they have used are printed vinyl mounted on stand but the others are simply prints on thick paper stuck on metal frames.












































Some information I noticed are really different from the usual ones. Like this one is a Victorian sculpture.From the look and the font and the total make of how the information is carved out on the marble, it is very much understandable that it is done by the British because it is no way syncing with the other signage around.
















Inside the Memorial Hall I did not have permission to get my camera, so cannot upload any photo. But mostly its all information/identification signage for the sculptures and artifacts inside.Half the signage are digitally printed on reverse vinyl and the others are simply printed on sun boards out of which few are already chipping off.

Project Timeline

Visitor's Profile in Santiniketan

Facts & Figures about Visitors

- Generally tourists come from all over India, but a majority of them are from nearby cities like Kolkata, Howrah, Durgapur, etc. for enjoying weekend trips. Few are intersted about the history and culture of Santiniketan, but most of them come for refreshment only.

- People who are actually interested to know the history, they go to the proper guides and look for guide-books/information brochures. Some, who cannot afford guides, hire the rickshaw-pullers to act as their guides and are often misguided.

- Some people have their own country houses in Santiniketan where they come and stay for a weekend. But others lodge in hotels and guest houses.

- People come to Santiniketan sometimes more than once specially the college goers.

Flow of Visitors

- Tourists used to rush in to look around the campus all the time and explore during the class hours also. Classes used to get disturbed, so nowadays tourista are allowed to enter the campus only after 1pm.

- Visitors/tourists come to visit Santiniketan throughout the year. But mostly major rush is during the Poush Mela whish is a very large fair and is the biggest event of Santiniketan, happens in winter.


Type of Visitors

- All type of people come here.

- Big family with friends, young groups, couple.


Visitors Profile 1

Name: Mr. Surendra Bagchi & Family

Occupation: Business

Age: 53

Purpose of visit: Touris

Duration of stay: 4days.

Yearly tour: Darjeeling, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh.

Weekend trip: Santiniketan, Purulia

Love to visit Santiniketan because: Of the culture, peace, haat( weekly market of the local crafts)

Number of times visited Santiniketan: 3

Mindmapping

Collecting and categorizing data.

Interviewing Prof. Nandadulal Mukherjee, Dept. of Painting, Kala Bhavana

I took an interview of the professor of department of painting, Kala Bhavana and discussed with him about how visitors come to know the information about the sculptures and murals inside the campus and if there is any other information materials/guidebooks. He gave his views regarding the tourists coming in along with the guides sometimes and mostly with the rickshaw pullers and how, many a times it has been seen that people getting wrong information about the art objects and the architectures in the campus.
As a senior professor who has got first hand experience of learning and working under the direct tutelage of artists like Ramkinkar Baij, he gave opinion on how artworks of great artists are restored properly and with great care outside India.

The Inner Eye - A Documentary on Binode Bihari Mukherjee by Satyajit Ray...

This is a fantastic documentary on Binodebihari Mukherjee and Ray here captures the whole feel of him conceiving the mural which we see on one of the walls of Kla Bhavana campus.

Questionnaires

For the teachers

1. Name
2. Occupation
3. Place of work
4. Have you ever noticed that the scuptures and murals in and around Kala Bhavana campus do not display any information about the artist or its date of creation or any kind of identification signage altogether? Do you feel the need for it?
5. How much do you know the history and background behind each scupture and mural?
6. What are your view on incorporating signage system? How do you think it can be used to display necessary information? What all element, information do you think should go in it?
7. What do you know about the Santhaal family- sculpture by Ramkinkar Baij?
8. Can you give me an instance or share an experience where you have seen tourists/outsiders getting misguided by the local unauthorized guides regarding the history and background of Kala Bhavana or the scuptures and murals?
9. How do you feel associated with Kala Bhavana, Visvs Bharati campus?

For the students

1. Name
2. Occupation
3. Place of work
4. Have you ever noticed that the scuptures and murals in and around Kala Bhavana campus do not display any information about the artist or its date of creation or any kind of identification signage altogether? Do you feel the need for it?
5. What are your view on incorporating signage system? How do you think it can be used to display necessary information? What all element, information do you think should go in it?
6. Did you face any problem when you came to Kala Bhavana for the first time in terms of knowing the scuptures and murals? If yes then what?
7. Can you give me an instance or share an experience where you have seen tourists/outsiders getting misguided by the local unauthorized guides regarding the history and background of Kala Bhavana or the scuptures and murals?
8. Since language is not just a medium, spoken, but of culture also what according to you are the most eminent languages in Kala Bhavana?
9. How do you feel associated with Kala Bhavana, Visvs Bharati campus?

For the outsiders/tourists

1. Name
2. Occupation
3. Place of work
4. Do you know there are some scuptures and murals exist inside Kala Bhavana campus? How many are there do you think?
5. Do you know which are the great artists who created these masterpieces?
6. Have you ever noticed that if these masterpices display any information about the artist or its date of creation or any identifiaction sign altogether?
7. Can you name any two sculpture by Ramkinkar Baij aropund the campus?
8. What do you know about the Black House(Kalo Bari)?
9. Can you give me an instance or share an experience where you have seen tourists/outsiders getting misguided by the local unauthorized guides regarding the history and background of Kala Bhavana or the scuptures and murals?
10. How do you feel associated with Kala Bhavana, Visvs Bharati campus?

Murals - Black House(Kalo Bari)

Reading up on Murals from the book ''Santiniketan Murals' edited by R. Shiva Kumar
Mural is derived from the latin murus (French mur) meaning 'wall' and a mural painting , is executed directly on the surface of the wall.
Mural painting can be divided into two distinct categories of work - methods prior to painting and methods for painting proper. In few cases these two categories of work become inseparable. The former includes the preparation of the 'carrier' and the ground or (plaster) on which the painting is executed the preparation of pigments and colours, and the preparation of the 'binding media' by which the pigments are made to stick to the ground.
Indian Silpa texts mentionwords like Bhitti, Manibhumi, Chitravapusa or Kudya to indicate both the carrier and the ground(plaster).
The colours of murul painting also need careful selection and preparation because all type of colours are not suitable. Only the mineral colours which are also lime resistant can be used in minerals. The only non mineral colour which has been proved to be lime resistent and satisfactory for any mural work is black soot.

Black House (Kalo Badi) is one of the example of the murals in Kala Bhavana where artists like Nandalal Bose and Binodbehari Mukherjee showed their skills and imagination.
It was asphalt coated mud reliefs.
Thirty six pieces, two in near around and the rest in reliefs of various depths, fall into three groups. The first group of fifteen works out of which most of them show dancers and musicians( usually derived from traditianal sources) covers the outer face of the massive pillars on the south verandah.
the second group on the wall of this verandah includes eleven panels, based on the details of ' Marraige of shive' mural in the Mattancherry palace at Cochin ana a dwarapalaka figure based on Aihole sculpture. The reliefs on the north side form the third group and include copies of Egyptian, Assyrian, Indua, Barhut and a Pallava art besides a few images from life.

In the interior of a Santhaal village

The area I am staying at is an interior Santhaal village in Santiniketan.

I have been given a residence to stay for 3 months which used to be the house of famous artist Somnath Hore......I am practically living here without internet.....and electricity here goes off in every 4 hours.....and it gets dark and extremely shady after 7 in the evening....and if it rains, fear of chances of frog, snake and all sorts of reptiles and insects coming and visiting me are there........ all together its a new and thrilling and scary experience.....I am panicking a bit because first of all I am trying to cope with the situation and doing my work......but I hardly can upload any image on the blog or update it on a daily basis because of the super slow internet connection at my place.....each and every time either I have to sit on cyber cafe or the university computer lab. So the process is going a bit slow!

Kala Bhavana campus

The project which I have taken up for my final year Diploma is: Designing a signage system for all the heritage sculptures and murals which exist inside Kala Bhavana, Santiniketan, Visva Bharati campus.

My foremost step in this project is to understand the values and the history which have been concieved by Rabindranath Tagore, the founder of the university and all the maestros like Nandalal Bose, Benodbihari Mukherjee, Ramkinkar Baij who served as the pedestals of the epitome of creativity

The campus has its own philosophies and own views of education which is unique and different from any other Art and Design Institute. A place where everything has rhythm and rhyme, nature, free flowing spontaneity and where there is no bound for creativity.
The murals and the open air sculptures inside the Kala Bhavana campus are the tradition and the interrelation between art and atmosphere. The Great Artists along with their students experimented with different forms and techniques and created these master pieces. The murals are not just reliefs or paintings on the wall, they generate vitality in the buildings and the premises. The sculptures add a distinct dimension to the surroundings. They add a visual narrative to the life and environment which one cannot deny.

There are certain internal features and different techniques which have been used for the murals which I am going to research on. The dynamic styles, techniques, their complexity, architecture, their physical context, history and the sense of perpetuality give a vast scope of knowledge.

Right now these sculptures and murals do not display any kind of information about the artists or age of birth or any kind of identification signage on them. The challenge for me as a Visual Communicator is to design a solution for it without breaking its own tradition and values.