WONG YOCK YAN

THE TASK

The project we were involved in was regarding an upcoming show to be held in the flower dome in 2021. As the Gardens expect millions of visitors each year, the displays held in the Dome are especially important in portraying the image of not only the Gardens but also Singapore, taking into account that a large portion of the visitors come from other countries. At the point when we joined the project, there was already a fixed concept and rough idea of the basic structure and plants to be displayed. We were then tasked to build up on the background research about the overarching concept which will be used as background information for the different teams involved to refer to and use some of the information we have researched on for the actual display. Apart from our research project, we were also told to help with the recent Chinese New Year display and afterwards, maintenance of the flowers in the display.

THE PROCESS

Firstly, we conducted the research based on the overarching idea to understand the whole concept better such that we would later be able to sift out the more important information which was more relevant to the concept. Then, we narrowed our research area when we were tasked to find more information about certain structures and plant species which allowed us to go more in depth into the specified areas. After that, I continued on to model the structure digitally using a free 3D Modelling software, Blender, before actually crafting the model using the foam blocks provided.

This process was beneficial as it was structured in an organised way, from a large idea to zooming into specific items, such that we would maximise our learning and get the most out of our research. With that, there were also challenges that came with our learning. When researching on specific plants, we were required to find the images of them which proved to be fairly difficult as the names of the plants we found were in scientific terms and were mostly of the same family but different species so some images were very similar.

some knowledge i learnt

Leaf Miner

A skill I learnt would be to identify a certain garden pest, known as a "leaf miner". This garden pest moves and feeds on the layers in between a leaf, creating white coloured “roads” on the leaf. It is a larvae which will eventually emerge from the inside of the leaf as a black fly. This was really interesting to me as I have always wondered where the small black flies breed so it was an unexpected surprise when I learnt about this.

Egyptian Sphinx

Apart from that, I also learnt many facts about the Egyptian Sphinx. For instance, the Egyptian sphinx differs from the Greek Sphinx. The Greek sphinx was a mythological creature believed to have demanded travelers to answer her riddles, and would devour them if the riddle was answered incorrectly. On the other hand, the Egyptian sphinx was regarded as a more divine creature which were often placed outside palaces and guarded against evil.

Desertification

Lastly, I also learnt about the grave effects of desertification through this attachment. Desertification is a process by which fertile land becomes desert and is caused by overgrazing and deforestation. It has been a problem for many years and has caused hunger and famines as well as poor air and water quality in the areas. Thankfully, there has been long term efforts to combat desertification in many countries and have mostly proved to be effective and successful.

insights

One interesting aspect was the continuous learning they do on the job. Before the display officially opens, the overall manager conducts a staff briefing where he informs the staff of the reasons behind the layouts and design of each part of the display, and along with that educating them on the different types of plants and flowers on the display. What is interesting is that the briefing included the different departments, not only the conservatory operations, so everyone was learning something new while doing their job.

Another interesting aspect would be the sense of accomplishment after successfully completing a display. During the attachment, we were able to have the chance to work on the Chinese New Year display adopted a method known as "Mosaiculture", where bedding plants would cover the large structure. This method was tiring and time-consuming as it required us to plant the bedding plants one by one, but the end result turned out very well and there was a sense of accomplishment where everyone felt like their hard work was not put to waste.

final thoughts

One important takeaway that I gained from this experience is that the bonds made among the people in the workplace are important in making work much more enjoyable. The culture in Gardens By the Bay was very close-knitted, and everyone around was friendly towards others, despite not knowing them. During our attachment, there were many times where the employees would offer us buggy rides even though they were not familiar with us. Those moments made working there more pleasant and made my experience much more meaningful.

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