The Gift

This is my 2019 HSC major work done in my senior year of high school, which was nominated for Art Express 2020.

My aim was to recreate something with the same whimsical yet nostalgic feeling Studio Ghibli movies instill within me - to spread that sense of wonder. When analysing what gives a Ghibli movie that trademark feeling, I realised that they all share a strong sense of realism, shrouded by heavier themes not often seen in other children's media. With my mother's need for a lung transplant, I thought that the theme of "giving up something for the benefit of others" and the setting being an ambiguous world with fantasy elements was befitting of a Ghibli movie.