my final exhibition project for my contemporary art class – images at the end!

            Escapism in early adulthood is a vital theme today because people seek to avoid discomfort, pain, or stages of life by coping with media, especially as technology advances. Hayao Miyazaki reveals a form of escapism that is quite dimensional as he literally portrays characters escaping from their reality and responsibilities such as in Howl’s Moving Castle; on the other hand, he is aware that viewers project themselves onto the animated characters of his story, hence when viewers finish the movie and return to reality, they feel seen and connected to the characters as Miyazaki portrays human emotions quite well through his works. Meanwhile, the K-pop group Tomorrow x Together, or TXT for short, reveals a broader approach to understanding the young mind and how escapism is present throughout our lives; they portray these themes in adulthood in their latest mini-album Temptation in which they are aware they must grow up into adults but are still tempted to stay in a world where they are shielded from the truth of reality; they, as K-pop idols are the source of escapism for their fans, and thus they portray these alternate universe characters who fans can assimilate to healthily.

            Howl’s Moving Castle portrays Howl, a man who wants to be free from his curse and labels himself as a coward for avoiding his responsibilities and refusing to make decisions. As a child, it was normal for him to not know how to handle these tasks, but as an adult, that perspective has changed, and thus he becomes a coward. Forms of escapism in his character were flirting, focusing on his beauty and the beauty of others, and shielding himself from reality within the mess that his house and room were. He hoarded stuff as he was reluctant to let go and take control of his life. When Howl threw a “tantrum” because of his hair color changing, he felt like he was no longer beautiful, and hence he was losing one of his only ways to escape from his cowardly reality. As Sophie enters his life, he becomes capable of letting go of those forms of escapism and allowing himself to care for others beyond the beauty they hold.

            TXT portrays alternate universe characters who go to a Magic Island similar to Neverland. In the title track of Temptation, Sugar Rush Ride, the lyrics are aimed towards the temptations that Magic Island is offering to each member. These temptations are manifested in different ways such as water, the sky, a lizard, a flower, and butterflies. Magic Island represents the place in which they spent their childhood and thus do not want to leave. Each of these manifestations lures the members through their beauty, thus making them go deeper into the forest and foreshadowing that the island is reluctant to let them go and does not want them to grow up. Towards the end, the temptations drown them in bliss while harming them as they submit more and more. The members sing how they can’t resist it, but at the turning point of the story, they realize what is happening to them and leave. Thus, they are growing up and taking the responsibilities that they had cast aside in the past for which they must leave those temptations behind.

Discuss a tactic/attribute your two works share regarding how they approach your theme and why that’s resonant.

• Both of my pieces portray characters whom viewers and fans will connect to. They do so by relating to the loneliness that leads to the desire to escape from reality. Moreover, these two pieces specifically target things that have been labeled as “beautiful” such as the beauty that Howl saw in others and himself, and the charm of Magic Island which captivates the characters. Through these “beautiful” temptations, both Howl and the members depict just how much they desire to avoid responsibilities and fear having to leap into adulthood.

Discuss a specific way your works differ (materials, tactics, artist’s choices, era/context, etc) and how that element of difference affects their impact/message.

• Although both pieces are visually heavy digital products, they differ in how they approach this media. TXT creates a visual video that portrays their ongoing timeline with preexisting escapism themes, as well as the lyrics that talk directly to the “island of lies” that has been keeping them from growing up. Additionally, the members have a complex history with the island that goes beyond what is being shown in the music video of Sugar Rush Ride. On the other hand, Howl’s Moving Castle creates a visual story from beginning to end in which the goal is to portray the growth of these characters through dialogue and original soundtracks. Moreover, TXT portrays how something is keeping them from growing up, while Howl shows his reluctance to take responsibility.

Explain why you personally selected this topic. What about this topic and these works resonate with you at this moment in your personal, intellectual, and/or creative journey?

• I have a deep passion for my hobbies, so much so that my love for anime turned into my major (Animation and VFX), and my love for K-pop has been positively affecting my artistic choices and even influencing the type of director I would like to be in the future. As such, I want to analyze my passions and give them the credit they deserve for their art direction and creative design. I chose my theme because my passions are indeed forms of escapism, and I am well aware of that fact. I wanted to investigate how and why they affect me so much; thus, I concluded that sometimes they are the anchors that keep me from drowning in stress and are there for me when I feel overwhelmed about being a “responsible” student and adult.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ashley Olivine, Ph.D. “Escapism in Psychology: Healthier Types of Distractions.” Verywell Health, Verywell Health, 31 Aug. 2023, http://www.verywellhealth.com/escapism-7565008.

“Genius English Translations – Tomorrow X Together – Sugar Rush Ride (English Translation).” Translated by Ssaa10dec et al., Genius, genius.com/Genius-english-translations-tomorrow-x-together-sugar-rush-ride-english-translation-lyrics. Accessed Mar. 2024.

Mohd Jenol, Nur Ayuni, and Nur Hafeeza Ahmad Pazil. “Escapism and motivation: Understanding K-pop fans well-being and identity.” Malaysian Journal of Society and Space, vol. 16, no. 4, 29 Nov. 2020, https://doi.org/10.17576/geo-2020-1604-25.

Williams, K-Ci. “TXT on ‘The Chaos Chapter: Fight or Escape’ and Growing With MOA.” Teen Vogue, 17 Aug. 2021, http://www.teenvogue.com/story/txt-the-chaos-chapter-fight-or-escape-and-growing-with-moa-interview.

Wu, Cheng-Ing. “Hayao Miyazaki’s mythic poetics: Experiencing the narrative persuasions in spirited away, howl’s moving castle, and ponyo.” SAGE JOURNALS, vol. 11, no. 2, 4 July 2016, pp. 189–203, https://doi.org/10.1177/1746847716643777 .