Final Project: a family narrative

With our first day of working in class, I am feeling a little lost on what direction I want to go with this final project. Looking for some inspiration I look at a few links my teacher gave us for some guidance. After a few random video clips, and a few pictures of people sitting on a red couch, I realized something I should have before. The idea behind a narrative is that it is a spoken or written account of connected events, or a story. However the issue I am dealing with is what story do I wish to tell. When thinking about the videos we watched in class, a few elements keep returning to my thoughts. One characteristic I liked that one of the artist used was written stories that went along with his work. I keep imagining his eloquent scripture rolling across the screen, and I think about how I want to include written words into my work. Another idea I liked from the videos we watched in class was telling a story that turns out different then what you first thought it was at first glance. Like the artist who photographed the bathroom scene and then made the audience see that it wasn’t exactly what it seemed to be. I also liked the idea of making the images flow in a cycle, and having them be connected. I have a few ideas I want to play around with; I think I am going to choose a few words I could use to tell my story. I am going to think about words that have meaning to me and go from there. I guess well have to see what happens... 

After feeling pretty lost on where I wanted to go with my final project and looking through examples we had seen in class, I liked the idea of photographing my family. I knew I was going home over the weekend and I decided I would take a photograph of each member of my family separately and go from there. However when I got home and tried to take a picture, each member was pretty hesitate, even after positioning them to the way I imaged them, it still didn’t seen natural. I left home feeling very frustrated and still very lost. I then began to think about our past projects, and began to think about the idea behind the “big picture.” I thought about the project when we had to choose our top ten items, and my Andy Warhol inspired picture of Audrey Hepburn that hung in my room. This picture was just a fun art project I had completed in high school however it always had a special place in my heart, and was something I was proud of. Suddenly I was inspired and began looking at other works created by Andy Warhol. Still not being completely sure on the direction I was going to move in I spoke to my teacher for help. He gave me a few other artists that created pop art. After researching the other artists, Roy Lichtenstein’s work also inspired me. I finally knew what story I wanted to tell.

I wanted to create pop art inspired pieces using my family as the focus. I wanted to tell a story that might not be apparent to an outsider but one my family would completely understand. I turned to Facebook to find pictures I thought truly depicted each member of my family. I wanted ones that maybe showed a different side to them, or one that wasn’t the typical photo. I waited until I found a photo that stuck out to me and cropped it in a way that focused directly on their face. I then took the images and made them look cartoon like with the use of dots. I also choose a bright color that I thought represented each member as the background. After playing around a bit on Photoshop I achieved an image that was exactly like I had in mind. Once I turned each member into a cartoon I began to think how I could incorporate words to help tie each image together, as well has help me tell my story. I asked friends and family to give words they thought described each person and found a way to mold that description into one word. I thought the final outcome looked similar to a poster or something you would buy in a store.

I think my final projects story might not be as clear to an on looker as it would if my family were to see the images. I feel like these images would make my family smile and I think they would understand what I was trying to depict.  I really like my final project more than I thought I would, I think they are fun and serious at the same time, and I think they show my new skills I have established using Photoshop as well. As of now I don’t know what my “big picture” would be but I’m hoping that as I continue on my journey and with the help of my family, one day I will understand. 

"The Cathedral"

            After hearing how this reading was going to, "blow your mind," I had some high expectations for the short story. As I started reading I had many different thoughts in my head of how the story was going to turn out. With each new line I was nervous to see what would come next. However as the story began to come full circle there wasn't that shock appeal I was hoping for. After reading the story through I began to wonder why our teacher thought this story was going to be so mind altering. I soon realized what might have been the reason. I think the story is truly about the narrators spiritual awakening. At first he was prejudice and closed minded. It was unhappy in his life and was not even having a deep connection with his wife. He commented on how he didn't like blind men and talked about the typical stereotypes of them. It wasn't until the end of the story that we see it was really the narrator that was "blind" the whole time. He learned how to look at people as individuals and see them from an open point of view.  He was able to learn more about happiness from man who could see life more clearly than he, even though he didn't have the ability to actually see it. 

Project Five, Burning and Dapple

As we were first introduced to our fifth project, I was really inspired by the examples that we discussed in class. I was so shocked to hear the true source of the calm music. However as I began to think how I was going to take an everyday object and change it in a way that my audience wouldn’t recognize it, was challenging. My first step was to decide an object that I used everyday that I could transform into something else. For some reason a pencil came to mind immediately. After I was assigned the words fire and dapple, I was not sure on how I could incorporate those words with my pencil idea. The pencils I use most often are plastic, and I knew they would not burn. It was then obvious I needed to use a real wooden pencil.

I then got the idea to burn the pencil and document the process, I originally wanted to use video to capture the pencil as it burned slowly, however the pencil did not burn as long as I had imagined. So after I had to re-light the pencil a few times to achieve the burnt look I desired, I decided it would be best to use photography and Photoshop to create my project. After I got the pencil to burn quite a bit I let it cool and was anxious to see the new texture of the wood. To my surprise the pencil maintained its hardness however now it was the texture of charcoal. I then got the idea to use the charcoal as writing utilize and utilize its new form. 

I then had to think how to incorporate dapple into my work. I decided to create a dapple pattern using the paper towel I wrote “fire” on and create a spotted pattern. I then used that has an overlay to the images of the pencil I took as it was burning. The images are in order of occurrence.

I wanted to use Photoshop less in this project, and I wanted the focus to be more on the burning process and the actually transformation of the pencil. Again the final outcome was different then what I first expected, but it is always enjoyable to go through the creative process and see what happens along the way. 

The ability to be in a million places at once!

As soon as I heard about our new assignment, I knew instantly what I wanted my super power to be, however I was unsure on how I could portray my idea by utilizing Photoshop.  The super power I wanted to possess was to be able to teleport. I got this idea from always having the desire to travel the world, as well as wishing I could visit my boyfriend in Chicago in an instant, and then visit my brother in NYC in the next. Because I have a long distance relationship, I am used to traveling six hours to the city and six hours back to campus. I am constantly thinking how easy life would be if I could just blink my eyes to get from place to place.   I remembered a movie I saw titled, “Jumper,” that depicted the story of a guy who could teleport himself. I was instantly inspired and soon began looking up images of stills from the movie. Photos of him on the Egyptian pyramids, London’s Big Ben, and other monumental destinations all over the world cultivated some ideas.

I first started gathering images of the Seven Wonders of the World, but I couldn’t figure out how I could fit an picture of myself into the images and make it into one cohesive photo.  I think got the idea of taking three images of myself, appearing as if I were walking from Paris, to London, to the streets of New York, however it was hard to find images from the right point of view. I soon gave up that idea up, and started playing with the images from “Jumper.” I thought of maybe replacing the lead actors image, with an image of myself, however I couldn’t get the images to look right, the proportions were too off.  I soon turned to Facebook, and began looking at the various images of myself. I found an image of myself on the beach in Italy. I then began adding in the images I found from the various places all over the world. At the end I used the blur took to make it look as if the images were warped like I was moving super fast. I decided my new super power would to have the ability to be at multiple places at once.

Even though the image didn’t turn out exactly as I thought it would at first, I really like the image that was created in the end. 

Leaving My Mark

  As I began to think about how I was going to approach our third project, a few different ideas came to mind. I started thinking about over the past four years, where I have spent most of my time. I know most people would probably said the library, however that was not one of my first choices. Being in fashion and retail, almost every quarter I have a class in Campbell hall, so some of the rooms or even the bathroom was one of my first ideas. However I thought about who I would see in this building, and I felt that if I placed my sculpture in one of those rooms, it wouldn’t have really left its mark. Then I thought about the oval, I liked the idea we had spoken about in class about filling the whole field with red balloons. I then realized that the oval really didn’t hold a special place in my heart, so this led me to the idea of using the Rpac. To me our gym on campus is my place to escape my daily routine. It was a place on campus I actually looked forward to going each day. I thought about how it would be special if I could leave my mark someplace in the Rpac that people would notice everyday, however it wouldn’t be something they would directly connect to me. I soon knew exactly what personal item I wanted to use.

     When I was a freshman I created an image similar to the works of Andy Warhol. It was of the iconic image of Audrey Hepburn, and every since then I have hung the canvas above my bed. I thought this would be perfect because, if someone saw the image they wouldn’t probably notice that it was one of my pieces of art. I knew right away I wanted to use the treadmill because it is the machine I use most frequently.  I ended up liking four of the images I created, however they didn’t turn out exactly how I imaged, I think that my point got across.

My Favorite Things

While working on my project, I had an idea of what I wanted my final project to look like, however this is not what I had in mind. Looking at my images I was perplexed on how I good get all ten of my objects to fit into a cohesive image. I then began playing with the idea of repetition and pattern, and soon I thought of the idea of creating a textile. Being in fashion and retail I learn about textiles and fabric in almost all of my classes so the thought of actually creating my own seemed exciting. I then used my images in repetition and the filter tool to weave together my images. From there I decided I wanted my computer to be the focal point. The images soon began to look hazy and almost unrecognizable. I thought about when I use my computer my surroundings disappear, I began to think about the important things in life, and how those material objects that I choose have a deeper meaning and a different importance then just what they appear to be. 

However the most important of them wasn’t even an object at all, it was my family and that is why I choose the image of my sister and I to be the focal point.When people see my image they won’t even be able to tell what ten objects I choose, they probably wont even really get what the images are at all, this is just like when you see the actual ten images I choose, when you see my watch, my necklace, my tennis shoes or any of the ten things I picked, you don’t truly understand the meanings behind them and you won’t get a true sense of who I really am.  I used the saying breath deeply, not only because it is a saying on my wallet, but it is also a saying that I use when life’s starts moving by so too fast, I have to remember to just breath and enjoy the ride.  

Photography Scavenger Hunt

An image from the point of view of an ant

 A stable Image

 A Person up close

 Radial Image

 An Unstable Image

 Asymmetrical Image

Image from the pint of view of a bird