3 Straight Photos

Winter

Spring Afternoon

Spring Sunrise

Photo Manipulation

Lost & Found

1. Describe your found photo(s). Where did you find it (them)? What was it about it (them) and caught your attention?
I found two magazine advertisements in a fashion magazine. It caught my attention 
because the composition was interesting and the colour palette was appealing. Also the two ads matched well together because it contrasted each other. 


2. Describe your artwork. What feeling, idea or message did you intend the viewer to get?
The viewer should feel the multi-faceted glamour that advertisements convey. I want the viewer to look closer into the advertisements than just passing by them. 


3. Assess your process & product; do you think it is an engaging, creative, well-put-together artwork.
I think my product is engaging because when the viewer looks at it, they have to think harder to fill in the negative spaces in the advertisements. I think it is creative and well-put-together because it appeals to the eye and when you look at it, you see something different and interesting. You see two different advertisements at once, one for DKNY clothing, and one for Michael Kors accessories. Also, the weaving is very precise and when you fill in the negative spaces, it matches up perfectly. :)

Postmodern Principles Collage

1. Describe which of the Postmodern Principles you explore in this artwork. How does this piece illustrate them?

1. Appropriation
All the photos in my collage are borrowed and even stolen from other photographers from Flickr, and Google Images.

2. Juxtaposition
I use juxtaposition in my collage by placing the two celebrities: Paris Hilton and Kanye West in an unsual setting where they are not ordinarily together. They are usually placed in a luxurious or party-like setting. However in my collage, I placed them in a black and white setting, which symbolizes the poverished life of the youth behind them. This makes a statement on how the two celebrities ignore the poverty in the world, and shower themselves with luxury.

3. Recontextualization
I am taking both Paris Hilton and Kanye West out of their original context of partying and living a luxurious lifestyle by associating them with the children in poverty. This change of context of the two celebrities brings in a new meaning of their conceited and self-centred lives to the many lives of children barely living on food from other's trash.

4. Layering In my collage I layered many photos on top of each other to 1. show the numerous lives in poverty and 2. show how the lives of the two celebrities block our view to the bigger problems in the world, as I have shown: poverty

5. Gazing There are many gazing faces in my collage:6. Representing

1. Paris Hilton and Kanye West represent the selfishness, conceitedness, and apathy that so many people have in the developed countries of the world issues.
2. The children in the background represent the issue of poverty in the world. 

2. Assess your success. Does this image evoke many ideas / feelings? Describe its impact, visually and conceptually.

I think I am successful in getting the message of the apathethic western world across to the viewer. This collage invokes many ideas and feelings such as the idea of how selfish and self-obsessed we can be. It also invokes the feeling of sympathy for the kids in poverty. When we see this collage, we feel a need to contribute to help, instead of going on with our usual routine of worrying about our own petty problems. The impact visually is high because when the viewer looks at the collage, they are first drawn to the two big heads in colour, which is what attracts the most attention. Even when the viewer tries to look at the black and white children in the background, they are automatically drawn back to the big headed celebrities. This concept of the viewer finding the big headed celebrities in colour more attracting and and more easy to look at compared to the black and white children in the background is what I intended for the viewer to do. Although we know there are so many people in poverty in the world, we get side-tracked with our own lives and the lives of celebrities to care much about the poor. We find it hard to look at the poverty and we tend to avoid and ignore it by looking at luxurious things. In all, I think I am very successful with my collage.

1. Paris Hilton and Kanye West: they have a gaze of pleasure, narcissism, apathy, and a look that shows that they do not care. They represent the selfishness, conceitedness, and apathy that so many people have in the developed countries of the world issues.
2. The many children in the background of the photo shows gazes of sadness, hunger, helplessness, desperation, and a need for love. They represent the issue of poverty in the world.

Surrealism

1. Describe the process you used to arrive at your surreal subject matter.

I played a few free association games with friends where we folded paper and drew different things. Also, I explored the state of dreaming. I thought of different dreams I had in the past and came up with the swingset. I researched the meaning of the swingset in dreams on a dream interpretor site. And I also researched about the subject of underwater in dreams.

2. Describe the shoot. Did you have to change your plans? Did you come up with new ideas as you worked through the project?

When I was shooting at the park for the swingset I did not have to change any plans and while I was at the park I had 2 ideas, one where I was on the swings, and one where I am levitating. However I chose to keep going with my swing idea.

3. Describe the subconscious associations you personally make when looking at this photograph. What do you hope others will see/feel when seeing your image?

The site said that the swingset means "To dream that you are swinging, suggests that you are going back and forth in some situation or decision. You need to make up your mind." Which describes my life very well right now for university. Also the meaning of being underwater in your dream means, "To dream that you are underwater, suggests that you are being overcome with emotions and are in over your head regarding some situation. You need to gain greater control of your life."
This surreal subject matter is very applicable to my life and a good subject for this assignment.
When others see this image, I want them to remember and feel the sensation of swinging with the sensation of being underwater. It's a very fresh, and liberating feeling :)

(http://dreammoods.com/cgibin/dreamdictionarysearch.pl?method=exact&header=dreamsymbol&search=underwater)

Chiaroscuro

In this photograph, I used the candle light as might key light. To lighten up the subject a bit more, I used a filler light to the right of the subject, slightly dimmed. I used Michelle as my model, and I replaced the skull in the painting, to a chopped off foot in the photo. I also used a candle, a gun, a cross, and books as props for my photograph. 

My inspiration is a painting by Georges de la Tour called Repenting Magdalene.

Ordinary to Extraordinary