Project #3 Project Statement
When I first heard we could use mirrors for this project, I started thinking up a bunch of different ideas incorporating mirrors. I went back and forth on a lot of different ideas for this project, but the one that kept coming back to me was having clones of myself in a photo. A couple years ago, I came across a screenshot from a tv movie called Crybaby Lane, and this screenshot had a guy with blank white eyes staring at a character through a mirror. This image has sat with me, so I wanted to do something similar with my photos. I thought up an idea where this demon in the mirror is me and is looking at another person who is also me. This idea of their being two or three versions of myself in the same photo was intriguing, and while I did drop the demon idea, the clones of myself stuck. In one photo, there's three of me looking intently at each other, in another photo, my hand is touching the face of a clone, and in the final photo, ghostly forms of myself are touching hands. The idea I wanted to get across with these photos is the idea of there being multiple versions of yourself. When I am in public, I present myself as being mostly quiet and reserved, but when I am around friends and family, I open up more and tend to be a lot more positive. These photos take this internal struggle and materialize it in the form of clones myself, with them representing different parts of myself. The photo that showcases this best is the last one I mentioned where I look ghostly. In this photo, one version of me is smiling, the other has an angry expression, and them putting their hands together is a sign of finding balance between these versions of myself.
Project #2 Project Statement
Many years ago, me and my friends filmed a video at this old bridge in Hereford. What made this bridge particularly interesting though is that on the chain link fence surrounding the bridge, there were combination locks, hundreds of them it seemed. These combination locks are meant to signify a friendship or romance between people. How it works is they write their names on the locks, put them on the fence, and then dump the keys into the San Pedro River below. It showcases how despite the bridge no longer being used for cars, it now serves a more sentimental purpose. Unfortunately it seems most of the locks were removed, which I think is quite sad. Regardless, I still wanted to showcase the sense of connection that surrounds this bridge, not only with the few locks that remain, but also with the graffiti on the bridge and surrounding area. Even though I had only been at this bridge once before, it still made me feel nostalgic. It brings reminders of a simpler time when people were younger and romances were just starting, with this bridge sitting as a time capsule for a time long gone. This is what I hoped the photos got across.
Project #1 Project Statement
Not too far from my hometown of Sierra Vista, Arizona, there is this place up in the mountains called Our Lady of the Sierras. This area has a walking path that has wooden crosses lined around it, fourteen to be exact signifying the stations of the cross, with a church in the center of it all. Me and my family have frequented this spot a lot throughout the years, so it holds some sentimental value to me. It is a very peaceful place that is used a lot for praying, and so I wanted my photos to elicit a similar feeling. Two of the photos have me walking up the steps, one photo has me looking at one of the wooden crosses, and two photos have me praying, one where I am sitting next to a ledge, and another where I am standing in a stone structure at the top of the walking path. I included myself in the photos to help indicate that this is a place that means a lot to me and as a stand in for others who feel similarly. I wanted my photos to not only show off different parts of the place, but to also show off how this is a place of religious worship. Part of the reason my family members come up here is to pray for family and friends, so I really wanted to get that idea across.