Finale

The subject of my project reveals how I really feel on the inside. My true feelings revolve around the feeling of being sad, lonely, overwhelmed, and unmotivated. I decided to make a small trifold cardboard as the piece for my project. On the two front folds I put a picture of the happy face I make. The color of my skin and shirt are vibrant like the background. This represents the image I show in public and how I want people to see me. When the folds open, my sad teary eyed face is there. The picture on the inside has a darker background and my image is faded with less color. On the insides of the folds, are 4 pictures that further showed what I felt. On the left is a silhouette of a couple that are slightly distant. This represents my relationship with my girlfriend. She lives 45 minutes north so we don’t get to see each other often. On top of that I am always busy and don’t get the opportunity to always talk to her. The other picture is a clock that reads 2am and 4am which are the times that I’ve been up doing work. Since I don’t sleep at home, I tend to sleep at school. With the little free time that I do recieve, I just want to enjoy doing what I want and not spending time with other people including my own girlfriend. This represents how I’ve really felt these past few months. This is about the worst that I’ve felt and it’s due to a build up of overworking myself over the course of the entire year. During the spring and fall semesters I’ve worked and attended school taking on 18 and 20 credits. Over the summer, I worked full-time in research at Rutgers University in New Brunswick. In short, I feel like I haven’t had a real consistent break. 

As inspiration I used a variety of artists and pieces to make my project. To start off, I referred straight from the society of the spectacle which emphasized how appearance plays a role in how people are treated in society. Appearances are very important in many settings such as work, school, and social events because it is a way that shows a person’s value and how they are marketed. Appearance also makes a person become likeable and approachable. Growing to know this, I always wanted to keep a smile on my face and hold my head high. When I was younger I was extremely shy and emotionless but I made sure to change that. I showed the best appearance on the front of my project because it is my surface and normal appearance in public. I also have nice glasses to make me look more stylish. Opening the trifold revealed the opposite of my surface. On the side are pictures that describe my situation. I used Wangechii Mutu’s use of monsters to show how I am like a troll living under a bridge trying to get away from everyone when I finally have my own time. From the art exhibit I was particular inspired by Anna Ogier-bloomer’s Nursing and peeing, which shows a naked mother nursing her naked baby. It shows things that a mother does for her baby that are not seen by others that would be thought to be as disturbing, but really is good and should be celebrated. It can be overwhelming though and that is how I connect it to my project. I actually really like all of the things I’ve been doing this year and I don’t regret doing any of it. It’s just that me doing it all in such a short time, I’ve felt overwhelmed and sad with my lack of free time and rest. It should be celebrated though because it has helped me to grow like the mother’s child. I also like to think that this suffering is on temporary. In the back of my project, I put myself and my girlfriend happy. When this suffering is over and when I suffer again, I think that I should go to her for comfort and motivation. There is always hope.

Anna Ogier-Bloomer's Nursing and peeing