I think I perceive myself differently than others perceive me; so making an artwork of myself was very difficult. I wanted to create something that, when looked at by anybody, represented me. I didn’t know whether I wanted to embody myself abstractly, or realistically. I knew that either was possible to achieve, as I had seen other artists do both before. After a day of self-deliberation, I decided that I would aim for realism, and if I wasn’t successful, then I would change paths to an abstract artwork.
The medium I used was magazine cuttings. I knew that if I were aiming for realism, I would want as much accuracy as possible. To accomplish such detail, I used very small pieces for my person. And, since I wanted the focus to be mainly on me, I made the background using bigger sections of paper with words. I also created a ring of flowers around my head to draw attention towards my face and create interest in the artwork.
When viewing the art, I would like the viewer to notice the emotion I put into my face. I see myself slightly smirking at the viewer, as though I have a secret that the viewer and I share. The words in the background are the lyrics to my favorite song, “Ivory Road” by King Charles. The song is upbeat and uses interesting instruments. The lyrics are eccentric and don't make a lot of sense; this leaves the listener to create their own meaning to the song. I hope that viewers of my artwork will interpret it in that way.
Looking at the final piece as a whole, I see myself and my feelings staring back. I was able to accomplish not only a physical presence but also my personal awareness of myself. My physical appearance in the artwork is not perfect, but the real me is not perfect either. As I developed the collage, I arrived at a balance between realism and abstraction that I felt best represents the me that I know. Finding a way to produce such a piece was difficult, but looking at the final result I am confident that I pulled it off in the end.
The medium I used was magazine cuttings. I knew that if I were aiming for realism, I would want as much accuracy as possible. To accomplish such detail, I used very small pieces for my person. And, since I wanted the focus to be mainly on me, I made the background using bigger sections of paper with words. I also created a ring of flowers around my head to draw attention towards my face and create interest in the artwork.
When viewing the art, I would like the viewer to notice the emotion I put into my face. I see myself slightly smirking at the viewer, as though I have a secret that the viewer and I share. The words in the background are the lyrics to my favorite song, “Ivory Road” by King Charles. The song is upbeat and uses interesting instruments. The lyrics are eccentric and don't make a lot of sense; this leaves the listener to create their own meaning to the song. I hope that viewers of my artwork will interpret it in that way.
Looking at the final piece as a whole, I see myself and my feelings staring back. I was able to accomplish not only a physical presence but also my personal awareness of myself. My physical appearance in the artwork is not perfect, but the real me is not perfect either. As I developed the collage, I arrived at a balance between realism and abstraction that I felt best represents the me that I know. Finding a way to produce such a piece was difficult, but looking at the final result I am confident that I pulled it off in the end.