Digging Deeper.: 2012

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Fundamentals of Life

The overlapping theme of this three project series was evoking a variety of honest emotions from all sorts of people, young and old, familiar and unfamiliar. For Part III, I built off the same idea, using the power of inspirational words to get inside the mind.

The idea started out as a challenge to get people to define love, stemming from the last project regarding definitions of happiness where nearly every interviewee responded with something about love or the people they care about most in their lives. But, as soon as I began to work I saw the direction of this love campaign headed towards a corny, boring one way path that didn't seem fulfilling to my intentions or anyone involved. SO, I took a turn.

This project titled "The Fundamentals of Life" was created to get people to stop, think for a moment and examine how they live their life. Our world is consumed by so many superficial matters and shallow worries, people forget what's important and truly meaningful. We over analyze, we fear, we stress and let the pressure build. It's the small things that have all the power to tear us apart or make us feel whole.

So, I decided to get my message across in two ways: one of bombardment and the other, luck of the draw. Using all quotes I had saved over time because they touched me in some way, I wrote on tiny slivers of paper each saying in a different color, the color paired with the tone of the quote as best as possible. I placed all of the quotes in a shoebox and created " a game" going up to people and asking them to pull a piece of paper, read the quote, internalize it and then tell me without much more time to think:

what it meant to them

how it connected to their life

one word to encompass the feeling it evoked.

For the bombardment tactic, I decorated an elevator in Stadium with strands of tinsel hanging from corner to corner and posted bigger versions of each sign on the walls. I left the shoebox with the quotes on the floor so people had the choice to take one if they were curious. The whole idea was to catch people off guard and then once the doors closed, have them soak in the messages. The reactions however were all over the board! I observed as inconspicuously as I could, standing outside the elevators and at times riding with the passengers. A couple girls scoffed, refusing to get in. A few guys walked in and acted like everything was totally normal. Some people getting off were sparked with curiosuity wondering what it was all about. My favorite reactions were of a girl and of a few strangers my my friend told me about.

The girl walked in and was immediately blown away, actually giddy. She said she had been so stressed with finals and the little elevator display made her day. My friend reported that when he was in the elevator with strangers they were eagerly examing the display, saying how cool it was.

All in all the purpose of both tactics was to capture attention and force a moment of simple thought, I believe this was accomplished.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

"Don't Be Fooled By Your Emptiness, There's So Much More Room for Happiness"

" A light, airy, deliriousness, bright and uplifting energy. The amount we emit is the amount we absorb from the world."

"Feeling completely content and secure in yourself."

"Happiness Is a Warm Gun."

"Not overlooking the simiplicities, appreciating the forgotten that makes life beautiful."

"Knowing I'm doing all that I can to be the best person I can be for myself and others."

"Being wrapped in the arms of someone close to you and feeling nothing but comfort."

"You get out of life what you put into it. If you're doing what makes you happy then your whole outlook on life changes. We're put here on earth for a reason. Feeling accomplished makes me happy. Feeling love back fulfills me."

"Different for everyone, no single definition."

"Obedience to God makes you 100% happy. Obedience is the key to everything, like an umbrella, if you obey, everything else is covered and taken care of."

"Being, giving, doing, all that you can with a purpose that ultimately betters either your own life or someonelse's."

"Giggling so hard you can't breath. Not thinking about anything but the present moment. All you need is good friends, good food and a fairly worry free life."

"Knowing I'm loved."

"Giving to other people and doing all that I can to take care of my family."

"Spending time with my 21 month old daughter."

"Being surrounded by people you love and those who love you back."

"Accepting yourself for who you are, being able to do what you want withou the consequences. Achieved when you make the best of everything regardless of how negative it may seem. Happiness is living your life for on one but yourself."
"Being Content."

"Being in the beautiful sunshine with my girl."
"True happiness is not being rich or successful, it's being surrounded by the people you care about most. And frozen yogurt."

__________________________________________________________________

A Reflection:

A common theme for all was LOVE. Humans by nature are social beings and our happiness depends on those around us, those who nurture us and fill our daily lives with laughter and comfort. Our focus is on those we care about and we in turn need to know strong feelings are reciprocated. Acceptance and support from a foundaton of family and friends flows from love we always know we can rely on.

INDEPENDENCE.

Living life for no one but yourself, being the best person for yourself and accepting yourself for who you are. Strength flows from confidence; once you're sure of yourself you can conquer anything. Not fearing other people's judgements and living life for you alone leads to satisfaction and freedom.

LAUGHTER.

Letting go, living in the moment and relishing in the delirious happiness that follows.

FAMILY.

A businesswoman on the streets of Tampa, hustling to work after a lunch break relunctantly stopped by a college student, shed a layer of stoic composure when asked "what defines happiness?" Softening with a distant smile, she responsed, "spending time with my 21 month old daughter."

A middle aged mother of two: "giving to other people and doing all that I can to take care of my family." She said she prayed for continuos good health so she could continue to take care of those she loves.

The older the person was, the more specific they were in their answers of love or nurture. Younger men and women answered with more broad, all encompassing responses. Older generations narrowed in on giving to those they love or focusing on one specific person in their life.

FAITH.

A bit suprising, this wasn't a common theme however, a homeless man in the park with a paper bag lunch and capri sun ready to slurp, was quick to define happiness by the title of "Obedience to God."

He related life to an umbrella- all else falling into place and bein g100% happy, when you obey God.

STAYING POSITIVE.

And in the words of Bob Marley.....

"Don't worry about a thing, 'Cause every little thing gonna be all right. Rise up this mornin', Smiled with the risin' sun, Three little birds Pitch by my doorstep Singin' sweet songs Of melodies pure and true."

_________________________________________________________________

Intro: Defining Happiness.

Inspired by my recent study of Tracey Emin as a person and artist , I gained inspiration through her style- a continuously unfilitered brazen portrayal of her life through all different mixes of media. However personal and outrageous her stories are, they connect with every person in a different way and evoke sensations that can't be ignored.

Now, I realized I wasn't quite ready to divulge everything about my life just yet, as Emin so fearlessy does, so I went searching and was intrigued by Aristotle. 'Nicomachean Ethics' is Aristotle's best known work on ethics and the theme of the work, previously explored by Plato, is How Men Should Live. Aristotle and Socrates turned philosophy to human questions and defined ethics as the best way to live. Aristotle's work on ethics is thorough but my focus derived from book I: defining happiness.
Honor, slavish pleasure, virtue, money and contemplation are associated with happiness and living well, however I believe Aristotle is missing some steps.

Intrigued by the subject of how we create a good life for ourselves, whether through learning, training or chance, I set out to ask people to define their own versions of happiness. Two simple questions: what is it and what fulfills you?

Monday, February 13, 2012

Reflection on Project I

A Little Insight  into "Self Expressed Secrets of Strangers"

   The following posts reflect a photo series dedicated to self expression. A variety of people, young men and women, all college students with different thoughts to share. They were asked to write out a thought, story, fear they do not often express. The result was a series of moments captured across campus. I would love to continue with this project because I believe the messages exposed are messages we can all relate to in some way and if examined more closely the collaged outcome would be stunning.

Now for this project,

-There's an apparent theme of mystery with a majority of the face covered. The exposure of the eyes is meant to be a reflection of the person's emotions connected to the message they're conveying.

- The black and white series was created to convey a more personal, intense connection with the audience.

  -The color collage with all six figures is meant to express unity and the refreshing power that comes with being bold enough to fully open up.

-The series of scattered cards is a mixture of creativity and free style. Each personalized card was placed in a different spot on campus then photographed; setting the stage for the idea that anyone could come across these messages and identify with the anonymous words.

Everyone has dealt with unrequited love, feared not being enough, suffered from the loss of a loved one, gone through road rage, hated the lonliness of being on your own and experienced crazy sexcapades. These words speak to everyone.