Chris Drake

When one thinks about art the word beauty tends to be a common adjective for art. Thinking this way and how we look at beauty I tried to comment on how today in an American society we conceive beauty as a packaged subject. There are specific limits, conventions, and pre-existing impressions on what beauty is. I tried to creating my inanimate object, the dolls, into almost something in which the viewer can’t tell if it is real or not, a living person or a doll. And for this idea of ‘packaged beauty’ I left the dolls in their cases, connecting on how beauty is within bounds.  This is a play on what we consider art and beauty. Do these dolls have aesthetic beauty and character or is it just because since it is labeled as art and photography it simply has to be aesthetically beautiful? These girls/dolls are elusive and detached from us, the viewer is supposed to feel like these dolls are stuck in these places and will never be let out. But the question may be do these girls want to be free, are they happy where they are in their ‘packaged beauty’

After reinvestigating my original portraiture project in last week’s “In-Progress” assignment, it became very clear to me that I was trying to make a social commentary on women in our society striving to fit a hyper-idealized notion of beauty. That being said, these women in my photographs aren’t necessarily missing anything (as I was originally trying to convey with their hair covering their face), but instead are masking up who they really are in order to reach this unrealistic standard. The idea of the mask has been a theme that’s been seen and used throughout our society’s recent history concerning women, whether it’s in reference to the “mask” of makeup women wear from day to day, or in regards to the ways which women mask their true beliefs and desires in order to be a “good” mother, daughter, wife, and so on. Therefore, I decided to take this intangible concept, and make it just the opposite: tangible. In this series, my subjects are wearing the same physical mask, which is meant to embody this concept of striving to fit the mold of society’s idealized woman. This project is meant to bring to light that because of society’s overwhelming influence, women, no matter where they are or what they’re doing, can never seem to take this mask off.

Every human being has secrets that they keep to themselves. Some are fantasies, dreams, fears, character flaws, or just unusual traits. For my final project, I chose to photograph twelve individuals who were willing to reveal their secret to the world. I photographed these twelve people with their hand covering their face to exemplify the idea of concealing part of their personality from others. However, written on each person’s hand is their secret that they were finally willing to expose. These secrets were all extremely different because they came from twelve individuals with unique personalities. The one common thread that all twelve people share is their age. The reason that all these models are age 18 is because at this age, humans are commonly in a time of transition from childhood to adulthood. This transition can cause confusion over who we really are as humans. These secrets may help uncover what characteristics make us the way we are. 
The purpose of this series of photographs  is to convey the idea that people should not be ashamed of their hopes, fear, passions, or embarrassing facts. All humans have aspects of their personalities that are uncharacteristic of themselves. Sharing these secrets with the world is not something to be ashamed of because by doing so, we can open up and show our true selves.

       Humans hide in nature for a variety of different reasons, this could include hunting, war, or perhaps just so you can take a picture of your favorite animal.  Regardless of the reason, in order to truly hide or blend in with nature you need to start taking on some of the main traits of the scenery, or use what is already there to hide in.  In my series of pictures I explored each of these relationships, with some of the pictures having me completely hidden in the natural cover and in others my camouflage is my only tool.  When the two are combined is often when you begin to become lost in nature.  Humans and animals utilize camouflage in distinctly different ways and for different purposes but in the end it seems to serve both the same purpose, providing protection from predators and cover to get close to prey. 
In each of my pictures I made sure not to include the horizon as having a full frame with no sky for a reference can often become disorientating as there is not a clear position as to where objects or people should be in the frame. 

For my final project I created visual representations of dreams. My concept stemmed from the idea that often in our dreams, we watch the events that take place as though we are not in our bodies, but outside of our bodies watching ourselves like a film. With that in mind I included two of the same figure in each photo, one acting as the “dream self” and the other as the “real self” who is dreaming, watching their “dream self.” In some photos there are also additional people, as sometimes we are not the only characters in our dreams. Each of these images illustrates the idea of dreamers following themselves through their dreams—a sort of out-of-body experience, which is what dreams are, in a sense. In each photo the “dream self” is completely unaware of the spectator, because they are the dream that the dreamer is having (and the “dream self” is unaware that he or she is a dream.) Many of the dreams represented in the photos are dreams I have had or that have been told to me; this accounts for the variation of setting and storyline from image to image.

Time is a constant pressure that affects everyone similarly but in different ways.  Throughout the stages of life time has varied impacts on individuals.  When we are young time is moving slow and as we progress through life it is perceived as moving much faster. In an attempt to portray this I used a motion blur effect on the images.  As the subjects in the images get older the blur gradually increases until it is so much that all that can be made out is the watch (time).  No matter how fast our perception of time is moving we still are indeed following the same clock moving at the same rate as when we were young just perception changes.  Many things effect the progression such as restraints on time when we are young before we understand how it works it is controlled by others, parents, teachers, babysitters, then as we begin to understand it we gain freedom and time becomes more ours to use as we please.  Time has changed over the generations, I imagine it was once as simple as night and day unlike now where it seems like the glue that helps our society function.

This series is an abstract representation of the pandemic of poor self-image. This wide-spread mentality goes beyond outward appearance, beyond body-image, and deep into the very core of one’s being. Each image serves as a multifaceted illustration of the perverse relationship between mind and body. The series begins with an outward demonstration of this shattered bond, using a fragmented mirror to represent the depth of disorder within the mind. Throughout this series, the subjects are presented not as regular people, but rather as each individual’s conceptual insecurities. The subject of each image is meant to appear not as one would see them on an average day, but rather as a reflection of what they see within themselves when they look in the mirror. The series goes on to comment on six different forms of emotional insecurity, and concludes with a final mirrored image. The last image ties the series together with a note of secrecy and fear of having one’s insecurities exposed, commenting on the private nature of self-loathing.

For my final project, I wanted to play with light, and the interactions that humans have with light.  The pictures were taken at night, primarily with lights that were already set in place or turned on.  Also, there are different intensities of light, which change throughout each picture.  This allowed me to also work with shadows.  Different sources of light let me control how light and shadow interact between object and person to evoke various feelings.  Also, the light and shadows create a mood that disguises the image, and the viewer can’t decide between the known and unknown.  The varying intensities help create this unknown aspect, because you are unable to see what the person is doing in the image.  The vague definition of a human form provides a sense of mystery and wonder, leading the viewer to a contradicting feeling towards the image.  This contradiction is helped immensely by the black and white aspect of the images also.

In this series, I have tried to put onto film my captivation with balance.  A balance that is more imbalance than balance.  This collection shows the possible, the impossible, and the “not probable”.  I wanted to explore a different kind of still life; the kind that is a meeting between found objects or surroundings and objects that are imposed on the found surroundings/objects.  

I have shied away from using the same background and lighting, in favor of exploring continuity through theme.  I also have no two objects that are the same from photo to photo.  In this way, I can explore how forcing diversity on the subject inherently links the pieces through the type of composition both of the still life and of the photos themselves. 
The photos increase in complexity of composition as the series goes on.  In this way I can look at different types of balance and at concepts of balance. 

Some of the objects used tell a story about myself, about what I consider important in my life. From my wine collecting father, to my love of cooking and obsession with shopping (especially for jewelry), all of the objects I have used in this series hold some level of significance for me.

The underlying idea behind the series of images is the exploration of the face. I thought it would be interesting to photograph a face in studio type lighting, but not in a studio. I used a regular lamp to light the subject’s face and took pictures of different angles within the face. I looked at the relationship between the shoulder neck and lower face. I also examined the relationship between the eyes, nose and hair. Although I took many different pictures of different sections of a face, each of the five images can be put together to create a whole face. Additionally there is a whole face as a reference point.
Just as each section of the face evokes a different mood, I felt it appropriate to process each section of the face to evoke a certain mood. This goes to show that things that may appear so different often go together. Each section of the face has a similar exposure, in order to show continuity within the project.

Beyond Impressionism
            The delicate and limber ballerina’s of Degas’s time were highlighted by great colors, and soft lights. In this series, I have taken the feminine works of Degas and made them masculine through the movements of a young man. Here, I have tried to capture the essence of his work while installing a young, male perspective into each piece. Poses, while still soft and delicate have become the acts of men and boys. Impressionism placed emphasis on visible brush strokes, the changing aspects of light and wide open spaces. Instead of using extended motion to attain a sense of impressionism, I have chosen to take advantage of the effects of a high ISO, producing striking grain marks. All of these pieces are reminiscent of Degas’s “The Star,” “The dance recital,” “Blue Dancers,” and so on. Take a moment to compare the images to the original works of degas and pick out your masculine and feminine differences.  

pastel:dancer tying shoe