As my project progresses, it has become clear that within them lies a dose of nostalgia, both for me and the viewer.
My work explores three different time periods within one image. The first is the present day, where I am physically taking the image, I am alive and making art here in 2020. This can be seen in subtle hints throughout the image, but perhaps most obviously is the fact I am using photography on a digital camera.
The second is the period in which the painting was made. This varies from image to image, as I chose not to restrict myself to one art period as this allows me more freedom to use influence from an image that I connect with. Using a painting as a large source of influence gives the resulting images a sense of nostalgia for the time in which it was painted. This is because certain poses, details and actions can be reflective of their time, and be translated through the photograph itself. I believe this sense of nostalgia is even greater when having the painting and the photograph side by side, however for my final display I only want to show my images. This will perhaps make the nostalgia a little more subtle when it comes to displaying, however, I think it not being so obvious only adds to the beauty of the images.
The third period explored in my images, is, of course, the ancient Greeks. This period is perhaps most prominent within my imagery, as it is clear that I am embodying Greek Goddesses - the connection only strengthened by the titles, such as 'Self-Portrait as Eos'. Within the images, I explore the personalities of the Goddesses, which result from my research, and attempt to temporarily transform myself into them as a form of escapism. This is where nostalgia hits - while I clearly do not actually remember the Ancient Greeks, looking back and learning about them, attempting to become a Greek Goddess, and having a need to explore their ways - is a form of nostalgia for me. This nostalgia is of course completely askew, as I focus on the positives rather than the negatives, the simplicities rather than the hardships we have erased with our knowledge of science, technology and medicine - looking back with rose-tinted glasses, if you will. I don't think it's wrong to look for the beauty in the past, and I am not pretending nothing bad happened. Only projecting a desire for the fantasy, the myth and the mystery that surrounded this time that we are stripped of today. The images, and the process of making them, offer me a gateway to another world that was once thought to be in existence - the mythical world of the Gods. Perhaps, if we refer back to my blog post about the works of Alain de Botton, this sense of nostalgia roots from a need for connection with others, or perhaps it is simply interesting for me to explore a world that seems so much more fascinating than the one that we have perhaps become too complacent with.
Whatever the reason, I believe that making these images and viewing them afterwards offers both me and a viewer this sense of nostalgia, yet at the same time being aware the piece is modern due to the connotations people have with what is being shown.
My work explores three different time periods within one image. The first is the present day, where I am physically taking the image, I am alive and making art here in 2020. This can be seen in subtle hints throughout the image, but perhaps most obviously is the fact I am using photography on a digital camera.
The second is the period in which the painting was made. This varies from image to image, as I chose not to restrict myself to one art period as this allows me more freedom to use influence from an image that I connect with. Using a painting as a large source of influence gives the resulting images a sense of nostalgia for the time in which it was painted. This is because certain poses, details and actions can be reflective of their time, and be translated through the photograph itself. I believe this sense of nostalgia is even greater when having the painting and the photograph side by side, however for my final display I only want to show my images. This will perhaps make the nostalgia a little more subtle when it comes to displaying, however, I think it not being so obvious only adds to the beauty of the images.
The third period explored in my images, is, of course, the ancient Greeks. This period is perhaps most prominent within my imagery, as it is clear that I am embodying Greek Goddesses - the connection only strengthened by the titles, such as 'Self-Portrait as Eos'. Within the images, I explore the personalities of the Goddesses, which result from my research, and attempt to temporarily transform myself into them as a form of escapism. This is where nostalgia hits - while I clearly do not actually remember the Ancient Greeks, looking back and learning about them, attempting to become a Greek Goddess, and having a need to explore their ways - is a form of nostalgia for me. This nostalgia is of course completely askew, as I focus on the positives rather than the negatives, the simplicities rather than the hardships we have erased with our knowledge of science, technology and medicine - looking back with rose-tinted glasses, if you will. I don't think it's wrong to look for the beauty in the past, and I am not pretending nothing bad happened. Only projecting a desire for the fantasy, the myth and the mystery that surrounded this time that we are stripped of today. The images, and the process of making them, offer me a gateway to another world that was once thought to be in existence - the mythical world of the Gods. Perhaps, if we refer back to my blog post about the works of Alain de Botton, this sense of nostalgia roots from a need for connection with others, or perhaps it is simply interesting for me to explore a world that seems so much more fascinating than the one that we have perhaps become too complacent with.
Whatever the reason, I believe that making these images and viewing them afterwards offers both me and a viewer this sense of nostalgia, yet at the same time being aware the piece is modern due to the connotations people have with what is being shown.
The Element Of Nostalgia Within My Images
![The Element Of Nostalgia Within My Images]()
Reviewed by BethCorbett
on
May 25, 2020
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