Sasquatch!!!!

Historic Processes Tin Types Final

   Metamorphosis is a term that can be interpreted in many different ways and in many different circumstances.   Lately, I have been drawn to the symbolism of the butterfly as a creature of change and how I can relate to this transformative insect.  On a personal level, I am greatly anxious of the great changes that are about to occur in my life in this upcoming year. All of these upcoming changes in my life are different from other forms of change because I can see them coming.  I am anticipating them with great expectations but at the same time, I am also filled with fear and anxiety about how different my life will be a year from now. 

            I have adopted a visual form reminiscent of a butterfly in my imagery by using my body as a symbol for transformation.  I have doubled and reversed my form in a series of self-portraits to create a composition that is mirrored and reflective.  The images are printed using the tintype process, which is a historic process that I transformed by using contemporary imagery.  I experimented with the emulsion by adding elements of water streaks and paint in order to represent the unknown when change is imminent.  The presentation of these tintypes is on old, worn windows.  I chose these windows because I wanted to transform them from being simply windows to a different purpose- housing pieces of art.  The windows also reiterate the reflective quality of the imagery as well as the metallic surface of the tintypes.  I also see the windows as a symbol for a gateway into something new.  They can be seen as a clear barrier where the other side is visible, but not quite yet attainable. 

            Creating this work was a very cathartic experience for me.  Learning the process, experimenting, getting frustrated, almost giving up and then finally being satisfied with the outcome were all part of the process of creating this work.  Creating these pieces from concept to end result has helped me to become more self-reflective about my own life and the changes that lie ahead. 

Angel Island Field Trip

Here are some images I took with my 35 film camera on a field trip with my Historic Processes class.  I had never been to Angel Island before so it was really cool!  It was fun to just take photos without an assignment in mind.  Enjoy! 

Here are some new images toward my main body of work (in progress) on self perception versus reality.   I'm taking a little break from this work and going to pick it up again in about a month. After several months of shooting every week, I feel I need time to reflect.  I hope to refocus and gain more perspective on this series in order to bring fresh and new ideas to the imagery.  I find that I am creating new characters as well as touching on the different influences on body image.  I have found that I love using available light and really enjoy the quality that comes with it.  As always, I would love some feedback as it will help me on my future work with this project.  

Experimenting with Tin Types

For these I decided to experiment with color.  I used acrylic paint and mixed it in with the emulsion when I was coating the plates.  I also dripped water onto the plates to make the emulsion thinner and to create swirling/ dripping lines.  I really like the way these turned out and am going to make some more this weekend!  Now that I know which process turned out the best, I can make more and have more success.  

Success

Here are some final tin types.  I added acrylic paint for added detail.  I'm going to try to mix paint with emulsion when I coat the plates next time to see if I can get the color to be more seamless with the exposure..... we'll see what happens!

More tin types

Been playing around more with tin types.  These aren't great, but I'm getting there......

New Shot

Here is my latest shot for my body series.  I wish I knew why blogspot sometimes changes the color and tone of my images.  (If anyone has any tips on how to keep my uploaded images exactly how my originals are that would be great.  THANKS LARRY FOR YOUR HELP! )  I have to give a giant thank you to Adrienne Pao who helped me with this photo.  Yes, that is her fireplace and sheepskin rug.  Here's to 70's mafia wife princesses everywhere!! 

Fun with Polaroid

Here are some polaroid lifts and transfers I've been working on the last week.  There are some old images and some new ones.  You might recognize some of the imagery from the gum 

prints I posted a few weeks ago.  You can tell the lifts from the transfers by the wrinkled

 edges on the lifts.  There are some images that are shown in both transfer and lift form.  You can really see the different quality in the two processes.  After trying both of these processes, I really enjoyed working with the emulsion lifts the most.  

Tin Type

This is the beginning of a series using the tin type process.  I am using the same images as the gum prints I made a few weeks ago.  I'm adding acrylic paint after the exposure is dried to add color, texture and pattern.  This particular tin type turned a sort of green color, which I actually really love- I just hope I can reproduce it! 

busy busy busy

I have been doing a lot of shooting lately- especially in the last week- for my perceived reality project.  I decided to try some interiors and I shifted toward using more lenses.  I played around with depth of field too. I think the effect is very successful and am very excited about continuing to work on this series.  I'm becoming more and more interested in altering my appearance so this series becomes universal and accessible while still being deeply personal.  

Finished Gum Prints

Got some really good feedback today from the critique in my Historic processes.  Connie suggested I paint these a shade of white to make the boxes more contemporary.  I think I'm going to try printing on tracing paper or vellum too, so the butterflies are more fragile.  I should probably stick the labeled pins directly into the "specimens" as well.  All in all though, I feel really good about how this process went.  

Perceived Reality

Here is another image to add to my series on body image.  This one is very fantastical and I like where it is heading.  I'm bringing in more elements of distortion and morphing my body in ways that are very obvious.  My goal is to expose the disconnect between my physical attributes in reality with my perception of those attributes.  Again, many thanks to Amanda Boe for being such a great help while I was shooting!