Artist Statement

Final photography project (theme series) 

I started the project with an idea of shedding layers of oneself. That progressed to the stages one might go through when confronting an issue. The face paint came up because it is very superficial and fleeting (literally and figuratively). That weekend I had attended an Easter mass. I have not believed in God since I was quite young, but I went for the experience. At one point in the beginning of the service, the lights are off. Then everyone lights their candles as a representation of Jesus coming into the darkness of their lives. I realized that I might never be able to believe in God. To believe in him, one must stop thinking it through and have faith. For me, God is an idea that we talk about in philosophy class. For God to be real I need to see him as a subject and not an object.

            The blue for me represents innocence. The light coming from the right represents either God or the concept of a God. In an innocent state, I have my back turned to God. I refused to consider him; he is completely denied. Then the innocence is fades in a state of self reflection, hence the mirrors. The inability to confront emotions has passed. The green represents envy, envy of those who take comfort in religion. The red represents rage. The rage could be directed at many things: yourself, other people, God. The black could be interpreted as death or suicide. However, I see it more as an acceptance of self. In the end if one chooses life, they must be ready to accept themselves regardless of what sort of pain being this causes.

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