Embedded Files
Curatorial Rationale
Everyone defines success differently. My definition of success is happiness. I want to wake up optimistic and joyful. I want to finally be able to understand myself fully and learn how to be content and at bliss alone. However, I understand that processing such intense emotions of oneself and learning how to understand them does not happen overnight. Although I understand that processing such feelings and emotions will take time and will not be an easy task; I wanted to show the viewers some of the ways in which I grew to accept myself, existential crisis and all. I want to show the viewers that confusion is not something that should be neglected, but embraced and explored.
The concepts explored in my artworks convey different circumstances that brought me to understand that I am struggling emotionally, and that it is okay to do so - as long as you understand and accept those emotions. Jeff Wall’s still life photography deeply inspired my work as it captures the passage of time in ways that are often overlooked. Wall’s photography often included sinks, beds, rooms, and tables that had accumulated some form of dirt and grime overtime. This inspired me to create the diptych Time to demonstrate my version of the constant passage of time. The slow build up of soap in my artwork is on the complete opposite spectrum of Wall’s slow build up of grime in his photography, yet time causes both to occur. This brought me to question if simplicity would allow me to live my life more carefully to thus be able to understand what role I am meant to play in this world. To do so, I recreated Stephan Shore's famous, Breakfast, Trail’s End Restaurant, with way less objects. The end product was my photograph, Emptiness. This artwork was a way to communicate to the viewers that it is okay to be lost, but it is not okay to neglect everything because you are lost. This image is about coming to terms with what life may throw at you. Much like Emptiness, I developed two more images, Sins, and, Unorganization, that demonstrated the acceptance of one’s emotions. I wanted the audience to be able to interpret the image Unorganization freely, so I chose to make this image a bit smaller than the rest to really encourage the viewers to ponder and question the significance of the small details in the image and how they are significant.
Creating these artworks allowed me to explore my own existential crisis deeper by allowing me to gain knowledge on how the small moments and objects that we often overlook and ignore tie greatly into our perception of the world. Thus determining what role we decide to play in our life. The artworks in my exhibition will be displayed in a way that tells a narrative of different emotions accepted during an existential crisis. Because life for those in an existential crisis is often disorienting and complicated, I wanted to portray a glimpse of what that feels like for the viewers by scattering the images around and only keeping the diptychs together.
Untitled
Untitled
Digital Photography, Lightroom
20x16cm
Sexisim is oftentimes ignored within the Mexican ethnicity. I wanted to portray the feelings that take place when degrading someone due to their gender. The dried rose clinging from the ledge represents how draining it is to continue holding on. I used value and the color blue along with purple to depict the heartsore that it is to experience this. The smoke gives rhythm movement and calls attention to the piece as a whole.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Time
Time
Digital Photography, Lightroom
20x30cm
History is captured every second. Sometimes, one doesn’t notice what builds up over time. Jeff Wall inspired me to capture history that goes unnoticed in my daily life. This is shown with texture demonstrating the building of unnoticed dirt. I used a grey color with a darker value to really call attention towards the negatives of dirt that can build up over the unnoticed passage of time.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Cold Sweats and Destruction
Cold Sweats and Destruction
Digital Photography, Lightroom
30x20cm each image
In this diptych, I wanted to demonstrate what someone with anxiety deals with. The first image demonstrates cold sweats. Using thawed, defrosted fruit to symbolize the cold/numb feeling you get, along with the water droplets to symbolize the sweat from our body. The second image demonstrates the feeling post-anxiety attack. Texture is used with the droplets and destroyed fruit to symbolize the difficulties of having anxiety. The high saturation is the attempt to hide the anxiety as a whole.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Unorganization
Unorganization
Digital Photography, Lightroom
20x16
The measurements of this image is intended to give the audience difficulty finding small hidden details throughout the image. I used bright colors such as pink and red, along with some neutral tones such as brown grey. These colors were meant to symbolize the balance of dark and bright times. The small details scattered throughout the image provide movement rhythm and provides the viewer with a sense of what is happening in this image.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Sins
Sins
Digital Photography, Lightroom
20x30cm
Growing up I was often hiding my true personality from my parents. I felt like I was often wearing a veil hiding who I was. When that veil finally came off I was judged by my parents and who I truly was felt like a sin. This image represents the acceptance of who I am. The washing away of the “sins” is depicted with the texture the paint provides. Contrast is used to show positivity gained from a negative experience.
Available, minimum bid $20 Digital download $15
Emptiness
Emptiness
Digital Photography, Lightroom
18x12cm
Under constant pressure, stress, and obstacles in life, I often try to remind myself to take in the small moments in life for self care. Inspired by Stephen Shore’s artwork, Breakfast, Trail’s End Restaurant, I decided to recreate the scene simply. The brown table allows the viewer to focus on the coffee and soup due to the emphasis of size. Color neutrality also allows the image to remain very simplistic.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Frozen
Frozen
Digital Photography, Lightroom
30x20cm
Relating back to my confused emotions, I photographed frozen apples to symbolize an existential crisis. Things can be frozen to preserve. However, not always do we want to preserve the feelings that caused us to “freeze up”. The ice crystals give the image texture while the color red draws attention to the intensity of the photo.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Cleanse
Cleanse
Digital Photography, Lightroom
7x5cm
This is a beauty blender sitting in its dirty water. Initially, I was inspired to document a way that symbolizes I cleanse my soul. I used contrast by making the background color black to represent the freeing everlasting eternity. I enhanced the form of the glass mug by wetting the rim of the mug with the water.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Connection
Connection
Digital Photography, Lightroom
18x12cm
Oftentimes, I feel like I live to survive, without taking in what it means to be alive. I photographed my basement outlet because I found similarities between it and I. The lack of rim around the outlet means it was looked at as being more dangerous, destructible. Even though it is beaten down and looks like it does not work, it is still doing its role and carrying energy. I chose to make this image in black and white to call attention to every detail, while disregarding color.
Available, minimum bid $10 Digital download $15
Contact the artist at dianaguzman5823@gmail.com
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