Are You Talking To Me?
I wanted the physical portrait to be an exaggeration of myself. Not really in the perception of
exaggerated body features, but as if my mentality was combined with reality to create this form.
My head is filled up with so much imagination that it explodes. In the aftermath, you see monsters,
you see television shows, you see art supplies- there’s a lot here. My body is made of clay to represent
my absorbing nature. I can take blows or hits, but I am able to recover quite quick. My hands are soft
objects to represent my gentle nature. Behind me is my demon who’s constantly trying to get out from
its chains. Every piece of this visual puzzle is a presentation of my personality. The more you study and
evaluate this work, the more you get to know who I truly am. This is all how my personality has been
influenced by the events and people around me.
exaggerated body features, but as if my mentality was combined with reality to create this form.
My head is filled up with so much imagination that it explodes. In the aftermath, you see monsters,
you see television shows, you see art supplies- there’s a lot here. My body is made of clay to represent
my absorbing nature. I can take blows or hits, but I am able to recover quite quick. My hands are soft
objects to represent my gentle nature. Behind me is my demon who’s constantly trying to get out from
its chains. Every piece of this visual puzzle is a presentation of my personality. The more you study and
evaluate this work, the more you get to know who I truly am. This is all how my personality has been
influenced by the events and people around me.
High School Bucket List
“What stuff have you done in high school?” he asked you. “Anything fun? Anything sad?”
You didn’t know what to say to the man. If you said the wrong thing, you might ruin your chances.
It’d be best if you went through your memories to find something.
It’d be best if you went through your memories to find something.
There was the time your friend was getting picked on. The bully was firing verbal bullets that hit
the target head on. You approached his side and told the jerk to leave. He didn’t obey, but that didn’t stop
you one bit. He punched you in the stomach, but you kept your composure. Like a body of clay, the
impacts were absorbed and faded in a second. You were going to fight him- your soft hands disguising
diamonds, but you knew you were better than that. Thankfully, a teacher came to assist and the bully
was sent to the principal’s office.
the target head on. You approached his side and told the jerk to leave. He didn’t obey, but that didn’t stop
you one bit. He punched you in the stomach, but you kept your composure. Like a body of clay, the
impacts were absorbed and faded in a second. You were going to fight him- your soft hands disguising
diamonds, but you knew you were better than that. Thankfully, a teacher came to assist and the bully
was sent to the principal’s office.
What about the time you started having a crush on someone? Your inner animal was highly
interested in such a person. You had to fortify the beast’s cage to hold the monster at bay. Every time
you saw her, though, the urge’s strength got harder to contain. You talked to her one day as friends.
You being built and grown on values and facts proved excellent gave you an edge. You asked if she
wanted to hang out sometime, but she denied you and stated she had a boyfriend. Your heart was torn
between sadness and anger, but the two soothed one another and you accepted the facts.
interested in such a person. You had to fortify the beast’s cage to hold the monster at bay. Every time
you saw her, though, the urge’s strength got harder to contain. You talked to her one day as friends.
You being built and grown on values and facts proved excellent gave you an edge. You asked if she
wanted to hang out sometime, but she denied you and stated she had a boyfriend. Your heart was torn
between sadness and anger, but the two soothed one another and you accepted the facts.
You can’t forget about the time you almost lost your cool. In the ninth grade, it got very stressful
very fast. All the homework and tests really gave you a run for your money. You thought that holding
back your animal was bad, the demon was the most painful experience ever. For many years, your held
him by chains that were harder than steel. It pulled and twisted, but none of them broke. One day, you
lost control and one of the chains broke. The free arm broke all the other chains, and just like that, you
were fighting for supremacy over your dark half. It was a long fight, but you were able to win it. You
stood your ground like a cement pillar. Cracks started to appear, but they were patched up and strengthened.
very fast. All the homework and tests really gave you a run for your money. You thought that holding
back your animal was bad, the demon was the most painful experience ever. For many years, your held
him by chains that were harder than steel. It pulled and twisted, but none of them broke. One day, you
lost control and one of the chains broke. The free arm broke all the other chains, and just like that, you
were fighting for supremacy over your dark half. It was a long fight, but you were able to win it. You
stood your ground like a cement pillar. Cracks started to appear, but they were patched up and strengthened.
You almost forgot about your imagination burst! During my Freshman year, I got a huge intake
of artistic tactics and methods. Not to mention a massive variety in artwork to base off of. Jurassic World
came out and within a day you were recreating the dinosaurs themselves. You dodged it for a while, but
you came across a marvelous show called Dragon Ball Z Kai. It was fun, it was action filled- nothing
could top it. You even started collecting Pokemon cards for a while. Legos became the bases of your
3D artwork. Your brain could not contain itself. Everything was running off one another. It was fantastic.
of artistic tactics and methods. Not to mention a massive variety in artwork to base off of. Jurassic World
came out and within a day you were recreating the dinosaurs themselves. You dodged it for a while, but
you came across a marvelous show called Dragon Ball Z Kai. It was fun, it was action filled- nothing
could top it. You even started collecting Pokemon cards for a while. Legos became the bases of your
3D artwork. Your brain could not contain itself. Everything was running off one another. It was fantastic.
“Well? Anything interesting?” the man asked again.
“Nope, not a single thing,” you told.
Liar.
The story here is that I am asked a question from a college administrator. They asked me
what types of things I have done or been through during my high school years. I went through all the
things that a normal student would go through. They see so many events that take place, but they don’t
know as to which ones are good and which ones are bad. In the end, I said the simple sentence, “Not a
single thing.” I wanted to have both the Flash Fiction and the portrait to be different sides of the same
coin. The text is what you read and the story that you get out of it. The image is the thought that you
get in your head- the exaggerated picture that doesn’t fit our reality. I love this extremely well for how
it all ended up.
what types of things I have done or been through during my high school years. I went through all the
things that a normal student would go through. They see so many events that take place, but they don’t
know as to which ones are good and which ones are bad. In the end, I said the simple sentence, “Not a
single thing.” I wanted to have both the Flash Fiction and the portrait to be different sides of the same
coin. The text is what you read and the story that you get out of it. The image is the thought that you
get in your head- the exaggerated picture that doesn’t fit our reality. I love this extremely well for how
it all ended up.
Can You Change?
Americans believe that personalities and biases are capable of change. They all believe in pretty
much the same thing when it comes to personalities and biases- either “I don’t have biases,” or, “My
personality is ____.” In our society, there is a massive feud against those who are racist. Racism and
sexism are clear and visible prejudices that a person can have. It comes from the way we are raised to
the people who influence us. It is sadly a very regular thing. If you are against such things, you always
assume you’re bias free. Americans don’t acknowledge that everyone has a form of bias. It’s called an
implicit bias in which it’s not visible or self-detectable. For those who acknowledge they have one, one
would suggest that it is changeable. I believe that this is a highly logical case.
much the same thing when it comes to personalities and biases- either “I don’t have biases,” or, “My
personality is ____.” In our society, there is a massive feud against those who are racist. Racism and
sexism are clear and visible prejudices that a person can have. It comes from the way we are raised to
the people who influence us. It is sadly a very regular thing. If you are against such things, you always
assume you’re bias free. Americans don’t acknowledge that everyone has a form of bias. It’s called an
implicit bias in which it’s not visible or self-detectable. For those who acknowledge they have one, one
would suggest that it is changeable. I believe that this is a highly logical case.
Alix Spiegel is a narrator for a group called Invisibilia. They do many podcasts that deal with
many subjects from harsh politics to social commentary. One in which deals with this personality and
biases called, The Personality Myth. During the narration, Alix explains she went to a prison to
acknowledge her own bias toward inmates. This, as a result, changed her own bias toward them, thus
reflecting a new personality (Alix). The woman had watched a play in which the prisoners
themselves are the performers. It is here that Alix is given a more comforting and humanistic impression
of these individuals. She says, “(This) idea is inconsistent with the model of inmate that I hold in my
mind (Alix).” Alix always interpreted these people as nothing more than bad people. She
continued to think throughout the whole play that they are wrong, but then realized that, in some ways,
they aren’t different from us. In the end she believes that "the profound inconsistency (Alix)"
means possible change.
many subjects from harsh politics to social commentary. One in which deals with this personality and
biases called, The Personality Myth. During the narration, Alix explains she went to a prison to
acknowledge her own bias toward inmates. This, as a result, changed her own bias toward them, thus
reflecting a new personality (Alix). The woman had watched a play in which the prisoners
themselves are the performers. It is here that Alix is given a more comforting and humanistic impression
of these individuals. She says, “(This) idea is inconsistent with the model of inmate that I hold in my
mind (Alix).” Alix always interpreted these people as nothing more than bad people. She
continued to think throughout the whole play that they are wrong, but then realized that, in some ways,
they aren’t different from us. In the end she believes that "the profound inconsistency (Alix)"
means possible change.
In an article made by Corinne Weaver, she discusses the topic of YouTube bias. This is something
that we as Americans don’t think about too often. There is major controversy as many YouTubers have
faced issues from the head of the company, Google (Corinne). The ones who have are majorly right in
comparison to those who are left. Conspiracy theorist known as Alex Jones is a man who produces
majorly offensive content. He has been reported many times and the head of Google has attempted to
revoke his account (Joan). Also, many child friendly channels of those who support the left side have
been shut down by YouTube. Not for doing anything wrong, but simply because they don’t agree on the
same topics. Corinne states, “YouTube also doesn’t seem to regulate most offensive or objectionable
content, unless it fits with its agenda (Corinne).” That is the bias that the company owner possesses that
obligates them to take those against down.
that we as Americans don’t think about too often. There is major controversy as many YouTubers have
faced issues from the head of the company, Google (Corinne). The ones who have are majorly right in
comparison to those who are left. Conspiracy theorist known as Alex Jones is a man who produces
majorly offensive content. He has been reported many times and the head of Google has attempted to
revoke his account (Joan). Also, many child friendly channels of those who support the left side have
been shut down by YouTube. Not for doing anything wrong, but simply because they don’t agree on the
same topics. Corinne states, “YouTube also doesn’t seem to regulate most offensive or objectionable
content, unless it fits with its agenda (Corinne).” That is the bias that the company owner possesses that
obligates them to take those against down.
I believe that our personalities and biases can change throughout our lifetime. Not saying that they
can’t contain traces of our previous mindset, but they as a majority can go through a metamorphosis. I
have a few examples in my life in which my biases and personalities changed. Via bias, I used to think
that all of the popular guys in middle school and high school were nothing more than punk-jocks. They
were nothing more than the guy with muscles that got the pretty girl and were mean to me. To my
surprise, I encountered a group of people who fit the description. Strangely, not a single one of them
were rude to me. In fact, they were all kind to me and became some really good friends of mine. That
day, my bias changed as I now believed all athletes were kind before mean. I look back to my youth and
realize how selfish I was. I used to always take the biggest piece of cake, grab the coolest toy and care
only about the things I liked. That changed when I noticed a new type of emotion- guilt. I felt bad for
doing all those things, so the next day I changed. I started giving the biggest piece of cake, giving the
coolest toy and caring about the things everyone else liked. I became selfless. In conclusion, all it takes
is a single event or encounter to change your bias and personality.
Sources: https://www.npr.org/2016/06/24/482837932/read-the-transcriptcan’t contain traces of our previous mindset, but they as a majority can go through a metamorphosis. I
have a few examples in my life in which my biases and personalities changed. Via bias, I used to think
that all of the popular guys in middle school and high school were nothing more than punk-jocks. They
were nothing more than the guy with muscles that got the pretty girl and were mean to me. To my
surprise, I encountered a group of people who fit the description. Strangely, not a single one of them
were rude to me. In fact, they were all kind to me and became some really good friends of mine. That
day, my bias changed as I now believed all athletes were kind before mean. I look back to my youth and
realize how selfish I was. I used to always take the biggest piece of cake, grab the coolest toy and care
only about the things I liked. That changed when I noticed a new type of emotion- guilt. I felt bad for
doing all those things, so the next day I changed. I started giving the biggest piece of cake, giving the
coolest toy and caring about the things everyone else liked. I became selfless. In conclusion, all it takes
is a single event or encounter to change your bias and personality.
https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/techwatch/corinne-weaver/2018/11/01/google-biased-youtube-cant-be-forced-change
https://www.cnet.com/news/youtube-bans-infowars-alex-jones-channel/
I really felt like how your flash fiction and portrait complement each other and your flash fiction gives real life examples of what you described in your artist statement about your portrait.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed how your flash fiction was depicted. I love how the rush of memories all flood in at once and then you come to realize at the end that all of those thoughts happened in a second.
ReplyDeleteThe way you did this is very creative especially the way the flash fiction goes with the picture.
ReplyDeleteI liked how your picture went really well with the ff and i thought the picture was pretty cool
ReplyDeleteYour picture is very interesting and is very creative. I like the way your flash fiction connects to your picture. This all seems like the type of personality I always thought you had as well.
ReplyDeleteI really like how your picture and your flash fiction connect to each other. Your picture is really cool and very detailed I didn't think of all the details that you put into your work.
ReplyDeleteI like your picture very artistic and it fits well with your artist statement
ReplyDeletea really interesting picture. I never would have thought that there was that much meaning behind it until I read the authors note. I like how you have so much imagination that it is literally spilling out in your picture. how you are made of clay is really good symbolism.
ReplyDelete