Fresh
The Response: Color — Jessica
I’m not quite to the point of being bored by the winter landscape. Yet. It usually doesn’t hit me until late February and March. Nonetheless, I was looking for something fresh in the house to photograph today (in the few minutes I had before I had to do something else) and my eyes were drawn to the fabric bowl that Danny’s pre-school class made for Christmas gifts. I used the Lensbaby mount for my iphone (I know, my kids and husband look at me so weird when I put a lens on my phone!) and got this.
I find myself increasingly drawn to abstraction in photography. It’s what originally drew me in to the Lensbaby system — the almost impressionistic quality of the photos the lens system produces. But there is lots of bad abstract photography out there. What makes it good? What is it? Is it really pointless or can it be created to say something? These are the kinds of questions that keep photography fresh for me. I’m going to be sticking with this for the year and see where it leads. I even created a hashtag on Instagram in order to keep track of my work: #colorandlight2015.
Those colors are vibrant, and I think the abstract shot works. My first response to your image is joy — those are happy colors — but my joy soon turns a bit anxious. Electric intensity follows in the footsteps of the color and makes the image feel frenetic.
You ask some good questions. I think it comes down to the emotions involved in a work of art. Does it evoke emotions in the viewer and did emotion play a role in the creation of the work? The viewer does not have to know what was going through the mind/heart of the artist, but the viewer should be able to feel a connection.
I’m growing to appreciate abstract art more and more, because I’m learning to slow down and really look at it. That’s key. A viewer needs to give the image time to work its magic. I’d like to create more abstract images, but they don’t just need time and attention for viewing; they need these elements for creation.
This might be an interesting year here at C&R.