Bloom Where You Are Planted
Symbolism in the little things.
I bought an flower from the 99 Cent store in town to bring a little life into my room, if I can't have my very own garden. The tag said it was an african violet, but I think it's a type of pansy. I thought it would be a simple thing to take care of, I mean it fit in a small cereal bowl that I planted it in (totally using my resources here), I mean what could go wrong? I set it in my room and watered it when I thought it might be a little dry, it looked like it had some sun in the afternoon, since the sun sets where my window is. "It'll be fine," I thought.
Reality. My plant died. Well became very close to dying; it was droopy and sad looking, and the once blooming buds were shriveling. I asked my mom if I should just throw it away because there wasn't much more I could do. I began to realize the soil was just too dry, as I had thought I may have overwatered it before. Soon, I learned that watering it in the morning and at night helped my little flower, as I saw the color come back into the buds. I rearranged my room and I sat the tiny cereal bowl garden in my window on a stand, so it had more of a chance to see the sun through the day. I counted the blooms. One... two... three... water in the morning... water at night. It began to droop again, maybe too much water? Water in the morning, water a little at night. Four, five, six, seven. A week went by, I was learning to care for this little gem as it bloomed right where I planted it. Eight, nine, ten, eleven! More and more blooms popped up. Every day there seems to be more. I now have 19 blooms on a flower that I planned to throw away when things were looking a little rough and the water had dried up.
Bloom where you're planted.
Sometimes the first place we are planted is a little rough, drying up our inspiration and hopes. Maybe we're losing the life we once had. The next place we plant ourselves is a little better, we start to learn what works for us and what doesn't so much. Sometimes we fall. But we look to The Light and slowly, but surely find our way and find ourselves with more blooms of joy than we ever dreamed were possible in an idea that began in the size of a cereal bowl.
Live by faith & share through fotos.
Print Portfolio
My print portfolio case by Shrapnel Design & my final selected portfolio images.
As you may know, I graduated at the end of June this past year from The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. In order to graduate, one of the requirements was to show a print portfolio to the faculty and at the Portfolio Show. This portfolio book is also a tool to show potential employers your work that may not be displayed directly on your website portfolio, but is still consistent in style. The portfolio includes my best work created up until graduation, along with an artist statement. It is a difficult self-assignment because of all the decisions that need to be made, and in a timely fashion. These decisions include what type of case, plastic sleeves or no plastic sleeves, what type of paper to print on if you are printing yourself, choosing which images show your overall and consistent style; from there, the layout of the images on the page, and many more technicalities. A lot of time and thought went into this print portfolio, although all the prep work goes unseen.
I chose to order my white aluminum case from Shrapnel Design and use plastic sleeves to protect the prints. My portfolio is 11x17 in order to show the closest crop size as possible to the originals, and printed at full bleed. The average number of images in a portfolio should be about 15-25 and display your technical skills and creative ability, in a consistent manner that reflects your branding. An artist statement about my work is displayed before the images. The cover of my portfolio reflects the watermark that I use for social media which "Faith Through Fotos" printed at the bottom.
So here it is, my artist statement (able to be clicked on to read more easily) and my print portfolio from this past year!
Live by faith & share through fotos.
A "Modern Antique" Project
Bringing a little life into the style of antique portraiture in these Mock Wedding portraits with color.
About a year ago, I posted this photo on Instagram..
"When I heard about The Rescued Film Project (@rescuedfilm), it reminded me of one old photo I picked up at an antique mall several months ago in Wexford, PA. There's such a wonderful mystery about a photo without names, dates, places, or knowing the photographer that saw a specific scene. Was this taken on his or her way to work? How old was the photographer? Why was he or she drawn to the moment? I encourage you, with all old photographs, to appreciate the memory and time that it holds, and not to forget the life that breathes in it, still."
With that said, I have this love for antique photos, they just make me so curious. I was inspired to "recreate" photos to mimic the style of antique portraiture. I actually shot these before I graduated. I shot these in May earlier this year. The reason I haven't shared these sooner is because I've been having a creative block with this set of images. Sometimes this happens, and I've realized that I just have to wait it out and let them become what they need to be in order to be shared. I started this project thinking I wanted to share photos that looked worn and sepia tone or black and white. But after months of working with these, I decided that other than the first image, I would leave them images in color to let them come to life. Often times when we take a look at old family photos, we put this "tone" to them and can't or don't imagine what life really looked like other than in the photo. And so, I left these images in color, with an antique wedding setting, style, and wardrobe to not forget the life that has been involved in every photo ever taken regardless of time period, and the life that breathes in it, still.
Below is a before and after, showing the extensive work in Photoshop to make the atmosphere eerie and intriguing in this specific photo.
Behind the Scenes
A very special thanks to the people who made this shoot possible...
Models: Daniel & Bethany Snoke
Wardrobe: Shiloh Leath
Live by faith & share through fotos.