honorable mention
Joel Parkinson australia
title
Within Without
To date, there have been 128 events in my life, almost all of which have been unremarkable. I was taught that the small moments that form a life, no matter how great the history that surrounds them, are the most compelling. This notion has aroused my compulsion to turn life into art; producing a complex biographical depiction of the self amid the ordinary reality that a camera captures.
I intend to symbolise my coming-of-age as a young man through an encounter with the self – acknowledging the chrysalis of young adulthood. I have deployed my individual freedom of expression to depart from preposterous representations of the epidermis. Reducing my imagery to their simplest forms and colours, I am able to focus on a dense and intricate moment, to externalise feelings that were far too internal. These images were not meant to be titillating or obscene but beautiful in a traditionally classical way. They dismantle my composure and embrace imperfections to best emphasize the beauty unearthed in a state of introspection.
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entry description
Traditionally a portrait is expected to depict the epidermis and the importance, power, and virtue of the subject. It is a flattering representation of that being; yet depicting myself in accordance to this orthodox belief, I have experienced a tearing away from the self. Observing my skin, facets of my identity, I have come to acknowledge the threshold between inner and outer. It has become apparent that most of my being happens beneath my skin. One must look introspectively to observe the changes: coming and going, appearing and receding, visible and invisible – a phenomenon of constant growth that trickles into the mysterious, the place beyond which the eye cannot go.To date, there have been 128 events in my life, almost all of which have been unremarkable. I was taught that the small moments that form a life, no matter how great the history that surrounds them, are the most compelling. This notion has aroused my compulsion to turn life into art; producing a complex biographical depiction of the self amid the ordinary reality that a camera captures.
I intend to symbolise my coming-of-age as a young man through an encounter with the self – acknowledging the chrysalis of young adulthood. I have deployed my individual freedom of expression to depart from preposterous representations of the epidermis. Reducing my imagery to their simplest forms and colours, I am able to focus on a dense and intricate moment, to externalise feelings that were far too internal. These images were not meant to be titillating or obscene but beautiful in a traditionally classical way. They dismantle my composure and embrace imperfections to best emphasize the beauty unearthed in a state of introspection.
back to gallery