Visual Perception and Imagery

Photoshop Posing 

Reconstruction of a Place 

Week One Assignment 

Chosen Place: 

Sleeping Bear National Dunes 

Define Your Chosen Place: 

A protected environment in Michigan that is a national park with thousands of acres of forest, and shorelines. 

Define Your Problem: 

People are not treating nature, and their environment good. They don't take nature, and protecting the environment seriously. 

What Is It? 

Sleeping Bear National Dunes is a park. 

Why is This a Genuine Concern for You? 

I grew up on the country side, and I believe that we should protect the earth, and nature. We only have so much of it, and people don't treat it with proper respect. 

How Does the Problem Relate to Our Understanding of the Chosen Place? 

There are many people who don't get to experience nature I like have, and when they do, they don't have a spiritual connection to it. They hunt animals for fun, like trophies (so primitive) and they litter at the dunes, and have no concept of environmental protection. 

Why Should the Problem Be Solved? How Could it be Solved? 

I think that people need to go outdoors, and experience nature. It can be go on a hike, a walk, camping, etc. Educate themselves on how important nature is to us. I feel like once you make a connection like that, it's difficult to mistreat it. 

Your Art Making Strategies: 

Be visual, use bold color, and "think outside the box."

Photoshop Project 

October 3rd, 2017 

Place:

Sleeping Bear National State Park.

Setting: 

My Aunt Sammie's Secret Beach spot.

Issue/Problem: 

Michigan is a state where people reap the benefits of nature, but take it for granted. Animals, and nature aren't being treated with 'Aloha.' 

Relevance: 

In order to protect the shoreline from development, Sleeping Bear Dunes became a national park. Wolves are now infrequent, and hunted even though they were once native. 

Goal: 

To transform the perception of the shoreline from Lake Michigan, and the Sleeping Bear Dunes. We need to embrace nature they way it is supposed be, and remember to give into the 'wonder' of the world surrounding us. 

Introduction

I am not a native "Michigander," I have only been up north a handful of times. But, each time I travel to the famous up north, I find a new spot of beauty that is astounding compared to my home-state Hawai'i. However, regardless of where I am I love nature. In Hawai'i we encompass 'Aloha' which has many different meanings but mainly, to show gratitude, love, and kindness. In Hawaii'i nature is protected heavily. Unfortunately, there are many state that don't practice the same. More so in Michigan, I have found that there is a lot of litter, and trash. There is a sense of disregard of the beauty surrounding us in this awesome state. I have always been an outdoor person, wondering through the woods playing make-believe, engaging with wild animals, and witness gorgeous views. I love being outside, and up north is my favorite place in Michigan. As a child we didn't have lakes, huge pine trees, wild animals like bears and there was definitely a lot of salt. Here in Michigan, I can experience it all. 

Postcard #1 

(repetition) 

          As in class, I used Tom Bamberger as inspiration for my first postcard. I presented concepts of repetition, reflection, and a fairytale element. I find the Sleeping Bear Dunes to be really amazing. And I feel as if I am in  a desert sometimes. However, I took multiple pictures to create one cohesive picture. I took the photo from Lake Michigan, and from a picture that resembled the Kauai Pal'i Mountain Range from back home. Bringing both my homes together. I decided to reflect the image to give it some repetition so that it is easy on the eye. I then added a moon, stars, and Peter Pan silhouettes. I chose to make the environment pink and purple to give the idea that it is a place of wonder, and imagination. This reflects my childhood games of being in the woods, and imagining different worlds.

Postcard #2

(transformation) 

               I used Sandy Skoglund as the inspiration for this postcard. In order to redefine someone's perception of reality, I used vibrant colors. The colors I focused on were greens, oranges, and purples. I left the blues of Lake Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes to contrast the different colors. My technical element would be added filters, transforming scales of animals, and adding multiple layers. In this crazy wonderland, the clouds are pink, and wolf eyes glow bright green. This postcard is supposed to resemble the wild animals that Michigan once had. It's important to realize that there animals are native to the lands, and they once were able to roam freely. 

Postcard #3

(text and revealing)

          On the third postcard, I was inspired by the artiest Jenny Holzer Truisms. This idea meant to hide something from the viewer, and reveal something as well. In this case,  I choose to hide a forest of pine trees behind the sleeping bear dunes. I also choose to reveal the text, "Unsalted and Untamed," as a statement that we should leave Michigan in it's natural state without residential and commercial development. It also relates back to my home state of Hawai'i, and my new home Michigan (salted vs unsalted). I used elements to emboss the words to mimic the writing in sand with a glow from the sunlight. I also used a masking technique to get the trees in the background of the original image of the beach. I enhanced the visual elements with exposure, vibrance, and saturation to emphasize the beauty of Michigan. The pine trees stand for the forest that used to be prevalent in the state. 

Back of the Postcards

Concept Map