Marz-Metaphor

=**__ Photos: __**= , =__ Explanation of Images: __=

=
The first photo-- taken by John Paul Caponigro and used as a part of his "Antarctica" series-- depicts a photo of a glacier in Antarctica. This image initially attracted me due to its powerful leading lines, its unique point of view and its intriguing use of fog to cover up the higher portions of the glacier. Caponigro's image invoked a sort of curiosity within me, and I decided to select it due to the sort of duality created by its depiction-- in how the glacier seems to have a clear-cut and defined path, but also has an enigmatic and unknown feel to it. ======

The second photo-- taken by Juliann Kost and put into her "Aerial photos" line-- displays a photo of a landscape from the view of a helicopter. When I first saw this photo, I found it somewhat dull-- and I could not see anything that made it stand out. However, while further viewing the photo, I realized that it was that exact simplicity which somehow told this dynamic and enticing story-- as though the landscape shown has lead a harsh life, and its story is being told through this one picture. Due to this rather simplistic image getting across such great and fascinating ideas, I was inclined to select it as one of my photos-- as I desired to tell such a unique and amazing story as it did through merely simplicity.

The final image-- "Son of Man" by Rene Magritte-- features a man with his face concealed behind an apple. This picture's absurdness and humor was something that immediately stood out to me upon first seeing it. However, after further looking at the image, I realized that it was far more dynamic than just a man with his face behind an apple. It told a story, one of a man who was too afraid to show the world what he really was, leading him to hide behind a mask of humor-- as highlighted by the leading lines on the man's suit moving our eyes towards his face and by the level horizon which further highlights the importance of the man. After that, the image became-- in my eyes--more depressing than happy. Such a reversal of emotions was exactly what made me select this piece as my final image-- since it perfectly shows the power and complexity that a visual metaphor can have.

=__ Quote: __=

** "Take a chance and risk it all or play it safe and suffer defeat" **
The aforementioned quote was written by Pittacus Lore, also known as James Frey, in the book "I Am Number Four". This novel is the first in one of my all-time favorite book series-- The Lorien Legacies-- and features a great deal of unique and intriguing ideas. In particular, the quote I selected can be viewed as textual support for numerous themes and ideas in the book-- such as overcoming fear, taking a leap of faith, the benefits of hard work and so on. Furthermore, the quote is very well-written and thought-provoking-- leading me to choose it as the basis for my project.

Reading this quote, I picture a person hard at work-- perhaps working either at a school or at their place of work. This person would appear to be determined, and would be seemingly unrelenting from the task that they were currently working on. In my mind, this person would believe that the task they were working on was vital-- and, if they did not complete their work properly or well-- their entire life would be placed into jeopardy.

Of course, there are certainly other visual metaphors that could be interpreted from this quote. For example, someone else might see this quote as a person taking a leap of faith-- whether it be in their working life, their social life or their personal life-- which could be depicted by a person standing before the edge of a significant fall-- making it seem as if a person was, quite literally, taking a leap of faith. Additionally, someone may take this quote as someone facing a daunting challenge or task-- something that could be shown through someone starting to climb a great height, or someone standing before the door of a person whom they may care about. Furthermore, the quote could be seen as a person who is at their lowest point, and needs some sort of goal or motivation to continue moving-- which could be shown through a person with their head hung low, one who may see truth in my selected quote.

For my project, I hope to show an image portraying hard work and effort-- possibly from a person working on homework, a man undergoing physical exercise or a growing plant trying to be the best it can be. This idea would go along with the concept suggested by the quote, as-- like the quote implies-- taking a chance through hard work is an essential part of life. In addition, I will also attempt to make my image as simplistic as possible while also making sure to include powerful imagery. As demonstrated by my research, simplicity goes a long way to telling a powerful story with images, and powerful imagery in general can also make a decent photo into one that is powerful and moving.