"Identity, Mediated"
Paired up randomly, students take two pictures to represent their partners after interviewing each other.
The black & white portrait imitates the style of one of the following photographers whose work we have discussed in class: Julia Margaret Cameron, David Octavius Hill, Oscar Gustav Rejlander, Matthew Brady, Alexander Gardner, Etienne Carjat, or Gaspard Félix Tournachon Nadar. Students choose their own style and approach they deem appropriate to portray their partners in the color picture.
Students are encouraged to use the essay to help the viewer understand who their partners are, or the essay can even contradict the way their partners are portrayed in their photographs. Alternatively, the photographs and words can give their partners a constructed identity that might be different from their own perception.
*Students: when commenting on the b&w pictures, think about whether or not the evocation of a specific photographer's work is successful. Consider how much effort the photographer/model put into staging the shot (dress/costume, props, lighting, etc.) and what you think should have been done to make the picture better. Consider the composition, contrast, saturation, and image/text relationship when commenting on each photograph.
(Note: the texts and comments have not been redacted, edited, or corrected for typos or errors)
Paired up randomly, students take two pictures to represent their partners after interviewing each other.
The black & white portrait imitates the style of one of the following photographers whose work we have discussed in class: Julia Margaret Cameron, David Octavius Hill, Oscar Gustav Rejlander, Matthew Brady, Alexander Gardner, Etienne Carjat, or Gaspard Félix Tournachon Nadar. Students choose their own style and approach they deem appropriate to portray their partners in the color picture.
Students are encouraged to use the essay to help the viewer understand who their partners are, or the essay can even contradict the way their partners are portrayed in their photographs. Alternatively, the photographs and words can give their partners a constructed identity that might be different from their own perception.
*Students: when commenting on the b&w pictures, think about whether or not the evocation of a specific photographer's work is successful. Consider how much effort the photographer/model put into staging the shot (dress/costume, props, lighting, etc.) and what you think should have been done to make the picture better. Consider the composition, contrast, saturation, and image/text relationship when commenting on each photograph.
(Note: the texts and comments have not been redacted, edited, or corrected for typos or errors)
Emily W.
An Ode to No Such Thing…
John Mayer once wrote,
“Take a seat, take your life, plot it out in black and white. Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings and the drama queens. I’d like to think the best of me is still hiding up my sleeve. They love to tell you, stay inside the lines, but something’s better on the other side.”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Jian Salcedo says, “This song is all about being true to what you want life to be.” For Jian, the most important step in this journey is being yourself and “not wasting energy on being angry, over analyzing and obsessing over the little things.” Jian is a science major at UC Merced on his way to becoming a nurse, a guitarist and an artist, laid back and calm. As he played ‘No Such Thing’ in the library in our mutual rebellion against the silence of the morning, I couldn’t help but see why it’s his favorite song…
“So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Faded white hats
Grabbing credits
Maybe transfers
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
And all of our parents
They're getting older
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
While in their memories
Tiny tragedies
…I wanna run through the halls of my high school
I wanna scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you got to rise above”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Here’s to showing the best of us hiding up our sleeves…
***Special thanks go to John Gottshalk and the staff of Gottshalk Music Center on 355 West Main Street Merced, for the use of the guitar room and guitar for the color photograph***
An Ode to No Such Thing…
John Mayer once wrote,
“Take a seat, take your life, plot it out in black and white. Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings and the drama queens. I’d like to think the best of me is still hiding up my sleeve. They love to tell you, stay inside the lines, but something’s better on the other side.”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Jian Salcedo says, “This song is all about being true to what you want life to be.” For Jian, the most important step in this journey is being yourself and “not wasting energy on being angry, over analyzing and obsessing over the little things.” Jian is a science major at UC Merced on his way to becoming a nurse, a guitarist and an artist, laid back and calm. As he played ‘No Such Thing’ in the library in our mutual rebellion against the silence of the morning, I couldn’t help but see why it’s his favorite song…
“So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Faded white hats
Grabbing credits
Maybe transfers
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
And all of our parents
They're getting older
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
While in their memories
Tiny tragedies
…I wanna run through the halls of my high school
I wanna scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you got to rise above”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Here’s to showing the best of us hiding up our sleeves…
***Special thanks go to John Gottshalk and the staff of Gottshalk Music Center on 355 West Main Street Merced, for the use of the guitar room and guitar for the color photograph***
Emily W.
An Ode to No Such Thing…
John Mayer once wrote,
“Take a seat, take your life, plot it out in black and white. Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings and the drama queens. I’d like to think the best of me is still hiding up my sleeve. They love to tell you, stay inside the lines, but something’s better on the other side.”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Jian Salcedo says, “This song is all about being true to what you want life to be.” For Jian, the most important step in this journey is being yourself and “not wasting energy on being angry, over analyzing and obsessing over the little things.” Jian is a science major at UC Merced on his way to becoming a nurse, a guitarist and an artist, laid back and calm. As he played ‘No Such Thing’ in the library in our mutual rebellion against the silence of the morning, I couldn’t help but see why it’s his favorite song…
“So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Faded white hats
Grabbing credits
Maybe transfers
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
And all of our parents
They're getting older
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
While in their memories
Tiny tragedies
…I wanna run through the halls of my high school
I wanna scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you got to rise above”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Here’s to showing the best of us hiding up our sleeves…
***Special thanks go to John Gottshalk and the staff of Gottshalk Music Center on 355 West Main Street Merced, for the use of the guitar room and guitar for the color photograph***
An Ode to No Such Thing…
John Mayer once wrote,
“Take a seat, take your life, plot it out in black and white. Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings and the drama queens. I’d like to think the best of me is still hiding up my sleeve. They love to tell you, stay inside the lines, but something’s better on the other side.”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Jian Salcedo says, “This song is all about being true to what you want life to be.” For Jian, the most important step in this journey is being yourself and “not wasting energy on being angry, over analyzing and obsessing over the little things.” Jian is a science major at UC Merced on his way to becoming a nurse, a guitarist and an artist, laid back and calm. As he played ‘No Such Thing’ in the library in our mutual rebellion against the silence of the morning, I couldn’t help but see why it’s his favorite song…
“So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Faded white hats
Grabbing credits
Maybe transfers
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
And all of our parents
They're getting older
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
While in their memories
Tiny tragedies
…I wanna run through the halls of my high school
I wanna scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you got to rise above”
John Mayer. “No Such Thing”, (2001), Room for Squares.
Here’s to showing the best of us hiding up our sleeves…
***Special thanks go to John Gottshalk and the staff of Gottshalk Music Center on 355 West Main Street Merced, for the use of the guitar room and guitar for the color photograph***
