Because of the quarantine, I’ve been spending majority of my time in my house with my parents. I was always quiet introverted as a child, so staying home and finding ways to entertain myself was never a hard thing for me to do. Weird thing to take into account: because of the weird circumstances that occurred over the years in my household, it was only until my senior year of high school when I finally got my own room (separate from my sister’s). I’m saying this because since I lacked my own room, I feel like I lost that part of me that could have been physically manifested through trinkets and small keepsakes. I never had the opportunity to decorate my own room, hang posters, or physically go through the different phases of life through the appearance of my room if that makes sense.
But my room now is my safe-place, and I’ve worked hard to make it into an environment that I enjoy being in. I wish I had an area that was more interesting for this case study, but I really don’t. I love my room, and it’s probably my favorite place to be, ever, in this entire world.
From a strangers perspective: The pink walls most likely mean the occupant’s favorite color is pink. The random keepsakes on the wall-mounted shelves look worthless, and useless, which means the occupant is a sentimental person who likes souvenirs. There is a bookshelf filled with books, which means this person probably enjoys reading. Not much on cultural background, but based on the Sailor Moon posters, this person probably had access to such cartoons as a child meaning they are between 15-25 years old, and most likely of middle or upper-middle class. I don’t want to make comments about gender or sexuality because we all know how sensitive those topics could be to some people (especially on tumblr), but based on the clothing size, this person could either biologically be a female, or a small framed male.
I believe all rooms have a mood, no matter what. In my case, this mood is created by the color palette (pink walls, red and dusty pink clothing, lavender bed sheets), the lighting (yellow-tinted lights), and the placement of objects around the room. Unfortunately, because I did not spend a majority of my life in this room, it does not conjure any particular memories. I do, however, recall the different arrangements of furniture, and how it took a while before I settled on the final layout.
I know I did not have to comment on this, but I found the photos and the context super interesting! It’s crazy how depending on the time and place, a photo can change meaning completely. I feel like this can be related to art as a whole. As humans we all experience different things, completely unique from each other. When looking at a piece of art, imagine the millions of interpretations it can have from all the different minds looking at it. Imagine the vast amount of internal connections the mind can make according to one’s experiences, to interpret one thing so differently from someone else. It’s just so cool to see how the mind relates to external sources.
I think the fact that Becky Suss’s work is not an exact visual representation of the room, but rather an imagined image mixed with real components and characteristics, is super cool. It reminds me of this thing that the police or FBI would do when drawing a portrait of someone who is wanted.
They would purposely over-exaggerate certain features of the face that stood out the most to them, so that people who see the sketch would remember it better. I know this is probably weird to relate to the painting of a room, but Suss’s concept of incorporating her imagined vision and detailing to better accentuate the mood of the room reminded me of this.
To better accentuate the “blueness” of “Blue Apartment”, there is lots of blue incorporated, including the books in the cubbies, and the ninja stars on the wall. There is also an enhancement of wallpaper and flooring patterns in most of her paintings, which makes sense because those are one of the biggest factors in a room’s mood.
Her imperfect take on perspective enhances the “dream-like” component, making it seem more like an image from a distant memory, rather than a photograph. That, along with the color palette on most of her paintings (bright and inviting), create a playful, child-like mood, which creates a sense of nostalgia.
Something else I noticed is how there is always an equal balance or symmetry on the distribution of color and objects on the painting.
I think I struggle with creating abstract art, or anything that has to do with incorporating imagination. I guess I’m just not that skilled when it comes to creating things in my head. However, if I were to mix in the most significant components of my room into one painting, it would be my desk, the collage on my wall, and my bed. In terms of relating these physical objects to my values, I feel it says a lot about my way of life. Enhanced fluffiness on the bedding shows I’m a comfortable girl who loves her sleep. The pictures and random stuff taped to the wall shows I enjoy keeping track of my life and what I’ve done. And the slightly messy desk emits a chaotic, but trying energy.
A room is a mood. A room is a physical representation of who you are. That’s why it makes so much sense to have various emotion connections to a place, despite it being just a place. I feel like this activity requires lots of self-awareness in terms of your way of life, and what you hold importance to. Because your room is never just your room. There’s always so much more to it.
