The body of work I have created is an evocative and dynamic short video, approximately 1 minute in length, which focuses on the way 'glitches' can corrupt and falsify an individuals sense of 'self' and personal identity. The human psyche is exposed to an unquestionable amount of emotive sentiments throughout their lives which can either strengthen or corrupt a human being’s psychological state. I have interpreted the notion of 'glitch' as a momentary malfunction within an individual's psychological state which transgresses beyond its capacity and function. This notion is delineated through the forms of distortion, manipulation and alteration within an individual’s psyche which can negatively impact a person's cognitive state. Physical ‘reality' is a nonsensical and convoluted word as a person may exist presently in the physical world being perceived as 'normal' and 'healthy' when their internal world may be one of deep affliction, suffering, and torment, brought forth by a 'glitch'. We live in the 21st century which bares witness to copious amounts of technological advancements and applications in a reality that emphasises 'connection', 'sociability' and 'status' when in actuality these modes of 'relationships' can create a sense of isolation, rejection, and loneliness. These emotional states can instigate a sense of banal, monotonous existence with a pronounced sense of meaninglessness. When these feelings are continually reoccurring in an individual's subconscious ones neurological pathways can become 'glitched' and when this pattern continues to reoccur it can trigger altered states of reality and existentialism.
My artmaking practice first comprised of defining the meaning of 'glitched': "A sudden, usually temporary malfunction or fault of the equipment." I proceeded to experiment with different 'glitch' technological application which created a digitalised, static result. I started this body of work by taking numerous photographs ( on a Sony A600) of my friend’s face, in different angles and time periods, with an intense white light shining in the background to create a sense of depth and dimension within the 2-dimensional photographic state. I only captured her face as a symbol of the human consciousness and psychological condition. These internal 'glitches' are in essence an energy corruption which in actuality cannot be illustrated in a physical form. Her face becomes a metaphor for the physical aspects of an individuals life which is controlled by our internal forces.
The next undertaking consisted of me putting the numerous images I had captured through copious editing application online and documenting the ways the images were distorted. My final photographs were digitally enhanced through these applications and then converted into a state of black and white when previous they were an array of vibrant, dominant colours. This change in colour tones dramatically impacted the 'glitched' process of the images as due to the lighting different characteristics of the face were pronounced or erased. Subsequent to this action I began to use photoshop to mirror these images to create a pronounced dichotomy between the physical human body and the abstract psychological mentality. Additionally, I used the editing software of Lightroom to take the singular image I had taken, manipulated and mirrored and further warped the image. I then documented how the image was altered by recording this action, using the method of slow motion to intensify these feelings of 'glitch', deformation and corruption. Individually, one-by-one, different parts of the photo are stretched and the more this occurs the more convoluted and abstracted the images becomes. The image becomes completely unrecognisable and abstracted. I then used Adobe Premier Pro to assemble the different clips together and used a stop and start (static) effect to depict how the neurons in the brain are being modified. The video gradually becomes more abstracted to the point of colour tones, patterns, shapes and line which underpins how a small 'glitch' in a person's cognitive state and memory, when constantly reoccurring, can distort their 'reality' and overall 'individual existence'.
I was inspired by the cubism era ( 1907-1922) and the fragmented nature of those artworks. There was an abandonment of perspective evident within this style and I wanted to encompass this quality in my artworks. I wanted to turn away from a digital 'glitch' but rather do so in a form which merged the foreground and background into one creating an array of diverse angular shapes and lines, whereby an individuals space and time is altered. I researched the artworks of Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and Francis Bacon who created evocative artworks using this style of art. Their works brought forth a new quality which had not been explored previously and used predominantly dark muted tones. Nevertheless, I continued to explore contemporary digital artists such as Frances Berry, Heitor Magno, Maykel Lima and Antoine Geiger who commented on today's technological era through altering and glitching their subjects reality.
The sound effects in the video clip are eerie, static and have an uncomfortable quality about them. This was intentional as I wanted the audience to be evoked by not only the images in the video but by the feelings associated with them. This is to trigger an emotive response which encapsulated the feeling of distress, disharmony, and angst. ( Sound effects from: Abstract Sound)
The human mind is durable and resilient but when these 'glitches' continually reoccur an individual’s true 'reality' can become re-defined and ultimately contaminated.
Cubism: http://www.theartstory.org/movement-cubism.htm
Pablo Picasso: https://www.pablopicasso.org/cubism.jsp
George Braque: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-braque-georges.htm
Francis Bacon: http://www.theartstory.org/artist-bacon-francis.htm
Heitor Magno: https://www.artpeoplegallery.com/heitor-magno-glitch-art/
Frances Berry: http://www.thejealouscurator.com/blog/2016/08/30/frances-berry/
Maykel Lima: http://www.emptykingdom.com/featured/maykel-lima/
Antoine Geiger: http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2015/11/cellphone-attention-antoine-geiger/
