Digital Collage
OverviewTitle: Stepping Into A New Mindset
Size: 24" x 36" Medium: Digital (photoshop) Completion: October 2022 Exhibition TextMy piece, by the name of Stepping Into a New Mindset, is intended to showcase growth, learning, and "stepping" into a new phase of life. My artwork is a photoshopped piece developed with photographs found deep within my mother's Instagram page. The collage is greatly inspired by the artist Raoof Haghighi's drawings, especially Linking Minds, and moderately inspired by Maurits Cornelis Escher's piece, Relativity. It was executed through the use of the software, Photopea.
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Background essay
As I begin to grow older and progress through age, I’ve started to realize that my world is changing. My feelings, personality, preferences, relationships, etc. Everything that I have used to associate with myself is no longer true to my current self. Throughout the recent years, I’ve met new people and cut ties with old ones, thrown away old clothes that no longer suit me and my current fashion sense; I’ve redecorated my room and more. Everything that used to identify who I was no longer pertains to who I am now.
The last few years have been rough, but I’ve gotten through it, though. This year I’ve decided to choose peace for myself. No matter what, my peace, my mindset, my mental health, and my heart come first. I am no longer allowing disrespect or jealousy into my circle. I’m also no longer allowing myself to continue to be accustomed to certain behaviors such as being quiet, keeping feelings to myself, or distancing myself whenever I go through rough patches in life. I’ve decided to be kinder to myself. In that, I have realized my worth and what I deserve in this lifetime.
Now I am focusing on the good things. Looking at the glass as half full rather than half empty. Choosing not to put my attention on the bad parts of any situation and see the good in everyone and everything. I’m trying to be better to myself as well as the people around me. I’m choosing happiness, because I’ve realized that, in this world, in this society, no one can truly bring me happiness except for myself; I cannot keep trying to achieve happiness from other people or material things. Because, if I only live once, this is not the way to live. I deserve to be happy.
The last few years have been rough, but I’ve gotten through it, though. This year I’ve decided to choose peace for myself. No matter what, my peace, my mindset, my mental health, and my heart come first. I am no longer allowing disrespect or jealousy into my circle. I’m also no longer allowing myself to continue to be accustomed to certain behaviors such as being quiet, keeping feelings to myself, or distancing myself whenever I go through rough patches in life. I’ve decided to be kinder to myself. In that, I have realized my worth and what I deserve in this lifetime.
Now I am focusing on the good things. Looking at the glass as half full rather than half empty. Choosing not to put my attention on the bad parts of any situation and see the good in everyone and everything. I’m trying to be better to myself as well as the people around me. I’m choosing happiness, because I’ve realized that, in this world, in this society, no one can truly bring me happiness except for myself; I cannot keep trying to achieve happiness from other people or material things. Because, if I only live once, this is not the way to live. I deserve to be happy.
inspiration
Linking Minds - Raoof Haghighi
Relativity - M.C. Escher
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Artist in Focus: Raoof Haghighi
Raoof Haghighi is a self-taught Iranian-British artist who focuses on the movements of surrealism, realism, and portraiture. Haghighi was born in 1976 in Shiraz, Iran. He was inspired to paint by his father, who was also an artist. He has participated in 70+ group art shows and 40+ solo art shows; he's done shows all over the world in places such as the United States, France, Spain, Iran, the United Kingdom, and the Czech Republic. Haghighi has also won many awards for his paintings. His works, which are primarily oil on canvas, are the result of both his fascination in the modern world and his deep cultural roots. His pieces frequently merge modern concepts with traditional techniques. He has regularly questioned in his paintings the beliefs, anxieties, tensions, incompatibilities, and unwritten rules that have shaped our surroundings and our demeanor within them. The art piece of his that I was particularly inspired by was Linking Minds by Raoof Haghighi. Upon seeing the piece for the first time, I instantly understood how I wanted to execute my digital collage. I would use two images of myself, an old side-profile photo and a new front profile photo. I would edit the photographs using Photopea onto the background of a pink and purple sky. I would then connect the pictures with a photo of two flights of stairs and edit a photo of me walking down said stairs. Since I knew that I wanted the theme of my collage to be about growth, I wanted to be able to especially represent that through the final title of my piece, Stepping Into A New Mindset. I was also somewhat inspired by the graphic artist, Maurits Cornelis Escher, and his piece Relativity. Relativity, one of Escher's most cherished, imitated, and parodied images, is a lithograph print, first printed in December 1953. The piece features a sequence of staircases organized in a maze-like interior, overlooking the world's law of gravity. |
planning
I began preparing for this piece by listing the art movements I would like to incorporate and the themes I wanted to use. I also listed my artistic inspirations; those include Raoof Haghighi, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dali, and Oleg Shuplak. My chosen themes include growth, becoming new, and a new phase. Upon first seeing Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds, I instantly knew how I wanted to execute my digital collage.
I began by going through a deep dive into old basement photos, and upon finding nothing, I decided to look through my mother's Instagram page and found many photograph options to choose from. I was primarily looking for a photo of a younger me, but specifically, a side profile photo. I was also looking for a more recent photo of me, specifically a headshot.
I wanted to imitate Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds through photographs of myself. I wanted the head on the left side of Linking Minds to be the side profile head of a younger me, and I wanted the head on the right side of the drawing to be the headshot of the current me. For the background, I decided to choose a picture of the sky taken on Mackinac Island in Michigan during the sunset which resulted in a pink and purple sky.
To plan and prepare for the process of the piece, I decided to try and navigate Photopea. After a few confusing hours of not knowing what I was doing, I went onto YouTube in search for tutorials. I also used Photopea's tutorial website with hope to better understand the tools available to me. Through the websites and videos, I discovered the magic cut tool, which made the process of creating the art piece much easier.
I began by going through a deep dive into old basement photos, and upon finding nothing, I decided to look through my mother's Instagram page and found many photograph options to choose from. I was primarily looking for a photo of a younger me, but specifically, a side profile photo. I was also looking for a more recent photo of me, specifically a headshot.
I wanted to imitate Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds through photographs of myself. I wanted the head on the left side of Linking Minds to be the side profile head of a younger me, and I wanted the head on the right side of the drawing to be the headshot of the current me. For the background, I decided to choose a picture of the sky taken on Mackinac Island in Michigan during the sunset which resulted in a pink and purple sky.
To plan and prepare for the process of the piece, I decided to try and navigate Photopea. After a few confusing hours of not knowing what I was doing, I went onto YouTube in search for tutorials. I also used Photopea's tutorial website with hope to better understand the tools available to me. Through the websites and videos, I discovered the magic cut tool, which made the process of creating the art piece much easier.
process
As stated in the planning section, prior to actually creating my digital collage, I looked into videos and websites demonstrating the tools within the Photopea website.
Through the use of the software, Photopea, I found myself using the magic cut tool for the majority of my work as it made the process a lot easier compared to using other tools. The picture of younger me displayed me dancing with my sister. I used the magic cut tool to cut out the head of myself as "younger me" and placed it near the upper left corner as well as separately cut out my hair from the photo to be realistic in relation to gravity as the picture used portrayed a standing position while I needed a the head to portray a laid down position for my piece. I used the magic cut tool and did the same steps for the head of current me. On a white piece of paper, with a pen, I drew a set of stairs that separated at the level. I, again, used the magic cut tool to get a sleek outline and attached the stairs to the heads. To add depth to my piece I smudged the clouds and some background areas of the second head using the smudger tool to help the photo better blend into the background. I also adjusted the brightness and contrast of the second head to better fit (color-wise) into the photo. |
experimentation
I experimented with a variety of photos of myself for the heads before deciding on the two shown within the piece. It took a while to settle on the photographs to use as I was not interested in capturing new photographs in favor of this project. For the head placed in the upper left corner, I was specifically looking for a side profile of a younger me, more preferably if the photo was taken while I was in a laid-down position. Upon unsuccessful attempts of looking through many old photos in photograph books, videotapes, and shoeboxes, I decided to go through my mother's Instagram. I found a post that was created nearly nine years ago on the Christmas of the year 2013.
The photo for the second head in the lower right corner was more difficult to find, primarily because I am critical and selective. Knowing I wouldn't find any recent photos of myself in photo books, I looked through my camera roll and was unsatisfied with my findings. I then went back to my mother's Instagram and found a few nice recent photos. I experimented with a few of the photographs before ultimately deciding on the one shown within the piece. I also experimented with the colors of the piece. I did not think much about the color of my work before realizing that the image of Haghighi that I was inspired by was a charcoal drawing and was in black and white. Although I was skeptical, I tried changing the color of the piece from color to black and white. But, I finally concluded to keep the color as it added depth to my piece, especially through the color of the sky in the background. I also didn't believe that the black and white matched the tone of the second head in the lower right corner. |
critique
When comparing my piece to Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds, I notice that we both used heads only and no other figures, but the photographed heads in my digital collage were different; one head was a picture of a younger me, and the other head was a picture of current me, whereas the heads drawn by Haghighi were the same. In both of our pieces, the two heads are connected by a set of stairs. And while we used stairs in our works, I chose not to add doors on the back and top of the head, unlike Haghighi. Near the end of completing the project, I decided to adjust the color scale of the piece to black and white to better align with the qualities of Raoof Haghighi's work in Linking Minds. Haghighi's work was a drawing while mine was a digital collage that was produced through the use of photoshop. Although the majority of my piece was put together with photographs of reality, the stairs in my piece were drawn, like Haghighi's.
Reflection
Prior to creating this piece, I was nervous, as I'd never made a "digital collage" or used photoshop before. Through this work, though, I tried my best to use a wide range of the photoshop tools available to me. As an artist, I expanded my knowledge and skill to the use of a medium that was new to me: photoshop. My inspiration for this project stemmed from my inner feelings and personal life. As I continue to grow older and transition into adulthood, I have realized that to be happy, I need to make myself happy; I cannot get my happiness from anyone else.
Through social media, I discovered the artist Raoof Haghighi. I knew that I wanted my project to be in the surrealism art style and instantly thought of Haghighi and his works.
One of the biggest challenges I faced during this project was navigating the Photopea software. Through failed attempts at using more unique tools within Photopea, I, unfortunately, decided to go the easy route. For the majority of my piece, I primarily used the Magic Cut tool. I used that tool for each picture that needed to be cut out and then clean it up using the eraser tool. I'm pretty satisfied with the finished product of the digital collage. Although somewhat rushed, compared to the original digital collage I created, I believe the final result was a large improvement. If I were to repeat this project in the future, I think I would try to manage my time better and make time to watch more tutorials on the tools to maintain a larger skill within the work of photoshop.
Through social media, I discovered the artist Raoof Haghighi. I knew that I wanted my project to be in the surrealism art style and instantly thought of Haghighi and his works.
One of the biggest challenges I faced during this project was navigating the Photopea software. Through failed attempts at using more unique tools within Photopea, I, unfortunately, decided to go the easy route. For the majority of my piece, I primarily used the Magic Cut tool. I used that tool for each picture that needed to be cut out and then clean it up using the eraser tool. I'm pretty satisfied with the finished product of the digital collage. Although somewhat rushed, compared to the original digital collage I created, I believe the final result was a large improvement. If I were to repeat this project in the future, I think I would try to manage my time better and make time to watch more tutorials on the tools to maintain a larger skill within the work of photoshop.
AcT connection
1.) Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork:
My inspiration, Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds, is a black and white drawing of two heads, cut off near the brain, and connected with a set of stairs. My work, comparably, is a black and white digital collage with two heads, and younger photo of me and a current photo of me, in which are connected by a set of stairs. His work encouraged me to adjust the colorway to black and white and to draw the set of stairs in my collage rather than taking a photo of stairs.
2.) What is the overall approach (point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
My inspiration highlights that art doesn't have to "make sense" upon the first viewing. Like many of Raoof Haghighi's works. I did not truly understand the work or how to interpret it until seeing the title.
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Via my inspirations, I discovered that meaning can still be emphasized through a black and white colorway. I've also concluded that surrealism is not often understood as its original intention. People often overlook the deeper meaning of surrealism because its deemed as "odd" upon first view and neglect that those "odd" details accentuates the subject of the art.
4.) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
Before starting my project, I knew that I wanted to do surrealism, with the primary inspiration of Raoof Haghighi. I also wanted my project to be personal to me and took influence from Haghighi' drawings.
5.) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
Through the works of Raoof Haghighi, which commonly combine contemporary ideas with traditional methods, my inspiration demonstrates his fascination with the modern world and his strong cultural roots. He frequently questioned the assumptions, worries, tensions, incompatibilities, and unwritten conventions that have defined our world and our behavior within it in his artworks.
My inspiration, Raoof Haghighi's Linking Minds, is a black and white drawing of two heads, cut off near the brain, and connected with a set of stairs. My work, comparably, is a black and white digital collage with two heads, and younger photo of me and a current photo of me, in which are connected by a set of stairs. His work encouraged me to adjust the colorway to black and white and to draw the set of stairs in my collage rather than taking a photo of stairs.
2.) What is the overall approach (point of view) the author (from your research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
My inspiration highlights that art doesn't have to "make sense" upon the first viewing. Like many of Raoof Haghighi's works. I did not truly understand the work or how to interpret it until seeing the title.
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Via my inspirations, I discovered that meaning can still be emphasized through a black and white colorway. I've also concluded that surrealism is not often understood as its original intention. People often overlook the deeper meaning of surrealism because its deemed as "odd" upon first view and neglect that those "odd" details accentuates the subject of the art.
4.) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
Before starting my project, I knew that I wanted to do surrealism, with the primary inspiration of Raoof Haghighi. I also wanted my project to be personal to me and took influence from Haghighi' drawings.
5.) What kind of inferences (conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning) did you make while reading your research?
Through the works of Raoof Haghighi, which commonly combine contemporary ideas with traditional methods, my inspiration demonstrates his fascination with the modern world and his strong cultural roots. He frequently questioned the assumptions, worries, tensions, incompatibilities, and unwritten conventions that have defined our world and our behavior within it in his artworks.
Citations
- “Raoof Haghighi About.” Raoof Haghighi, www.raoofhaghighi.com/about.
- Raoof Haghighi: Contemporary British Painter, Draftsman - SINGULART. www.singulart.com/en/artist/raoof-haghighi-9341.