Portfolio Running head: Portfolio

Portfolio Mrcio Padilha College of Southern Idaho ARTS 251 Lustig Spring/2012

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Contents
Abstract ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Apocalyptic (35mm)............................................................................................................................................................... 4 Cracked (Holga)........................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Incipient (Holga) ...................................................................................................................................................................... 6 Introspective (Pinhole) ......................................................................................................................................................... 7 Paradoxical (Holga) ................................................................................................................................................................ 8 Possessive (35mm) ................................................................................................................................................................. 9 Quantic (Holga) ...................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Synchronic (Pinhole)............................................................................................................................................................ 11 Telluric (Holga) ...................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Transversal (Holga) .............................................................................................................................................................. 13

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Abstract
This paper expresses, however relatively, the personal contextualization of the images which integrate the final portfolio presented by Mrcio Padilha for the ARTS 251 Intermediate Darkroom course at the College of Southern Idaho in the Spring/2012 semester.

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Apocalyptic (35mm)

This image is characterized by the still life of the framed elements which allude to the prospect that mankind, while in pursuit of extreme intrinsic finality, may have inadvertently reached the utmost extrinsic finality. With its multiplicity of limbs reaching out in all directions, the crispness of the portrayed tree within its dark environment is suggestive of desperation; thereby posing questions which include, but are not limited to: Will there ever be an end to civilization as we know it to be? If so, what would the extinction process look like? What would a lifeless world in the aftermath look like?

The gray to black schema is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of menacing.

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Cracked (Holga)

This image is characterized by its sharp registration; meant to be a subliminal base statement which tacitly supports that truth is irrefutable. As such, the visual construct, proposing a skeptical challenge to solipsism, is further meant to admonish questionings which include, but are not limited to: To what extent do extrinsic factors affect our intrinsic self? What does experiencing angst do to us? How far can we be pushed until we crack?

The piece, as a whole, is meant to anchor the perception realm that extrinsic factors may, and intermittently do, sequester intrinsic individual authenticity. The sepia tint is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of seriousness, warmth, and support.

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Incipient (Holga)

This image is characterized by the relationship between elements found in distinct planes of depth: the decaying chair in the foreground, the clutter in the mid plane of depth and the trees in the background. With the decaying chair concomitantly symbolizing the epitome of mans self-asserted role within the continuum and its demise, the interrelation of all elements within visual construct infer, nonetheless, a clear cause-and-effect interrelation between organic and inorganic, predisposing lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: Is mans self-asserted primordial role in the continuum destined to become mans self-imposed downfall? Has man lost sight of the toll his reckless pursuit for the next soon-tobe-discarded material possession causes the world? Is nature relentlessly resilient to mans predatory practices?

The black-to-white schema is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of elitism and oppression.

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Introspective (Pinhole)

This image is characterized by a relatively-positioned proximodistal axis which inadvertently traps the viewer into attempting to decide whether the images focal point lies in its lower or upper half; thereby, serving as a visual metaphor for introspection. With the clear reflection of a tree in the water puddle symbolically standing for an elements which may, or may not, exist within the individual, the proposed visual construct may infer lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: Do we really have all we think we do inside our selves? Do others see us for what/whom we are? What/Who are we?

The gray-to-black schema is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal somber look.

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Paradoxical (Holga)

This image is characterized by an easily recognizable visual element: a chicken, which, while being well registered and centrally framed, lies on a lighter and more softly-focused portion of the frame which is meant to predispose the idea of doubt, flexibility and/or uncertainty. Whereas this is a visual construct which may lead the viewers to a multiplicity of unrelated schemas, the proposed central idea of this work is anchored to the chickens rather inquisitive look and attitude as well as the frames soft lower portion which are meant to foment lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: Do our concepts have a good-enough self-sustaining basis? What do you think? What ultimately came first: the chicken or the egg?

The sepia schema is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of warmth and earthliness.

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Possessive (35mm)

This image is characterized by its well-defined registration which depicts a near-far relationship that concomitantly illustrates the antithetical concepts of freedom and restriction/conformity. With strong visual sense of barriers and limits, the visual construct of possessiveness is exalted. As such, the proposed schema aims to incite lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: What/who is being kept in and/or out? How fervently is man predisposed to guard his domain? Is mankinds need for delineating such clear limits intrinsic or extrinsic?

The black-and-white schema is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of totalitarianism.

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Quantic (Holga)

This image is characterized by lack of absolute registration which is meant to instill some level of chaos within the frames visual construct. Because physics states that quantum is the minimum amount of any physical entity involved in an interaction, the depicted imagery, representative of fragmented leftovers of interactions, is meant to suggest lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: Out of all things we witness all the time, why do we mostly remember only fragments? What makes one memory fragment more memorable than another? How many of these fragments overlap causing us to misconstrue reality into something that has never happened/existed?

The blue tint is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal unrealism.

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Synchronic (Pinhole)

This image is characterized by its lack of empirically dictated expectations; thereby, mildly shifting the aesthetic paradigm by juxtaposing variable levels of registration within the visual construct. The presence of both inert and moving subjects within the frame may suggest lines of inquiry which include, but are not limited to: Can unrelated antagonistic actions actually take place intrinsically and simultaneously? If so, how aware of such occurrences are we? At what threshold, if any, may unrelated antagonistic actions cancel each other out?

The overall dark look is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal idea of a detailed and lonely mental examination of thoughts and motives. .

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Telluric (Holga)

This image is characterized by its soft focus which attempts to shed a light of poetry over the man-earth relationship. Anchored in the perceptional realm that man and nature share in an interdependent yet at-times antagonistic relationship, the visual construct at hand suggests a line of questioning which includes, but is not limited to: Do man and nature coexist in each others essence? What would the world be like if both man and nature were not interdependent? How much does one really need and benefit from the other?

The sepia tint is meant to enhance the telluric feel of the image.

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Transversal (Holga)

This image is characterized by its lack of absolute registration. In an attempt to allude to existentialism, elements such as time, perception and definition were interwoven in this triple-exposure frame. Anchored in the perceptional realm that while on a bridge facing oncoming traffic, the vehicles rapidly pass by and the bridge shakes noticeably, basic personal questionings herein included, but were not limited to: Is physical presence actually necessary to corroborate existence? Does shift within the Euclidean Space define, or redefine, elemental essence? What, if anything, denotes the binodal curves, plait points and tie lines in our daily lives?

Gray tonality is meant to vest the piece with a subliminal sense of intellectuality and logic questioning.