Question/Issue

How do the people in your life impact your identity? My goal for this project was to create a series of portraits featuring some of the most important people in my life. Each portrait is based around a person and accompanied by a brief thank you for what they have contributed to my life.

 

Audience

This project has a general wide audience because I think anyone at any time in their life can reflect on the impact people have had on them. Healthy and uplifting relationships are important for everyone’s growth and it’s important to acknowledge and reflect on one’s growth process over time.

 

History and Distinction/References

Some inspiration I’ve had during this project is Olivia Lorber and art boards on pinterest. I went to high school with Olivia and I have been following her art page @xefaria on Instagram for a few years. She is very talented and I love the style of her portraits. As for my pinterest board, I like to collect images that are particularly inspiring in style and composition that I don’t always see. I think this has definitely formed the foundation of my work while I take my own style with this through colors, composition, and the fact that this series is completely personal to me. 

 

Approach

I don’t personally believe every art piece must be backed with a confined term of research. However, for my series I guess one could say I researched the use of different media in portraits. Since I was using media I don’t normally use, I was challenged to look at inspiration for techniques and style.

 

Impact

I hope viewers can view this gallery and recognize some people in their lives who have held important roles. As a people person, I am very aware of the people I keep around me and after many experiences with toxic relationships, it made me even more grateful for the genuine people around me who constantly uplift me. I hope you all enjoy; it was a great experience being able to challenge myself with an art that I've always wanted to explore.

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Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Heather and Harold for all the advice and consistent feedback on all my process journals and ideas for this project. Special thanks to Caroline and Joe, as well, who kept me sane and gave a great outside opinion on my ideas. Finally, extra thanks to the subjects in my portrait for inspiring me and everyone reading this for their support and talent!