We are not their makeup

In today's society we are constantly being shown how make-up can ‘perfect’ our appearance, but is make-up really necessary? 

This term I am going to be redeveloping and continuing with my view of make-up and how it affects our daily lives. Simply walking through the mall, you are able to see different interpretations of make-up through the many company advertisements, and how women are supposed to visualize their own beauty by applying it. Why do we need companies and their media to show us how we should wear our make-up, or how we should generally look day-to-day? With this project, I will demonstrate how I believe make-up goes from one extreme, to the other. We present ourselves covered up, hiding behind a product with the perception that it will recreate us. When in reality, we are only creating an illusion that we are someone else wearing a shade of society’s idea of perfection. At the end of the day, we just rub it all off and become our natural selves. However, is this damaging? More and more, we are afraid to show our natural beauty in a society where most of us rather hide.

Amanda Zimmer; We our not their makeup; Photograph; 36"x 24"; 2013.

Untitled Influences

I love photography! I have always been the one person who’s taking photos at all family events and vocations. I never want a moment to end, capturing it on camera giving them an eternal life. Just recently, while taking photography classes here at the University of Waterloo, I became inspired to use it in my practice. I use performance and film, as part of my main art practice; but photography and research are the backbone of my work. Those very important influences in photography have helped me immensely in developing my own art practice as well.

Among those influential forces is Cindy Sherman. Her work entails all aspects that I hoped to achieve in my own work. Although her work is simple, there is a breathtaking impact while gazing into the image. The works encompass depth and content while impacting your emotions and consciousness. It amazes me how she creates such work. Her work inspires me to further explore both the social limitations that are placed on people and the idea of the self; how we are portrayed in all aspects of human culture. 

Untitled #479 by Cindy Sherman 1975

http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2012/cindysherman/gallery/1/

Her first series, The Untitled Film Stills inspired by B movies from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s is my favourite work of hers. Specifically, how the women are portrayed. The viewer is given a small amount of information within the frame to comprehend what is going on. That moment speaks volumes towards the way Sherman uses herself in relation to her area. It speaks to the generation, time, politics, and people and her critique of those times. These are the elements that I hope to incorporate into my work.

Untitled Film Still #54

http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A5392&page_number=63&template_id=1&sort_order=1

I began performing because I wanted to create that same connection that Sherman does with her images. I hope to create as much strength in my work as she does in her single shots. Photography may not be the main way I create my work but it influences the way I think and frame my art.

by Julia Scappatura :D 

Sometimes I want to go off the grid. But then I remember, there's no internet there.

The human species is a naturally selfish and curious creature. We are constantly seeking new answers and confirmation of our own self-actualization. The opinions of others have seemingly wedged themselves into our everyday lives. 


Don't believe me? Have you checked Instagram, Twitter or even Facebook today? If the answer is yes, than your probably like me and the thrill of posting something, then seeing the notifications of this and that person liking your photos is exciting. However if you said no, than you will eventually today, it’s just a matter of time. 

Recently I was driving with my grandparents, elderly immigrants from Portugal born in the late 20's. Now with that being said, it is hard to believe all the new and different things that have been invented in the time they have been alive. I wonder how crazy it must have been to go from a small farm in Portugal with no electricity to now, electrical devices that are on your person at all times, no wire required.  I digress; my grandmother was questioning me about my phone, as I was about to type in an address on the GPS application.  I explained to her that it had Internet and it knew our location, along with allowing you to listen to music, check emails, send messages and call someone. I distinctly remember my grandmother’s response, "wow that's a smart phone", and it finally dawned on me how smart my "smart phone" actually was. I don't know if that's amazing or scary.

On the one hand its handy always being connected and being able to share every moment with people. Whether that is through blogs, vlogs, posts or tweets. On the other hand, what happen to privacy and living in the moment? I have seen people at concerts or shows, filming it on their phones and actually watching it through the screen!  Photos and videos are nice because they serve as a permanent record of your experience. However if capturing that moment starts to interfere with actually experiencing it first hand, than I think that's where you need to draw the line.

With this in mind, I want my work to evoke craftsmanship and emphasize the artist as a work of art rather than the piece itself. I take reference from the constant documentation of the Internet, through painting moments of memory captured in photographs and documenting this process through video.





So if you want to be apart of every moment of my life, follow me on all kinds of social media. :)

Twitter: @amberpacheco91
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Blog: www.amberpacheco.blogspot.ca
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