Crit for Tooth Decay Projet

These are just examples of images I am beginning to work with.


I looked at the different momento mori and vanitas works and what interested me was the contiunal reappearence of the skull. The symbolisim and reminder of the certainty of death was a common thread through all of the works. I specifically noticed the teeth in all of the skulls that always seem perfectly intact. I suffer from gingivitis and my mouth is usually in a state of pain- I have had gum surgery once and may soon have to have it again (gum transplant surgery is known to be one of the most painful surgeries considering you are awake the entire time). When the pain gets bad I will have nightmares about my teeth falling out. All of these thoughts led me to a piece about tooth decay.

This assignment called for a piece that gives a digital image feel and texture thats physical and real. I have two ideas and would like some feed back on each. First I thought about creating a flip book using digital photgraphs of my teeth that I alter so that they would start with a smile and ends with a toothless frown. This would be representitive of my nightmares and similar to the momento mori themes of my teeth's mortality. I feel that it would be a less heavy approach to the theme of decay and could be in some ways comical and interesting.

For my next idea I would create one digital image using scanner art of my teeth. I would then take this image and digitally manipulate it to portray the pain and suffering this disease causes. I would also like to incorporate other themes from the vanitas works such as an hourglass, jaw bone/tooth bone structures similar to those you see in a dentist office, dentist tools, and even floss. After I was satisfied with this digital image I would print it out on high quality paper and paint certain areas to create more of a relief surface and texture. Through this process I would hope to increase the feel and texture that digital images usually lack. I feel this would also enhance the colors and shapes that I would like to stand out. If I wanted to get really extreme, I have had five permanent teeth pulled and saved them, I was thinking I could even encorporate one onto the surface of the image.