while i have been researching about decay, i have realized that decay is mainly a term used to describe a negative process, whether its moral decay, urban decay, or tooth decay. being able to admire a building in a gradual state of decay presents a unique beauty. While a brand new building with no signs of wear and tear can be appealing, decay reveals the past and serves as a visual memory of changes that a surface has undergone. it reminds us that nothing can escape the effects of time, go unchanged by the elements, or remain the way it was originally created. all of the changes to the original surface make up and tell the story of the surface, while decay makes different parts of this "story" visible. decay has a way of eroding and avoiding just the right areas to create a whole new composition, made interesting by all of its different components and past appearances.
i feel like this cycle of decay can be related to how we as individuals are formed and how we become who we are. we might start out as this fresh, unaltered base layer. But over time, we are constantly being painted over, added onto, torn down, graffittied, weathered, etc. While the initial clean layer might seem appealing, a more "layered" and "decayed" person is more relateable and more attractive. It tears down the shiny fake exteriors we often put on and shows the many experiences and trials that have made us who we are today.
so thats my thoughts about decay and the direction i want to work towards with my project. im not quite sure how i want to visually represent this though
im thinking about making a book of some sort, where the front cover is just this image of a clean surface. each page would be an added layer, and as the pages go on, the more layers are visible, and each page would have some short blurb about one of my expereinces or maybe just some fictional person that i conjure up. with each page you learn a little but more about the author and what has made them who they are. and the final page will be the image of the wall or surface at its present state, very decayed and layered. it will summarize and make sense of and connect all of the stories of the previous pages and explain how that person has become who they are.
i dont know if that makes sense, but let me know what you think.
3 comments:
First of all, I think your idea for this is really great. You tapped into a particularly interesting thought related to decay that it seems like most people don't think of and what's more, there are thousands of ways of conveying it effectively.
The book approach sounds like it may work well, as it does have that progression of experience that a reader/viewer has to go through to get the entire picture. There have to be some good artist books out there that use a progression that could help feed this notion and define it into exactly what you want. There is the text approach to a book as you mentioned, but as a totally different approach you could do it with nothing buy images. For example, the 1st page blank and virgin and then every page after that one additional mark could be made, but never any removed. I also think of physical scars/tattoos/etc that people build as they go through life and age. This could be used to bring the text/story idea together with a visual/aesthetic approach.
Anyway, it seems like you've got a lot to run with there so good luck.
I'm really interested in seeing what direction this is taking.
It sounds like a really good idea. I am looking forward to seeing it too. While making your book you might wanna use Vellum (get some transparency and layering) or use some windows or different sized pages. Look at some artists books at the library.
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