The Trick is to Keep Breathing – Self Portrait
She specialises in Fine Art Photography and Digital Image Manipulation/Photo Illustration. The artist created the image “The Trick is to Keep Breathing” to physically visualise what depression feels like. The photographer herself went through the feeling of depression and so her image is very personal to herself. She describes creating the work as an emotional purifying.
Since the age of 18 Koh has struggled with depression “It always starts with a vague sense of unease that something isn’t quite right yet it is very difficult to pinpoint exactly what that is…”. The reference of to keep breathing shows that she keeps trying go on even though she is depressed and the bandages over her face show this sense if suffocation.
The photograph focuses on the representation of how the photographer feels when she is in a state of depression/ as I look at the image I am looking at the face of the photographer however it is bandaged up not as if she had hurt herself but rather like she is being restricted, from breathing according to her title. She uses editing processes to create a very grey dark feel and added an editing filter I believe to add in the cracks.
The image is in the style of a self-portrait however she had merged three portraits of herself creating an interesting effect as the faces all face different directions in the images. The main focal point of the image is Viveca. I was only interested in the concept of the image and the story behind it. I felt that it was a quite cliché photograph and did not like the editing process of the image at all.
The use of repetition to create three points of focus helps to encompass the rule of thirds to the image. The editing tools used create soft dark areas over the image. There are not many contrasts as the tone and feel of the image is very subtle keeping to a simple colour scheme. The colours in the image are natural and I feel do not give off a cold or warm feel this is due to their muted look.
The portrait is taken from a 90degree angle and we are made to directly face this image of what depression feels like. The border around the edge of the photograph helps to add the rusted feel to the photograph that the photographer added through use of cracks. The border also focuses your eyes to the central parts of the image keeping all focus and interest on the three images which have been merged together.
The photographer only tries to put her emotions and feelings into a visual form, understanding the background of the image allowed me to look at it in a different perspective to that of my first glance however it was an image that did not evoke any personal emotions.
I feel that Koh showed the story of a mental oppression impressively with the use of bandages however I feel her methods of editing were ones that I myself would not have chosen and feel the over use of editing removed from the silent simplicity of the depression that she is visualising
This work has great value as it is created for personal reasons specific to the photographer and she uses herself as a model to do so however many viewers will be able to identify themselves with the issues she portrays.Responding
to this work I focused on her use of bandages and the simplicity of her images.
Since the age of 18 Koh has struggled with depression “It always starts with a vague sense of unease that something isn’t quite right yet it is very difficult to pinpoint exactly what that is…”. The reference of to keep breathing shows that she keeps trying go on even though she is depressed and the bandages over her face show this sense if suffocation.
The photograph focuses on the representation of how the photographer feels when she is in a state of depression/ as I look at the image I am looking at the face of the photographer however it is bandaged up not as if she had hurt herself but rather like she is being restricted, from breathing according to her title. She uses editing processes to create a very grey dark feel and added an editing filter I believe to add in the cracks.
The image is in the style of a self-portrait however she had merged three portraits of herself creating an interesting effect as the faces all face different directions in the images. The main focal point of the image is Viveca. I was only interested in the concept of the image and the story behind it. I felt that it was a quite cliché photograph and did not like the editing process of the image at all.
The use of repetition to create three points of focus helps to encompass the rule of thirds to the image. The editing tools used create soft dark areas over the image. There are not many contrasts as the tone and feel of the image is very subtle keeping to a simple colour scheme. The colours in the image are natural and I feel do not give off a cold or warm feel this is due to their muted look.
The portrait is taken from a 90degree angle and we are made to directly face this image of what depression feels like. The border around the edge of the photograph helps to add the rusted feel to the photograph that the photographer added through use of cracks. The border also focuses your eyes to the central parts of the image keeping all focus and interest on the three images which have been merged together.
The photographer only tries to put her emotions and feelings into a visual form, understanding the background of the image allowed me to look at it in a different perspective to that of my first glance however it was an image that did not evoke any personal emotions.
I feel that Koh showed the story of a mental oppression impressively with the use of bandages however I feel her methods of editing were ones that I myself would not have chosen and feel the over use of editing removed from the silent simplicity of the depression that she is visualising
This work has great value as it is created for personal reasons specific to the photographer and she uses herself as a model to do so however many viewers will be able to identify themselves with the issues she portrays.Responding
to this work I focused on her use of bandages and the simplicity of her images.