Awakening
This series explores the awakening of existentialism with the outset of the Coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has initiated a crisis of suffering, with individuals worldwide struggling to find meaning and purpose amid lockdowns, social distancing, and social isolation.
Being no longer told what to do and how to live has caused an outbreak of uncertainty and an analysis of the human existence and the struggle of mortality. The series was created with Caffenol, a photographic alternative process that uses caffeic acid, sodium carbonate, washing soda, and vitamin C to develop film. The existence of the images in this series primarily comes from the chemicals not mixing properly with the gelatin silver paper. Perhaps fittingly, a profoundly specific series of events had to happen both for these images to be created and for the onset of the origin of life on Earth. After viewing this series, I would like the viewer to be more cognizant of how fragile and vulnerable human life is here on planet Earth. I would like the viewer to become more aware of how the pandemic has brought an opportunity to take a step back from everyday life and analyze how understanding our lives to be finite can bring an authentic and meaningful life.
Date:
Fall 2021
Materials:
Lomography Camera, 35mm Film, and Caffenol Developer
Size:
8″ x 10″
