Lost in Wonderland
This project was inspired by Alice in Wonderland which was originally released as a book in 1937. I believe that there would have been times when Alice felt a strong sense of isolation traveling through a strange land all by herself. This is a relatable feeling for many people in present times too. The phone in my hand adds the layer that in the age of technology, people feel stuck and alone, possibly more than ever before, just as I am since I'm trapped in a bottle.
The glass bottle is the element from the Library of Congress I used.
The piece “Lost in Wonderland” by Jordan Harper shows the subject of a cat peering at a bottle that sits in the center of the composition. The bottle appears to have a person trapped inside. The work is composed in a horizontal manner and shows the cat, as well as the bottle sitting on a quilted blanket. In the corner of the composition, there are also some cups and dishes that remind me of dishware from a much older time with the way the handles are intricately designed. One of the details I immediately noticed was the cracks in the image as well as the darkened edge that brings a mysterious tone to the piece. The crack in the glass also has helped guide my eye from the cat to the bottle, almost seeming very intentional.
ReplyDeleteWhen first looking at this image, the way that I interpret the piece is that the viewer is looking into a fantasy world because of the cat that appears to be much more massive than the person in the bottle. The person being inside the bottle also reminds me of one of the Tinker bell movies when she was trapped in a jar for some time. It makes me wonder what exactly happened that caused this predicament. The cat’s expression almost looks very concerned as if the person stuck inside the bottle is possibly the cat’s owner and the cat is wondering what the best thing would be to do. The brush work on the side of the images makes it look as if the image is slowly closing in. I think this detail and the depiction of being trapped in a bottle could be a metaphor for feeling trapped inside of oneself because of the power of the mind. I also feel like it could be a nod to feeling lonely in a fast-paced and massive world. The blurred effects and splotchy spots on the image highlight the fact of this being a Wet Plate Collodion. It’s almost as if this image wasn’t supposed to be taken because of how fantastical it is. I interpret it as being cracked and damaged also as a way to give the image a secretive and ominous tone.
Moreover, the technique of making this piece definitely supports the Wet Plate Collodion Process because there are several large marks on the print that show spots where the emulsion bled. There is also a shallow depth of field as parts of the cat, the bottle, and the background have been edited with the blur brush. Part of the cat’s head and paw are lightly blurred to make it look as if this subject was moving when the photo was taken. There is also a spot on the bottle where the light has hit it, causing it to be extremely bright in the image. This type of thing was common during processing an image because they weren’t able to edit it as easily as we are today. The black and white filtering makes this image effective and believable to be an older image as well. Though, I feel that possibly adding a sepia effect could make the piece a bit more effective. It is a tad difficult to tell that the subject is holding a phone as well. Possibly increasing the contrast could help. Overall, I really love this concept and it has been crafted very intentionally.
In conclusion, the imagery of this piece has created a very dreamlike environment as well as leaving a mysterious feeling to the viewer. This piece was created with many details to push the effect that it was originally printed using the Wet Collodion Process. It is effective in guiding the viewer through the entire piece and pushes the result of a shallow depth of field.