Sustained Investigation
I am currently working on a Sustained Investigation in class right now and I'm trying to answer questions like: "where does music transport me?" and "what do I imagine genres of music looking like?" and I'm creating digital collages to investigate my idea in Photoshop. I want to keep consistent elements including color scheme, music notes, and unique typography throughout all my pieces. Also, the filter tools have played a big part, especially the neural filters because they add so much to my photos and really tie each of my pieces together.
MEDITATION
In this piece, I wanted to showcase what scenario I'd imagine myself in if I listened to meditation music. So, I envisioned myself floating on ocean waves, leaves swirling around me, and my head in the clouds. I associated meditation music with the classic meditation pose, ocean waves, nature, and muted shades of orange and blue because of the serenity of meditation. And with each piece in my collection,
LOFI
For this piece, I decided on a photo that would portray me working on my laptop and writing in a notebook because that's how I visualize productivity and that's what I correlate with lofi music. Lofi music has very subtle beats to them which is why I wanted to portray sound waves gradually fading out behind me. And I created a rug-like shape underneath me and added a noise filter to the shape to make it look like static you'd see on TV because sometimes there's subtle static or warble used in this style of music. And, I added some freeform shapes in the background because this style of music is very flowy. And finally, the word 'LOFI' is subtle because the music itself is quiet, subtle, played in the background.
SMOOTH JAZZ
Whenever I think of smooth jazz, I think of one main instrument, the saxophone, which is why I incorporated it into my piece. I photographed myself in this position because I imagine myself listening to smooth jazz when I'm very laid back, especially when it's raining, which is why there's a photo of raindrops in the background. I chose to go with blue and a hint of periwinkle because the genre is very mellow but sometimes there will be some occasional bursts of energy. As for the word 'SMOOTH JAZZ,' I went with bubbly letters because when I listen to smooth jazz, it just makes me feel good inside and if smooth jazz had a sort of shape to it, it would be very flowy and free because there's a lot of swing to it which is why I added wavy lines underneath me with the brush tool. Finally, I decided to incorporate the consistent theme of music notes within the typography.
MUSICALS
I had a lot of fun experimenting with this piece and figuring out the direction I wanted to go with it. First of all, I went with a vintage look because a lot of musicals are classics and have been around for a while, hence, the paper-cut type look in the masking of myself. I decided to duplicate myself and add different patterns to my copies to add texture to my piece. I also did it to make it appear as if I have a bigger stage presence and I'm in this position because when I listen to musicals I love to belt out the lyrics at the top of my lungs. I wanted to exaggerate that by including the curved brush strokes "radiating" from my "microphone" (I used a flashlight to make it more believable that this would be a result of my imagination) to act as vibrations. I had fun with the typography and decided to intertwine the letters between my legs because musicals are very jovial and make you want to dance (but sometimes there are sad, mature musicals. Even then, the music is still enjoyable to listen to). I decided to draw two loopty-loop type lines on either side to create a curtain look, again, because I'd imagine myself on a stage. Finally, I masked out a chunk of sheet music and made it into the stage.
CLASSICAL
Classical music; it's very formal and sophisticated. I associate classical music with ballroom dancing, refined gatherings, royalty, etc., but I especially associate it with ballet. I am photographed in a posse and an arabesque, two simple yet graceful positions. I incorporated a violin because I think of orchestras playing the music like in The Nutcracker and Swan Lake. I also used the warp tool to alter two lines that I drew to make them appear like ribbons wrapping around me. I went with a primarily pastel pink theme because that's the color leotard I'd imagine myself wearing. I also added some splatters of pastel yellow and bright teal because of the energy and power that is brought to each performance of a ballet. I decided on a cursive font because of the sophistication aspect of classical music. And finally, with the music notes, I made it so I could slightly reveal them with a brush tool and had it at a low opacity level so I could make the notes appear faded, and I just felt that it gave this dainty, pretty look to it.
DANCE/ELECTRONIC
CHRISTIAN RAP
GOSPEL
HOLIDAY
POP
When I think of pop music, I imagine bright bursts of color and a lot of abstract elements. For this piece, I decided on a a bright coral and teal combination to compliment each other. I wanted to do something different for the typography, something that made the word 'POP' stand out. So, I created this zebra-like pattern using the liquify filter on lines that I created and masked it out to the shape of the letters. As for the photo, I imagine that I'm enjoying myself outside, soaking up the sun and feel energetic and happy because that's what pop music is like. To top it off, I added a few butterflies to my piece because they symbolize new beginnings, and I like to listen to upbeat music in the morning to give me a boost of energy to help start my day off with a smile.
90s
