BLOG: Sustained Investigation #4

• What idea is guiding this work?

This work is about the discovery of identity through the internet. People with internet access from an early age are exposed to a lot of content that informs their identity and the way they define themselves. For example, a lot of kids questioning their sexuality end up looking towards the internet for guidance on how they should label themselves. A lot of my peers, and even myself, end up using a lot of microlabels to try to hone in how we truly feel. I will be focusing on this aspect the most as I consider the internet as one of the main factors that helped me come to terms with my sexuality. When I was younger, I would watch a lot of videos and conduct research to find an answer to my questioning.

The discovery of identity can be seen as a birth of the self because you end up discovering a lot of things about yourself, and see your feelings be provided explanations you never considered. For instance, I found out that my feelings of discomfort with my body and the idea of being perceived as a girl were attributed to gender dysphoria. I felt like a new person upon this discovery and reflected on my previous experiences. To model this birth, I decided to symbolize it through a fetus. The umbilical cord will be an internet wire.

• How are you practicing, experimenting or revising aspects of this work? (you can pick one)

I am practicing the composition of how I will illustrate the fetus in the womb. I am currently revising and experimenting with different thumbnail ideas - how the person will be positioned, whether I will include the sac, whether additional computer parts are needed to execute my idea, etc. I have sketched different concepts in my sketchbook and am looking for which one is the most compelling.

• How can your choices of materials or processes relate to your idea?

I will be learning and using a new digital software as I believe I need to immerse myself in all of the digital art resources available to me to really push forward the internet centered aspect of my SI. I experimented with Photoshop for my last piece, and I really enjoyed using it so now I will be using Adobe Illustrator for this piece. Illustrator utilizes the idea of vectors, and in some way that is a little uncanny to me knowing that no matter how you zoom in it will be clear. This relates to my idea as the internet is everywhere we are - we can’t particularly zoom out of its influence.