Being proud and owning who I am.

Hello Everyone! I haven't blogged in a couple weeks now since it's nearing the dreaded end of the semester crunch.  To me Fall term spirals to an end between two weeks of classes in addition to finals between Thanksgiving and Winter break. Final projects, papers, and no sleep, oh my!

I have really learned a LOT this year at school. I have tried things that scare the hell out of me in an effort to challenge myself artistically. I have grown so much, and tried so many new techniques, put hundreds of miles on my car for those few great images I still needed. I have really grown as a photographer this semester and I have learned that I am capable of doing things that I never thought I could. I have fallen in love with wandering around finding things and seeing them differently than most other people do, it is my passion.

Lets face it, I have never been the Girl that just did what she was supposed to. I have always been diverse and refused to adhere to the guidelines. Not necessarily in a bad way but in a "I refuse to be a carbon copy of what this world deems appropriate!" kinda way. I have been given the stink eye for most of my life for not being a traditionalist, but it just isn't in me to be a yes Woman. I seriously don't understand why most people are so afraid to think for themselves. I am an imaginative, innovative, and  productive member of society who just happens to have have a few tattoos, get over it.

Anyways, I suppose what I am trying to say is that I am proud of who I am! I have had numerous people in my life try very hard to trip me up along my journey through this world. To each and every one of you who ever told me that I couldn't do this shame on you! I am graduating in May Phi Theta Kappa! I am the first person in my immediate Family to EVER graduate from college and I am doing it with Honors. I am an intelligent, creative, kind Woman who takes school and life very seriously, but not so seriously that I can't laugh at myself, or have to keep up with the Jones's.  "The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."

My kids will NOT be the first generation of our Family to become educated. I have made sure they will never know the struggle of what it is like to earn a degree with no Family examples to look to for advice.  They can look at me and see that there is an education there for the taking, and they can do anything they put their minds to. I did not just do this for my Children, in large part I did it mostly all for myself. Although they certainly inspired me to keep going because I saw a rapidly approaching future and I knew for certain what I did, and did not want it to look like. Part of me feels released from the shackles of my upbringing.  My Education may never earn me a dime, but I still feel richer now than before I earned my degree.

Lastly in this post I want to thank my Family for all the support and love you have given me, I would have never made it here without you. Thank you to my Children who don't like it when I am busy and want to know when I will be done working so I can play with them. I know when you get older you will understand and appreciate the example I have set for you, and you will respect what I have achieved and be proud of me. To Ashley thanks for always being my Best Friend and standing by me through everything, I am so proud of the Woman you have become.  I would not be where I am today without the support and encouragement of my Fiancee Dan. My Mom who helped with the kids when I was busy doing homework, or going to class.

This has been been a very tough year starting with my Mothers cancer scare, recovery, and radiation treatments. It has been an uphill battle, but it looks like me & my Family are all winning the fight! I can finally let go of the chip society has put on my shoulder, and enjoy my life and continue to pursue my dreams. I am very proud of myself!

Advanced Digital Photography

So I was going to do a constructed art piece for this class, but I then decided to give forced perspective a try. It was indeed a LOT harder than I imagined, but I have been having a LOT of fun shooting this portfolio!   This class has been my nemesis, and to be nice I will not say why. Anyways, let me know what ya think! I hope you & yours all have a blessed Thanksgiving Holiday! Cheers!

My Artist Statement

Cynthia Marks, ACADEMIC ABANDONMENT

The old and abandoned buildings which can be found in most major urban centers hold a particular fascination for me.  Abandonments large and small inspire the imagination and tell us things about the past in an unsophisticated way.  With anything beautiful there is a gloomy, more mysterious side to it. Where there is good, there is also evil, dark balances light. The city is a tremendous source of beauty, but there is another side of the city altogether.

These tastefully grungy images have an appeal that is almost haunting.  An eerie characteristic that seems to radiate from within. To many people urban decay is unattractive, but I am fascinated by it, and it is one of my favorite things to photograph.  I find the visible impression left from this schools rich history, completely charming and inspiring creatively.  This buildings story is not told by its stick on accouterments, or fine furniture, but by the scars of the past and the accumulation of trash, graffiti, and vandalism.

The forgotten space I met on my urban exploration, inspired my work which concentrates on the beauty of desolation, demonstrated with the delicate use of light, and beautiful colors found inside. When people view my work, I'd like for them to also see the beauty found within resulting from the layers of history and the severe toll time has taken on this once lavish school house.  My poetry, my passion is expressed through my photography.  

~ D O N E ~

OK I finally have my portfolio finalized! YAY!! I ended up with 11 images, 9 - 8x10, and 2 - 11x14. All I have left to do is order my matte board, and get them mounted! I feel so accomplished, at the beginning of the semester it seemed like I was never going to get 10. Now I ended up with 11, and a LOT of extra miles on my car, but I am very pleased that I put the extra effort into what I really wanted to shoot! Annie Lytal is again up for demolition due to falling pray to vandals, graffiti artists, and the homeless. Not to mention that the fire destroyed a large part of the building, and it will most likely be cheaper to demolish the once lavish school and start over than to try to restore it. It is a real shame, but I am very happy I got to explore, and document the building, it really is an amazing place. Here is my finalized portfolio, now I must get to work on my artist statement for the reception. Have a great day, Cyndy

~1 & 7 will be enlarged to 11X14~

~academic abandonment~

Color Emotion

My advanced digital photography teacher had us randomly choose a color card in a sealed envelope last week, and the assignment was to shoot a triptych with that color as the subject. The color I chose was Sour Lime. If I had it to do over again, I think I would photograph my Son sucking a lime in the center photo with a sour face, maybe a Sour Patch Kid on one side, and some lime jello,or a sour lime lollipop on the other. Another idea I had was a corona & lime, some guacamole, and some people dancing, maybe a mariachi band, but I had no luck there, I was over ruled and my family wanted to eat on the water. I came up with a lot of ideas but ended up shooting at Squid Lips in Melbourne. This restaurant has amazing atmosphere, it's right on the water, and they have some great sour lime margaritas! So I decided to go with that as a theme, and hope I could find some more subjects that were sour lime in color that would fit well together. This is what I came up with, I hope it works, it makes sense to me. Have a great week, Cyndy