Wednesday, June 25, 2014

better

Image apps are an interesting thing. We capture an image of something and then we modify it to make it more aesthetically pleasing. We use predetermined filters that were designed to make our images appear to have been taken from an other era. They are designed to inspire an emotional response to a halcyonic time, where everything was better, where everything made sense, where we were happy. We've been using visual representation in this way since humanity first applied medium to canvas. Artists choose their subjects carefully, they plan the location, they plan the outfits of the subjects, they choose how they will be represented. When some one poses for a painting or a photograph they often smile or pose so that they will be recorded the way they think paints them in the best way. I think back to photographs from family events were someone was unhappy and crying all day but then when they posed for a photo they were all smiles. Over time this photograph of happiness will go on to replace the memory of pain and misery of that day. We don't want our personal records to be accurate, we want them to be better than our actual past.

No comments: