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PHOTONARRATIVE
Artist Statement
My photonarrative tells about a girl who takes what's handed to her and keeps taking it even when she knows she can't carry it all. In the first photo, she grapples with the indecision of looking at her possibilities. Though, the door she chooses isn't good for her, and she looks at it with uncertainty, she struggles forward nonetheless. At the conclusion of the story, she crashes and in the last picture you see her tombstone, a list of Things-to-Do. remaining for her even in death. The theme is taking more than you can handle and losing yourself in it. I saw that in my life at a time, when I was extremely stressed. I used the stoplight to put on emphasis on the girl, and the images get slowly get darker to emphasize the mood of the piece. I want the viewer to be able to reflect on this emotion in themselves.
Doormat
"Pam!" A man ran up to her desk, hands full of unorganized paperwork, crammed haphazardly in manila folders.
"Hey ok. So I'm going out for a little bit and I need your help with finishing all this."
" Uuh. Ok. I guess I can…can help you with it." A voice stuttered from behind the desk.
" Yea okay. Yea that's great. Thanks"
He flashed her quick smile, and a cheesy thumbs up before dumping the load on top of the already looming stack that obscured her behind her desk, and rushing on through the door out of the office. Before she had time to grumble at the newly added workload to her already impossible mountain, Joe, from the reception desk, ran up.
" Ohhh Pam! We haven't talked in forever. Listen though; I'm running kind of late for getting my work in on time. Soo I was wondering if you could just pick up my daughter from her high school and drop her off at home. Yea Becca, you've met her right?"
" Uhh. Uhmm . Well Steve just came by, and I have a little more work today…"
" But Pam, I really need your help with this. My wife's been fighting with me again, and we're having problems with the kids, and it's just really stressful in that area, so I really can't talk to my wife about. So it would really just be the greatest thing, if you just do that for me." He looked down at her expectedly, as she fumbled with her papers, and her glasses fell so she wore them slightly askew.
" Uhh. Ok I guess I can then. I don’t know if…"
" Thanks, thanks. So I'll just see you tomorrow. See what I can do about getting you some cookies or something."
He rushed off just as Joe did, running down the hall, to leave her still fumbling through her papers.
" Pam! Hey, since you're going out today, could you get me some Starbucks too? I really craving one today. I think it’s the pregnancy or something. But anyways I like a Grande caramel Frappacino, hold the ice, extra caramel, extra Extra whip cream. Don't forget the chocolate shavings on top. You got all that?"
" Hey Pam, so you're getting Starbucks?" Another head popped up from behind a cubicle.
“Oh, I’d like one also...please!”
“Oh, Pam. You’re going out today? Do you think you could just…”. The noises blurred into a loud buzz, and they seemed to surround her in the tiny cubicle. Her heart pumped loudly in her ears, adding to the chaos, and the stacks on her desk, a mountain of manila and black and white swayed menacingly, threatening to topple on her. She moved as they rocked toward and pushed her hands out against them, so that they spilled over the desk, in a whorl wind of papers on the floor.
"NO, NO I am not. I'm done with this. I can't handle all of you people anymore. I'm sick you're dumping on me. I've been picking up your trash for years I'm done!"
The office stood in silence as she marched out.