Melissa Harshman: Acrobats
Artist(s):
Title:
- Acrobats
Exhibition:
Creation Year:
- 2004
Medium:
- Inkjet print
Size:
- 21 inches x 13.5 inches
Category:
Artist Statement:
In Acrobats, the two women in the balancing pose serve as a metaphor for the challenging and hectic situations we face daily in a “multi-tasking” society. On a personal level, the movie starlets, numerical calculations, and counting marks signify cultural pressures to succeed and what that means. In contrast, the lotus flowers represent the inner, spiritual aspects of my life. The acrobats, therefore, symbolize the attempt to synthesize and balance conflicts that arise from these opposing desires.
Technical Information:
Acrobats began with a scan of a small image taken from the Athletic Association Handbook of North Carolina College for Women, 1927-1928. The small image was sized up to a much larger scale. Other images from sources such as old scrapbooks, memo books, and fragments from some of my other digital images were collaged and layered with the original photograph using Adobe Photoshop. The image was then re-worked until the desired outcome was achieved.
