Artist’s Statement

I chose a verse and the chorus of the Matchbox Twenty song, These Hard Times.

This portion of the song captures the emotion I wanted to evoke in my images and in turn

the visual aesthetic I portrayed. It is evident the song starts out in a dreary fashion full of

frustration and disturbance. It describes cheerless emotions of broken promises,

hopelessness and feeling down. I captured this feeling by reducing the vibrancy of my

photos and giving them a vintage, washed out, almost depressing look in terms of color. I

also edited my photos to have a grungy and aged visual style in order to further convey

these feelings. As the song moves to the chorus, it has more of an optimistic turn as it

describes seeking a release from the bad times and feelings of despair. I was particularly

inspired by the lines “when all we need is some relief through these hard times,” and used

this as the focus for my photos. I saw this line as expressing the desire to come alive again

and I used the idea of inspirational and motivational quotes to portray this in my photos.

Just as the start of the lyrics are gloomy but then move into the idea of seeking relief, my

photos are surrounded by grungy effects; however, the inspirational quotes oppose this.

In the first photo, I paid particular attention to the rule of thirds and made sure the

focal point appeared in a place that was interesting and unique. The quote I chose goes

along with this idea, as it describes having the courage to be different by letting go of the

familiar. In the second photo, I used a photo of people jumping and paired it with a quote

that uses the idea of jumping as a metaphor for bravery and pushing the boundaries. The

grungy and vintage effects are evident around the edges in contrast to the excitement

portrayed in the center of the photo. In the third photo, I took it from an angle that would

emphasize the surrounding of the mirror and the image of the girl. I positioned the sticky

note and quote in a place that was noticeable and in contrast to the mirror. Again, the

grunge is apparent on the mirror to add to the vintage and antique look. In the fourth

photo, the material of the table was a perfect choice to convey the aged and worn out visual

style. I added more grungy effects to the notepad and paired it with the small detail of the

heart shape in the coffee cup. I took the photo from a high angle to give the idea of looking

down on something, but used the inspirational quote to contradict this angle. In the final

photo, the bare trees and washed out colors serve as the parallel to the beginning of the

song lyrics, while the quote and wide smile of the girl’s face oppose this feeling. The grunge

additions to the photo help to portray the vintage and aged look.

I chose the visual aesthetics of

grungy and vintage as well as

washed out colors. This style

fits with the way the lyrics

convey a sense of frustration

and lifelessness. I used

Photoshop to edit my photos

by reducing their vibrancy and

adding grunge effects.

Lyrics – Matchbox Twenty, These Hard Times

Everyone keeps talking

They promise you everything

They don't mean anything

We may lose our focus

There's just too many words

We're never meant to learn

And we don't feel so alive

Say goodbye, these days are gone

And we can't keep holding on

When all we need is some relief

Through these hard times

Aesthetic – grungy, vintage, washed out colors

These lyrics start out in a

cheerless, almost

depressing manner. As the

song moves into the

chorus, we get the feeling

of moving on and seeking

release from the hard

times. This opposition of

emotions served as the

inspiration for my photos.