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This is my contribution to @everlove's collaborative art making exercise. This is the first time in a long time I've pulled out Photoshop and attempted anything creative in quite some time. Please find below my process for the creation of this image.
With the theme being take action, I figured using the provided image as a stamp, with a letter to the detached parliments of the world from their people's needs being a great starting point for an image.
Here I've progressed, using the original image to create a background. The letter / paper is slightly transluscent to get the papery texture implemented (created by render -> fibre). The QR code was generated online and the "postage stamp" was generated by typing text and distorting it in Photoshop. If you zoom in really close, you can read them both. ;)
I also didn't like the transperancy, so I removed it, by adding a layer mask on the bottom layer, allowing the white background to passthrough. At this stage, I feel as though the image looks far too manufactured, in particular, the envelope. It looks like something that you would see behind a news presenter.
This isn't the normal style of work that I tend to produce. There's no evidence of what needs to change, or what action needs to be taken on what issue, because we live in a time where everything is an issue, no matter how irrelevant or important it is. Lobbyists, interested parties, corporations, and other groups want to try and influence the governments of the world through whatever means.
Be this through stifling innovation, or not adopting a certain way of doing things; or stating that we should take x from z; there is a lack of foresight and planning from the governments of the worlds to secure the future of the their citizens in a global village.
I am rambling about politics. I know nothing about politics. I don't care about politics.
I just think it is a futile thing, not agile enough, be it democracy, aristocracy, or a dictatorship, no form of government is agile enough and flexible enough to nurture, progress and adapt to the increasingly rapid proliferation of technology and ideas.
Rant over, back to the art making.
We never know truly who anyone is, even after we've met them, even after we've spent time with them. Even after we've seen them angry, seen them sad, seen them happy. Shadows are the ultimate form of anonymity; and personify enigma. Not joy, like those shitty iphone / ipod ads used to do back in the day.
Still not my normal style of work - but thematically, message wise, I'm getting there. We need to take action before the cycle gets worse. The silhouettes are bought in, royalty free, from pixabay.
One of my favourite pieces of software is Particle Illusion. I've used it extensively in my photo and video work in the past. It lets you generate motion, and my favourite thing to do with it is just experiment. This time, I'm going with intent, to create some falling feathers to add a sense of innocence lost to this image.
There's literally thousands of emitter libraries, and you can change the physical properties and variables for everything. It's time to dig in and see if I can find the feather emitters.
Found them!
This is then used as an overlay, adding to about the thirty layers I already have, increasing the sense of movement throughout the image.
I feel at this stage, the work is finally complete.
