Abstract

This thesis explores the deceptive role of perception in the understanding of emotions, based highly on the "new look" psychological approach to perception. Using expressive emotional black and white photographs and layering multiple prints for each image, I created multiple perceptual "lens" by delicately ripping circular windows through each photograph to give a glimpse to the next. The interaction between emotion and memory is created through the emphasis of a surrealist style of photography. The nude transcends a sexual form to become a junction of a variety of masks through use of formalist elements masked by shadow, blurred tiers achieved by a slow exposure time, framing that zooms in on the delicacies of the human form, and new vantage points that highlight the body from unaccustomed perspectives. The overall body of work is an exploration of the subtle perceptual influences we encounter that alter our accounts of emotions, with the ultimate goal of establishing an unspoken dialogue between emotion and perception. This relationship results in a gross subjective account that will differ every time it is accessed in one's memory.

Advisor

Milligan, Bridget

Department

Art and Art History

Disciplines

Art and Design | Cognition and Perception | Fine Arts | Photography

Keywords

emotion, nudes, surealism, photography, memory, layers

Publication Date

2013

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2013 Emily Koelmel