Clean up Clean up Everybody Everywhere

       I'm not sure what this picture was called, but it was from the retail part of Copia, and it was the one where there is a big mess of clothes piled on top of one another in a store. I see in this picture a bunch of unwanted clothes in a mess on a couple shelves. There is a lot of color, and many different styles of clothing. It's interesting because it looked like the amount of clothes on the shelf was more than what was actually supposed to be there, yet it looked like there was nothing missing from the racks lining the walls. I also noticed that these particular shelves had a sale going, but you cannot see what the sale is because the clothes are all in the way. I think the artist really wanted the mess to stand out in this picture so he made it the biggest thing, and in the center. It doesn't seem like he played with light at all because everything seems to be evenly lit so your eyes are drawn to multiple things at once. I think that the artist took this picture because it symbolizes how people don't care about the little things in life (at least in my opinion). How sometimes people can be selfish. Like they look at a shirt or a piece of clothing on a shelf, decide they don't like it and then just throw it back up on the shelf as if its worthless. In reality it is just a shirt so it kind of is worthless to most people. But to the person that has to organize those shelves every night for the third week in a row, it becomes more than just a shirt. It becomes more tedious work they have to put up with. It is pretty inconsiderate for people to not just take one extra minute from their time to put clothes back where they found them. This picture spoke to me because my sister worked for Aeropostale for a little bit and would always talk about having to organize shelves and tables that always got as messy as this by the end of the day. She constantly had to stay late at work fixing things, and then would come home too exhausted to talk or anything. It took so much out of her. When I am in a store I always try and put things back the way that I found them because I feel like that's just the right thing to do. To me this picture says to slow down. Take time for the little things in life. Life moves too fast and if you don't slow down once in awhile you might miss it. Also it tells me that going too fast and not having consideration for other people, only thinking about yourself, only creates a mess. I mean "mess" metaphorically. Another thing this picture could be saying is, don't procrastinate. Maybe the worker who was supposed to be cleaning off this shelf put it off until the end of the day. That obviously did nothing for him/her because now they have even more work to do. I am a professional procrastinator and I speak from experience when I say that it is better to get your wok done early then to wait until it builds up so that it is not humanly possible for you to get it all done in the short amount of time that you have. I liked this picture and all the colors. Here is the picture: http://notifbutwhen.com/projects/copia/retail/#i32

Human vs Cash

Cash Station* ATM
Chicago place mall in 2009.

CASH STATION ATM in a goldish yellow above three focal lights. The lights are without bulbs and below them is an empty space. A hole which before a atm machine was placed. The wall that 'Cash station ATM' is embedded on appears to be ceramic tile. Starting from the top of the photograph the tile is shinny without impurities. As your eye moves towards the bottom of the photo you notice the age rusted between the tiles that take you to the dirty brick red ground.
The photo made me laugh. I found humor in the fact that this photo was taken down the street in Chicago where people had to have once in time walked by this daily. Also that the bright yellow words 'Cash station atm' is completely misleading for there is no atm but a rusted implication that there once was in fact an atm there. Leaves the viewer questioning 'Where's the ATM?" or more so what the ATM's sole purpose, "where's the money?"
I feel that the artist recognized multiple interpretations from this one photo. I'll list a few that were apparent to me:

atm- a machine that dispenses cash
no atm- no cash?
human vs cash
life? pursuit of happiness.
human belief... the more money the more happy!
no money.  no happiness?
A photograph, a map that reads ATM, X marks NOTHING.

Insinuation.
*****
For me that is just the initial thought. The questioning of why the space still reads "Atm" has me wondering if the business failed. If so, from that chaos? Remove the source of income! Fuck the inscription!  -Just another thought.

PICTURE ANALYSIS

The image that I chose from the collection was one taken in Minneapolis, MN 2004. The photograph depicts either a very androgynous old woman or a man cross dressing while sitting alone in a McDonalds. Her head is cocked to the side as she looks up from her spot at her otherwise vacant 4-person table suggesting what appears to be loneliness or curiosity. Behind her is a man filling up his drink at the soda machine, but he is the only other person captured in the photo. The colors in the picture strike me a lot too. There is a bright teal in the chairs of the table, the woman is wearing a royal blue top, jacket and hairpiece with matching purse, black nylons and dark shoes while the countertop of the soda machine is electric yellow.

My attraction to the image has to do with my love of extraordinary things in ordinary places. I like that this woman has put obvious care into what she has on yet is eating alone at McDonalds (Such a common establishment). I feel like it is a depiction of loneliness and a longing for something more than what you have. This would make sense, also, if the person depicted was actually a man. I believe that the photography utilizes the average and commonplace qualities of McDonalds as a backdrop to let something more magnificent or abnormal standout. It, for me, is a representation of feeling out of place. 

Crying over spilled milk

 http://notifbutwhen.com/projects/copia/retail/#i18




When I look at this image I see of course milk spilled in an aisle not being tended to.  I see, soda being sold very cheap by the pack, a very unhealthy substance.  I see easy living.  To the side being refrigerated is milk, which probably came from unkempt cows.  The walls are wooden, light brown and the floors are tile. 

I think the artist uses great lightening in this photo, to get some point across.  The lighting is nice but it is a dim kind of nice.  Its not pure light, so the mood comes off a little uneasy. 

I feel like the spilled milk could represent, carelessness.  Food is no longer as difficult to get as it used to be, with this easy leisureliness comes carelessness.  Milk is spilled on the floor and no one is tending to it.  Maybe they will later but that's not the point.  People no longer cry over spilled milk when they should.  We have lost value for almost every food idem there is in a typical grocery store.  Why would we care, I mean its right there for us.  Ready to be bought.  We have created a system, to make life easier for ourselves.  We don't care how we get the milk so much as when and how good it tastes. 

Picture

http://notifbutwhen.com/projects/copia/retail/#i4

This image shows us the cashiers of a huge supermarket (target), it has more than 31 cashiers, which represents the need for faster lines, since the demand is so big in those types of stores.. Although the picture is representing the amount of lines needed, there's not much people in the store, we can see three people shopping and five cashiers open.

The red is definitely a predominant colour, specially because it's the representation of target brand, the perspective of the pictures makes it look even bigger, and never ending hallway of lines available and it's very geometrical.

I feel like the artist with this picture represents how American Supermarkets look, there's a huge demand since the population is so big, there's a big need for more line so we can hurry up our shopping, everyone is always in a hurry, the faster the better, there's an efficiency looking of all of that.. But at the same time, maybe the exaggeration of cashiers since there's not much people in the store. The artist represents the "go big or go home" statement of america..

Life isn't always a Disney fairytale

Describe- This photo is of a little girl who seems to be in a Disney Store. There are Disney stuffed animals stocked on the shelves along with other Disney merchandize. There is a main television screen in the center of the photo made up of 4 different screens, the image in on the screen is of the castle in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World. 

Analyze- I feel like the photographer chose this particular setting and situation to display innocence and childhood. You see a little girl surrounded by Disney characters and everything seems happy and bright. Most childhoods are remembered to be bright, fun, sweet, and overall pure innocence and in my opinion that’s what genuine innocent of childhood I see in this photograph. 

Interpret- I feel that the artist created this work to show how innocent we all were once. I  think that this photo looks the way it does to showcase how much childhood has effected us all in one way or another. Also to display how much we grow up to see things differently and once we look back at childhood and our innocence, we see that life isn’t always a Disney fairytale.

Trash or treasure?

1. The image I chose to examine is from Brian Ulrich's "Thrift" collection. The image portrays American popstar Britney Spears. From just being a Britney fan, I know that this image inside the image is from her early career, around her "Hit Me Baby One More Time" era. It appears the photo was taken in a metal garage with wood boards nailed up all around . Scattered across the floor is rand debris, including a bathroom sink. The whole mood of the piece gives off this sense of the "American Wasteland."

 2. The shiny metal background of the garage brings The audiences attention to Britney Spears. The wood planks that are affixed on the shiny metal background also directs our attention towards the centerpiece, which is Britney. The debris on the ground keeps making our attention shift fr Britney back to the garbage and then back to Britney again. The color of the debris is mostly dull colors with a few pops of baby blue and bright pink. The image of Britney Spears is also oddly shaped, it isn't just rectangle or square shape but rather some awkward rectangle with a cut out on either side. This sense of abnormality makes us study the overview photo deeply because something so slight is just off.

 I think the artist, Brian Ulrich, chose to create this work because of the irony behind it. Placing America's sweetheart and pop sensation in a barren, blank room next to random trash is quite ironic. I also think that the trash is symbolic of Britney's past career. Up to when Britney shaved her head in 2007, her career was in shambles and her personal life wasn't so personal when the entire world knew every detail. The image of Britney pinned up during the hay day of her career in the early 2000's when everyone loved her. I'm also going to throw out another idea, online some people dramatize that Britney Spears shaved her head in 2007 for our sins. The way the image of Britney is hung up is very similar to the crucifixion of Jesus, who, "died for our sins." So there might be a connection between the two sacrificing for others sins.