Polly Von
Session Title
Other Abstracts
Faculty Mentor
Claudia O'Steen, M.F.A.| Mark Hamilton, B.F.A.
College
College of Visual and Performing Arts
Department
Fine Arts
Abstract
In my exhibition work, titled Polly Von, I explore the themes of tragedy, regret, and emotion through the use of digital photographs and audio. This series tells the story of a huntsman who devastatingly mistakes his true love for a swan and murders her in the forest. It recounts his emotional journey afterward and his feelings of loss and guilt that follow in the wake of his error. The series of eight prints follows the lyrics from Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Polly Von” (1963). This heartbreaking melody is echoed within the highly emotive facial expressions and body language represented in the images. My editing process reflects the story-like quality of a cinematic atmosphere. Viewers have access to headphones that play the song as they view each scene, making that connection of words to pictures. In this series the narrative is completely linear and provides a storybook retelling of a tragic tale. I chose this song in particular because the lyrics have always given me a complete set of images in my head when I listen to them. I recreated those images exactly how I imagined them in order to show my viewers a sense of my mind’s eye.
Start Date
15-4-2023 12:00 PM
Polly Von
In my exhibition work, titled Polly Von, I explore the themes of tragedy, regret, and emotion through the use of digital photographs and audio. This series tells the story of a huntsman who devastatingly mistakes his true love for a swan and murders her in the forest. It recounts his emotional journey afterward and his feelings of loss and guilt that follow in the wake of his error. The series of eight prints follows the lyrics from Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Polly Von” (1963). This heartbreaking melody is echoed within the highly emotive facial expressions and body language represented in the images. My editing process reflects the story-like quality of a cinematic atmosphere. Viewers have access to headphones that play the song as they view each scene, making that connection of words to pictures. In this series the narrative is completely linear and provides a storybook retelling of a tragic tale. I chose this song in particular because the lyrics have always given me a complete set of images in my head when I listen to them. I recreated those images exactly how I imagined them in order to show my viewers a sense of my mind’s eye.
