Illustration:
Third Place, Most Creative

Meredith Marlay
Savannah College of Art & Design

Someone Like You

Artist's Statement: The conceptual design for this piece began with the idea of the many standards placed on an individual in this modern, fast-paced society we live in. All of these restrictions and pressures seem to swallow an individual out of living and into a mindless designated spot in the "machine" of humankind. Without options or freedom of thinking, everyone falls into a position through no choice of his own. Many of the standards of present-day society are seemingly justified, but because of the nature of their reason, they seem to imprison the very act of self-preservation and designation. Whatever happened to live life as you wish? In a way, we all act as though we have the freedom to do what we will with the very short time we have on this planet, but in actuality, if we do not follow a certain unwritten guideline, then we are frowned upon by our peers. Even the way we present ourselves can allow for criticism. It is human nature that confines the possibilities of rebelliousness and difference.

In the piece, Someone Like You, words and the form of a human were placed together closely to allow the two to exist as they do sensibly in reality. From studies in color theory and design, red was selected to indicate the intensity of the actual feelings on one panel and the other allowed for the crowdedness of the words to preclude to abomination. The form of the man was adapted from a studio portrait with a digital camera and then used in the design by means of manipulation with Adobe® Photoshop® 6.0. Simplicity was the overall purpose of this design to provide a clear revelation of the meaning of the images. The words are random, recreated stereotypical sayings, standards, and goals that we expect of each other as part of being a "presentable model citizen." Such phrases as "sleep eight hours a day, get married, have two children, get a dog, go to college, exercise at least three to four times a week," etcetera are used.

The piece is a diptych to show the contrasting position of an individual; the left is a distinction of an individual, and the right is the rendition of the pressures of life, in word form, placed on that individual. On the left, the figure is filled with words presenting a person, "someone like you," truly any person. Though you see the man in his integrity; he is only made up of the standards and goals set for him, which fill his being. On the outside he is a free man, yet in his sub-conscious there is always the checklist of obstacles to conquer. Under him, the saying of the title "someone like you" is presented to show the viewer the universality of his state. The right side is more dramatic, allowing the words to cover the man, and run over the page indicating there is no end to the demands of life. Though he exists independently, he is over-powered by the words. He becomes just a shadow-like outline in the midst of so much going on and so much to do, lost in a crowd.