INTRO AND THINGS I LEARNED:
1. My name is Caroline Galderisi. I am a photography major at Parsons School of Design, and I plan on also pursuing a creative writing minor. Outside of this, I have a passion for making installation layouts (curation), graphic design, and poetry. A lot of my photography is experimental and personal, and my goal is to develop a recognizable style.
2. In the more tactile and less conceptual classes, I didn’t incorporate as much of a personal narrative to the works like I usually do. My own story, I believe, spans to a broader audience of people who need to hear what I’ve encountered in my life.
3. The themes I found repeating on me this year included nostalgia, trauma, growth, triumph, personal identity, and culture. If one were in the foreground, the other would still be there, trailing behind in my mind.
4. Learning how to layout graphics correctly and carefully choose proper text during my first day of school was a valuable skill. I learned how to interpret gallery/ exhibition art in Tom’s Studio class. I learned the importance of giving young people the confidence to get over rough periods in Elisha’s class. I learned that when you genuinely care, the work is better. I learned everything, from finding myself to working a sewing machine.
5. Between my academic studies and studio making, I found the common theme was identity and the way we perceive, label, define, etc. Also, the way society sees functions, names, and moves from idea to trend to the next new thing.
6. I think doing hands-on research, and deriving ideas from personal experience made the projects better and more enjoyable. As for papers, exploring human elements and functions that were different from what everyone else talked about kept things interesting.
7. Further research could have helped me for my final project in Time, and Sustainable Systems. I could have furthered my findings and looked deeper into violence as a current definition, especially in the way our political and social climate has been since the era of Trump. I also could have looked deeper into the environmental impact the photo industry has made.
2 HIGHLIGHTS:
1. In Elisha’s class when we got in touch with our senses.
We tasted a donut, and the idea was to guess the flavor by describing it as well and personally as possible. All the flavors were different.
PROCESS:
I first felt the donut and described the physical texture in detail. I also explained what it reminded me of. I did this for all the senses. Afterward, I drew the donut and smudged some of the caramel icing onto the page for scent. I successfully uncovered the flavor as nonother then caramel apple. If I were to do this differently, I would have gone deeper into myself to depict the donut or an everyday object. This would train me to think more like a writer.
2. In Michie’s Class when I visited Little Italy.
We were assigned to depict an area of Manhattan in a photo essay format, so I picked Little Italy.
PROCESS:
I visited the neighborhood a few times, once to get a feel for things and to document my initial reaction. I had come up with a plan for what I wanted to do before I had gone, and that was the problem. Being that it was nothing like I had thought, I wonder what direction my project might have gone if I had waited some time. If I were to do this differently, I would have interviewed more than three people, and perhaps another take to the project.
OVERALL:
The opportunities I had throughout the year and the people I met make me so glad I attend Parsons. My first semester was especially dear to me as I had created the foundation for my art discipline, as well as the confidence to continue. As all lovely things come to an end, I had to say goodbye to my favorite classes. However, with the digging and adapting I did, I was able to thrive the second semester. I can now call myself an artist and feel no doubt in my words.
GOING FORWARD:
I want to pursue ideas of philosophy, the mind, and the depths of our reality into my work. I want to tell more stories. I want to taste, feel, touch, smell, and hear the world and feel completely present. I want to tell stories, but of the people that I meet. I want to travel somewhere and be vastly alone. I want to grow in my technical abilities as a photographer and filmmaker and upgrade my equipment. I want to make an installation mix and hold a real exhibition.
MY WORK THROUGHOUT THE YEAR ig link:
https://www.instagram.com/cargal2000/?hl=en
