An attraction towards the darkness isn’t uncommon. We have all been intrigued by the things that we don’t understand, and sometimes some of us are intrigued by the mystery of the things that scare us. Why are we afraid? Why are we curious to find out more? Shouldn’t we avoid what we fear? If so, why do I feel so compelled to understand it… Allure of Darkness is an exploration of this curiosity and attraction through a series of investigative works. A collection of mediums will be employed to investigate concepts of darkness, beauty, and lure, leading to one final collection of pieces. Not only would a concept be explored, but unfamiliar mediums and forms I haven’t previously used would also be implemented. Research would consist of an analysis of the reasons why we’re curious about the darkness.
I will limit myself to 3-5 exploratory works and one final piece of desired, the latter being ideal. Each exploratory piece will focus on a different aspect that intrigues me about darkness. This may include witches, monsters, the supernatural, ominous locations, etc. Along with the concept of curiosity, these exploratory pieces will touch on how different aspects may present themselves to us. The larger piece will be relation to the overall idea of an attraction and curiosity to darkness, and may incorporate more than one aspect.
The exception will be placed in two connected rooms, with the explorations in one room and the final piece the other. The idea of an attraction to darkness will be employed through the use of lighting in the room. The pieces will be displayed around a dark room, with spotlights illumination only the pieces and nothing else. A light will be shined from behind the final piece rather than at it. Bellow is a diagram of the display:
I believe the next step would be to narrow down my 3-5 exploratory topics and begin brainstorming how I’ll elaborate upon them in each piece (bellow is a sketch of monster-esk figure created by Ken Currie). As I begin the creation of these pieces I should keep in mind the final piece, actively thinking about what and how to incorporate discoveries in to the final. My research question is yet to be set, however I will be exploring something in the lines of why we are interested in what we are scared of (in this case, and more specifically, darkness). After narrowing down the question I will look in to both cultural and psychological analysis’s of curiosity of the unknown and how we as humans react to fear.
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