Barthes Response

When I read the essay I thought a lot about advertisement and how a lot of times you need the words to figure out what they are trying to sell. I thought about this fragrance ad and realized that if it were not for the words "fragrance for women" I would have absolutely no idea what this ad was trying to sell. It looks more like it's advertising apples than a fragrance so this image really does depend on the words included on it.
On a denotation level we can tell that there is a man and a woman and apples, one of which is obviously fake. We can also tell that it is a fragrance ad because of the print "fragrance for women" printed on the ad.
On a connotation level we can tell that the advertisers are trying to sell attractiveness and sex. The look and in the woman's eyes and the way her mouth is parted along with the way the man is gazing at her suggest lust. The use of the apples also adds a seductive aspect, mirroring Adam and Eve. The advertisers are not just trying to sell a fragrance, they are trying to sell the idea that wearing the fragrance will make men more attracted to you and lustful towards you.

Visual Journal Entry 4

Mirzoeff Response

Reading this article two sentences stuck out to me and reminded me of a picture that I took last year. Mirzoeff said "When ordinary people pose themselves in the most flattering way they can, they take over the role as artist-as-hero. Each selfie is a performance of a person as they hope to be seen by others." I read that and immediately thought of this selfie I took and how that was the exact reason I took this picture. 

Annie Leibovitz

I think what makes Annie Leibovitz's portraits portraits is the story that she tells through them. She does not just take a picture of someone smiling, she tells you something about the person through the picture. Whether it is joy or sorrow or angst or fear or indifference, you can picture a story in your head when you look at the portrait.

I think the one thing that stands out to me in her portraits are the eyes of her models. I do not know what it is about them but when I look at one of her pictures I am immediately drawn to the eyes and what they are saying. It makes me feel as if I am looking into that person's soul, that I can feel what they are feeling.

I think if I were going to do a portrait in her style, I would really focus on the eyes of my model. I would make sure that all the emotion and the story came from their eyes. I feel like so much can be depicted from just the eyes and I think that she does an amazing job at capturing that and I feel like that is what makes her so successful. When I look at one of her pieces, it just draws me in and encapsulates me. I do not want to look away and I think that is a hard thing to do in art but something that is so important.

Visual Journal Entry 3

A Portrait of Happiness 

A Portrait of Peace 

A Portrait of Disgust

Dillard Response

When I read Dillard's essay, the one thing I got out of it is that sometimes we look at things but don't actually see them. I walk by the muddy river every single day and never really stop to actually look at it. But last year I did and when I did I realized that when it's snowy and frozen over it looks exactly like the river that went through the middle of Christmas village that my dad put up in our house every year. It made me realize how often I don't actually see the things around me in life. 

Visual Journal Entry 2

These pictures are my favorite pictures from home. When I think about home, I think about the calmness and quietness that was my house. I also remember the beauty that I ignored for so long and how the sky glowed with the rising and setting of the sun. When I look at these pictures, the one word that I think about is peace.