Period 3 -- Critical Analysis #21

5/6/2019

Today you will write about this image from artist John William Keedy's series titled It's Hardly Noticeable. Keedy is an photographer based in San Antonio, and he created this series after being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.

Write 5 paragraphs, 5 sentences minimum per paragraph. Remember, refer to your "How to See" handout for analyzing a photograph--Your analyses will be graded on:

meeting minimum length requirements
depth of organization
evaluation of the content
grammar/punctuation

To learn more about Keedy's series, click here: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2014/08/12/338812101/a-life-of-anxiety-documented

11 Comments

mariah podwika

5/6/2019 08:45:46 am

The image is of a cup of milk that has, as far as we can see, 6 holes where a liquid is pouring out. This background is very plain, and so is the surroundings of the milk. There is an unambiguous indication of a studio set-up because of the plainness of the backdrop and the way that the table has nothing else on it. The white is extenuated through the use of the uniform background and the brown reflective table. In the image, milk is pouring out of the holes in the cup and onto the glossy table.
The cup of milk pouring out onto the table is very clearly the center of focus. This is shown, again, by the monochrome background and the glossy table. The first thing that my eyes go to is the cup and the very appearance of the milk gushing out of it. The vertical lines of the cup lead your eyes up to the rest of the holes, and the same goes with the milk that is coming out of the holes. The whiteness of the liquid is very offsetting from the darkness of the backdrop and table, so that frames it as the focal point.
The first thing that I thought of when I saw this image was the saying, “Don’t cry over spilled milk.” Knowing that the person who photographed this image was diagnosed with anxiety, it makes sense. The idea of milk spilling all over the table is sticky and gives me anxiety because when I was little, and I spilled stuff I would be chastised. Just the idea of milk gushing all over the place gives me anxiety, which I would assume is the point of the piece. The way that the milk is going off the edges of the table makes me shiver because of the mess that it would have made.
The idea of a cup breaking like this and spewing out the milk like this is highly improbable. But, so is most of the stuff that anxious people come up with, I would know. My mind always goes to the worst-case scenario over the smallest things. This image is something that only a hugely anxious person would come up with. It makes sense that the person who created this image would have anxiety because no one with a standard set of rationing skills would think of a glass spilling like this.
I like the concept of this image, and all the others in this series. However, I don’t like the way it makes me feel. It really triggers my mind and causes it to race. It’s not a good feeling. But, I understand why it’s essential for these to exist, it’s to teach people without anxiety what it’s like to have anxiety. It is not something to mess around with, and I think this series is a perfect show for how serious it is.

Claire Rollwitz

5/6/2019 08:46:07 am

The image is of a glass of milk sitting on a table. It's not your ordinary glass of milk because there are holes in the cup causing milk to spew out on the sides. There is milk dripping down the sides of the table and making a mess. The colors used in the photograph are dull and neutral except for the white milk that stands out. The lighting in the picture uses good, studio light.

The composition function is pleasing to look at. The glass is centered nicely in the middle of the picture. The point of view from which this photograph was taken is eye-level of a person looking at the glass of milk. The focal point in this image is the glass of milk. The shallow depth of field that is being used in this image helps to bring out the focal point by focusing the image on the glass and slightly blurring the background.

The lines in this image that my eyes are directed to are the ones on the cup and the white lines made by the milk spewing out of the glass. This image is asymmetrical because the glass of milk is centered in the photograph and the milk is spilling out on both sides. The glass does not fill up the entire frame. The image is cutting off a little bit of milk that is dripping out of the glass and off the table. The positive space in this image is the glass and the milk spewing out of it.

The themes in the image by Keedy depict his internal struggle with anxiety. Keedy uses his photograph to show his emotion and represent how he feels. In this image, I think the glass of milk sitting on the table represents his life. There are holes in the glass which make the milk spew out of the sides, representing how he isn’t just a perfect glass of milk sitting on the table. He is battling with anxiety, and it sometimes feels like his life is spilling all over the place.

I like Keedy’s photograph and the images in his collection. I think the photos are all interesting to look at. I think Keedy was successful with this image. He does a great job of using objects to tell a story of his life and emotions. Keedy told his audience of how he concealed his anxiety, and what he really feels on the inside. He put heart and passion into his artwork.

Matthew Sutherland

5/6/2019 08:47:22 am

The image is of a clear milk glass. The glass has several holes in it. Milk is flowing out of the holes and onto the brown table. The milk is spilling off of the table and onto the floor. The background of this image kind of looks like a blackish-grayish soundproof wall.

The image is using a lot of dark grays, browns, and whites. The lighting of this image is studio setup with some dark shadows. The light appears to be coming from the top of the image. The image is pleasing to look at, but the milk spilling is a bit uncanny. The rule of thirds is not being used, as the image is in the center of the image.

The image is from the photographer’s point of view, who is looking at the milk glass head on. This image has a shallow depth of field. The focal point of the image is the glass of milk. There are lines on the wall in the background and lines of milk spilling out of the holes in the glass. These lines direct the viewer’s eye to the focal point, the glass of milk. The image is asymmetrical. The subject, the glass of milk, only fills up the center part of image, not the entire image.

The story of this image is that the creator of the image was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and wanted to find a way to deal with it. He used this image, as well as all of the other images in the series of images, to help deal with his anxiety. This image reminds me of cursed images. Cursed images are images of things that seem creepy, supernatural, or uncanny. Cursed images can be interesting. This image also looks interesting to me.

I like this image. I like it because I really like milk. I also like the lighting of the image. The fact that it seems like a cursed image to me also makes it interesting and makes me like it more. If this image helped the artist deal with his anxiety, then I believe the image is successful.

Eden Vogelsang

5/6/2019 08:48:38 am

This image is of a cup filled with milk. The cup has form what you can see 7 holes with milk spilling out. The cup is resting on a brown table with the spilled milk pouring over the sides. This mage has a very dull background to make sure that the white milk would be seen clearly. The setup and the timing of the picture make the milk look as if it was fake.

The photographer john william keedy used dark colors to accentuate the milk. He used a dark grey background, and a dark brown table. The whiteness to popping out with those dark colors. It's good that he used these colors bc if not the subject would not be seen. The colors were a good choice.

The lighting is very dark. There are dark shadows in the corners of the image. If there were bright lights it wouldn't look the greatest. The darkness off the photo makes the milk n=look staged and almost nice. Iut makes the milk look pleasing to look at.

The rule of thirds is not being used. The glass of milk is sitting right on the table perfectly straight. Not once is it slightly moved to the right or left. The camera of straight and well angled with the subject. The alignment was very well done.

If you look at this image it will make you have some anxiety. Only because of how the milk is spilling over the sides and how the hole are placed. It really is very contradictory because it's pleasing to look at but all anxiety filled. I like the picture even though i think of eating cereal and accidentally spilling the milk on you and it's cold and sticky.

Sergio Sanchez

5/6/2019 08:48:46 am

The image of a leaky bottle of milk by John William Kennedy is only using 3 tones of colors which is kind of sad and gives it a vibe of evil. And the lighting of the image is very good on the glass of leaky milk and it is very dark around it and in the image the milk is leaking and falling of the table as if it were real milk.

The composition of the image is very good and the image shows how thing should be and how they would go by having the milk have bubbles that are not transparent though is looks a lot like glue. The depth of field is focused on the milk, table and spillage and everything else is kind of blurry to keep you focused on the milk.

The ideas of the image are to show how things can just go out of order through small leaks and how much damage a small leak can cause and the story behind this image was a sad person serving milk on a leaky glass and just ran away and left the milk leaking.

I like this photograph because it has some cool realistic leaks in the image and the image is very successful even though there is no real milk and what gave away that it is not real milk was how there is more spillage than the empty part in the glass and how the bubbles are not transparent. Though the image is very good and I liked it.

The image must have been very hard to make because of how the milk was spilled and if it was real milk a very fast shutter speed would be needed. The table in this image is very good so Jhon will probably want to keep it but it will be very hard to clean up that milk from the table

Clara Blume

5/6/2019 08:49:34 am

This image is of a glass of milk. The glass has holes in it causing the milk to spurt out onto a small, circular, brown table and flow over the edge. The glass looks like one you would get at a restaurant. The background is a dark grey, almost black and has a very subtle grid pattern. The colors of the mini table and the background are dark which makes the white of the milk stand out. The lighting appears to be studio lighting.

This image is very pleasing to look at because of the colors used. I really like the contrast of the white milk on the dark background. The rule of thirds is not being used because the glass and the table are centered in the frame. The depth of field being used is shallow. The glass and the surface of the table are in focus but the streams of milk running over the sides of the table are not. The focal point is the glass of milk. It is framed by the puddles and streams of milk on and over the table. It is also framed by the edge of the table.

The image is mostly balanced outside of there being more milk on the right side of the table than the left. The shadow of the glass is also cast to the left, causing it to be darker. I think there is extra space above the glass. I believe it would have been better to show more of the drips over the side of the table. The frame cuts off the left and right sides of the table as well as the milk streaming over the edge of the table.

I think the theme of the idea is anxiety, much like the artist (John William’s) condition and the rest of the works in this particular project. I think that the image are particularly anxiety inducing because the image would be “perfect” without the holes in the glass. It would just be a glass of milk on a nice wood table. The holes give the picture an aura of something that desperately needs to be fixed. This image reminds me of the phobia of holes called trypophobia.

I think this image challenges the belief that art should be peaceful and/or calming. The fact that this image is anxiety inducing is alone enough to raise some eyebrows. I think this image is noteworthy for that reason. I really like this photograph because of the colors and the contrast but also because of its ability to make the viewer uncomfortable. I think this image is very successful in portraying the artist’s disorder and the way he sees things.

Henry Cool link

5/6/2019 08:51:01 am

In this image there is a glass of milk with holes punched in the side to make it flow out onto the table, and even start to drip off the table. This image uses white, brown, and black which pleases the eye more because they all blend together. Plus the dark brown and black allow for the white of the milk to really pop out. This image does not seem to use many shadows, and since it is in a studio there is a pretty strong source of light hitting it. Also The photographer had to make sure that the holes were spaced out correctly in order for the streams to flow in its own direction instead of totally merging with the other stream.

In order to make this image the photographer did not need many props, and everything was probably pretty cheap. It is obviously taken in a studio with artificial light which really brings out the other colors, and brightens the picture up. To catch the streams of milk with no blur the photographer had to use a pretty high shutter speed. The depth of field is pretty shallow allowing the viewer to focus on the subject, and allowed the viewer to see the different textures. I think this because the background looks kind of fuzzy or ruff while the table is smooth, and the milk even adds another layer of smoothness.

I believe the image is pleasing to look at because it uses the colors really well. The rule of thirds is not being used. There is a shallow depth of field allowing the viewer to focus on the main subject. The image is pretty balanced accept for the streams of milk which are uneven, but create a pretty cool effect. The edge of the image is mostly background, but at one point the photographer decided to cut of the two furthest sides of the table.

A idea in this image is to create anxiety. There is no story being told in this image. The artist made this image in order to represent their own anxiety and mental illness which shows the viewer how they feel all the time. The image does not remind me of anything, nor question any of my beliefs. I believe the image is both interesting and beautiful because it is put together in such an amazing way, and really shows how colors can complement each other.

This image was a very interesting sight, everything was put so well together to create such a beautiful image. This is why I liked the image. The photographer was really successful. I say this because he was able to draw out the viewer’s senses in order to try and create a sense of anxiety which he did. Finally he was, again, able to put the image so well together and catch the right beautiful moment.

EmmaKate Spies

5/6/2019 08:55:18 am

This image is of a glass of milk on a table with holes. The milk is shooting out of the holes in the glass. The colors that are being used are white for the milk and brown for the table. The lighting that is being used is studio light. The objects that are used are a glass of milk, a table, and a cool looking wall for a background. What is happening in the image is milk is spewing out of a glass on to the table and then on to the floor because of the holes in the glass.
The image is composed in a stressful manner and it is not really pleasing to look at because of the amount of stress that I feel while looking at the image. The rule of thirds is being used and it looks organized and neat. The point of view that is being used is of someone looking at the glass with the milk spewing out. There is a shallow depth of field that is being used in this image. The focal point of the image is the glass and its framed by the table that it sits on. The lines attract my eyes to the holes in the glass. The image is balanced because there is equal holes on each side. The subject does not fill the frame. The frame crops off a small piece of the table. The positive space is the glass and the holes in the front and the negative space is the holes in the back.
The themes or ideas that are in this image are don’t leave the glass half full because you never know when it could leak. There is not a story being told in this image. I think that the artist made this image because there is something satisfying in the fact that the milk is leaking and spilling everywhere. This photograph does not remind me of anything in particular. This photograph also doesn’t challenge any beliefs or assumptions. This image however is interesting, it is interesting because of the idea that the artist had to photograph milk spewing out of holes in a glass. The idea for that is unique and interesting.
I like it because it’s unique but I also don’t really like it because it causes me some stress because it’s making a mess. The thought of milk spilling on the floor and creating a sticky mess it gross and not a pleasant thought. I think that this photograph is successful because of its uniqueness. I have never seen another image that has a glass with milk spewing out of holes in the side of the glass. I also like it for the background. The background is interesting and I wonder what he used to make the background interesting.
Another one of John William Keedy’s photographs that I find kind of stressful is the one with the tons boxes and packages on the porch and the screen door open. This one causes me stress because I like to know where my packages and letters are when I get them. There are so many on the porch that I feel like it would take me days just to figure out who sent them. I also think that it causes stress because of the way it looks. It looks messy and unorganized. I am a very organized person and I like to know where everything is and when I can’t find anything I get stressed and anxious.

teresa lei

5/6/2019 08:59:15 am

A cup of milk is in the middle of the image. It stands on a wooden table with milk leaking out from the side. It seems like a little fountain despise that the holes on the cup are not symmetrical. The wooden table could not hold the flow of the milk and it drips down to the ground. The background is dark gray, but it appears to be gray simply because there is light hitting on it.

It uses the rule of third. The upper 2/3 portion of the image is cut by the table. At the same time, the image is also symmetrical if we look at it vertically. In between the symmetrical structure, the lines of the details appear to be unbalanced and tilted. The flow of the milk spills indifferent angle, which does create a weird sensation of uncomfort. The color of the milk contrasts with the background and the table which makes it stand out from the background and become a positive space.

the image belongs to John William Keedy's series It's Hardly Noticeable. According to the author's statement. The key to the series is to reveal the relationship between reality and perception. The milk image gives a sense of hallucination and abnormalcy under a symmetrical structure, which struck my nerve at the same time feels the absurdity of the image. Overall, I think the image is a humorous representation of the author's view to the subjects around him, and question the normalcy that we see in life.

I personally am not a big fan of the image. I like it when I see the whole series, but if I pick it out individually I wouldn't like it that much. It's a fun image in the aspect of composition and idea, but the color does not especially strike me nor does the main subject of the picture. For a simple image, I feel like there are too many details, but if to say it's a complex image I feel like there's not enough. The way he challenges the norm of the society is respectable and put it within that series it's a successful image.

The author uses a shallow depth of field in this image, which means he sets a low aperture. He also uses high shutter speed to capture the flowing fluid. I also think that in order to achieve an image like that he has to use the strategy of compositing. Photoshop might have involved in the process of making the photo. Thus, the light that brightens the scene should be an artificial light.

Farouk Ramzan

5/6/2019 10:28:09 am

The image is of a tall glass of milk with milk pouring out of the holes of the class. The glass is sitting on a walnut colored, round table. The glass has vertical indents. The background is exclusively black which creates a dramatic effect. There are exactly five holes with streams of milk pouring out.

The image is very pleasing to look out to the surreal texture of the milk and table. The details of the milk puddles are so clear that they seem solidified. The image is not using the rule of thirds as the focal point is in the center. The focal point is the corner of the glass. There is plenty of negative space in the background. The vertical indents in the glass direct the eye towards the milk spill. The walnut colored table and the milk provide beautiful contrast.

The image seems to be a symbol for feeling out of place and anxious. The many holes of the glass can represent worries and concerns of life. Keedy--the photographer of the image--is hinting his anxiety disorder. Keedy is trying to explain how he feels like through the means of photography. The image is very interesting as even though Keedy is expressing his troubles, the image is calming in a strange way. The image reminds me of the movie Get Out.

John William Keedy created his photo collection, “It's hardly Noticeable” as way to combat and indulge in his anxiety related impulses. Some of these impulses include the 300 flosses Keedy actually flossed and photographed. Keedy explained that he felt some comfort in the extreme repetition. Other images express his feeling of disconnection from family and friends. The image of a doorbell and a thumbtack sticking out is a great example of feeling isolated. Keedy decided to release his collection to the public in hopes to help other people with
mental health issues.

I enjoy the image, it really puts me in the mood to drink milk. The texture of the image adds a comforting quality to the image. I’m happy that John Keedy is spreading awareness on mental illness through his images. The image is successful at embodying the feeling of anxiety. I hope John’s images appeal to many people in order to spread awareness of mental illness.

Hasan Ehsan

5/14/2019 01:28:52 pm

This image by John William Keedy depicts a male cutting puzzles pieces and gluing them together to force them to fit and finish the puzzle. The man is wearing a blue shirt and is lying on a wooden floor. The puzzle uses a multitude of colors to indicate its complexity. The facial expression of the subject shows that he is confused. Natural light seems to be used in that bright light is prominent in the picture.

I wouldn’t say the image is pleasing to look at. The fact that this individual is trying to cut puzzle pieces instead of looking for the right one is a little unsatisfying and rather disturbing. A rich depth of field is implemented in that the entire image is in focus. The most prominent lines are on the puzzle pieces, which highlight how difficult it is for the person to find the pieces whose lines are complementary. The rule of thirds is not being used because the person and the puzzle he’s working on are in the middle.

The most obvious theme of this image regards the difficulties that one has with experiencing anxiety disorder. The puzzle is extremely complex, tedious, and downright frustrating, so this person amends by trying to take a shortcut that is intuitive. I think Keedy created this image after his diagnosis to try to convey the feelings one has with such mental burdens. It doesn’t really challenge any social or political views; it’s just for awareness. It does remind me of many books I’ve read about special needs children who are frustrated and angry when their surroundings are complex and irrational to them.

I like this image because it reminded me about looking at life from another person’s perspective. Having an anxiety disorder is something nobody is proud of, but it’s constantly haunting those who afflict them at every moment in their life. Something that’s considered a fun challenge like a puzzle is instantly envisioned as a nightmare of complicated pieces for someone with anxiety. It saddens because anxiety is difficult to cure. There’s no medicine; it’s all about your outlook on life and how you choose that to occur.

Overall, I think the photograph is successful. The author’s purpose seems to have been to try to elicit a sense of perspective from the reader. This image serves as a reminder of the difficulties those with anxiety go through on a daily basis. It’s personally reminded me that being stressed over a test the night before is not really anxiety compared to the fear that those like the individual in the image may experience. Although the subject of the physical image itself is weird with the cutting of the puzzle pieces, the message it exemplifies is one that the audience should be constantly reminded of.

Period 3 -- Critical Analysis #21

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