Artist Statement

Hi my names Jillian, I’m an Aquarius, like long walks on the beach, and coffee.

My ideas usually develop spontaneously, I’ll get an idea if I watch a certain TV show or if I’m just out and about. My idea’s can come from looking at a bush, or a set of clothes. I don’t have to work very hard to get them, I have them all the time. It’s getting myself to do my ideas that’s the hard part.

I originally set out to explore the idea of taking pictures of landscapes, and nature in itself. As my work developed, I started to veer towards portraits more than the outdoors. Now I think it’s really interesting how you can tell a story using only pictures and a subject, of course you have to have a set and costume (lets face it, costumes are the best part of a shoot) but the rest is up to you. It’s how you shoot it, that determines the story and find that amazing.

I had to write this statement because it was assigned to us, it’s more than likely going to go into my portfolio. The reason why I created my best work of art (in my opinion) Invisible, was to capture what it feels like for most kids across the world. For teenagers, myself included, it can feel like no one cares about you, it can seem like everywhere you go your ignored. Basically you feel invisible.

For the technological side of my work, I just use a regular canon camera. The real magic doesn't happen until I edit. I use a program called photobucket to crop the pictures to where I want them, and change the colors to fit the picture more. I focus on the colors more than the actual picture itself, the color is what makes a picture a picture. Sure the angle and how you take the photograph has a lot to do with it, but color’s the most important area for me.

I don’t do research for my photography, I just follow my ideas and instincts. Independence photography is a big inspiration for me, most of her pictures tell a story in some way. She think’s outside of the box for her pictures, she doesn't stick to the normal idea of photography. That helps me come up with my ideas in a way, I don’t like to think inside the box and just take pictures of fashion and Starbucks coffee. I like to do something to make people think.