Brooke Hector
As a girl born in the digital era, I feel that there are many mental health issues that a majority of people can relate to. My portfolio is based on personal experiences of mine. as well as friends and peers I talked to while creating these art pieces. Each piece shows different parts of mental health, relevant to a modern day 21st century girl. The struggles I focused on were social anxiety, society validation, body dysmorphia, and the toxicity of social media.I hope people can find comfort in these pieces and relate.
"Is Everyone Staring?"
This piece represents social anxiety. My inspiration for this was the experience myself and many others have felt in the dining hall. Sometimes it feels as though everyone is looking at you when you are alone but it’s all in your head. The red symbolizes the feeling of anxiety and frustration.
"Nevermind..."
This piece represents society validation. This piece shows a girl that posts a photo. Then after 2 hours, she only has 10 likes which in this storyline is not a lot. Then she goes on do not disturb to avoid looking at the likes and comments. Finally, she deletes the post. This shows the need for validation through social media and how a "like count" can affect the way you see and feel about yourself.
"Why Do I Look Like That?"
This piece represents body dysmorphia. I wanted to focus on facial dysmorphia rather than the body. This is because I find that most representations of body dysmorphia are usually a person looking in the mirror, and their reflection is them but fat. I find those to be repetitive and not relatable for everyone. I chose to make the reflection of her with green skin to emphasize that she does not see “herself.” I made the eyes and eyebrows not symmetrical, the nose bigger than the lips, and the hair much shorter.
"It's All in Your Head"
This piece represents the toxicity of social media. It is a girl staring at a mirror surrounded by the voices in her head. These voices are comments from instagram to show the impact that comments have and that they can just live in your head. They are “nice” comments but there is this stress to keep up with the persona people believe you to be.