Happiness & Meaning
Essential Questions:
What is the purpose of your existence?
What is happiness and what makes you happy?
What does it mean to live a meaningful life?
To what extent can literature shape your personal philosophy on happiness and meaning?
What is the purpose of your existence?
What is happiness and what makes you happy?
What does it mean to live a meaningful life?
To what extent can literature shape your personal philosophy on happiness and meaning?
Philosophy Statement
I define happiness as being a state of mind where you are doing or following something you are passionate about. For example, what makes me happy is expressing myself through different forms of art. Expressing myself through music and photography has made me happier because I am so passionate about them. Lots of times happiness isn’t found in the amount of success one has or the amount of money one makes. Happiness can even be found in the simple things such as being in a certain place, knowing someone is thinking and caring for you, filling your surroundings with people, pets, or nature that can put a smile on your face. I love capturing this with photography. Music is another way of expressing emotion and, for me, a way of connecting to the things I love.
Happiness in my eyes is also defined by the amount of balance you have in your life. I believe that it is good to be challenged in a way that encourages different ways of thinking. I approach challenges optimistically if I can, whether that is learning a new difficult concept or talking to someone with a differing opinion. Sometimes this is stressful and I could easily turn away from it but I know I should face the challenge to grow. To be healthy I balance that with my art, something I find easier and more natural. I use my art to understand these challenges. For example, an image touches my soul and gives me a deeper understanding of a concept. It’s also my best way of communicating. Ultimately, I think the challenges I take make my art more meaningful and make me happier.
I also define happiness as creating art that will positively influence other people. I think being human is communicating and for me, this is easiest through images. An image can communicate information but also have an emotional impact that might influence someone for a long time and in ways that are subtle but profound. My happiness comes from this human interaction, letting me know I have a place in the world.
Happiness in my eyes is also defined by the amount of balance you have in your life. I believe that it is good to be challenged in a way that encourages different ways of thinking. I approach challenges optimistically if I can, whether that is learning a new difficult concept or talking to someone with a differing opinion. Sometimes this is stressful and I could easily turn away from it but I know I should face the challenge to grow. To be healthy I balance that with my art, something I find easier and more natural. I use my art to understand these challenges. For example, an image touches my soul and gives me a deeper understanding of a concept. It’s also my best way of communicating. Ultimately, I think the challenges I take make my art more meaningful and make me happier.
I also define happiness as creating art that will positively influence other people. I think being human is communicating and for me, this is easiest through images. An image can communicate information but also have an emotional impact that might influence someone for a long time and in ways that are subtle but profound. My happiness comes from this human interaction, letting me know I have a place in the world.
Artist Statement
My personal definition of happiness is that you are the most happy when you are following your passions and are doing something that is meaningful to your.. For my medium I would like to create a collage of photos that I took with people doing things that make them happy. I would show this at the all school exhibition, where others can see that happiness truly depends on the individual. This median is unique to me because I’m taking what makes me happy (photography) and am being able to incorporate my passion to be able to present what makes others happy.
I want my audience to take away the message that happiness is really self-defined and that you are really the beholder of your happiness. I want my audience to be inspired to do things that make them happy and by viewing my photos and seeing the happiness and joy I capture through the lens they can begin to see happiness in a different perspective. My idea is that I take as many photos as possible of people doing things that make them happy and create a big portfolio of all the photos. Some of the challenges I can see myself facing with creating this project is that my photos may not turn out as well as I would hope, also having people not wanting their photo taken, and there being the chance that I only get a range of 10-15 photos instead of an amount I would hope for. To make this project actually work I would just need the time and the people to really make this happen. I have the resources to print out the photos and actually put a portfolio together. I imagine this project taking as much time as I am given, ideally the more time the better to allow me to find more and more people to help participate.
I want my audience to take away the message that happiness is really self-defined and that you are really the beholder of your happiness. I want my audience to be inspired to do things that make them happy and by viewing my photos and seeing the happiness and joy I capture through the lens they can begin to see happiness in a different perspective. My idea is that I take as many photos as possible of people doing things that make them happy and create a big portfolio of all the photos. Some of the challenges I can see myself facing with creating this project is that my photos may not turn out as well as I would hope, also having people not wanting their photo taken, and there being the chance that I only get a range of 10-15 photos instead of an amount I would hope for. To make this project actually work I would just need the time and the people to really make this happen. I have the resources to print out the photos and actually put a portfolio together. I imagine this project taking as much time as I am given, ideally the more time the better to allow me to find more and more people to help participate.