POP Art

One of the many reasons I was inspired to pursue photography was because of my father. When he was my age, he would carry his film camera around with him and document his friends, his family, his cars, and his life. Nowadays, when he pulls out those photos and takes a look, he can remember everyone and everything that happened. I love hearing him explain each photo and what it means to him and I hope that one day I'll be able to revisit my photos and do the same. As a result, I decided to create a project that honors my dad, hence the name, POP art. This project is especially meaningful to me because my dad suffers from heart disease. He has had three heart attacks in my lifetime and even more before I was born. While we do not live our lives in fear, my family does recognize that you need to appreciate the people you have in your life before it's too late. This theme is central in each of my photos, all of which showcase my dad at different points in his life. The first one, "Joker", is the youngest picture of my father. The photo comes from one of his high school picture days and was especially interesting to me because I got to see him when he was my age doing the same thing we do now, taking a picture each year of school to commemorate our growth. The next photo, "Pink Corvette", is a photo of my dad in his childhood home taken by his mother. This photo is meaningful not only because it shows my dad but also because my grandma, my dad's mom, passed away from cancer before I was born. This photo allowed me to feel a connection to the grandma I never got to know especially since we both love to take photos of our family. I also love this photo because of the shirt my dad is wearing. His love for cars developed at a young age as he helped his dad work on them, a passion that he later turned into a career. The next photo, "E.T.", shows my dad's whimsical side which is one of my favorite aspects of his personality. I incorporated this silliness into my editing by making him look like a green alien, enhancing the already mischievous subject. The fourth photo is called "That 70's Show" and is significant to me because it is hard to imagine your parents younger and in a different time period since you have never seen them in that way. This photo allowed me to see my dad in the seventies, giving me an insight into the person he was before he was my or my siblings' dad. The next photo, "Rap Album," is one of my favorites because nowadays, my dad would make fun of anyone who wore an Adidas tracksuit. This photo is important to me because it shows how much he has changed and evolved as a person. The next photo, "Something Blue," is different from the rest in that both of my parents are in it. Even though this project is about my dad, I decided to include my mom because this project was meant to showcase my father at different points in his life in order to pay homage and obviously, his wedding day was one of the most important days of his life when he and my mom came together. The last picture, "Crazy Eyes," is my personal favorite. I enjoyed looking at the old photos of my dad immensely, especially those that made me laugh. However, this photo is my favorite because it was taken by me just a few months ago. The person in this photo is the dad that I know and love. For this reason, I am glad that I randomly took this photo and am now able to enjoy it as part of this project. This photo, just like "Pink Corvette," also helped me feel a connection with my grandma because without even thinking and just like her, I took a picture of a member of my family in the moment so that I could remember what was happening at that point in time. All of these photos, especially those that were not taken by me, remind me how lucky I am not only to have my father but the rest of my family as well. So, when you look at this project, I hope it makes you laugh and encourages you to look at old pictures of your family so that you too can see how much they have changed. Now that I have shared my POP art with you, it is your turn to appreciate those that you love and to show them in any way you can.