Explore

     To finish this sketchbook i decided to do a response to how i ended my last sketchbook with the exit sign. That sign focused on the idea of unhealthy daydreaming that traps people in fantasies. This piece is to encourage safe dreams that are ambitions to achieve in life.  For instance travelling and seeing the world.
     I decided to make the first page look scrapbook like as it is a form of recording memories and holding pieces from the actual place visited. I ripped the page up so it looked used and also a white border around the blue paint. By making the page smaller you see the next page therefore making you want to turn the page showing the curiosity everyone holds. I used turquoise as that symbols emotional balance, wholeness and luck. Additionally the blue made me think of tropical places with bright blue waters that look beautiful, and everyone always wants to visit those sort of places. Using a fineliner i wrote "Explore" as if it was and invitation or order, then i wrote my birthday as if it was dated. It also shows the beginning of my life, my adventure. Lastly i stuck down some fake flowers using tape like people do in scrapbooks. Also the white picks up on the white in the page and shows purity and curiosity, there is always something more like there is the white under the blue. I chose a little bouquet of flowers as it picks up on the exit sign where i used dead petals. This link shows this option is healthier and long lasting, the yellow shows happiness and energy to achieve their dreams. The flowers cover the word "explore" to show how life is blooming further and shows that their is much to explore.
    On the back of this page i created some faint black paint strokes before writing a definition for the term "Paris". This connects to the unhealthy daydreaming that i looked into earlier. This page appears more like the exit sign with the rough paint and red words. However it's more like information to teach the person that they must be aware of avoiding this from happening. It's like a warning before the person can leave and take part in the activity. I kept the page quite plain so the main focus is on the words, that way their is no distractions.
   The next page over is the one everyone wants to reach. It holds the key to their dreams. I stuck the remaining pages together and roughly cut out a square to create a hole like some people do to hide important things to them. I painted the edges in the hole black so it picks up on the black font around it and is no distraction. I wet the top page then let red and blue watercolour soak the page and mix, creating a purple colour. I wanted this to happen to show how a healthy amount of dreaming is good to achieve dreams. The blue colour represents dreaming and the red is ambition. Together mixed evenly they create a reality. If dreaming is too much then it becomes more blue showing how the person is not achieving anything.

    On this page i then simply wrote some words to provoke some thinking in the viewer as they think of places they wish to visit. The omnes suggesting to visit fantasy are written smaller to show how they will not give you real happiness; turning your dreams into reality will. Then i wrote on the map in the hole. I changed font so it looked more eye catching but also fixed to show how people get stuck i one place and never get the freedom to travel. That's why the next question is in fancy, flowing font to show the freedom they can have. I then stuck a key down, it may not look old or fancy but i think that helps to ground the whole image into reality as it looks like a realistic key.
    I really like how this piece all connects to each other but also how it contradicts the "Exit Sign" i did in my other sketchbook. It shows a development, an improvement in health. To develop this piece i could take the two signs and make them connect more explicitly or do an entire book in a scrapbook style that refers to improving one's health to gaining ambition for their dream. I would say this scrapbook idea is slightly influenced by the artist Traci Howards collage pieces.