Think back to the first day of college. Move in day, most of us will never forget it. The day was hot, Dad and Mom were yelling at each other, and you were yelling at them. Welcome to your new room, assemble your loft, arrange things on your desk, haul up the futon, and say a quick good-bye to your parents. That’s it, they are gone, and you are now independent, on your own, just left here.
“Left Here” by Kate Buckley, depicts this idea perfectly. The feeling of just being left somewhere is something that everyone experiences. In the picture there is a road that splits in two, one continuing on the same highway and another that goes off to the left. On the straight road there are two cars, on the one that goes off to the left there is a single red car heading in that direction. The black and white of the photo is contrasted by the bright red of the car to the left, with the arrows that are painted on the road directing the flow of traffic. The car to the left is all alone, making its own way. This is comparable to how some feel during college, just starting out by yourself, making your own way.
“Left Here” could mean the simple act of taking a left, it could also mean that something is left somewhere. The left direction comes with various suspicions and folklore, such as if your left foot itches when leaving on a journey, your journey will end in sorrow. (“Anything Left Handed”) Also the left is commonly associated with the devil or evil spirits. In this sense Buckley maybe saying that the red car maybe faced with sorrow, it could be referring to the sorrow that is felt when leaving behind the things that you were once used to for a new start in life. As I mentioned earlier we have all felt that sorrow, or feeling of confusion when we first arrived at college, or maybe some other time in life when we were left alone. This is one way that Buckley appeals to the emotions of the audience.
The black and white of the picture with the bright red of the car going to the left contrasting, make a big statement in this photo. Black and white images make the picture more abstract and leave room for the interpretation of the audience. “When color and its associated reality are removed from the image, the print becomes somewhat abstracted. With careful planning by the photographer, a black and white image can be a powerful, symbolic piece of art.” (“Desert Photography”) The choice of the black and white painting contrasted by the red of the car was a good choice of colors, because red has very high visibility, which is why stop signs, stoplights, and fire equipment are usually painted red. It is also associated with energy, strength, power and determination. (“Color Wheel
Pro”) Often you think of a person that is going off on their own to be a very determined, strong person. The red car is also alone in its destination, while all of the other cars are going straight, the red car is going to the left, by itself. In this way the red car is being contrasted to the black and white of the rest of the picture and is made to stand apart from all of the other elements of the photo, so the audience knows that this is clearly the focus of the picture.
The other significant element in the photo is the arrows. I think that the arrows were placed there on purpose by Buckley. The arrows are directing the traffic on to different paths. The arrows in this picture could be seen as an analogy to a flowchart. The arrows in a flowchart are called a flow line and indicate the direction of flow for materials and information. The squares that they point to are called the process, which shows the operation or action step. The squares could be considered an analogy to the cars, which are a process. This shows a syllogism, which makes one of the appeals in this argument, logos. Since the arrows are an analogy for the flowchart, and the flowchart is a process, the analogy of the arrows could also be considered a process. (Hebb)
The process is a series of actions designed to meet some end. (Dictionary.com) In the flowchart the end is the goal that is supposed to be reached, in this picture however, this is an analogy for the goal of the cars. The goal is to get to their destination, wherever that maybe. The cars I think are an analogy for people, and the arrows are an analogy for the flowchart that directs our life. Whatever way we decide to go there is an end to be met or a goal to be achieved. Whether that goal is graduating from college, finding a good job or buying a house, doesn’t so much matter, we all go through various steps to reach those goals, so in a sense our life is much like a flowchart. Before the flowchart can start, we have to go off on our own, we have to be left here.
At some point in life everyone has to break away from the rest of the crowd and make their own way in the world. Buckley’s “Left Here” is a perfect example of this. It displays some emotions that go along with starting out on your own from the sorrow and confusion that you may feel at the first idea of being on your own, to the feeling of freedom and the excitement of the unknown. “Left Here” isn’t just a picture, it is an emotion and appeals to the various audience members at some point or another in each ones life.
“Left Here” by Kate Buckley, depicts this idea perfectly. The feeling of just being left somewhere is something that everyone experiences. In the picture there is a road that splits in two, one continuing on the same highway and another that goes off to the left. On the straight road there are two cars, on the one that goes off to the left there is a single red car heading in that direction. The black and white of the photo is contrasted by the bright red of the car to the left, with the arrows that are painted on the road directing the flow of traffic. The car to the left is all alone, making its own way. This is comparable to how some feel during college, just starting out by yourself, making your own way.
“Left Here” could mean the simple act of taking a left, it could also mean that something is left somewhere. The left direction comes with various suspicions and folklore, such as if your left foot itches when leaving on a journey, your journey will end in sorrow. (“Anything Left Handed”) Also the left is commonly associated with the devil or evil spirits. In this sense Buckley maybe saying that the red car maybe faced with sorrow, it could be referring to the sorrow that is felt when leaving behind the things that you were once used to for a new start in life. As I mentioned earlier we have all felt that sorrow, or feeling of confusion when we first arrived at college, or maybe some other time in life when we were left alone. This is one way that Buckley appeals to the emotions of the audience.
The black and white of the picture with the bright red of the car going to the left contrasting, make a big statement in this photo. Black and white images make the picture more abstract and leave room for the interpretation of the audience. “When color and its associated reality are removed from the image, the print becomes somewhat abstracted. With careful planning by the photographer, a black and white image can be a powerful, symbolic piece of art.” (“Desert Photography”) The choice of the black and white painting contrasted by the red of the car was a good choice of colors, because red has very high visibility, which is why stop signs, stoplights, and fire equipment are usually painted red. It is also associated with energy, strength, power and determination. (“Color Wheel
Pro”) Often you think of a person that is going off on their own to be a very determined, strong person. The red car is also alone in its destination, while all of the other cars are going straight, the red car is going to the left, by itself. In this way the red car is being contrasted to the black and white of the rest of the picture and is made to stand apart from all of the other elements of the photo, so the audience knows that this is clearly the focus of the picture.The other significant element in the photo is the arrows. I think that the arrows were placed there on purpose by Buckley. The arrows are directing the traffic on to different paths. The arrows in this picture could be seen as an analogy to a flowchart. The arrows in a flowchart are called a flow line and indicate the direction of flow for materials and information. The squares that they point to are called the process, which shows the operation or action step. The squares could be considered an analogy to the cars, which are a process. This shows a syllogism, which makes one of the appeals in this argument, logos. Since the arrows are an analogy for the flowchart, and the flowchart is a process, the analogy of the arrows could also be considered a process. (Hebb)
The process is a series of actions designed to meet some end. (Dictionary.com) In the flowchart the end is the goal that is supposed to be reached, in this picture however, this is an analogy for the goal of the cars. The goal is to get to their destination, wherever that maybe. The cars I think are an analogy for people, and the arrows are an analogy for the flowchart that directs our life. Whatever way we decide to go there is an end to be met or a goal to be achieved. Whether that goal is graduating from college, finding a good job or buying a house, doesn’t so much matter, we all go through various steps to reach those goals, so in a sense our life is much like a flowchart. Before the flowchart can start, we have to go off on our own, we have to be left here.
At some point in life everyone has to break away from the rest of the crowd and make their own way in the world. Buckley’s “Left Here” is a perfect example of this. It displays some emotions that go along with starting out on your own from the sorrow and confusion that you may feel at the first idea of being on your own, to the feeling of freedom and the excitement of the unknown. “Left Here” isn’t just a picture, it is an emotion and appeals to the various audience members at some point or another in each ones life.
Works Cited
"Color Meaning." Color Wheel Pro. 15 Nov 2008 .
"Left Handed Myths and Misunderstandings." Anything Left-Handed. 15 Nov 2008 http://www.anythingleft-handed.co.uk/lefty_myths.html#1.
Buckley, Kate. Artreview. 14 Nov 2008 http://www.artreview.com/profile/kateb.
Hebb, Nicholas. "Flow Chart Symbols." Flow Breeze. 17 Nov 2008 .
Unabridged Dictionary. 2006. Random House . 16 Nov 2008 http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/process.
Wray, Chris. "Black-and-White Photography." Desert Photography Primer. 16 Nov 2008 .
