Psychopathic Serenity: A Junior Self-Portrait Diptych by Hunter Coffman (2013)

In my Self-Portrait diptych, I wanted to express my belief in how centripetal music can play in one’s life, but on an even grander scale, how some people may not agree with you, but that just makes you, you. On the left portion of my diptych, I used the knife as a leading line which helped to point towards the right photo. Also, I implored the use of the knife and the red color scheme to offer the viewer a sense of murder, leading to psychopathic thoughts. I used psychopathy also as a vehicle to show that one may not like your beliefs or personal preferences, such as your taste in music, and that this can give a sense of anger or hatred or distrust. The ''bloody'' hands on the wall help to pull the view down to help bring focus to the knife.

On the right side, I posed the idea of serenity to contradict the left side, and how one should be at peace with whom they are, despite what others think of them. I used a green gradient and upped the brightness to create a more serene environment, where one feels at peace with their surroundings. I positioned this photo on the right as the knife, the tree, and the bench help to create a triangle-esque figure, creating a sense of unity and connection amongst the photos. Originally, I wanted to take a picture of a calm lake, where the water wasn’t moving at all, as if untouched by all outside forces; Nevertheless, I felt that calm water represents more of a soothing concept and not the idea that I was fully looking for in being peace with one’s self.