As a part of our narrative unit, we were assigned to tell a story using only two photos, called a diptych. This is a very interesting form of art, because telling a story using photos is difficult in itself, but when you are only allowed to use two photos and no people, only metaphors (precisely our parameters for this project), the challenge becomes much greater. As a result, we were required to use our imaginations to the greatest extent that we could and tell a story.

My diptych attempts to tell a story of crime, passion, and love (just kidding, it's more about crime). Essentially, the story that I tried to tell was that of a man who is afraid of having his legs broken if he can't afford to pay back the mob. The photo on the left represents waiting in anticipation. The leg lamp, the classic from A Christmas Story, represents the mans leg while a baseball bat sleeps and waits to smash it. Similarly, the photo on the right shows a wallet being crushed by a car tire. This represents the fact that the man would be trying to get as much money as he can to pay back the mob, in order to not have his legs broken. Creating this piece was quite a challenge because we weren't allowed to use people and only indirect metaphors, so it's quite difficult to convey the story. My original idea for the photo on the left was to use a Barbie doll with its legs smashed, but even this was too literal. As a result, we were required to be as metaphorical as possible, ultimately making the project much more of a challenge than initially expected.

In the end though, I feel that my diptych turned out well. The colors look nice and I think that while it may be difficult to see a story in these two images, it leaves lots of room for imagination for the viewer to pretend what they are seeing.

© 2012 Kyle Evans. All Rights Reserved.