Week 7 artist

The artist I chose to present on Is Kathy Vargas, a lot of her work has a kind of spooky aesthetic about it that I enjoy that comes from her use of double exposure and morbid topics. One of the reasons I wanted to choose her as an artist was because she studied under The Who's Photographer. She has had major installations all over the world in places such as Europe and the united states.  A part of her work and the main focus of my presentation and essay on her comes from her ability to use photographs in a manner that addresses the reality of death while interweaving themes of commemoration tot he subjects. Three photos that I found exceedingly interesting were her series of Valentine's day/Day of the Dead that includes images of both hands and a ribcage that appear to be done through an X-Ray, as well as the singular piece from her pair of works Hospice: Bill and Don (Don). In Hospice (Bill)  the subject's photograph is superimposed over their own death certificate, creating a haunting visual. In all three pictures, she commemorates the lives of three friends of hers who all passed away from AIDS. I like her images because they are more than just photographs, they are a way of immortalizing people in her life. she addresses themes of life and death in a way that accepts the inevitability of it but also celebrates the life and the time those around her had with her.