VISUALIZING STRESS

This canvas was inspired by the question "what imagery do you see when you think of feeling stressed?" These answers were very diverse and it was honestly a challenge trying to make sure every opinion was heard in this canvas. I tried to pair similar answers up so each one would get some form of representation. For example, one answer said a heart beating so fast it can't anymore and another said rubber bands stretching to the point where they almost break. To incorporate both of these, I created the accent image in the middle of the heart being stretched by the opposing hands. There also was a lot of empty imagery being suggested as well as a lost or spirling feeling. This is where the idea for the background came from because black and white were still in the color scheme for stress. With this background as well I think it captures the feeling that some students were describing that all the space is filled but you still feel empty. Being stressed is like being too full of thought but not being able to grasp one so they feel empty at the same time. I still incorporated the red into this canvas as well because it has been so prominent in the ones throughout and I thought the heart in red would add more tension to the image and capture it well.