From the Looking Glass - Self Reflection | A Mixed Media Art Video Experiment

From the inside, life is unornamented. That's the beauty of not engaging in self-criticism. Negative thoughts and feeling of not being worthy or of value simply erodes.

The rot that bored deep and lay waste along the way is dissolved. In its place self-confidence oozes from your core. Is the process quick and painless.

Of course not.

Just as the unkind years ate away at your flesh to devour your inner being, healing with take twice as long.

For my current project, envisioned a combination of a still image, together with a video that would represent a scene inside a crystal ball.

I feel that the image I used for the crystal ball was key to displaying the video. An ethereal white glow to the object was perfect as the holder. The entire scene felt as if the video was being transmitted from another source. Also, the background serves as an array of abstract with a flower undertone.

Below are my steps:

Mixed Media Portion:

For the still image, I utilized Canva, my design program. I began by uploading all images I intended to use in my project.

With a blank, white canvas, I then add layers of elements in accordance with my upgraded Annual Pro Membership that includes tools to remove backgrounds, resize, filter, duplicate, and reposition items as required.

• To a blank white canvas, I added the abstract image, then resized it to fill the entire screen;

• Colorized the abstract image to provide more depth to the background;

• Added the spotlights image; resized it to fill three-fourths of the screen; then positioned it in the center;

• At this point, I needed a frame to insert my video inside the spotlight. Placed a red border around the frame to highlight the video once it's completed.

The images I included in the still version are listed below:

^{Spotlights ~ Blue and multicolor abstract image ~ Pure Fractal titled "Bouquet On A String ~ Space Junk-2}

VIDEO Portion:

I utilized Deep Dream Generator to produce the video. Below are the details of this 8-sec. video.

Finalizing the project:

I returned to Canva to blend the video into the still image. Uploading the video, I inserted the video inside the frame, then resized it.