Don't stop the spots! ♥

This morning I was reading the news of Damien Hirst creating a portrait of Mickey Mouse for charity. I really like how he broke up the original image and used a few simple spots to recreate it. Collective memories... that's what the picture says to me. We ALL know about Mickey Mouse, Coca Cola, Marilyn Monroe etc. These are icons imprinted on our core, almost part of our DNA. 

Personally, I feel saturated by these images, so much so that when I come across them I don't actually see them anymore - My subconscious glosses over them, my eyes refuse to look - my brain disengages... That is why I really like what Damien Hirst did. He freshened up Mickey Mouse! He updated it by simplifying it, making it more stimulating to the eye and he did it by simply leaving the important bits, the ones we identify Mickey Mouse with straight away  - The big ears, The round nose etc.

It's great and I believe this plays with children's imaginations and intuition.

Not that long ago I did a series of "portraits" (quick sketches with coloured pens really!) of my son Cooper based on the idea of a dice. Back then he was only a few weeks old and all he did was eat and sleep. His face reminded me of a round dice. Depending on his mood, on what he wanted or needed, his face would change, adding or taking away what to me looked like dots. 

I decided he had 6 facial expressions - and that was pretty much all he needed back then!

1. Sleeping
2. Awake
3. Yawning (tired)
4. Looking around
5. Looking with red cheeks
6. Agitated (wanting something)

Amy Dignam 2014 ©