Appearances can be deceiving. Although the way a person dresses may reflect how they feel at the moment, the manner in which a person presents him or herself does not necessarily depict the type of person they inherently are. A university setting, specifically, is an ideal place to witness a cross-section of society and see how different people embrace different styles of dress, grooming and general personal expression. Cultural practices, ethnic backgrounds, religion and family values are all factors that can affect the way people present themselves. Practical reasons, such as geographic location, weather, extracurricular activities, and daily schedules also play a role in personal expression. In this artistic defense, we will explain how stereotypes and geographic locations may affect the way a person is perceived.We presented this through a combination of still photos and videos in our final project.
This notion that appearances do not define the person within can lead to the shattering of stereotypes and preconceptions associated with certain styles of dress. Predominantly dark colored clothing, for example, seems to indicate depression, anger, or a “Gothic” lifestyle. We found, however, in our footage that the colors of someone’s outfit do not depict any of these qualities. Another example of a stereotype would be some one in “preppy” style clothing, such as polo style shirts, khakis or sundresses, which may indicate some one who is upbeat or generally in a good mood. We saw again, however, that this was not necessarily the case. We also interviewed people who some would consider to be dressed “provocatively,” but found that they were not trying to be flirtatious or promiscuous, but rather were choosing to dress for the warm weather. Another prominent mode of personal expression is seen in tattoos. Historically, tattoos have had a negative connotation, such as an implied association with gang members or prisoners. One of our most interesting observations, however, was that people generally had deep meanings behind their tattoos.
For our project, we decided to put together a multimedia presentation by combining still images with video and audio footage. Our opening and closing shots are a broad view of the student body, showing the diversity not only of races, but also a collection of personalities and styles. We walked around Turlington Plaza and the Hub asking people what they felt about personal expression in general or for an explanation as to why they dress and present themselves the way they do. We also asked if they would hold up a sign explaining, in one word, how they were feeling that day or how they normally feel. This was done to juxtapose their outer appearance with their inner emotions, in order to emphasize our argument that appearances do not necessarily depict reality. We interviewed several people in order to show in our video different people’s views on the subject of personal expression. In the interviews, we asked people to explain what motivated them to dress the way they were dressed that day in relation to the way they usually dress. We wanted to know whether their emotions, schedules, the weather, or a combination of these factors influenced their style of dress for the day. We included the song “Express Yourself” by Charles Wright because it was easily related to our theme and it further supports our argument. With lyrics such as, “It’s not what you look like…it’s what you’re doin’,” we thought the song promoted positive reinforcement for diverse dress and expression patterns.
While editing, we decided to incorporate both still photographs and testimonials, as we felt that the testimonials would add further insight and meaning to the photographs, which on their own would just look like random people holding signs. On the other hand, having only testimonials would make for a dull video. Because we were more familiar with it and because the program had all the features we needed, we used Microsoft Live Movie Maker, sparing ourselves the frustration we experienced when we tried using Final Cut Pro. We decided to present our material in a pattern of three still photos followed by a video testimonial so the final product would not be static and the it would allow the viewers to be kept engaged. The opening of our video is sped up in order to quickly introduce the setting and also display the fast paced lifestyle of the University of Florida campus and the ever changing styles of the diverse student population at Turlington Plaza. Adding the music was a given, as it would have been hard to sell an almost three minute video with only the audio from the testimonials. The song is also a great representation of what we are arguing, and the upbeat melody keeps the audience engaged.
After spending an afternoon interviewing students, we came up with conclusions based on our interesting findings. Being at a large university played an enormous role in our findings, as we were truly able to observe a wide variety of cultures, views, and personalities. We found that religion, for example, affected how certain people dressed. One girl we interviewed explained that she always wore a crucifix chain because she was Christian and was proud of her religion. Attending a university in north central Florida also showed how the inconsistent weather affects a person’s outfit choice. We saw, for example, many people donning sneakers, in preparation for the rain, who would not usually have worn sneakers. As we did our research at the height of campus-election week, we found that some people dressed to promote a certain cause. Some people dressed a certain way to off set or emanate a certain vibe or mood. We came across a few people, for example, who told us they wear bright colored clothing on rainy days to cheer themselves and their peers up.
Personal expression has been a controversial issue for generations. In this project, we wanted to dispel the stereotypes associated with certain forms of dress. Through still images and student testimonials, we concluded that over time, these stereotypes have been diluted. More people are open-minded to varied modes of self-expression and are more accepting of these modes. People are not always what they seem to be. Beneath a person’s outward appearance lies their true self, which can only be discovered with time.
