Wear your mask

By, Mary Lanier

Everyone has a mask hiding them, a shield. I want everyone to have a mask that fits them, that is tailored to who they really are. I’m figuring out what is hidden behind that mask and making a new one in its place. I chose this because I just think that this kind of mask is a really cool idea. It’s also really interesting to see what mask people most connect to. From there, I branched off and thought more about the connection between the mask and the person wearing it. That’s how I came to letting people dig deep into themselves and finding a mask that represented them.

Elias mask is a Japanese fox mask.

“I chose this mask because how the shadows and the red accents help the mask come together. It makes it look really cool. Also when I got it I thought it might be from Japanese culture which, I thought was really cool because of how much I love anime and Japan.” 

-Elias

I think it’s cool that Elias was able to think about the different hobbies and personality traits that he has and find a mask that fits into a lot of categories. First things first, I just want say that Elias is the best artist that I have ever met. It is insane. I know that this artistic eye was what drew him to this mask. As he said above in the interview, he liked how all of the red and the shadows worked together and stuff; it is just proof! I personally think this was a great choice because it also shows his interest in Japanese culture and a little bit into the anime style that he likes to draw. It’s also just a really cool mask that makes you see a fox in a different way; all of the curves and markings gives it this primitive art style Out of the few people I interviewed, Elias was the only one that just knew what he wanted to do; he was ready with his idea and boom! I think this mask really conveys him and his interests. I think it is a good mask for him.

           

Charlie chose the vampire Jojo mask. 

“I chose this mask because sometimes I feel like a vampire. I feel like a vampire because I stay inside a lot. Blood tastes salty. I also think I have a connection to the mask. It is also worn by one of my favorite anime characters named Dio, from Jojo’s Great Adventure.”

-Charlie

I really like how Charlie was able to use his vast anime knowledge and pick the mask of the character that he most relates to. In the process, he figured out that he had some vampire tendencies. What I mean by this is that Charlie has a lot of tell tale signs of a vampire; which he said a lot about in our interview. He also talked a lot about how he related to the anime character that wears this powerful vampire mask and how this person goes on great adventures. For Charlie, it’s pretty rare that you find one of his favorite anime characters. Even though I don’t know much about anime at all, especially this character, it was interesting to see what an anime expert thought about this mask and the person wearing it. After doing some research, I learned that Jojo’s Great Adventure was a best seller for a couple weeks when it first came out; it still is now. It seems to be a popular manga on top of being one of Charlie’s favorites. Charlie has even drawn this character before. He actually is one of the best anime artists I have ever seen (he is also one of the only). Bet that his talent has something to do with him choosing this mask!

This mask is inspired by the Phantom of the Opera mask. Even though he used it for evil, he was still hiding something more than who he is with his mask. I thought that was a fictional example of what my project is trying to say in a way.

“I chose this mask because I can sometimes feel like I am in the background. My ‘mask’ hides me. But I feel more comfortable now. Maybe it’s this school or who knows what. I just feel more comfortable talking to people I don’t know that well and getting closer to people faster. I may not be as shy as I was before but, I am in the background. Even though the mask is cracking. I also think that it is a really cool mask in general. I think that coloring over all of the features and coloring it blue makes you focus more on the fact that the mask is slowly cracking. I chose the blue color because it is a happy color .”

-Me  (Mary)