The title of this piece is Generation Alpha. Translating to “The First Generation”, the phrase expresses that the first age of humanity is what created all descendant ages that have come thus far. Generation Alpha is also a term dedicated to the newest and most recent generation today. By essentially meaning both ‘the beginning’ and ‘the most recent’, the word connects the past and present together, suggesting that no matter what age you live in, all humans of all historical time are actually considered one and the same. This message is demonstrated through the genre of found poetry, where each line is a direct quote from a different person’s story. The stories themselves are of past generations told by the present age. Thus, by connecting independent narratives and narrative styles together, the commonality of the human race throughout time is emphasized. It attempts to show that as diverse as our experiences, as extremely opposite as our mindsets and nature, the potential of everything that has ever been lived, done, and felt resides within us all. Basically, the one thing we all have in common is being human, and the longevity of this statement is demonstrated through the genre of long exposure photography. Each line of the poetic narrative is accompanied by a long exposure photo that captures the atmosphere of the specific story it came from. By using this style of photography that predominantly expresses time passing and light gathering, the photos figuratively resemble the way the stories of the poem are passing through time and the past individuals are ‘enlightening’ the individuals of the present. Each photo is composed in such a way to focus on an object that took precedence in their respective stories, such as the microphone, the note, and the clock to name a few. Each photo is also edited in a warm, hazy hue. This is to emphasize the timelessness of the story and its ability to remain a constant memory as it passes through the ages— worn but cherished.
The poem, undivided, writes:
everyday / she spoke from her heart / and they all wanted to sneer. / she wasn’t there for fame / yet, she missed the days when / it was the only thing that made sense. / a love letter- / an item of admiration- / she had the chance; / the only one who / brought out the best / in everything.
Each quote is especially picked from their stories and placed to convey the main, recurring theme: persistent belief in oneself. As most of the narratives went, the main character needed to have self-confidence and some type of perseverance to achieve their goals. The poem reflects this shared encounter and the message it reveals, once again emphasizing the commonality of potential human experiences, behaviours, and ideas throughout time. The layout and graphic design of the completed photo-series is simple. This is intentionally done to allow both the visual and literary narrative to transition and flow smoothly, yet again emphasizing how simple and smoothly flowing the connection between all generations of the human race really is.
