This seemingly colorful piece with a deep underlying message, encourages viewers to examine details and discover what lies beyond a first glance.
Sophia Sobczak, a senior graphic design major with a minor in film, first began comprising “Best By: Age 25,” years ago with the original intent of simply creating something bright and colorful. Sobczak said that in the following years she had done lots of muted, black and white art and was on the verge of breaking out of it.
“As an artist, I feel like, to change your style, it can be either really hard, or it means that you’re growing in one way or another. So, I feel like that was big for me, that I was finally moving towards that,” Sobczak said.
The piece began with a photoshoot of Sobczak’s friend when she was eager to see if she could recreate a specific photo. Then, Sobczak wanted to take the photo further and edited the piece multiple times over the years before it reached its completion.
“This piece critiques how women are reduced to appearances, judged by beauty, weight and youth,” Sobczak said.
Sobczak said most of her work has a hidden meaning, and this piece is a commentary on women and how they’re viewed in society. The barcode in the lower left corner represents a “best by” date, similar to an expiration date.
“It was mainly to show how women, especially in entertainment are expected to be young, look young and they’ll kind of get discarded beyond a certain point of age,” Sobczak said.
With Sobczak’s minor in film, she said that this concept had become very prevalent to her. She noticed that most decisions are made by men, whether in front of or behind the camera. Because of this, Sobczak said women don’t often get to decide how they’re depicted because they don’t have the choice.
The piece features an unnamed subject, representing her objectification in the industry. The reflections of her accentuate how the girl is a reflection of “something” and not an actual person. The two silver stars represent the idea of the entertainment industry and someone “being a star” or a “supermodel.”
The retro camcorder, old phone and computer are common features of Sobczak’s work, consisting of a retro appearance but in a modernized way. Sobczak said she’s interested in older items and enjoys using them in her art because it puts into perspective how quickly things can age.
Sobczak values photography that doesn’t conform to a corporate style and wants viewers to continue inquiring about the meaning and different aspects behind her work. She mentioned Carlijn Jacobs as one of her photography blueprints because she strays from the corporate style.
“That’s what I’m trying to be like. I want to create my own work and not be confined by stuff like that [the corporate style],” Sobczak said.
