In Class: Candy Cigarette

The photo initially draws my attention straight to the young girl's eyes. Her stare draws you in. It's solemn and sparks you with emotion right off the bat, without even realizing it. It is quite a stirring photograph. Her stance is that of an adult, mature and modelesque, like you can almost see the woman she will become, smoking and sheek. It is a heavily ironic depiction.

The rest of the image expanding from the girl's initial focus is interesting as well. The other girl in the picture off to the right is also mature and strong, although looking the other direction, facing away from the camera. Is she against the smoking next to her, or the instigator? Is she the juxtapostition of child and adult? Both of the girls are ridiculously tan. The one facing away seems more child-like however, in terms of clothing and her ponytail. Maybe her facelessness describes that of yearning for the past innocence of childhood while caught in the stream of forced ascension into the grown-up world?

The background is faded and obscure, like that of most past memories, melting and molding together. There seems to be a water tower back there, like a missed imaginary castle.

The idea of the image is interactive and probing because it pertains to all of us in some way. The emotions felt include that of realization, solemnity, and almost pity. For I know I for one am a girl who wishes Neverland were not that far out of reach, you know? haha Life traipses briskly.

The purpose of this photograph most likely pertains to that of my mental meanderings above, as well as an argument against the particular advertisment strategies of smoking. For "Candy Cigarette" is a metaphor for the dolled up life of a cool, sheek woman accompanied by her sweet cigarette, flowing hair, healthy skin, and womanly pose. However, the sadness felt by the image of the picture depicts our inner knowledge that the image advertised by companies in that manner are quite short-lived in youth, and simply haunt users later in life, inside and out.