Answering The Question That Is Still Not Answered

 For my second unit in journalism, we looked into many things including photos from throughout the 20 and 21st century, different techniques on how to take photos, how to analyze a photo with the questions Who, What, Where, When, Why, How, Ect. For our second Action Project for journalism, we had to answer one question, “What is the meaning of life?” To get a better understanding we had to also interview someone and ask them the same question I am answering. Then, we had to take a picture of our interviewee or something of theirs. Before doing my interview I wanted to try to answer the question myself. I have seen many people in different fields and areas of life answer this questions but I never got the answer I was looking for. I believe that there are a couple of answers to this question, and many people would say there is no answer to this question. “Man’s search for meaning is the primary motivation of his life” and “Concern about a meaning of life is the truest expression of the state of being human.” I found these quotes when looking for the meaning of life and find them relatable. I am not only wanting to know the meaning of life but the meaning of my life in particular. I do not think there is a meaning behind anyone’s life but that search for it is a motivation for me to keep doing the things I’m doing, like working hard to get to the places. 

From about the 5th to the 18th century this question of the meaning of life had no importance because of the Christain view on the world. This question was already answered back then which was to serve Jesus in this life and you will have eternal life with him. Even though I am Christain and I do believe this, I still believe that there is a meaning in life which is more personal to each individual. 

I want to get a perspective on this question today so  I sat down with Alberto Aguilar who is a Chicago artist and art teacher. He is Mexican-American born and raised in Chicago. I want to understand his interpretation of what the meaning of life is so I conducted an interview with him. 


 I started with the most important question, “What is the meaning of life?” He thought about this question for a while and said to me, “this question makes me feel like I wasted my life” and then after further thought answered the question. He said, “The meaning of life is to do work that impacts the lives of others and to enjoy all that we are given. I believe this because I have seen the impact that one's work can have on others first hand”. 


I think the answer Alberto Aguilar gave me is a very real answer that many people would give for this question. I can also relate to this answer because in life you have to work for everything but you can choose if you want your work to be meaningful and impactful or have no meaning at all. 


He also says “One should enjoy everything and not take life for granted”.  He further told me, “That the meaning of life changed for me once I became a teacher. Upon becoming a teacher I saw the direct impact my work can have on others. I've been friends with one of my former students for over ten years. I saw how me being his teacher had a direct impact on his life. Now we continue to make work together as collaborators.” This story is about how he had a student and ever since being his teacher they have had a strong relationship and they make art together as often as they can. I thought his story was amazing. Having such an effect on his student really changed the meaning of the student's life. After teaching this student for two years at a community college in Chicago, he eventually helped him get into The School of the Art Institute of Chicago which helped his art career. The question I was most interested in to ask him was what is the most valuable thing you had or have? He said, “My family is the most valuable thing in my life.” I can relate to this quote because one of my most valuable things in this life is my family as well. After asking this I asked if Alberto Aguilar was religious. He said yes so I asked him the final question. How does God play into the meaning of your life? He said, “God has filled me with a great sense of hope and belief that there is always something better to come and the work that I do is meaningful.” I wanted to ask this question because in my life God plays a huge role and I trust him fully on my journey in life so it was cool to hear another person's thoughts on God and faith in relationship to the meaning of life. After hearing his thoughts I now realize that the meaning of life will reveal it self by caring about the work that I do and trust that God will reveal it to me at the right time.


I conducted this interview with Alberto Aguilar before having a photo shoot of him and his work because I wanted to add my understanding of his meaning of life to the photo before taking it. I think that without interviewing him the photos would have no meaning behind them because I would’ve just been taking pictures of him without knowing his thoughts on the meaning of life and what’s important to him. 


PA, Quarantine Regimen, 2020 

These are artworks by Alberto Aguilar which he is currently exhibiting at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. I took this photo on the opening day of his show on November 6. I chose his artwork because I think it includes some of the things he spoke about during his interview, namely the importance that family plays in his life. These are a series of works that he made during the stay at home order due to the global pandemic of 2020. Most are drawings that he made f family members by memory. In this photo, all works are equally distributed horizontally within the composition. Vertically the objects are cushioned by two empty spaces on top and bottom. These two aspects follow the rule of thirds in composing the photo. I focused on the objects to get a clear picture of the artwork instead of focusing on the background space. 


Messerly, John. “The Question of the Meaning of Life.” Reason and Meaning, 1 Jan. 2020, reasonandmeaning.com/2015/06/01/the-question-of-the-meaning-of-life/. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Curing Migranes

In my class called Cure, this term we learned a lot  about different types of medications and drugs that treat and cure illnesses and diseases. For this Action Project, we had to pick a symptom  of illnesses and diseases and find three different types of treatments. We had to pick a prescription  drug, an over the counter drug and treatment that isn't  a pill type medicine. For my project, I chose migranes  because my mom gets them often and thought she could help me and to see what she takes to get treated. The reason I picked the pictures of the molecular structure and the human head is because that represents the lock and key mechanism. The lock and key mechanism show how medicaments work on their molecular structure. If the molecular structure fits good with the medicament then it works better than ones that don't. It called lock and key because some keys fit in locks and some don't just like different medicaments. Cefaly does not have a molecular struc...
Read more

Surviving Failure

Image
For my class Endurance, We study the skill of endurance. We started with reading the book Night and digging deep. We did three great Projects this term all leading up to each other. For the final project for the year, we created our Survival Guide takes you through what the future holds for us. For me it a life of failing and getting back up. I have failed and hope to fail more to get where I want to in life. I have nothing else but to succeed and I will do just that. My teacher SH taught me so much this year that I will remember for the rest of my life. Even though I am not the best student I don't let it hold me back from other opportunities God gives me. SH showed me who I can be and about the world. I hope SH keeps helping young students reach their full potential in school and not in school. I want to thank SH for helping me, graduate. I hope you enjoy my final Action Project of the year. Thank you. Surviving Failure by PA GCE Lab School.PA.2021
Read more

Moving Midway

Image
In this class called Thin Red Lines, we made many had drawn maps and looked at a variety of maps. This term was very exciting for me because most of the Field Experiences we went on have been very active. For our Action Project, we had to Make three separate maps and write at a 500-word explanation about the map. As you can see I have drawn three maps and layered them all on top of each other to show you how they compare. The area I drew around is Midway airport and the three maps are different time periods in the same place where Midway currently sits. Paolo, 2018, Moving Midway #1 Paolo, 2018, Moving Midway #2 Paolo, 2018, Moving Midway #3 This Action Project was a very successful one for me because I made three hand-drawn maps and wrote more than 500 words for each map. For me, this AP was really fun and a new experience because I have never hand drawn a map or explored my neighborhood in such an in-depth way. Drawing three maps was really difficult for me. A...
Read more