Sean Connelly

Sean Connelly is a senior at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He creates images by combining several different photographs in an attempt to capture the undefined movement of the world. Here is his artist statement, a campaign called "Keep it Beautiful."

Keep it Beautiful

Sometimes…I hear voices in my head. No. I am not crazy. They usually tell me profound things like to know love you must loose love, or life is simple but the simplicity is complex. While those can be inspirational, there is one in particular that really struck.

You will not live past 26.

Whether I believe this or not is questionable—but the point remains: I never know when I will die. I am not scared of death…I just believe I need to make the most of my time. Instead of living my life for some ambiguously future “potential” I will reach one day when I’m “rich and successful” I’d rather live each moment in the moment. Keep it Beautiful.

And in this moment I can attain success and [I can] fulfill my self-potential as long as I keep my connections to others in mind while I strive for my own goals. I need to return what my community gives me.

People will ask me if Keep it Beautiful is some sort of movement or organization I am trying to start. It is really just my own philosophy/attitude I share with others to inspire. It reminds me my motions are connected to each other in some way…and that my actions affect those around me as we are all connected to and affect each other. I live in the beauty along the way, and as my favorite poet Rumi wrote let the beauty we love be what we do. Keep it beautiful.

art of the verge

I call the art I create art on the verge. I explore the importance of connection…connection as a conversation, rhythm, and relationship—the push and push of one thing against another.

The images in this art are more than just a larger picture composed of smaller snapshots, but a song of connection, a “photodance.” Art reflects how I experience the world. We don’t see things in still frame; our eyes dance around what we see. When I look at a face, it is hard to see the entire face at the same time. I can’t help but focus in on the curve of the lip, the color of the eye, a freckle. The memory I have of the world is a composition of these images my eyes collect. I am inspired to capture this. Many people do not like the portraits I do…which is fine. I’m not interested in recreating magazine shots, that’s all boring. It’s is much more exciting to challenge what people (and myself) consider “beautiful.”

I can’t speak of what this art does for others, or what I want it do for them…I need to keep it as empty as possible. All I can say is what it does for me—I experience expansion, motion, chaos, balance. And when I create these pieces I am reminded I live in conversation, rhythm, and relationship with myself, the people around me, and the land. I dare to aspire and create.

Keep it Beautiful.