Willis Smith Gallery
(APRIL 2015)
Four Eyes is a film-based exhibition that explores connections made through eye contact. Research suggests staring into another person’s eyes for 4 minutes builds an intimate bond. Fascinated by this concept third year Business of Art & Design students, Grace Morris and Daisy Lora asked 10 students to do just that.
In a world where eye contact has been replaced with glowing screens this show explores the relations that have been overlooked. The relationship between participants varies, some are couples or friends while others are strangers. These experiences are recounted in interviews following the experiment. The results show the subjects at their most vulnerable, showing discomfort as they experience new levels of closeness.
DIRECTOR: Daisy Lora PRODUCER: Grace Morris
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Kimberly Boden
WINNER OF THE JUROR'S AWARD (GOLD) BEST OF RINGLING 2016
"Given our hyper - connected world the premise behind Four Eyes was interesting, however it didn't strike me until I saw the video of the shoot that I really understood it and the power of the message behind it. This actually should be something that is shown to business and to students learning business of art, because so much of business is negotiating. Whether that is a deal to sell or buy or working through relationships with colleagues and partners. Physical reactions, specifically facial expressions are so much more important than the spoken word. Four Eyes demonstrates how important building that interpersonal connection truly is. The video is very well produced and brought the written work to life. " -Christine LeViseur Mendonca (juror)
