Idea for Aphorism 16: A cage went in search of a bird.

by jamesrunacres

My interpretation of Kafka’s 16th Aphorism ‘A cage went in search of a bird’ deals with the issues of isolation and alienation, and my own personal experiences with both of those issues. The cage in this aphorism represents myself, someone that is trapped by their own insecurities, imprisoned and alone with their thoughts. The cage is searching for the freedom of the bird, the bird has no insecurities and is free of inhibitions.

The idea I have come up with for the picture is a self portrait of myself naked, with a long exposure as I will turn my head to the side, therefore creating a blur where my face was. Showing this idea of insecurity. There will be a mirror placed in front of my lower body which will show the reflection of how I want to look/an element of someone’s body/mind that I wish for. There will be a window next to myself, which will have a portrait shot of a naked female, layered over the top. This naked female will represent the bird. The Bird will be positioned slightly above myself, almost as if they were looking down on me and I was looking up at them, longing for a relationship between the two. The bird will be totally in focus, representing this sense of being free of any inhibitions they may have, in contrast to myself who will be largely out of focus, so much so, that the viewer will not know that it is me.

There may be more objects present in the photograph that have further connotations, but this is the initial ideas for the 16th Aphorism of Franz Kafka’s The Zurau Aphorism.