O L I V I A  B R A C L E Y

Happiness is something everyone strives for. It comes from success, love, friendship, health, etc. Some people try to find happiness in the material things in life. Are they actually happy? The answer is simple. No. Happiness isn’t a new car, a designer handbag, or a big boat. It isn’t something you can buy with money, despite the efforts of many. The only way to truly be happy in life is to form relationships and to focus on yourself.

I decided to photograph the concept of “money can’t buy happiness.” In my photo, I personified money, making it physically happy. However, the only thing in the photo is the personified money. All of the surrounding space is blank. This symbolizes the false happiness. Although she appears to be happy, there is a lot missing emotionally. There are no relationships, family, or personal success. The happiness that showcased in the image is superficial.

I created this image by overlaying a hundred dollar bill over a face. In photoshop, I copied and pasted the image of the money on top of a smiling face. Then, I adjusted the opacity of the bill; this made it more transparent. Once the face was completely covered, I copied and pasted it onto a white canvas.