Raymond Corral

Benjamin Craig
UNST 133
4 August 2016
Google Art Project
Manifesto
I have chosen to address child abuse and expose the mental, emotional, and physical
instabilities geared towards adolescence. The theme will portray many factors suggesting abuse
amongst children and outcomes of one or simultaneous abusive experiences. Children with
abusive backgrounds have been clinically diagnosed to be unhappier and self-destructive. This
issue is still prominent today, such as the case in January of 2016 where a three year old girl had
been duck taped, wrapped in a bag, and used for sex trafficking. It is cases like this, or any
abusive relationship and experience a child encounters, which will cause traumatic and
destructive influences from the child into adolescence to young adulthood and adulthood.
However, abuse is not the only defining factor of an individuals life. A person can experience
this pain but overcome these obstacles and still live a life of peace and tranquility.
The concept of "social justice" is acknowledged loosely in regards to physical and
emotional abuse, specifically when a child is involved. Children are perceived as being pure and
viewed as innocent, something adults lack as they advance through life experiences. It is
important that child abuse and the outcomes are taken seriously before cases, like the 1996
murder of six year old JonBent Ramsey, are too late to retract. The purity of a child may be
damaged but through community and social justice another child could be saved before
circumstances and history repeats itself.

I have chosen this theme primarily because I can relate to children who have been
abused, both physically and emotionally. I have suffered through many heartaches and emotional
detachments because of my childhood experiences. I was sexually abused at the age of six and it
wasn't until I was 18 years old when I acknowledged what happened. I unintentionally withheld
this information in my subconscious, ultimately feeling disgusted and ashamed for a week after
coming forward to a friend. However, I have overcome many of these obstacles in a short period
of time because I wasn't willing to allow the individual who took advantage of me to control my
life. I want people to recognize that even though the experiences as a child may ultimately mold
you into the man or woman you could potentially be, you can live a healthy, happy, and hopeful
life. The development and willingness of a child is just as strong and powerful as are the
experiences they're exposed to.

Image 1

The physical effects of abuse may heal faster than anything related to the emotional
tendencies of abuse. However, the physical conditions of a bruised body, beaten face, and torn
ligaments share a strong visual presentation of what is unnatural. I chose this photo because it
literally, without doubt, expresses the physical vessel being damaged without consent. The
thought of an adult taking advantage of a child is a concept that mature adults find unbearable
because of the conceptualized impression that a child provokes innocence. I think this connects
to child abuse and social justice because allowing the culprits condoning to these actions is

unjust. The process in which any individual(s) takes advantage and intentionally harms another
individual(s) is unethical, establishing the desire for justice in our society, both natively and
globally.
Image 2

I find this photo relevant to my theme because it represents the development, struggle,
and imperfections of a child experiencing abuse. The affect abuse has on a child has a strong or
stronger influence on the depiction of their lifestyle, personality, and presentation of themselves
as adults. It may not be clearly expressed but the geometric shapes represent a puzzle piece and
blood stains representing the tampering of a child's biological and experiential lifestyle. I chose
and found a personal connection to this image because I have struggled with my identity over the
last four years because of my incident 16 years ago. This is a representation of the traumatic
disillusion of a child, exposing them to the imperfections, unfairness, and tendencies of our
world and humanity. The identity of a human being is a hard concept to grasp, especially after
being traumatized and damaged.

Image 3

Sexual abuse is one of the darker extensions of abuse. The effects of a child experiencing
even a glimpse of sexual abuse instills fear and drastic repercussions. The social justice doesn't
necessarily lack any meaning but drastically loses recognition because now the child must live
with the consequences and potentially reflect on the situation subconsciously. The way this art
piece relates to social justice is the defensive stance against the tampering of a child's purity,
stating "Stop! He is just a kid." This poses a threat and global perception of how humanity will
respond to such crime and trauma. I chose this art piece because it's the most clearly labeled and
relevant to my experiences. The black handprints share a connection to the toxins and tampered
structure of an adolescent. It's a dark portrayal of the reality we face blindly, encouraging the
need for involvement and response.
Image 4

I chose this photo because of the visual aspect of the photo. It exposes the concept of
informing people through a black and white lens about how individuals fabricate these

experiences. Our world shares a fragile landscape when protesting against abuse, especially
involving a child. Humanity may acknowledge the existence of abuse, specifically sexual abuse,
but, not necessarily disregard, present a shadow of unnatural and sensitivity towards this subject.
As a community and social justice topic, it is the communitys civic duty to be aware and spread
awareness of these incidents. The child may have experienced this abuse but the community can
still have an obligation in providing a safer atmosphere if insecurities and sensitivity towards this
subject are explicit.
Image 5

The aggression and subconscious denial of a child is far more relevant than people give it
credit for. Subconsciously, anger responds coherently with abuse, acknowledging the need to
have a sense of power through these outbursts because of the mistreatment and their lack of
control. These antics reside within, like a Phoenix in the ashes waiting to burst into flames. This
symbolism exposes the tendencies that provoke adults who have experienced abuse in the
community, potentially causing harm, destruction, and chaos. I chose this art piece because
anger, hate, and resentment are some of the key characteristics highlighted within an abused
child proceeding these experiences. However, in regards to social justice there must be
recognition and action against these experiences, preventing unharmed and tampered children
from these exposed lifestyles.

Image 6

The repercussions of abuse lead to many extreme outcomes: resentment, self-loathing,

hate, suicide, and etcetera. However, a child may disguise themselves, providing a new look or
"mask" to distinguish themselves from the past. I have struggled with this identity crisis and
understand. The loss of identity and false perception of who they are proposes traumatic and
trivialized states of being and sense of place. The feeling of acceptance and love is a specific
developmental aspect during the growth stages of a child. Society can't force children or adults to
come forward with these experiences due to the sensitivity of their persona, but encourage their
acceptance as equals and recognize there is no aspect of them that does not make them human.
We are emotional beings, which is why I chose this photo, implicitly proposing the silhouette of
the mask as shame and false identity. Personally, it's a beautiful depiction of the consequences
each child will potentially face.
Image 7

Vision is a sense we must use to recognize the good, bad, ugly, and beautiful that frames
our lifestyle and surrounding environment. The false perception of humanity and community

resides within the eyes of a child, conceptualizing a theme of bad and good people in the world.
At a young age, a child determines trust when testing or experiencing the tendencies that
provoke trust, such as testing the caregiver. It is experiences like sexual or physical abuse that
will restructure the identity of trust and who or what that may involve. I chose this photo because
of the simplicity it provokes; an image within the eyes of the child. It has meaning because the
emotional structure of a child and adult are fragile, influencing the unwilling change of
perception. The social justice corresponding with this image resides within the restructure and
caretaking proceeding the experience, developing a sense of community and strength under these
traumatizing incidents.
Image 8

I chose this graphic piece as my concluding art as a representation of the entire album of
child abuse. The tears of blood, stoic facial expression, and detailed color scheme, matching the
rest of the pieces, is the symbolic "description" of acceptance and coming to terms with what has
happened. This art expresses the emotional, mental, and physical feelings and corresponding
tendencies influenced proceeding an abusive experience. I chose this piece because of the raw
expression in the child's eyes, exposing the damage and heartache. It also allowed me to see
growth through acceptance, ultimately moving forward with their life as much as possible and
finding some form of peace. I have shed many tears because of my experience and with every

single one evaporating I was able to recognize and pull myself up from the ashes. It is our job as
a species to take care of one another, whether we can recognize our neighbors or the strangers we
pass by on the streets, and establish a sense of justice and community.