Symbolist art as another side of Avant-garde

S Y M B O L I S M

THERE IS SYMBOLISM IN MY PROJECT, AND MANY OBJECTS I WOULD LIKE TO EXPLAIN
 and therefore, it is necessary to explore why and how it helps to develop my story.

In a book "Symbolist art" by Edward Lucie-Smith (Thames and Hudson,1991) that
"The symbol is a mean of visual communication", "behind the shapes and colours to be found on the picture-surface, there is always something else, another realm; another order of meaning" (page 7)
"The conflict between 'open' and 'closed' systems of symbolic communication. Elements drawn from a language which every educated person was expected to be able to understand are mixed with other symbols whose meaning would reveal itself only to initiates." (page 7)

In my film there is symbolism, because I was hoping to engage viewers in making their own connections between the so-called 'open' and 'closed' meaning of objects, and objects at the same time, are one of the most common means of expression both in avant-garde and surrealism. So the editing of my film's scenes made to connect the sequence of pictures into one story.

1) Foil.
I used Foil mainly everywhere throughout the film. The symbol, that first appeared in the second part, called "Compund" when it was connected the couple's mouths, as a 'kiss'.
That was a visual representation of the 'exchange' of souls, ideas, thoughts, chemistry, something that visually and quite straightforwardly 'connected' these two characters into a union/ a relationship.

Then it covers a flower, another symbol of that film.

Then it appears on her face as a reflection of her feelings that grow and develop in her mind and subconsciousness (that is why the scene goes hand in hand with the psychedelic moving projections)

It appears again when she passes on the flower that got wrapped in foil a little earlier

But he does nothing but drops it right when he sees that flower..

And in the end she vomits with that foil, that is a physical representation , a symbol of whatever it was that happened to her when they were in love. that is why the project is called "illness" and this foil is like an infection that her own body rejects after is gone..it doesn't feel natural or real anymore.
And then it ends with her wrapped in foil, as it's her, 'wrapped' in her intoxicated tragedy of a broken heart.

I got inspired by these references I saw my friend's band did.

And they were not the first ones to 'touch' that idea, of course, my editor sent me this reference to the photo by Anna and Bernard Blume 

Anna and Bernhard Johannes Blume. Bon appétit! 1986

2) Flower

The flower is something they two plant. It's their fragile clear and pure feeling, something almost sacred.. but then it gets foil'ed, the way interpret can be different, but it may be something that to cause their relationship's end, and what it is- jealousy, angriness, dishonesty, etc- it's up to a viewer's personal idea..

But at the point they plant it, the scene is followed by the footage of building-works, which represents hard work, the way the relationship engages both of them, showing it's the basis of their love which is being made.

Also, when the flowers gets covered with the foil, I wanted to show how the natural object (plant) is being covered with something Unnatural, it's a foil that when blocks the flower from any sun-rays, any air, it doesn't leave a room for oxygen, prevents the flower from growing, it's like an obstacle to the future of this pure 'feeling' (represented through plant)

3) V-shaped glass

first he pours it, then they both take a sip, and in the last part it is back-forwraded to show the shared is 'gone'

Also, when they take a sip, they get 'presumed', so to show that they both entered a 'psychedelic' state, I wanted to compare to a drug-take, so to show, how the screen gets distorted, to represent an unclear/ not logical/ emotional/ euphoric state of mind of those who are in love.

And of course, the V-shaped glass has an erotic meaning.
From www.symboldictionary.net:
"Alchemical Water (Elemental Water, “Chalice”)

The alchemical/magical symbol for water is an inverted triangle, symbolizing downward flow. The downward pointing triangle is an ancient symbol of femininity, being a representation of female genitalia. One of the four alchemical elements, water has the properties cold and moist, and symbolizes intuition, the unconscious mind, and the enclosing, generating forces of the womb."