Noah Takes A Picture Of Himself Every Day For Six Years: Part Two
By Gaby Dunn
Ever want to think about the fleeting nature of friends, relationships, locations and life in general? Just watch the new installment of “Everyday,” the video created by artist Noah Kalina. You, along with 23 million other people, probably saw the first video from 2006 — where Noah takes a picture of himself making the same blank expression every day for six years. Well, now it’s six years later and there’s more than 4,000 photos of Noah, documenting his life as it flies by.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPPzXlMdi7o&w=600&h=350]
If the ominous music wasn’t enough, the way Noah so clearly ages over 12.5 years — going through phases and clothing and haircuts and living situations and friends is such a stark slap of realism. You can physically see the signs of time passing.
Is he still friends with the man wandering around in the background of some of the early pictures? Does he own that very early ’00s bead necklace still? What happened to the art poster that’s behind a lot of the middle pictures? Who’s the girl at minute 6:00? What sparked the beard growth toward the end?
But these questions aren’t even necessarily directed at Noah. When I ask these, I’m asking them about myself, about movement and change I maybe haven’t even noticed. Where are my friends from January 2000? How many romantic partners would be shadows in the background, only to disappear in later photos? Why is my hair so long now? What have I been doing for 12 years?
Life takes us where it takes us, man. It’s awesome that Noah’s still documenting it like this, through art and photography — and making us think about our own “every days.”