This image contains the aspects of us that indicate who we are – our face, and our greatest influence. Clockwise, we have a Pokemon Red cartridge for Francisco, a backpack with air tags for Amal, a video editing work-in-progress for Jacob, and a boarding pass collage for Brian. The Pokemon Red cartridge was Francisco's method of learning English, and was otherwise influential in his early childhood development. The backpack is marked with tags to signal Amal's sense of placelessness and wandering. The video editing represents a calling for Jacob, an push to create that is exercised repeatedly. The collage is Brian's completely different way of saying that he has made the entire world his home.
The image is divided into four quadrants. This arrangement is not random – the placement of the respective faces is roughly indicative of our home states in the US. In addition, the black to white fade of the gradient serves to highlight the separate polarities of Brian and Amal's travels. Brian's corner is black, signaling his complete absorption of the world's colors as his home. In contrast, Amal's inability to call any place home leaves his corner white, an empty canvas on which to fill in something missing. The location of the objects is also important. The Pokemon Red cartridge is plugged into Francisco's brain, reminiscent of the Game Boy Color on which it was played but also a reminder of the knowledge it provided him. Amal's backpack is attached by the hair, pulling him to continue wandering. Jacob's video editing is the largest object in the frame, indicative of his devotion to the subject. Brian's collage stems from Brian's head but quickly disappears off the frame, yearning to be free and in search of travel.
