Lost in Translation
Most of the artists I know have done an exercise that our profession often calls for, its what is known as an ‘Artists Statement’. Its kind of an explanation of what motivates our talent, in whatever field that may be, its an explanation of our process and our passion as well as a way to get across a point, some central idea that most or all of the art that we create revolves around.
A lot of employers often seek this particular statement when viewing a portfolio, its like a back up, if they enjoy the art we’ve given them in our portfolio they can look and catch a glimpse at our soul without ever seeing out face, in the instance that the work in a particular portfolio is not what they’ve expected or not what they’re looking for they can read this statement to see if a particular artist is capable of the work they need or they can see what not to look for in other submissions.
Its really a difficult thing to do, a professor that taught a class I took in my foundations years at art school required at the end of the semester for us to submit not only a portfolio of work, but an artists statement as well. It, like so many of my weaker work was lost in a computer break down about six months ago. I don’t even remember what I wrote in it. It must have been good because she pulled me into her office and we talked for hours on our shared artistic visions and inspirations. The reason I say it was weak is because what inspired me three years ago most certainly does not inspire me now. Over all my passion has grown and my abilities as well, but whereas before I took inspiration in certain people and times, I now draw from a much broader river of ideas. I was concentrated before on the overall, while I now like to focus in on the details. And as my abilities and talents have grown and progressed my styles and angles have followed suit.
I say this all because I just finished a magnificent article in my newest installment of my ever-favorite magazine ‘Vanity Fair’ on my all time favorite director, Sofia Coppola. In said article she and the people that are most closely surrounding her life talked about what its like to be her, to be near her and to be part of her movies or projects. For those of you who don’t know her or recognize the name, she is the director of the Golden Globe winning ‘Lost in Translation’ which stars the beautiful Scarlet Johannsen and ever-funny Bill Murray.
I was first introduced to Sofia’s work when my best friend and I rented a movie that was an adaptation of one of our shared favorites books ‘The Virgin Suicides’. It’s a movie about five sisters who all commit suicide because they feel so trapped and sheltered by their parents that they don’t believe they can properly function in the world outside. It’s a really depressing book, but an excellent foray into the minds of adolescent girls (which Amanda and I certainly were both at the time). We certainly didn’t expect what we saw; the thing that drew us to the book was the dark aspect as well as the writing style (we were both in the process of writing out first novels at the time). The movie offered us a completely different point of view. We found ourselves identifying with the girls and the aspects of their lives that made it so hard to fit in, and the aspects of their persons that made it so hard to be anonymous at the same time. What struck me then, and remains with me now, is the images, the article explains this as well, the way Sofia brought a lot of over exposed images and themes into the movie, mixed them with gorgeous underground alt-rock music and fashion. All created a kind of surreal atmosphere to the movie, a thing we thought only the book could accomplish. The girls were naïve and flighty and serious all at the same time, they were old souls in young bodies and at the same time not wise of the world. It’s a powerful movie, just like ‘Lost in Translation’, which I also identified with. I remember watching the movie with my parents and how they hated the style it was shot in and the music was too alternative for them, but, when they finally sat through it, the first thing out of my mothers mouth was, ‘Jamie, That girl is exactly who I think your going to be like when you grow up.’ I remember being stuck by that in the sense that the character she’s talking about (Scarlet Johansson’s character Charlotte) was a very flighty and lost girl. Someone who was recently married and questioning her decisions and recently graduated with a degree in philosophy and had absolutely no idea what she was going to do next. All she knew was that she was with her husband in Tokyo and had all day while he was shooting photographs for bands to just explore and think. She ends up having this chaste relationship with an older man, Bill Murray, and in the end just kisses him and leaves it at that. It’s very gorgeous in making and style.
The articles writer talked extensively with Sofia about herself. How she’s viewed as this Hollywood Royalty girl that rides the coattails of her father (Francis Ford Coppola of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now fame) and how she’s using her name and famous friends to just make movies that she likes with not thought to the amount of money and time she takes. It’s really an eye opener, I love her, truly. She’s the girl I want to be when I’m 35. Very cool, fashionable, talented and well mannered as well as schooled in the old ways but more intimately versed in the new ways. It got me thinking about who I am and why I do what I do. In the article Sofia talks a lot about what drives her, what her inspirations are and how she’s gotten to where she is, through all of the controversy and criticism.
I really identify with her on a lot of things. Most closely, I identify with her on how she is often misrepresented. How people often judge her too quickly on some of the things on the outside and never care to look deeper into who she is on the inside. I really know what she’s speaking of. Its often the case with me, I’m critiqued on things of little consequence and never fully examined to see the deeper ideas and passions that I have. Recent events have caused me to have to break myself down and rebuild afresh and anew and more and more often I’m being asked to give an explanation for myself. As the people who used to know me best now see a completely different person. So I will explain, to the best of my ability what it is that I am and what I do.
My first and most principle feature is my Christianity. It’s the biggest part of me, the most important and the aspect of me that I hope most can see. It’s a very real and deep part of who I am and it’s the ultimate factor in who I want to become. My faith is the guiding force in my decisions and it’s the principle part of me that requires the most work and time but also the most joy and peace.
My creativity, my art and writing are probably the second biggest part of who I am. I’ve always been creative; I’ve always had too much imagination. It’s my central way of dealing with the world around me, how I feel, what I see, etc. It’s the visual expression of my soul, in other words. My photography is a window into how I see the world, the angles and styles and details that I most often concentrate on. I’m never one to look at the entire picture unless the situation truly calls for it, I am much better and much more adept at focusing in on the smallest aspects of things. Whether it be the world around me, trees and flowers and clouds, or the people around me. My portraits often focus in on the little things that make everyone unique in my eyes. Rather then a smiling plastic face that one poses for, I often like capturing my subjects in the heat of their environment. Example, last night I went home to be with my friends from my home church, we have this program called ‘Friday Nite Lite’ in which we enlist local talent to come and play some soft jazz or acoustic at the coffeehouse our church owns downtown. Last night featured three of my friends, Nathan Lean on the piano, Didriech Lewis on the drums, and Lee Stowe on bass. They spent the evening jamming some great jazz and blues and basically just enjoying being together and doing what they all love the most, playing music. I, as always, was there with my camera; I spent the evening capturing them as they played. The thing that I love most about shooting them (I’ve shot most of them before in various places) is the passion. After that first awkward song, they fell into a groove together, and we, the audience was completely vanished to them. They were just three extraordinarily talented guys up there doing exactly what they wanted to be doing and enjoying their own company. I was there, photographing the whole time. My favorite shots are of the three of them as they fed off of each other, Lee would bust out a smooth bass line and Nathan would just play off the cuff on the piano with a gorgeous little line and Didriech would follow up with a rhythm that would bring the whole thing together. My shots show this aspect, they’re all three in their element, they’re looking at each other, or eyes closed and just lost in the music. This, I feel, it’s the most beautiful part of all of them, it’s the thing they all love the most, music, and by photographing them in this element, I’ve captured who they truly are, extremely talented, handsome, wonderful men. This is what I like to capture with my writing and art, the truest aspect of a person or thing, the part of them that is truly who they are, this, I think sets me apart form others in my genre, I don’t like idealized portraits, they’re fun to do in their own right, but when it comes to the photographs that really count, its that moment where whatever the subject is, is complete and true. My art is all over the map and I don’t work exclusively in this vein, but I feel that this is what I’m best at, capturing a moment where the image speaks volumes about the subject, rather than makes them pretty or sexy.
My style. A subject that seems too mediocre to me has become a great issue now that I’m becoming more and more involved in things around me. I think I’m best described as an old friend put it, ‘Old World’. Most of what I wear is nonconventianal. Not all, but most. Most often the complaints against me are that I wear too much jewelry or my makeup and my hair are too heavy. My hair is long because my face is round in nature and short hair makes me look like a balloon. My makeup is most often consists of smoky eyeliner, darker eye shadows and mascara with bits of blush thrown in. Not heavy in my book, I don’t desire to look fake, I often where little or no foundation or cover-up and don’t line my eyes straight and glassy. I choose to accentuate my eyes because they are the best feature on my face and I choose dark colors because I feel like the smoky effect (as opposed to the clean lines and shimmery colors most often used). I like the semi-mysteriousness that it seems to add to me, but more often than not, I just like it so I do it. As for jewelry and too much or too little, I think its more of a sense of what I wear, I don’t like little earrings or inscribed bracelets or normal watches, I’m an ethnic leaning girl. My earrings are unique and pretty, often rather large, I wear a set of Indian bracelets that my little brother got me several years ago, I wear a ring Jeremy got for me a couple of years ago that he said reminded him of me, its very Byzantium looking and its always on my right hand. Other than that, its often what I see and like that is mostly not conventional, I see what I like, what I admire and appreciate and buy it, most of what I have is handmade by friends or found in little online shops overseas, its unique, like me and I get what I enjoy. My clothing is more eccentric than most, while I see the virtue in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt, I enjoy dressing up and finding pieces that are more old world cut and different. I love high couture. Its new designs that draw off of centuries past and other countries staples are so appealing, so more often then not I’m not wearing a button up shirt of a polo, its just not me and I’m ok with that. I don’t subscribe to the less is more policy, I want someone to look at me and not desire me for my body, I would rather them desire to spend time with me talking and laughing and loving the inner me, not staring at my boobs or my butt. I think elegance and femininity are the truest forms of beauty, a woman who is dressed in a beautiful floor length black dress with a simple back cut out is much more beautiful than a chick in a mini skirt, heels, and barely there top. I desire a man who finds me beautiful and attractive because of who I am, not because of what I look like. I’m not decadent and don’t want to be seen as so, merely I consider myself to be one of fashionable consideration and wish to be well dressed to show my personal care of myself.
My political views and missions are a huge part of me as well. I’m a conservative Republican by choice and love my parties stand point on most issues, however, I’m not a fanatic or total party loyalist, a lot of the views I have are considered liberal for my party and therefore I am not one to be totally encircled by my political party. My views on World Hunger and Poverty are very strong and I am choosing to devote my life and talents as a photographer to them. I’m strong wiled in my arguments and debates and not easily conceding. I’ll argue to the death or tears and am not to be confused with an ignorant I’m-a-republican-because-my-daddy-was group. I know and take pride in knowing what I talk about and pride myself in looking at all angles, not just the conservative side of issues, I don’t want to be ignorantly against something, I want to be knowledgably opposed, but open to others views. I hate people that shut down others for what they believe and find such things as that to be what brings about the problems we’re experiencing today in world affairs to be because of those reasons.
Archeology and the quest for knowledge make up a large factor of my personality as well. I’m currently studying to be a Classical Archeologist, which means I am emphasizing my talents in Egyptian, Middle Eastern and Greek and Roman histories and practices, my dream is to live and work in Jerusalem and to live and die in the areas around African and the Mediterranean.
My tastes factor in somewhere, I’m usually the girl who listens to the bands and watches the movies no one knows about because I enjoy freshness rather than the sold out sounds of the latest pop tart or rapper. I enjoy a lot of alternative rock, techno and world music. I like more overseas music than homeland stuff and don’t like country, pop or rap. I’m interested in the Brit rock and electronic scene, the Paris post-pop at-rock a la Phoenix scene and the African and Middle Eastern music scenes. I’m a ‘Classical’ genre junkie and adore likes of Yo-yo ma, Andrea Bocecelli, Hayley Westenra and Sarah Brightman. I’m also a huge fan of the early US Blues and Jazz scenes. Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Julie London, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis and Bob Dylan are definite staples in my musical library. My movie choices lean toward independent titles and most often the horror genre. I’m an Alfred Hitchcock girl; Sofia Coppola, Wes Anderson, Zach Braff, and Danny Boyle are all ones that I definitely don’t miss out on. I love the old French and Italian movies and am a fan of anything horror related. As for books, any and everything with the expectation of chick lit. My absolute favorites are Alex Garland (the best writer of all time) and Nick Hornby. I also enjoy Michael Crichton, Arthur Golden and a few others, the classics are all on my top shelf and I love modernist work.
I realize this is a very long post, and it is defiantly not what I was planning on posting about, I’ve got another in the works and I know that one will be shorter and much less self involved. However, I felt that this post was needed in order to explain to several people who have been overly critical as of late and do sincerely hope that it doesn’t sound self-centered. My point was to explain myself and who I am so that others around me will more fully understand me. I identified so closely with Sofia, not on her rich upbringing, but on her wisdom and self-attitude. Like me she’s shy, intelligent and overly critical of herself, but confident in her abilities and strengths and not afraid to stand up for what she believes. I hope that point was made across here.
A lot of employers often seek this particular statement when viewing a portfolio, its like a back up, if they enjoy the art we’ve given them in our portfolio they can look and catch a glimpse at our soul without ever seeing out face, in the instance that the work in a particular portfolio is not what they’ve expected or not what they’re looking for they can read this statement to see if a particular artist is capable of the work they need or they can see what not to look for in other submissions.
Its really a difficult thing to do, a professor that taught a class I took in my foundations years at art school required at the end of the semester for us to submit not only a portfolio of work, but an artists statement as well. It, like so many of my weaker work was lost in a computer break down about six months ago. I don’t even remember what I wrote in it. It must have been good because she pulled me into her office and we talked for hours on our shared artistic visions and inspirations. The reason I say it was weak is because what inspired me three years ago most certainly does not inspire me now. Over all my passion has grown and my abilities as well, but whereas before I took inspiration in certain people and times, I now draw from a much broader river of ideas. I was concentrated before on the overall, while I now like to focus in on the details. And as my abilities and talents have grown and progressed my styles and angles have followed suit.
I say this all because I just finished a magnificent article in my newest installment of my ever-favorite magazine ‘Vanity Fair’ on my all time favorite director, Sofia Coppola. In said article she and the people that are most closely surrounding her life talked about what its like to be her, to be near her and to be part of her movies or projects. For those of you who don’t know her or recognize the name, she is the director of the Golden Globe winning ‘Lost in Translation’ which stars the beautiful Scarlet Johannsen and ever-funny Bill Murray.
I was first introduced to Sofia’s work when my best friend and I rented a movie that was an adaptation of one of our shared favorites books ‘The Virgin Suicides’. It’s a movie about five sisters who all commit suicide because they feel so trapped and sheltered by their parents that they don’t believe they can properly function in the world outside. It’s a really depressing book, but an excellent foray into the minds of adolescent girls (which Amanda and I certainly were both at the time). We certainly didn’t expect what we saw; the thing that drew us to the book was the dark aspect as well as the writing style (we were both in the process of writing out first novels at the time). The movie offered us a completely different point of view. We found ourselves identifying with the girls and the aspects of their lives that made it so hard to fit in, and the aspects of their persons that made it so hard to be anonymous at the same time. What struck me then, and remains with me now, is the images, the article explains this as well, the way Sofia brought a lot of over exposed images and themes into the movie, mixed them with gorgeous underground alt-rock music and fashion. All created a kind of surreal atmosphere to the movie, a thing we thought only the book could accomplish. The girls were naïve and flighty and serious all at the same time, they were old souls in young bodies and at the same time not wise of the world. It’s a powerful movie, just like ‘Lost in Translation’, which I also identified with. I remember watching the movie with my parents and how they hated the style it was shot in and the music was too alternative for them, but, when they finally sat through it, the first thing out of my mothers mouth was, ‘Jamie, That girl is exactly who I think your going to be like when you grow up.’ I remember being stuck by that in the sense that the character she’s talking about (Scarlet Johansson’s character Charlotte) was a very flighty and lost girl. Someone who was recently married and questioning her decisions and recently graduated with a degree in philosophy and had absolutely no idea what she was going to do next. All she knew was that she was with her husband in Tokyo and had all day while he was shooting photographs for bands to just explore and think. She ends up having this chaste relationship with an older man, Bill Murray, and in the end just kisses him and leaves it at that. It’s very gorgeous in making and style.
The articles writer talked extensively with Sofia about herself. How she’s viewed as this Hollywood Royalty girl that rides the coattails of her father (Francis Ford Coppola of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now fame) and how she’s using her name and famous friends to just make movies that she likes with not thought to the amount of money and time she takes. It’s really an eye opener, I love her, truly. She’s the girl I want to be when I’m 35. Very cool, fashionable, talented and well mannered as well as schooled in the old ways but more intimately versed in the new ways. It got me thinking about who I am and why I do what I do. In the article Sofia talks a lot about what drives her, what her inspirations are and how she’s gotten to where she is, through all of the controversy and criticism.
I really identify with her on a lot of things. Most closely, I identify with her on how she is often misrepresented. How people often judge her too quickly on some of the things on the outside and never care to look deeper into who she is on the inside. I really know what she’s speaking of. Its often the case with me, I’m critiqued on things of little consequence and never fully examined to see the deeper ideas and passions that I have. Recent events have caused me to have to break myself down and rebuild afresh and anew and more and more often I’m being asked to give an explanation for myself. As the people who used to know me best now see a completely different person. So I will explain, to the best of my ability what it is that I am and what I do.
My first and most principle feature is my Christianity. It’s the biggest part of me, the most important and the aspect of me that I hope most can see. It’s a very real and deep part of who I am and it’s the ultimate factor in who I want to become. My faith is the guiding force in my decisions and it’s the principle part of me that requires the most work and time but also the most joy and peace.
My creativity, my art and writing are probably the second biggest part of who I am. I’ve always been creative; I’ve always had too much imagination. It’s my central way of dealing with the world around me, how I feel, what I see, etc. It’s the visual expression of my soul, in other words. My photography is a window into how I see the world, the angles and styles and details that I most often concentrate on. I’m never one to look at the entire picture unless the situation truly calls for it, I am much better and much more adept at focusing in on the smallest aspects of things. Whether it be the world around me, trees and flowers and clouds, or the people around me. My portraits often focus in on the little things that make everyone unique in my eyes. Rather then a smiling plastic face that one poses for, I often like capturing my subjects in the heat of their environment. Example, last night I went home to be with my friends from my home church, we have this program called ‘Friday Nite Lite’ in which we enlist local talent to come and play some soft jazz or acoustic at the coffeehouse our church owns downtown. Last night featured three of my friends, Nathan Lean on the piano, Didriech Lewis on the drums, and Lee Stowe on bass. They spent the evening jamming some great jazz and blues and basically just enjoying being together and doing what they all love the most, playing music. I, as always, was there with my camera; I spent the evening capturing them as they played. The thing that I love most about shooting them (I’ve shot most of them before in various places) is the passion. After that first awkward song, they fell into a groove together, and we, the audience was completely vanished to them. They were just three extraordinarily talented guys up there doing exactly what they wanted to be doing and enjoying their own company. I was there, photographing the whole time. My favorite shots are of the three of them as they fed off of each other, Lee would bust out a smooth bass line and Nathan would just play off the cuff on the piano with a gorgeous little line and Didriech would follow up with a rhythm that would bring the whole thing together. My shots show this aspect, they’re all three in their element, they’re looking at each other, or eyes closed and just lost in the music. This, I feel, it’s the most beautiful part of all of them, it’s the thing they all love the most, music, and by photographing them in this element, I’ve captured who they truly are, extremely talented, handsome, wonderful men. This is what I like to capture with my writing and art, the truest aspect of a person or thing, the part of them that is truly who they are, this, I think sets me apart form others in my genre, I don’t like idealized portraits, they’re fun to do in their own right, but when it comes to the photographs that really count, its that moment where whatever the subject is, is complete and true. My art is all over the map and I don’t work exclusively in this vein, but I feel that this is what I’m best at, capturing a moment where the image speaks volumes about the subject, rather than makes them pretty or sexy.
My style. A subject that seems too mediocre to me has become a great issue now that I’m becoming more and more involved in things around me. I think I’m best described as an old friend put it, ‘Old World’. Most of what I wear is nonconventianal. Not all, but most. Most often the complaints against me are that I wear too much jewelry or my makeup and my hair are too heavy. My hair is long because my face is round in nature and short hair makes me look like a balloon. My makeup is most often consists of smoky eyeliner, darker eye shadows and mascara with bits of blush thrown in. Not heavy in my book, I don’t desire to look fake, I often where little or no foundation or cover-up and don’t line my eyes straight and glassy. I choose to accentuate my eyes because they are the best feature on my face and I choose dark colors because I feel like the smoky effect (as opposed to the clean lines and shimmery colors most often used). I like the semi-mysteriousness that it seems to add to me, but more often than not, I just like it so I do it. As for jewelry and too much or too little, I think its more of a sense of what I wear, I don’t like little earrings or inscribed bracelets or normal watches, I’m an ethnic leaning girl. My earrings are unique and pretty, often rather large, I wear a set of Indian bracelets that my little brother got me several years ago, I wear a ring Jeremy got for me a couple of years ago that he said reminded him of me, its very Byzantium looking and its always on my right hand. Other than that, its often what I see and like that is mostly not conventional, I see what I like, what I admire and appreciate and buy it, most of what I have is handmade by friends or found in little online shops overseas, its unique, like me and I get what I enjoy. My clothing is more eccentric than most, while I see the virtue in a pair of jeans and a tee shirt, I enjoy dressing up and finding pieces that are more old world cut and different. I love high couture. Its new designs that draw off of centuries past and other countries staples are so appealing, so more often then not I’m not wearing a button up shirt of a polo, its just not me and I’m ok with that. I don’t subscribe to the less is more policy, I want someone to look at me and not desire me for my body, I would rather them desire to spend time with me talking and laughing and loving the inner me, not staring at my boobs or my butt. I think elegance and femininity are the truest forms of beauty, a woman who is dressed in a beautiful floor length black dress with a simple back cut out is much more beautiful than a chick in a mini skirt, heels, and barely there top. I desire a man who finds me beautiful and attractive because of who I am, not because of what I look like. I’m not decadent and don’t want to be seen as so, merely I consider myself to be one of fashionable consideration and wish to be well dressed to show my personal care of myself.
My political views and missions are a huge part of me as well. I’m a conservative Republican by choice and love my parties stand point on most issues, however, I’m not a fanatic or total party loyalist, a lot of the views I have are considered liberal for my party and therefore I am not one to be totally encircled by my political party. My views on World Hunger and Poverty are very strong and I am choosing to devote my life and talents as a photographer to them. I’m strong wiled in my arguments and debates and not easily conceding. I’ll argue to the death or tears and am not to be confused with an ignorant I’m-a-republican-because-my-daddy-was group. I know and take pride in knowing what I talk about and pride myself in looking at all angles, not just the conservative side of issues, I don’t want to be ignorantly against something, I want to be knowledgably opposed, but open to others views. I hate people that shut down others for what they believe and find such things as that to be what brings about the problems we’re experiencing today in world affairs to be because of those reasons.
Archeology and the quest for knowledge make up a large factor of my personality as well. I’m currently studying to be a Classical Archeologist, which means I am emphasizing my talents in Egyptian, Middle Eastern and Greek and Roman histories and practices, my dream is to live and work in Jerusalem and to live and die in the areas around African and the Mediterranean.
My tastes factor in somewhere, I’m usually the girl who listens to the bands and watches the movies no one knows about because I enjoy freshness rather than the sold out sounds of the latest pop tart or rapper. I enjoy a lot of alternative rock, techno and world music. I like more overseas music than homeland stuff and don’t like country, pop or rap. I’m interested in the Brit rock and electronic scene, the Paris post-pop at-rock a la Phoenix scene and the African and Middle Eastern music scenes. I’m a ‘Classical’ genre junkie and adore likes of Yo-yo ma, Andrea Bocecelli, Hayley Westenra and Sarah Brightman. I’m also a huge fan of the early US Blues and Jazz scenes. Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Julie London, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis and Bob Dylan are definite staples in my musical library. My movie choices lean toward independent titles and most often the horror genre. I’m an Alfred Hitchcock girl; Sofia Coppola, Wes Anderson, Zach Braff, and Danny Boyle are all ones that I definitely don’t miss out on. I love the old French and Italian movies and am a fan of anything horror related. As for books, any and everything with the expectation of chick lit. My absolute favorites are Alex Garland (the best writer of all time) and Nick Hornby. I also enjoy Michael Crichton, Arthur Golden and a few others, the classics are all on my top shelf and I love modernist work.
I realize this is a very long post, and it is defiantly not what I was planning on posting about, I’ve got another in the works and I know that one will be shorter and much less self involved. However, I felt that this post was needed in order to explain to several people who have been overly critical as of late and do sincerely hope that it doesn’t sound self-centered. My point was to explain myself and who I am so that others around me will more fully understand me. I identified so closely with Sofia, not on her rich upbringing, but on her wisdom and self-attitude. Like me she’s shy, intelligent and overly critical of herself, but confident in her abilities and strengths and not afraid to stand up for what she believes. I hope that point was made across here.


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