A kiss

In modern day society and western culture, seeing two people intertwined in a kiss happens on a daily basis without any second thought. It is an action that almost everyone engages in at some point in their life. However, a kiss can have multiple meanings, as shown in the pictures above. A kiss can have many cultural connotations depending on the cultural context and can mean a variety of things including the expression of love, passion, affection, friendship, or good luck. In each of the pictures above, a different emotion is being expressed, but the bottom line remains that a kiss knows no color, no race, no sexual orientation, or class. A kiss is universal. In the first photo, a viewer may notice the black and white couple first, or the fact that the photograph was taken in black and white, but it is obvious that the main focus of this picture is the kiss. The first feelings that may be invoked would be a feeling of love because that’s what a kiss is commonly known for. After reading the caption underneath the photo, the kiss itself takes on an entirely new meaning. This photo was taken in the spring of 1965, in Washington, D.C., of Richard and Mildred Delores Loving, an interracial couple defying the idea of right and wrong as defined by the Racial Integrity Act of 1959 in the Common wealth of Virginia. When you look at the photo, you notice the man is pulling the woman into her as if he wants to protect her from the harm and pain she might endure. His face looks worn and weathered and lined as if he has been battling harsh winds all his life. His mouth is pressed with hers with a determined anger, but his eyes are soft and caring, showing a certain weakness towards her. He kisses her not only to display his love for her but to show the world that he loves her. This kiss is a kiss of defiance and love.
Looking at the second piece, our eyes are immediately drawn to the main focus, the kiss. This piece is a digital rendering done by Adam Martinakis titled the “Last Kiss”. When looking at this piece, a viewer may feel a sense of love and joy, or maybe a sense of loss. This piece depicts a certain kind of delicacy. There seems to be absolute focus on the kiss itself, excluding any distractions so the true purity of the act itself can be captured. The fibers are mainly concentrated at the lips and stretch outward as if there is a blossoming or growing love. It is almost as if the artist is inviting you into this intimate moment that he has created. The sense of loss may come from an obvious realization that the bodies are slowing fading away. Piece by piece, tendril by tendril, their beings, and their essence is slowly slipping away. All the energy that is left seems to be forming at the meeting of their lips, for one last kiss. The strongest emotion that I feel here is love, a never ending and everlasting love.
The boundaries of photography and society are pushed in the next picture giving you a different view on photography. Here you view a black and white couple wrapped up in a kiss; however, you also may notice the angle of the picture. Once again, the main focus of the photo seems to be the kiss. Not only is it the main focus, it has also become the center of the circle that is formed by the couple. The contrast of the colors in this photo make it all that more striking and intriguing. This photo, taken by Andy Barter, was taken against a pitch black background, making the couple stand out dramatically. The women’s pale skin stands out in stark contrast to the man’s skin, but the background allows it all to come together. Their bodies themselves are forming a ying yang, not only with the skin color, but in the way they are standing. This speaks of a balance and the need for each other. It portrays that one cannot live without the other, that it takes two halves to make a whole. It screams of the need to translate to the world that we are all a whole, one world, all brothers and sisters, from all different races, but all the same. This kiss is not only a kiss between two lovers, it is a kiss between two worlds. Letting everyone know it socially acceptable to love anyone you want, that it is acceptable to be true to your heart. This is a kiss of peace, a kiss of protest, and a kiss of love.
The final photo depicts two lovers kissing through veils. The back wall of the room is blue, and the side wall is an almost burnt red. The ceiling, which is almost invisible except for the siding, is white with a decorative trim. The dark and fading paints on the wall make the room almost insignificant, compared to the couple in the painting. The lovers and their kiss are the primary focus of this painting. The woman is in a red dress with her skin showing and the man is wearing a black suit with a white undershirt. The way they are positioned is subjective. The man is standing in a dominant position, with his shoulders angled. The woman’s head is tilting up to him and the same time she is leaning backward as if she is stepping down or aside for him. The veils that cover their faces turn this almost dull painting into one of mystery and wonder, making many thought- provoking questions pop into one’s mind. The color contrast and underlying meanings can translate into many different interpretations of this painting. The blue on the wall is commonly associated with calmness and water, which many people associate with life, while red is usually associated with anger, lust, and love. White normally represents purity, and black is used for death. The veils are white and the woman is wearing red, while the man is dressed in black. This shows the purity of love, or show that the purity is fading or has been tainted. Maybe it means that love is blind, and that is has no rhyme or reason it simply just is. It could represent the inability to fully unveil the true nature of even our closet companion. These two are glued together as a couple, but are blocked by each other, unable to truly know each other. Whatever the individual interoperations may be, it is obvious that Rene Magritte was trying to convey that love is blind. This is a kiss of passion, a passion that can never truly be found no matter how hard they try.
A kiss can have thousands of meanings depending on the people kissing and where the kiss is taking place. It can be the beginning of a relationship, a way to say hello, and a way to say a final goodbye. It has become a widely known symbol of love and lust throughout the western culture, although in different cultures, it still holds different meanings. Being caught in an embrace while sharing a kiss with your loved one happens so much, and on such a regular basis, that there is not much embarrassment for the couple or the viewer’s when this happens. Whether the kiss is one of love, one of friendship, a symbolic kiss, or a kiss of respect; everyone knows what a kiss looks like. The kiss seems to be a universal sign, and it is something that you witness wherever you go. A kiss is a universal act which people of every race, every class, and every color engage in. This act that the whole world knows and practices does not discriminate, it has no color, no race, no social class.