Project 2: Exploring Variations on a Theme

[edachiardi]

For this project, I wanted to explore variation in language, specifically focusing on the translation and transformation of idiomatic expressions from Spanish to English using text-to-image AI generation. for instance, idioms are quite literally deeply rooted in culture as they reflect beliefs/enviorments/history of the speakers. These idioms often don't translate directly between languages, which I thought would be fruitful in exploring within Midjourney or really any text to image AI. This project really let me play with and gain insight on how language variations and cultural nuances can influence both the way we understand idioms and the way AI interprets and visualizes them.




prompt 1: No me abra los ojos que no le voy a echar gotas
prompt 2: Don't open your eyes at me because I'm not going to give you drops.

I chose the prompt because in spanish, the phrase is playful/kind of sarcastic type of way of saying dont act like that because im not going to help you.

The literal translation in English obviously doesn't carry over any culutral context either so both images lack this nuance.

prompt 3: Son como uña y mugre
prompt 4: They are like nails and dirt

I chose this prompt because the idiom is nothing like what is actually being conveyed/and or read. In this case, the spanish phrase refers to two things that are closely intertwined or inseparable, often used to describe best friends. however, when translated it is literally "They are like nails and dirt," which confuses the reader from its intended meaning.

And as expected, Midjourney was unable to read past the literal translation in both cases, and translated the text explicitly.


prompt 5: Colgar los guayos
prompt 6: Hang the cleats


I chose this prompt because in spanish it is a phrase that means to retire from playing soccer or to give up an activity/dedication/passion/life altogether. However, the literal translation, "Hang the cleats," however, doesn't immediately convey this figurative meaning in English.

And as assumed without the cultural context, Midjourney literally generated a hanging a pair of cleats.

[emma_brown]

I liked the use of passages in others posts, so I went with one of Aesop's fables.

The goddess heard the cat’s prayer and granted her wish. Straightway, she became a beautiful young woman with green eyes and long, thick tabby hair. The young man fell hopelessly in love with her and soon there was a wedding. The goddess looked down at them and smiled to herself. ‘I wonder,’ she thought, ‘how much of her is cat and how much of her is woman

--weird 1000

--weird 1000 --no cat

A deity transforms a cat into a woman. A man falls in love with and marries her. The deity wonders about the true nature of the transformed being.

--no cat

--weird 3000

finally no cat!

A deity transforms a cat into a woman. A man falls in love with and marries her. The deity wonders about the true nature of the transformed being. In the style of malevich.