Perception of the abstract.
Blowup is a beautifully constructed film that challenges the dividing line between reality and imagination, ultimately defined by perception. The main character is a self-absorbed, egotistical photographer who hates what he does to pay the bills, namely fashion photography. He believes that his skills should be used to document the images of real life, as he is currently putting together a book of photos of the homeless and immerses himself in their world to achieve his goal. He believes that true reality is captured in the photographs he takes and develops, and seeks validation from others to encapsulate that reality. He proves this by creating a storyboard of the scene he believes he witnessed in the park. As he develops and displays the photos, he creates his own version of the story unfolding before the eye of his camera.
As he builds his storyboard, he blows up the photos in an effort to zoom in on details that are difficult to see in the normal versions. These details turn out to be, in his perception, a man with a gun and a subsequent dead body. The irony of his perception is scripted earlier in the film. His visit to a neighboring artist plants the seed of abstract art and how one should perceive it. Thomas sees a canvas full of dots and specks and questions its form. The artist states that they mean nothing as he creates them, but he later finds something in them to hold onto. Thomas uses this technique in his own art form as he blows up the photos. The lack of detail in the blowups results in an abstract effect of what was reality in its previous version. He sees what he thinks is a gun and a body and that becomes the reality he seeks throughout the rest of the film.
