Psycho-geography is defined as the study of the specific effects of the geographical environment, consciously organised or not, on the emotions and behaviour of individuals. The creator of the psycho-geography group, Guy Debord, said that the definition has “pleasing vagueness” meaning that the term can be applied to a wide range of situations.
Snow Hill Psycho-Geography
I will be looking at snow hill for my area of interest. Snow hill has some history behind it; in the 17th century it was the eastern limit of St. Helier and was called La Pompe De Haut because of the public pump found there. In the 19th century a theatre was on the site. Between 1873 and 1929 it was the terminus of the Jersey Eastern Railway which ran trains from St Helier to Gorey. The building of the Harbours in the middle of the 19th century used huge quantities of rock for infilling between the outer walls of the harbour and much of this rock was taken from the area now known as Snow Hill car park.
My Archival Image Response
We visited Snow Hill on the 18th January and took archival photographs of the area. There is lots of history behind the area as it has been for used for multiple things such as a railway station and a cable cart station so it was an interesting place to use for comparisons between the new and old. This showed us how much the area has changed and how the past often gets forgotten.
General Photos of the Area
We took some photographs of the area just to show what Snow Hill is like now compared to what it used to be. It is obviously a lot more plain and run-down now as seen in the photographs below.
Due to the urban landscape and the development of humans and man made landscape soon forming the way In which we can travel and the directions in which we are now only capable to go.I want an industrial landscape full of urbanisation,perhpas this would be done thought out the use of combining old fashioned images of the area in which I am in now and the way in which this contrast to the current continuation of modernisation and the contrasting enforcement of time and the evoltuion of buildings.
Due to this I will be taking my shoot in the centre of town accompanied with old black and white image and how it has diversified overtime to become the landscape in which we live today.The images I will be using can be seen here:
I will visit all the locations on king street in order to correctly find and accompany these photos in their official situation to which they were originally taken. I chose black and white photos due to the larger historical impact for the overall image, and also the lines and stutter within the images due to the history of wars in jersey.
This is the beginning of the street in which I will find suiting image and replace them in the new scenario, this will be accomplished by the direct angles and correct placement, it will be easier due to the common areas and the well known areas as a whole.
As well as more urban shots around town I also wanted to show edited comparison of jersey as seen as above, although I wasn’t able too capture many as there was a lot of wind to the print image itself wasn’t able to stay straight without support.
Here I wanted to edit the images In both black and white and also colour to show the Morden comparison and then also present the similarities of the town and present the only diversity of time.
wihtin my images I also wanted to demonstrate the focus within the hand and the black and white image and then the attraction of light and colour and a lack of focus to draw attention to the composition and the matching lines that once would occur down that street.
The New topographics was a term used by William Jenkins in 1975 to describe a group of American photographers such as Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz whose pictures had a similar banal aesthetic, in that they were formal, mostly black and white prints of the urban landscape. Bernd Becher and Hilla Becher. Pitheads 1974.
Many of the photographers associated with new topographics were inspired by man-made features, selecting subject matter such as. Parking lots, suburban housing and warehouses. An exhibition at the International Museum of Photography in Rochester, New York featuring these photographers also revealed the growing unease about how the natural landscape was being eroded by industrial development leaving human footprints.
An artistic and intellectual movement originating in Europe in the late 1700's and characterized by a heightened interest in nature, emphasis on the individual's expression of emotion and imagination, departure from the attitudes and forms of classicism, and rebellion against established social rules and conventions.
Romanticism was developed in the 1700’s. Originating with paintings, the romanticist movement was later applied to photography. Romantic photography can be identified through the heightened detail concerning nature and the beauty of the natural world, which encourages the expression of emotion and feeling through photographs.
Psycho-geography is a hybrid of photography and geography that emphasizes playfulness and “drifting” around urban environments. It has links to the Situationist International.
Psychogeography was defined in 1955 by Guy Debord as “the study of the precise laws and specific effects of the geographical environment, consciously organized or not, on the emotions and behavior of individuals.”
Another definition is “a whole toy box full of playful, inventive strategies for exploring cities… just about anything that takes pedestrians off their predictable paths and jolts them into a new awareness of the urban landscape
The originator of what became known as unitary urbanism, psychogeography, and the dérive was Ivan Chtcheglov, in his highly influential 1953 essay “Formulaire pour un urbanisme nouveau” (“Formulary for a New Urbanism”).
The idea of urban wandering relates to the older concept of the flâneur, theorized by Charles Baudelaire…and is similar to STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
PETAPIXEL definition of PsychoGeography CLICK HERE
What will you see on your journey…and how will you respond and adapt to it ???
Koyaanisqati : Drawing its title from the Hopi word meaning “life out of balance,” this renowned documentary reveals how humanity has grown apart from nature. Featuring extensive footage of natural landscapes and elemental forces, the film gives way to many scenes of modern civilization and technology.
Superflux : explore over-surveillance and the prospect of intrusion in our everyday lives…has the concept of psycho-geographies evolved into something dystopian-like and Orwellian (1984- “Big brother”)…governments, town planners and the authorities design how we live, where we live and essentially control popluations of towns and cities.
Marcus Desieno creates de-humanised landscape photography by hacking surveillance camera networks…but avoids privacy problems normally associated with urban and residential areas…
What you need to do…(3-5 blog posts)
Research thenDefine, describe and explain what Psycho-Geography is…
Choose an (urban) area of Jersey that you are interested in exploring
Find the area on google maps and zoom in so that you can make a screen shot to add to your blog post.
Add the “street view” too if you can
Find as much information and images online as you can about the street / area you are exploring and include these in your blog post
Add any archival information that you can too (see below)
Then go to the area and explore on foot…photographing everything you can, and all that appears of interest to you at that time. Photograph up, down and across…creating a film or time-lapse is good too as is drone footage / imagery…
Record the time, date and place of your journey in your blog post
Add any thoughts, feelings or emotions you can about the place your are exploring…and as you develop a connection and familiarity with the place/ people / buildings etc.
Refer to Mishka Henner and Edward Burtynsky (aerial photographs) and The Boyle Family in your blog post…and discuss how they interact with an area and create art / photography inspired directly by the location and its uses / functions.
Analyse and evaluate your process…show your selection, editing and presentation of final images.
What Are Archives?
In the course of daily life, individuals and organizations create and keep information about their personal and business activities. Archivists identify and preserve these documents of lasting value.
These records — and the places they are kept — are called “archives.”Archival records take many forms, including correspondence, diaries, financial and legal documents, photographs, and moving image and sound recordings. All state governments as well as many local governments, schools, businesses, libraries, and historical societies, maintain archives.
Your task
The images above are Archival Images from iconic areas of Jersey…and these areas have changed over time.
Find archival images that correspond to your own landscape photography and contrast and compare. Include any info you can find about the image itself / photographer / time period etc
OR…you may find that you are intrigued by a particular landscape image and want to respond to it and create a comparison / composite image. For this you must conduct a photo-shoot aiming to document the area from a similar viewpoint and edit your images accordingly
OR…you may want to explore the concept of JUXTAPOSING Old and new buildings / parts of Jersey…either by photographing them in situ, or creating a composite image using photoshop
Public archives in Jersey
Jersey Archives: Since 1993 Jersey Archive has collected over 300,000 archival records and it is the island’s national repository holding archival material from public institutions as well as private businesses and individuals. To visit click here
Jersey Archive can offer guidance, information and documents that relate to all aspects of the Island’s History. It also holds the collections of the Channel Islands Family History Society.
Societe Jersiaise: Photographic archive of 80,000 images dating from the mid-1840s to the present day. 35,000 historical images in the Photographic Archive are searchable online here.
Societe Jersiaise also have an extensive library with access to may publications and records relating to the island’s history, identity and geography. Click here
Archisle:The Jersey Contemporary Photography Programme, hosted by the Société Jersiaise aims to promote contemporary photography through an ongoing programme of exhibitions, education and commissions.
The Archisle project connects photographic archives, contemporary practice and experiences of island cultures and geographies through the development of a space for creative discourse between Jersey and international practitioners.
Research and explore how Lewis Bush engages with and photographs the city and its development / over-development.
Click here to check out an interview as he explains how he uses aerial / satellite imagery to home in on secret data stations used in the Cold War and produce abstract imagery influenced by the radio waves of secret information being mysteriously broad-casted.
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