For my third photoshoot I have decided to take inspiration from the use of triptychs, and from my original mind map idea of documenting how objects change over time (their journey through their existence/usage). In order to do this, I decided to use objects that have a relatively short lifespan (such as flowers or ice cubes) and so their decay/the changes they experience through their “life” can be easily documented and the differences are more obvious and natural than, for example, physically changing the appearance of a human subject to show progress and change.
The following contact sheets are the results of my photo-shoots in which I documented the progress of various objects through their natural “lifetime”:
The above shoot captured my first subject, an ice cube, as it melted in a studio setting:
Key: Red E: Over/under exposed – Green E: Slightly over/under exposed – Red S: Subject incorrectly placed – Green F: Slightly out of focus – Red F: out of focus – Green tick: In final selection – Red Cross: rejected – Green “?”: Possible final
The above contact sheets show my second photoshoot, depicting the wilting/dying of a flower in a studio setting:
Key: Red E: Over/under exposed – Green E: Slightly over/under exposed – Red S: Subject incorrectly placed – Green F: Slightly out of focus – Red F: out of focus – Green tick: In final selection – Red Cross: rejected – Green “?”: Possible final
My 3rd shoot is much like my second, except I experimented with different subjects (flowers) in order to experiment how the colour gradient, size and shape would effect the final image:
Key: Red E: Over/under exposed – Green E: Slightly over/under exposed – Red S: Subject incorrectly placed – Green F: Slightly out of focus – Red F: out of focus – Green tick: In final selection – Red Cross: rejected – Green “?”: Possible final
The above photo-shoot is an example of a deterioration that occurs unnaturally (setting paper on fire) and shows the journey of the paper through the different stages of its physical form/shape before it becomes ash. On a more metaphorical level it represents how quickly something can deteriorate, from perfection to literal “rubble” due to adverse conditions:
Key: Red E: Over/under exposed – Green E: Slightly over/under exposed – Red S: Subject incorrectly placed – Green F: Slightly out of focus – Red F: out of focus – Green tick: In final selection – Red Cross: rejected – Green “?”: Possible final
A triptych is a piece of artwork that makes use of 3 separate but connected panels in order to tell a story across the 3 panels without using any moving imagery or effects. Triptychs were commonly used during the Middle Ages as a way to convey Biblical stories through images. Triptychs have more recently been widely replaced by the use of videos and recordings, which show the more intricate details of a progressing story without the need to “clump” significant events into just 3 images.
Triptychs were commonly used to convey Bible stories during periods where art was stationary (there was no multi-media) – Source: Merode Alterpiece
Although Triptychs were historically used to convey literal stories, myths and legends, modern triptychs often incorporate different meanings into the artwork displayed, and are often used as a way to display a continuous piece of art using 3 panels, separating the piece and allowing for attention to be drawn to each separate section, while also displaying the full piece in an eye-catching and interesting way.
Triptychs can be used to both tell a continuous story, or to display a continuous piece of literal artwork. For my project into Journeys & Pathways, I have decided to focus on displaying many of my final pieces as triptychs, as I believe in doing so I am able to literally display each photograph as a piece in a journey, with the first and final panels representing 2 ends of the same journey. In doing this, I will be able to use both literal and metaphorical terms when developing my photographs, as the images will represent more metaphorical journeys and pathways, whereas the display of the images in a triptych will allow for all 3 images to be brought together, and physically displayed as a journey that can be followed easily by the viewer by looking from one panel to the next.
In feminist theory the male gaze is the act of depicting women and the world, in the visual arts and literature, from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the male viewer
Kourtney Roy is a photographer born in Northern Ontario in 1981. She produced a series titled ‘The Ideal Women’ in which Roy is both the objectifier and the object: the photographer and the ‘ideal woman’ photographed. In contrast to her use of bold aesthetics, Roy’s reference to the male gaze in The Ideal Women is subtle. This reflects her understanding of gender discrimination in both the photography industry and society at large, she reflects “Discriminatory behaviour has been so conditioned that we often accept it as natural, as opposed to learned behaviour”. For Roy the practice of celebrating female artists in relation to their womanhood epitomises this. She cites Georgia O’Keeffe, who famously “The men liked to put me down as the best woman painter. I think I am one of the best painters.”
Roy’s distinctive approach and aesthetic runs through all of her work, be it personal or commercial. The careful compositions, bold colours and immaculate hair and make-up, inspire each still with a cinematic air.
I feel I can look on and take inspiration from Roy and relate her work to mine as I also am aiming to show ideas of female representations and how they have been presented through time and the media in what could be seen as the male gaze especially for some of the recreations of that of Guess and even Balenciaga.
History provides us a record, and from it one basic, inescapable, truth stands out: the ideals women are asked to embody, regardless of culture or continent, have been hammered out almost exclusively by men. This fact, more than any sort of evolutionary determinism, has meant that a fairly narrow range of attributes resurfaces across eras, returning every couple of decades or so like a new strain of the flu.
Physical ideals are changeable, manifestations of the cultures they come from, yet some aspects change more readily than others. Even when produced by those of their own gender, images of women have historically followed a pattern set down by males. Little about Artemisia Gentileschi’s Sleeping Venus(1625-1630), for example, suggests its female maker. In it, as in virtually all pictures of women, passivity is the norm, whether manifested as softness, slack musculature, or a deferential pose. Another abiding trait, the outline of the hourglass, reminds us that the Female is always a sort of clock, which we try to freeze at the moment of youth.
According to a story by Pliny the Elder, a Roman writer from the first century C.E, the first drawing ever made (and supposed the origin of painting) was by a women named Dibutades, who traced the silhouette of her lover on a wall. Whether chosen to be believed or not it is worth noting that although western mythology tells us that a woman was the first artist, her female successors received little attention until the end of the 20th Century. From antiquity onwards, only a few small sample of women found themselves into the tale of great artists. Even then, they were often described as unusually talented women who overcame the limitations of their gender in order to excel in what was known as a masculine field. British artist Mary Beale was a successful portrait artist in the late 1600’s but much of her success was attributed to the fact that her husband oversaw their studio and presented her works as experiments in the painting methods he developed.
Women have often been the subject of the art rather than the artist. In the modern Renaissance movements around the 1700’s women were often feature nude and very curvy and full, typically what the ideal was then.
The Origin of Painting: Dibutades Tracing the Portrait of a Shepherd | A painting recreating the scene | Painted in 1785 Musée National du Château, Versailles | Around the time until 1860 there was a wide spread vogue for paintings that evoked the origins of painting
In this photoshoot my artistic aim is to recreate some of the ‘famous’ propaganda which was used during the second world war, in order to showcase another element which was vital for Jersey’s journey through the second world war. I am going to try and capture the images in the style of tableaux photography, where I use similar lighting, positing and poses in order to capture my images. I decided not to focus on costumes as me nor my models had outfits like the actual images, doing this allowed me to focus more on the positioning, pose and capturing and accurate replication. To capture these images I will be using the studio, with artificial lighting. I shall experiment with 1,2 and 3 point lighting and the warmth of the soft boxes in order to create different effects when capturing my models doing the poses. Using the different types of lighting will allow me to use different effects like chiaroscuro, which will allow me to showcase my camera skills and knowledge. I intend to keep the shutter speed at fast, as I do not want any blur, as the images will not be like the original images. However, to show further exploration I may decide to experiment with the shutter speed at the end of the shoot to see what types of images I can create and use for my own propaganda. I kept the ISO low throughout the photoshoot so there was no noise being created, and the aperture was also on a normal setting so the image was not darker nor lighter. My modals face is usually going to be my main focus point and so I will look and experiment with using different depth of fields in order to showcase this. Prop wise I will not be using very many as I wanted to make this photoshoot as simplistic as possible.
Contact Sheets:
Evaluation:
To evaluate this photoshoot I believe I have managed to capture many successful images which shows competence with camera skills in a photography studio. I was able to explore using my shutter speed, ISO and different types of lighting in order to create different effects. I believe that my images that I have captured are very much like the original ones, which shows my ability to follow the style of tableaux photography due to the research I have conducted. Moreover, I managed to think ahead while capturing these images, during the shoot I decided I wanted to make a gif (moving image) of one of my models moving into the pose of the propaganda I was recreating. Due to this decision of mine I managed to capture the first image have my model slightly move and repeat this, as if I was creating a stop frame animation. Not only have I managed to produce accurate recreations I also have produced images which are like Kruger’s work, which will allow me to explore her style in the editing process. One issue that I ran into was getting the model to do exactly what I said, and sometimes my instructions where not clear which lead to poor quality images and models in the wrong pose. However, when I realised this was an issue I ensured that my instructions where much clearer and this resolved the problem.
Action Plan:
As an action plan I intend to use my successful images in photoshop, to further replicate the propaganda I have chosen. Moreover, it will allow me to further explore the style of Kruger’s work and give me the opportunity to explore and utilise my ideas which I have thought of when I conducted the research to see what makes a successful propaganda poster. In addition, I will use the burst of images in order to create a gif of my model getting into the ‘famous’ position, and therefore will have to use a website online to make the gif or make the gif within photoshop using tutorials.
Both images have used image and text to present a message and almost manipulate the viewers of the imagery to do as they say. Another similarity is the time at which they were created, they where both created during the war but for different reasons. Kruger created her manipulative posters to address current issues in 1945 society, like being gay and females rights, where as war propaganda was created to persuade people to leave their jobs and join the army, as that is what all men had to do. The target audience for both posters is different, Kruger’s work was aimed at anyone as she wanted to ensure that as many people are aware of these issues as possible, where as war propaganda was mainly aimed at men, as men where the gender who went and joined an army to fight in the war. Visually, both images are in black and white with colored text, which creates a color juxtaposition emphasizing the message within the message. In Kruger’s work the photograph of the man takes up the whole frame, leaving no sense of space, which reinforces the idea that we should do what the poster says. Where as, in the war propaganda we see Lord Kitchener in the center of the frame quite small, leaving a lot of space, which showcases the Lord’s importance making his message seem important. Conceptually, the two images are alike as they are both persuading viewers to do as they say, making them both successful pieces of propaganda. Both images have used male figures, as men where seen as more powerful and people where more likely to obey men during those days which justifies why the subject are that gender. In Kruger’s work she has used a chiaroscuro effect on the man to showcase how he wants to speak out but is still in doubt and scared, which emphasizes the text within the image. Where as, on the subject of the war propaganda it seems that one point or two point lighting was used on Kitchener as he is completely lit up, which may be because of his position within the war. Technically, the two images have some similarities with camera settings but also differ. One similarity is that a wide depth of field has been used as the model is completely in focus, and the models in both images are the only thing captures, making them the main focus point. In Kruger’s work there is intended noise in the model which suggests a higher ISO was used. Where as in the war propaganda there is no intended noise suggesting a low ISO. Both images have a quick shutter speed which captures the images as there is no blur on the models faces. As mentioned before both have used artificial lighting to capture the models allowing the different light up techniques to be made. In addition, the syntax of the sentences are very manipulative as it persuades and almost forces viewers to do as they say. In mu opinion I prefer Kruger’s work due to the lighting technique used, chiaroscuro, and the messages can still be utalized today. However, war propaganda has closer link to my project of the Journey of Jersey through the Second World War.
Andrew Wyeth was a US painter who was considered a realist painter, and worked in a regionalist style. He tended to paint landscapes and people, due the enjoyment it brung when he did this. Wyeth was often referred to as the man who paints his life, as he tended to paint the landscapes and people who has been apart of had an impact on his life. Age 20 was when Wyeth’s career as a painter took off as he put on the first one man exhibit in New York, where all of his work was made out of water colours. After that moment many took love to his work, as he continued painting what he enjoyed in the style he enjoyed. During his career he won many awards for the paintings he created and has many honours degrees, representing his intelligence and passion towards art.
In this simplistic painting we are presented with a young woman, in the foreground of the image, who is looking at the old and isolated buildings, located in the background, which presents an emotional connection between the girl and the building. The female seems to be wearing a pink dress, which reminds me of the time period of the 1930 – 40’s. Her hair is in a bun, which presents her as a working class citizen, which starts to present the contextual factor of the painting. She is located in a field, where the grass does not look healthy, which presents the ideology that the location has been left isolated for many years. Conceptually, I believe the painting it attempting to tell the story of the young girl who has a strong connection to the buildings, as she gases back at them to remember her past or experiences with the building. The actual conceptual meaning he wanted to portray was the story of him watching a young female, from the house which is seen in the background, crawl along the field due to her muscle disability, which outlines how fortunate we are to be the way we are. The painting almost creates tension as it almost feels like something bad is about to happen, and as spectators we are unable to do anything. The landscape painting was painted in 1948, so contextually his father had just recently passed away which made his art work more plaintive which presents his inner feelings towards the death of his father. Due to this, it helps to suggest why he decided to paint a woman with a muscle deficit and create the feeling that something bad is about to happen. Technically, Wyeth successfully presents the formal elements of space, shape, texture and tone through the highly realistic tableaux. Space is showcased by the use of proxemics of the girls and the isolated buildings. Texture and tone are shown through the detailed grass, the girl and buildings. It stands to reason that Wyeth used natural lighting, from the sun, as his light source as the location of the image is outside. The image is quite dark which foreshadows the terrible things that are about to happen to the woman. The main focus point is the young woman, due to her being in close proxemic, which builds an emotional relationship between her and the viewer. The closest building is also in focus, but the far building is out of focus, which suggests that a wide depth of field is being showcased in Wyeth’s work. If this was taken as a photograph it would Stand to reason that a quick shutter speed will be used and a low ISO as no intended blur or noise are being presented. Moreover, it makes sense that the white balance is set to an outdoor light mode, as the image does not seem to be ‘off’ in colour. Wyeth’s painting clearly outlines the criteria of a tableaux image, he has presented an in-depth story and message through the use of people and props, considered location and positioning of people and props and has carefully decided upon the way he creates the image.
Propaganda:
Propaganda Mood Board
The image above showcases one of Britains most popular pieces of propaganda during war time. Contextually, this poster was made in order to threaten and persuade many British men to join the army and fight for their country. Due to the poster, it lead to many of these men being killed at war as they listened to the subliminal message. Conceptually, the image was created to almost scare men into joining the army. Moreover, the way it’s worded makes the viewer feel important and that the country is relying on them which makes the message clear that that army will not be able to cope without you joining. We are presented with a portrait of Lord Kitchener, who was a senior British Army member, who is pointing towards the audience. His facial expressions is serious and can be considered threatening, which begins to position us to believe that we have to do what the poster is telling us otherwise there will be consequences. We are then presented with the word “Britons” at the top of the page in red. This makes the word seem important which makes us feel valued towards Briton, which again tricks us to believe and do what the poster is telling us. It then goes on to say “wants you” which again addresses us as someone important to Briton, tricking us into believe what is false. At the bottom, the text becomes very demanding due to the imperative sentences. “Join your country’s army”, forces us to do what it says. At the very bottom it says “God save the King”, which makes us believe that if we do what this poster is saying it will help the King and that we may be recognised, which again tricks us into doing what the poster is telling us to do. Technically speaking, the poster uses many techniques which makes it successful in what it does. The main focus point is of Kitchener who is pointing, which makes our eyes drawn to there first, so it makes us feel recognised and starts to build a relationship between us and the image. The producer also presents the main formal elements of space, texture through the layout of the poster. It seems very carefully thought out which presents the idea that the army is well thought out along side the plans, making it seem safer. Moreover, there is a use of colour the important parts are in colour with the less important parts in black and white, which helps to move our eyes around the frame of the image. The background is plane, which means there is nothing to distract us from the message being told by the poster. Everything in the poster is in clear focus which informs us that a wide depth of field is being used, along side a normal shutter speed. In addition, the image does not present noise which tells us the ISO is low as well as the aperture. The lighting used to capture Kitchener is unknown, but I believe that artificial lighting is used as his face showcases high tonal contrast and clear detail (further reinforced with the portrait being in black and white), which is not always achievable by natural lighting. Analysing this piece of propaganda has outlined how thought out the posters are, in order to manipulate people into doing what the message is telling them to do.
Barbara Kruger:
Kruger, born in 1945, is an American photographer/artist who enjoys experimenting with the idea of concept art and collagist. She enjoys working with black and white images and adding declarative captions in red and white. When studying she took a clear liking to graphic design for magazines which has inspired her style of her work. Kruger has strong political views and tended to implement them into her work to express her feeling towards issues in American society at that time. Her work has been very successful throughout her carrier and have been showcased in many exhibitions around the world.
Mood Board Showcasing Kruger’s work
When I first look at the photograph above my eye is drawn the the man, who is located in the centre of the frame, making him the main focus point of the image. The man is found having his hand covering his mouth and his eyes looking directly at the lens of the camera, making it seem as if he is trying to hide something. My eyes are then drawn the text which is located at the top and bottom of the frame, which begins to give detail into what he is trying to hide. At the top it says “your silence”, the pronoun your addresses the viewer making them connected to the message that is coming across, it is then followed by “silence” which makes us intrigued as to why some people are silent and that people are hiding something and we want to know what they are hiding. It is then followed by “will not” which is located just below the centre, due to it being close to the centre makes it the most important words which informs us that staying silent is not doing us any good. The final words are “protect you” which tells us that we need to speak up and address the issues. It ends in the same way it starts with direct address which helps to reinforce the relationship between us and the image. Overall, the image and text tricks us into speaking up as it is apparently going to do us good, which makes it more of a modern day piece of propaganda. Conceptually, Kruger is trying to address the issue that it is Okay to be gay and keeping quiet will only hurt you. This conceptual message was considered highly unacceptable in society in America at that time as only same sex marriage was prohibited in the country, clearly Kruger disagreed with this and wanted to showcase that it is okay to love who you want. Technically, the image showcases many camera techniques which makes it successful. The main thing I noticed is that Kruger has used a chiaroscuro technique to capture the face of the man. This tells us that one point artificial studio lighting was used to capture the image. The technique allows the tonal areas of the man to be clearly outlines and shows detailed facial structure. The man himself is in black and white and the background is plain, which makes the text seem more important, but helps to reinforce the message being told. The photograph seems to have noise which suggests that the ISO must have been high, which suggests that the aperture was slightly increased. All of the boy is in focus which tells us Kruger has used a wide depth of field, along side a quick shutter speed in order to capture the image. In addition, the text is presented in colour which creates a sense of entrapment and that the man is trapped in the dark and needs to get out. The colour is also used to attract viewers and make them actually read the text. This image could be considered a form of propaganda as it is an image trying to manipulate us to do something which was not accepted in society when it was first created. In my opinion I like the style of Kruger’s work as she clearly presents a strong message and has useful applications even in todays society.
Action Plan:
As an action plan I am now going to conduct a photoshoot where I am going to capture war propaganda but in the style of tableaux photography, in order to present another stage of Jersey’s Journey through the second world war. I intend to use different techniques which have been showcases in all three artists piece of work, in order to create successful imagery.
Propaganda is information which is extremely biased and subjective, it can be considered to be misleading. It tends to promote political view points in order to persuade viewers to believe in the information and viewpoint being provided. The imagery tends to use loaded language which produces an emotional response to the information which is being presented. In a 1929 literary debate with Edward Bernays, Everett Dean Martin argues that, “Propaganda is making puppets of us. We are moved by hidden strings which the propagandist manipulates.” There are 7 different types of propaganda which are:
Transfer – The act of relating something or someone we like or respect with product, this form tends to use symbols.
Testimonial – The use of well known, respected people to endorse a product or service.
Glittering/Generalities – The act of referring to words or ideas that evoke a positive emotional response from an audience.
Plain Folks – The use of everyday people to sell a product or service.
Bandwagon – Attempts to persuade the target audience to take a course of action. This technique reinforces peoples natural desires to be on the winning side.
Name Calling – Using names to evoke fear and hatred in the viewer.
Card Stacking – Strategy of showing the products best features, only telling half of the truth.
Why was Propaganda used during the war?
Propaganda was used during the war in order to persuade British men to fight in the war. The type of propaganda used was mainly bandwagon as the images tried to persuade audiences to take a course of action, to join the army and fight for their country. Due to the persuasive and misleading nature of propaganda it lead to many English men, young and old, joining the army and fighting, leading to millions of deaths. The posters never focused on the negative effect of joining the army, only the positives and why men should be joining. The images and captions were usually captivating, persuasive and can sometimes come across as threatening which almost forces viewers to do as the image says. As mentioned propaganda had a massive impact within the second world war, as it lead to many deaths, which will help to present another stage of Jersey’s journey through the second world war.
Propaganda Examples
What is Tableaux Vivant?
The phrase itself is a French phrase which translates to ‘living picture’. A tableaux vivant is a static scene where there is a singular or multiple models telling some sort of story. These paintings and images are usually well thought out, not only in terms of lighting and camera settings but also in terms of costume, positioning, background as all these factors contribute to the message being sent across to the receiver of the image. This type of imagery combines aspects of theatre and photography to create a staged reality.
Tableaux Vivant Examples.
How does Tableaux and Propaganda Link?
The two link, as my idea is to replicate some of the more well known propaganda images in the style of Tableaux vivant. This photography technique will allow me to carefully think and replicate the manipulative imagery and will allow the same conceptual and contextual elements to be presented to viewers. Doing this will allow the project to move onto another idea and also showcase a new element of the Journey of Jersey through the second world war, along side my knowledge and understanding of different photography techniques and styles
Action Plan:
As an action plan I intend to conduct artist research on a tableaux vivant photographer, propaganda during the war and a modern day version of propaganda, which will highlight the elements which go into making successful images. It will showcase the mind set I need to have and the different aspects and elements I have to think about to successfully create persuasive and manipulating imagery from the war. I will then use the photography studio to create such imagery, using the artificial lights, plain background and props and then carefully manipulate my images using photoshop. This is where I will be able to make my images look exactly like the original and will allow me to further explore the concept of propaganda and the effect it had on Jersey’s Journey through the second world war.
A vanitas photograph or painting is a symbolic form of art which emphasizes the pointlessness of pleasure (such as wealth), the reality of morality and the certainty of death. Typically the subject within the images juxtapose one another, with symbols of wealth and security placed next to subjects representing death, showing the futility of joy due to the fact that it is, in the end, meaningless.
Vanitas artwork and photography makes use of multiple subjects placed next to each other in order to show the contrast between life and death, bringing the 2 polar opposites together in 1 image to emphasise their differences. As some of my work will take inspiration from the process of life and the journey towards death for the subjects of the photographs, I will be taking inspiration from vanities photography in order to use the multiple panels next to each other (triptych) to separate the different subjects, which in turn represent (at the left panel) life, youth and beauty and, (on the right panel) death, deterioration and the end of the journey, and thus my work takes inspiration from vanities artwork.
Vanitas artwork and photography is used by a small number of modern artists, who use it to create images that represent gluttony, and use modern privileges in life (technology, modern food, luxuries) while placing them next to a representation of death in order to convey the futility of all of these luxuries.
