Laura L. Letinsky (born 1962) is a Canadian contemporary photographer, born in Winnipeg, best known for her still life photographs.
From her early photography of people, she shifted to still life photography for which she is now known. Her 1990’s series, Venus Inferred, of couples were informed by representations, visual and other media, about love and how photography is used to convey our ideas about romantic relationships. Her photographs chip away at normative expectations as depicted in mainstream culture. Impetus for her investigation of the still life was its associations with femininity, the minor arts, and its imbrication within the home as the space of intimacy. Letinsky says that still lifes provides her with the potential to explore the false dichotomy between the personal and the political. Vital to this is the selection/orchestration of objects depicted in her images as well as her photograph’s presence as object. Hence scale and surface is important to understanding these photographs. Rather than their being seen on a digital screen, she is invested in the experience of viewing her actual prints. She says that her work “is in part about the relationship between looking at something and other bodily experiences.”
Letinsky’s still lives are described as “Elegant, subdued and gently but relentlessly off-putting, her large-format photographs have an arresting presence that seems out of step with time. At the same time, though, art history suffuses her meticulously constructed scenes as fully as the softened daylight does the sparse interiors she photographs.” Letinsky’s still lives are reminiscent of Dutch still lives, they bring together “freshness, ripeness and decay.”[4] Although they nod to Dutch still lives, they are more modernized, using “Crumbled Coke cups, styrofoam to-go cartons” instead of the upper-class, lush food of the Dutch still lives.
Letinsky’s large scale work becomes purposeful and melancholy, not about the food itself but more of the photography. “Peaches aren’t metaphors for anything; they are simply peaches, peach-shaped, peach-colored.” Her work is all about the line, shapes, and light interacting and how the view is experiencing the work. These fabricated scenes remind viewers of the ability to be real or fake within a photograph. Just as the 17th century northern European painters were not simply painting lemons and goblets, Letinsky’s work speaks to the value of objects, but more, the valuing of their representation with photography conveying much about what and how to see and look.
Guiton was the founder of the Jersey photo archive, and he was also a prominent figure in establishing colour photography in Jersey, through using autochrome plates.
The autochrome process my created by the Lumiere brothers; Auguste and Louis in France. Autochrome plates allowed colour photography to be created. These plates were cover in microscopically small pieces of potato starch. When the light passes through, it mixes with the emulsion to create a full colour copy of the photographed scene. The grains of starch were separated into different groups to be dyed red, green and violet. All the different colored grains were then mixed together and put over a glass plate to finally be coated with varnish. Charcoal powder was then added onto the plate to fill in any gaps left by the colored grains. These plates could be used on regular cameras, no extra equipment was necessary.
When placing the plates in the camera, the plain glass side of the plate had to be facing the lens so that the light could pass through before reaching the emulsion. When using these plates, exposure time had to be slight higher, about thirty times longer than black and white plates. The complex manufacturing process of these plates meant that they were more expensive, which limited it to only certain people.
Autochrome plates were also harder to be able to display, for personal viewing it was possible to just hold them up to the light, however when it came to displaying them for others a stand was used in combination with a mirror, or they could also be projected using a magic lantern.
An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used of a genre of photography.
For the Photo shoot I decided to capture my mum and my dog in their natural environment
Information about People im Photographing:
Mum:
Is 65, who does work however at the moment is looking after my dad.
She also has several hobbies which includes knitting, watching movies, reading, watching the TV.
Dog: My dog is a 1 year old doberman
Images:
The images I have selected and discarded
Images I have edited from Photo-shoot:
I have used the before and after view to see if the image looks better in black and white or clour, I have decided to go for black and white. I have edited the highlights, exposure, clarity of the image, so it makes the image clearer. I have edited the black and white tones within the image to create a effect for the surroundings. Final Image 1 – My Mum
Edit 2:
I decided to crop this image so the audience dont get distracted by the other things in the background.I have edited the temperature and tint and the clarity within the image. I have edited the tone curve to increase the highlights, and decrease the shadows, and the light and dark tones.
Pieter Claesz lived through the 1600’s when still-life paintings began to take off, during this time he was soon titled a ‘Dutch Golden Age Painter of Still-Life’. He was born in 1597 in Belgium. His art work was painted with subdued, virtually monochrome colours, with a subtle handling of light and texture allowing the symbolic meanings and expressions within the outcome to clearly be showcased. It is common to see motifs such as skulls for allegorical purposes. His work avoided a crowded composition and stuck to simplicity in order for the prime symbolism to be shown. It is said the Claesz artistic aim was to render the materials and catch the reflected light as accurately as possible, which was considered his speciality with still life pieces. He was the first artist to portray everyday objects, such as a rummer, a tin plate and a herring, in such a way to showcase the beauty of the objects.
Still Life with a Skull and a Writing Quill,1628 – Pieter Claesz
The image above is ‘Still Life with a Skull and a Writing Quill’ painted in 1628 by Pieter Claesz. The artist used a median of wood and painted the image using oil paint. The sizing of the painting is 24.1 cm by 35.9 cm and can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The painting falls into the subcategory of Vanitas
Visually, the art piece creates a sense of business through the proximity of all the objects, which contrasts the small amount of objects there actually is. The first item my eyes are drawn to is the skull, which presents the formal elements of texture and scape. In addition, it informs viewers that the work falls into the still life subcategory of vanitas. The skull itself symbolises the death and mortality, which is also emphasised by the pocket watch, located in the foreground of the skull, which is symbolic for a lack of time, creating the overall ideology that life is short. The skull is leaning on a book which has a quill placed next to it, (contextually, and expensive item during the time period the work was painted in, creating a stronger meaning towards the symbolism it holds.), which is a common feature in a vanitas painting, which is used to warn viewers of the futility of worldly pursuit. Moreover, in the background there is an old school candle holder, with the glass covering laying beside it. You can faintly see an amber in the holder, suggesting the candle has just been blown out, which symbolises a passage of time and reinforce the sense of death.
After deciphering the symbolic representation of each item within the frame, it clearly demonstrates the intended conceptual representation in the work. The painting is suggesting, that time is short and that we do not have long left till we die, bringing in the concept of death (which many feared the thought of death in 1628). Contextually, the concept of death is major due to the two outbreaks of the bubonic plague during this time. Suggesting the idea of death and lack of time, emphasises the ideology that people thought the plague would kill everyone off and that when people gain the illness they do not have long before it kills them off.
The main formal elements presented within this painting are texture, space and shape, which are all presented through the positing of the different objects. Overall, the painting has a morbid tone which is emphasises by the monochrome colours. Claesz, focused on accurately representing the light, which I think he was successful in doing within the still life painting. This is due to an accurate reflection on the glass and the artificial light source being shone and above, and has a clear radius. This lighting also mainly illuminates the skull, making it the main focal point of the painting, which clearly emphasises the conceptual representation within the piece.
In fine art, the term ‘still life’ denotes a specific genre of painting, typically comprising an arrangement of objects (traditionally flowers or kitchen utensils, but almost any household object may be included) laid out on a table in a natural and relaxed fashion, typically looking as if the set up has been used and left there.
The term is a direct translation of the Dutch word ‘Stilleven’, which was used from 1656 to describe paintings previously called simply ‘Fruit’ or ‘Flower Pieces’, or ‘Ontbijt’ (Breakfast Piece), Bancket (banquet) or Pronkstilleven pieces (from the Dutch word ‘pronk’ meaning ostentation), or if with religious overtones, in line with the new aesthetics of Protestant Reformation art – Vanitas painting.
Vanitas in art, a genre of still-life painting that flourished in the Netherlands in the early 17th century. A vanitas painting contains collections of objects symbolic of the inevitability of death and the transience and vanity of earthly achievements and pleasures; it exhorts the viewer to consider mortality and to repent. It is often also classified as still life therefore falling underneath the art style as a sub-genre.
EXAMPLES OF STILL LIFE:
At the beginning of the 17th century, still life paintings featuring flowers became immensely popular. Flemish-painter Karel van Mander focused on floral motifs, as did Northern Mannerist artists such as Cornelia van Haarlem, whose floral works did not survive. However, floral paintings by Jan Brueghel the Elder and Ambrosius Bosschaert did survive.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
WEALTH:
In the context of when this painting was created, the various items seen depicted in the image are all indicators of wealth status and power through the sheer expense and difficult attainability of them. For example, the silverware and pots with the intricate patterns painted on them would have very likely been made for the wealthy as silver and other precious metals would have been very difficult and expensive for the lower class to attain and buy. The lobster seen in the top half of the image is another clear sign of wealth, even in our modern society, lobster is an expensive, luxury food which is typically priced very high, being even more lavish in the 17th and 18th century. Various depictions of fruits and vegetables can also be seen in the image such as oranges, melon and peaches, once again these are very clear indicators of wealth as they would have typically been very hard to source due to the fact that they could only be grown in more tropical, warm climates meaning they would have to be imported from elsewhere.
STATUS:
What, how and where people ate in Tudor times depended greatly on who they were: the rich nobility enjoyed lavish feasts of meat, seafood and sugary treats, while yeomen and laborers were restricted to a diet of bread, pottages and vegetables. Everything from the number of dishes eaten to the ways in which food was served was dictated by status. In Tudor England, maintaining the difference between ranks was so important to the concept of a well-ordered society that efforts were made to enshrine the distinctions between the classes in ‘sumptuary’ laws. These laws tried to control what you ate and wore, according to your position in the God-given hierarchy, which stretched from the king at the top, down through the numerous grades of nobility and clergy, to the gentry, yeomen and finally the laborers at the bottom of the heap.
POWER:
Much of the symbolism used in still life art represents status, especially when we look back in time; of course, some more modern still life paintings are used more as a social commentary. Symbolism is a powerful part of art and a tool that both artists and viewers can use; subconsciously and consciously. One painting could have many different meanings to many different people – that is the beauty of art, it is never rigid.
WHAT DIFFERENT ITEMS SYMBOLIZE:
Skulls – The depiction of a skull could represent several things,perhaps the most obvious option and universal is death. This positioning of the skull can alter how the painting is read; for example if the skull is displayed in the foreground of the painting it could be read as warning.
Musical Instruments – these items were considered to be extremely luxurious, therefore if an instrument in excellent condition (such as a flute) was depicted, it would be read a symbol of wealth – this would certainly be more prevalent in more historical 18th century still life art. On the other hand, a damaged or old musical instrument could represent loss of wealth or be representative of a family heirloom.
Purple Silk/Material – in many paintings you will see purple silk or material; this will often soften the imagery however, it can also be representative of royalty and luxurious living – especially if the material is purple. Other material such as white cotton, especially when displayed with wine and bread can hold spiritual and religious connotations.
Books – Books are a universal representation of knowledge and learning often referring to power and educated status.
Lilies – Flowers often represent life in paintings; however, the lily often refers to death as it is the traditional flower used at funerals.
Objects from Overseas – Paintings with oriental vases and sculptures refer to travel – again this refers to status and creates an exotic connotation.
MY OWN PREVIOUS WORK:
In my previous work, I also explored the theme of still life ad using various symbolisms to create the images. I used items which I thought would be fitting for the images such as fruit, glassware and pottery. I also added some cutlery in order to add other symbolisms of wealth. In one of the shoots I added a dark base using cloth and created chiaroscuro lighting in order to give it that authentic still life feel. Overall I think I succeeded to create the right composition, but in order to make it truly authentic, the images should have a dark or black backdrop with more visual representation of fruits and or plants, as that is what is most common in still life imagery.
