The 21st has opened up opportunities for artists to put a modern twist on still life images. While keeping the original ideas from Vanitas, contemporary still life incorporates what is important to people now, such as technology, with the same ideas about vanity and mortality.
Tabea Mathern
Lidia McGrigor
Krista van der Niet
Jonathan Knowles
Ori Gersht:
Israeli photographer and video creator, Ori Gersht demonstrates interesting ideas in his still life, favouring obvious choas and and violence rather than more subtle symbols shown in classic vanitas images.
Fragile Land, 2018
Liquidation, 2005
Floating World, 2016
Love Me Love Me Not, 2013
On Reflection, 2014
Time After Time, 2007
Most of Gersht’s photographs focus on what can be considered morbid ideas. He looks at the effects of violence, the distortion and perception of reality and draws inspiration from his own Jewish background. It is clear that Gersht wants to show the harsh truths that many of us are afraid to admit. For example, 2003’s ‘Apocalypse’ shows the effects human activity is having on the environment by capturing the aftermath of an oil spill in Spain.
“In many of my works, there is an act of destruction, which for me is kind of challenging the very notion of the still life because traditionally there is an eternal preservation,”
Analysis:
Blow Up 06, Blow Up, 2007
Visual:
Similar to Vanitas still life, this images represents the fragile nature of life by showing how easily something can be destroyed. Flowers are typically used to symbolise peace, however, Gersht uses his image subject them violence.
The image also clearly shows that the flowers were arranged to form a wreath. Wreaths can symbolise eternity due to their seemingly never ending appearance. However, this would crontradict the message of the Vanitas inspired image, suggesting that life continues or is never ending. A second and more likely meaning could come from the wreaths symbolism in Christianity. In Christianity, the wreath symbolises the circle of life. A part of this includes death. The image may be trying to show that everything has it time and death is part of the circle of life.
The definition of still life is a painting or drawing of an arrangement of inanimate objects, typically including fruit and flowers and objects contrasting with these in texture, such as bowls and glassware. Still-life art began to emerge in popularity during the 16th century but its roots date back to ancient times, it’s earliest form was of skulls, candles, and hourglasses as allegories of mortality ( vanitas were very popular at this time in the Netherlands, this is a collection of objects that symbolise the inevitability of death and the vanity of materialistic achievements and pleasures, it exerts the idea of repentance) as well as fruit and flowers which represented natures cycle and the seasons. The genre became of high demand for wealthy middle class to decorate their homes with as it was a modern form of art in comparison to the trends of portraits and religious art work. Today still life is a part of modern art but focusing on more contemporary objects to show how times have changed.
Analysis:Pieter Claesz
This art work is called A Skull and a Writing Quill and was painted 1628 by Dutch artist Pieter Claesz. It’s main focus is the skull as a vanita which was popular amoungst dutch artists, they symbolise mortality and how death it always inevitable. Vanitas were very popular at this time in the Netherlands, this is a collection of objects that symbolise the inevitability of death and the vanity of materialistic achievements and pleasures, it exerts the idea of repentance. The colours used are of a subdued palette with a monotone range this emphasises the depressive idea looming death and how life running up to it can we equally as depressing. Claesz is well known for including reflections in this art work this could symbolise the unknown paths of life and how their are parts that are light and happy, not all of it is gloomy, the white window relection goes in comtrast with the dark glass, like heaven and hell in a way. The quill adds a sense of reality maybe the skull is of a writers, this creates a more authentic feel that all types of people died, not just the poor as back in those times it was more likely for a person of the lower class to have a small life span due to lack of access to clean water, health care, shelter etc. The skull is a reminder of the transcience of existence. The depiction of the glass and quill whch were seen as luxury goods were often tempered by the presence of a skull or hourglass to remind the viewer that such luxuries would be of little use in the afterlife.
This is one of Pieter Claesz’s most iconic pieces simply titled ‘Vanitas Still Life’ featuring a very traditional vanitas composition and some harsh directional lighting.
Due to the intensity of the image it is unlikely that it is entirely lit using the single candle and thus is likely naturally lit with some additional warmth provided by the candle. The image contains harsh contrast resembling chiaroscuro lighting from left to right. the chosen color palette is quite warm possibly due to the age of the pigments. There is some prominent use of directional strokes visible on the larger rounded surfaces of the painting, this was likely to show the light interacting with the various textures in the image. The main 3D forms of the painting are the candlestick and the skull on either side of the composition with the skull being used as a symbol of mortality as well as potentially the candle as it is this finite, flickering flame destined to eventually go out, its transience may be a metaphor for the human life. This theme of transience also extends to the flower shown in the painting. The quill and ink-pot shown within the image may potentially represent the vain pursuits of man.
This form of documentary photography requires two or more subjects within the frame. The photograph almost acts like a tableaux as the photographer positions the subjects in order to convey a story and narrative, making this the main element to an established shot. In addition, the story can be presented through the background or the subject (is there an interaction or connection with the subjects in order to convey meaning). This technique is also used within film making, as directors, to establish angles and settings which would work for the scene.
Mood Board Showcasing Photography in the style of ‘Establishing Shots’
Sian Davey:
One photographer which I personally enjoy the work of Sian Davey who followed her teenage daughter round capturing her life on camera. The form of naturalistic images found within the ‘Matha’ series clearly conveys the narrative of Martha’s life, social interaction and her growing up and experiencing the world.
Sian’s Davey Photograph from the ‘Martha’ Series
Above is one of my personal favourite photographs from the series. Visually, the photograph is almost chaotic in the sense of a lot of things happening within the frame making it interesting for viewers to look at. The main focal point is the three girls located within the centre of the frame, with the background having other girls and forrest type environment. The photograph captures the girls almost rebelling, and doing things they should not be doing, like drinking and smoking, due to the age of Davey’s daughter only being 16. These are shown through the objects in the frame which help to tell the key narrative within the photograph. The key formal elements within this photograph is colour, space and texture, which is shown through the different elements within the composition as well as the positioning of the girls. The positing of the subjects is naturalistic, creating a sense of realism within this form of documentary photography. In a sense the photograph seems to be using the rule thirds, which allows the naturalistic feel to run through and allows viewers to perceive the photograph more naturally. The photograph is captured at a straight on angle with the orientation of the photograph being landscape.
Conceptually, the narrative told within the photograph is the teenage girl rebelling due to the restrictions she has in her life. In a recent interview with Davey said “providing me with access to her social situations—in a sense, access to her social world at an age where parents are typically explicitly kept at bay.” Contextually, the Davey wanted to explore social norms which was influenced by her interest in her main subjects, her two daughters.
Technically, the photograph uses quite simplistic settings in order to maintain a naturalistic feeling towards the overall image, and photographic series. The lighting is natural, produced by natural sunlight due to the outdoors environment in which the photograph was captured in. This lighting has a sense of warmth which is emphasised through the light beaming through the trees and the correct outdoors white balance being utilised. This also works along the low ISO which is shown as no noise being presented through the frame of the photograph. In addition, the shutter speed has been put on a quick shutter speed due to no intended blur, and the aperture has been slightly raised as a slightly narrow depth of field is being presented, as the background is slightly blurred.
Detail Shot:
This form of macro photography, looks at capturing a portrait to convey new conceptual meaning. The imagery produced has close connotations with identity and informs us about the subject being captured within the shot. Normally, the main formal elements produced within this style of photography are: texture, shape and space, which all work together to create a powerful set of imagery.
Mood Board Inspiring my Detailed Shot:
Martin Parr:
Martin Parr is a British photographer, who capture photographs in the style of documentary photography. His photograph looks at capturing an anthropological way of looking at modern life, with major focus looking at the still existing class system within the UK. Within his time as a photographer, he has published over 40 phonebooks and his work has put into 80 exhibitions world wide, showcasing his success. I will be analysing the work which was displayed in a exhibition name Souvenir in 2013. The images are apart of the ‘Real Food’ photographic book too, which contained images similar to the one below.
Martin Parr – 1996 – ‘New British’ + ‘Common Sense’
The above photograph is my favourite from the Real Food photographic book as it clearly showcases the techniques of a detail shot. Visually, we are presented with a photograph of a child holding a sugar doughnut which has been bitten into. The composition of the frame is full, however not busy, due to the photograph being considered as a macro style image, which creates a sense of containment and enclosure drawing us into the photograph. The main focal point is the doughnut, which is suggested through the central positing of the food in the frame and the narrow depth of field being used. This illuminates our understanding that the foreground is the hands and doughnuts and the background is the coat. The frame of the photograph tells us a lot about whats going on, the small hands, belonging to a small child wearing a vibrant coloured coat, which grip onto the doughnut, informs us that this child could be on holiday and enjoying himself. The photograph presents the formal elements of colour and texture, which helps to emphases the point just stated. The colours seem to be warm suggesting happiness, creating and overall pleasant mood to the imagery.
Conceptually, Parr wanted to capture an anthropological way of looking at modern life, which is clearly being showcased within the macro photograph. Contextually, Parr still noticed that the UK still presents a subtle class decided within modern society, which can be seen emphasised within his work. The colour of the coat seem to represent the same as a place like Butlins, holiday location in the UK, these places where considered cheap and accessible for those in the lower and middle class, which represent his negative viewpoint towards the class system.
To technically analyse this piece, Parr has kept his camera setting simple allowing the detailed shot to be successful and impactful on viewers. The lighting used half natural, through daylight, and half artificial, as it seems that he has used his flash allowing the foreground to be illuminated, with the background having shadows. This creates a warm atmosphere this was achieved through the correct white balance being used, which works in co with the low ISO being used due to the low intended noise. The shutter speed seems to be quick due to there being no intended blur. As mentioned before there is a small narrow depth of field being used to allow the doughnut and hands to be the centre of focus, allowing the conceptual and contextual elements to be illuminated.
Action Plan:
As an action plan I will now produce a set of images to respond to the ideology of establishing shot and detail shot, using inspiration from the work of Parr and Davey. I will look at using their methodology when capturing my family, and try and apply their conceptual reasoning into my work, adjusting it in order to fit within my family.
Letinksy was born in 1963, born in Winnipeg, and is a Canadian contemporary photographer, being best know for her work based around the genre of still-life. Letinsky has an BFA from the University of Manitoba and an MFA from Yale University and received a fellow ship from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, Anonymous Was a Woman and the Canada Council for the Arts and is currently a Professor of visual arts at the University of Chicago. She has demonstrated aspects of exploring the expressive possibility of still-life photography, after shifting my photography of people on to still-life, she sates that ‘ For a long time I’ve asked myself questions about what a photograph is. While I was taking photographs of couples in the 1990s I began thinking about love, and about how photography relates to love, how it can functions within a kind of circuitry of production and consumption.’ (Sholis.B, 2013, Interview with Laura Letinsky; aperture)
MOOD BOARD:
ANALYSIS:
TECHNICAL: from this image its evident by the shadows and the bright white that there was a lot of light being produced/ placed on to the subject, this suggests that the exposure time is accurate if not slightly over exposed however, this could be misinterpreted due to the extensive white back ground contrasting with the darker coloured subjects on the table. The image is clearly very focused and lacks any blurring which add to the detail and focus of the food and drinks placed on the table, furthermore showing that there is low sensitivity as the image presents no grainy features to it. Finally the temperature of images presents a colder feeling due to the harsh white balance and background which the image is covered in which dramatically contrasts with the dark reds and purples on the able giving overall a better presentation.
VISUAL: From the image is evident that over the colouring of the image is white, however as previously mentioned it helps reflect and contrast the dark red and purple shades in the centre on the image on the table, the empathizes that this is the main focus of the image, this links to the idea of the image having a light tone due to the majority of the image being a bright white shade with suggestions of a bright light helping to illuminate the background.The image shows a table and from the curvature of the table it shows that it is out of place and not in the centre which demonstrate that symmetrical aspects where no required or needed for this image, with that in mind there is a lack of consistent patterns or repetition , although the white background is consistent the placement of the mood and a drink on the table is not. This projects a messy scene and add questions for the viewer.
CONTEXTUAL: From background research and y own knowledge i know that Letinsky was trying to project and capture the inner beauty of woman, she did this by breaking historical stereotypes of the disorganized placement on the table as well as the mess of the food and drinks with a wrapper still being placed on the table. This aided support of other aspect of her photography and allowed her develop her ideas and formats.
CONCEPTUAL: Through the contextual factors it helps the audience and viewers further aid and construct their own opinion on the photograph, as is gives them an understanding that it demonstrate the inner beauty of woman and the idea of trying to break away from stereotypes which gives the opportunity to lead on to many different ideas , as stereotyping a huge issue in out day society. This could lead on to the ideas of self love and being different form other, stepping away from the norm.
ACTION PLAN FOR RESPONSE:
After having researched Laura Letinsky in great depth its given be a much better understanding into the idea of being different and trying to tell a story in my own way instead of following the norm in the photography industry. This has given me the opportunity to grow an develop my own ideas for my current project and projects in the future as it is something that i believe to be such an important aspect of showing off your work. furthermore, its made be realize the significance and diversity of other peoples reflection and understanding of a photograph- when I see a photo is most likely my view o it will be completely different to someone else. As well as the deeper meaning of images, its given be idea of controlling and thinking more in depth abut the background of y images and how important they really are, and in concerns with camera skills its made be think about more carefully my IOS settings which will help be control the exposure of the image.
Laura Letinsky is a Canadian photographer, who graduated from Yale School of Art in 1991. At present she is teaching her expertise and the Visual Art University in Chicago. Her initial interest was in portrait photography, but soon moved to still life where she focuses on capturing food, and the symbolism for the food. It is said that she uses photography to convey our understanding of relationships and love. Her investigation of still life is in associations with femininity, the minor arts, and its imbrication within the home as the space of intimacy.
“Still lifes provides her with the potential to explore the false dichotomy between the personal and the political.”
The Quote above is suggesting that this style of photography is allowing Letinsky to explore the contrast of people and political viewpoints through objects, in this case leftover food and crockery. Letinsky’s carefully crafted scenes often focus on the remnants of a meal or party, as she plays with ideas about perception and the transformative qualities of a photograph. Her close photographs on this subject enables us to understand the beauty of the objects that we take for granted.
Mood Board Showcasing Imagery From ‘Hardly More Than Ever Series
UNTITLED #54 FROM HARDLY MORE THAN EVER SERIES 2002.
The photograph above is my favourite photograph from her ‘Hardly More Than Ever’ photographic series. The work showcases the transformation of still life painting from the 16th century into the 21st, with the main difference being the photograph being presented in colour and is a high resolution photograph. The photograph is taken as a landscape with the main focus point being in the centre of the frame, the half eaten melon. The colours are very dull and monotone, whites blacks and greys, which is similar to the classical outlook on still life imagery. This contrast the yellow/orange/green melon located in the centre reinforcing this as the main focal point. In addition, the background is kept simplistic, in order for attention to remain on the symbolic representation of the fruit. In Letinsky’s work the left over food is symbolic for inner beauty. Contextually, melons where considered a way of expressing a males fantasies of the female figure, having this melon broken showcases feminism in the present and the ideology that woman are not objects. The table cloth is creased, which creates a sense of mess and uncleanliness which adds to the overall tone and mood of the Letinsky’s work. The main formal elements which are being presented within the composition is shape, texture and space through the artificial positing of the food.
Conceptually, Letinsky wanted to capture the inner beauty of woman, through breaking the historical stereotypes and objectifying of woman through the half eaten melons and the uncleanliness of the table. This also helps to showcase the contextual transformation that still life imagery has undergone in today’s society, with new meanings and symbolism being presented through the objects.
Technically, the photograph uses simplistic camera settings, allowing the symbolism and the conceptual factors to be the importance of the photograph. The shutter speed used to capture the photograph is quick due to there being no intended blur within the frame. The ISO is low due to soft artificial lighting, created through studio lights which have a cold tone, due to there being no noise or texture through the light source. The white balance shows colour accuracy of the environment to which the photograph is set in, and allows the monotone colour scheme to really be emphasised. The aperture used to capture this still life image seems to be low due to the large depth of field it has, although the background begins to slightly to blur showing that there a small use of this technique within the work.
Action Plan:
After reviewing a contextual and contemporary version of still life I have been able to develop and understanding of the importance of this type of imagery. I have learnt that the positing of items is important as it allows the clarity of the symbolic representations to be clearly shown, thus making it something I need to consider when I capture my still life imagery. Photographic wise I have learnt that I should implement simple camera settings such as quick shutter speed, low ISO and some what low aperture, with soft cold artificial lighting to be used. when I capture my still life I will be copying the stylistic features of Letinsky, however showing experimentation through depth of field and positing of the items within the table. I intended to produce a strong set of still life photograph which showcase a symbolic representation of the Occupation through the technique and outlook stated above.
Still life is a form of art depicting any arrangement of inanimate objects, often using various commodities such as food. The style has its roots in Greco-roman art however was truly pioneered by a group of Dutch artists during the 16th century. Their artwork served as a form of rebellion against the conservative themes of art (most of the art of the renaissance featured strong religious undertones) by displaying themes of opulence and debauchery. Despite this history, still life currently occupies the lowest rung on the ‘hierarchy of genres’ however its success with consumers has allowed it to stay relevant in modern art.
Still life is an umbrella category covering several sub-genres; The earliest form of true still life painting is the early renaissance paintings, these typically depicting harvests or flowers as a symbol of wealth.
Vanitas was a form of still life created to display the futile struggle of mankind against time. The work often feature numerous symbols showing the effects of time as well as death and decay. These symbols range from more obvious symbols such as the use of clocks and various animal skulls to more subtle symbolism such as the use of lilies to represent death. Where traditional works of still life aimed to display the opulence and achievement of man, vanitas undermined this by displaying that this possessions are meaningless as time would inevitably claim them in the end.
The phrase “Still Life” comes from a dutch word “Stilleven”. This phrase became popular in the 16th century because during this time, it started to become recognised as a genre of painting. Though, the actual painting style was being used by artists for much longer before. Still Life is a genre that consists of using non-living objects, such as flowers and fruits to show meaning within the image. These meanings can be things such as showing power or wealth, by doing things such as changing the types of flowers or fruits being used. Vanita is another style of Still Life. Vanitas typically show something to do with mortality or death, usually through the use of objects like skulls to achieve this.
Cookmaid with Still Life of Vegetables and Fruit c.1620-5 Sir Nathaniel Bacon 1585-1627
The image above is a painting by Sir Nathaniel Bacon. He was a British painter. He created this painting toward the end of his life during the 1620s, when this kind of genre was just really gaining popularity. The image above shows lots of different fruits and vegetables. These were all grown in England at the time, but were not all within season at the time of the image. This creates an idea of wealth because it means they are able to get these items imported during times of the year when they don’t grow in England. The idea of wealth can lead an idea of power due to them having access to lots of different expensive and non-seasonal fruits and vegetables, with the image showing off what they have, while others, especially at the time will not be as fortunate and may not really have anything.
In 1839, when photographs were seen by the public for the first time, people were disappointed that colour had not been recorded. As an alternative to this artists began to hand colour monochrome prints.
T.R.Williams, Portrait of a soldier, 1855, hand-coloured stereo daguerreotype.
Hand colouring monochromes continued to be popular as it cheap, however it did require a steady hand and it was often difficult to mimic the exact colour and shades of real life.
Before colour could be recorded in prints it had to be understood how colour actually worked. In 1861, Scottish physicist, James Clerk Maxwell conducted an experiment that proved that all colours could be made up of a combination of red, green and blue light. Unfortunately, Maxwell’s idea only worked for the first time practically out of sheer luck, but he had planted the seed for future ideas for successful colour photography.
In the years leading up to the invention of the autochrome, there were several attempted to create colour prints. Dr. John Joly came the closest to commercial success, however the plates used had a very limited sensitivity to colour.
At the beginning of the 20th century, after experimenting with colour prints since the 1890s, the Lumière brothers gave their first presentation of the autochrome to the French Academy of Science in 1904. By 1907, the autochrome was being produced commercially and the best part about them was that photographers could use their existing cameras.
So, how did it all work? During the manufacturing process of the autochrome plate, tiny grains of potato starch were dyed red, green or blue then spread out evenly on a glass plate. Next the plate was coated in a sticky varnish. Charcoal powder was used to fill in the gaps between the starch grains.The starch and charcoal was then flattened used a small roller. Finally, three coloured filter screens were placed on top of the glass plate and was coated with a panchromatic emulsion.
Coloured starch grains on a glass autochrome plate.
In use, autochrome plate required between 1 and 30 seconds exposure time. When taken light would pass through the colour filters of the plate to create an accurate display of the real life colours.
Baron de Meyer, Flower study, 1908
Emile F. Guiton:
Emile Guiton was a Jersey photographer who was particularly active during the German Occupation. However, his interest in photographs began long before this. Guiton was keen to experiment with colour after the creation of the autochrome in 1904. Stored at La Société Jersiaise, many of Guiton’s autochromes show assortments of flowers.
‘Still Life’ are real life objects which are painted with no coordination as to each object. It is a type of art which is seen from the earliest of ancient times and is known as “still even” in the Netherlands.
History of Still Life
In the early 1960s, the genre of Still-Life became popular in Northern Europe and it Dutch and is known to be an independent photography style. The style is originally formed in Dutch and started to become renowned for being concerned with Khar (observation with the natural world). The objects photographed are usually positioned within a frame and create the objects showcased are usually considered to symbolise religion and mortality, reflecting the artists culture. The symbolism is shown through different objects (mirrors, candles, glasses, vases, watches, crowns etc..) all of which can represent aspects such as death, power, human life, as well as wealth and beauty and were all discovered in the ancient burial sights. Therefore, still-life being the composed portray of objects was considered broad and later on they were condensed into sub categories because of the different objects being photographed being different and having a different symbolic representation.
The Romans and Greeks also made a similar form of art which was known as Frescoes which is where they painted on plaster. This art type was modified to include more religious elements, meaning that floral designs become more popular because of them representing areas around the world which are all blooming in the same vase. Moving onto becoming closer to the modern day, this overall technique was adopted by well known artist Van Gough who painted images which included sunflowers, water jugs, as well as wine bottles.
Dutch Still Life Paintings
Dutch still life paintings are famous all over the world due to their depicting objects which have underlying metaphors from the fruits, meats and flowers being pictured. The era these images were taken were known for its wealth, due to exotic luxuries being brought to the country. These luxuries being tobacco, tea, salt, sugar, spices as well as silk. Due to these elements being very celebratory, the Dutches included them into their paintings to celebrate.
Dutch Still Life Examples
Analysing Still Life Paintings
Visual analysis- In this image I can see that their is wealthiness shown in the image from the silver platter/ gold stands which is shown, symbolising richness as it is an exclusive item. The silver/ silk tablecloth has an underlying symbol of power as it seems be quite expensive if silk. Their are lots of food elements on the table, most from exotic countries (lobster, lemon, jackfruit peaches) showing a high social status.
