My first final piece includes three A4 images from my photobook, two of trees and one of bloody hands. I turned them landscape and cut individual mounts into black card for the display. The black background worked better than white and added more contrast. I chose a colour photo to break up the dull feel but the blood also adds to the darkness. The repetiton of the tree acts like a preview to my book as it starts, ends and has a tree half way through it.

My second print is an A3 of one of my favourite images from the photobook. Similarly to my first display I created a window mount with black card as a background, which works well with my black and white theme. I wanted this image to be on it’s own as I felt it may have over powered my other photos as it’s very striking.

For my third piece I used two A5 images, one of a mirror in my garden and the other of my brothers hands on wall. I chose trimmed my images with strimmer to get rid of the white borders then sprayed them and placed them on a white foam border I had cut to size with a knife. I was planning on them being exactly A5 but because of cropping the mirror was smaller so I had to rearrange my inital idea.

For my final piece I used two A5 images, both are archive prints with fingerprints stuck over the faces. After trimming them, I set them out to resemble the layout of a page in my photobook. I cut white foam board to fit the images and stuck them on as seen below.

HOW DOES GJON MILI REFLECT DANCE MOVEMENT AND THE SIGNIFICANCE OF EMOTIONS BEING PORTRAYED THROUGH HIS PHOTOGRAPHY? 

‘Questions of self and identity have long concerned artists and are intensified as digital lives become ubiquitous and an aspect of performance becomes the norm in terms of modes of behaviour’ (Bright and Van Evp, 2019; 150).

In our lives we portray and represent ourselves among many others and highlight our passions and significant features that make us who we are, enabling to show our individualism. The world we live in is somewhat being taken over by the performing arts genre and takes up a huge amount of social and contextual importance; portrayed to our society that individuals who shine over others are one in a million, that making it to the top is a one in a billion chance, so why do people even bother trying? The dance industry is something I have always had a drive to be a part of and I believe is an area that helps me identify myself and show to others my deeper emotions and feelings that may not always be depicted through speech; along with hundreds and thousands of other people around the world that use dance to do so. To use dance and movement to tell a story, to show a feeling, to show a concept, an idea. However, the idea that dance is just a ‘performance’ or a show rather than an expression, a place to hide away rather than to flourish, a secret rather than a narrative is a consistent debate that continues to divide critics and our society. This demonstrates that within a dancer there is a front, a side that they want to show the world, the side where they put themselves forward, contrasting with their hidden deeper meanings and insecurities that they hide away from the audience when they perform. Therefore ‘The question arises: if manipulation is the first thing someone thinks of in connection to photography, what does that say about the value of photography as a reflection of reality?’ (Bright and Van Evp, 2019; 17). This quotation is something I will keep in mind during my investigation; a reminder that I want the reality, the truth not a manipulation or a cover up to hide but the certainty of reality. For my personal study I will be investigating the idea of representing emotions that an individual may feel through dance, however I want to diverge away from the norm and look at more uncomfortable subjects rather than the stereotypical face of dance. In my photography, I want to show both sides of individuals in the dance community, I want to show the hard work that goes into it, to show the love, the relief and the drive. I want my images to represent a narrative to its viewers, for them to see my images and ask more questions but most importantly I want to use my photography to highlight each emotion that someone feels when they dance and why they feel certain way; to exit the norm of dance photography and enter a new realm of ideas that reflect more than just a pointed toe, I want to show the vehemence of a dancers response to how they truly see themselves and the industry.  

When taking a closer look at my photography work it is clear to see it has connections with realism, and a documentary point of view. There is a narrative. However, it is vital to consider that realism was a rejection from the pictorialism which was a movement from the 1860s through to early 20th Century. Pictorialism is the development of photography into the reinvention of an art form placing beauty, tonality, and composition above creating an accurate visual record. This was where photography finally began to be fully accepted and began to be seen on the same line of painting and start to have it recognised as such by galleries and other artistic institutions. In the early beginnings of photography, it was mainly for scientific and representational purposes. This soon shifted in the 1850s when advocates such as the English painter William John Newton who suggested that photography could also have artistic trait. 

In this case, I am looking at the genre of dance. We know that photography can create a more realistic point of view of real experiences. But, as can be seen with Cindy Sherman who exploits various tools of the everyday cinema such as costumes, makeup, stage scenery to uphold an illusion of ‘realism’ when capturing what is known as ‘iconic snapshots’ that can reflect significant pre-conceptions. Tableau and staged reality create an illusion that is fed by stereotypes, and this is something that I want to keep away from with my own work.

Cindy Sherman quoted ‘The still tease with the promise of a story the viewer of it itches to be told’ (Sherman. C, 1982, Cindy Sherman) this quote itself demonstrates the sheer point of my work and why I have decided focus on this particular area. 

A prime example of how this helps relate and boost the background work of my own photography can be out laid to one of her most famous self-portrait images from her series called ‘Disasters and Fairy Tales’ (1985) photo shows Sherman as a damsel in distress. Crouched on the ground, she fearfully looks away from the camera. With wetted hair and a tensed position, she appears as if she just walked off the set of a horror film. The clever and thought out use of the specific lighting helps shows how Sherman favourably evokes an old tradition, quasi-racist ‘’cheap tricks’’ represented in the movie industry. By using this particular freeze frame, it is demonstrating how Sherman portrays as a visual ‘truth serum’, a force of social change by way of its ability to stop a viewer in his/her tracks and suggests how certain assumptions are culturally inherited and therefore not necessarily ‘natural’ and cause a fake front hiding the true and deeper meaning of the ‘fairy tales’. This overall, highlights the significance of representing the correct forum of the genre of dance in favour of the realistic view contrasting with the covered-up front provided by the media. Sherman’ postmodernist approach questions gender roles and stereotypes, common in mainstream media, cinema and the performance industry. The femme fatale has come full circle now in the age of the #metoo movement.

After looking more closely and in depth into the background of my initial idea for my investigation it is essential to continue looking back at my questions and statement of intent that helps guide the study and overall investigation of my projected.

Born on November 28^th, 1904 and passing away February 14^th, 1984, Gjon Mili is a extensively influential photographer that was a flourishing influencer to the type of photography he produced, known for using stroboscopic instruments to help capture a sequence of actions in one photograph. Furthermore, his life dedicated to photography allowed him to be one of the first to tamper with electronic flash and stroboscopic light to create images that had a more scientific background to the creation. Many of his notable images revealed the beautiful intricacy and graceful flow of movement too rapid or complex for the naked eye to discern. Gjon Mili’s highlight of his career that aided his popularity and well-deserved credit was his work published by Life, in which he photographed artists such as world-renowned painter Pablo Picasso. Mili was a photographer I wanted to use to investigate for my study and potentially be my inspiration for my images that I produced, due his simplistic approach creating such astonishing outcomes, as well as this factor he has done a lot of photography were he has captured dancers specific movements; instead of just the specific movement he presented the steps towards and after that certain movement. Mili once said ‘Time could be truly be made to stand still. Texture could be retained despite sudden violent movement.’ To me this clearly demonstrate his approach to photography the concept of time and movement being projected in his images. 

Here is one of my favourite images that he has produced using stroboscopic technique to allows each movement made to be capture and represented; this image is a multiple exposure of Alicia Alonsa (vintage sliver gelatin print). From this image, it is clear there is a deep technical consideration to be made and highlighted; firstly, there is a strong artificial lighting being produced from the left of the image and illuminating the dancer’s main features in each particular movement to be captured. In addition, the positioning of the camera is pretty much straight on which gives the illusion of being on par with the flooring which helps the ballet shoes on the dancer have a significant standout feature which additionally aids the point of the image; the image has high intensity with a strong detailed focus on each aspect of the dancer in each position. 

Overall from the texture of the images it suggests a low light sensitivity due to the lack of graininess being shown in the photograph, as well as the colouring of the image which are warmer forms of black and white shades producing a more emotional point of view of the image being transformed though each aspect of each position of the dance move being captured. On the other hand, you have visual aspect of the photograph to consider as previously mentioned though the use of the black and white shades used in the image, it aids the feeling of a darker representation of the photograph to be exhibited; alongside the view of a 3D image due to the shadows of the dancers which help highlight this point. Evidently though the technique Mili used to create this image there is a visual aspect of repetition of the image, seen through the consistent repetition of the dance with a slightly different position as she moves through the whole movement. In terms of lines you have the strong lines being formed through the dancer herself through the specific positioning of her body and her gradual arm movement which creates a different point of view and overall positioning in each step and section made. Contextually the image is clearly showing the motion of a dancer, the dancer in the image is Alicia Alonsa who was Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and chorographer whose company became Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955; this additional information helps the point of the image and the actual emotion, the genuine passion that the dancer has for the movement, which is believed to be very well represented in the photograph by Mili through the specific positioning and layout of the ballerina dancer.

Overall this analysis and general research in to Gjon Mili helps to answer my questions on how photography is used to reflect dance movement and the significance of emotions being portrayed through his photography; Gjon does this through the technique of using stroboscopic instruments to allow each position of the overall movement of the dancer to be seen through the image therefore reflecting the dance movement, as well as using conceptual and contextual factors to help support the emotions that are being projected and represented by the image; Finally being supported by the clever throughout camera techniques which help the end concept. 

Finally, after going into depth about Gjon Mili and getting a true understanding to how his work reflects dance movement and emotions, I began to investigate myself through planning and piecing together aspects of the investigation that I wanted to incorporate that would allow for the best possible outcome; whilst still considering work produced by Gjon and other relevant artists. For my own image I began by creating a plan and making a final decision in whether I would photograph myself in the form of self-portraits or take images of other people to project the feeling and emotions of myself through the use of others through myself. In the end I decided to use other dancers for my investigation. I used three other dancers and planned four to five shoots that would help tell a story and the final result that I wanted to have by the end of project; a shoot where I photographed their baby photos, one where it was in the photography studio, dance school studio, detail shot shoot and then photographing my dance school environment. When adding all these photoshoots together to help aid my story and emotion that I wanted to project through my images relating to dancing. After finishing up on my shoots it was essential to look back at Gjon Mili’s work and reflect on how I can relate it to my own, of course unfortunately I do not have access to stroboscopic instruments in order to create the movement of the image and capture the whole layout of the dance step. Furthermore I had to come up with a way that would enable me to give off a similar effect, for this, when in the studio I used the sports mode of the camera and got each dance to perform a pattern of movement for example, a high kick or a pirouette; this meant I got a photo of each different position that happens when carrying out these motions. Next I opened the images of each dancer’s movement which consisted of about 7 images per movement in Adobe Photoshop. Firstly, I edited each image to a certain standard in this case black and white with emphasis on the costumes so it would stand out when photographed were over laid. After the images were over laid, I adjusted the opacity which would enable all the images to become slightly faded so they would become transparent; therefore, be able to see the process of the movement of doing a high kick, from start to end. This is somewhat a representation of Mili’s work as it creates the same forum when answer my question as the image represents the dance movement as long side emotional aspects presented through the colour and editing of the image; which helps tell a story when placed with other photographs that may aid this point. Overall, I am extremely happy with my final outcome and response to Gjon Mili’s work due to the technical and visual aspects that have been produced. On the other hand, it is key to consider that there are defiantly different conceptual and contextual differences between my own work and Gjon; in terms of the dance movement and emotions being projected.

In conclusion, there is over whelming evidence to suggest my investigation had guided me to answering my initial question ‘how does Gjon Mili reflect dance movement and the significance of emotions being portrayed through his photography?’ I believed this to be presented through the specific camera setting and illusions created in order to give the effects of literally showing each movement through each position being captured, this is a more visual front and approach to the question. On the other hand, when looking at the emotional reflection of dance movement being portrayed in the images; for this projection I think that the temperature of the image aids this point as well as the actual face expression being reflected through. Overall, highlighting the final argument that clearly shows how Gjon Mili Mili reflect dance movement and the significance of emotions being portrayed through his photography.

Bibliography

https://www.theartstory.org/artist/sherman-cindy/#key_ideas_header 
https://www.artsy.net/artist/gjon-mili https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alicia-Alonso

Photoshoot 5: Dance studio interior and exterior design

For my final shoot I decided to look at more environmental aspects of dancing, in this case photographing the studio its self and important aspect that make up the area of the studio. I felt that I have fully understood each individuals dancing experience through the different concepts that I have photographed. Furthermore, the next step of developing my ideas about my subjects dance experience was the actual location where they dance; where the ultimately spend the majority of their time. As I am a dancer myself after and during my own lessons I photographed the studio itself, where we get ready, where the dancer sit and communicate, and where we get our drinks and snack from. This is a very important part of the project as it aid the emotional and contextual aspects of the project overall. Like my other shoot I open the images up on Light room so I could see them all and select the best photographs that would go best with my photo book.

After selecting my best images I began editing them to create an even deeper meaning and aiding to the overall narrative of my photo book.

Shoot 4: Photography studio detail shot

For my forth shoot relating to each individual subject I decided to do more detailed shots of each dancer in the studio using an infinity background which help make the main focus of the view on each subject. For this study I used my Macro lens which means I could specifically focus on their whole face which would and could leads to a better understanding and representation of each of their emotions relation to dance and how it makes the feels. For this shoot I asked each subject to take a seat in the studio and asked them different questions relating to the type of dancers they do, why they dance, how it makes them feel and many others. Furthermore, after taking a few head shot of each individual I captured specific parts of their face for example, their eyes, eyelashes, hands feet, lips; this was basically a representation of the deeper meaning that different parts of their bodies are sued in dance, and that each component can help tell their own story when they are dancing. For a lot of these images I kept it to the original as I thought the raw emotions made the overall emotions trying to be reflected more realistic. After each shoot I opened the photos on Adobe Lightroom and allowed me to focus on the best out comes of the images.

After deciding on final images that I wanted to use for my photo book and final pieces I edited a few that I thought would benefit the overall outcome.

After going into depth about Gjon Mili and getting a true understanding to how his work reflects dance movement and emotions, I began to investigate myself through planning and piecing together aspects of the investigation that I wanted to incorporate that would allow for the best possible outcome; whilst still considering work produced by Gjon and other relevant artists. For my own image I began by creating a plan and making a final decision in whether on whether I would photograph myself in the form of self-portraits or take images of other people to project the feeling and emotions of myself through the use of others through myself. In the end I decided to use other dancers for my investigation. I used three other dancers and planned four to five shoots that would help tell a story and the final result that I wanted to have by the end of project; a shoot where I photographed their baby photos, one where it was in the photography studio, dance school studio, detail shot shoot and then photographing my dance school environment. When adding all these photoshoots together to helped aid my story and emotion that I wanted to project through my images relating to dancing. After finishing up on my shoots it was essential to look back at Gjon Mili’s work and reflect on how I can relate it to my own, of course unfortunately I do not have access to stroboscopic instruments in order to create the movement of the image and capture the whole layout of the dance step. Furthermore I had to come up with a way that would enable me to give off a similar effect, for this, when in the studio I used the sports mode of the camera and got each dance to perform a pattern of movement for example, a high kick or a pirouette; this meant I got a photo of each different position that happens when carrying out these motions. Next I opened the images of each dancer’s movement which consisted of about 7 images per movement in Adobe Photoshop. Firstly, I edited each image to a certain standard in this case black and white with emphasis on the costumes so it would stand out when photographed were over laid. After the images were over laid, I adjusted the opacity which would enable all the images to slightly fade so they would become transparent; therefore, be able to see the process of the movement of doing a high kick, from start to end. This is somewhat a representation of Mili’s work as it creates the same forum when answer my question as the image represents the dance movement as long side emotional aspects presented through the colour and editing of the image; which helps tell a story when placed with other photographs that may aid this point.

Looking more closely and in depth into the background of my initial idea for my investigation it essential to continue looking back at my questions and statement of intent that helps guide the study and overall investigation of my projected. Through this, it is now essential to note the main photographer that I got my inspiration from that aided me to follow up on the deeper meaning and genre of dance. Born on November 28^th, 1904 and passing away February 14^th, 1984, Gjon Mili is a extensively influential photographer that was a flourishing influencer to the type of photography he produced, known for using stroboscopic instruments to help capture a sequence of actions in one photograph. Furthermore, his life dedicated to photography allowed him to be one of the first to tamper with electronic flash and stroboscopic light to create images that had a more scientific background to the creation. Many of his notable images revealed the beautiful intricacy and graceful flow of movement too rapid or complex for the naked eye to discern. Gjon Mili’s highlight of his career that aided his popularity and well-deserved credit was his work published by Life, in which he photographed artists such as world-renowned painter Pablo Picasso. Mili was a photographer I wanted to use to investigate for my study and potentially be my inspiration for my images that I produced, due his simplistic approach creating such astonishing outcomes, as well as this factor he has done a lot of photography were his has capture dancers specific movements; instead of just the specific movement he presented the steps towards and after that certain movement. Mili once said ‘Time could be truly be made to stand still. Texture could be retained despite sudden violent movement.’ To me this clearly demonstrate his approach to photography the concept of time and movement being projected in his images. Here is one of my favourite images that he has produced using stroboscopic technique to allows each movement made to be capture and represented; this image is a multiple exposure of Alicia Alonsa (vintage sliver gelatin print). 

From this image is it clear there is a deep technical consideration to be made and highlighted; firstly, there is a strong artificial lighting being produced from the left of the image and illuminating the dancing’s main features in each particular movement to be captured. In addition, the positioning of the camera is pretty much straight on which gives the illusion of being on par with the flooring which helps the ballet shows on the dancer have a significant standout feature which additionally aids the point of the images; the image has high intensity with a strong detailed focus on each aspect of the dancer in each position. Overall form the texture of the images it suggests a low light sensitivity due to the lack of graininess being shown in the photograph, as well as the colouring of the image which are warmer forms of black and white shades producing a more emotional point of view of the image being transformed though each aspect of each position of the dance move being captured. On the other hand, you have visual aspect of the photograph to consider as previously mentioned thighs the use of the black and white shades used in the image it aids the feeling of a darker representation of the photograph to be exhibited; alongside the view of a 3D image due to the shadows of the dancers which help highlight this point.

Evidently though the technique Mili used to create this image there is a visual aspect of repetition of the image, seen through the repetition of the dance with a slightly different position as she moves through the whole movement. In terms of lines you have the strong lines being formed through the dancer herself through the specific positioning of her body and her gradual arm movement which creates a different point of view and overall positioning in each step and section made. 

Contextually the image is pretty clearly showing the motion of a dancer, the dancer in the image is Alicia Alonsa who was Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and chorographer whose company became Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955; this additional information aids the point of the image and the actual emotion, the genuine passion that the dancer has for the movement, which is believe to be very well represented in the image by Mili through the specific positioning and layout of the ballerina dancer. When investigating this type of photography it is very important to consider the original type of work that had been produced that would have influenced the work produced by Gjon Mili. Jules Marey (1830-1904) created an invention using simple but elegant addition to the use of his camera that allowed him to record the flow of animal and human movement on one single photographic plate; a rotating disk with small slots cut into it at regular intervals was spun in front of an open camera lens. A person walking in front of this apparatus would be in a different position each time the open slot on the disk allowed an image to register. the results showed human movement in time and space. Marey called this new type fo photography chronophotography which in terms means ‘time photography’. When looking at his work it is visually aesthetic along side puzzling however, Marey always stated that he was not focusing on the aesthetic view; he said that he was focusing on the way in which they isolated the imperceptible phrases of movement. He went on to aim to continue improving this process to begin to avoid and eliminate overlays of the moving figures. In technical terms he created a camera in which light-sensitive materials moved with each exposure. Below is an image produced by Jules Marey:

Now that I have investigated the contextual understanding of Gjon Mili’s work it is essential to begin to compare and analysis differences and comparisons of the two pieces. The two pieces definitely show a close comparison in terms of the idea of representing each different movement and seeing the idea of a movement in one whole image, much like Marey’s, Mili shows the overall dance movement and each position creating and overall picture through the genre of dancing. However one difference between the two pieces of photography is the technique used to create the illusion of the overall movement of the image, Gjon uses stroboscopic light to create this interpretation of the original work, when comparing with Marey who used a rotating disk with small slots cut into it at regular intervals was spun in front of an open camera lens to form a movement picture.

Shoot 3: Photography studio dance

For this next shoot, I reflected on my second shoot of taking images of the dancers in the dance studio from this out come I wanted to take a more formal approach that I would hope create more defined images. At this stage I had began to reflect more on artist references while looking at the development of this studio I have been investigated Gjon Mili’s work who used suoboscopic photography which allowed each position of a movement to be presented and shown, so the photograph looked like the complete movement. For this studio I used the photography studio that has an infinity backdrop which will help benefit my images as if will create the illusion that there is no background or lines, this creates a more formal outcome. I asked each of my subjects to wear one of their favourite costumes throughout their dance career; as from personal experience a costume can either make or break a dance and by wearing their favourite costume their would be a different type of refection being represented though the image and more positive emotions. However the final outcomes doesn’t necessarily fit my hypothesis, it seemed that depending on the type of movement and turn depended on the type of emotion that each dancer subconsciously reflected. I believe this to have happened as its likely they subconsciously refereed a typical dance step with past experiences and dances that relate to the move itself. For this photoshoot I used the flash lights in the studio that linked with my camera this allowed the perfect lit up space for each dancer and created the best outcome. Overall I was happy with the photoshoot however one aspect that I would change if I were to redo this I would experiment with different types of lighting as although there is good illumination, the tone and temperature of lighting is something that would consider changing and developing. Finally when it came to editing, it was an experimental process as each type of photograph allowed for a different type of editing to create the best outcome overall. After the photoshoot I opened the images on Light room which allows me to select the best photographs and easily separate them from the worst images; this further aided the development and editing process of each image.

A few finer selections of my images however not edited yet or sorted any issue with the images.

Final edited images:

For my final images I used both balk and white editing and brightening the contrast to highlight the colours. I decided to use both technique as when it came to creating my final narrative of my phonebook it would offer different oppitunity to tell a different story overall.

Explore How both Mateusz Sarello and Yoshikatsu Fujii use archive/old images to convey the theme of separation and loss through their work.

“This work may be a personalized narrative for myself, but “family” is something that everyone has – a universal theme.”

Yoshikatsu Fujii

Loss and separation and the effects of divorce on family. I felt inclined to study this due to my own experience on the subject, in relation to my parents own divorce and my mother moving away to the UK. Separation, especially divorce is difficult for everyone involved, and that is something I wanted to show through my project. I will be looking at Japanese photographer Yoshikatsu Fujii, specifically his project ‘Red String’ and also Polish photographer Mateusz Sarello and his project ‘Swell’. I chose Fujii because his images resonated with my experience of parents divorce and he manages to express similar feelings. I thought I would effectively be able to use his images as inspiration and effectively respond. The incorporation of old family photos really spoke to me and it was definitely something I wanted to include into my project. Sarello’s ‘Swell’ is another one of my inspirations as I find the way he laid out his book (the broken spine and the ‘happier’ images first with a gap and the ‘sadder’ images after) and the images using flash interesting and a great way of creating a disturbing feeling in a viewer. Both artist’s use of archive images create a depth to their work as it adds context to their work. Without them the desired affect wouldn’t be as poignant. They create juxtaposition between the past and present which makes Fujii and Sarello’s work so touching and effective. We can identify with them as we all have personal archives with attached memories.

Historical Context – Archives

Archive art isn’t a a new concept but is surprisingly common. Photographic archives are typically defined as collections of photographs held by libraries or museums. However, more recently, photographers and curators have been using these archives as part of their work and the definition of archives images is changing. For example artists are now creating their own archives, some are using personal archives such as family albums and some are using rejected images or projects and reusing them for another purpose. I believe that using old images for another purpose in a way could be considered as using archive images. Archival art pays homage to events and people or is used as a framing device or as art historian Hal Foster described it; it “make[s] historical information, often lost or displaced, physically present” (Breakell, S). Sue Breakell describes archival art as “post-postmodernist” (Breakell, S) in that “it comes after post-modernism: it is part of, and indeed embodies, a turn that reflects not simply the urge to deconstruct, but a more fertile and iterative urge to build in a way that not only is not monolithic but also is inclusive” (Breakell, S), suggesting that archives have evolved to create a place for reflection and are able to be used in photography and other art mediums as a form of call to break down the past to create a better future and in this makes archival art turn from just a form of history to an artistic form of expression. Breakell therefore also sees the archives are not only being used by artists to inform research into work they are doing but also as “an arena for the consideration of philosophical questions about its nature and meaning” (Breakell, S) of an artists work. Archives are often used as a theme in many artists work. More recently biennial curators have used historical archives in their shows, such as Massimiliano Gioni who incorporated an enormous amount of documentary materials into his work such as photographs of the victims of atrocities in Cambodia in his Gwangju Biennial. Another example is Zoe Leonard who created a fictional character, Fae Richards, an acclaimed black actress and singer who “lived” from 1908 to 1973. Leonard did this for what wanted to be a fictional archive of the “legendary” character. Leonard used film stills, publicity materials, photographs, and recollections to create the archive but she actually made it from using the real lives and stories of black women in the early days of Hollywood. Through her invented character, Leonard began a conversation about very real issues that risked being forgotten. Archive images have always been used either to give photography context or a medium for people to respond to and influence their creativity, in the case of Mateusz Sarello, even though his images aren’t necessarily taken from an archive as such, they are still images taken without the intention of being used in the context they have ended up in, like many other images within photographic archives. The images he took before his break up are mild and gentle polaroids which are unsaturated and subdued. This creates a perfect juxtapositions for the angry photos of the waves that then spill out of the following pages, embodying the emotions you would feel after a break up or loss. For Yoshikatsu Fujii however, the images are of his childhood and his parents early lives together add a personal and bittersweet feeling to the book. Again, the juxtapositions contrasts between the happiness of the past and uncertainty and difference of the present.

For my study on my parents divorce, the use of ‘archived images’ will be extremely important, as they will give a juxtaposing image from my childhood to now. It is this difference that I want to focus on, as it will express my feelings around my parents divorce and also the effect of divorce on family dynamics and how these dramatic these changes can be.

Yoshikatsu Fujii – Red String

Archive images have been used for ages, however, not many people have taken their own old family photos and used them within the concept of archive art, which is something Japanese photographer Yoshikatsu Fujji has decided to explore in his project ‘Red String’. His photographic works often deal with historical themes and memory lingering on in contemporary events. Red string was based on the split of Fujii’s parents with inspiration for the name and nature of the book coming from the legend of the restring, popular in Asain culture. The legend tells that soul mates have a red string tied around their little finger from the moment they are born and are destined to meet. the string apparently can never be untied or broken. Fujii reflects on this legend stating that maybe “the red string tying my parents together came undone, broke, or perhaps was never even tied to begin with” (Fujii, Y). Fujii has used old family photos along with inserted notes and original images of his family to express his feelings on his parents divorce. The images he takes of his parents and family are very candid and simple, which allows him to capture his parents true selves. This simplicity of the portraits also seem lonely, with the black and white making the parents seem isolated, with Fujjis “anxiety” (Fujii, Y) over his parents divorce clearly shown. The book wouldn’t be complete without the use of his old family photos to juxtapose this. The images of his family are full of smiles and colour, making the black a white lone images of his parents seem more bitter than they already did. The image above is a perfect a example of this contrasting mood. This contrast between his parents wedding, which is meant to be the happiest day of they lives, and his mother alone on a beach, with no one but the memory of her husband, seems sentimental but also harsh. The layering of the images allow their lives to be to close but also so separate from each other which is how someone does feel during divorce. This image could be showing Fujii’s desire for his family to be whole again but as reviewer Alexander Strecker says it is merely “fragments of that which was” (Strecker, A). This book could be Fujii’s way of coping as the book is so personal and intimate. Strecker claims the book is a “reconstructed journal of this separation” (Strecker, A), however I believe rather than being a journalisms of the separation, I believe it is more like a journal of coping with the change. The book itself is broken, with a split in the centre, forever keeping his mum and dad separated, a tragic thought for those who know hat its like for parents to separate. The archive images used so frequently are almost a form of grounding. It is continually reminding a viewer of the past happiness making the separation and loss so much greater. The handmade fragile book really encompasses the fragility of life friendship and love.

I responded to Fujii’s work by taking candid images of my parents, specifically them doing normal chores. I thought this would make this emotion behind my images more genuine than if I staged them. However, as I was using old family images as well, for this shot I had to get my dad to pose for the photo to line up properly. I stayed true to the theme however. the photo I took is in black and white while the photo i used from the family albums stayed in colour with the only editing being cutting my mum out of the image and placing her in the new photo then bleeding it together. I didn’t use flash either. I preferred the blending rather than just putting the photo in on top of the original as Fujii did because I enjoyed the outcome of the ghostly image, almost as if the memory is fading. The rest of my images are portraits and objects or settings with minimal editing, just made monochrome.

Mateusz Sarello – Swell

Where as Fujii uses his archive images to convey a sort of sadness toward the separation of his parents and the loss of his normal family life, Mateusz Sarello conveys anger and resentment. The archive images Sarello uses are not like Fujii’s, instead his images are from a discontinued project which he then uses, similarly to Fujii, to juxtapose the past and present emotions. Swell started off as a documentation of the Baltic sea, with images in typical polaroid style. The images are calm and unsaturated, with the subject being typical scenes you would see day to day. However, during his project Sarello split with his partner. He recalls the break up changed him and he was unable to complete the project as it was designed. The book then transformed into a project about heartbreak and unaccepted loneliness. He took the rest of images whilst going back to places he previously went with his girlfriend. So in his work, archive images are images which he took before his breakup, that he is using in a different context with the purpose of creating a split and separation. Reviewer on the site Culture.pl, Dariusz Bochenek, expresses his opinion of the split in the book, stating “Swell literally falls apart in the reader’s hands. The book appears to be broken, torn into two halves.” (Bochenek, D). The book then splits between Sarello’s old images and his new ones. The gap looks messy and the pages are a different size; everything mimics his break up and his vulnerability afterwards. It also represents the split up of him and his partner, almost as if its meant to signify a new chapter in his life, which is drastically different, which in Bochenek’s opinion is a perfect show of the “dualism of love and sudden acute loneliness” (Bochenek, D). The move from softer polaroids to the harsh grainy images with flash is striking. You can feel his hurt and pain as you see the waves and the sharpness of the shadows and light due to the flash. The hectic nature of the birds flying over him make his head seem clouded, whilst the brightness of the images resembles when you walk out of the shade into the dazzling sun, compared to the dark photo of the birds flying in a neat line on the opposite page. It makes the viewer feel overwhelmed. Through using the older image, or archive images, Sarello is able to contrast his emotions so graphically, we can begin to understand his emotions and reaction to separation and loss. The title itself “Swell’ could relate to the emotions you feel after a break up which is a complete mix, as well as a nod towards his original idea of a documentation of the baltic sea.

My response to Sarello followed his general invasive photographing technique along with flash. Similar to my response to Fujji, I kept the photos candid and didn’t stage any of them. I purposefully tried to catch my parents off guard when taking these photos. For editing, I again kept it minimal, only putting my images into black and white, however with these images I enhanced the grain within the image as it is something that Sarello does often with his images in this project. In this specific image I wanted to catch my mum doing something and I managed to get a photo of her halfway through a sentence. I like how it brings personality to my mum, that a staged image probably would not.

Conclusion

In conclusion, both Mateusz Sarello and Yoshikatsu Fujii document their experience with separation and loss using archived images to create a contrast and split between their lives before and after experience, however they both go about it in different ways. Fujii documents his parents gently and with care, with soft lighting and simple positioning, Sarello uses harsh flash in his images and a candid “assault” (Bochenek, D) like technique which creates a hectic and angry feeling rather than sentimental. The nature of both artists archive images differ as well. Fujii uses old family photos that create that context and sentimental feeling of what once was, whereas Sarello actually uses some of his own old work along with differing page sizes to mimic the split and juxtapositions. Both artists projects follow the similar theme of separation and loss, however, their outcomes are both different as Mateusz Sarello went through the break up himself, whereas Yoshikatsu Fujii is documenting his parent breakup and the second hand effects. Archive images within their projects are vital, without them they would have the same value or background information. My project itself follows Fujii’s project more closely as I am also using family images and documenting my parents break up, however I’m using Sarello’s aggressive style with flash rather than Fujii’s passive approach. Archive images are a way to look into and reflect on the past. By using archive images along with original images, rather than creating a statement, you’re creating a sort of question effect, a bit like the Kuleshov effect. This effect states that two sequential shots give off more meaning than a single shot in isolation in film. In photography this could translate into to two images being sew together to create an emotional response in a viewer, especially when archives are involved.

Bibliography:

Bochenek, D, Swell – Mateusz Sarello, https://culture.pl/en/work/swell-mateusz-sarello (Accessed 11.2.20)

Red String, The New Edition: An Interview with Yoshikatsu Fujii https://www.ceibaeditions.com/red-string-the-new-edition-an-interview-with-yoshikatsu-fujii/ (Accessed 11.2.20)

Fujii, Y, Red String https://www.yoshikatsufujii.com/red-string (Accessed 11.2.20)

Strecker, A, BOOK REVIEW – Red String https://www.lensculture.com/articles/yoshikatsu-fujii-red-string (Accessed 11.2.20)

Artspace Editors (22 January 2014) How the Art World Caught Archive Fever https://www.artspace.com/magazine/art_101/art_market/the_art_worlds_love_affair_with_archives-51976 (Accessed 11.2.20)

Breakell, S, Archival practices and the practice of archives in the visual arts https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/381086/Binder1.pdf (Accessed 11.2.20)

Hellerman, J (30 Januray 2019) Everything you Need to Know About the Kuleshov Effect https://nofilmschool.com/Kuleshov-effect-definition (Accessed 12.2.20)

After having looked a several photo-book ideas I have decided to experiment with a few different design layouts.

I began designing my book as landscape but then decided that actually I wanted to have a book that was smaller. I changed the size of the book to square with en example of the size I am aiming for below:

I would like to have my phonebook asteticaly pleasing. What I mean by this is that I want my book to have a narrative that makes sense without the viewers knowing the story line. I have also decided to name my book “Closed Cases…” The reasoning behind this is that I am going to translate it into Portuguese. Both my parents are Portuguese so I thought it was only right to add elements of my culture as well as theirs. “Closed Cases” in Portuguese translates to “Casos Encerrados…” The reason my book is being named this is because to me, and to both my parents their relationship is over and they will most likely never get back together. As harsh as it may sound I have become okay with the reality of this and have grown to accept this.

In terms of my design lay out I wanted to have a variation of size in the images. I wanted to also have images that made sense together, one balancing the other out. Some images are going to be kept smaller and I might also have a page of writing in Portuguese, like a quote and names of places that were and will always be significant to me and my family.

The above screenshot is going to be my front cover. I have chosen to use this image as it is one of the only pictures we have as a 4. I also used an app called ‘Pics Art’ to create the white pencil overlay effect. As I am exploring childhood as part of my project it adds that childlike feel to the book. I am still continuing to add images and edit them in order to fit the sequence I am trying to portray.

This is an image I have chosen to put towards the end of my photo book. I am choosing to place this here as it is symbolising the end to my dads first family and the beginning of his new family.

Another thing that I have experimented with in my phonebook is the colour of the background.

I didn’t want to experiment with really harsh, dark colours as I feel like It takes the attention away from the actual focus of the photo, being my parents. Most of the images I have chosen to use are either in black and white or the colours are too dull therefore having dark colours would over power the book completely.

THE LAYOUT ON THIS BLOG WILL NOT BE MY FINAL VERSION OF THE PHOTO BOOK.