Noirmont Bunker Visit
All posts by Eleanor G
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The Occupation of Jersey
In March 1940, restrictions were lifted on travel to and from the mainland. The Channel Islands were seen as an important tourism centre and a boost to morale for British citizens. On 11 June, 26 Whitley bombers flew from Jersey and Guernsey to Italy to assist the British war effort in the battle of France. By 15 June, France had been lost to Germany and Sir Winston Churchill took the decision to demilitarise the Channel Islands, unbeknown to Hitler. On 16 – 18 June, Jersey Yacht Club assisted in the evacuation of British troops from St Malo but there were no plans to evacuate the islanders. Opinion was divided between the various island governors and in the confusion, each island made its own decision. Alderney evacuated everyone whereas the Dame of Sark instructed her inhabitants to stay. Guernsey began preparations to evacuate its children, giving parents the option to stay or go with them. With time running out, the majority of Jersey islanders chose to stay with just 6,600 leaving out of the 50,000 population.
Unaware the islands were demilitarised, Hitler bombed Jersey and Guernsey on 28 June 1940. Taking possession of a Guernsey airfield, German troops began arriving and by 1 July, Jersey had surrendered. Occupying the islands was a boost for German propaganda and formed part of Hitler’s defence plans for an Atlantic Wall.
On 8 May 1945, the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, made his famous speech to mark the end of the war. Within it were the words:
“and our dear Channel Islands are also to be freed today.”
However, people in Jersey only officially realised the war was over when they saw HMS Beagle sail into St Aubin’s Harbour on 9 May. Today ‘Liberation day’ is marked with a public holiday for Jersey and Guernsey on 9 May, Sark on 10 May and Alderney on 16 May.
A2 Photography
Personal Investigation
Bunker Archaeology
Final Outcomes
Final Outcome Options
Each one of my final outcome options in my opinion reflects my wanted message. I wanted to put across, within this stimuli, how that you can have a family support system around yet still feel like you don’t fit in. These images all together work together in my opinion because it all correlates to the same ideas.
Actual Final Outcomes
Final images photoshoot – Identity
For my ‘final ideas’ photo shoot, I wanted to piece together all of my ideas together i did this by deciding to do self portraits because it meant I could portray the ideas I wanted to get across from personal experience. I also did this so that the wrong message wasn’t put across.
As my setting I used a shower (which represents being isolated from the outside world – a safe place) and for my more basic portraits I used a basic set up of a black cloth, a tripod and a 10 second camera timer. This all together reflected my idea of inner emotions escaping my mind.
Final ideas – Artist Researches
For my final piece, I am focusing on ‘Mental Identity’: inner state of identity. I will focus more on how behind closed doors, no one knows how they truly impact someone else and the effect on their emotions.
Artist References
Gabriella Mendez
I admire Mendez’ work due to her perspective and imagination shrouding colours complimenting skin tones. She also uses stickers, projections and objects to portray her ideas of fashion and culture. I really admired her idea of using appliques and drawings on faces to reflect a certain idea.
Analysis
VISUAL
Mendez’ work often displays a colourful background with one/two people as the centre focus. In these images she has used bold solid coloured back drops, she then correlates the costume and make up with this colour scheme. With the photo on the left Mendez has correlated the eye and foliage make up to the off-mustard background, then has a contrasting top on the model to vary where the eye’s attention else where. Within the picture on the left however Mendez has made it so that the models foliage and top to contrast the background. This collectively draws the direct attention to the models neutral face in contrast to the boldly coloured extras.
TECHNICAL
In order to create this image Mendez has used a warm toned soft box light so that light isn’t direct, its even dispersed within the studio. During the editing process she has increased the images saturation and contrast to make the image soft and not harsh with lots of colours happening.
Francesca Woodman
Francesca Stern Woodman was an American photographer best known for her black and white pictures featuring either herself or female models. Many of her photographs show women, naked or clothed, blurred, merging with their surroundings, or whose faces are obscured.
What I admire about Woodman’s work is how she uses her self as the centre focus: she uses her self to reflect her feelings towards her belonging and how she felt about not feeling like the standard person. I originally used this idea to project my emotions and thoughts about myself not fitting into the mold everyone around me has created for me.
Analysis
VISUAL
Within this composition, Woodman has used her body to curve around the wall, she is peaking around the corner at her reflection (given off by a mirror on the floor). This in my opinion gives the feeling of searching, and in Woodman’s case searching for herself. This self portrait is set within a decaying empty room with once painted white walls and hard concrete floors. This contrast between her body and the harsh man made structures reflects her innocent self against the harsh world.
TECHNICAL
In order to create lighting in this image, Woodman has used the natural lighting from an unseen window. This light then hits the concrete floor and potentially bounces off the mirror this creates a ‘spotlight’ feel to where Woodman is placed, this is due to the foreground and background corners are unlit. This draws attention to woodman and her reflection.
By utilizing both these artists’ views and my own, I wish to create compositions that reflect my sense of not fitting into the world I was brought into. I aim to show how our inner thoughts cannot be contained once alone. Either through feelings or none at all, the pain of not knowing where to go is the closest rival to death. This all relates down to the epicentre of all of our problems: wanting perfection. In the ideal world, perfection doesn’t exist, we would aim to reach our own maximum capacity, not to correlate with numbers and code.
“Warning: If you are reading this then this warning is for you. Every word you read of this useless fine print is another second off your life. Don’t you have other things to do? Is your life so empty that you honestly can’t think of a better way to spend these moments? Or are you so impressed with authority that you give respect and credence to all that claim it? Do you read everything you’re supposed to read? Do you think every thing you’re supposed to think? Buy what you’re told to want? Get out of your apartment. Meet a member of the opposite sex. Stop the excessive shopping and masturbation. Quit your job. Start a fight. Prove you’re alive. If you don’t claim your humanity you will become a statistic. You have been warned.”
― Fight Club
Self Identity
From the stimuli given, I’m going to focus more on the idea of self identity. This will include self portraits and timed frames. This can aid me to explore a person’s ‘mental identity’ because i’m exploring my own. This then can enable me to convey more emotions and ideas due to the model and the photographer being the same mind – it can help convey they correct message.
The definition of self identity is – ‘the perception or recognition of one’s characteristics as a particular individual, especially in relation to social context’
Self identity is all a collection of beliefs that can physically embody the concept of ‘Who am I?’. This in relation to the stimuli can show the reality of someones thoughts and feelings.
First Ever Self-Portrait
The first ever self portrait photograph was created by Robert Cornelius. It was created in 1839 , taken only a few months after Louis Daguerre revealed his daguerreotype process in 1839. Cornelius simply ran in front of the camera after taking the cover off the lens, vastly different to today’s technique of snapping away.
Initial Photoshoot – Place
For an individual, the people they spend time with impacts how they evolve as a person. These people can influence their future both negatively and positively. The most influential people in MY life are my family and close friends. My small community helps me navigate through life with support with double the enjoyment of each others company.
To respond to the stimuli of ‘Identity and Place’, I have photographed moments of which i’m with family and friends to capture that memory and moment.
Analysis
Within these images I used natural light when available, however in the images taken in the evening, i used flash for them. This is due to me wanting to capture as much detail as possible without over exposing my images.
Identity and Place
In psychology, identity is the qualities, beliefs, personality, looks and/or expressions that make a person (self-identity) or group (particular social category or social group). A psychological identity relates to self-image (one’s mental model of oneself), self-esteem, and individuality.
For this topic of interest, identity and place of a person is to be explored. They can be explored through the ideas of gender identity, cultural identity, social identity, geographical identity, political identity
lack of, loss of identity.
Photo Montage – Response
