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Case Study – Xavier Ribas

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Xavier Ribas

 

Xavier Ribas is a photographer, senior lecturer at the University of Brighton, and visiting lecturer at the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia. He studied Social Anthropology at the University of Barcelona and Documentary Photography at the Newport School of Art and Design. His photographic work investigates contested sites, histories and memories. His earlier works looked at peripheral spaces and geographies of abandonment in photographic series such as Sundays (1998), Sanctuary (1998-2002)and Habitus (2007). His recent works grouped under the title of Concrete Geographies (2003-2009) take the form of large photographic grids, looking at temporary settlements, sites of corporate urban development and exclusion, and border territories.

Ribas has been involved in many international exhibitions and his work is represented in major public and private collections. He has received awards, commissions and fellowships from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (2012-2015), the International Photography Research Network (2006), Commande Publique du Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, Centre National des Arts Plastiques (2006), among others. 

I wanted to use his work for my interspersion because i like the idea of the identity of a place can change due to abandonment. The color pallet of his images are very interesting he uses muted tones to give the effect of life being lost in abandonment. His work appeals to me because it almost paints abandonment in a more beautiful way because its not just dark and dingy, it shows how life can circulate around the unwanted and grow upon it to create beautiful images
AO1 Develop Ideas, AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Unit 2 Portrait

Identity and place introduction

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Identity and place

I would describe identity as being a person’s personality and character, but i can also involve a person’s gender,geographical location, political views and social standing. Identity also encompasses one’s culture and this can be influenced depending on someone’s social or geographical location, or their place. 

 

Mind map

Mood Board

Not my images.
AO2 Explore Ideas, Component 1 Personal Investigation, Unit 2 Portrait

Zhao Xiaomeng/ Rita Puig Serra Costa – Case Study (Possessions)

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I chose to study Rita due to the sense of identity in her portraits of still life items. While there is no human subject in the photo, it is still structured like a traditional portrait allowing the photos to tell a story behind the object while leaving an air of ambiguity around the photos.

As far as technical aspects of the images go, they are structured like a typical portrait with soft lighting to avoid harsh shadows and a typically larger aperture to allow for a narrow depth of field while still allowing for a wide DoF in wider shots. She also appears to use a slower shutter speed due to the strong contrast and colors in the photos. The subjects in most of her photos are centralized in the image creating a fell of importance to the subjects. It looks as though her images could made using film due to the slight grain and Gaussian blur. The lower images seems to be exhibiting bokeh as well also suggesting that this is taken on film.

Image result for rita puig serra costaImage result for rita puig serra costa

Images Sampled from Rita’s Book ‘Where Mimosa Bloom’

I like the idea of taking a portrait of a statue as it allows for exploration of traditional portraiture techniques while still sticking with the idea of still life portraiture and I believe that the broken statue can tell a much more powerful story than a traditional portrait.

Zhao Xiaomeng took many photographs of abandoned bikes scattered across the streets of Beijing. I personally like how much about someones personality you can tell from the scattered bikes, they all have various adjustments and additions made to make the previous owners life just a little bit easier. I like the compositions of the images as I like how somewhat abstract still life photography is being framed as though it is a traditional portrait, with rather blank backgrounds to allow the subject to strongly contrast it. Most of the subjects have some strong color either from the weathered paint or the rust patina. It looks as though he has used a small aperture due to the wide depth of field, as a consequence of this I believe that the photos were taken using a long shutter speed and low ISO due to the amount of detail captured in the photos. The photos are rather de-saturated but still show color depth.

Image result for zhao xiaomengImage result for zhao xiaomengImage result for zhao xiaomeng

AO1 Develop Ideas, AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Unit 2 Portrait

Identity and Place – Post 5 (Editing)

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Masked Portraits

Editing Process:

1. Original image opened in Adobe Photoshop.

2. First I used the “curves” to change the tonality of the image and to create highlights, low lights and increase contrast.

3. I then used the “black & white” feature to take the colour out of the image and cause the mask to stand out from the black hoodie and darker grey background.

4. I then added a tint from the colour library in the “black & white” menu to add subtle tint to the image

5. I repeated step 2, adjusting the curves after having set the image to black and white to ensure the image had slightly more extreme levels of contrast than I wanted.

6. Finally, I used the “brightness/contrast” function to actually decrease the “contrast” as i found this resulted in the shadows on the mask being smoother.

7. I repeated these steps for all 4 of my final images from this shoot.

Final Edits:

Edited Portraits

Editing Process:

1. Original image opened in Adobe Photoshop.

2. I began with the “spot healing brush tool” in order to clear the skin of any blemishes or marks.

3. Then I used the “blur tool” in order to minimise pores and smooth out the skin to make hiding features easier.

4. I selected the “lasso tool” and cut out a smooth area of the face with minimal amounts of colour differences so the cut out area is not noticable after blending.

5. Using “ctrl+J” and “ctrl+T” I resized and re-positioned the cut out area over the mouth. Then selecting “flatten image” to allow me to start blending out the border between the image and the cut out

6. Using a combination of “spot healing brush tool“, “healing brush tool” and “blur tool” I blended the cut out area in with the image to create a face without a mouth or noticeable editing lines or patches.

7. I then repeated steps 4-6 to cover the nose.

8. I selected the “black & white” feature, increasing the brightness of reds to create a paler complexion and help separate the face from the black background.

9. Finally I used the “sharpen tool” on the eyes to cause them to stand out more and bring the face together.

Final Edits:

Unit 2 Portrait

Annegret Soltau – Case Study (MOCK EXAM)

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Annegret Soltau is a German Artist who works with photographs, performances and video. Photomontages of her own body and face sewn over or collaged with black thread are the most well-known works of the German artist. Soltau’s method of analysis is strictly connected to the idea of destruction and reconstruction of her image. This process drives her to a new form of Photo-montage where the main ingredient used to stick together all the pieces is not glue but a simple black thread. In this way her work can be described as a product of handcraft.

“My most important aim is to include bodily processes in my work and to use myself as a model – because I can go the furthest with myself”

In her project “Selbst” the Soltau ties up her face with tight threads of black silk, like a cocoon, of which she makes a photographic record that is subsequently stitched by following a geometric pattern that resembles a sign. The result is a type of self-harming self-portrait: as the string cuts into the sensitive skin of her face, the thread distorts its shape but also enhances its beauty. Annegret Soltau writes her story as a woman on the blank page of her face; it is a history of conflict, impulsive reactions to the family environment, and to position of women in the social context, to gender pressures and discrimination.

Image result for Selbst annegret soltau

Selbst, 19. 

“These are my first projects using thread in the context of photography. Using gray silk thread, I overstitched self-portraits and created a filigree of threads over my own face. I started with a photograph taken during a performance piece, and stitched over the thread in the photo using real thread.” Annegret Soltau

The most complex and elaborate project of hers was “Generativ” (1994-2005). Where she created pieces from photographs of the naked bodies of her “female chain”which composes of her grandmother, her mother, her daughter and herself. “Generativ” shows the whole span of bodily change between young and old, between the fading body of age and the emerging body in puberty.

“My main interest is the integration of body process in my work, in order to connect body and spirit as equal parts” Annegret Soltau

Image result for Annegret soltau generativ

Image result for Annegret Soltau

Image result for Annegret Soltau

Image result for Annegret Soltau

 

 

AO1 Develop Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, Unit 2 Portrait

Identity and Place

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The Definition of identity  and its Sub-categories

identity
noun
  1. The Definition of Place
    place
    noun
    1. a particular position, point, or area in space; a location.
      2. a portion of space designated or available for or being used by someone.
      the fact of being who or what a person or thing is.
      2.a close similarity or affinity

    Gender Identity

    gender identity
    noun



    1. a person's perception of having a particular gender, which may or may not correspond with their birth sex.

    Cultural Identity

    1.Cultural identity is the identity or feeling of belonging to a group. It is part of a person's self-conception and self-perception and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has its own distinct culture. In this way, cultural identity is both characteristic of the individual but also of the culturally identical group of members sharing the same cultural identity or upbringing.

    Social Identity

    1.Social identity is one's sense of self as a member of a social group (or groups). Sociologists use the concept of social identity to explain how people understand who they are and why they do what they do.

    Geographical Identity

    1. An individual or group's sense of attachment to the country, region, city, or village in which they live.

2. The key characteristics with which a particular country, region, city, or village is associated.

    Political Identity

    1.politics in which groups of people having a particular racial, religious, ethnic, social, or cultural identity tend to promote their own specific interests or concerns without regard to the interests or concerns of any larger political group
lack of / loss of identity

AO1 Develop Ideas, AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Unit 2 Portrait

Identity and Place – Post 4.b (Photoshoots – Edited Portraits)

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Action Plan:

  • Use the single point lighting of a light box to cast soft light on subjects face.
  • Alter position of light box to give different effects on the subject’s face (eg. chiaroscuro).
  • Take photos of subject under different lighting.
  • Select well composed and focused images that show off the combination of the subjects face complementary to the light used.
  • Select best images based on editing plans.
  • Edit images.

My Response: Best Images:

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Black and white portrait images

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Black and White images 
I chose to edit the photos creating even more of a contrast between light and dark. The black and white images create more of a ghostly effect. The purposeful over and under exposure look more intense and create a more interesting image with a clear focal point in relation to the back ground.  

My final outcomes

Image creation process
On Photoshop I went into image - adjustments - the i used the black & white controllers to create the initial  flip from color to black and white.  Also to create more contrast and over come the distracting background i used the same process but instead of clicking on black and white, i clicked levels then when from the left to right controller until my back ground got to my desired darkness.

 

AO1 Develop Ideas, AO2 Explore Ideas, AO3 Record Ideas, AO4 Present Ideas, Unit 2 Portrait

Identity and Place – Post 4.a (Photoshoots – Masked Portraits)

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Action Plan:

  • Select location suited to particular photoshoot (eg. woods. bunkers, old buildings, run-down areas).
  • Select area with good natural lighting (eg. window lighting).
  • Change camera settings to ensure good quality images in darker areas. (ISO, White balance).
  • Take photographs in a variety of locations or poses to give more potential final images.
  • Select best images based on editing plans.
  • Edit images.

My Response:

Best Images: