ANTHROPOCENE case study

Artist reserch:

David T. Hanson is a photographer was born and raised in Montana. His photography has a strong view on Anthropocene as he chosen to photograph wasted land which suggest that he has decided to photograph manmade environments.

Jerremy Carroll is a photographer who based her work around man made items and the way they can effect living things. I know this due to her calling a series of her photographs ‘marine pollution’ this relates to Anthropocene as he is concerned about the pollution going into the margins.

Barry Rosenthal is a award winning photographer who collected discarded items of plastic and captured photographs of them to reflect on anthropecene. His series of these photographs were called “Found in Nature”, in which he started in 2007. His series had a worldwide following and has created several opportunities for Barry Rosenthal to talk about his work to a larger audience. Additionally he is also stated that ‘In today’s world, consumer goods are increasing in volume. At the same time their useful lives are shorter and shorter. Consuming without a thought of what is left behind is what we are taught.’ which highly highlights that he cares about what impacts humans have on the world.

Image analysis:

Jerremy Carroll – choked by plastics in the ocean.

This image in which Jerremy Carroll has taken is very unique as I haven’t seen a photographer take photos in relation to the Anthropocene in this way as she has used items such as fishing nets to create a stigma that the woman in the photograph is trapped the same as if she was a fish in the sea relating to the Anthropocene and the impacts us as humans has on it. I personally feel that the use of the harsh bright white light adds specific details because it makes you more aware of what is occurring. I feel as if Jerremy Carroll has a strong opinion on the topic of Anthropocene as she may not have decided to take these sort of images if she didn’t care about the world. Additionally the name of the series of photographs in which she has taken is called ‘choked by plastics in the ocean’ which highly suggests that she is concerned for the well being of the fish that live in the sea. The tones in this photograph are very clear due to the bright lights being used. In addition the way in which Jerremy Carroll has structured her photograph makes the photo have more details and portrays the mood of power which the Anthropocene has over the woman used in the photo as the way in which she has structure the fishing nets and stings it almost as if she is trapped and has no power over it.

Found in Nature' by Barry Rosenthal - The New York Times
Barry Rosenthal – found in nature

Barry Rosenthal in this image uses different tones of blue which brings out the textures in the different objects. Having the background black, and the objects set in a certain way gives the photo more dynamic and draws the eye into the photo. The way Rosenthal has set out the objects used in the photo creates levels as this photo has been taken from a bird eye view. This photo which has been taken for Anthropocene relates to world wide problem of global warming and littering. As some of these objects relate to the beach like the flip flop for example, Rosenthal might be trying to make a point of the rubbish which has been left by man kind creating problems for the sea life which can become very harmful for the ecosystems.

Comparison:

Overall the two images are very similar but in different ways. AS you can see both photographers have Bothe use a different variations a blue objects throughout their photos which I feel could both relate to rubbish found in and around the ocean which has an impact on the world globally (The Anthropocene). Secondly both of the photos have a plain and dull background which makes their main focus off their photographs stand out more leaving the background being their non-focus. Additionally I also feel that these two photographs are very different to each other as Barry Rosenthal photograph is more related to just the objects and how all plastics are bad for the environment having a negative impact on the world. However, on the other hand Jerremy Carroll has based her work on how it can effect us as humans as she has used a model to represent what it does to animals in the sea as she has made the woman in the picture look trapped in the netting which surrounds her. Furthermore both of these photos relate to how tragic plastics can be for the environment.

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