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Independent, Reading

Personal Investigation – Photoshoot Two Pictorialism

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Initial aims for shoot:

I wanted to create a set of images that combined the work of Robert Darch and Josef Sudek, mirroring techniques and themes used in Pictorialism photography. I plan on using the main location of Reg’s Garden, a community garden that I used to visit as a child with my grandparents, capturing areas where I would escape into imaginary worlds. I also plan on using my grandparents home for several images, using locations such as the kitchen, hallway and spare bedroom. In these rooms I hope to capture a sense of memory, past and nostalgia by photographing mirrors and doorways, windows that look into the past and provide a view to the future. The theme of safety is one I want to focus on in this shoot, the Pictorialist style will hopefully create a mystical yet welcoming atmosphere, using a soft blurred focus to distort any harsh textures or shadows in each image. I plan on conducting this photoshoot during the mid-afternoon, I want to take full advantage of the bright weather to create exaggerated highlights in my images. Experimenting with the Pictorialism technique is something I really want to explore in this shoot, I plan to bring Vaseline with me on the day to smear over the camera lens, however I would like to try using different materials to create the staple blurred filter over my images. This shoot will serve as an exploration of childhood imagination, physically capturing the Wonderland-like world I escaped to, whether I was happy, sad, confused or anxious – I want to display the dream-like state of ‘playing make believe’.

Editing:

I began editing in Adobe Lightroom, going through each image and flagging it if it portrayed the right atmosphere and theme I wanted to put across. Aesthetics was a feature that had importance in this shoot, I wanted my images to have a whimsical fantasy style that gave the impression of an almost ‘too perfect’ world. I looked for warm tones and orange hues when flagging my images, I found they were more successful when resembling colours of late evening sunsets as it created a cosy and welcoming atmosphere. After flagging my favourite images, I went through them again rating them from 1 -5 and focused on finding the meaning behind each image, when I took this image what did I have in mind? Does that message/idea come across successfully? Additionally, I wanted several images to hold a sort-of ‘escape route’ within them, may it be a door or a window, a clearing in the trees or a bridge to walk across – anything that could lead to this mystical world. Negative space that I captured in my images sometimes served as this ‘escape’, when sorting through and choosing which would be my final images to edit it was clear that keeping this fanciful narrative helped create my desired effect. Below is my selection of 5 star images, I considered colour, composition, meaning and light to create this selection and give the impression of an idyllic world full of imagination.

How I replicated Pictorialism:

I had planned on using Vaseline smeared over the camera lens to mimic that of Pictorialism, nevertheless when I began setting up for this shoot I though of a different idea and technique to create this imagery style. I wanted to create a gradual blur, some images slightly misty and foggy and others completely distorted, to compare how much I wanted to change the atmosphere of my surroundings in each image. Using Vaseline, although effective, was not the most practical material to create this gradual effect, as I would need to keep removing and reapplying the gel to the lens when I wanted less or more blur. Therefore, I thought of using my breath to steam up the lens, as the effect would ware off after a few seconds and I could take multiple shots of the same location as it gradually loses its blur. This allowed me to experiment with how much the lens should be steamed up when photographing to create enough blur to be distorted and dream-like, however not so much that the subject cannot be recognised as a bench or statue. As this project has such a personal connection to me, it was as if I was breathing life into these images to create this other-worldly effect – experimenting with how an image can be manipulated without editing it harshly in Photoshop or Lightroom was something I really wanted to explore. This Pictorialism imagery gives the impression of memories, foggy and blurred but still remembered as happy and content – there is a calmness to this shoot that when mixed with the oil-painting-style imagery portrays an imaginary world where anxiety disappears and childhood can live on.

Experimentation:

The images above and below were both taken in my grandparents home, it was the secondary location to Reg’s garden, holding memories of childhood and happiness. However, during the time of this shoot the lighting and weather was dull and cloudy, blue undertones and shadows made the images seem desolate and forgotten – which was no the atmosphere I wanted to create. When photographing I though of changing the ISO and white balance to create a warmer tone, however I was undecided as to whether the images would make it into my final selection, so did not make the changes. This gave me opportunity while editing to manipulate the highlights, temperature and tint of these photos in order for their colour pallet to match the rest of the blurred images. Instead of keeping the cold blues and putting these images with the ‘nightmare-style’ shoot, it made no sense to take a photo of a happy, loving place and change its whole meaning – therefore slightly warming the temperature and tones helped create my desired mood of welcoming. My grandparents home has always been a place where I have felt safe, as a child I would create stories in every room and escape from the outside world, using props such as cutting boards for boats or shields and curtains to keep the ‘monsters outside’ – all of these memories are now foggy yet still so clear, I wanted to use a Pictorialist style to show this.

Final Edited Images

Overall I am very pleased with how the final edits of this shoot turned out, using breath to manipulate the camera lens and capture a distorted scene allowed me to experiment with how a Pictorialist style can represent a fantasy world. Themes of serenity, perfection, calmness and persuasion were all ideas I wanted to keep in mind during the shoot. Using the style of Robert Darch by capturing nature in all of its beauty, and of Josef Sudek by taking his use of misty blurred surroundings, altogether created this display of fantasy. Using pink and orange tones that replicated a sunset throughout created this warm welcoming atmosphere, which will be disrupted by the harsh ‘nightmare’ shoot images which will break up my photobook. I am using Darch’s technique of progressing narrative through colours and tones, in The Vale of Despond by Dan Cox he describes this in Darch’s work; “A change in the palette of the images, another influence from the cinematic, signals this move, with cooler blues and yellows fading into greys, as the space becomes increasingly hostile.” I plan on creating a third photoshoot delving more into the world of Josef Sudek, being influenced by his study of flowers on a window sill and linking it to themes of adapting to my surroundings and to change. I want to progress these ideas further by experimenting more with the Pictorialism blur and using it to capture scenes in Sudek’s style.

Independent, Reading, Task

Personal Investigation – Photoshoot One Robert Darch

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Initial aims for shoot:

During my initial planning for this photoshoot I aimed to create images focused solely on nature and the environment, I wanted to capture specific areas around the island where nature has felt both comforting and unnerving to me- juxtaposing ideas of contentment and anxiety. I planned on keeping to locations where memories of childhood lay, such as St Catherine’s Woods and Le Creux Woods – I knew there were possible photographic spots full of twisted trees that I wanted to capture so I made sure to shoot on a bright sunny day to take full advantage of the shadows that would be created. I wanted to reflect the work of Robert Darch using natural sunlight to create a sense of optimism and hope in my images, I planned on beginning my shoot early in the morning to capture some more golden tones around the landscapes. Similar to Darch’s style, I will use an aperture setting of about F/16 to create a balance between depth of field and sharpness ensuring that each element of the image is in focus. Nevertheless, to contrast this and provide a break in the synchronicity, I plan on capturing several ‘nightmare-style’ images with cold blue hues and darker tones throughout. In these images I will experiment with using a wider aperture of F/2.8 to focus on a specific branch or leaf, then using a very narrow aperture to compare which style creates a more eerie atmosphere.

Editing:

I began editing my images in Adobe Lightroom, flagging the images I liked best due to composition, lighting, atmosphere and repetition. I found that the images I captured at St Catherine’s Woods were more successful then those taken at Le Creux due to the location holding more expansive landscapes that related to Darch’s work greater. After flagging my images, I rated them from a score of 1 to 5 to create a final selection of the strongest ‘unedited’ images – then I went in and touched up exposure, vibrancy and contrast to enhance the comforting ‘dream-like’ atmosphere I wanted to create. The theme and intertextual idea of Alice in Wonderland came to me during this shoot, I thought of combining a series of the whimsical Josef Sudek photos with vibrant Darch inspired landscapes to create this fantasy ‘Wonderland’ influenced world where one could escape to in times of panic. It was always an idea I wanted to portray however I didn’t yet know how ‘make’ this world, throughout this photoshoot I tried to capture areas that seemed a little too perfect to stay compatible with ideas of Wonderland and dreams.

When undertaking the 1-5 rating of my images I focused on selecting those that best gave the impression of escaping into another world, may it be over a bridge or through a gap in the trees – I wanted each image to have a sort-of ‘clearing for an escape’. Composition wise, I looked for geometric shapes within my images, many had hints of circles that opened out into an expanse of sky, or distant trees. I was really drawn to these photographs as I believe they tell a greater story for the observer, like there if still more to be seen beyond the image – yet it also allows them to come up with the end of this story themselves. I also aimed to include images with lots of repetition, to keep with this ‘too perfect’ idea, like this magical world is not all it seems to be. Images with repetitive trees contorted around each other that seem to just keep going and going into the background of the image always fascinated me and made me think of fantasy worlds – I wanted to include the themes of escapism, but through natures captivating features. Hues and colour pallets in each image we mostly warm and vibrant, I did minimal editing to keep a cohesive pallet throughout of oranges, greens and yellows. However, when shooting the more ‘nightmare-style’ photos I wanted to use colder, more blue hues. I edited my images, which were taken late evening, by turning down the temperature and adjusting the amount of shadows and highlights to create a more mysterious brooding atmosphere. I aim for this contrast to confuse the observer, making them think of why such warm and welcoming images have been disrupted by these dark reminders of reality and fear creeping in.

Experimentation:

This was one of the first images I captured for my project, on a walk through a familiar woodland one evening I found this branch covered in raindrops. At first I was focused on its beauty, I tried capturing it from different angles and using a wide aperture to blur the background, however when it came to editing I couldn’t decide which atmosphere it created more. Looking at the image it made me feel quite unnerved, the branches closing in from the right have an almost claustrophobic feel to them, I saw a more ‘nightmare-inspired’ atmosphere than a calming one. Nevertheless, this meant editing had to be more thorough to fit with my idea of harsh blue tones breaking up the warmth of other images. I began by decreasing the temperature to -68 so I was able to work with the blue tones, I then increased the contrast to create a sharper image and decreased the exposure slightly however the image had too many purple undertones from the original sunset haze. Therefore I slightly decreased the tint of the image to create more green undertones so the image wouldn’t look too unnatural. After touching up the dark and light tones in the image I was really happy with how it turned out, from beginning my edit with a pink, soft image which I had edited to fit with the ‘dreamlike’ photographs, it was interesting to then completely try to change the mood by using a colder palette.

Final Edited Images:

So much inspiration was taken from Darch’s photobook ‘Vale’, I wanted to create that same welcoming but also disconcerting atmosphere. Some quotes that inspired me, from critics discussing ‘Vale’; “Vale is the latest photobook by the artist, which he has self-published. Images of  old trees, verdant valleys and hot summer hazes denote an archetypal British countryside and typify the narrative. Alongside this, disconcerting elements peek from behind; something can be felt amongst the trees. The beauty of nature faces a ghostlike, fractured, and melancholic stillness. There is more at play under the surface of this pastoral landscape.” “The work draws from the lived experiences of ill-health. Darch found comfort in fictional worlds, domestic interiors, and the natural landscapes around him. Vale is a compilation of these multiple worlds, allowing the realities, dreams, fictions and memories to blend together in a space of escapism and meditation. Vale cannot be found on a map. It is not a topographical reality, but a semi-fictional one Darch has lived in for the last decade.” – Isaac Huxtable – 2021. It is these fictional worlds that I wish to continue creating in each photoshoot, I plan on undertaking my second shoot by focusing on this theme of ‘dreams’ and using a pictorialism influence to make some Robert Darch inspired images seem even more mystical and unreal.

Independent, Reading

Personal Inversigation – Artist References

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Robert Darch

Robert Darch (1979 – present) is a British artist-photographer based in the South West of England, he studied at Plymouth University and holds an MFA with distinction in Photographic Arts and a MA with distinction in Photography & the Book. He also has a BA with honours in Documentary Photography from Newport, Wales. A quote from Darch’s website about his work reads ‘His practice is motivated by the experience of place, in which the physical geography and material cultures of places merge with impressions from contemporary culture that equally influence perception. From these varied sources, both real and imagined, he constructs narratives that help contextualise a personal response to place.‘ This statement is what initially drew me to Darch’s work, his way of capturing a sense of a person’s identity within a place is something I would really like to respond to and reflect on. In 2018, Darch released his first published photobook titled ‘The Moor’ which depicts a fictionalised dystopian future situated on the bleak moorland landscapes of Dartmoor. Drawing on childhood memories of Dartmoor alongside influences from contemporary culture, the narrative references local and universal mythology to give context but suggests something altogether more unknown. I see Darch’s work as a subtle hint towards romanticism, showing the misty, idyllic and aesthetically pleasing areas of the English countryside while holding deeper meanings surrounding mental health and societal issues.

Vale – By Robert Darch

Darch’s project ‘Vale’ has been the most inspirational source for my personal investigation, at the age of 22 Darch suffered from a minor stroke, followed by a period of ill-health which would affect him for the majority of his twenties. As a coping mechanism during convalescence, he retreated into a world of fictional narratives, of indoor spaces and eventually a physical move back to his familial home of Devon. Slowly, he began to reset his narratives, his place in the world, and the expectations of his youth. An unseen enemy threatening his own body and psyche was mitigated by escapism and wish-fulfilment. They way Darch captures fantasy juxtaposed with realism in his work is something I would really like to replicate during my project. While Darch’s illness had more physical effects on his body, my project will focus on the mental effects of illness – I believe his work still relates to the mind and can be viewed in several ambiguous lights. An extract from Darch’s website on Vale reads; “The fictional worlds into which Darch escaped, exhibited characteristics which were at once benign and threatening. An interest in the English sense of the eerie had been with him since childhood, notably the writings of James Herbert, the Dartmoor of Conan Doyle and such touchstones of ‘coming-of-age’ cinema as Rob Reiner’s Stand by Me. As Darch’s period of retreat from the world lengthened, further influences were incorporated into this mix, from British standouts such as Jonathon Miller’s Whistle and I’ll Come to You (1968) to the Italian Giallo film movement of the 1970s and the atmospheric and psychological Japanese horror revival of the early 2000s. Vale is a result of this percolation and loss. It is the fictional space where Darch is able to relive and re-imagine a lost period in his life, journeys with friends both through physical spaces and through time. On one level its subjects could act as stand-ins, allowing him to explore winding rivers in late summer evenings, empty country roads and ancient English woodlands. But as the journey continues, multiple readings quickly become apparent. Despite possibly providing a positive escape from Darch’s ‘vale of despond’, it is the sense of the eerie which becomes unavoidable.”

The whole concept on Darch’s work in ‘Vale’ has inspired me to create images that follow fictional narratives, a story to escape the frantic modern world similar to ones I’d create as a child. Bringing back memories of places I would go to get away from the trivialities of life, woodland walks, rooms around the home, family gardens etc – I would like to revisit these places and create a sequence of fictional realities. The topic of anxiety in children and young people has often had simplified and quite belittling representation, in this project I aim to take inspiration from Darch to show these issues through landscapes and abstraction, provoking thoughts from the observer on the topic.

‘Vale’ Images –

Josef Sudek

Josef Sudek (1896-1976) was a Czech photographer, extremely well-known for his work on still-life photography as well as black and white images of Prague, interiors and landscapes. Prior to taking an interest in photography, Sudek worked as an apprentice bookbinder before serving in the Austro-Hungarian Army during the First World War, when he was wounded and subsequently lost his right arm to amputation. He was a member of the Prague Club for Amateur Photographers from 1920-24, and studied photography at the State School of Graphic Arts in Prague from 1922-1924. Much of Sudek’s early work was inspired by that of Clarence White, who espoused a Pictorialist approach to light and form – something I would like to experiment with during my personal investigation. Many of Sudek’s most memorable images were taken from the window of his small studio, documenting his humble courtyard during changing weather and light conditions. During the 1920s, Sudek created a series of photographs of disabled Czech soldiers; in 1927 he was one of the founding members of the renegade Czech Photographic Society, dedicated to documentary photography. His series of photographs of the renovation of the St. Vitus Cathedral in which he juxtaposed architectural details of the cathedral with the abstract forms of workers’ tools won him the title of official photographer for the city of Prague in 1928. Nevertheless, the area of Sudek’s work that intrigues me the most is his documentation of flowers, usually stood in clear vases near his studio windows. The way Sudek documented changes in weather, atmosphere and seasons in his still-life images portrays to me the idea of as the surroundings change, reality changes too. Sudek once said  “Everything around us, dead or alive, in the eyes of a crazy photographer mysteriously takes on many variations,” he explained, “so that a seemingly dead object comes to life through light or by its surroundings.”

Sudek’s Pictorialism Influences

Sudek was influenced by the concerns of Impressionism, Pictorialism, and Czech Poetism, but throughout his life, remained faithful to his own stylistic and emotional proclivities of introspection. His work holds the same dream-like, soft atmospheres that many other Pictorialist photographers captured, for example the work of Alfred Stieglitz and his study of clouds in ‘Equivalents’. Sudek’s use of windows, documenting overcast foggy days through frosted glass, additionally adds to his Pictorialist style – his use of light and aperture settings creates this soft blur around his subject flowers, almost replicating that of an oil painting. As Sudek was creating and photographing during the change of an art movement from Pictorialism to Modernism throughout the 1920’s and 1930’s, his work holds an almost vintage feel when compared to those being created during the same time period. I believe his photography has a mystery and ambiguity to it, the images can be observed and analysed in such different ways as his influences at the time were slowly leaving what was ‘in fashion’ or expected during this development in art movements. The soft blurs and focus of Sudek’s still life photography is something I would like to experiment and work with during my personal study, however I have the idea to not use the same sepia tones as Sudek, and instead try editing in a less vibrant, toned down colour to relate and link up more with the work of Robert Darch, representing escapism and realities.

Sudek’s Still Life Images –

Artist’s link to physical illness;

Both chosen artists have gone through difficult points in their lives, with Darch suffering from a stroke at a young age and Sudek losing his arm during the war. In respect to my project, both artists have used photography as a method of escapism from an illness/disorder that had impaired them throughout their life – I would like to explore how elements of their images may have deeper meanings in regards to symbolism of weakness or hope. Although Sudek’s images are not known to have been made with his impairment in mind, I can still recognise themes of optimism in a time of ill-health through his project; as if the flowers are symbols of life continuing, adapting in a new environment after being cut down from their home plant – they are still able to live in a singular glass of water, therefore hinting towards hope. Nevertheless, Darch’s work noticeably conveys a sense of escaping from reality through vibrant colours, dream-like compositions and golden hues that relay this idea of ‘the light at the end of the tunnel’. Though Darch reflects his sickness throughout his project, it is done subtly, with Darch himself stating ‘during the illness I no longer wanted to turn the camera inwards, to linger on the reality of my situation, preferring to lose myself in fictional constructs of the mind’. This fictionality in his work is honest and raw, giving the observer a glimpse into his mind where he would create narratives to escape from his own dismal one, yet still showing his optimistic outlook on life. Though these artists focus on physical illness, I would like to use their style of photography, however looking at the effects of mental illness throughout my life.

Links to further resources;

Biblioscape on ‘Vale’ by Robert Darch

Sudek’s book ‘The Window of my Studio’

An interview with Robert Darch on ‘Vale’