Diana Markosian is an American and Russian visual artist who uses both film and photography to portray her roots. Her series ‘Inventing My Father’ and ‘Mornings (With You)’ depicts her relationship with her father after not seeing him on almost 20 years after moving away when she was 7. The series also includes text about her relationship with him, focussing on the awkward tension between them as they both view each other as strangers.
I feel inspired by her images due to how they’re clearly laced with personal and emotional aspects. The amount of time that she’s put into creating each individual image along with how she’s chosen to compose, edit, and present them allows us to see the emotional distance between her and the people within each image yet still portrays the warmth she feels for them. I hope I can portray a similar feeling within my own project by looking further into her work.
Key characteristics/ conventions : images that resemble paintings blurred fuzzy imagery to make photography art
Artists associated: Clarence H. White, Peter Henry Emerson
Key works:
Methods/ techniques/ processes: scratching and brushing in darkroom and soft focus Vaseline on lens
REALISM / STRAIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY
Time period: 1880-1920
Key characteristics/ conventions : photographs that are not manipulated, either in the taking of the image or by darkroom or digital processes, but sharply depict the scene or subject as the camera sees it.
Daniel W. Coburn is an American photographer who doesn’t follow traditional methods of photography, often using a slow shutter speed to create purposefully blurred images along with a mix of well focused images to represent his ideas.
I am particularly inspired by his series ‘Next of Kin’ where he staged photographs of his immediate family members and explored various themes without sugar coating how he and his family are together, leaving him with a raw set of images rather than creating the stereotypical, picture-perfect photo album. Along with that, I also take inspiration from his series ‘The Hereditary Estate’ where he continues with the theme mentioned above whilst delving into the darker side of his family history, highlighting what would’ve otherwise been supressed. In this series, however, he chose to take exclusively black and white photos of objects and places rather than just focusing on his family members, creating a more emotional response, especially once compared to ‘Next of Kin’, almost making it seem as everyone has disappeared.
I plan on taking some photos in a similar style as Coburn, using careful composition of me and my parents mixed in with some images of personal items/places in order to create a meaningful set of photos.
(As this was my first ever attempt at a night photography shoot, a lot of the images were blackened out).
To start editing, I selected the images that I could use for potential final images by using the ‘Pick’ and ‘Reject’ tools on Lightroom.
I then narrowed my selection down further by using the star rating tool, these are the images 4 stars or higher:
This is my final selection of images:
Final Edited Images:
I also made black and white versions of each image, this wasn’t the most effective however:
Comparison with Lawrence’s work:
I was inspired by this particular image taken by Lawrence, the bright red in Lawrence’s image was what I was going for with this image, however I did not have the knowledge and skill at night photography than I do now, which meant my photographs weren’t as bright as Lawrence’s. Both mine and Lawrence’s images depict a tree under artificial lighting, the tree photographed by Lawrence has a more ethereal and open shape, while mine is a more angular and enclosed shape. My images likely had a far longer exposure time than Lawrence’s (due to my lack of knowledge), however as a result, the stars in my images take the form of lines instead of dots, creating a unique and otherworldly appearance. My light source likely having a smaller radius than Lawrence’s made my photograph have a large amount of shadows that contrast wit the bright reds, unlike Lawrence’s image in which the tree is almost fully lit-up.
Evaluation
As a first experience to night photography, I think this shoot went well. I enjoyed the process as it is very different to regular photography as there is a sense of surprise as to what the images will turn out like. I think my use of light was effective and I got the hang of the exposure times the more images I took (in this case the exposure times were up to 3-4 minutes). I enjoyed experimenting with the gels as they gave each image a different tone and execution, due to the varying exposure times they require.
What went well:
I think the images good compositionally, with the tree being the central focus of the image, mixed with the slightly upwards facing viewpoint to include some of the sky and stars (which created a nice effect due to the longer exposures). I think the use of coloured lighting gives the image an otherworldly effect, which matches with the main idea behind this project, meaning I have stuck to my ideas well.
How I can improve:
While the images have nice lighting and colours, they are slightly out of focus, giving the images a noticeable blur. I could still use these images for a final piece if it involves heavy editing or distortion. This is simply inexperience with this genre which caused this mistake, if I try a photoshoot like this I will aim to make the focus correct so the images look as high quality as possible.
‘She Dances on Jackson’ Photobook by Vanessa Winship.
The front cover and page example which is seen clearer underneath.
Further expansion of an example of a page in the photobook.
1. Research a photo-book.
(describe the story it is communicating with reference to subject-matter, genre and approach to image-making)
‘She Dances on Jackson’ communicates a story of how Winship tries to understand the link between the landscape/territory and its inhabitants within the United States who are living the ‘American dream’. She attempts to show this link through travelling through a vast amount of states such as California, Virginia, New Mexico, Montana, etc and how she views them from her perspective. The genre of the photobook ‘She Dances on Jackson’ is a exhibition catalogue, an exhibition catalogue is seen as a book that describes a temporary exhibition within a museum/art gallery which includes main images/descriptions of the exhibit and its theme. Therefore, this leads into the approach that Vanessa Winship takes within her photobook ‘She Dances on Jackson’ which is where she photographs a person and the landscape that they link too, this can be seen through the layout of the photobook where there is a picture of a person which is then followed by a landscape on the opposing page.
2. Who is the photographer?
(Why did he/she make it? (intentions/ reasons) Who is it for? (audience) How was it received? any press, reviews, awards, legacy etc.)
Vanessa Winship is the photographer who created the photobook ‘She Dances on Jackson’ and the funding for this project across the United States was from her being the 2011 winner of the Henri Cartier-Bresson award. The reasons as to why she created it is to emphasize the connection between the subject and photographer (in the portraits) as they are aware of themselves when she is photographing them, although they are strangers which she encounters throughout her travels in different American cities and towns. This creates a contrast between the landscapes which she photographs within her book as the photos mainly include no people but have curious and unique alterations to the landscape in which she photographs, creating a nice flow between the person and landscape. The intended audience for this photobook is not specific as it is a personal project made by Winship but the title came from an a moment in which she was shooting in Jackson, Mississippi where a young girl began to dance with her mother to a band a train station and the two hold a strong connection and Winship became curious on their relationship, who they were and where they are going.
3. Deconstruct the narrative, concept and design:
Book in hand: how does it feel? Smell, sniff the paper.
Paper and ink: use of different paper/ textures/ colour or B&W or both.
Format, size and orientation: portraiture/ landscape/ square/ A5, A4, A3 / number of pages.
Title: literal or poetic / relevant or intriguing.
Narrative: what is the story/ subject-matter. How is it told?
Structure and architecture: how design/ repeating motifs/ or specific features develops a concept or construct a narrative.
Design and layout: image size on pages/ single page, double-spread/ images/ grid, fold- outs/ inserts.
Editing and sequencing: selection of images/ juxtaposition of photographs/ editing process.
Images and text: are they linked? Introduction/ essay/ statement by artists or others. Use of captions (if any.)
The book which I have chosen to look at feels quite big but light and easy to carry in your hands, yet you wouldn’t bring it around with you everyday as it is impractical. The first 2 pages when you open the book are black which sets the theme throughout the book as the photos which are featured are also printed in black and white. This leads on to the first page, which is a creamy white like the rest of the pages in the book, on the book which has the title ‘she dances on Jackson’ in a small grey print which then flows to a plain page which is followed by a photo on the opposing page of a landscape. This then leads to the introductory page of the right side of the book which features Vanessa Winship’s name, then the title underneath and on the bottom right of the page the word ‘MACK’ is written in a small block font. This creates a lead for the rest of book which follows the pattern of the left side of the book being plain and the right side holding a picture in black and white, although this alternates in some parts swapping positions, which alternates between a landscape and person each time. The format of the book is square A4 and holds over 200 pages and the front cover has a linen texture. It includes a photo from Winship’s work that is found within the book and it is turned into red for the background colours and the silhouette of the trees/birds/grass are coloured in black. The title ‘she dances on Jackson’ is in a small letterpress print on the bottom right of the cover in silver. It is barely seen, due to its small size, but has a faint glow to it depending on the light which shows simplicity and solitude which are themes that are carried throughout the book recounting Winship’s journey across America. Most of the photos within the book create a story of finding people who live in these areas which Winship has explored and photographing the landscape in which they live in or one she thinks matches their nature, this creates a link between the subject and landscape as there is a sense of identity found within the photos, as many of the photos have people of different ethnicities, classes, etc. The photos stories are left for you to decide on the story in which they hold as there aren’t any captions to guide you through the narrative of the book, making the book simplistic yet effective in what it is describing as the ‘American dream’.
“FOR EVERY MINUTE YOU ARE ANGRY YOU LOSE 60 SECONDS OF HAPPINESS”
Made by Julian German, who happened to meet an old man named Charles Albert Lucien Snelling after spotting his unique coloured house with plants for sale outside. I can perceive this book as being made with the intention of entertaining and enlightening people.
This specific book is a hardcover made of a unique canvas material, with prints of white, yellow, green and blue flowers around it. The cover also includes a silkscreened title box with the book name and authors name. Its slightly bigger/more square than A4 size in a portrait layout, and doesn’t include page numbers but I can estimate there to be around 30. I find the title is clearly literal but is an attempt to be an intriguing way of putting a phrase to make it more rememberable- while also foreshadowing how the contents are meant to be pleasant and enjoyable to consume.
The story is based around an old widower who has a passion for flowers, but can gauge that the creator chose to write on him after being intrigued by his simplistic life and general happiness and content with this life. This is shown as Julian takes a look into his simple life, including lots of shots of the man himself, along with shots of his old house, and lots of shots of his flowers/flower themed décor. Julian has for the most part stuck to one image per page, bar images of the man’s personal photo books featured on the first and last few pages. Julian has left many a page blank, and photos with minimal editing; which i perceive as a an attempt to focus the viewers attention on the striking simplicity of the images and overall the life of the man he is portraying.
The photobook I will be researching is ‘The Middle of Somewhere’ by Sam Harris. This photobook is an ongoing family diary that revolves around Harris’ two daughters, Uma and Yali, growing up throughout the years. This series began years after they moved from London (2002) and finally settled in Balingup, Australia. It shows their journey and how they also lived in India for a few years. I’d say the images in this photobook are documentary photograph as Sam Harris takes snapshots of his daughters’ day to day activities and their lives.
The Middle of Somewhere – Sam Harris
Sam Harris wanted to document his family in a way he was familiar the most so he decided to make his own family album. His personal photo project grew into an independently published book that won multiple awards including a Lucie Award 2015, and most recently the AIPP Book of the Year 2016.
The title of the book is quite poetic and literal as Harris’ family and him are quite literally in the middle of somewhere. They are far from their home land and in a small village in the middle of Australia, which is on the opposite side of the UK. The book is a conversation, a play between the reader and the photographer, both of who traverse different visual journeys that seem to meet in… the middle of somewhere.
“There’s a photo with Yael hanging the washing in a red t-shirt, with her arm going diagonally across her face. That was a sort of eureka moment for me. It was one of those happy accidents that is something I love about photography. Yael was hanging the washing and I thought it would make an interesting shot so I grabbed my camera and walked up to the washing line. I had something different in mind but as I took the shot her arm went up across her face. When I was reviewing my images it struck me, that there was something about that photo… it was like a key for me and it unlocked a lot I’d been struggling with. The moments in-between the moments. To allow myself to be looser, the ambiguity and it even has the diagonal which always seems to appear in my work. That’s when this project really got its legs, so to speak.” – Sam Harris
“My work is a celebration of childhood, family life, love and our simplistic lifestyle which intertwines with our environment. As I witness my daughters’ transformation—in what feels like the briefest of moments—I’m compelled to preserve something of our time living together.” – Sam Harris
This book has a soft green cover. There’s golden patterns on it which are indented in the cover, giving it some texture. The cover has rounded edges, giving it a more softer look and feel. The title is written on a piece of cloth and stuck at the top of the book, giving it more texture. To me the book has faint smell of sweet perfume and wood/cardboard.
Most of the pages in the book are thick and seem to be more durable than usual paper; and are filled with many coloured photographs. There are also lined & checker paper, as well as sticky notes that have been stuck down in the book with either tape or clear glue. This gives the book a variety of different types of papers and textures.
The book itself is a a bit smaller than an A4 and consists of mostly landscape photographs spread out on two pages, and juxta position images. The only times this photobook has writing is at the beginning, end and through the inserts. The book starts with a poem by W.H. Davies, Leisure, 1911, which is about life and how we have no time to appreciate it. Towards the end of the book there’s an essay called “Memories of Today” that describes what Sam Harris’ work is all about. Few pages after that there’s a two page spread written by Sam Harris in which he thanks everyone that helped him make this photobook.
opening poem
The book has two main inserts. The first one is “No Yesterdays. Notes from Somewhere”, which consists of diary entries and love letters from 2000 to 2015. The second main insert is the “Travelogue”, which shows the young family’s journey from India to Australia, 2002-2006. It’s filled with images documenting their travels, life in India and Yael’s pregnancy with Yali. This makes the photobook feel more like a diary rather than a book, making it more personal and appealing to the reader.
Many teenagers around Jersey seem to complain about having little to do on the island. My project is to portray the youth culture of Jersey through capturing day-to-day life of living on this island. Photographers explore the topic of youth culture by capturing everyday life of young adults like myself through the eye of a lens. Laura Pannack draws an audience to her work by displaying true similarities of teenagers and her photographs which help older generations understand how a teenager lives their life. Pannack aims to photograph young adults who are likely less fortunate than people like myself to show their true meaning in life, whereas Phil Knott photographs youths with a slightly similar culture to myself by capturing ‘typical teenager’ activities such as, skateboarding and mopeds. I have chosen to explore these artists specifically because of their non-conventional approaches, taking a closer perspective of the individuals personal life. By being able to capture these perspectives of individuals in a similar way to these chosen artists will allow me to develop a further understanding of how fellow teenagers live a similar life, yet different in many aspects compared to mine. Laura Pannack’s photo series ‘Island Symmetries’ (2020) captures nostalgic imagery that focuses on the friendships formed in a small community on wasteland called ‘The Cracker’ that stands between two estates – ‘Tibby’ and ‘The lost city’. Keeping her focus tight Pannack positions herself at the key meeting place where young people would flock to socialize. The Cracker in Tipton and Topside in Gagebrook. ‘Tibby’; is a cul de sac of residential houses that curls around a small playground with ‘The Cracker’ being an open space of rolling grass lined with blackberries and stinging nettles. Pannack states that, ‘Motorbikes, peds and quads bark loudly every day and at all times.’ She captures these troubled teens in a unique way by trying to include an aesthetic landscape throughout most of her teenage portraitures. Pannack was the first artist I chose due to her distinctive methods of portraying these teens through attempting to keep the behind landscape out of focus and bring all attention to her key concept being the children. Phill Knott has captured kids from London to LA, all in a similar portraiture style to present the teens in full detail. Knott grew up around scooter culture and has always been drawn to this specific topic. He became most well known for his portrait photography and his ability to give us a completely unobstructed insight into an individual.
How do photographers such as Rut Blees Luxemburg and Naoya Hatakeyama tackle the tension between both the organic and synthetic world?
‘Photographs confuse as much as fascinate, conceal as much as reveal, distract as much as compel. They are unpredictable communicators.’ (David Campany, On Photographs, 2020).
The divide between an organic, natural world and a synthetic, man-made world has widened since, and very much because of, the technological advances of mankind, creating a parallel between what is considered natural and unnatural, or organic and synthetic. Photography as a medium and an art form represent this shift from the earlier techniques such as the Heliograph and Daguerreotype processes, to the far more recent digital era of photography representing the advances of technology. In recent years especially, it has come to light in the mass media, as well as the photographic community, that the synthetic has begun to bleed into, and perhaps replace or destroy, the organic. By analysing the work of Rut Blees Luxemburg and Naoya Hatakeyama, I aim to highlight this damage, or alteration, nature has received by interpreting the meaning behind the otherworldly, synthetic aesthetic and methods their work adopts. Luxemburg’s night photography especially creates a sense of otherworldliness, something she describes as a ‘transformation’ from the ‘mundane, everyday experience’, (Campany, 2018) perhaps highlighting the cities she photographs as being unnatural, or even from another world. While Hatakeyama’s photographs take a similar stance, some images blatantly detailing the destruction of natural landscapes, while others are more discreet, both are equally thought-provoking.
Naoya Hatakeyama, Blast #5707, 1998.
An otherworldly representation of a piece of nature (landscapes; objects such as plants; etc.) indicates a form of corruption or damage, perhaps mirroring society’s growing concerns of the Earth’s change of climate. What has led me to this topic would likely be some of my earlier work, involving themes of the Anthropocene and Islandness (where I opted to focus on the natural side of that subject), both of which had a similar concept to this project. In those projects I mainly focussed on using colour and pattern to make my images appear more vibrant, inspired by artists such as Andy Warhol and Troy Paiva whose work emphasises colour also. By focusing on artists such as Luxemburg and Hatakeyama, I will experiment with night photography, both in a city environment like in Luxemburg’s work, but also in a countryside setting, which will provide different perspectives from the same genre.
It could be argued that the very creation of the photographic process was inspired by nature, with the pioneers of the creation of the medium, such as Nicéphore Niépce, Louis Daguerre and William Henry Fox-Talbot searching for not only a process that would be capable of what photo-historian Geoffrey Batchen describes as, ‘what they had created was something far removed from natural (and human) conventions, yet it was nature that was forefront within the process, something, to them, which was otherworldly (Batchen, 1997). In addition to the process of photography being otherworldly, the images created during their experimentation could be considered ‘of a different world’, especially by today’s norm. Each of the inventors of photography struggled to define in human language what they had created, as it was in itself a contradiction, ‘For Niépce, nature was central to photography, but he could never resolve with any precision how to articulate the relationship between the two’ (Batchen, 1997).
Nicéphore Niépce, View from the Window at Le Gras, 1827.
The first photograph taken, a Heliograph image created by Nicéphore Niépce in 1827, presents the viewer with the visage of curiosity and awe; we are looking into the birth of a medium that was likely considered a fantasy at the time. This otherworldly depiction of Le Gras was captured for purely scientific purposes, yet from an art perspective, it does not stray far from a typical pencil sketch from an aesthetic standpoint. This image does not stray far from the images created within the pictorialist era of photography, with the images depicting dreamlike, romantic scenes. The images created using Heliography do not have the clarity of the Daguerreotype that came after, giving them that nostalgic aura. ‘Light in the state of combination or decomposition reacts chemically on various substances. It is absorbed by them, combines with them, and imparts to them new properties.’ (Niepce, 1833). This scientific description of what he named ‘Heliograph’ can be taken as a literal description on how his process works, however it could conceptually represent the dilemma he (and the other scientists) faced upon trying to truly define their creation. Their processes used nature (not only light and resources, but the image of nature itself) to ‘combine’ with and ‘impart’ the image onto a plate, as if it was nature herself taking her own picture (Batchen, 1997).This definition links with the tension between nature and man-made:was the process chiefly a natural or synthetic phenomenon? This paramount interpretation of the process led to a confusion regarding the true name of what is now photography.
While Luxemburg’s images are indeed visually appealing and provide a unique aesthetic within the genre of night photography, Luxemburg seems to be more focused on the ‘transformation’ of the scene she records on her camera, relating closely to the mindset of post-modern artists. In her own words, she describes this ‘transformation’ as ‘something other than what you can see during your mundane, everyday experience of the city’ (Luxemburg 2018). Focusing on the meaning of her photographs makes Luxemburg approach to image-making more postmodern, with a focus on meaning rather than appearance. This post-modern approach to her work leaves room for the viewers to speculate the true meaning and purpose behind the ‘transformation’ created by Luxemburg. This ‘transformation’ links with the conflict between the organic and synthetic. The synthetic ambient lighting, straight and ordered lines and patterns seen in many of her images gives them a very otherworldly aesthetic, despite being images of a scene we as humans have grown accustomed to. To me, this focus on the synthetic environment of a city highlights the conflict between the natural and unnatural. While searching for places and scenes to photograph, Luxemburg identifies that she is ‘looking for something that is sort of dismissed, marginal, but has its own luminosity somehow’ (Luxemburg, 2017).
The title of this photograph describes it as being exciting and thrilling, which is definitely a valid interpretation, as the viewpoint and likely the process of making the image (having to dangle the camera over a ledge for at least half a minute due to the longer exposure times required for night photography) gives a sense of danger, of falling. However, on the other hand, the softer, almost painterly lines and colours gives the image the dreamlike, otherworldly feel described earlier, coming across as being almost calm and unmoving. The viewpoint is interesting as it is looking directly downwards, from a considerable height, in addition to suggesting danger, this could also give the viewer the feeling of being trapped within the setting. The lines are also almost always straight, similar to Luxemburg’s other work, creating the man-made and synthetic aesthetic. The colour palette in this image is fairly limited, being made up of mainly yellows and greens with a small amount of red on the cars, this reinforces that painterly aesthetic, while simultaneously giving it a more urban atmosphere. As a photograph taken at night, with no additional lights used specifically for that photograph, the use of ambient light makes the image appear more synthetic.
Naoya Hatakeyama, similar to Luxemburg, has produced a range of work involving both the synthetic and organic as their subject matter. As a Tokyo-based photographer he has developed a work which ‘has a focus and relationship between dual themes of rural and urban, city and countryside, man and nature’ (Hutchison 2010), using the city to capture the synthetic aspects of human life. The ‘relationship’ he captures differs between each of his projects, some involving quarrying and the destruction it causes in the organic, natural landscape, or how little parts of nature (such as trees or rivers) can be found within a city environment. Hatakeyama’s work could be said to have a post-modern approach, as he focuses on the duality between the organic and synthetic rather than the aesthetic appearance of the image. Most of Hatakeyama’s images use line and pattern to differentiate the natural and man-made, with the natural elements having softer lines to represent their organic aesthetic (for example, his ‘Slow Glass’ project uses the raindrops to give the image those soft lines), while other images embrace the straight lines and patterns found within a city or quarry.
Naoya Hatakeyama, Slow Glass (#63), 2001.
The title of the image has a literal meaning, likely reflecting the main process he used while taking the images, using a slow shutter speed to allow enough time for the streaks of light to be made and positioning the camera behind a window (likely a car window) and focusing the camera on the raindrops to blur out the background. This gives the image an otherworldly effect, almost forcing the viewer to make sense of what they are looking at and how Hatakeyama managed to capture it.The streaks of light could have been made in many ways, he could have positioned the camera behind the window and shone a light into them to create the lines manually, or he could have positioned the camera in a car and had someone drive around while he took the image so he could capture the light on the road signs. The colours in this image are vibrant, in a similar way to Luxemburg’s work, while still having darker areas due to the image likely being taken at night time, however this image appears more organic due to the raindrops and streaks of light having a softer form, as opposed to be far more rigid and angular lines and patterns seen in Luxemburg’s work. The image has a rather calm tone, much unlike Luxemburg’s images, likely as a result of the softer shapes and colours.
The organic world has evidently colliding with the man-made world since the advances of human technologies, including those which are not inherently damaging such as photography, creating great tension. Artists such as Luxemburg and Hatakeyama highlight using their work the unnatural aftermath of the collision of the two worlds, either as a statement of protest and awareness, or a way to inspire other artists and photographers to do the same. The early processes of photography, having been invented to allow a way for nature to paint her own self portrait (Batchen, 1997), being man-made, ironically produces questions; is photography an organic or synthetic representation of nature? To what extent is it a natural or man-made process? The irony in taking pictures of what man has created using a medium reserved for nature’s use is the very reason why images such as Luxemburg’s and Hatakeyama’s (especially when compared to pictorialist images) are so effective in conveying their message, despite being silent, ‘unpredictable communicators’ (Campany, 2020).
In response to Luxemburg and Hatakeyama, as well as other artists, I have created images that aim to capture a sense of ‘otherworldliness’. To achieve this, I experimented with night photography to record scenes people are already unfamiliar with due to the darkness. Using artificial lighting (both light shone by me and ambient light from buildings) to create normally unseen shapes from the shadows, in addition to using coloured gels to give the images more colour, which adds to the unnatural and synthetic aesthetic of these images. Images that include organic subjects (plants, birds, etc.) change them in a way that represent the changes to nature and humanity’s attitudes towards it, for example placing a red light on a tree may be aesthetically appealing, however was it necessary to use it to truly capture its natural beauty? I made use of synthetic replicas of plants in my still life photoshoot, to mimic the style of a classic still life painting, the plants being synthetic perfectly symbolises the growth of human technologies at the cost of natural resources and landscapes.
Bibliography:
Campany, D. (2020), On Photographs. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd.
Batchen, G. (1997), Burning With Desire: The Conception of Photography. Massachusetts: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abel-Hirsch, A. (2019), ‘ Blackwater River’ in British Journal of Photography. Issue 7890: 50-67
Company, D, Blees Luxemburg, R. (2018), So present, so invisible. Via Nizza: Contrasto
Niépce, N. (1833), ‘Memoire of the Heliograph.’ In: Trachtenberg, A (ed) (1980), Classic Essays on Photography. Connecticut: Leete’s Island Books
ESSAY: In the Spring term will be spending 1 lesson a week every Wednesday on writing and developing your essay. However, you will need to be working it independently outside of lesson time.
Objective:Criteria from the Syllabus
Be aware of some of the methods employed by critics and historians within the history of art and photography
Post Modernism
Demonstrate a sound understanding of your chosen area of study with appropriate use of critical vocabulary. – use for image analysis
Investigate a wide range of work and sources
Develop a personal and critical inquiry.
Academic Sources
Research and identify 3-5 literary sources from a variety of media such as books, journal/magazines, internet, Youtube/video:
Begin to read essay, texts and interviews with your chosen artists as well as commentary from critics, historians and others. It’s important that you show evidence of reading and draw upon different pints of view – not only your own.Take notes when you’re reading…key words, concepts, passages Write down page number, author, year, title, publisher, place of publication so you can list source in a bibliography
Bibliography
Practice:
Sternfeld, J. (2003), American Prospects. Göttingen; Germany.
In Text Reference:
Direct Quote: In his book on conversations on photography, Sternfeld writes ‘
Paraphrasing: Sternfeld (2003)
Quotation and Referencing
Why should you reference?
To add academic support for your work
To support or disprove your argument
To show evidence of reading
To help readers locate your sources
To show respect for other people’s work
To avoid plagiarism
To achieve higher marks
What should you reference?
Anything that is based on a piece of information or idea that is not entirely your own.
That includes, direct quotes, paraphrasing or summarising of an idea, theory or concept, definitions, images, tables, graphs, maps or anything else obtained from a source
How should you reference?
Use Harvard System of Referencing…see Powerpoint: harvard system of referencing for further details on how to use it.
Essay Question
Think of a hypothesis and list possible essay questions:
To what extent do female role models influence personal identity, and how is this shown in Hannah Altman’s work?
In what ways have LaToya Ruby Frazier and Hannah Altman represented identity between generations of women?
How does Hannah Altman portray the delicate relationship between a mother and daughter?
Make a plan that lists what you are going to write about in each paragraph – essay structure.
Essay question: In what ways have LaToya Ruby Frazier and Hannah Altman represented identity between generations of women?
Opening quote
Introduction (250-500 words): What is your area study? Which artists will you be analysing and why? How will you be responding to their work and essay question?
List photographers, links to context, what they both bring to my essay and how they informed my ideas.
Pg 1 (500 words): Historical/ theoretical context within art, photography, visual and popular culture relevant to your area of study. Make links to art movements/ isms and some of the methods employed by critics and historian.
Historical portrayal of women – in art, film and photography. Links to feminism, female / male gaze. Use sources from key texts read.
Can link to Julia Margaret Cameron’s historical portrayals of women
Divine mother figure
Pg 2 (500 words): Analyse first artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
LTRF – used psoed photogrswphy but not for the male gaze etc – not for erotic impaxt, still using look-at ness but for the FEAMLE gaze. Initially created images for just her mother and her – they were the initial audience, not the traditional perspective of creating work for the enjoyment of others and again MALE gaze.
Loookedatness – looking INWARD – reflective nature to her work. Sense of self, childhood,
Analyse key work, read interview, links to context behind her work, art theory and period
STEEPLY GENDERED…
‘spaces where girlhood is supposed to abide and womanhood stands guard”
Sociolgoist – with camera
Place in the family vs place in the world.
Richness of place and memory
socioeconomic elements
Deconstructs notion of a nuclear family. See below
The Notion of Family gilds its often grim truths with the hope of resistance, as in Frazier’s portraits of her Grandma Ruby—with her battalion of dolls, a stoic countenance, and a matriarchal sense of duty—who raised six children by herself on a Goodwill manager’s salary. In one photograph, she stands in her kitchen, her arm resting on the back of a chair where her grandson sits, light from the adjacent window pouring through a scrim of curtain and ivy, her nightgown slipping from her shoulder, her home a picture of order and cleanliness. “Grandma Ruby’s interior design was a firewall that blocked external forces,” Frazier writes.
Pg 3 (500 words): Analyse second artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
Disrupting idea of the divine mother figure – picture analysed in artist reference.
Takes inspiration from Jewish Folklore and traditions in her image, similar to LTRF using socio economic context.
(Kavana)
Presents generational identity and memory through exploring her family history and historical persecution as Jews.
What memory do the photographs leave? What sentiment?
Conclusion (250-500 words): Draw parallels, explore differences/ similarities between artists/photographers and that of your own work that you have produced
Compare both artists, context behind, link to my own work and reasons for producing.
Both extremely different artists but disrupting / representing the same things etc
use images
Both use images of the divine mother figure – link to first paragraph and to my own work
