JIM GOLDBERG

Jim Goldberg is an American photographer best known for his 1995 photobook ‘Raised by Wolves’ which is a documentation of the lives of homeless youth on the streets of California. The series follows a range of characters but primarily focuses on Tweeky Dave and Echo, two teenage drug-addicts. Goldbergs photobook is composed of mixed media including images, video-stills, drawings & interviews mostly with Dave or Echo discussing anything from drugs to home life & their troubled childhoods. Goldberg turns the camera on his subjects and tells a story through their eyes – his photobook is a raw and unfiltered journey through the highs and lows of troubled youth that makes the reader feel connected with his subjects, going as far to include media such as doctors notes or police statements about them, this makes us feel we are there alongside them, experiencing the atmosphere Goldberg photographs of his surroundings whilst hanging out with his subjects, usually in abandoned, rotting houses or underneath highway bridges.

Through his protagonist’s stories Goldberg displays a different side of life in Hollywood through his outsider vs. insider narrative, a drastic change from the stereotypical flashy glamourous lifestyle celebrities in Los Angeles live. I am inspired by Goldbergs work, particularly Raised By Wolves because it gives a unique outlook on life on the streets in almost an endearing way, reading the photobook i felt emotion through Goldberg immersing himself in the life of his subjects and i feel the book incorporates both professional photography and ‘homemade’ more personal elements e.g the subjects writing in the book or including drawings and personal belongings from their lives, it gives a good sense of understanding and helps the reader get to know the characters more. Inspired by this, i plan to include writing in my book from both myself and my friends when i interview them.

IMAGE ANALYSIS

This photo depicts Tank, a homeless youth, pointing a gun at an outsider on the street. Goldberg took this image at an abandoned house the group frequented, where he would photograph them shooting heroin, a key part of the photobook that showcases the darker side of street life. The photo is monochromatic, stripping back emotion to highlight the subject with his gun. The image features a grainy effect that shows the unfiltered theme of the book. The camera is close to Tank aiming the gun and in the distance you can barely make out the figure on the street, this alludes to the outsider vs. insider narrative that runs through the book. The lighting rests primarily on the gun, highlighting the violence and oppression on the streets of California, whereas the stranger on the street is hidden by shadows, putting the focus on Tank. This provides the photo narrative as the viewer is unsure of who the stranger is, and why the gun is pointed at him.

There are three island territories within the British Isles that are known as Crown Dependencies; these are the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey which make up Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man. The Crown Dependencies are not part of the United Kingdom, but are self-governing possessions of the British Crown.

FINANCIAL RELATIONSHIP

Independent research demonstrates that Jersey adds a net £14 billion to the UK economy every year, supporting an estimated 250,000 British jobs. This economic benefit is dependent upon Jersey’s independence in setting political and fiscal policy. Jersey’s banks attract over £80 billion of funding from markets outside the UK sterling zone and provide 1.5% of the funding of the whole UK banking sector. The Island is also a conduit for almost £0.5 trillion of foreign investment into the UK, much of which might may not reach the sterling zone otherwise.

ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP

Jersey necessarily imports an array of goods and services to meet the needs of the population. The vast majority of these imports come to the Island from the United Kingdom. Reciprocally, the UK is also a major export market for many of the goods and services provided by businesses and industries in Jersey, including high-value produce such as Jersey Royals, oysters, and dairy products. The majority of Jersey’s communications links (flight paths, shipping routes and digital traffic) are with the UK. Jersey has strong links with the UK business community and, in particular, the City of London in its capacity as an International Finance Centre. Jersey provides vital liquidity and makes a significant contribution to the UK’s economy.

HISTORY AND BACKGROUND

The United Kingdom is Jersey’s closest international partner. Deep social, cultural, economic and constitutional links between us have been built up and maintained over hundreds of years. Jersey’s relationship with the English Crown began with the Norman invasion of England in 1066, after which William the Conqueror sat as both William I of England and Duke of Normandy, the latter of which Jersey was a part. The cultural links between Jersey and the UK have developed significantly since the end of the Second World War. Nearly a third of the resident population in Jersey were born in other parts of Britain meaning there are strong family links between this Island and the UK. The majority of international phone and digital traffic from the island goes to the UK.

MOODBOARD

NICK WAPLINGTON

Nick Waplington is a British artist and photographer. He first developed interest in photography in 1984, when he would visit his grandfather on the Broxtown estate in Nottingham and regularly photograph his surroundings. He began experimenting taking photos of his friends and family, which led to become his body of work – starting with his first photobook in 1991 titled ‘Living Room’ where he spent four years documenting the daily lives of two families living on a council estate in Nottingham, capturing the raw, unfiltered lives of working-class Britain through a range of candid images. This series inspires me because of how Waplington captures the essence of British culture through candid photos, and how everything is stripped down to the point you can almost feel the atmosphere in the images, almost as if you are in the living room with him.

Of all Nicks work, the project that stood out most to me is his photobook Anaglypta. Containing over 500 images, Waplington produced this photobook over the span of almost 40 years, in three different continents, of what seem to be friends and acquaintances in the punk/raver/left wing protestor scenes in London and in the earlier years of the book, more so in New York. In some ways it is percieved as a non-linear documentation of Waplington’s life – in his words the book is ‘anything you want it to be.’ What stood out to me about this book is seeing Waplington’s photography style improve and change over the years, and the wide range of setting and subject featured in this zine, which has inspired me to go out different places to document as much as i can. This book is similar to my theme, as it focuses on identity within different communities, not just in Waplingtons hometown, but around the world.

GIOIA DE BRUIJIN

Born in, in, Gioia de Bruijn views community and identity through her own eyes, capturing the hedonistic lives of adolescents around the world through raw and intimate images. Her photobook ‘Weekend Warriors’ is a documentation of the rave and afterparty culture in London, Amsterdam and Berlin. She follows around a group of friends, photographing them at their highs and lows and captures the essence of youth through a showcase of grainy black-and-white images. Bruijin’s work inspires me because there is an element of togetherness found within the rave community that she perfectly depicts and although some of her work may be controversial, it is realistic and relatable, which is why it inspires me.

Another work by De Bruijin that inspires me is her photobook ‘Smells like Summer’ A mix of landscape and portrait photography, she perfectly creates the vibe of summer within her work, immersing the viewer in her images to the point they can almost feel the cool summer breeze. De Bruijins work, this zine in particular, is simple yet so effective in the way she captures youth enjoying summer days through candid photographs, like the one above. Lighting and setting play a big role in this project, e.g this image of a group of teenagers stood outside an ice cream shop, such a stereotypical scene that viewers find themselves relating to this image and feeling a sense of connection, which ultimately is the whole concept of identity and community through De Bruijin’s eyes.

TOBIAS ZIELONY

Tobias Zielony is a German photographer and filmmaker. His work revolves around teenage communities in public spaces. Here, they are in command, with nobody to tell them what do to; here, they are among their own kind. Regardless of where his pictures are taken – whether in Wales, Marseille or Los Angeles – the subject is the same. In his words, “The places have nothing in common, and yet they form the background for very similar events. Everywhere, there are people hanging out on the street.” While studying Documentary Photography at the University of Wales, Zielony was first drawn to “anti-social” youth culture in Britain. In shady Bristol car parks, his series Car Park captured listless young Brits in a desolate urban landscape, depicting teenage society through a display of images, dimly lit by the flame of a lighter.

His photobook Curfew is a more surreal depiction of youth culture. Subtitled ‘A Journey into the Night’, the book shows average activities in a hedonistic teenage life through raw and gritty images – the photos are thrown at us without filter for an insight into what teenagers do when left to their own devices. When speaking about his book, Zielony said ‘There was a time in my childhood when I had to return home when the streetlights were turned on. The young people I photographed in Bristol, Newport, and Cwmbran prefer to stay out later. Hanging around bus stops, street corners, car parks and wastelands at the edge of town, they wait for something to happen. Some of them however have got into trouble. It is only since the beginning of the year 2001 that the police have imposed curfews on individuals. James, Nathan, John, Craig, Lee, they all to have to be back home at nine o’clock p.m. and stay in all night with the police calling every so often to check if they accord to the curfew.’

LINKS USED

IDENTITY

With my identity project I felt I stuck to my theme well and went in depth with photoshoots & extra media I found for my project. With my images I feel I managed to take inspiration from my artist references without directly copying them, and managed to replicate the rock/grunge theme I was going for. However, if I could go back and redo this project I would make sure to have a wider range of photos in different locations, as I only captured images in few areas, and would’ve liked to have a variation of photos taken in different lighting and setting.

ANTHROPOCENE

My anthropocene project is my favourite I have done so far, i feel it went well because i took a wide range of photos in many different areas, and took my time going around making sure i took a lot of images to choose from. I enjoyed going around to the Waters Edge for my photoshoot and documenting my way around the hotel to try and replicate Paul Talling’s work, and for my other photoshoot by La Collette i feel i captured the theme of anthropocene well, and by editing the images in black and white it gave them the theme i was going for as i wanted to capture the darker, ‘ugly’ side of man-made buildings. If i could go back and redo this project i would put more focus into my images at La Colette, as they were taken on a phone so i felt i was not working to the best of my ability without a proper camera.

MY ROCK

This project features some of my best photos i’ve taken – focusing primarily on rock texture, i captured both colours and patterns hidden within the rocks around L’Etacq and stinky bay. I felt i used the camera to its full potential as i took around 300 photos from our school trip. I took photos with different lighting, angle and ISO to focus in on the detail within the rock faces. If i could’ve redone this photoshoot, i would’ve aimed to take photos from different viewpoints, as i didn’t take many photos of the rockface as a whole, so i would try to include a fuller landscape if i were to redo the project.

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO EXPLORE?

For my personal study, I intend to explore youth culture in Jersey to show life on an Island as a young adult and how it impacts people differently – I want to document the hedonistic tendencies of teenage life through a set of images depicting youth at their highs and lows whether it be a group of people at a houseparty, or just one person in their room, i want to explore the feeling of euphoria and isolation that comes with growing up and capture it in my images. I am inspired by photographers of youth culture through the years, especially artists like Tobias Zielony or Gioia De Bruijin, who I wrote about in my previous blogpost, as their candid style images depict a very accurate, in-your-face idea of youth identity, which has inspired me to recreate within my own work.

WHY DOES IT MATTER TO YOU?

My chosen theme matters to me as i feel it is important to have representation of youth, especially on an Island like Jersey, and i want to give a raw and unfiltered document on teenage life through the eyes of myself and my friends. I feel the best way to tell a story and get the point across is by sticking to what you know best, and therefore I want to give an account of exactly what goes on around me.

HOW DO YOU WISH TO DEVELOP YOUR PROJECT?

I plan to develop on my project by interviewing my friends and getting their perspective on day-to-day life as a teenager in Jersey. I plan to lay out my images according to mood – lighting will play a key feature in my project, as growing up you feel a lot of emotion, and i want to depict that through the element of colour in my images. To further develop my project, once i have taken all my images i will create a layout inspired by photographers such as Nick Waplington or Dennis Olanzo, featuring grids and double-page spreads.

WHEN AND WHERE DO YOU INTEND TO BEGIN YOUR STUDY?

I intend to begin my study by visiting friends’ houses or attending houseparties and documenting the activity that goes on there. I will photograph according to setting and lighting, as i feel both play a vital part in creating narrative within an image – my first ‘photoshoot’ is completed, i started my study whilst on a car drive, taking candid images of my friends to document the journey we went on. I have planned my project in different stages depending on location – i will dedicate certain photoshoots to groups of people to depict the feeling of euphoria you get in places such as houseparties, and on the opposite end i will show feelings of isolation by photographing my friends in more desolate locations such as car parks or in their rooms.

WHAT MAKES JERSEY SPECIAL TO YOU?

Jersey is special to me as living on an Island, i feel there is both a heightened sense of togetherness and isolation – when around friends in busier places of Jersey e.g town, there is a chaotic and rushed atmosphere, however in quieter places e.g lanes forests or fields there is an overwhelming sense of peace, which is why i appreciate living on an Island, as in a big city you can never escape from the busy landscape, but in Jersey you can.

THOSE WHO DREAM ONLY BY NIGHT by COLE COURVAL

Does the essay address it’s hypothesis?

The aim for the students essay was to take the stereotypical representation of hedonistic activities in nightlife and interpret it through his eyes, aiming to photograph quieter, more desolate areas of the island with a dream-like quality to describe blackouts experienced by alcoholics. He addresses the aim by making links to his artist references and comparing his images to his personal life.

Does it provide new knowledge and understanding?

The essay provides knowledge into the students personal life as throughout his essay he examines artists that photographs community and look deep into identity. He chose photographers Maciej Dakowicz, David Moore and Rut Blees, and each piece of their work he analyzes with detail, providing a better understanding for the reader. This helps provide knowledge as he compares experiences felt by his photographers with stereotypical nightlife in Jersey’s community.

Is the essay well structured with a sense of an introduction, paragraphs and a conclusion?

Throughout the essay there is a clear sense of structure. He begins with a foreword, giving insight into why he chose his title and theme. He starts his essay with the question ‘How do my chosen photographers record on to photographs their sense of community and identity?’ Straightaway he begins analyzing what community truly means to todays society, then begins his artist analysis, starting with Maciej Dakowicz and his book Cardiff After Dark. He explains why the piece stood out to him and what he likes about it, and repeats this with his other chosen artists, which makes his essay flow well. The essay finishes with a clear conclusion as he takes into consideration his own project and his influences.

Analysis of artist’s oeuvre (body of work) and key work(s).

He first analyzes Maciej Dakowicz’ book Cardiff After Dark, a project centered around a community in Cardiff and Dakowicz’ recording the consequences of a hedonistic life. He compares Dakowicz’ work to other photographers of a similar style.

His next chosen photographer is David Moore. The student speaks about his 1980’s project ‘Pictures from the Real World’ where Moore went around his hometown of Derby and photographed British citizens in their homes to show a united community through candid photographs that show the bleak society 80’s Britain was in whilst ruled by Thatcher. The student states his opinion on Moore’s work, and provides facts relating to his work that betters our knowledge and understanding.

His final photographer is London-based artist Rut Blees, who explores community within London, predominantly focusing on council houses and tower blocks. He discusses the societal impact Blees’ images have made, mentioning how the photo represents community in pop culture, used as an album cover for artist The Street’s’ 2002 debut Original Pirate Material. The student states Blees’ work influenced him the most as they have the same views on the idea of community and photograph similar areas.

Evidence of wider reading with reference to art history/ theory, political discourse and/or socio-economical context.

The student has shown they have thoroughly researched into his chosen artists and gives clear evidence by referring to political and impactful events in history that may have inspired his photographers work to provide the reader with better context. Whilst researching Moore’s photobook, he touches on the influence of Thatcherism on the British economy during the 80’s and the impact it had on working class British citizens. With Blees’ projects, the student focuses on researching into the history of tower blocks in the UK – “Tower blocks were built in the UK after the Second World War, in many cases tower blocks were seen as a ‘quick-fix’ to cure problems caused by crumbling and unsanitary 19th-century dwellings or to replace buildings destroyed by German aerial bombing’ I think by providing research at such extent helped push the student towards a higher mark.

EVALUATION

Overall i think the student excelled with his choice of artists and further research into them. He made good connections between his chosen photographers and his personal life, and shows his idea of community well, however he could have included more references in his Bibliography as i was unable to find many resources showing where he provided his facts. I would give him 14/18 as a final mark.

EVALUATION

Overall I think my zine turned out well, i used a good combination of colour, lighting and balance when editing my work and the texts/poem i used corresponds well to the aesthetic of my zine. I payed attention to details e.g size and shape of image or text positioning to highlight key photos. If i could redo my entire zine i would go the opposite way and photography vibrant colours e.g the sunset instead of the dark aesthetic of my zine.

The story for my zine will target human impact on nature, featuring a variety of images both of a natural and manmade landscape. Focusing on rocks and texture i will show how the seascape has changed over time with impact from erosion and the progress of industrial buildings. I will tell my story through a range of images and text – i was mainly focusing on overlaying poems on my images to provide a better narrative.

Editing on InDesign, i used a 16 page format for my photos and made sure I had a variety in layouts like full page spreads for my best photos and galleries for different objects e.g rock faces.

SELECTION

EDITING

All of the photos are edited similarly to match the aesthetic of my zine, but these are my three favourite edited photos. Above, i lowered the shadows to draw focus and add detail to the cracks and edges in the rock face. The photo below i lowered the exposure and added a more blueish hue to the sky which overall gave a eye catching colour contrast between the rocks and the horizon.

Colour plays a big part in setting the mood in photography. I edited my photos with an underlying hue of blue and green to add emotion and help create a narrative. blue is often associated with a sense of calmness and safety, whereas green creates a sense of tranquility and vibrance. It’s nature’s color therefore i used it in my editing as the photos are of natures landscape and erosion of rocks over time. Paired together, green and blue are cool colors that form a refreshing combination.

This photo is my favourite my 16 edited images – my attention goes straight to the pool in the middle, then to the tower blocks and manmade horizon in the background – a contrast from my top photo of the sea, the change in setting shows the difference between a natural landscape vs. an industrial landscape, and the impact mankind has had on nature. The tower blocks in the back helps build structure in the photo as they are in a set of 4 which catches the viewers eye, and the darker colours compliment the buildings by adding narrative.

 A photo archive is a collection of photographs created or brought together by an individual or institution. In the 21^st century, a photo archive could be analog or digital, or both. Photo archives are typically used by museums and institutions to record objects in their care. The photographs in an archive might have been assembled for a specific purpose or for multiple uses, for an individual or a wider audience. For instance, a scholar may take photographs and assemble and preserve them online for future research purposes. This would be a private photo archive.

Why are photo archives important?

Photo archives are important to keep a record of important events and artifacts in history to look back on over time, the bigger the archive, the wider the understanding – photo archives are usually kept in prints depending on how old the collection is, but with new technology the majority of archives can now be found online.

The Jersey photographic archive

Jersey has it’s own photographic archive which contains over 125,000 photographs of different aspects of Jersey culture including the changing landscape, important artifacts and major events that have happened in Jerseys history. The photographic archive is important because it helps educate people about Jersey’s heritage.

The Société Jersiaise was formed in 1873. Included in its founding objectives were the creation of a museum and library. Publication of a Bulletin Annual commenced in 1875, and an annex to the society’s second Annual Report for 1876 drew the attention of members to the importance of a number of important subjects including, ‘Recording in permanent photography local prehistoric monuments, buildings and ruins.’

With the practice and collecting of photography already identified as priorities, these activities were continued as significant parts of the society’s museum and library. Multiple interests in the medium of photography, as a method for recording research, as documentary and scientific records and as an independent art form are actively maintained by society members to the present day. These patterns of development, established over more than 140 years, have resulted in the accumulation of a photographic archive which is remarkable in its insular context.

Thomas Sutton

Thomas Sutton, who opened a photographic studio in Jersey in 1847, the year after graduating from Cambridge University, is one of the most important people in the history of world photography. He took the world’s first permanent colour photograph in 1861, and invented the single lens reflex camera in the same year. He also developed the first panoramic camera with a wide-angle lens.

In 1859 Sutton developed the earliest panoramic camera with a wide-angle lens. The lens consisted of a glass sphere filled with water, which projected an image onto a curved plate. The camera was capable of capturing an image in a 120 degree arc.Another photographic development was the first single lens reflex camera, in 1861. He was also the photographer for James Clerk Maxwell’s early experiments in color photography and in 1861 took the world’s first permanent color photograph of a Tartan ribbon. Maxwell directed Sutton to take three photographs of the ribbon, through red, green, and blue filters. The plates were developed and projected on a screen by three projectors, each with the same color filter used to take its photograph. When brought together in focus, a full-color image was formed. He also worked on the development of dry photographic plates.

Website links

theislandwiki.org