Statement of intent –

• What you want to explore?

The reflections/shadows of different kitchenware/glassware still life images, this is because I have found different photographers such as Andre Kertesz, Jarolsav Rossler and Paul Outerbridge who have xplored this theme heavily throughout their careers. Another way in which I want to develop my work is through the use of using more feminine objects as well, such as perfume/accessories, and creating different juxtapositions of the images of kitchenware/glassware/etc with these objetcs. This is because I want to represent how people still share these traditional stereotypes where women are seen to belong towards their household roles of being within the kitchen, and in my work I want to show how we should move away from this idea entirely.

• Why it matters to you?

This theme matters to me because as a woman myself, these ideas/jokes of women belonging towards the kitchen still get made and it is unfair and degrading towards the position of women in a society that should be moving away from this type of stereotype.

• How you wish to develop your project?

I hope to develop my project through using different photographic techniques of being in light/dark photography, then moving in to Lightroom where I will begin initially experimenting with different types of diptychs/triptychs, then moving towards photoshop where I will experiment with juxtapositions/double or multi-exposures. In the end I would like to create a photobook regarding the theme of still life with elements of how it relates to women but with a large focus on still life objects.

• When and where you intend to begin your study?

I intend to create 3/4 photoshoots and begin my study over study leave and then if I need further pictures, I will also use Easter break. In these photoshoots I will focus on a range of different photographical techniques which can be seen below.

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Photoshoot 1 –

• Focus on different kitchenware/glassware and the reflections/shadows that they create, do it during the night and use a flashlight to create a spotlight on the objects.

Photoshoot 2 –

• Focus on the same and different objects such as hair accessories/lip gloss/ perfumes/etc, begin to merge objects of previous photoshoot together, do it during the day so I can experiment with the natural lighting.

Photoshoot 3 –

• Return to photographing at night using a flashlight to create a spotlight, use a few more different objects for different shadows/reflections but also use previous ones.

Bernd and Hilla Becher

Hilla Becher was a German artist born in 1931 in Siegen, Germany. She was one half of a photography duo with her husband Bernd Becher. For forty years, they photographed disappearing industrial architecture around Europe and North America.

Their first photobook Anonymous Sculptures was published in 1970 and is their most well-known body of work.

In this photobook, they photographed blast furnaces, winding towers, grain silos, cooling towers, and gas tanks. Then they arranged the photos in grids called typologies, as seen above.

Mr. Galassi states, “Each yields photographs full of informative and reliable detail—pictures that might be mistaken for
objective documents, uninflected by sensibility. When they are presented together, however, each strategy betrays the artifice of the other, proving that in photography fact is the agent, not
the enemy, of art.”

In addition to assembling material for their typologies, the Bechers made overall views of
each site. These views generally adopt a high and distant vantage point that permits the viewer to
study the layout of the plant and its relationship to its surroundings.

The couple met in 1957 as they went to the same art school, began working together in 1959 and married in 1961. They would travel the world photographing different industrial plants that intrigued them.

I decided to use Photoshop to experimentally edit my images from these shoots, I decided to overlay images using the blending modes within the program as well as using the same kaleidoscopic editing technique I have developed earlier in the course, duplicating a part of the image and reflecting it, creating a repeating pattern.

I edited these images using a variety of blending modes, giving me a lot of variation in their final look and how combined the two images I overlaid became. My first image uses the Saturation blending mode, creating some very unique colours for the image underneath it. My second experiment used the Colour blending mode, which ended up giving it a softer and less vibrant appearance. My final overlay experiment used the Hard Light blending mode, saturating the colours but in a less extreme way than the first image, it also shows the image being overlaid the most clearly.

These are my second set of experiments, this time created by duplicating a part of the image and reflecting it to create these repeating patterns. The become quite abstract the more they are repeated and as they become smaller, and I find these compositions quite unique. These images remind me of some Surrealist paintings which utilise strange dreamlike imagery in their works, distorting the usual appearance of subjects, using biomorphic shapes and spontaneity.

Using photoshop, I used chromatic aberration to distort the colours of my images and make them look really unique. It is a simple process that creates very striking images.

In photography, chromatic aberration is an often unwanted effect caused by issues with lenses inside digital cameras, often created lines of unwanted colour along the edge of objects. This is an interesting phenomenon and I wanted to experiment with creating this effect manually.

What do you want to explore?

In my simple and Complex project, I want to explore the concept of memory and childhood identity through a sense of place, photographing important locations around the island to me. I’m exploring this through landscapes, both traditional landscapes and more abstract images. Through both these methods, I plan to capture the way that memories can change or become less clear as we get older, changing our perception of something. With my more abstract images, I plan to capture strong lines and shapes, providing a more detailed, but equally hidden view of the landscape I’m capturing. I covered the subject of identity both the Identity project and in my Islandness project this year, and this topic is something I really enjoy covering, as it means I can convey my own opinions about a very personal subject without being in front of the camera, through photographs. However, I have always stuck to portraiture, and decided in my final project that taking myself out of my comfort zone was important. – I feel much less confident taking landscapes, and in this project I wanted to explore a subject I’ve covered but in a completely different way – more subtly, with less obvious links and with more abstract images as I mentioned above.

https://www.ideelart.com/magazine/abstract-photography-tate – an article on the history of Abstract Photograhy – my chosen genre for this project.

Why it matters to you?

This project matters to me as I care a lot about where I grew up and my childhood places, and they are a big part of how I developed into the person I am now. I had quite a unique upbringing, constantly on the beach and around the sea, but also living in a lot of different places in my life. I’ve lived in many different houses in Jersey and also have links to quite a few different places on the island. Finding it difficult moving from place to place was difficult as a child, and this is something I wanted to document through my images of these important places.

How do you wish to develop your project?

I’m planning to create traditional landscape images, of places related to my childhood, such as my old houses and surrounding areas, and areas of the beach that are key places to me. Furthermore, I plan to diversify my work by creating abstract images of these areas, capturing more complex landscapes with strong shapes and textures. I am including these as I haven’t really explored abstraction in my coursework or personal study, and exploring this in my final project will allow me to explore a completely new area of study. As my final outcome, I plan to produce a photobook, after producing one for my personal study at the end of my coursework. This was something I really enjoyed, and creating another photobook for my exam project with a completely different type of my photobook, with completely different material and layout.

Final Photobook, Prints and Evaluation

In my photobook for my personal study, I found the layout to be a little too chaotic for my liking and therefore this time when creating one I will keep it very simple, with fewer pages – I felt also in my personal study photobook that I had too many pages, with too many images included. This made it difficult for me to work with, and I found that I had trouble creating a narrative. It was difficult to make sure so many pages flowed succinctly together, and I think that creating a smaller, simpler book for this project will produce an outcome that has a strong story to it, that flows from beginning to end. I plan to create a different kind of photobook from what I made in my personal study. In my personal study, I used a hardback image wrap cover, and found that inside portraits were slightly tarnished by the folding of the book in the middle of the page – this is not something I want to have the problem with within my final photobook, hence my decision to use a different type of book.

Making my Final Zine and Evaluation

I have also thought about creating a zine instead of a photobook, with fewer images than a traditional photobook printed on paper. I have experience in creating zines in my ‘Islandness’ project, where I created two zines that I found to be very successful – I actually found the process of creating a zine to be much more enjoyable than making a photo book, as the number of images was much more manageable, and it meant I was able to streamline my layout and selection of images a lot more. For these reasons, I have considered making a zine instead of a photobook for my final exam project. If I make a photobook for my final exam, I plan to keep it simple by using a set amount of images, but also by using a simple layout: I will use a few presets of image layouts, favourite these, and stick to these throughout the book. This will ensure a clear flow of images in the book, with a clear and simple design.

As seen above in Kyler Zeleny’s work, I have thought about also using archival material of the places I photograph and juxtapose these with my new images. I used archival material and collage in two previous projects, but this project would use them in a different way, with landscapes and different types of material – for example old maps, landscape images, or articles. I plan to gain access to these by asking groups on Facebook, asking my family if they had anything of interest, and possibly contacting the Societe Jersaise Photographic Archive.

When and where do you intend to begin your study?

For my final exam project, I plan to execute at least 3 or 4 photoshoots. After researching key artists that will influence my decisions and photographs, I have a more clear idea of my starting points. Firstly, I thought it was a good idea to think about places across the west of the island that are important to me, and related to my childhood. The first of these locations is near my old house, at La Pulente, in St Brelade. I plan to drive to La Pulente and walk from my old house, down around the headland and down to the beach. This was a place I walked through every day when I lived there, and photographing this location is a good starting point to capture important landscapes. Following on from this, I plan to photograph down in the bay. I plan to photograph the sand dunes at la Braye, and also at Barge a Ground, further along. Particularly Barge is very important to me as I grew up on the beach at this spot, and my family has generational connections to the spot, through Jersey’s surfing and beach culture. Here, I want to capture important parts of the location: the wall, and its texture, the sunlight and reflections, and also the sand, which obviously is a key part.

I plan to take classic landscape images, but also capture more abstract images. I want to take these more abstract photographs in order to show the intricacies of a landscape that may be overlooked but to also develop the idea of childhood memory. As we get older, memories develop in our heads and change, and things from the past become ‘foggy’ or unclear. I want to highlight the idea of fragmented or distorted childhood memories, and I plan to do this by creating close-up, highly abstract images. that do not reveal too much of a location, but show its more detailed, conceptual components such as depth and light.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190516-why-you-cannot-trust-your-earliest-childhood-memories – a BBC article about the validity of childhood memories and how they change over time. “Memories are malleable and tend to change slightly each time we revisit them, in the same way, that spoken stories do,” says Loveday. They are influenced by our perceptions, state of mind, knowledge and even the company we are in when recalling events, which can lend us a new perspective on a familiar life event.” – From the article above.

Photoshoot 1

For my first photoshoot, I plan to take photos of the landscapes and environment during my trip to Berlin. I plan to base my subjects mainly regarding the wars and the overall impact that it had on the areas within the city itself. I would like to base my photoshoot on the works of Michael Schmidt and his interpretations of the aftermath of war within Berlin. I want to show the progress that Berlin has made throughout the times of the war and the aftermath of what it did to the city overall. I want to present the youth of the city and its buildings to capture how far it’s moved since the war ended.

Photoshoot 2

For my second photoshoot, I plan to take photos within my trip to Krakow. I would mainly like to include photos from the location of Auschwitz as it was a German occupied concentration camp. The link to the topic of war is still the main factor within the photography I would like to capture and I find this to be a very impactful image choice. Auschwitz was a very heartbreaking and incredible dark moment during the German occupation so I wanted to capture a real sense of how devastating the event was and the location it was held at.

Photoshoot 3

For my second photoshoot, I plan to take the route of photographing places in Jersey. I would like to still follow down a similar route to that of my first photoshoot, including possible war related subjects such as bunkers and castles. I will be exploring Jersey for a variety of bunkers, especially ones with graffiti on them, just to have that similar sense to that of Berlin wall and bunker images within the city of Berlin.

Mood board on Andre Kertesz’s work –

Above is a mind map which I created in relation to Andre Kertesz’s still life photography. While exploring his work, I decided that I liked his images which he created where he focuses on different shadows, such as in the image of the fork, and reflections, such as in the images of the flower and glassware. This is because I have decided that I wanted to explore photography regarding different shadows/reflections in different glassware and various kitchen objects as I want to represent the connection of women towards the stereotype of them being linked towards the kitchen as well. In relation to the mood board of the photo on the bottom left, I will also experiment with different objects besides ones that are within the field of the kitchen objects such as perfume, makeup, different accessories etc. I will also focus on how the shadows and reflections are able to be manipulated and changed.

Research on Andre Kertesz –

To gather inspiration for my mood board on Andre Kertesz, which is seen above, and to gather further research I used this website for reference. This was very helpful as it provided me with a deeper look into who Andre Kertesz is and how he developed his career as a photographer.

• Andre Kertesz experimented with ‘Purist’ photography, this was where he produced images such as Fork (1928) in Paris, where he was able to build his reputation as a photographer.
• In Paris, he held an exhibition of 42 photos in the left-bank gallery.
• In 1928, he experimented with using the camera regarded as a Leica.
• He moved to New York in 1936 where he began working within advertising with companies such as Vogue.

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3 Key quotes –

To gather further information on Kertesz’s still life photography, I used this website for reference as well as this website. The first website provided me with , and the second website provided me with a different view towards Kertesz’s work and this was from , these are opinions are what I will use further in my image analysis as well.

1.

“He had an aim to transform the mundane into something poetic”

The quote above discusses the photographic aim that Kertesz intended when creating his different photographs as he didn’t want to make them appear to be the same as someone else’s in their characteristics, he wanted them to represent a poetical element within them, creating this subjective view on what it may represent. This can be seen in different images he has created such as on the mood board with the images of a flower in a vase, the flower instead of being full of life is droopy and sad, creating a gloomy and dark atmosphere of the photo.

2.

“He also made the use of monochrome lines which were bold and he used shadows as well as reflections to enhance his photographs.”

The quote above is used to discuss how Kertesz was able to make these bold, dark lines created from different shadows and reflections stand out amongst different still life works who have also experimented with the same techniques. This is because he was able to transform what they were able to represent and enhance the images which he was producing.

3.

“He illuminated The Fork (1928) under a harsh light to cast a grill of shadows through its tines, making the image stark and poetic at the same time: Kertész reveals that the fork is an object of beauty—without dissipating any of its essential forkness.”

This quote is used to discuss how the composition of one of the images called ‘The Fork’ in 1928 was created through the manipulation of different shadows from the fork and the plate as they bend around the side of the bowl but underneath there is a dark, bold and sharp image which is being show. This can re[resent how everything always ends up looking the same no matter what we want to see or believe, keeping that initial ‘forkness’ which is discussed above, which I will use for further analysis in my image analysis. This is what I would like to show in my work as well, the simplicity of still life kitchenware and glassware compared to the deeper meaning of how it links towards the stereotypical views of women in the kitchen.

Image analysis –

I think that this image taken by Andre Kertesz called ‘The Fork’ in 1928 is a successful image and this is because I think that it shows the simplicity of still life photography yet visually there is a deeper, poetical meaning behind the shapes created through the different shadows casted on to the ground and bowl. This is discussed through the comment of Shonquis Monero, who looked at Andre Kertesz’s work, from the ‘Kinfolk’ website where it states “making the image stark and poetic at the same time“. This quote is used to discuss how Kertesz’s work follows a poetic manipulation yet uses objects which are quite plain or bare in their appearance, such as a bowl or a fork, and how they have a deeper meaning within them. This can be clearly seen within this photo as the fork and bowls shadow is dark and bold underneath but as you look as the bowl you are able to see how the shadow of the fork begins to curve and follow the bowl instead. Therefore, this can be used to represent how society cling to these older ideas of gender relating towards how you are viewed within a household role and then the top, where it begins to curve, can be used to show people beginning to move away from these different stereotypes. If I were to give a critic towards this image, I would consider how the background isn’t plain and looks somewhat grainy or dirty, although this may be a photographic choice from Kertesz, I believe that having a plain white background would make the objects shadows stand out more and create more of an effect, this is what I will be using within my work instead.

For this photoshoot, I aimed to create a series of images that focused on the more feminine side of the gender experience. I wanted to make sure that I spent time exploring femininity as I think it’s usually lost or dulled down within media, often changing the idea of femininity from women having fun to revolving around men [i.e: talking about or wanting to be with men]. Due to this, I wanted to create a photoshoot that would embrace the bright and fun aspect of femininity whilst avoiding the stereotypes often pushed upon women during this photoshoot.

Contact Sheets:

When I began the photoshoot, I was inspired by the idea of sailors and flight attendants and the fun colours/patterns that they reminded me of and tried recreating some of these ideas in order to help me to create a scene for my performative images. Then, as the shoot went on I began adding my own style as I saw fit [i.e: adding pink eyeshadow, a red heart etc] which helped me visualise where my project could go.

Later on, I decided to look at femininity through a different lens and decided to give myself a moustache/beard using make-up and dress more femininely, creating a contrast in the societal idea of femininity as my face was still covered in makeup despite being paired with a moustache and beard. I decided to do this in order to explore how femininity can be embraced by anyone despite being predominantly linked to women historically.

Some contact sheets:

Best Images:

Overall, I think this photoshoot was successful as I managed to create a variety of images with different perspectives, poses and compositions that I have started to form what my project will become whilst inspiring new ideas for future photoshoots.

Reflecting back on this photoshoot, I feel like I could try and focus on the lighting in my shots as some of my images feel dark or underexposed even after editing. Alongside that, I feel as though I could try and use more props throughout my photoshoots as I feel like they could create more interesting images that help to convey the topic of gender and gender roles – similar to some of Claude Cahun’s work – adding more meaning to each image. Ultimately, however, I feel as though this is more of a personal preference that I’d like to explore in a future photoshoot in order to improve the quality of my images. and maybe make the link to gender and gender roles a little less subtle.

Comparing my work to Sharn O’Donnell’s:

This photoshoot was heavily inspired by O’Donnell’s short film ‘Upstream’ where they use different items of clothing within their performative work to portray the masculine vs the feminine side of gender. I reconstructed this idea through the use of hair and makeup, drawing a fake moustache/unibrow to portray the more masculine side of gender alongside having my hair tied further back. I decided on this rather than clothing as I knew I wanted to explore feminine items of clothing even whilst presenting as a masculine figure which I tried to exaggerate further by keeping the heavy pink/red makeup.

My work differs from O’Donnell’s visually/aesthetically as I decided to use colour within my images whereas as they tend to keep their images & short films black and white. I wanted to use pops of colour to help distort the lines between the gender binary as I felt that using ‘feminine’ colours/looks with both the masculine and feminine characters would help to bring the two together as being similar yet different.. O’Donnell’s lack of colour helps to portray a sense of mourning towards what they are and what they could of been, the monochrome footage/stills taking away all distractions from the message they are trying to portray.

WING SHYA

Wing Shya‘s skills are translatable between film, art and fashion. Born in Hong Kong 1964, completing fine art studies at Emily Carr Institute in Canada, Shya founded the award-winning design studio, Shya-la-la Workshop based in Hong Kong. Since then Shya has made his name in many publications (including i-D UK and Vogue Italia) and films (such as “Hot Summer Days,” 2010 and “Love In Space,” 2011).

Working with acclaimed director Wong Kar-Wai as a behind-the-scenes photographer on film sets (In The Mood For Love, 2000) Shya specialises in capturing the atmosphere surrounding his subjects- usually couples- while they are off camera in aestheticised scenes. I am highly interested in the use of cinematic prose throughout his images- showing a narrative from an outsider perspective with the camera rarely being acknowledged by the subjects except through a mask, like sunglasses (bottom left image of mood board above). Similar to my first artist reference (Claudia Andujar) I have decided to study Shya’s work as a response to the exam theme of simple v complex due to his use of cinematic compositions, including the lighting in a scene and the atmosphere the image creates, where a narrative and story can be taken from the image- Shya’s images, although cinematic, much like Andujar’s are not staged, Shya says himself “I won’t try to overshadow the moment. I always try to make myself as ‘small’ as possible. I just enjoy the process of photography; I want to take in the atmosphere and people I’m photographing.” (https://neocha.com/magazine/the-moments-in-between/, December 12, 2017 accessed 27/03/2023).

This image taken on the set of “Happy Together” showcases the two main characters, as on movie sets, there can be no interruptions when a take begins Shya can only take images before and after filming- capturing the transition moment, where an actor takes their guard down and is between their character and their authentic self. There is a consistent theme of waiting and suspense in Shya’s work, proven in this image where there seems to be a narrative which has been captured in a moment (since the image is from a film set, this is the case). The image itself is saturated in colour; presenting vibrant purple, orange and red- usually quite positive colours- however the use of stark overhead lighting (artificial) to create bold shadows creates a more emotionally turmoil, impassioned image. This idea is shown through how the subjects are binary opposites, one veiled in shadow and the other in light: one seeming more aggressive and one seeming more open as portrayed through the lighting where the butterfly lighting technique is used- revealing very little about the subject itself. The image itself- although grainy- is in sharp focus to the subjects with no blur except in the background, making the surroundings look more hazy and dream-like. The red writing on the left side of the image is also a central focal point- drawing the viewers attention to the more open subject along with the draw of the purple wall.

What you want to explore?

What I would like to explore within my study is a link between landscape photography the portrait photography. I would mainly like to focus on the concept of including war related architecture from both Germany and Jersey. Germany is filled with many aspects that revolve around the war and Jersey includes a wide variety of the same content. I believe that the study within the areas of Jersey, Poland and Germany highlights the theme of complexity as they display a wide variety of landscapes that area very complicated to look at during first glance and also contain a much more complex meaning behind them, relating to the war.

Why it matters to you?

It matters to me because Jersey was occupied by the Germans during WWII. It was inhabited mainly by the Germans and Jersey is the island that I was born and continue to live on. It matters a lot to me as it is the place I grew up on and it has an important link to that of the wars that commenced from Germany. The jersey portion of my photoshoots will be incredibly important to me as well because I have a German bunker in my garden so it is part of where I live.

How you wish to develop your project?

The way I wish to develop my project is I would like to take a variety of photographs from each location such as Poland, Germany and Jersey and create a photobook at the very end. I would like to display a variety of locations from each country as to showcase a difference between each historical monument and their similarities and differences.

When and where you intend to begin your study?

I intend to start my study first within Berlin so that I can first get a feel of what i’m going for with this project. I want to capture the historical aspects of the city before I can go down the route of figuring out what I’m aiming to photograph in the other areas. I think Germany is a very good starting point for my project as my topic is going to mainly be based around Germany and the aftermath of World War II, so Germany being my first area to take photographs in seems like a good idea.

Idea- Creates characters/ Cindy Sherman inspired.

where- My house/ outside/ dark road (possibly the German road St peters valley)

props- sheet for backdrop, artificial light e.g. bright lamp, clothes male and female, accessories

focus point- creepy ominous photos, performance.

Inspo