WHY CHOOSE THE SUBJECT ‘DOCUMENTARY’ FOR THE NOSTALGIA PROJECT (PERSONAL STUDY)?
I chose to take my final pictures inspired by the Becher’s typologies as it was a way to express my nostalgia though the houses I lived in. Nostalgia is defined as ‘a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations’ which can be reinforced with the memories a family has in each home. Each house that I photographed represents a period of my life, which reinforces this sense of nostalgia and memories. My intention was to use ‘documentary’ photography to reinforce this idea of documenting periods of my life in houses, and presents them in a grid layout out to show the timeline.
HOW DID I PLAN THIS PROJECT?
To be able to do the photoshoot (2) with the houses I needed to make sure that the weather and lighting looked similar in all the images, therefore this photoshoot lasted me for over 2 days. In order to get the best lighting I could I did my photoshoot between 12:00-13:00 (mid-day). However when taking the family portraits in order to create this documentary style aesthetic I tried to capture authentic moments then staging my family members.
PHOTOSHOOT AND EDITING:
I took photoshoot (1) during my weekend away in Poland for a family event, in this photoshoot I managed to take images during the family dinner and around the town centre. Due to the photoshoot being during Christmas season I was able to take some pictures of Christmas Markets and how the Polish celebrate. However, due to photoshoot (2) being after Christmas there were so festive images that contrasted with Poland, however the my intention was to focus my images on the houses. During my editing process in Lightroom Classic I adjusted the images into black and white and slightly turned down the exposure to create this sharp detailed image, furthermore all the images had the same adjustment settings, as my intention was to create a photobook with visibly similar aesthetic.
WHAT WENT WRONG IN THIS PROJECT?
During this project it was difficult for me to find a topic to focus on and photograph. Once finally figuring out the photoshoots were disorganised and rushed. Planning my photoshoots was difficult as some picture were off island, therefore not much plan could go towards the photoshoot planning.
How could we consider typology to be an extension of documentary photography.
‘Technology is above requiring an interpretation; it interprets itself. You merely need to select the right objects and place them precisely in the picture; then they tell the story of their own accord’
– Hilla Becher
Typologies is defined as organized systems of types; typologies can be described as an extension of documentary photography. Photographers Bernd and Hilla Becher explore this idea of typologies in their work, creating images that document industrial structures including water towers, coal bunkers, gas tanks and factories. Their work can be described as documentary photography with the use of typologies as an extension, as they documented the evolution of industrial buildings and presenting them in the form of grids. In this essay I intend to explore how typologies can be an extension to documentary photography. The quote above by Hilla Becher is a perfect portrayal how the Becher’s typologies is an extension of documentary photography, as documentary photography tells stories through the precise detailed photographs. Hilla Becher was a German photographer born in 1931, in which later she found her photography partner Bernd Becher which later became her husband. They began collaborating in 1959 after meeting at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in 1957. The Becher’s photographed industrial buildings which could be argued as documenting the industrial revolution and the changes within the industrial world, which reinforces this idea that typologies can be an extention of documentary photography. Their work is rigorously objective in its aims, but in its exacting presentation stimulates consideration of the ways in which people organize and receive information about their own environments and the wider world.
My project focuses on the contrast of my duel nationality, Polish and Jersey family. I intend to take picture of my Polish family when I go away to vist them, in Susan Sontags book ‘On Photography’ she says that ‘camera goes with family life’ which reinforces this idea of family documentation through photography. Furthermore, in order to explore my Jersey lifestyle I intend to create a typology of the houses I’ve lived in, and then presenting them in a grid, drawing inspiration from the Bechers typology work.
Hilla and Bernd Becher; Typologies
The term ‘documentary’ was founded by an English philosopher Jeremy Bentham in the early 19th century. He referenced documentary to the visual culture, which led to some of the early 19th century photographs to be regarded as documents. However now in the present day the term documentary is recognised as aiming to show, informally, everyday lives of ordinary people. When we think about the term ‘documentary’ the main objectives that structure our defintions would be style, tradition, genre, form, practice, and most importantly movement. The ‘birth’ of documentray photography was between 1920 and 1930, which motivated the movement of photojournalism due to the extensive use of photographs to tell stories and illustrating photo magazines such as Life Magazine in the USA and Picture Post in Britain. These magazines which were based on the extensive use of photographs to tell stories to the needs of a newly literate urban population. The first camera’s were made in France and England in the early 1840’s, as these countries were able to create these cameras due to having investors and buffs to opertae them, and these countries were financially stable therefore being able to afford it. Sontag states that ‘even when photographers are most concerned with mirroring reality, they are still haunted by tacit imperatives of taste and conscience’ this therefore creates the debate on how true are photographs and whether they are reliable.
In my own work, during my trip away to Poland when taking documentary portraits of my family and the event, I will try to keep the photographs as true as possible, however when taking portraits there is some level of staging to ensure you get the right angle and lighting to create the best possible image. This therefore also contradicts the idea of documentary photography since the stereotype is that documentary photography is supposed to be truthful. In the image below, was one I took during my photoshoot, you can view an example of what would be descibed as a documentary photograph, however you can clearly see its been staged. In this image you can see my grans sister and her nephew in which the camera settings and later in the editing process by changing it to black and white, would descibe the image as documentary, but you can clearly see that both people are posing in the image.
My Image – Polish Family
A photographic typology is a study of “types”. That is, a photographic series that prioritizes “collecting” rather than stand-alone images. It’s a powerful method of photography that can be used to reshape the way we perceive the world around us. The German artists Bernd and Hilla Becher, invented New typologies, as they began working together in 1959 and went on and married in 1961, they are best known for their “typologies”—grids of black-and-white photographs of variant examples of a single type of industrial structure. Karl Blossfeldt, Albert Renger-Patzsc, and August Sander all influenced the Becher’s in their typology work. Karl Blossfeldt inspired them to create a photoshoot and laying out the images in the style of a triptik; Albert Renger-Patzsch gave them the idea that you can create a new style of photography with any pictures; and Albert Renger-Patzsch created a series of photography of taking pictures of plants. August Sander was part of the new objectivity movement which inspired a lot of photographers including Hilla and Bernd Becher to take their own movement and create their own style of photography.
In this typology grid, you are able to see nine images of industral buildings. The buildings are positioned in the middle of each individual image which creates a well structured grid, and organised visual of the images. By placing the images in a grid you are able to see the different structures of industrial buildings and can see the difference in construction. By using the form of the grid the Bernd’s were able to emphasise the repetition, which can suggests that the industrialisation was becoming repetitive. “we want to change nothing about the objects we photograph.. namely strip the individual object of context, in other words to position them such that they fit the frame” this quote by the Bernd’s show they photographed industrial buildings without context, just to view them as an overall form. The composition of the grid shows tall buildings in a secluded background. By having a secluded background it draws the focus on the buildings. By editing the images in black and white it creates an old documentary aesthetic. In my own study of buildings, I am intending to take pictures in all the houses ive lived in during my 17 years of life. The total houses ive lived in is 13, therefore I will go to each house/apartment ive resided in and put them in a typology grid taking inspiration from the Bechers. By doing this project for my personal study I am including the idea of typologies as an extension of documentray photography.
Images of house which I later created into a typology grid.
In this page you can see a blank page with a portrait image, in this portrait image you can see me auntie and grandad cooking in the kitchen, which sets the scene in the photobook. The kitchen holds many memories so this image at the start of the book can be described as an establishing shot for the photobook. Having these images in black and white further reinforces this idea of nostalgia and memories, furthermore having people from an older generation in this image works with the images of black and white since most of their images during that time would be in black and white.
In this image you can see the pattern of alternating portraits and landscapes, since this is the next image in the photobook sequence. In this image you are able to see two sisters and one of her daughters (the middle and the right) which also shows this idea of two generations in one photo. This image has a good composition with girls in the middle and all smiling, even though this photograph was staged it gives a really authentic emotion to the image. All of the girls smiling shows the happy atmosphere during the party which connotes the idea that family can bring happiness during a big family celebration.
In this image further in the boom starts to show the second topic in the photobook, typologies with houses. This typology are photos of all the house I’ve lived in, total of 13, which later in the book will be shown in a typology grid. This singular black and white images hold lots of memories, and houses hold many memories for lots of people. You are able to feel the sense of nostalgia when looking at these images as you reminisce over the memories you hold in that particular house.
In this double page you can see a typology grid, presenting houses. These pages can be found in the middle of the book which highlights core memories. These pages are possibly the most important images within the photobook as it shows my life through houses. The placement of the images is also important as it shows a timeline of houses in the order I lived in them.
Documenting my duel-nationality, in the form of typologies.
A paragraph
The documentation of my duel-nationality through the juxtaposition of my family in Poland and Jersey. By documenting my personal emotion of nostalgia through my memories of landscape’s I will present my images in the form of typologies. Furthermore, by taking images of my family members, I can express my identity through the portraitures of my family and how it influences my sense of nostalgia.
Design: Consider the following
How you want your book to look and feel
Paper and ink
Format, size and orientation
Binding and cover
Title
Structure and architecture
Design and layout
Editing and sequencing
Images and text
DESIGN OF PHOTOBOOK:
I want my book to look organised and have a calm aesthetic. I will achieve this by editing all my images in black and white with the same adjustments. In order of the layout I will leave the left page blank and right page with an image, this will keep the photobook well structed and less chaotic with a number of images. However in the middle of my book I will create a typology grid, inspired by the Becher’s, with images of houses. The structure of this images will be the same with it either being a straight mid shot, or a slight angle shot of the houses, this is so that in the grid the sequence works. For the title of my book I will name it ‘Untitled’ this is so it can challenge the stereotypical idea of naming a book something cliché, however it also suggests the photobook can be interpreted however the reader might understand it which gives this sense of ambiguity. The cover of my book will not be an image included in the book, it will be a simple oat coloured material that binds it together, this will further create mystery while also keeping the aesthetic of the book. Since most of my images are landscape the orientation of the book will be landscape however to add some shape into the book, I will be alternating between landscape and portrait images.
SCREENGRABS OF A FEW PAGES OF PHOTOBOOK; UNFINISHED:
Using innovative techniques, photographer Blossfeldt produced arresting images of seed pods, buds, stems, and other botanical items. This spectacular collection features scores of his remarkable photographs of plant life, offering artists and craftspeople a treasury of royalty-free pictures and design inspirations.
Blossfeldt became fascinated with nature and nature object. He became interested in the structure behind beautiful forms, this led to his ground breaking collection of thousands of photographs of natural forms, which then he created the book ‘Art forms in Nature‘.
‘Art forms in Nature’ can be described as nature writing. Since Blossfeldt’s photography consists of some 6,000 photographs of plants and segments it shows that his intention and main aspect in the book is about nature. Through his nature photography he is able to document natures structures, and create abstract art. The aesthetics of Blossfeld’s photos, lies between New Objectivity and Surrealism, especially while reviewing over their historical context.
1. aims to revolutionise human experience. It balances a rational vision of life with one that asserts the power of the unconscious and dreams. The movement’s artists find magic and strange beauty in the unexpected and the uncanny, the disregarded and the unconventional.
2. is an art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike scenes and ideas.
IMAGES INCLUDED IN THE BOOK:
HOW DID BLOSSFELDT MAKE HIS IMAGES:
Blossfeldt chose to depict natural objects in extreme close ups. Using his homemade camera he could zoom in so close to a plant’s leaves and stem that, unlike any photographs of natural objects seen before, they became new beings entirely. Blossfeldt developed a series of home-made camera lenses that allowed him to magnify his plant subjects by thirty times, producing unprecedented detail.
Blossfeldt was one of the first photographers to manufacture his own unique camera. His camera was made of wood and had one metre long bellows. In the 1930s the photographs he produced with it were just as unique as the homemade contraption itself. Blossfeldt chose to depict natural objects in extreme close ups
The New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) emerged as a style in Germany in the 1920s as a challenge to Expressionism. As the name suggests this art movement was to express reality and a focus on the objective world. You are able to see New Objectivity through Blossfeldt’s works, where he makes hyper-realistic images of flowers and nature. In his work you are able to see all the details within his work and the fine lines, which supports this idea of New Objectivity within, Expressionism.
Blossfeldt’s created his own typology, by taking and studying natural elements he ‘collected’ images and presented them as an art project. I intend to do this is my own personal study when taking images of houses, therefore creating my own typology.
MOODBOARD OF HIS WORK:
Karl Blossfeldt is best known for his precise photographs of plants; however, he began his career as a sculptor, completing apprenticeships at the ironworks and foundry in Mägdesprung and the Kunstgewerbeschule (Institute of the royal arts museum) in Berlin from 1884 to 1890.
Blossfeldt first published his photographs of plants in 1928 achieving overnight fame. These images had a direct influence on artists, such as Hilla and Bernd Becher which led them to their fame of Typologies. He was inspired by nature and hence reflected this muse in his close-up photography of living organisms and plants. He was enthusiastic towards the study of nature and he spent three decades photographing nothing else but plants. For him, plants held an “artistic and architectural” pattern.
Blossfeldt’s photography career began when he was photographing botanical specimens for Moritz Meurer. Blossfeldt later continued to develop his skillset, and his collection of photographs, while he was working as a professor. Karl Blossfeldt was one of the first photographers to build his own unique camera, which was made of wood and had one metre long bellows. In the 1930s the photographs he produced with it were just as unique as the homemade contraption itself.
CRITICS:
Looking at the images, one has the eerie sensation that the forms are simultaneously known and yet completely unrecognizable.
These images are presented hyper-realistic way. Although Blossfeldt photographed these images through his own camera , the photograph of the plant seems unrealistic due to the sharpness and the in depth lines and details of the flower. The flower is presented as isolated and dangerous, perhaps when Blossfeldt took this image he was attempting to shows how nature individually is beautiful.
Visual – what we can see in the image
In this image you are able to see a single flower, which seems to be on a muted background. This is to have the focal point on the flower, which leads you from the stem to the petals. By putting the image in the middle thirds it draws your attention straight to the image and leads you through the shape of the flower. In the image you can clearly see all the stems and every detail in the image. This image is basic and plain yet holds so much power in the message that Blossfeldt is trying to present, the beauty in nature.
Contextual – who, when, where etc…the story, background, impact:
Karl Blossfeldt was one of the first photographers to build his own unique camera, which was made of wood and had one metre long bellows. In the 1930s the photographs he produced with it were just as unique as the homemade contraption itself.
This photoshoot was to document all the house’s I’ve lived in, and then present them in the form of typologies. Here I was able to take picture’s of 10 house’s as I was unable to get through to the other ones. Some of the quality of the pictures turned out unfocused and dark, this was due to some of the weather changes. However, overall I believe this photoshoot was successful and I was able to create the images I needed. Some of the top images were from Christmas, were I was able to take some portraits of my family, however I believe the images were unsuccessful and felt more rushed and less organised. When editing and developing these images, I will edit them black and white, with similar adjustments to the previous photoshoot.
In this photoshoot I will take inspiration from the Bernd typology work. I will be taking pictures of all the houses I have lived in, 13, to show the lack of ‘home’ and sense of nostalgia in a childhood home. This will link with typologies, as in my photobook I intend to put these images in a grid format.
WHERE?
LOCATIONS FOR PHOTOSHOOT:
JERSEY
HOUSE AND FAMILY IN POLAND
HOUSES LIVED IN JERSEY (ST HELIER, ST MARTIN, ST SAVIOUR)
HOW?
I will be using a camera from school so I am able to create higher quality images. I will be taking a series of landscape and portrait images to see which fit best with the photobook and what layout will go best.
WHY?
This photoshoot is designed to show the lack of ‘childhood’ home and lack of nostalgia. Due to moving many times, you aren’t able to hold onto memories.
In these images I decided to change them into black and white. This is so they could have more of an older aesthetic of documentary photography. Black and white images are usually associated with older generations which further reinforces my nostalgic part of my project. Furthermore by the use of black and white images further fits with my images as most of the photographs I’ve taking is my family from the older generation. During the editing process I decided to keep all the editing settings the same, in order to keep my photobook clean and have a structured look. As well as keeping the editing settings the same, I decided to add a slight black vignette to create this ‘older’ look in my images.
