Hannah Altman is an American photographer from New Jersey whose work mainly explores the themes of lineage, memory, ritual and storytelling, known for her use of natural light and intertwining of her Jewish culture. Altman has practiced photography since she was a 19-year-old student at Point Park University, practicing as an amateur on her Tumblr page.

As a 29-year-old, Altman has been involved in numerous solo exhibitions throughout America:

• We Will Return to You – 2023, Akabus Projects, Boston
• With Rifts and Collapses – 2022, Gallery 263, Cambridge
• A Permanent Home in the Mouth of the Sun – 2021, Filter Space, Chicago
• A Permanent Home in the Mouth of the Sun – 2021, AAP Exhibition Space, Pittsburgh
• Kavana – 2020, Blue Sky Gallery, Portland
• Construct of Viewpoint – 2018, Union All Gallery, Pittsburgh
• Construct of Viewpoint – 2017, Junior High Gallery, Los Angeles
• Humanism – 2017, The Temple Judea Museum, Elkins Park
• Luminous / Weightless – 2016, Lantern Gallery, Pittsburgh
• Intimate Threat – 2016, Trust Arts Education Center, Pittsburgh

She has delivered many lectures on her images and research across the US in venues such as Yale University and the Society for Photographic Education Natural Conference, with her first monograph in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Thomas J Watson Library.

Her Work:

The body of work which I find most relevant to my exploration of Feminism in photography is ‘And Everything Nice’, curated by Altman at just 19 years old as a student posting on Tumblr. Altman did this in the absence of the expectation that this would have global reach, beginning in her dorm room as a personal photo project at Point Park University.

“‘And Everything Nice’ is an unflinching analysis of the standard for female beauty. The ongoing series consists of women in states of affliction; the body fluid of the models have been replaced with glitter to visualize the concept of girls invariably needing to seem attractive regardless of the actual situation” – Altman via her Tumblr post

And Everything Nice:

In these eight images within the series, Altman shoots images with bodily fluids such as blood, tears and vomit replaced by glitter in an act to challenge and visually represent the female beauty standard.

This minimalistic viewpoint of breaking down the standard of female beauty in a detached way allows the viewer to objectively infer how there is a consistent pressure to present themselves as attractive, without thought to the situation at hand. This alternative criticism to the societal expectation of what a woman should be like dives deeper into this concept than others because it pays attention to how even processes of the anatomy are accounted for in the beauty standard, instead of just exploring the stereotypes of ‘what a woman should be like’ at face value.

Altman also uses glitter in replacement of vomit as a young girl lays over the toilet which could be used to target the teenage culture, being going out and drinking with friends (underage or legally) to the point of sickness – something that is normalised when reaching teenage years and wanting to try new things. However, I find that this is highly applicable to the millions of girls who experience eating disorders at such a young age. Bulimia nervosa is a condition where the subject typically purges themselves, this being the self-induction of vomiting to forcefully evacuate the body of stomach matter. This is also down to the misuse of laxatives or dieting pills. I feel that this is highly relevant to the image because many young girls gain a distorted perception of themselves due to a constant reminder in the media of a false image of a woman. This is an extremely common issue and repercussion of the beauty standard being set against young women that psychologically restricts them from feeding their body and mind, resulting in extreme issues and even death. This image is so important because this is an issue that mostly arises during teenage years, with the prediction that 28.8 million Americans will suffer from an eating disorder in their lifetime, with an estimate that 3.4 million people are suffering from eating disorders around the UK too. With an issue that may be seen as normalised by young girls by wanting to be severely underweight in hopes that it may better their self-esteem, images like this are so important because this is something that occurs behind closed doors and by explicating the symptoms of it, it may be a ‘wake-up’ call for young girls and even women who have carried this into adulthood. Misogynistic viewpoints are a factor at the centre of the development of eating disorders which is something I aim to challenge in my work through this photoshoot.

Using this as a replacement of blood too could be seen as symbolic of domestic abuse and male violence, where Altman uses nosebleeds and cuts on knees with plasters on them, and this ‘blood’ smeared. This could be representative of the risk of young girls getting into toxic relationships or situations due to being so vulnerable and impressionable. However, this is also applied in the form of period blood and blood on a razor, crucial in reinforcing Altman’s idea on the pressures, both internal and external, in applying this beauty standard in all situations regardless of what they are down to an anatomical scale.

I feel that this is such a unique viewpoint on the perceived beauty standard because it leads into the extremities that young girls go to in order to feel beautiful. For example, the blood on the razor points towards over-shaving continually in order to be completely hairless to feel desirable, setting an unrealistic expectation as hair is an entirely normal thing that everyone has, however there is a double standard for men and women. This is challenged as it shows the severity of what these ideas can do, and how the normalisation for one gender but not the other can be extremely damaging for women, specifically young girls who grow into their teenage years and begin to see air-brushed fashion magazines that aren’t actually achievable in real life, they are actually just extremely edited.

I also find that the replacement of period blood with red glitter is such a core image within this selection due to the ‘disgust’ portrayed in the media against women’s menstrual cycle even though this is a regular bodily function that is out of an individual’s control. This autonomic process is something that allows a woman to carry a child, however it is suggested that it should not be spoken about in society due to judgement. I feel that this is very relevant to the beauty standard in teens because thousands of young girls don’t even understand the actual biological process behind this due to this stigmatised perception against periods. This also combats the saying of ‘someone’s on their period’ that is commonly used when a woman is expressing feelings of anger or sadness, a way of demeaning the female sex for reacting to situations that they do not feel comfortable with. By curating a scene like this, it leans towards the normalisation of the menstrual cycle, instead of women being judged for a process that is completely out of their control and allows them to carry a child into the world.

For example, when these images were released, there was a large swarm of men (and even some women) with uninformed criticism towards Altman’s work, calling the images ‘gross’. It is evident through this that society has been conditioned to think within a certain frame of stereotypical views, here being that the period cycle should be kept almost like a secret, leaving many young girls uncertain of how their bodies work and what it actually is. Images like these create large reactions out of people because they consist of things so unnormalised in society when knowledge and information on these things is incredibly important.

These images convey messages of violence, teen girl culture and emotionality which overall contributes to the challenging of the beauty standard set against women. They reach out to the younger generation through social media, here being a Tumblr page, to actively represent issues through a different medium rather than simply words. This visual aspect can be empowering and ensures that, specifically young girls getting their period for the first time, shouldn’t be afraid of the reactions of those around them or to be judged for being ‘gross’ when this is a regular thing.

Analysis:

The image uses a short depth of field to force the viewer to be drawn in by the smudge of red glitter across a young girls face. Altman uses natural lighting to create shadows that have not been manipulated, making the composition without the glitter look as realistic as possible. The subject sits with her face turned towards the source of the lighting as the shadows stem from the left side of the image which reinforces the focal point into being the subjects face. This use of natural lighting also contributes to Altman’s intention of targeting the beauty standard against women as it makes the image look more organic and raw, instead of leaning towards the aesthetics of fashion magazines for example. Skin texture is also more visible by using this lighting which contributes again to the truthful portrayal of actual women’s beauty. The subject turns to the side with a facial expression of what seems to be discomfort as her mouth hangs open as if she is in pain, going hand in hand with the use of glitter to replicate a nosebleed. This leaves the symbolic aspect of the image open to interpretation to the viewer due to the subjectivity of it. I feel that this image could be an excellent metaphor for male violence, specifically in teenage girls, as the idea of being in a ‘toxic and controlling relationship’ is more romanticised now in the younger generation rather than being perceived as something unwanted. The girl in the image grits her teeth shut slightly which could be symbolic of feeling as if she cannot speak up about what has just occurred and even feelings of shock due to the diagonal angle Altman has used which opposes the direction of the subjects face. As Altman produced this set of images at the age of just 19-years-old, this could be used to reach out to her age group at the time to show a darker side of this idea of controlling and jealous relationships that may be desired by young girls as they may believe this would make them feel wanted more like they are the only person that matters to their significant other. However, this image is displaying the progression of these kinds of relationships, and how they can quickly grow from something that may be perceived danger less. The ‘blood’ being in the form of glitter can resemble that romanticised idea that young girls have, having relation to the phrase of ‘all that glitters is gold’, suggesting that whilst the concept behind jealousy may be exciting at the time, relationships like this are extremely unstable and can easily turn violent due to the high control over impressionable young girls who may not have a predetermined perception of love.

I would like to utilise this use of glitter in my own work to represent emotionality, domestic violence in young girls, the teenage culture and overall, the set beauty standard towards women that young girls grow up encapsulated in.

I am going to organise a photoshoot using different colours of glitter and use a group of girls to represent each of these things in different ways. I would like to recreate some of Altman’s images such as the image of the girl with bleeding knees because this is such a subjective image that I can use to nod towards male violence in young girls during toxic relationships to show the reality to something that may be desirable to the younger generation as the progression of abuse is often ignored at the beginning which leads into entrapment. However, I would like to use inspiration from some of the images but incorporate different factors. For example, I feel that the image of the young girl leaning over a toilet bowl filled with glitter, however I would like to use this to compile different images looking into the normalisation of eating disorders within young girls due to the feeling of never being skinny enough, and in turn believing that they don’t deserve anything due to the lessening of their self-esteem. With pro-ana websites being easily accessible to young girls (pro-anorexia websites which push the idea that this is a healthy lifestyle) and with unrealistic images being produced for ‘Thinspo’ (extremely unhealthy bodies being pushed towards young girls online to make them believe this is what they must look like in order to be beautiful, and highlighting how to achieve it), it is very important that the dangers and hardships that come with this are highlighted to the viewer because to such an impressionable mind, the realisation that your brain, body and mind needs food to be able to develop and grow.

I will be using glitter to specifically look into the beauty standard set against young girls, and try to actively show the distorted perceptions that young girls face due to misogyny specifically in the media.

With the theme for the final exam being Union, I initially began thinking of ideas by reading through all pages of the exam paper, including features of fine art for example, because this would enable me to fully explore and utilise the information given to me so that I could easily find different movements and artists who inhabit this theme in their own work.

From here, I was able to use search engines to research what I had learnt, beginning with different artistic movements such as Cubism to gain visual examples of what I could gain inspiration from and actually see if I liked the aesthetic components of these images. What helped me here was annotating the exam paper with my own ideas that I had began to formulate because this would let me fully evaluate them all at the end of my research to the concept which I felt most suitable for Union.

I didn’t want this personal study to be similar to any of my other photographic responses because I wanted to ensure my portfolio would have versatility, a range of different methods from objectivity to subjectivity. The specific idea which really drew me in was looking at different societal movements which we have as this is an excellent depiction how the minimal representation of people and important constructs brings people together to have their voices heard in fighting against repression, here being the Feminist movement. Whilst this is greatly a global and universal political movement that has been present for decades, I wanted to use this movement as inspiration as it is important to me, being the fact that I am an 18 year old girl who is actively affected by actions fought against by this movement in partner with billions of young girls and women across the world. I feel almost as if it is my duty to interpret this in my work as it is incredibly relevant to me and something I do feel passionate about which will in turn allow me to create effective images. I wanted to include aspects of tableaux photography by curating staged scenes to represent truthful and real events that happen more frequently than society realise due to the normalisation of objectifying the female sex. So, in terms of my previous research on Mirrors and Windows, I find this body of work will be categorised as both due to its documentation of real and truthful stories captured by millions of women every year, however I will be using staged scenes in order to create this whilst also having a personal connection to my images due to this being extremely relevant in my day to day life due to my preconceived perceptions of the world in relation to feminism as well as having first-hand experiences being female regardless of my young age. I would also still like to create subjective images in accordance to my objective ones to visually display inner thoughts and feelings surrounding the issues that Feminism attempts to tackle.

Statement of Intent:

My main subject within the Feminist movement is going to be shooting people, specifically women and young girls as this is the focal point of the movement making this the best way to represent the hundreds of issues addressed here. I want to use dynamic angles to do this, being low or diagonal with a strong contrast in my lighting as this will create solemnity, seriousness and drama to encapsulate the importance of this topic. This will take place in domestic environments as well as external scenes:

1. Domestic Scenes:

I will be shooting inside my house and my friends house, creating staged scenes, in order to represent domestic abuse, misogyny and male violence that happens behind closed doors in domestic relationships. With domestic abuse being rarely reported due to fear and the entrapment of women, whether this could be due to family connections, separation from close friends and immediate family or financial assets being tied together, 1.5 million cases of reported domestic abuse-related incidents were gathered in England and Wales in the year ending March 2022 (1). I also want to portray this because it could happen to anyone, and not be realised until the person is too far into the relationship to leave, as this abuse tends to begin emotionally and psychologically before it grows into something much bigger and more controlling, meaning this could be something that has occurred to the woman sat next to you on the bus on a Monday morning, or simply the person serving you as a cashier in a shop. The point is that this topic is universal and kept behind closed doors, so this representation creates the hope that it can influence others to come forward and break out of these toxic situations, forcing realisation that it is entirely unacceptable to be treated in such a demeaning manner and it is not ‘love‘ to fear the person who should make you feel the most safe.

Before artist references and inspirations, I began to create photoshoot ideas to represent domestic abuse:

• How domestic abuse rates rise 26% when the England football team wins or draws, and increases a 38% when his team loses. I wanted to utilise this by using different depths of field with a female crying or looking distressed next to the tv with a football game on. In the background I could vary my depths of field and experiment, putting a can of beer in the background for the viewer to infer that they are afraid of the results of the match.
• The uniting of women in their trauma, for example the support received once telling friends and family what they have endured or even getting a friend to document the actions of their abuser by using phones to photograph bruises and fingerprint marks.
• The fears of spiking, this being an issue that is rife in nightlife by women having things put into their drinks to be taken advantage of and objectified. To do this, I will be staging a party scene in the background and using Photoshop to experiment with different colours to create strobe lights. Of course this would be more realistic in an actual club or party because I would have true lighting, however this would be incredibly difficult because there would be very poor lighting conditions and I could risk damaging the camera depending on how busy the location is. Here, I am going to use still-life images of a glass of wine and putting a small piece of a Vitamin C tablet inside as these fizz when wet, to give off the perception of a foreign body being placed in someones drink without their awareness. As well as this, I would like to create images of a ‘feminine’ hand over the top of the glass as when I go out, my parents automatically remind me to watch my drink and be protective of it to minimise the risk of this happening to me.

2. External Scenes:

My main idea behind using the external environment to create images in this topic is to show the political side of the feminist movement. Within this, I will be creating signs similar to the ones I have seen in the media, and putting them into the sky to photograph them as this is a simple way to show the activism and advocation that has been going on within the feminist movement for hundreds of years beginning with the Suffragettes. I will also be shooting images of fists in the air as this is commonly associated for standing up for what is right and is the forefront symbol of empowerment.

By using outdoor environments, it makes sure that my images are still in touch with the wider applications and impacts that this movement has instead of just looking into the internal pressures that women have from misogyny and sexism. I don’t think I will be shooting images within the studio because I would like to keep the aspect of realism in my work, ensuring that the images produced are raw and relative to real-life. If I do shoot images in the studio, this runs the risk of them not looking as realistic and truthful even though I am using staged environments which won’t allow my images to be as effective.

The other photographic responses I have began to formulate on my own are:

• The idea of sonder– being the realisation that every individual a person sees has a life as full and as real as their own. This is in relation to the domestic abuse many women face in silence and alone behind closed doors, and how this could happen to anyone at all. My idea to represent this concept is to have one girl or women staring into the lens of the camera out of a crowd of people moving around her, symbolising a cry for help, in town for example. For this, I can use a slow shutter speed to create a motion blur around the subject to symbolise almost being ‘forgotten’ about in their private fight. This can also be experimented with to be inverse of the male gaze in the public eye, being due to women purposely keep aware of their surroundings as an instinctual response due to past experiences and the knowledge of the high levels of attacks in public areas on women.
• The concerns of pregnancy at the hands of abortion bans in many countries, such as Donal Trump’s beginning of his Project 2025 plans which could lead to the deaths of many young women and girls for numerous reasons is a more modernised problem that the feminist movement is striving to battle against. For this, I am going to purchase pregnancy tests and drop them onto the floor of public toilets or place them onto the basin on the sinks and shoot from high, overhead angles, such as standing over the adjacent cubicle, to connote emotions of fear and worry. I will use high contrasts and a lower exposure to make the image have a heavier feeling.
• I want to use this ‘birds eye view’ in public toilets again using a high angle, with a girl inside the toilet looking distressed and concerned as if they are hiding or having fears about their current situation. There are typically notices on these toilet doors of JAAR – standing for Jersey Action Against Rape which I think would be very effective as I can utilise this to make the concept of the image more explicit. I will also shoot images of these notices in a more dead-pan aesthetic, being straight on, as this are very relevant to the movement in giving women support systems.

My final piece will consist of a photobook as in my previous personal study exploring the hardships of growing up with a family member suffering with extreme symptoms of a mental illness, I found that this was incredibly moving because I have entire control over the aesthetics and colour palette which are important in connoting different emotions. I feel that this will be the best way to represent such a heavy topic again with the Feminist movement. However, I don’t think this time I will use accompanying text as I want the images to speak for themselves and I don’t want them to be overpowered by textual information, all of the images should speak for themselves.

My biggest motivator in using this for my study in the theme of Union is the relevancy to my everyday life, these are vital and key concerns that I have to be aware of in order to be safe in society, especially when getting into relationships and going out during nightlife as there are so many incidents that happen to millions of women everyday. Having this knowledge and education is important to me because it means that I will be able to prepare myself in the case of something occurring and know where to access this support in a time of need, as well as having an instinct to prepare to defend myself in these cases.

My second reason for this is that I myself perceive myself as a feminist because I’m extremely passionate about being an activist for this inequality. This impacts my family, friends and millions of young girls and women across the world and without having a voice and standing up, nothing will change at all. All of these sub-categories within the feminist movement must be addressed because the ignorance of this could even lead to millions of deaths, and already does. Without preserving women’s rights, history will revert. My hopes in doing this is to display how important it is to be educated and aware of these things, and that they well and truly can happen to anyone even if you think it might not be you. These issues are closer to home than they are perceived and I hope to bring them to light to show that this is the reality of the world, and its important to use your voice to project what is wrong to make a difference.

References:

(1)https://www.ncdv.org.uk/domestic-abuse-statistics-uk/#:~:text=1.5%20million,compared%20to%20the%20previous%20year.

The theme for the final exam in photography is ‘Union’. To start with my investigation, I began by reading through the entire exam paper as this provides me with starting points to gain inspiration from before I fully research different interpretations of the theme. I annotated and underlined key pieces of information and the names of any movements or artists so that I could research them later on.

I also used the other exam inspirations for different courses such as Fine Art as this could give me an idea of what else I could incorporate into my work and the different ways that artists inhabit this theme in their work. I used this as my starting point when creating my mood board.

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Mood Board:

These are just a handful of the suggestions within the exam paper that I found may inspire me. From here, I have already started to think about some different ideas that I want to do.

The word ‘union’ is defined by:

‘a society or association formed by people with a common interest or purpose.’

Once I had defined this term, I began to think of ideas of my own. Some of these ideas were:

1. Environmental portraiture in the workplace in relation to trade or work unions
2. Cubism in photography

However, one of my favourite ideas I have been inspired by is political movements surrounding feminism and the like. Being a young person, I have always sought importance in keeping myself informed about the different injustices and movements within society because I understand that it is key that I am aware to these things in society. However, growing up in a world as a young girl has meant that I have acknowledged the inequalities between man and woman in society and have experienced the repercussions of normalising these issues.

Because this is a topic that is important to me as a feminist myself, I want to explore as many issues as I can that are highlighted within feminism within this study. These consist of:

What is Feminism?

Feminism is the advocacy for women rights in society in accordance to gender equality. A common misconception is that feminism is concerned with ‘girls being better than boys’ however this movement strives to remove the barrier between male and female in political, economic, personal and social contexts. A core value of feminism is the position that modern society is infiltrated with patriarchal viewpoints, this being where the male point of view is prioritised due to predetermined stereotypes. This movement is centred around fighting against these close-minded views that women shouldn’t receive the same personal, educational and professional opportunities than men do.

Feminist campaigns originate back to late 18th-century Europe, pushing for women’s equal rights such as the right to vote, earn equal pay, run for governmental office, the right to education, owning property, equal marital rights and maternal leave. These are just a small handful of what the feminist movement has pursued over many years, however this must still be driven to combat the stereotypical views that women equate to lesser than men. This movement was fundamental in ensuring women and girls gain access to contraceptives, legal and standardised abortions, as well as the protection from sexual assault, sexual harassment, rape or domestic violence.

However, these implementations of societal change stem from major historical battles that women have faced for hundreds of years, and are currently still having to be fought for in many third-world countries. For example, there are 24 countries across the world where abortive services are entirely prohibited, according to TIME magazine.

In these third-world countries, this may be due to the undeveloped nature of their medical systems. However in a more familiar and Western world, the U.S Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, which was a landmark in history that granted women in each state of America access to suitable healthcare surrounding their pregnancy freely to the choice of their own. This removed every woman’s constitutional right to abortion rights in America, and handed it to each state to make a decision of their own. After existing for nearly half a century, this jeopardises many young girls and women’s lives, practically taking a step backwards and undoing all of the work that feminists of the past had strived to complete.

Roe v. Wade was initially passed in 1973 allowing the entire right to an abortion during the first three months of pregnancy, however this has been eroded over the years. For example, Texas – a very republican state which majorly agrees with the pro-life movement – passed a law in 2021 allowing the people to sue clinics and doctors for carrying out an abortive procedure after 6 weeks. Now that Donald Trump has been re-elected as president, one of his plans have begun within his Project 2025 campaign which concerns bans on contraceptives and abortions with absolutely no exceptions. This is entirely dangerous and harmful to the millions of young girls and women across the country who could be put in life-threatening situations without simple access to these services.

With the inability to terminate a pregnancy, this could result in numerous deaths as the mother could die from giving birth – whether this may be from not being developed enough to carry to term or the body straining, rape victims being forced to birth their assaulters baby, not being able to provide for the child due to financial instability or pay the extravagant prices of hospital bills due to the lack of free healthcare, not having a support system in place, or just simply not feeling ready to have a child.

Historical events:

The Suffragettes:

The Suffragettes dominated the feminist movement for several decades, and are a notable period of time of activism for the rights of women. These women were members of an activist organisation in the early 20th century, fighting for the right to vote in the UK.

Within this campaign, there was a divide in the choosing of tactics and strategy in making their voices heard.

The Suffragists: NUWSS:

The suffragists sought to achieve women’s suffrage (the right to vote) through deep debating and campaigning through non-violent marches and petitions. This was led by Millicent Fawcett who was the head of the National Union for Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS). This was an organisation, founded in 1897, however was merged with other organisations dated back to the 1860s. This consisted of primarily upper- and middle-class, however there were many women representing the working-class too. This was a limited representation as the working-class would be restricted on the time they would have to attend these protests as this would result in the loss of money when it was already difficult to gain a living in the first place.

Many women who were interested in this movement sent delegates to the NUWSS to then report back the benefits to those who were being represented, many of these women were textile workers, sweated labourers and those who worked in mines. By 1914, the NUWSS had over 100,000 members throughout the country with over 500 branches. Some of these methods of constitutional seeking for change consisted of:

• Public meetings
• Organised petitions
• Wrote letters to politicians
• Published newspapers
• Distributed free literature

The Suffragettes: WSPU:

With the lack of progress with the NUWSS being disappointing, Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters formed the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) in 1903. Instead of taking a peaceful approach like the suffragists of the NUWSS, the WSPU decided to use a confrontational manner out of irritation of resistance to change by the government – a male-dominated field at the time. This direct advance was referred to as militancy, leading to these campaigners being called the ‘Suffragettes’ instead of Suffragists. This adding of the suffix ‘ette’ was purposely applied to belittle those taking more dramatic action, portraying the idea that these women were lesser than those acting in a peaceful way. However, this insult stuck and was used by the members of the WSPU themselves. This radicalised approach resulted from a culture of women who had already campaigned tirelessly without seeing results.

The Pankhurst family who formulated the WSPU led the way for the new struggle, and due to them being at the forefront of campaigns they were arrested numerous times, being imprisoned and committing to numerous hunger strikes. The Suffragettes These tactics implemented shocked society due to a large number of these women having well-connected families in middle-class society, with this being reinforced by the traditional stereotype that women should be family-orientated, delicate and nurturing – this was seen as scandalous.

Initially, these tactics were employed to cause disruption and some civil disruption, for example 60,000 people gathered in October 1908 as a ‘rush’ on Parliament – this was intending to invade the House of Commons. However, this was just the beginning, as the lack of government attention resulted in:

• Ruining male-only clubs and golf courses
• Hunger strikes
• Handcuffing themselves to railings/buildings as public displays of resistance
• Planting bombs
• Burning public buildings and unoccupied politicians homes
• Disrupting political meetings, the postal service and the 1911 census (this recorded the details of over 36.3 million men, women and children)
• Smashing windows of private property and government buildings
• Attacking Church of England buildings
• Holding illegal demonstrations
• Heckling MPs
• This is just a fraction of the disruptive strategies that the Suffragettes used to make themselves known and heard.

The Suffragists would not co-operate with the Suffragettes as they did not agree with this form of direct action, and believed that non-violent methods were more suitable. Whilst their civil disobedience allowed them to be the main focus of the country at the time, meaning that no politician could ignore them, this meant that the NUWSS’s actions were often overshadowed by the actions of the WSPU. Many historians still argue over which side of the movement furthered the campaign.

Black Friday:

A notable point within the Suffragettes is Black Friday. In the 1908 election campaign, a member of the Liberal Party named Herbert Henry Asquith promised to pass a law that included women’s rights if elected as Prime Minister. With the support of the Suffragettes behind him, he was elected. However until 1916, this actually resulted in Asquith refusing to reform the right to vote, leaving the women with empty promises and anger.

In response, the WSPU organised a march to highlight the issue with his refusal, however the women were met with violence by policemen and male bystanders. This meant that hundreds of women were badly hurt, even resulting in death.

‘Public conscience must be aroused, and it can only be done by attacks on public property. When women’s bodies were battered on Black Friday that was alright but when a few windowpanes are broken, that is all wrong.’ – Emmeline Pankhurst, 2 years later in a newspaper.

The concept of feminism is still fought for in modern society through protests as well as the use of social media. A great example of this is the #MeToo movement where women can come forward online about sexual harassments or assaults and tell their story in hopes to help those who relate or inspire others to come forward about it. This has also involved celebrities too, highlighting to the world that these people are not untouchable and many of them do awful, inhumane things and expect nothing to occur due to their wealth and fame. This is also extremely useful for those who have reported their assaults but have lost their case.

A predominant issue within modern feminism is the focus of misogyny which has been widely practised for thousands of years, this being a dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women or girls, being a partial form of sexism that women should be kept at a lower status than men. This concerns male violence and domestic abuse against women, where approximately 1/4 women (23% or 2.2 million) have experienced violence by an intimate partner since the age for fifteen in the UK. A notable addition to this is the fact that in the event that the England football team wins or draws, the occurrence of domestic violence increases by 26%, and when they lose the percentile increases to 38%.

The feminist movement has been growing strong for hundreds of years, and is still rife in modern society.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism

https://time.com/6173229/countries-abortion-illegal-restrictions

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffragette

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zh6nsk7#zspyvwx

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-42879161

https://hist259.web.unc.edu/nationalunionofwomenssuffragesocieties/: Exam preparation

https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/electionsvoting/womenvote/overview/startsuffragette-/#:~:text=However%20the%20lack%20of%20Government,campaign%20for%20votes%20for%20women.

https://noviolence.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Whataboutmen.pdf

https://www.simononthestreets.co.uk/news/domestic-violence-and-football-the-campaigns-fighting-for-change#:~:text=For%20example%2C%20in%20the%20event,that%20statistic%20rises%20to%2038%25.

I started to pair images together in Lightroom on the book section, basing this on the composition, colour and contextual information that they gave.

When I was doing this, I wanted to create variation in my work by using different page designs so that each spread would have alternating layouts. I was aiming to use full-page spreads that bled all the way to the edge, however I wanted to also leave small spaces on other pages so that they would be different. I also differentiated between the sizing, being that some images were made to be very small, taking up only the edge of the page, whilst other images were placed central to suit the image paired with it.

I wanted to create standardisation in my work by making all of the archived material have the exact same design. I came across different border options which I experimented with side-by-side to the pairing image so that I could see which one I preferred.

I also had to find the same border for the images that were portrait, as many of my archived images were landscape. However, this wasn’t a problem as I was able to zoom in the image and crop it to fit.

I also alternated the positioning of the images to assess how well the compositions went together so that I could figure what order to place them into.

For example:

I wanted to make sure that the material in the images was focused towards the centre as this is important in

I played with pairing images too as this would help me piece together the narrative whilst also show me what suited and what didn’t.

During this process, I was able to do final touches and alterations to my images so that they would accommodate the other images. This also helped me see what weaknesses I had in my images and how I could perfect them.

In images, like this one below, that were over-exposed, I used the masking brush tool as this allowed me to edit specific areas of the image without making alterations to the overall image. I did this with this photograph as it gives high contextual information about my brother. I wanted to highlight the depth of the cracks in the door whilst also keeping the image dark at an appropriate amount because this will make the image come across as angry and hurt, which are relevant emotions concerning my brother.

I experimented with this in numerous ways as I wanted to make it look the most dramatic as I could whilst still making sure it looked realistic:

I started experimenting with different layouts for my front and back cover as this sets the scene for the viewer to give them a clue on what this is going to be about. I saved doing this until last so that I would find it easier as then I can choose from my selection of images that have already been displayed, being faster.

My ideas began like this:

I began to copy over my essay into the back of my photobook. I imported the reference images into my Lightroom Catalog so that I could drag them from the strip into the pages of the book.

To add text, I used the photo description box which is just a simple text box while for my images I used the photo choice.

Here, I could experiment with font types, sizing, spacing and boldness to decide which suited my photobook the most and which one was the nicest in my opinion.

I decided on a solid black background colour as I feel that the darkness and opacity suggests to the viewer that this photobook is concerned with topics that are deep and serious. I didn’t like how the templates sat so I decided to use one, and then create my own photo cell and measure it over the top so that they would be equal.

I paired these images as the front cover shows the start of his life, and the back cover shows a more recent photograph of him once he has endured the battles of his mental health and has changed as a person. The shine of the flash in the first image can be echoed into the back cover image, which not only gives it consistency but can be perceived as still having small parts of his old personality tucked away in his mind somewhere.

I chose on the title ‘Fragments of Him’ for a number of reasons. For one, the two images on the front and back cover are small, acting like a window into his life. This is also reinforced by the pixilation on my brothers face on the front cover because there are pieces of him covering up his own face. Finally, I thought this name was well suited and appropriate as many of my images are quite abstract, being that they allow the viewer to have small flashes into the direct experiences of my brother and the second-hand repercussions that untreated mental health issues have on a family.

I decided on the Georgia font and put it into bold in order to make it stand out against the contrasting black so that it would be more eye-catching. Once I did this, I standardised all of my writing in the photobook so that it would be the same.

Once I had completed this, I felt that I wasn’t quite done with my photobook. So, under my archived images, I began to write small anecdotes about what mine and my brothers relationship was like, his hobbies and the family dynamic. I did this to provided context to these archived images but also so that the viewer can get to know who my brother was/is and learn about his life.

I dragged the image caption down further away so that it would stand alone and be more emotive. I also altered the colour of the pages as I felt that the white was too harsh for a subject matter like this.

Once I had my final checks, I sent my book to Blurb.

I chose for standard portrait with a hardcover image wrap, with premium lustre paper.

My Final Layout:

The first set of images I began to experiment with were digital archived images that my parents found of me and my brother, as well as singular images of my brother or with his friends from childhood. I imported these onto the computer from my phone and began to experiment with them in Photoshop using different techniques.

My initial idea going into this was to create adaptations to the images and convey a message of concealing his identity to protect him as these images are of me and him at vulnerable ages, susceptible to different kinds of traumas and the risks within the world that parents try to protect their children from. These images reflect a time of innocence and naivety to connote feelings of nostalgia. A very affluent theme within my personal study is looking at memories, so by making adaptations to these archived images that are associated with core memories from childhood, it changes the meaning behind the images to think back to how my brother used to be before this illness completely changed his identity. This also is representative of how these core memories with my brother are something I think back to all the time and reflect on the person who he used to be in comparison to now where the entire family dynamic has been altered.

However, although I am using family albums in my personal study, I still need to ensure that the image isn’t too under-exposed or over-exposed as I need to ensure I am using effective images.

My first few experiments are inspired by the aesthetic of the ‘unknown user’ profile pictures that people typically use when trying to be anonymous. This is because I think that this is an effective way to show how my brother is not the person who he once was, and demonstrates how he may feel out of touch with himself or like another person because of how much the illness has deteriorated him. This anonymity also contributes to my idea of showing the stigma surrounding men’s mental health in a subtle and muted way as it could be interpreted as hiding away due to a diagnosis due to the perception that men shouldn’t be emotional or speak out about their mental health.

What I began looking at was empty silhouettes of my brothers face, using the Lasso tool in Photoshop to create my selection and delete it to reveal a plain white background. I then added the gradient tool to the white page so that this would be shown through the selection, instead of being this cut out as a block colour as this looked too strange and was very plain.

Whilst I did like this idea of total concealment, I found that the image still looked quite plain and didn’t really convey the message in a clear way. Even though there was a gradient in the image, it still looked very flat and not very interesting, even if I changed the colour it looked quite odd.

I then attempted this again with another image, however this time I included the strands off hair that were laying on his face as this would not only add more texture to the image, but make it look more detailed and intricate rather than being a flat and simplified cut out. I also repeated this method with the same image I used before so that I could see if the images would link together and work cohesively.

I preferred the way this looked more, however the cut out still looks very exaggerated and dramatic and I feel like this has the possibility of taking away from the ‘memory’ aspect of the image as it doesn’t have that soft touch to it. However, I may still use these as I feel like it looks like an anonymous user profile picture which I could use to link to the present. However, I am going to have to think about this after I begin taking my other photoshoots to see it aligns correctly with my other ideas.

I didn’t really like these experiments that I created so I decided to try a different approach with this method where his entire body was surrounded instead.

I repeated this process again with another image as I felt that it would work very well with this technique:

I think that this was successful as it balances the aesthetic of the image instead of looking out of place.

I began thinking about the other ways I could represent anonymity and concealing identity in a way that I thought would be not only more accurate to the techniques that people usually use to remain anonymous, but would also have a softer touch to them to keep the same tone of nostalgia and protection as well as the aspect of remembrance. I did this because it means that I can include a variation of these methods in my final photobook.

I began playing around with the idea of pixilation. There wasn’t a tool for this in Photoshop so I began by using the rectangle tool to make reasonably sized squares to begin covering my brothers face. I also used the eyedropper tool to select the different tones of my brothers skin and hair so that the pixels looked accurate. I had to make sure that both the fill (the box) and the stroke (the outline) were the exact same colour so that this wouldn’t look strange and actually looked as if his face had been really pixelated.

I started duplicating them and then changing the colour to make sure that each of them were the same size.

Whilst I was beginning to experiment with this, I realised that the resolution of the image was quite poor, and whilst I am using the snapshot aesthetic, the image was still quite blurry and out of focus. I decided to go back to the image that I used before as I wasn’t too fond of the initial outcome anyway, and the composition of the image was nicer too, for example I’m wearing pink whilst my brother is wearing blue.

I repeated this process continually over my brothers face until I thought that the shape and size of the cluster worked proportionally. This resulted in a large amount of layers:

Similarly…

I didn’t really like the edits I made on this experiment as I felt that the pixels were too large so I attempted this again using smaller cubes:

I pixelated this image of my dad and brother playing pool on holiday when he was younger. Whilst the resolution isn’t as great as I would’ve liked, I am still going to use this image in my photo-book because it acts as a contextual cue for my images containing the keyring of a pool ball. This way, I can imply how my brother’s mental health restricted him from continuing with his hobbies, and I feel that this will be a very reflective way of what my brothers personality used to be like and his different interests.

I repeated these two methods in several different images to have an element of consistency in my photobook. I also experimented with cutting out just my brothers face and also his body to still keep them differentiated.

I found a few images of my brother in his football kit so I can enforce the same contextual cues.

I am also going to use these two images to pair them with my second photoshoot that took place at the same beach to show context:

Final and best images:

 ‘The duty thus falls upon the snapshooter not to just ‘save’ moments, but to ‘immortalise’ the people who they photograph’ Stephen Bull, Photography 2009

The notion of family is a theme that is closely exhibited within photography from a multitude of perspectives, ranging from the demonstration of healthy relationships, to more negative storytelling through nostalgic cues, being that ‘a photograph can be a site for conflicting memories’ Kuhn (2003:397). Photographers like Yury Toroptsov and Philip Toledano use conceptual methods in their work in order to implicitly give away clues about the events of their childhood. These events are centred around the memory and loss of immediate family, as well as attempts to transform an emotive notion into singular images, for example a visual representation of an intangible feeling. Indexicality is abundant when memorialising family members who have passed away as it conceptualises that the “taking” of a photograph can be thought of as “pointing” to something in the world, being that these photographs are closely related to presence and absence, memory, the past and death. My personal study focuses on the difficulties and struggles of growing up with a family member who, over time, deteriorates from gaining a mental illness, this being my brother who has Bipolar disorder. The family album has been developed in congruency with advancements in technology in order to pass down generational stories in order to commemorate them to serve as souvenirs of the past. My interest stems from how these tributes to past events can be used to evoke emotional stories of personal difficulties.

I find an analysis of Toroptsov and Toledano to be most appropriate here as my work resonates with theirs in a relative manner, allowing me to convey the difficulties of grieving someone who is still alive yet not who they once were. A dominating factor, however, lies in the direct contrast between Toledano’s project of When I Was Six against Toroptsov’s work entitled Deleted Scene. Toledano’s project inhabits a dark tone throughout the photobook where he depicts archival material from his older sister’s life, Claudia, before she died in childhood, and characterises these images through ethereal dream-like images in between to represent disorientated emotions. I found that his still-life images of childhood keepsakes of which belonged to Claudia were able to create tension within his storytelling which is what I aim to do in my own work in order to depict life before my brother fell unwell to enable my viewer to follow the narrative in a chronological way and learn of a vulnerable perspective. Additionally, I wanted to interpret his ethereal images, which can be seen to resemble fluidity of emotion, into a more domestic setting by using a relatively low exposure and low angles. Alternatively, Toroptsov expresses echoes of his father within his home town of Russia in the form of ambiguous images through the formal elements and zooming into the more discrete patterns in his surroundings. I wanted to manipulate this into my work by showing the echoes of my brother in the areas of which we once shared pleasant childhood memories, yet these are sites of nostalgia and grief now. This obscurity that Toroptsov employs will allow me to be subjective and add a morose tone to my images.

The idea ‘snapshots did not reinforce the positive messages of the images, but instead went ‘beyond’ the album to fill in what the photographs did not record: negative memories’ (Bull 2009:94) is something I am also inhabiting in my work through the use of archived images of my brother in childhood and creating digitised alterations to further pursue this idea of change from the person he was remembered as. I looked at the work of Carolle Benitah for this concept as one of my artist references as she redefines herself by using her own archived images from family albums in order to symbolise and hint at different events of her life.

Origin of the family album

The development of the family album has coincided with new advancements in technology throughout history, for example ‘A Victorian album was itself a series of visual novelties, with the portraits often cut up and arranged in decorative shapes and incorporating drawings and other scrapbook items’ (Holland 2004: 128). Beginning in 1900, Eastman Kodak produced the Kodak box brownie, a basic box camera with pre-loaded film. Retailing for $1 at the time, the simplicity and low cost aspect provided specifically the middle and upper-class with the ability to generate snapshots of each other, friends and pets in order to create physical manifestations of family memories. The Kodak box brownie introduced amateur photography, with one hundred thousand of them being purchased during the first year alone, as an alternative from the difficult, lengthy and expensive processes of professional photographers inhabiting techniques of daguerreotypes and calotypes. Its simplicity began to develop and led to Kodak producing a mass of varieties, where ‘working-class people could present themselves to each other, creating a confident working-class identity’ (Holland 2004: 135)

The first commercial photographic process of Carte-de-visite, inhabited by Henry Mullins whose work is one of the most prolific within the Societe Jersiase Photo-Archive, is defined by its close-trimmed portraited aesthetic that was intended as a substitute for a visiting card. This small albumen print was produced through the use of egg whites in order to bind the photographic chemicals to the paper, with the image emerging as a direct result of exposure to light. The typical carte-de-visite consisted of one or a few people in a studio setting, sometimes holding personal belongings to be remembered by. The cost-effective aspect meant that they were easy to formulate, making cheap copies of the same photo to be handed out to loved ones, being less delicate too so they did not require velvet-lined cases like earlier forms of photography like the Daguerrotype.

Mullins specialised in carte-de-visites, capturing 9,000 portraits of islanders during 19th century Jersey. His work was highly politicised due to the variations of occupational backgrounds and the containment of the island’s most affluent and influential people at the time. These images consisted of Jersey political elite, such as The Bailiff, mercantile families, military officers and professional classes like doctors or advocates. Mullins gathered all these images and compiled them into an album to document the levels of social class, beginning with the most powerful roles down to the less fortunate.

Now, the idea that ‘The family album is now being slowly supplanted by the development of social media and the decline of traditional film’ Dennett (2006: 124) is rife within society, being that anyone in the world with access to technology, such as a phone, can practice amateur photography; specifically for the preservation of memories and reminiscence of people and places. These technologies mean that the exchanging of memorial family images is a simpler process now, and is ever-growing in its approach to conserving the loved ones who have passed away or are distant. This chance of amateur photography stems from how ‘Once a technology exists, it may become adapted and introduced into social use in a variety of both foreseen and unforeseen ways’. (Price 2004: 13)

The work of Toroptsov and Toledano use the topics of loss and memory to exorcise personal and internal conflicts in family matters where ‘These silences, these repressions, are written into the album, into the process of its making, and into actual photographs.’ Kuhn (2003:400) in order to express a dark tale for others to relate to.

Yury Toroptsov

This reminiscence is visible in Toroptsov’s work entitled Deleted Scene where he ventures out into his hometown within Russia, Vladivostok, to capture the echoes of his father within the formal features of the landscape.

Due to his father passing when Toroptsov was just two-years-old, he aims to unravel the neglected recollection of him as he bears little to no memories of the time he spent with him. This lures Toroptsov out into the external environment in order to get to know his father through the fragments of his memory that are scattered in these locations. Knowing that this time was shared with his father, yet unable to relish in the memories to recollect and rewind, is represented through the mysterious tones that he depicts in this photobook. These distinct patterns in rural areas of nature become cinematic through the high contrast within the composition as this adds drama and solemnity to the image to infer to the viewer that there is a dark concept and story being symbolised through the small pieces that build up the environment, just like there are pieces of Toroptsov’s father’s memory which he must seek out in order to know him. Through the ambiguity of the images, he uses an ominous tone within the images which could be metaphorical towards the difficulty of growing up in a single-parent household as something beknown is missing to Toroptsov, however at a younger age he may or not been able to acknowledge that his father had passed.

The sharp contrast is the most eye-catching feature in this image, the comparison of the saturated yellow lake paired with the dark natural landscape of leaves and sticks displays the composition in a bold and vibrant way to catch attention. These sticks and leaves disturb the smoothness of the block-coloured water and adds texture specifically in the foreground as these are spread across more meaning that the viewer can focus on the individuality of each piece, restructuring the initial sense of tranquillity and order. As this saturated tone of yellow is commonly associated with hazardous signs, this adds a cautionary aspect to the image that conveys emotions of unsettlement, not only because of this association but also because of how unusual this composition is, creating a tone of not everything being the way it should be. This can relate to the psychological feeling of the uncanny, where everything appears correct at face value however there is just something slightly off-putting. Reflections of the surrounding trees are echoed into the yellow swamp below, adding an intricate pattern of lines in a variety of lengths and sizes to layer over one another. This creates a textural perspective to layer over this blanket of yellow that was initially thought to be flat, adding greater depth to the image and makes it come to life in a 3D manner. This layering of reaching arms off the branches of the trees can be interpreted as resembling his fathers connection to Vladivostok, being Toroptsov’s home town, and depicting that his heritage is all around him here. This is an obscure metaphor through the delicate pattern that the branches create which look like the veins within the human anatomy, being an accurate representation of how the blood vessels spread out in a randomised order, intertwine and vary in sizing. This could be Toroptsov’s attempt at trying to show that even if he doesn’t recall his father, he has the ability to honour his memory even if he is ultimately a stranger to him. This provides indexicality to Toroptsov’s work, this being tangible evidence of a things existence as he is shooting geographical parts of his home town. This concept is concerned with how the ‘taking’ of a photograph can be thought of as ‘pointing’ to something in the world.

In my own work, I have found inspiration from Toroptsov to explore this ideology of seeking the “unseen” or picking apart the location as a form of obscure metaphors in memorable places that me and my brother shared our childhood in, however I have included this in a domestic environment instead to show the echoes of my brother at home when he has been admitted to hospital again.

This image is taken of my back door next to my brothers room which he uses regularly due to him being a smoker, however I thought that this would make a strong image, specifically because of the diagonal lighting that goes past the window and bounces onto the wall as when it is paired with the darkened shadows, this creates an effect of gloom and mystery. This image is slightly under-exposed, however this was my aim because I don’t want my images to be too bright as this may convey emotions differing to what I am intending, for example it may make the image look more happy as bright images can be commonly associated with lighter feelings, rather than this solemn tone that I am aiming for. As there is natural lighting coming through the window, this creates a glowing effect in the centre of the image that could be interpreted as seeing “the light at the end of the tunnel” due to the darkness that is in the hallway until it reaches this burst of light. As this window acts as a privacy window due to the texture over it, meaning that the end of my garden is reflected through. Because of the objects in my garden, this has created a purple tinge to glow through which I think contributes to this idea of things getting better over time. This image also connotes ideas of being trapped, for example the cat flap acting as if a portal to the outside world even when the door is locked, however it is evidently too small for a human to go through. I feel that this is very representative of this idea of negative mental health making a person feel helpless and trapped within a consistent cycle of breakdown, treatment and healing that has repeatedly had an effect on my brother for years. This darkness shadowing around the image acts confining, as if the back door is holding in all of this darkness. I think this could clearly represent how mental health is not a physical thing, but more like a fever of the mind that is more difficult to treat in comparison to a tangible injury and disease.

These images depict the out-of-place feeling that loss brings into a family, and while the conceptual difference is that my grief is directed towards someone who is still alive, this use of an ambiguous aesthetic allows me to represent the intangible feeling of missing who my brother once was and how his memory reflects off the walls. I like Toroptsov’s approach of minimalism and formalism because it allows the viewer to familiarise themselves with the person that this memorial is for, and allows the viewer to creep into small snippets of their life for moments at a time through these snapshots.

Philip Toledano

However, Philip Toledano takes an altered approach when immortalising the life of his nine year old sister, Claudia, after she passed away. Being a conceptual visual artist, Toledano creates a narrated photobook entitled When I Was Six that is formulated through a concoction of still-life images and atmospheric “heaven-like” images in order to put the viewer into the shoes of his six-year-old self, exploring the human psyche.  The way that the photo-book has been pieced together has been done very thoughtfully, thinking about the dream-like images first comes across as some sort of escape from the reality of Claudia’s death for Toledano, imagining these landscapes that connote emotions of peace, vulnerability and freedom from demons in his mind, even as a six year old who wouldn’t be able to process such a devastating concept. How well would a six year old be able to understand death, such a traumatic and disruptive event? Such a trauma to a six year old would be psychologically altering as Philip Toledano wouldn’t of been cognitively “ready” to acknowledge the passing of his sister, giving him the opportunity to meet his sister through the memories of her left behind in a box in the attic, barely spoken about since this ordeal. These still-life images document artifacts from Claudia’s life, her belongings, such as her school pencil, however this also provides documentation of her life too, such as her certificate of death. On the other hand, these ethereal-looking patterns that Toledano incorporates adds form and depth through the changing of direction and movement, representing the fluidity of emotion that could be portraying the loss of control Toledano had over his own at the time of her passing. Toledano ‘placed the photographs with hand-painted, fantasy scenes in order to create narratives of escapism’ (Bull 2009:93) in order to be retrospective of how he felt at the time of the event.

‘I don’t have any memories of my life after she died, except for this kind of peculiar fascination with space travel and astronomy. I think it was a way of being somewhere else, far from what had happened.’ – Toledano tells Time Magazine

This image particularly resonated with me, capturing Claudia’s school summer dress from when she was nine, placed neatly and cautiously into what seems to be an adult shoe box with the lid off, accustomed by tissue paper underneath. When the image is initially viewed, the high contrast immediately draws the eye due to the tension between the blocked black background and the checked pattern on the dress. This juxtaposition forms an optical illusion as this variance adds drama, making this burst of colour and the textural aspect of the dress look out of place and adds an aspect of solemnity as this looks so awkward. With the box placed just out of centre and pushed off to the side, this adds a sense of the uncanny – the idea that something isn’t quite right. I also find this where the box isn’t placed exactly straight, appearing to have been just pushed into the lens with no real thought behind it. I consider this to be a purposeful action, possibly to symbolise how this box containing all of the objects that are associated with Claudia, including her school uniform, were pushed aside for 40 years unbeknownst to Toledo, only to be discovered once his parents had passed away. The tissue paper behind the dress is crinkled, showing its age as its been discarded for so long. However, I find that this may resemble the memory of Claudia withering away from within the box over the years, specifically due to Toledano stating that ‘I have no memories of my life after my sister’s death for a few years’. (Toledano tells GUP Magazine) What I find is the most motivating factor within Toledano’s image is the lighting technique he has used. This image has been taken from a bird’s eye view using artificial light, however this lighting is in a squared shape, possibly done by using a specific head on the light above or, if he didn’t have the equipment for this, perhaps using different material to create this square outline as it is not entirely perfect. As the lighting has been pushed to the left side to oppose the dress slightly to the right, I feel that this may be reflective of how young Claudia died, explaining why only a partial selection of the dress has been highlighted by this glow. I also feel that this may be representative of that feeling of emptiness and loneliness that we find after a loved one has passed away, as I said before, showing that the beginning stages of grief may lure someone to begin to question their place in the world, what their purpose is. This could be reflective of the shift in Toledano’s family dynamic when he was younger, demonstrating how Claudia wasn’t mentioned much again due to the heartache, making her life slowly disappear into the darkness.

In my own work, I have created similar image types however I wanted to shoot these in locations relevant to my brothers childhood as I feel that this provides more contextual information that is necessary in making my narrative consistent.

I plan to sequence these together, shooting childhood toys outside my brothers old football changing rooms, because I feel that this symbolises the leaving behind of my brothers memory and how the memories of his childhood remain here unobtainable to him due to the severity of his illness at this time. I used opposing angles and distances for these two images and edited them side by side so that I could ensure they had the same tonal range in order to keep congruity. I set them up on this bench as if they were waiting for somebody to collect them, as if they had been lost, in order to represent how I would sit and wait for my brother. I also think that this is effective due to the way the changing rooms look so dull and lifeless when paired with the muted greenery as the entire image looks depressing and lonely due to it being so empty. I think that this has portrayed how segments of both mine and my brothers childhood is left here as if it is left unsolved or unfinished as times changed so quickly once my brother became unwell.

Conclusion

To conclude, the preservation of family memory is interpreted in many different ways in photography. Photographers like Yury Toroptsov use the formal elements to pick apart the environment around them to reveal the hidden echoes of their passed love one that they may encounter in everyday life. By attempting to understand who his father was through death, this offers a fresh approach to the subjects of memory and loss as Toroptsov must try to depict an image of who he was before his passing, and explores how such an abrupt loss at a young age could unconsciously impact him. On the other hand, more subjective photographers such as Philip Toledano incorporate multiple image types; still-life images and fantasy images. This collection of abstract metaphors connotes the suppression and blocking out of painful memories to resist facing a harsh truth of losing a family member. This explores the psychological repercussions of loss and memory. The family album has developed in congruity with technological changes, meaning the way we preserve memories has advanced too.

These concepts have influenced me to be subjective in my work through trying to visually represent an intangible feeling, however it has allowed me to formulate ideas where I can include contextual cues within the background of the environment by going to specific locations that me and my brother share childhood memories at, even if he cannot recall them as easily as me. With four photoshoots so far, I initially began with a domestic environment where I used not only different angles of low lighting but also incorporated some of my brothers personal items, using different depths of field, through the inspiration of Toledano’s ethereal images which produced some of my favourite images. I followed this by using objects that relate to my brothers childhood as well as the memories we share with each other and shot these in locations related, using dynamic angles to add drama and solemnity to the images to represent how these memories have been lost and discarded. I feel that this has actively been effective in illustrating how my brother has changed from who he once was as his mental illness has worsened, depicting how it feels so grieve someone who is still present.

Finally, I have used the snapshot aesthetic in my use of archival image experimentation, where I have pixelated and silhouetted my brother. Creating adaptations to the image conveys an effective message of protection at such a vulnerable age for what was about to come in the future where he was susceptible to risks within the world through innocence and naivety. These adaptations change the meaning of the images to compare the past to the present, and represents how these core memories are always thought of.

Bibliography:

Family
Bull, S. (2009), ‘Phototherapy: The Family Album and Beyond‘ in Photography. London: Routledge.

Dennett, T. (2006), ‘Beyond The Album’ in Jo Spence’s Family Album. London: Virago Press.

Memory

Kuhn, A. (2003). ‘Remembrance: The Child I Never Was’ in Wells L. (ed) The Photography Reader. London: Routledge

History

Headshots | 2025 Photography A Level Blog

Holland, P (2004), ‘Sweet it is to scan…: personal photographs and popular photography.’ In: Wells, L. (ed.) (2004), Photography: A Critical Introduction. London: Routledge

Price, D (2004), ‘Thinking about photography: debates, historically and now.’ In Wells, L. (ed.) (2004), Photography: A Critical Introduction. London: Routledge

Turnbow (2023), Before Instagram, There Was Kodak. Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum: https://womenshistory.si.edu/blog/instagram-there-was-kodak

In this photoshoot, I wanted to add an under-exposed aesthetic to my images as I have began thinking about the sequencing of my photobook as this is a key aspect in making sure the narrative is consistent. These images are related to those I took during my second photoshoot, however they are taken at differing times of day and weather.

My intentions with these photos is to sequence them with relevant archived family images which I have experimented with in Photoshop, for example pairing the images relevant to football with images of my brother from when he was younger.

I wanted to use a darker tone in my images this time through the use of the time of day and weather type because it will enable me to show the other side of reminiscing on childhood memories – this being the more negative side where I reflect on the implications my brother has faced due to his diagnosis and add a tone of solitude into the images instead of a happier composition where it connotes ideas of remembrance and hope.

I took this photoshoot at FB football fields as this is where my brothers passion and talent for football began and where I used to go and watch him play matches to support him. Since he became unwell, he hasn’t really continued with his football as he hasn’t really had the motivation to go, so in this photoshoot I wanted to represent how he gave up his love for football, alongside the idea of having childhood memories stuck here.

During my editing, I wanted to ensure that the image was still kept dark to represent emotions of grief, however I wanted to highlight the objects in the image to show small hints of my brothers memory. I did this by using the object masking tool and increasing the highlights or exposure of that particular item to make it stand out from the background and prevent it from blending in.

I also added a vignette to a majority of my best images just to reinforce the idea of seclusion and solitude as it darkens the edges so that not only the overall image appears sombre, but because it will create a more dramatic effect where the objects can be highlighted. This means that the viewer can really reflect on the comparison of the family image compared to these images as they become binary opposites being happy to sad.

Final Images:

For this image, I shot with a low exposure in order to create this dark contrast. As it wasn’t great weather, the different tones of grey in the storm cloud can be seen to once again represent that fluidity of emotion that I as aiming to show in order to keep the narrative consistent on the various differing emotions surrounding my brothers mental health. I shot this from a low angle so that I could get the net of the goal to look similar to a cross-hatching pattern which I think has worked really well because this allows me to take images of sections of the landscape using formalism. Also, the more distinct straight lines add structure to the image in a more dramatic way which can connote feelings of seriousness and solemnity. The lock on the goal could be interpreted as if my brothers illness has locked away his passion and these certain memories that he may struggle to reflect on, restricting him from becoming the person he once was or growing from these experiences. The image didn’t require much editing as the natural sunlight was concealed by a cloud which meant that I could add a gloomy effect to really represent the morose tone in the atmosphere.

In this image, I placed down an image of me, my brother and my cousin from when we were in the UK at a photobooth. I noticed that the pitches had marks on them from the groundskeeper, so I used this as leading lines central to the image to symbolise how my brothers illness caused him to walk away from football. I wanted to add the image in as if he had left himself behind when his illness didn’t allow him to play football anymore because I thought that this would add a stronger emotive factor. I added a vignette because this helped me reinforce the feelings of desolation as it makes the edges of the image darker which denotes negative feelings. I took this image at a relatively low angle and pointed in diagonally so that the background of the image appeared smaller than the foreground. I feel that this enabled me to portray feelings of isolation and loneliness as there is nothing else in the image so that the viewer solely focuses on the concept behind the image rather than the technical aspects, making it more ambiguous. Also, the alternating directions and shades of the grass make the image look more chaotic as it adds movement and texture, which could be linked to the contradicting feelings that my brother feels about his ending of football.

With these two images, I wanted to show the football left in the goal, untouched, as if it was representing the last time my brother played football. Instead of using a normal sized football, I used a smaller one as I wanted to show how young my brother started playing football and how this ended so abruptly when he reached the age of around 17 years old. I used a really small ball to add irony to the image through the dramatic difference in size between the ball and goal itself to make a implicit comparison to now, where the goal is now larger to resonate with how my brother has grown up, however the ball still remains small as his passion for football did not continue, hence why it has not increased in size.

In this image, I used the same angle as I did before however I bent down closer to the ground so I could get a more detailed image. I feel that there is a high contrast between the grass and the bar of the goal due to the vibrancy that works really well when using a low exposure because it adds drama to the image as the line is so defined. The way that the white of the bar is off-coloured, I feel that this could represent how my brothers main concern at the time was how well he played in a football match, something so innocent and pure, whereas now his priority is trying to get better from his bipolar which is a more difficult process, hence all of the marks on the goal. I used a vignette on this image to emphasize the dark tonal range which then meant that the ball looked brighter and would contribute to it being the focal point of the image. I used an angle that was diagonal to the goal which has created a straight line across the image to section it which adds structure and a more formatted aesthetic. The goal net itself does this too, however the curves of the lines create movement and shape.

I used a similar approach in the image, however I put the camera on its side just about touching the grass which has meant that a lot of pieces are blurred in the foreground and look enlarged. I feel that this image looks like a combination of the previous images as this incorporates the stormy weather in the background to evoke feelings of gloom and despair, however this image uses a lot of lines such as the grass spiking up against the goal which may symbolise spikes in my brothers mental health in critical periods. The image was quite bright due to the weather being a large part of the image so I used a vignette on this image too as it allows me to darken the edges of the image, however I wanted to do this to emphasize the shadows made by the grass in the foreground as darkness evokes negativity which is relevant to my brothers emotions about this topic.

In my photobook, I am going to pair these images together as I feel the sequencing of them will be really effective. I took this image outside of the football changing rooms where I would always wait for my brother after his football matches as I was very young and would be ecstatic to congratulate him. For the first image, I stood quite far back and zoomed out the camera so that the objects looked far away, but could still be seen. I then moved closer, zoomed back in and bent down at a lower angle so that I could centralise the objects and take an image that was specifically looking into what they were. In my editing, I put the images side by side so that I could ensure both images had the same tonal range and looked as if they were exactly the same. I also used the object masking tool in order to brighten and highlight just the toys in a subtle way without altering the overall lighting because this meant that the objects wouldn’t disappear and blend into the background when they are the main focal point. I set them up on this bench as if they were waiting for somebody to collect them, as if they had been lost, in order to represent how I would sit and wait for my brother. I also think that this is effective due to the way the changing rooms look so dull and lifeless when paired with the muted greenery as the entire image looks depressing and lonely due to it being so empty. I think that this has portrayed how segments of both mine and my brothers childhood is left here as if it is left unsolved or unfinished as times changed so quickly once my brother became unwell.

I wanted to experiment with ways on how to represent nostalgia, and how fragments of my brother remain in certain areas from my childhood where I have formed core memories with him or just areas near my house that he frequently enjoys going to. In this instance, I focused on La Mare beach which is a 5 minute walk from my house as my brother usually takes my dog for long walks here. I thought this would be an effective location too as this meant I could utilise the motion of the waves, rippling in and out, to add elements of fluidity to represent emotion.

For example, the tide swells in and out, and I feel that this is relative to the way that my brothers mental health fluctuates between the distinct line of ‘well’ and unwell. I like this metaphor because it subtly hints at the unpredictable nature of my brothers illness which I feel will be very powerful when I begin sequencing for my photo-book. As well as this, I used the sunset to create different reflections off the water to add vibrancy to my images.

I have began to think about my sequencing, and have collected archived images that link extremely well. For example:

Final Images:

For this image I created my own fake footprints in the sand in order to make it appear as if someone is walking away from the teddy bear that I placed against the rock. The teddy bear is representative of my brother as he gave it to me when I was younger so I wanted to incorporate that sentimental value in the image. I wanted the image to appear as if someone is leaving the teddy bear behind because I feel that this is a good representation of how, this area specifically, is nostalgic for me due to the memories that me and my brother share. However, my intention is to convey the message that reminiscing over a person who does not exist anymore is a difficult thing, and sometimes the easiest thing to do is to walk away. The tide did swell in when I was taking this image, however I found this to be really effective because it is as if the tide is coming in to take the memories away, symbolising how my brothers illness may distort once pleasant memories or erase them. The sea looks as if its over-exposed in comparison to the rest of the image, however I do like this aspect because it makes the image have a higher contrast. As the tide is in the background of the composition, this could connote ideas of ‘the light at the end of the tunnel’, this being due to the section of the teddy being darker to represent how a once pleasant memory is now concerned with heavier issues. The footprints could also be associated with moving on from the childhood memories and coming to terms with reality and the harsh truth that things may not be the same again, however this is a time to make new memories in these locations and leave behind those that may not be as easily recalled by my brother anymore.

I chose to use this as my second object because my brother habitually plays pool with my dad and he has done since he was a child. I simply dropped the key ring from standing height and let it fall into a natural position, however I did this 3 times because I wanted to ensure that the viewer would know what it is. I used a very low angle, with the side of the camera touching the sand and pointing slightly up to the sky. I had to experiment with this as I obviously couldn’t see what the image would look like in the viewfinder, so I had many attempts. I used a short depth of field so that it would just be the keyring focused on as this is the main focal point of the image. I like the way that the keyring looks as if it’s just been discarded in a careless way because this shows how these memories are getting lost in the midst of his illness. I feel that the dramatic positioning of the keyring paired with the low angle is really effective here as it looks as if its been left behind and forgotten about. Also, the small lumps and bumps on the sand have created a lot of texture within the image due to the sand being so close to the lens of the camera which I think works really well when paired with the blurred and smoothed background as it is out of focus.

I wasn’t sure which one of these images I preferred as they were taken in the same multi-shot, however I liked how they both looked next to each other as it reinforces the concept of the sea swelling in and out just how mental health can fluctuate quickly between coping and struggling. I liked these images because the keyring is out of focus which contradicts my last image, however I liked this idea of almost ‘hiding in plain sight’ as if it is waiting to be revealed to the viewer. This is relative to nostalgia because it resonates with the idea that the memories of an area build up into a persons perception of that location. I like this idea of ‘seeking’ out different sections of memory as this could also be interpreted into how my brother may not be able to recall all of the memories that I do, therefore he has to pick apart the environment around him in order to remember. I feel that the muted pastel colours of the sunset connote feelings of reflection and hope as they stand out against the more negative blue tones in the foreground of the images. In the image of the tide surrounding the key ring, I feel that this could represent how these childhood memories may become ‘washed away’ due to my brothers illness and how he may not recognise himself anymore through things such as his hobbies.

The next 3:

In each of the three images below I experimented with hiding the objects within the frame to show how small fragments of my brothers memory are hidden in this area and spread out to bring nostalgia at any time. I got this idea from the images before as I feel that this is a good way to represent how little sections of the memories we share can build up certain locations.

I added a blue tint to the image so that the blue on the teddy bear is reflected and echoed into the rest of the image to create a more depressing tone. I like the composition of this image as there is a lot of line and shape in the foreground that can act as leading lines up to the bear as many of the curves and grooves in the rocks are pointing towards it. I was happy with this result as I did want to incorporate some of the landscape however I wanted to do this using the formal elements in a more ambiguous tone which I think is successful here. I also increased the highlights in the image to brighten the teddy as I didn’t want it to be lost within the composition as it is quite busy, which also removed the orange tones from the background which could’ve confused the concept of the image as warmer colours are commonly associated with emotions of happiness and joy.

This image did not require much editing at all. Once again, I kept the key ring out of focus as I wanted to play on this idea on showing the memories in a subtle way. I am really pleased with this composition as the dark red of the keyring is repeated throughout by the rocks as the majority of these are a range of dark reds and burgundy. The seaweed also contributes to this as it not only amplifies the dark nature of the image, but also adds texture against the rocks. I feel that the two main sections of seaweed look at equal size which is aesthetically pleasing as it balances the foreground and background. Once again, I used a low angle so that I could make the key ring look enlarged so that the viewer doesn’t miss it. The focal point is the dark brown rock in the centre of my image so that the viewer has a middle point to them explore the image from in further detail. The angle that I have used has enabled me to inhabit a type of optical illusion where the objects in the foreground appear larger than they actually are, giving it a forced perspective.

I really liked this idea due to the high contrast that it inhabits through the randomised pattern of seaweed paired with the dramatic lines of the rocks because this adds texture to my images which in turn will make it look more 3D instead of becoming flat and lifeless. I took this image from a higher angle so that my photobook will incorporate different styles as this will make the images more interesting so that they don’t all look the same. I took this image facing the sunset instead to contrast my other images too as this allows me to gain different perspectives of the same location to tell a stronger visual story. Once again, I hid the teddy bear between a cluster of rocks so that the images still have a comparative and consistent aspect, placing it directly in the middle this time from a further distance. My favourite factor of this image is that I have caught the edge of the sunset on the side of the camera. I feel that this contributes to my research on vernacular photography as it gives the image a retro effect from vintage cameras.

For example:

I feel that this will link nicely with my archived pictures as I am keeping this element of ‘old images’ in the new images that I produce.

Photobooks are a typical format for presenting a photographers gallery of images. These images are contained into a concept, collection or a story, having an overarching theme. Sequencing and placement of the images are defining factors that contribute to the aesthetic of the book, however many photographers sometimes use text to relate these images to more qualitative information too.

Laia Abril – ‘The Epilogue’

“giving voice to the suffering of the indirect victims, the unwilling eyewitnesses of a very painful degeneration” – Laia Abril, Burn Magazine

I chose Laia Abril’s photobook ‘The Epilogue’ to deconstruct as not only does it surround a sensitive topic, this being the story of the Robinson family after the loss of their 26-year-old daughter to Bulimia, but it also incorporates many unique techniques in order to keep the narrative consistent and detailed.

“Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are brutal holidays in our family” – Cammy’s brother

The Epilogue

Abril works closely with the family to reconstruct Cammy’s life through memories and flashbacks to depict the second-hand implications that her family were affected by also, showing not only the absence, frustration and guilt that her family share, but to act as a memorial to her wilfulness and energy. By doing so, this photobook comes together to act as a bittersweet way of remembering a loved one.

However, this photobook has wider applications through its explorations of the dilemmas and inner conflicts that many young girls and their parents face, and by giving voice to the suffering of the family or the indirect victims of eating disorders, such as close friends, it allows their eyewitness stories to be heard to process this grief, or allowing the viewer to relate and feel seen in order to prove that they aren’t alone in their battle against it. This conveyed narrative of loss, tragedy and remembrance provides a tone of solace to the viewer through the rawness and honesty in documenting Cammy’s story.

Being quite a large photobook, Abril has multiple genres in relation to her image-making in order to depict the Robinson’s family accurately, whilst also being paired with information in a text format, including ‘testimonies’ from family members, as well as small captions describing what the image represented or what it involved.

The Epilogue employs contemporary pictures, archived family images, letters, interviews, and documents in order to attempt to answer the complex question of Cammy’s identity and highlight how she was beset by psychological problems. This breaks down her life into a distressing amount of detail and picks apart the events in her life leading up to her death so that we, as the viewer, can gain a holistic perspective of her and her family dynamic.

The book begins with candid images of the Robinson family paired with more landscape images to gain an initial understanding of who this person may be and allows the viewer to have a glimpse into what Cammy’s life was like:

The beginning images connote love and connection, this could be suggestive not only to the bond they share in their times of remembrance and grief, but also how Cammy was surrounded by adoration from all members of her family. This could also be relative to how this story began until her Bulimia deteriorated her.

Similarly, Abril incorporates contemporary images of items too, such as strawberries or trainers in the back of the car, possibly symbolising how remnants of Cammy are everywhere, and how they feel that she is still with them.

Abril includes medical information too. Towards the beginning of the book, Cammy’s new born identification sheet is digitised, creating a familiarity between the viewer and herself. Abril also does this with what seems to be Cammy’s ECG paper (tracing her heart) as it states earlier in the book that she previously had more than one seizure in relation to her eating habits.

Diary entries and letters from Cammy and family members also take multiple formats in The Epilogue, either being digitised, for example:

However, Abril also plants sections of these documents and data by making them look like leaflets overlaying the images that the viewer can pull out and read. I really like this aspect on Abril’s work because this creates a more physical perspective for the viewer rather than it being a singular visual narrative to make it more engaging. This could be a symbolisation of how her illness had good and bad days, explaining how her illness could spike at any given moment even in the midst of happy memories. I thought that this was extremely effective.

Abril also employs the use of archived images in order to be reminiscent on Cammy’s life and the moments that she felt enjoyment in order to make The Epilogue encapsulate the fluidity of emotion around this topic. Her use of various image styles and methods reinforce this idea, and this allows Abril to rehearse the story of the Robinson’s family overall to really assess what the situation was like and how this impacted all members.

With the image below, its clear to see that Abril uses a multitude of formats when layering her images too. This includes:

• Double page spreads,
• Single page,
• Half page spreads,

Abril also would play alternate with the sizing and placement of the images, sometimes making the image look as if it came from a polaroid, in contrast to placing the image just off-centre.

Laia Abril:

Abril’s work in photography is heavily affiliated with themes of bio-politics, grief and women’s rights. Abril pushes the boundaries from looking into the failing structures of law that continue to perpetuate rape culture, to the impacts of abortion control in varying cultures, leading to her various projects surrounding the impacts of eating disorders – Thinspiration, for example, being a self-published zine that challenges the use of photography in pro-ana websites (websites which use the promotion of behaviours that influence anorexia nervosa).

Her bodies of work strive to advocate for inequalities, specifically more feminist matters, which are able to act as forms of activism for the female community, and give those less fortunate a voice. I feel that with The Epilogue, Abril is striving to speak out to young girls who may be struggling with body image or an eating disorder themselves, and strives to assure them that they are not alone. This also provides solace to parents or families who may have a young daughter who struggles with an eating disorder or recovering from one, so that they can hear the Robinson’s story and use this to find peace within their possible own grief. Eating disorders are a sensitive issue and I feel that Abril intended to show the harsh reality behind them in order to spread this awareness, and could possibly be used to create preventative methods against them through the spread of awareness.

The Epilogue “… is a sombre and affecting photobook … dense and rewarding … At times, it makes for a painful read. From time to time, I had to put it down, take a breather. But I kept going back.” – The Guardian, Critic Sean O’Hagan

The Epilogue has received numerous awards, some of these being:

• In 2014, The Epilogue was shortlisted as First PhotoBook award in the Paris Photo-Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards
• The Hood Medal of the Royal Photographic Society
• In 2023, the Spanish National Photography Prize
• The PhotoEspaña Best Book Award
• The PhotoBook festival in Kassel

Narrative, Design, Concept:

The term ‘Epilogue’ actually means a final or concluding act or event, usually a section at the end of a book or play that serves as a comment or conclusion on what has happened. I find that this being paired with a graphic rectangle over can be assumed to be Cammy’s face is very powerful as it secretly hints at her death without giving away any specifics until further into the photobook. I find that this could be metaphorical for how different she became, as eating disorders do not change just a person’s body but their attitude, personality and mindset too. Although the title is literal, I find it quite poetic too as this is concluding what happened to Cammy until the end of her life, resonating with the ending of the book. The weight of the book goes hand-in-hand with the title too as it tacitly hints at the dark and heavy subject matter that Abril is representing.

The beginning and last pages have an ominous blue tonality to them, appearing to be leaves against a wall at night-time. This adds to the solemnity that the front cover inhabits, preparing the viewer for this dark story. The photobook has a hard cover that has been printed on, however the graphic section of blue is slightly raised in an embossed way. This is where the design is raised up from the surrounding material. Within the book, this also consists of three chapters categorised into dates so that there is a progression of her illness at three intervals. All of the pages are kept white and portrait, however some images have been enlarged so that Abril could have pages which fold over so that it is interactive.

Whilst all the different types of images that Laia Abril employs in this photobook, the image of the scales above is the most defining image of the photobook. This image is extremely powerful, being that it would have been used by Cammy when tracking her weight. The swift in tonality between the scales themselves and the white background creates an ominous tone that can be echoed throughout the rest of the photobook with support from Abril’s other images, adding a ghostly effect to the scales themselves. In my work, I would like to be able to use this idea of having a defining image in my photobook, because Abril has been able to use this to solidify and verify the narrative that the other images were implicitly hinting at. Images like these can tend to pause the viewer so that they can take time to really connect with the context of the narrative and think about the deep conceptual meaning behind it.

I copied in the essay plan from the blog and put it into my own blog post so that while I was working on my essay draft, I would be able to stay on track and know what I was doing:

Literary sources: Go to this blog post here: Theory: Literary Sources and copy relevant key texts relating to the subject of your essay and list in alphabetical order in your bibliography. In addition, find your own key texts in relation to artists selected for in-depth analysis in your essay and list these too. These texts could be interviews with the artist, or reviews/ critique’s written by others. See useful online sites/ sources here .

• Research and identify 3-5 literary sources from a variety of media such as books, journal/magazines, internet, Youtube/video that relates to your personal study and artists references .
• 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, page number to be used for in-text referencing etc.

Bibliography
List all the sources that you have identified above as literary sources. Where there are two or more works by one author in the same year distinguish them as 1988a, 1988b etc. Arrange literature in alphabetical order by author, or where no author is named, by the name of the museum or other organisation which produced the text. Apart from listing literature you must also list all other sources in alphabetical order e.g. websites/online sources, Youtube/ DVD/TV.

Essay Question

• Think of a hypothesis and list possible essay questions
• Below is a list of possible essay questions that may help you to formulate your own.

I began going through the Theory: Literary Sources blog post to look at the different subjects that were there to see which ones were the most relevant to my personal study and my artist references. I took screengrabs of these so that I could have a brief overview of all the key texts that I could use:

I included a section about snapshot/vernacular photography as this may be useful in my essay as this is part of my personal study.

Possible essay questions:

1. How does the work of Carole Bénitah and Jessa Fairbrother explore issues of memory and loss within family?

2. Compare How Phillip Toledano’s  and Nancy Borowick’s photography represent the concept of loss?

3. How have concepts of family, separation and memory been explored in the photo books of Sarello, Casanova and Germain?

4. How are concepts of loss and memory narrativised through the works of Markosian, Toroptsov and Sarello?

5. How have Yury Toroptsov, Mariela Sancari and Julian Germain reflected upon the  themes of memories and remembrance in the construction of their photobooks?

6. Explore How both Yury Toropstov and Julian Germain Convey the Theme of Loss, Through their work.

I thought it would be appropriate to go through possible essay questions on the blog and list them on my own because this way I can easily see which question would be the most relevant to my personal study. This way, I can start to go through and find quotes from the different sources so that I can begin my essay clearly. As well as this, it gives me a good starting point for my own research too.

Previous essays:

Below are previous high-marking essays from students that I feel are the most relevant to the concept of my personal study as this gives me good examples of what an effective structure looks like so that I can use this as a tool in my own essay.

How do Diana Markosian and Rita Puig-Serra Costa express the notion of family history and relationships in their work?

 In what ways do alterations in Jessa Fairbrother’s work make the visible what is invisible?

Format:

• Essay question: How does the work of Yury Toroptsov and Philip Toledano explore issues of memory and loss within family? 
• Opening quote: ‘surplus of Faustian energy and psychic damage needed to build modern, inorganic societies’ (Sontag 1977:4)
  
• 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?
• Pg 1 (500 words): Historical/ theoretical context within art, photography and visual culture relevant to your area of study. Make links to art movements/ isms and some of the methods employed by critics and historian. 
• Pg 2 (500 words): Analyse first artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
• Pg 3 (500 words): Analyse second artist/photographer in relation to your essay question. Present and evaluate your own images and responses.
• Conclusion (250-500 words): Draw parallels, explore differences/ similarities between artists/photographers and that of your own work that you have produced
• Bibliography: List all relevant sources used – example:

Sontag, S. (1977). ‘In Plato’s Cave’ in On Photography. London: Penguin Books.