Aim and intention

My aim after my recent post was to instead take photos of one gas station, take multiple of different petrol stations around the island. This will create variety and an attempt to replicate Ruscha’s famous photography work through his ‘ Twenty six gasoline stations’. After he succeeded within his travel, he later finalized them by putting them into a book in a very simple and dull way. Conversely, to create difference within my project I will be putting them all in a typology edited in a vintage aesthetic to show the contrast and comparison within each image. My aim is to try take them from an a far outside perspective aiming straight on to get the full view of each station. My editing, I will try to replicate the old aesthetic however this may be challenging as technology as evolved and always looks modern.

Photoshoot 2

Contact sheet-

I flagged my best and preferred images green and starred them to what I thought suited each image. This will create accessibility for me to find them in a more time- efficient way.

These were my variety of favourite images–

Edited Images

Typology

Old-

Improved/ Finalised product

Virtual Gallery-

Why did I choose Ed Ruscha?

I personally chose Ed Ruscha in relation to the Anthropocene as I wanted to focus on the cause rather than the subject itself within how human activity impacts the earth. Ed Ruscha was a perfect artist for inspiration as he is known for taking images of twenty six gas stations. This significantly links to the Anthropocene as the petrol and gas humans use massively effect the air pollution. Therefore, my idea was to take images of petrol stations in the modern aesthetic and attempt to edit it to make them look vintage and nostalgic. This is effective as it isn’t normally an every day thought when it comes to people filling up their car. Although this was not Ruscha’s aim, it is my aim to focus on the impact of petrol and gas specifically within the sector of air pollution. For context a typical passenger vehicle emits about 4.6 metric tons of CO₂ per year. This assumes the average gasoline vehicle on the road today has a fuel economy of about 22.2 miles per gallon and drives around 11,500 miles per year. Every gallon of gasoline burned creates about 8,887 grams of CO₂. So, instead of taking photos of animals becoming extinct or suffering due to air pollution e.g. polar bears in Antarctica. As Anthropocene is a project to show through art and photography the effect on the earth because of humans or what it could be potentially if us as humans began to make better choices. I wanted to significantly instead show the effects and impacts itself but the cause. I think this will benefit my project as it is different and links well to an artist reference.

What is my intention and aim?

My intention and aim is to significantly edit my images to look old and in a rusty aesthetic so it looks like Ruscha’s work which may be significantly harder to do so as everything has evolved to be modernized whereas Ruscha actually took the images in the 1960’s. Aside from that, my next step would to put them into a typology to add another technique towards my work as Ruscha sometimes did that. I want to keep my images dull and simple so it does not draw away the main factor to the image which is simply to remind the viewers that every-day basis factors that us as humans do not give a second thought about actually massively impact the earth. This links to Ruscha as in his famous book ‘ Twenty-six gas stations’ he kept it simple with little words and only the image to keep it interesting and eye catching to make the viewers focus on one thing; his photographs. Ruscha kept them in black and white potentially because he chose too or because colour was only beginning to evolve. I will edit some images in black and white to relate to his work but I will also keep some in colour to compare and contrast the modernized and vintage aesthetics. To keep it from being too dull and boring, I personally think putting it into a typology technique will significantly add an interesting and eye catching feature. Overall, my aim is too to show the causes of the damages not the damages through photography.

My Photoshoots and edits

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Edits in Lightroom & Photoshop-

Typology–

How this became my outcome-

Firstly, I began in light room by making sure the exposure and contrast was correct to my aim and put a tint on it to make it look old and vintage to try replicate Ruscha’s camera in the 1960’s. I did this through ‘presets’ and chose ‘cinematic 2 VN07’ as it had a warm tone that I personally preferred the most. My next step was to find a frame and add a layer onto my original images on photoshop. I blended them by merging them together and chose one that wasn’t standing out too much. I then chose the rubber tool to make the original layer the main focus of the image not the frame itself. I repeated this with different layers to experiment and see my preferred one. I kept them in black and white as my aim is to pretend that I have taken these images on old images.

What I could of improved on

Personally, I think I could of improved on texture to make it look more realistic. To do this, I would have to photoshop and edit to make my images grainy with a old and bad camera aesthetic. This would make my images more believable as I think my images are very clearly modern day looking. However, this may be challenging as it is very hard to make my images look grainy and vintage because of how much cameras have evolved and became so complex. This makes difficulty to try replicate Ed Ruscha’s. I also think I could of improved on my images itself within my first step. I think it would of been more beneficial for my typologies to execute a similar thing as Ruscha to take photographs of multiple gas stations. Therefore, each image would be the same thing however a different type. This would ultimately make my typology a lot more eye catching and draw attention to the eye as it is a lot more to look at and the viewer can compare and contrast each petrol station. To improve, I will take images of multiple gas stations and edit them to make them look realistic and old and put them into a typology to try and replicate Ed Ruscha’s famous book.

What I liked about my photoshoot vs his work

What I liked about my work was how it is a typology but however each image is the same. But I personally like how each edit is diversified which significantly keeps attention to my images for a viewer. This also creates creativity and experimentation to be able to figure out which my preferred style is and helps me learn from my mistakes or recent work to benefit for my future work. I loved the frames I added in photoshop as it added an old aesthetic and interesting feature which was needed as the images I chose were the same so it was not too dull and simple. Conversely, I liked his work as it was realistic and not edited in a book but also not too dull and boring as he diversified the gas stations by taking images of multiple gas stations rather than editing which kept it very simple, however mine was simple but in another factor. However, to try to improve and benefit my work I will try replicate his work but with my photoshop and editing to make it more my work and diversify it. I also liked how he kept his work in black and white to keep an old aesthetic but also so colour will not draw any attention to his images.

Experiments

How?

My plan is to relate my work with Ed Ruscha and Peter Mitchell. The main objective is to keep my images vintage and keep an old aesthetic. I will continue to take images of a variety of petrol stations like Ruscha and edit them into a typology to create difference. I will slightly edit them to make it look as if I am using an old camera however this factor may be challenging as technology as evolved and is difficult to make it look not modern. Within Mitchell, my focused objective is to take images of old buildings and compare them with modern buildings such as a modern cinema, shops, churches and old housing. With Mitchell, I will not be editing my images completely due to the fact it is not the image that is old it is the subject. This creates a contrast between the two artists as they are both obtaining an old aesthetic however in a varied way. A similarity I will be executing is the front on from far away point of view so the viewers can see the whole aspect. A large feature that is different is the time these were took and the choice of colours. I will be keeping my images in relation to Ruscha black and white and Mitchells in colour so I obtain my clear aim and succeed in my objective.

Where?

My work with Ruscha is specified as it is targeted towards petrol stations due to the carbon footprint which links to the Anthropocene. Furthermore, my plan is go around everywhere in the island to take multiple images. However, my plan with Mitchell is to focus in St. Helier as I believe it has the oldest features of every day life. However, it may be challenging to find old aesthetic factors as everything is evolving to be modern. Therefore, to make it easier and more accessible I will compare modern and vintage buildings to create variety.

Why?

In particular, I have chosen these artists in relation to the Anthropocene because I wanted to photograph the causes rather than the outcome and consequences. This is why I chose Ruscha due to the fact petrol has one of the largest carbon footprints and effect air pollution massively. So instead of completely showing the viewers the effect, I will be making viewers think deeply about every day factors people use and execute without giving it a second thought. I have chosen Mitchell to show the materials and the effect of evolving to more modern features due to building and the use of materials etc.

Who is Edward Ruscha?

Edward Joseph Ruscha IV is an American artist associated with the pop art movement. He has worked in the media of painting, printmaking, drawing, photography, and film. He is also noted for creating several artist’s books. Ruscha lives and works in Culver City, California.

Who was Ruscha inspired by?

In the 1960s, inspired by artists like Raymond Hains, René Magritte, Jasper Johns, and Kurt Schwitters, Ruscha became a vibrant part of the art scene surrounding Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles. Ruscha became well known in the late 1950s when he began making small collages using images and words taken from everyday sources such as advertisements. This interest in the everyday led to him using the cityscape of his adopted hometown Los Angeles – a source of inspiration he has returned to again and again.

Why did Ruscha typically take photos of gas stations?

The son of an insurance auditor, Ruscha was raised in Oklahoma City, but moved to L.A. in 1956. The gas stations he photographed all sat on Route 66, the highway he rode on his regular visits home.

“I just had a personal connection to that span of mileage between Oklahoma and California,” Ruscha explain

The gasoline station is Ruscha’s most iconic image. He began

The gasoline station is Ruscha’s most iconic image. He began experimenting with the subject in his first artist’s book, Twentysix Gasoline Stations (1963), which reproduces a series of banal photographs the artist took while driving on Route 66 between Los Angeles and his hometown of Oklahoma City.

Ed Ruscha often edited his images to collage all together to make it even more eye catching then it is. This is called TYPOLOGY.

A photographic typology is a single photograph or more commonly a body of photographic work, that shares a high level of consistency. This consistency is usually found within the subjects, environment, photographic process, and presentation or direction of the subject.

An example of typology

Ed Ruscha’s typology

Mood board of Ruscha’s work within gas stations

As shown, Ed Ruscha clearly had a love and soft spot of gas stations in the 1960’s. He typically preferred photographing in black and white especially as colour was starting to evolve during 1970’s as a number of American photographers turned increasingly to colour. This creates an interesting factor to Ruscha as he decided too keep it in black and white during the time colour was trending due to it starting. However, as these photos were taken in this time it may of been more challenging and difficult to be able to get them in colour. Until well into the 1970s, the only photographs that were actually collected and exhibited were in black-and-white. The reluctance to accept colour photography was mainly due to conservation reasons, since the pigmentation in early colour photographs was highly unstable.

Twentysix Gasoline Stations (1963)

As seen, Ruscha made a book and documented him taking images of 26 gas stations and put them into a famous book in a very simple and dull layout. The simple layout and the black and white images makes not the book itself interesting but the images as his aim and intention was to get viewers to focus on the images rather than the pages in the book.

It is often considered to be the first modern artist’s book, and has become famous as a precursor and a major influence on the emerging artist’s book culture, especially in America. The book delivers exactly what its title promises, reproducing 26 photographs of gasoline stations next to captions indicating their brand and location. 

Ruscha has said:

I wasn’t coming out here [California] to do anything in particular, or to be anything in particular except…except out of Oklahoma…a long way from Oklahoma, that’s what I wanted to be, and everything it stood for. And away from the Catholic Church too, and Sister Daniella who beat my knuckles with a pencil the one year I was in parochial school.

Image Analysis

In this image, its interesting as it depends on the way you view it. One factor is, the fact it is deserted and you can instantly tell that is there is not many surroundings. This could be on purpose as his intention and aim may to get the viewer to focus on the gas station itself or to show the different features and difference within each gas station in California. This makes the viewer think of things that you wouldn’t think of on an every day basis. This is what makes his photos so interesting as he is the first to take something of something so simple but yet an underlying fascination. The photo is in black and white possibly to keep it in an old aesthetic but also to stop viewers from getting distracted and to focus on the gas station. It is slightly fuzzy which represents and tells modern viewers that it was taken before cameras had evolved. It is a bit unclear so it makes it difficult for viewers to focus but challenges them to look harder to create more time viewed on each image.

Peter Mitchell (born 1943) is a British documentary photographer, known for documenting Leeds and the surrounding area for more than 40 years. Mitchell’s photographs have been published in three monographs of his own. His work was exhibited at Impressions Gallery in 1979, and nearly thirty years later was included in major survey exhibitions throughout the UK including at Tate Britain and Media Space in London, and the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford. Mitchell’s work is held in the permanent collections of the Royal Photographic Society and Leeds Art Gallery.

MOODBOARD

In 1979 Impressions Gallery showed his work A New Refutation of the Viking 4 Space Mission, the pictures showed the traditional urban landscape presented on a background of space charts, the concept being that an alien has landed from Mars and is wandering around Leeds with a degree of surprise and puzzle. Martin Parr described this show as ground-breaking.

Martin Parr is a British documentary photographer, photojournalist and photobook collector. He is known for his photographic projects that take an intimate, satirical and anthropological look at aspects of modern life, in particular documenting the social classes of England, and more broadly the wealth of the Western world.

About & Lifestyle

Peter Mitchell was born in Eccles, near Manchester, in 1943. Shortly afterwards his family moved to Catford, south-east London, where Mitchell spent his formative years. Even in his youth mitchell was a keen collector and diarist, beginning the archive that would later form part of his autobiographical publication Some Thing Means Everything to Somebody.

Leaving school at 16, Mitchell moved to Hampstead heath and began training as a cartographic draughtsman with the civil service where he learned to make architectural maps and drawings, an interest he has maintained, most notably in the self-published Memento Mori.

By 24, Mitchell was seeking new challenges and won at place at Hornsea College of Art where his interest in photography and typography developed.

Peter’s first solo exhibition of 1975, entitled An Impression of the Yorkshire City of Leeds, was funded by the Yorkshire Arts Association and Arts Council of Great Britain formed a part of Leeds’ contribution to the European Architectural year.

It was a success, with the curator encouraging Mitchell to focus on his photography over his screen-printing practice. The 1970s was a key time for photography in Britain, seeing photographers such as Martin Parr and Tom Wood rise to prominence, and Mitchell’s practice was bouyed by this national cultural interest.

Mitchell’s work stayed local to Leeds, and during this time he began the long term project on the city which would become A New Refutation of the Viking 4 Space Mission.

He would walk everywhere, taking note of the places he passed, returning later with his camera, ladder and tripod to photograph them.

These walks regularly took him through the Quarry Hill estate in the centre of Leeds, but he had never photographed it, until the first signs of demolition appeared. The demolition of the ill-fated development provided Mitchell with the perfect subject matter to explore his interest in urban regeneration against the backdrop of Thatcher’s Britain.

The redevelopment of Leeds progressed at a lightning pace in this period, Mitchell would photograph a shop front or row of houses one week, only for them to disappear the next.

Mitchell’s work remained resolutely personal, seeking out the people and places of local interest rather than seeking to reveal any great and gritty truth of 1980s British life to a wider audience.

My Analysis

As shown, Mitchell photographs everyday factors you see in the city e.g Leeds and Manchester. This is quite unusual from an outsiders perspective as most photographers are ultimately famous for taking ‘ aesthetically pleasing’ or ‘ beautiful’ according to the human eye, however Mitchell does not glamourize the reality and viewers seem to like it. Each image is differentiated through a variety of themes, however they all portray an old, vintage aesthetic. This is in an interesting and significant factor as by first look you assume that they are not edited which creates a realistic factor to it as well as the vintage aesthetic. This makes you question, what is making it give off this aesthetic. In my opinion, it is the images of the brick buildings and old looking churches through the surroundings and the state it is in. The reason of this, is in this generation the world is becoming more modern day by day. This links to this image.

As shown, Mitchell photographed this brick building with a more modernized and larger building behind it to create contrast. This shows the change in human activity and trends which ultimately relates to the Anthropocene and Robert Adams in the way of contrasting two large factors to one another.

In each image he does not edit the images such as the weather to glamorize it. Within his images, he is using photography to photograph the normality and reality of his lifestyle and possibly even old images to create archives of around the city to then compare and forecast future trends and see how much human activity can impact the earth, such as these images.

Clearly, the typical cinema has changed and become modernized through generations and I assume these houses could be getting taken down possibly for new things. Although people may be living there which creates a sense of inhumanity which significantly links to the Anthropocene as Mitchell is using photography to express the inhumanity on earth and how it is increasing. This links in a different way through how humans leave a large carbon footprint causing climate change but humans doing little about it which could be a sense of inhumane.

MY PHOTOSHOOT PLAN

My plan to relate my work to the Anthropocene and Peter Mitchell is to take images of everyday scenes such as shops and even the cinema. My intention and aim to make some images look old and vintage and compare it to more modernized things such as the typical cinema nowadays and buildings.

What is Anthropocene?

The Anthropocene is a proposed geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on Earth until now. It affects Earth’s geology, landscape, limnology, ecosystems and climate.

The Anthropocene is a geological unit of time, continually describing the most recent period in Earth’s history when human activity began to have a significant impact until now. It takes into account the effects on the Earth’s geology, landscape, climate, limnology and ecosystems. This geologic time scale is split into hierarchical series of smaller lengths of time, descending in length of time: eons, eras, periods, epochs and ages. These units of time are composed through the classification of the Earth’s rock layers and the fossils found within them. Through this, scientists can examine the correlation between the certain organism’s characteristics of the certain parts of the geologic record – stratigraphy.

The word Anthropocene comes from the Greek terms for human (‘anthropo’) and new (‘cene’), but its definition is controversial. It was coined in the 1980s, then popularised in 2000 by atmospheric chemist Paul J Crutzen and diatom researcher Eugene F Stoermer. The Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old while humans have been here for a much smaller scale, yet irreversible influence has taken place on biodiversity and nature, fundamentally altering the Earth’s physical, chemical and biological code. In the last 60 years, the Great Acceleration has began. This is a term used for the increasing rate at which human impacts are unfolding at an unprecedented scale and speed, causing the globe to deteriorate and become more modified, spiralling downwards. Being the most influential species of the planet, human behaviour has created a snowball effect of significant impacts not only for other ecosystems or species but ourselves too. Just a few of these are:

• Carbon dioxide emissions
• Global warming
• Ocean acidification
• Habitat destruction
• Extinction
• Widescale natural resource extraction
• An increase in extremeness and frequency of severe weather conditions e.g earthquakes, tornados and storms

In simple terms, it is how human activity impacts the earth.

Human-caused climate change has indeed dominated global trends: The last eight years have been the eight hottest on record. A sure-to-be-record-hot 2023 and a potentially even hotter 2024 would stretch that streak to a decade. For example, in 2014 the global population was 7.3 billion however it is now 8.1 billion. If civilisation doesn’t move towards more sustainable lifestyles such as the refusal of consistently burning fossil fuels, even more dramatic changes could occur which could be incredibly life-threatening for the human species too.

MOODBOARD

When did the era of Anthropocene begin?

The early Anthropocene hypothesis posits that the Anthropocene era, as some scientists call the most recent period in the Earth’s history when the activities of the human race first began to have a significant global impact on the Earth’s climate and ecosystems, did not begin in the eighteenth century with advent of coal-burning factories and power plants of the industrial era. Evidence suggests that the beginning of the Anthropocene dates to 8,000 years ago, triggered by intense farming activities of our early agrarian ancestors. It was at that time that atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations stopped following the periodic pattern of rises and falls that had characterized their past long-term behaviour, a pattern which is explained by natural variations in the Earth’s orbit.

Photography within the Anthropocene

Collectively, these artists offer compelling visual imagery necessary for picturing the Anthropocene: Arial views of beautiful but toxic sites, collages that incorporate archival photographs to counter colonial narratives, depictions of urbanism on an unimaginable scale, and imagined yet precarious futures. Which ultimately help document and investigate the substantial impact human actions have had on our planet.

The Anthropocene Project is a multidisciplinary body of work combining fine art photography, film, virtual reality, augmented reality, and scientific research to investigate human influence on the state, dynamic, and future of the Earth.

It touches the very core of our being (post)human—and of the space around us we variously call “the environment” or “the world.” Art in the Anthropocene is vital read for anyone who cares about art, animals, climate, ethics, extinction, justice, plants, poetry and the weather”.

The Anthropocene is mainly characterised by three factors: the technological progress that sped up after the First Industrial Revolution, the explosive growth in population thanks to improvements in food, health and hygiene, and the multiplication of production and consumption.

Yes, ‘Anthropocene’ can be useful to tell the history of life on earth. It can also illustrate the extent to which humans have modified the earth’s systems. It also suggests that we can no longer go back to a ‘pristine’ nature that existed before humans, as cultural critics have long suggested.

What is the goal of the Anthropocene project?

Our notion of nature is now out of date. Humanity forms nature. This is the core premise of the Anthropocene thesis, announcing a paradigm shift in the natural sciences as well as providing new models for culture, politics, and everyday life.

What are the cons of the Anthropocene?

These human actions cause, among other consequences, changes in the water cycle, imbalances and destructions in the marine and terrestrial ecosystems, the increase of extreme meteorological phenomena, the acidification of the oceans or the disappearance of the forests.

Mood board of the Anthropocene project

How fashion and textiles affect the climate

The project sell elephant tusks to avoid people from selling them.

The burning of 10,000 elephant tusks piled into an enormous funeral pyres in Kenya’s National Park in Nairobi is both a devastating and beautiful image to look at — a reaction that photographer Edward Burtynsky intended.

His photographs are part of a multimedia project called Anthropocene that merges film, photography and virtual reality installations to illustrate the imprint humans are collectively leaving on the planet.

“We want to communicate out there with people. We want them to look at these things, to try to ask questions about these landscapes,” he told The Current‘s Anna Maria Tremonti.

“If you represent them in … an unsightly light or whatever, they don’t resonate. They don’t make us wonder about this place.”

Fashion is another large factor of the human impact on the environment such as wool as it leaves the largest carbon foot print. Wool is much higher in greenhouse gas emissions than many other fabrics. Sheep farming emits high volumes of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and also drives carbon-emitting deforestation. A recent study found that the carbon footprint for 1 kg of recycled wool is 0.63 kg CO2 eq, while virgin wool has an impact of 10.4 kg CO2 eq. This means that the carbon footprint of recycled wool is approximately 16.51 times less than that of virgin wool, making it a solid option for a low-impact alternative.

A wool-knit garment emits 27 times more GHG–equivalent emissions than a cotton-knit garment. One sheep can produce about 30 litres of methane each day. Emissions originate from three main categories of processes: enteric fermentation, manure, and feed.

My photoshoot within Anthropocene

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Why was this my chosen factor for my photoshoot?

Increased ocean water levels during storms are almost certain to result in more frequent coastal inundation, higher wave run-up levels, higher water levels in lakes and estuaries and more flooding in coastal rivers. Rising sea levels, saline intrusion and coastal erosion are likely to damage coastal ecosystems. Climate changes, such as more frequent and intense rain events, can increase erosion and result in greater amounts of sediment washing into rivers, lakes and streams. More frequent and intense rain events, can increase sediment loading from storm water runoff. Climate change threatens coastal areas, which are already stressed by human activity, pollution, invasive species, and storms. Sea level rise could erode and inundate coastal ecosystems and eliminate wetlands. Warmer and more acidic oceans are likely to disrupt coastal and marine ecosystems.

Why does it link to the Anthropocene?

This links as it is the cause of cliff erosion but however is still very simply beautiful. This causes a contrast as some of Anthropocene’s images are very pleasant and appealing to the eye as it is too show the viewers what earth could look like if us as humans execute beneficial movements to it. This creates different ways in warning the viewers of the impact humans have. Whereas my photoshoot is showing a negative thing such as cliff erosion due to human activity but is also very appealing and not disturbing to the eye. I kept them simple to make it realistic as I personally believe it is more significant and appealing to viewers. I think this is a good idea as it does both factors such e.g negative and positive view points. It is also things you do not think on a day to day basis however when you view it in depth you begin to understand the effects on the earth.

Continued through AI

Original image-

Edited image through AI generator-

Link to artist reference –

Michael Marten: Sea Change

Excellent use of diptych and triptych and exploring low vs high tides to see how it changes a landscape scene

Panoramics-

A reason of why I believe this relates to my photoshoot, is that Jersey has one of the most changing tides. The images I took had a clear high tide with the sea matching the sky because of the weather. My image also shows cliff erosion which is due to changing strong tides. Therefore, my image is relating to Anthropocene as it is showing an appealing and pleasant photo with an underlying problem people don’t think about on a daily basis and would not think of the cliff erosion in this photo. It isn’t as straight forward as some famous photographers influenced by the Anthropocene. This could be a beneficial feature as it is showing what the world could look like if human activity began to improve. Meanwhile, showing what we are currently destroying due to climate change and global warming which causes extreme tides.

For example, other photographers –

A similarity within my images and those images is that both of them show significant amount of nature and non-man made elements. A difference is that these images visibly show the issues in society through rubbish. Where as my issue is a lot more subtle and simple.

The element of still obtaining natural features is too notably signify the destruction to part humans still desire. This is to emphasise what we are doing and to attempt to spread awareness and change.

This is evident in

Zed Nelson: The Anthropocene Illusion
In just a few decades, we humans have altered our world. Our planet is crossing a geological boundary: from the Holocene into the Anthropocene. Humans have left the countryside for the city but the desire for contact with nature remains. So, we have become masters of a stage-managed, artificial ‘experience’ of nature. This project examines humankind’s fractured relationship with the natural world, revealing not only a phenomenon of collective self-delusion, but also a craving for a connection to a world we have turned our backs on.

Who is Siskind and why is he famous?

Aaron Siskind was an American photographer best known for his black-and-white, close range, and aerial photos of surfaces and objects. With the transformative properties of monochromes and their lack of scale or context, Siskind’s photos can seem both sculptural and vast or diminutive and painterly.

 Siskind was born December 4, 1903, New York, Siskind began to photograph in 1932, while he was an English teacher in the New York City public-school system. As a member of the Photo League, he participated in projects designed to document neighbourhood life during the Depression.

Siskind was a grade school English teacher in the New York Public School System for 25 years, and began photography when he received a camera as a wedding gift and began taking pictures on his honeymoon.

What technique did he use?

He created pictures by closing in on his subjects, framing out distracting elements to enhance the emotional sense or allusive aspect he found compelling. Later he focused on surfaces to further condense the energies of splashed paint, graffiti marks and crumbling materials.

Aaron Siskind’s quote, “In photography, it is not the subject that matters, but how it is captured,” encapsulates the essence of artistic expression through the lens.

Example of his work–

MOODBOARD

My work

Why does he prefer to edit them to black and white?

Aaron Siskind’s work is all done in monochrome, this makes the photograph more impressive as you are left to your imagination of the colours, therefore to what the original object was.

Black and white photography feels timeless. Here’s a common reason why photographers shoot in black and white: It adds a timelessness to your images. For one, black and white photography has existed since the beginnings of photography, which means that a black and white image cannot instantly be dated.

My thoughts on his work/ similarities

When the viewer has a first glance, I noticed that every picture is in black and white as Siskind prefers it as it leaves imagination of not knowing the colour to the viewer. This is significantly impactful as it suggests a sense of mystery with his images potentially creating the viewer to imagine what they individually want his image to be and look like, it also reduce the chances of his images being outdated as ‘ black and white is timeless’ and can make an image more personal. By vaguely glancing I can see that Siskind focuses on the visual elements such as texture, shape, pattern, line and even tone. The main ones that stick out to me is texture and shape/lines. Some of his images are easily predicted which creates a clear picture to the viewer however some images makes the viewer guess what the photograph itself is which ultimately creates a mysterious factor, as well as Siskind not using colours which creates even more difficulty. An example of this is-

Image Analysis

This image is difficult to understand and interpret the correct clear result. Although it is Siskind’s aim (conceptual) to create secretive and mysterious factors to his image and make the viewer imagine themselves. A benefit of Siskind’s aim is that it makes the viewer predict which ultimately forces the viewer to focus and question the texture, patterns, shapes and tones. We cannot see what the image is itself however it is interesting to note that viewers still find this pleasing to look at because of the imagination. Because it is unclear of what the image is, it creates every viewer to stare and draws them in to look at all important factors Siskind emphasized. For example, the cracks signify imperfection and every shape is different which slightly tells the viewer that this image is potentially all natural. Another interesting factor is that all shapes are different tones but also connected. This shows the tone isn’t based off the weather as it looks as if it is taken from a birds eye view and they are all connected. Lastly, another impactful feature is the texture as in my opinion each shape is a significant different pattern which the viewer would predict it is the texture. This links to his quote “In photography, it is not the subject that matters, but how it is captured,” As we do not know what the subject is but the viewer still finds it very significant and interesting.

My Image

Personally, I think this image relates to Siskind’s work as it contains different visual elements such as tones, lines, irregular pattern of shapes, texture and not a clear view of what the subject is. This creates a mysterious sense like Siskind’s. As shown, some shapes have a vary of tones which prevents the image from being dull and boring as each visual element is different. You would assume this image is natural as most man-made subjects are usually to be built perfect. This makes you guess what this image is itself and what made it look this way which is mainly the contextual side of it. It has a few irregular lines if you look deeply as the varies of shapes are the first noticeable feature. There is a few cracks which signifies the imperfections of this image which helps the viewer understand it is not man-made and creates a significant amount of mystery.

A famous book- This Equals That by Tamara Shopsin & Jason Fulford

This book, shows juxtaposition and how both link and differ.

” One thing leads to another. Isn’t’ that the best way of being in the world?” Maira Kalman in response to this book.

This book, signifies and shows 2 opposite or similar images and makes you question how they are similar/different?

My response to this book –

This juxtaposition shows us rust which is the similarity both these images have. However, they are in different shapes, different textures and different lining and geometry. Although it has the same element, they are displayed in different ways. The texture tells us both of the rusts in these images would feel significantly different. The subject in the first image is more displayed portrait, although the second’s subject is not as observable and outstanding, and is rather landscape and subtle.

These two images have more to contrast, as they have less similar key features. These 2 images show significant natural damage. The difference is that the first one is scratches, and the second are cracks. A similarity they both have is that you actually cannot tell what each image is which keeps the viewer guessing and intrigued.

Urban Landscapes Context

What is the meaning of urban landscape photography?
Focusing on the study of objects and elements in urban environments, urban photography usually emphasises the surroundings and uses them to make statements about time and place. People are not always included in the images, unlike in street photography.

Photographs of things you wouldn’t normally give a second look as they aren’t usually seen as’ beautiful’ or fit into the standard of ‘pleasing’ to look at. However, famous photographers successfully execute this idea by using man-made features or un- aesthetic atmospheres.

Urban photography is a genre of photography concerned with capturing scenes from urban spaces, such as towns and other ecological spaces. It has become more popular over the years as the world has become more urbanized. It is an interdisciplinary study which links to landscape and street photography.

CONTACT SHEET-

Firstly, I went around Havre De Pas and attempted to take urban landscapes obtaining natural scenery as well as industrial and man -made features. To help organize these images I started by flagging and rejected them therefore being able to give them the correct amount of stars. To finish this off, I lastly flagged my five star images green as they are my preferred ones therefore it will be more time efficient and easier to edit my favourite pictures therefore have a choice to pick my favourite one in the end of this project.

EDITING –

I chose this image as it obtains natural scenery such as the sand, seaweed etc and man-made features such as housing. The most interesting factor is the scaffolding and the different styles and wealth within each house. This significantly shows contrast between the man-made and natural scenery which ultimately links to Robert Adam’s famous image of the housing and the mountains in the background. I attempted to emphasize the clouds to make the image more interesting and eye catching to the viewer. I did this increasing the temp so it looked more aesthetically old and vintage which links to the theme of nostalgia as well as the aesthetic of the houses as they are not modern and are being renovated. I emphasized the clouds by decreasing the exposure as the image has no detail in the sky and increasing the contrast for more detail. I decreased the highlights so it looks slightly gloomy as in my opinion Adam’s images are as his work is mostly in black and white. Lastly, I increased the texture so the housing is not just the main factor of the image as the natural scenery such as the sky and sand is just as important. To do this successfully, I increased the texture to create more focus to create equality within both significant features.

I found this image very interesting as it clearly and successfully shows different levels of wealth or how the world and humans adapt slowly throughout life. An example of this, is housing as it was traditional to have an old granite exterior and eventually it has been adapted to a modern organized dull but clean aesthetic house. This image shows the modern habits as well as the traditional habits. However the old traditional house has scaffolding around to be renovated like the other one which significantly shows the following of trends us as humans fall into. I decreased the exposure as the clouds were very white which made the image over exposed but ultimately within this image it was not necessary to over edit as there is already a lot of significant factors so I did not want to make it ‘ too much’ or over stimulated.

This is one of my preferred images as it contains the different stages and levels of wealth and poverty. The building on the left is modern and fits the human eye standard to this day. However the right building is more traditional and has an older aesthetic to it which is shown throughout the type of windows. the middle is a contrast of both as it is a tall structured building. All three of these buildings conflict within one another. I made the image more eye catching by lowering the exposure so it was correct for that image itself and increasing the contrast and highlights and decreasing the shadows to create more detail. Lastly, I decreased the clarity and increased the dehaze which ultimately made the sky look slightly more unrealistic however I believe it makes the image look a lot more aesthetically pleasing.

I like this image as it contains industrial subjects as well as non-man made objects that are seen as ‘beautiful’. Normally, industrial features are a necessity such as this one as it burns waste for the island. Therefore it isn’t really seen as a typical photograph you would take however Robert Adam’s took photos of a untypical photo that does not fit the ‘aesthetically pleasing’ expectation although he successfully made them interesting to look at and he grew in his career for that reason. Therefore I took this photograph as it obtains both factors and attempted to emphasize the sky to enhance the natural scenery.

This image, to the viewer at first glance it isn’t significant. However, it isn’t necessary beautiful or pleasing in anyway but after I enhanced the vibrance and from the point of view I photographed this industrial subject it is clearly the main feature and the editing around it automatically makes the viewer look directly to this factor. This is interesting as viewers don’t normally give images like this a second glance however after editing the industrial feature to make it enhanced to make the viewer focus on it it changes the perspective. The point of view this is photographed is important as it is from the bottom looking up emphasizing the size and shape. It is also significant as it is showing what it would like to the naked eye’s perspective.

This image focuses on texture. I increased the temp to make it look older as the subject is already rusting. The most important edit technique I executed was increasing the texture as it showed the camera every detail in which the naked eye can not do as successfully.

Straight away, I noticed 3 main factors of this image. Industrial, environmental/natural and textual features. An interesting part of this image is that the rocks are obviously not man-made however it is clear to the viewer they have been put around this island which was man structured and handled. This shows conflict and contrast and possibly the debate of whether it is man-made or not. We also can see the industrial building in the background which is impactful and significant as it is a necessity but not exactly seen as aesthetically pleasing or beautiful. I made this image look more unrealistic by increasing the texture, clarity and dehaze which created more detail within the texture on the rocks and enhanced the sky and clouds so the viewer wouldn’t forget about the importance of the environmental factor as they are all equally important in this specific image. Lastly, I increased the vibrance so the image looked brighter and less dull so it fit into the expectation.

A famous book- This Equals That by Tamara Shopsin & Jason Fulford

This book, shows juxtaposition and how both link and differ.

” One thing leads to another. Isn’t’ that the best way of being in the world?” Maira Kalman in response to this book.

This book, signifies and shows 2 opposite or similar images and makes you question how they are similar/different?

My response to this book –

This juxtaposition shows us rust which is the similarity both these images have. However, they are in different shapes, different textures and different lining and geometry. Although it has the same element, they are displayed in different ways. The texture tells us both of the rusts in these images would feel significantly different. The subject in the first image is more displayed portrait, although the second’s subject is not as observable and outstanding, and is rather landscape and subtle.

These two images have more to contrast, as they have less similar key features. These 2 images show significant natural damage. The difference is that the first one is scratches, and the second are cracks. A similarity they both have is that you actually cannot tell what each image is which keeps the viewer guessing and intrigued.

A turning point in the history of photography, the 1975 exhibition New Topographics signalled a radical shift away from traditional depictions of landscape. Pictures of transcendent natural vistas gave way to unromanticised views of stark industrial landscapes, suburban sprawl, and everyday scenes not usually given a second glance. This restaging of the exhibition includes the work of all 10 photographers from the original show: Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Joe Deal, Frank Gohlke, Nicholas Nixon, John Schott, Stephen Shore, and Henry Wessel.

When you think of “landscape photography,” what comes to mind? Whatever pictures you’re imagining, they likely look different from the photographs in the 1975 exhibition New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-altered Landscape.

Robert Adams is one of the most important trailblazers of modern American photography; a key figure in the New Topographics movement (a term coined by William Jenkins to describe the visual documentation of “man-altered landscapes”), he revolutionised the way in which the American West was depicted on film, highlighting the effects of industrialisation upon what was once a vast, imposing wilderness that would have made Lord Byron swoon.

Born in 1937, in Orange, New Jersey, Adams’ family relocated to Wheat Ridge, Colorado, a suburb of Denver, when he was 12. Adams spent much of his childhood and adolescence hiking and mountain climbing – a passion which stuck with him into adulthood. Having majored in English, it wasn’t until 1963, at the age of 26, that Adams bought a 35 mm reflex camera and began photographing nature and architecture. His fascination with the medium burgeoned, and – after a fortuitous meeting with John Szarkowski, the curator of photography at the Museum of Modern Art in 1969, which resulted in MoMA’s purchase of four of his prints – he opted to pursue his passion full-time.

Adams’s visual education came in part through the work of photographers who had preceded him in the West a century before.

The New West Mood Board

Adams’ monochrome style – at once formal and evocative – was influenced by 19th-century photographers like Timothy O’Sullivan, William Henry Jackson and Carleton Watkin, who also focussed on the landscape of the West (in its more primitive state) as well as Lewis Hine, Edward Weston, Dorothea Lange and Ansel Adams, all of whom married social and aesthetic concerns in their work.  Adams’s visual education came in part through the work of photographers who had preceded him in the West a century before.

Critic Sean O’Hagan, writing in The Guardian, said “his subject has been the American west: its vastness, its sparse beauty and its ecological fragility…What he has photographed constantly – in varying shades of grey – is what has been lost and what remains” and that “his work’s other great subtext” is silence…

The turning point in Adams’ career was the publication of his highly acclaimed photo-essay, The New West, in 1974, which catapulted the image-maker into the public eye. e are first confronted with two, light-drenched images of sprawling prairies, where the only sign of human intervention are electricity pylons and wooden fence posts. Then these open fields are shown bearing signs, first: No Trespassing, then: For Sale or Lease, and you begin to feel the shadow of commercial opportunism ominously approaching. Sure enough, the next section depicts the rapidly growing expanse of tract houses and mobile homes popping up along the Front Range, breaking us in with an image of the foundations of a single tract house being laid in a sparse stretch of land, before presenting us with an entire town of these compact white abodes, which nevertheless appear tiny and somehow insignificant against the backdrop of the towering mountains and an omnipresent sky. 

Depicting the unwavering presence and beauty of nature in the face of human intervention was, for Adams, a key element of the project. As he explains in the book’s introduction, “Why open our eyes anywhere but in undamaged places like national parks? One reason is, of course, that we do not live in parks, that we need to improve things at home, and to do that we have to see the facts… Paradoxically, however, we also need to see the whole geography, natural and man-made, to experience a peace; all land, no matter what has happened to it, has over it a grace, an absolute persistent beauty.” And indeed, even when Adams zooms in on the man-made – be it a woman strikingly silhouetted between two windows of her neat brick bungalow, a packed Denver carpark or a peak-side gas station, complete with enormous sign – there is an inherent, inescapable allure, stemming from the photographer’s aptitude for composition and ability to encapsulate the atmospheric quality of light so unique to the area. 

The American Dream

At its core, the American Dream of the Colonial times surrounded the pursuit of opportunity and the idea that a poor person can become rich and successful through hard work and determination. The Westward Expansion was greatly aided by the American Dream as people rushed west to find gold and riches.

IMAGE ANAYLISIS

This image is a perfect example as the bottom half (foreground) of the image is man-made with human activity objects as humans adapt which ultimately adds these subjects to the image. This contrasts to the top half off the image (background) as it contains natural scenery therefore Robert Adam’s had contained both environmental factors. A significant feature about this image are the lines on the houses contrasting with the round/ not straight lines on the mountains showing clear meaning the houses are man-made and perfectly put together however the mountains are not but as humans we prefer the look of environmental features but housing is a necessity. Another interesting factor is the sun shining creating light highlights on the houses but in the distance dark shades with the clouds making light onto the floor which has an eye catching effect and the success of presenting this considering majority and including of his images are in black and white. You cannot tell what time in the day this is however it is exposed and saturated effectively. Another noticeable feature is the layout and pattern of the housing compared to the free natural scenery which implies the difference between the two main subjects. Normally, photographers take ‘landscape’ photos which your first instinct is that landscapes capture beautiful scenery however Robert Adams in this image captures poverty and cultural views based on the housing but where it is placed.

This image is similar in certain ways. In the background is still obtains natural scenery however this image does not have a significant contrast and exposure of different shades. However, it does have other eye catching features through bright light such as the ‘R’ missing in the word ‘ Frontier’ which potentially could be Adams trying to imply how landscapes have changed and been adapted overtime. It is interesting to note he took a landscape of a petrol station which is also a necessity and a basic need. Adams photographs in black and white and photographs basic needs such as the other image such as living no matter political problems such as poverty. In this image, although it isn’t the first thing you notice it captures the wires across the petrol station which could also signal poverty. This could mean Adams is photographing things that are not the ‘ beautiful’ standards and ugly things in life but makes it look aesthetically pleasing. A large factor to make this is the background of natural scenery and environmental factors. Although from the shop to the mountains it is hard to spot the difference as the shade is almost the same and dark you can tell through the lines and texture. Adam’s keeps the foreground clear through light shades contrasting with dark to keep the main subjects important and impactful with a darker background however it massively creates to the image.

Personally, I really like Robert Adam’s work as he captures unknown ‘ beautiful’ features and makes it look aesthetically pleasing whilst maintaining environmental factors. This brings conceptional and contextual ideas to his images for good reasonings. It creates the idea that his images don’t only say one thing. I like how they are in black and white and how he typically photographs natural scenery with modern subjects which creates contrast within itself and creates a vintage and nostalgic aesthetic. Because he is already contrasting modern and present features he does not have to contrast his shades and use the zone system like Ansel Adams however I do think it would bring more too certain images but may be too much in some to the point viewers wouldn’t know where to look. I also like how they are realistic looking which creates a whole new aesthetic compared to Ansel Adams and sublime etc.

The only reality is the Self and you are That. Why look for anything else? Everything else will take care of itself. You’ve got to abide in the Self, just in the Self.

What is the meaning of new Topographics?

New topographics was a term coined by William Jenkins in 1975 to describe a group of American photographers (such as Robert Adams and Lewis Baltz) whose pictures had a similar banal aesthetic, in that they were formal, mostly black and white prints of the urban landscape.

What is Topographics?
Technique in which a scene—usually a landscape—is photographed as if it were being surveyed from afar, practiced most famously by the 1970s ‘New Topographics’ photographers, including Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Nicholas Nixon, and Bernd and Hilla Becher.

What was the new topographics a reaction to?
Their stark, beautifully printed images of this mundane but oddly fascinating topography was both a reflection of the increasingly suburbanised world around them, and a reaction to the tyranny of idealised landscape photography that elevated the natural and the elemental.

Post-war America struggled with

• Inflation and labor unrest. The country’s main economic concern in the immediate post-war years was inflation. …
• The baby boom and suburbia. Making up for lost time, millions of returning veterans soon married and started families…
• Isolation and splitting of the family unit, pharmaceuticals and mental health problems
• Vast distances, road networks and mobility

A turning point in the history of photography, the 1975 exhibition New Topographics signalled a radical shift away from traditional depictions of landscape. Pictures of transcendent natural vistas gave way to unromanticised views of stark industrial landscapes, suburban sprawl, and everyday scenes not usually given a second glance. This restaging of the exhibition includes the work of all 10 photographers from the original show: Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz and etc.

MOODBOARD

The New Topographics documented built and natural landscapes in America, often capturing the tension between natural scenery and the mundane structures of post-war America: parking lots, suburban homes, crumbling coal mines. The photographs, stark and documentary, are often devoid of human presence. Jenkins described the images as “neutral” in style, “reduced to an essentially topographic state, conveying substantial amounts of visual information but eschewing entirely the aspects of beauty, emotion, and opinion”.

Robert Adams

On the one hand, New Topographics represented a radical shift by redefining the subject of landscape photography as the built (as opposed to the natural) environment. To comprehend the significance of this, it helps to consider the type of imagery that previously dominated the genre in the United States.

An example

Robert Adams

This image is a perfect example as the bottom half of the image is man-made with human activity objects as humans adapt which ultimately adds these subjects to the image. This contrasts to the top half off the image as it contains natural scenery therefore Robert Adam’s had contained both environmental factors. A significant feature about this image are the lines on the houses contrasting with the round/ not straight lines on the mountains showing clear meaning the houses are man-made and perfectly put together however the mountains are not but as humans we prefer the look of environmental features but housing is a necessity. Another interesting factor is the sun shining creating light highlights on the houses but in the distance dark shades with the clouds making light onto the floor which has an eye catching effect.

While visiting the exhibition, people voiced a range of reactions:

“I don’t like them—they’re dull and flat. There’s no people, no involvement, nothing.”

“At first it’s stark nothing, but then you look at it, and it’s just about the way things are.”

“I don’t like to think there are ugly streets in America, but when it’s shown to you—without beautification—maybe it tells you how much more we need here.” 

TYPOLOGY – the study and interpretation of types that became associated with photography through the work of Bernd and Hilla Becher

Landscape/Typology. The German artists Bernd and Hilla Becher, who began working together in 1959 and married in 1961, are best known for their “typologies”—grids of black-and-white photographs of variant examples of a single type of industrial structure.

A photographic typology is a single photograph or more commonly a body of photographic work, that shares a high level of consistency. This consistency is usually found within the subjects, environment, photographic process, and presentation or direction of the subject.

To create these works, the artists travelled to large mines and steel mills, and systematically photographed the major structures, such as the winding towers that haul coal and iron ore to the surface and the blast furnaces that transform the ore into metal. The rigorous frontality of the individual images gives them the simplicity of diagrams, while their density of detail offers encyclopaedic richness. At each site the Becher’s also created overall landscape views of the entire plant, which set the structures in their context and show how they relate to each other. The typologies emulate the clarity of an engineer’s drawing, while the landscapes evoke the experience of a particular place. The exhibition presents these two formats together; because they lie at the polar extremes of photographic description, each underscores the creative potential of the other.

A landscape typology is a systematic classification of landscape types based on attributes that describe properties of interest, such as land use, scenic properties, or cultural characteristics or history.

EXAMPLE