I chose this photo because I think it is a good photo and it feels nostalgic for me as the fountain used to have goldfish swimming in it when I was young and I used to like going there and seeing the goldfish,
furthermore, having the seagull sitting in the fountain makes the image feel more playful and less serious which is a good thing because nostalgia is good to reflect on your fond and happy memories.
The photo is also rather similar to Marietta Varga’s nostalgia photography as the location of the nostalgic photos she did are set outside usually in parks and playgrounds so having this photo being in a park is a great way to respond to her work.
Lastly after editing the photo I really liked the nostalgic feel to the photo by lowering the vibrancy and colour levels so not only does it look like it’s in the style of Marietta’s photos but it also makes the photo look more faint and less clear which could reflect your past memories from when you were young as your childhood memories are quite old and not fully clear. it also makes the photo look old to help with this idea.
Still life is the arrangements of objects such as paintings or things we use in our daily lives that cannot move. The objects may have a bigger picture and may create a story from the background of where and what the objects are and come from.
Still life Examples:
Still life Artist
Vincent Van Gogh:
Vincent van Gogh is a very famous artist who creates many still life paintings which all have a story or some kind of history behind them, his artwork is quite old and represents the older era of life.
His work:
Vincent van Gogh’s work presents an image of what life was like when he was growing up and presents that within his work to present that for others to see what it was like.
What is Vanitas ?
Vanitas is a genre of art which uses symbolism to show the transience of life, the futility of pleasure, and the certainty of death. The paintings involved still life imagery of transitory items.
What is memento mori ?
Memento mori is an artistic or symbolic trope acting as a reminder of the inevitability of death. The concept has its roots in the philosophers of classical antiquity and Christianity, and appeared in funerary art and architecture from the medieval period onwards.
What kind of metaphors and symbols are used in still life and why?
The early 1600s from Dutch and Northern European paintings
Q2. What does colonialism mean?
Control by one power over a dependent area or people
Q3. How did colonialism impact the still life?
It introduced new materials and techniques.
Q4. what do you see in early still life paintings?
Variety of foods, flowers and occasionally skulls.
Q5. What could they symbolize?
They could symbolize wealth and power in some cases and others maybe death, and lack of time which is shown in the paintings with skulls and or hourglasses.
History and theory of still life –
what is still life?
By definition, still life is a piece of artwork that shows inanimate objects from the natural or man-made world.
There are 4 different types of still life artwork: flowers, banquet or breakfast, animals and symbolic pieces. They each have different meanings and interpretations behind them.
Still life does not include people as objects within the work which does make the theme of still life easier to follow in photography because of the control you have.
The first generally considered still life photo or artwork that was made, was by a man called Jacopo De’Barbari in 1504.
Some of the key elements of still life are:
composition
shape
form
perspective
light and dark pattern
These things are the essence of the resulting image. Still life photos or artworks can almost be perceived as anything and that is the beauty of the style.
The work of art that shows inanimate objects from the natural or manmade world typically containing fruit, flowers or gold candle holders often to show wealth.
Artist Reference
Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch impressionist painter. He created 2100 pieces of artwork including 860 oil paintings. This painting shows kitchen bowls and glass bottles which contrasts against the brown wood table, this still life painting done by Vincent van Gogh explores old artefacts and possessions that are important or have meaning to him.
Chronological timeline of Leonardo Da Vinci still life Photography ?
1442- He was accepted into the painter’s guild in Florence at the age of 20
1476- Accused of sodomy publicly humiliated
1483- Paints the rocks
1500- Returns to Florence
1519- Leonardo Da Vinci Dies
What is Vanitas?
It’s a still life painting of a 17th century Dutch genre containing symbols of death or change.
What is Memento muri?
An object that is kept for the reminder of inevitbility of death.
What kind of metaphors and symbols are used in still life and why?
