I seem to have had a multitude of problems as I work towards Assignment 3. The main issue which has dragged my diary off into no mans land is the fact that I have lost my job, I have spent long hours sitting working out if and how I can afford to continue my studies, The loss of my job has had an impact on my health and once again I am struggling to control and manage the chronic fatigue and the chronic pain.
Along with that, the speed-lights I had purchased a while back with the intention of using them for this assignment turn out to be useless as they are incompatible with the controller I have purchased with my last pay packet. I will now either purchase new ones that work with the controller, change the assignment completely or just take the hint and throw the towel in.
Wednesday, 14 June 2017
Wednesday, 17 May 2017
Exercise - Lee and Morrissey
Nikki S Lee - Projects
When I started to review the images from Nikki S Lees projects I was surprised to find that she had taken a lot of time in each setup. Taking up to three months to work with the individuals and to merge with them so that she did not look out of place. By using quick methods of shooting and by using standard off the shelf cameras she has captured some unique images; in some cases they look like family snapshots even down to the time stamp on the image. By having the image taken by a family member or by someone else and having Lee within the group creates a constructed image, challenging the reality of the context.
By using stealth assimilation, Less has blended in, showing the her identity is fluid and that she can be whoever she chooses to be, picking up and dropping masks as she goes from project to project. Lee exposes herself to different cultures, trying to show that identity is non static and that individuals are not a solid set of thoughts and traits which do not change. Lee shows that identity is a complex set of masks and presentations, and she shows this through her own personal transformation using clothes, styling and social membership. Lee attempts to belong within the groups and then record her authenticity, in doing so Lee sets up the question of identity; who are we, are we defined by our social group, by our level within the social group, does this identity change when going between groups (family, friends, larger groups) and does this change have a conscious element, are we aware of our changes,
What caught me off guard was the use of blackface in the hip hop project. I just do not feel that it was required. Many people involved in the hip hop scene are not black and rather than working with them to create her own identity within the crowd she has deliberately taken to copying them. Rather then being a social chameleon Lee has taken the decision to be exploitative. Lee here is making race a performance, it is a caricature of hip hop and reduces her image to cultural appropriation. Having spent time looking through 'Projects' I could not find another black person anywhere else, there were no black yuppies or black skaters, I just cannot understand why Lee chooses to use blackface to appear "black" within the hip hop community; Lee states herself that she feels stateless and race less and does not have race issues, but then forgets the history of blackface, especially within American performance arts.
Why this is taken as acceptable is a mystery to me, how does Less manage to persuade the art world that her blacking up is neither voyeuristic nor racist.
She does something similar in the deep south project which appears almost sneering and again deliberately going out of its way to present the individuals who are not Lee as poor, uneducated rednecks.
In all at times, Lee's work within Projects does remind me of early colonial travel photography, quietly sneering down the lens capturing the less cultural to exhibit them later,
The other main issue is see with Lee is the exploitation of the individuals in the projects, none of the groups or people are identified nor are they given a narrative, their presence is pure for context but once Lee has captured her image they are forgotten as Lee goes off to present her take on them and pocket the money.
Trish Morrissey - Front
Morrisseys' technique is the opposite of Lees, in the Front series Morrissey explains what she would like to do to each group. Therefore they are aware of what is going to happen and they can choose whether or no to be part of the narrative. They are complicit in the piece along with Morrissey, who then inserts herself into the family spaces with everyone's knowledge and acceptance. Apart from a change of clothes, Morrissey at no time attempts to phase into the group any further; apart from a change of clothes she makes no attempt to change her appearance to make herself different from her subjects.
Morrissey works with the group to create the context and the narrative of the series and she quickly works with the group in a very short time frame to present the final image, rather than working insidiously with the groups to mimic them. By being bold and upfront and presenting the idea to the subjects, they are more willing to accommodate her. I think this is a better idea as they are not being exploited unwittingly and if asked I would be prepared to take part
In the failed realist, Morrissey uses the face paints to present masks to the viewer, but rather than making skillful complex masks like Gillian Wearing, Morrissey paints her face in the style of child painting with their fingers where the refined motor skills and techniques have yet to develop and the eye still is taken with bold colours and non linear differentiation. In doing so Morrissey has chosen to simplify her masks and
become both the physical representation of the character or story painted, the portrayal of an idea and the actual canvas in which both the character and the story are told.
become both the physical representation of the character or story painted, the portrayal of an idea and the actual canvas in which both the character and the story are told.
Assignment 2 - Tutor Feedback
My tutor has asked that I keep my idea open ended and continue to iunvestigate the issues of my condition through photography
He asked that I revisit a number of images and reexamine them.
Razor Blade
This was one image that stood out as my tutor pointed out, it was the only monochrome image within the set of images of the assignment. We discussed why - my main point being that in monochrome the blood on the razor did not distract from the final finished image. He suggested that I return to the image and see if I could get a colour version that would be suitable
Having returned to the image, my tutor is correct in that the image is better suited to the set in colour than in monchrome.
Crutches
The main and proper criticism of this image is that it lacked light. The area that the image represents only has daylight within set hours of the start of the day as it is an east facing location. I went back to the image and tinkered with the brightness of the image to bring up the left hand side as it was the darkest area and was distracting form the image.
Pills
Again my tutor suggested that the image lack proper lighting. I have now brightened up the image returning both colour and brightness to the image by making the lighting more natural and slightly brighter.
Blinds
It was felt that the background was causing the blinds to appear dark and dingy. But reshooting and and having some artificial light behind has made the image brighter and more balanced
Tuesday, 7 March 2017
Autobiographical Self Portrait
The exercise guided me to examine the image collections and essays from Francesca Woodman, Elina Brotherus and Gillian Wearing
One of the questions from the exercise is based on a statement which posits the question that Woodmans images elude to a troubled mind and we are asked what evidence is there of this in Woodmans Space2 essay
I spent some time looking at Space2 Tate. (2017). "Space², Providence, Rhode Island, 1975-1978", Francesca Woodman 1975–8 | Tate. [online] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/woodman-space-providence-rhode-island-1975-1978-ar00350 [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Cooke, R. (2017). Searching for the real Francesca Woodman. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/aug/31/searching-for-the-real-francesca-woodman [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Artblart.com. (2017). Francesca Woodman Space2 | Art Blart. [online] Available at: https://artblart.com/tag/francesca-woodman-space2/ [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
and some of space2 it could be read as being trapped or enclosed within a limited space. Woodmans images show a blurred figure moving within a glass case. By blurring the figure, Woodman has reduced the figure to an every-man, it is identifiable as a human only, the blurring demonstrates movement and speed. The figure within the glass case would elude to the figure being on display. The emphasis that the figure is naked could be seen as a show of exhibitionism within the exhibit, an act of defiance and individualism at the same time.
In space 2 by being naked, Woodman is showing that she is not hiding from the gaze of the viewer, in most of the images where we can see her eyes, she gazes directly into the camera, acknowledging the viewer and challenging them to meet her gaze on equal terms. By doing this she removes herself from being an sexual object and becomes an equal in the narrative.
The narrative within Space2 shows that she was acting within the narrative of being one with the background organically merging into it, it demonstrates surrealism with a certain nod of acknowledgement to Breton by the use of blurred figures
.
Looking at the images of Space2 I could not see Brights point that the images showed a troubled mind. Is the narrative of Woodmans life influencing viewers? Are they attracted to her work due to the sense of tragedy of her short life, are they reflecting on her life rather like people reflect on James Dean, Bon Scott and Jimmy Hendrix, rather than on an interest n her actual work. If anything it shows Woodman was at odds with her period of time, she mainly uses Victorian dresses, period shoes and old backgrounds to remove her from the period of time (the 1970's) and move it into a remembered time of american Gothic. Could this be interpreted as hiding from reality, unhappiness and depression, it could but it can also be seen as someone trying to make their own shape in the world and influence it rather than the world influencing her.
In Annunciation, Verk. (2017). Annonciation - Elina Brotherus. [online] Available at: https://www.verktidskrift.se/annunciation/ [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017]. we are taken through the experiences of Brotherus as she attempts to become pregnant through IVF. The exhibition and essay takes the viewer through the failed attempts and the direct effect on Brotherus as she attempts to conceive by IVF, The IVF procedure could be considered as a mechanical method of conception rather than a physical thus drawing a comparison to the immaculate conception.
Here Brotherus is naked to show her pain and vulnerability, but again her graze is towards to viewer. With each diarised date, the images show how Brotherus felt about the process. I was strongly drawn to two particular images within the sequence. One, the image just shows Brotherus s stomach and her bruises received from the harvesting of her eggs and the re-implantation. It showed how much physical pain is caused by the process rather then the other images whose narrative is towards the mental pain.
The second image I was drawn to was the mage of the drip. The drip represents the anchor to the physical process, when attached to the drip, you cannot escape from the pain and the reminder that a medical process is being undertaken. At the end of the sequence the narrative stops, the viewer is suddenly left with no further information, did she conceive or not. The sudden halt in the narrative will make some viewers follow up on Brotherus to find out what happened, was the pain and anguish worth the processes and procedure, was she happy in the in end?
Gillian Wearing, In album. the Guardian. (2017). Gillian Wearing takeover: behind the mask – the Self Portraits. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2012/mar/27/gillian-wearing-takeover-mask [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Skidmore, M. (2017). The Many Selves of Gillian Wearing. [online] AnOther. Available at: http://www.anothermag.com/art-photography/7906/the-many-selves-of-gillian-wearing [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Here Gillian Wearing is making use of masks for identity; Wearing had masks of her family constructed from the same material as used by TV and film, thus making the masks very realistic but they deteriorate easily which made the process used by Wearing, one where once the mask was used it could not be used again and the images captured could not be repeated, making the images inherit a sense of both time and space.
Wearing hides her own face behind that of members of her own family, changing the perception of her, to that of own family. She is not hiding as much as taking on her perception of their personalities, and her own engagement, interaction and interpretation with them. In each image we can still see her eyes, demonstrating the even with the change of face, it is still her spirit within the body. She cannot truly hide her own identity from the world.
The use of masks can also be read in the context of protection, Wearing is using the masks to fictionalise herself, creating a question within the viewer, challenging what they see as authentic and therefore questioning reality.
Wearing use of masks can be read in the context of Kabuki or Noh theatre. Both of these styles of theatre use masks as representation. They can be heroes, villains, ideas, and spirits, by using these neutral masks, it is down to the skill of the actor to being the representation to life. In this context Wearing is trying to bring the neutral expressions of the masks into life just using her eyes and again to ask the viewer to analyse the portrait and look at both Wearing and the family member she represents..
The exercise starts to make me examine not only my own face and expressions but that of others, looking at them for similar expressions and familiarities as well as how their personalities come out through their actions. It also makes me think about how I express myself to the work through how I look and act.
One of the questions from the exercise is based on a statement which posits the question that Woodmans images elude to a troubled mind and we are asked what evidence is there of this in Woodmans Space2 essay
I spent some time looking at Space2 Tate. (2017). "Space², Providence, Rhode Island, 1975-1978", Francesca Woodman 1975–8 | Tate. [online] Available at: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/woodman-space-providence-rhode-island-1975-1978-ar00350 [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Cooke, R. (2017). Searching for the real Francesca Woodman. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/aug/31/searching-for-the-real-francesca-woodman [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Artblart.com. (2017). Francesca Woodman Space2 | Art Blart. [online] Available at: https://artblart.com/tag/francesca-woodman-space2/ [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
and some of space2 it could be read as being trapped or enclosed within a limited space. Woodmans images show a blurred figure moving within a glass case. By blurring the figure, Woodman has reduced the figure to an every-man, it is identifiable as a human only, the blurring demonstrates movement and speed. The figure within the glass case would elude to the figure being on display. The emphasis that the figure is naked could be seen as a show of exhibitionism within the exhibit, an act of defiance and individualism at the same time.
In space 2 by being naked, Woodman is showing that she is not hiding from the gaze of the viewer, in most of the images where we can see her eyes, she gazes directly into the camera, acknowledging the viewer and challenging them to meet her gaze on equal terms. By doing this she removes herself from being an sexual object and becomes an equal in the narrative.
The narrative within Space2 shows that she was acting within the narrative of being one with the background organically merging into it, it demonstrates surrealism with a certain nod of acknowledgement to Breton by the use of blurred figures
.
Looking at the images of Space2 I could not see Brights point that the images showed a troubled mind. Is the narrative of Woodmans life influencing viewers? Are they attracted to her work due to the sense of tragedy of her short life, are they reflecting on her life rather like people reflect on James Dean, Bon Scott and Jimmy Hendrix, rather than on an interest n her actual work. If anything it shows Woodman was at odds with her period of time, she mainly uses Victorian dresses, period shoes and old backgrounds to remove her from the period of time (the 1970's) and move it into a remembered time of american Gothic. Could this be interpreted as hiding from reality, unhappiness and depression, it could but it can also be seen as someone trying to make their own shape in the world and influence it rather than the world influencing her.
In Annunciation, Verk. (2017). Annonciation - Elina Brotherus. [online] Available at: https://www.verktidskrift.se/annunciation/ [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017]. we are taken through the experiences of Brotherus as she attempts to become pregnant through IVF. The exhibition and essay takes the viewer through the failed attempts and the direct effect on Brotherus as she attempts to conceive by IVF, The IVF procedure could be considered as a mechanical method of conception rather than a physical thus drawing a comparison to the immaculate conception.
Here Brotherus is naked to show her pain and vulnerability, but again her graze is towards to viewer. With each diarised date, the images show how Brotherus felt about the process. I was strongly drawn to two particular images within the sequence. One, the image just shows Brotherus s stomach and her bruises received from the harvesting of her eggs and the re-implantation. It showed how much physical pain is caused by the process rather then the other images whose narrative is towards the mental pain.
The second image I was drawn to was the mage of the drip. The drip represents the anchor to the physical process, when attached to the drip, you cannot escape from the pain and the reminder that a medical process is being undertaken. At the end of the sequence the narrative stops, the viewer is suddenly left with no further information, did she conceive or not. The sudden halt in the narrative will make some viewers follow up on Brotherus to find out what happened, was the pain and anguish worth the processes and procedure, was she happy in the in end?
Gillian Wearing, In album. the Guardian. (2017). Gillian Wearing takeover: behind the mask – the Self Portraits. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2012/mar/27/gillian-wearing-takeover-mask [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Skidmore, M. (2017). The Many Selves of Gillian Wearing. [online] AnOther. Available at: http://www.anothermag.com/art-photography/7906/the-many-selves-of-gillian-wearing [Accessed 7 Mar. 2017].
Here Gillian Wearing is making use of masks for identity; Wearing had masks of her family constructed from the same material as used by TV and film, thus making the masks very realistic but they deteriorate easily which made the process used by Wearing, one where once the mask was used it could not be used again and the images captured could not be repeated, making the images inherit a sense of both time and space.
Wearing hides her own face behind that of members of her own family, changing the perception of her, to that of own family. She is not hiding as much as taking on her perception of their personalities, and her own engagement, interaction and interpretation with them. In each image we can still see her eyes, demonstrating the even with the change of face, it is still her spirit within the body. She cannot truly hide her own identity from the world.
The use of masks can also be read in the context of protection, Wearing is using the masks to fictionalise herself, creating a question within the viewer, challenging what they see as authentic and therefore questioning reality.
Wearing use of masks can be read in the context of Kabuki or Noh theatre. Both of these styles of theatre use masks as representation. They can be heroes, villains, ideas, and spirits, by using these neutral masks, it is down to the skill of the actor to being the representation to life. In this context Wearing is trying to bring the neutral expressions of the masks into life just using her eyes and again to ask the viewer to analyse the portrait and look at both Wearing and the family member she represents..
The exercise starts to make me examine not only my own face and expressions but that of others, looking at them for similar expressions and familiarities as well as how their personalities come out through their actions. It also makes me think about how I express myself to the work through how I look and act.
Thursday, 9 February 2017
Assignment 2 - Photographing the Unseen
Seeing the unseen.
For me I wanted to use this assignment as a way of Investigating the Suffering from a debilitating condition which is invisible.
I decided to note how I was feeling in a diary so that I could reflect on it later and then use these feelings as a basis for the assignment. On review I could see common themes repeating, the themes of pain, tiredness, frustration, anxiety and loss of control.
As I suffer from an invisible disability, to look at me you would not know that it is difficult and extremely painful to sit, stand or walk, even lying down has its own set of pain problems so I started to look at the unseen part of being ill, the tiny indicators that perhaps only I see as part of a day to day existence. From there I was able to choose the subjects and photograph them and then annotate the images with some notes on my experience and emotions.
As I suffer from an invisible disability, to look at me you would not know that it is difficult and extremely painful to sit, stand or walk, even lying down has its own set of pain problems so I started to look at the unseen part of being ill, the tiny indicators that perhaps only I see as part of a day to day existence. From there I was able to choose the subjects and photograph them and then annotate the images with some notes on my experience and emotions.
Bed.
The one place that most people feel they comfortable at the end of the day, it is somewhere that they can hide from the outside, the rigours of their work, it is somewhere that the can rest, restore and recover their energy and strength. For me, it is somewhere to lye and stare at the inside of my eyelids in the darkness. I sit late into the early mornings in a state of painsomnia, where the pain keeps me awake and I cannot find a comfortable position in which to rest. There I struggle with the darker thoughts, the ones that 16% of the people suffering from this condition finally succumb to, and end their lives.
Earplugs
I have a collection of earplugs, I use them to reduce the number of outside influences on my brain and try to trick it into complete isolation so that I can sleep. At times this is the only way that I can sleep, I refuse to take sleeping tablets as the sleep tablet hangover only makes me feel worse and I end up being sick. Since the "neurological incident" I have the occasional auditory hallucination, usually the door bell, the sound of the front door being knocked or a shout from a familiar voice of someone I know who is just not there. They are also useful at times for when I want to concentrate fully on something, I can push them into my ears and shut off all external influences and/or distractions, it allows me to laser focus on the subject in hand.
Pills
I require medication to function on a day to day basis. My life is now ruled by pills, pills to stop the migraines, pills to reduce the neurological pains, pills to stop me being unhappy, pills to stop the pain, pills to sleep. Counting the days by counting the pills , only knowing the day by the marking of packets.
Crutches
Hiding the in the corner, unused when inside, tucked away behind boots and shoes not walked in I use the walls, furniture, the floor for balance and movement. When outside, people walk into me as I cannot move quick enough, invisible outside, unseen inside.
Clothes
Soiled clothes. One of the unwanted problems of not being able to move fast enough to get to the toilet. A grown man soils himself, embarrassment, anger and anxiety again. Having to have that conversation again about the changing of clothes, having to see the pain and embarrassment in someone else's face.
Blinds
Once of the few views I have, blinds separating the view, just as the pain and anxiety of this condition isolates me from the rest of the world.
Razor Blade.
As I have stated 16% of all suffers from this condition end their own lives. It is something that every sufferer has to face at some point as their bodies fail and they have to face the embarrassing and degrading act of soiling themselves. The isolation of being housebound and unsupported by the health services leaves the sufferer having to cope alone at times, and this can drive the sufferer into deeper depression and sometimes the initial act of self harm.
Bitten fingernails.
The anxiety of sitting in limbo, the not knowing what will happen next, with only the local doctor to protect me from the return to work and the inevitable collapse in a corridor due to overexertion. Constantly facing the not known, the unknown unknowns, raises tensions both within the sufferer and the people closest to them, I end up biting fingernails due to worry and concern as well as in a attempt to block my mouth and stop me from saying things, lashing out in anger and fear to the one person who is closest to me and who is trying their hardest to support and care all without external help or support for themselves.
Conclusion.
This has been quite a hard assignment for me, as I have been reduced to the inside of the house for ideas. With only myself for guidance it has been a exercise in self examination and introspection. Looking at where I am not and my future with trying to live with this condition. I believe that I have been able to take some images and have successfully applied my narrative to these images and that with the narrative the images can be seen in context with my notes and also with the viewers interpretations.
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