Researching links and creating ideas.

When developing and creating new ideas obviously artistic research and understanding is crucial to help understand the focal point of pieces of work and how photographers have changed over time. I have searched through many artists and photographers work and one particular photographer that caught my eye was August Sander. He was a German photographer working during the war mainly in Germany and Austria. His work has had much influence on other photographers because of the detached style he uses to create atmosphere throughout his work.

Both these images are included into the collection named 'faces of the twentieth century'. The collection portrayed life in Nazi Germany of the people that lived in and around the area in which Sander lived. Sander did not just photograph the rich and young people but also included the elderly, homeless and minority groups, which did not sit well with the Nazi's so many of his tapes were destroyed. Sanders work has inspired many other photographers to create pieces that are different and detached. Photographers such as Bernd Becher and following that Thomas Ruff have created images that seem to hold some visual comparisons with the work of Sander. Bernd Becher was a German artist who worked with his wife to form the duo of Bernd and Hilla Becher. The couple are most renown for their work of industrial buildings and structures.

These images are the structural architectural style images that the Bechers specialised in. They did not only photograph german architecture but also travelled across the world to places including, Britain, Belgium, France and USA. The Bechers also started to teach photography and have created the Becher School which has inspired photographs such as Thomas Ruff, Thomas Struth and Candia Hofer. The work of the Bechers is very detached yet still incredibly different and structured. The way in which they create each piece is a masterpiece of detail and pinpointed accuracy. This is turn influenced photographer Thomas Ruff.

Thomas Ruff was influenced by the Bechers as he was taught by them for 8 years. The detached style in his work does differ slightly from that of the Bechers, but the concept of estranged images is still clear. The portraits exhibition of Ruff's photo's is off 8 people that he photographed in a straight forward, face on manner with the subjects remaining expressionless and looking straight into the camera. The passport format images were enlarged to create 200x150cm canvases. Ruff's images were experimenting with light, however he also says that there were connections between the portraits and the police observation methods in the 1970's. This being said create a different perception on the images as they could be hiding truths and lies behind the expressionless faces.

Visual Puns

Visual Puns are images involving objects instead of words to get a joke across to the viewer. We have been given the task to create a visual pun. This incorporates nicely into the concept of combinations and alliances as as to create a visual pun usually 2 or more objects would need to be combines together to create the image. I have had many ideas of what I could do eg:
Jack Frost, Watch Dog, Fan Club, Fire Man, Hot Dog, Sleeping Bag, Skipping School, Tight Rope, Chain Smoker, Butterfly and many more. I now need to find ways to show these words in images creating a suitable combination.

This visual pun is quite amusing and sweet and the use of an actual seal is pleasing to the eye.

This image is very funny, it have a lot of atmosphere in the image and humour.

This final image is quite crude but still amusing. It is creative and well throughout out. After looking over these visual puns I went about creating some of me own.

This image comes with the pun 'crybaby'. The images used are both portrait style images as this is my favoured area of photography. I think the two images work well together as a set however the style of them and the contrast and brightness of the black and white needs to possibly be improved to create a more professional outcome.

This second image is called 'eyeball'. The image is quite crude and it looks unreal however I still think I have fulfilled the brief in creating a visual pun. Again the image could be improved by ensuring all corners and colours are sharp and poignant.

Having a go

Using the framing idea from my previous images I wanted to stick with this idea to develop it slightly. I used the school studio set up and a brown wooden frame, I wanted to keep it simple and not to overcooked so asked my models to simply stand and do whatever they wished for a pose.

The images were quite dark so I brightened them up and added in some contrast to create a more vibrant image. This worked well in some images but not in others. In this image the higher contrast works well as it brings out the colour of the hair and eyes.

This image seems very staged however I still like the energy that is shown. The closer up style brings the image to life a bit more and the colours compliment the style.

This image also has a lot of vibrant colour, slightly enhanced by the contrast however seems quite detached from the frame. This is different and makes the image have a different dimension to the others.

This image is very different to the previous images. To begin with it is far more serious where as the others seem more playful. This one was designed and posed more than the previous images. The slight distortion in the arms makes the eye have to work to see the real image.

I put two of the images of Emma into photoshop and started playing around with putting in a different face to change the direction of sight and to confusion the viewer. This idea fits in well with creations like visual illusions.

This first image is a simple illusion, which shows 2 different aspects of the lines, one would show them flat and the other seems to show them standing up, in a 3D format.

This image is slightly more complex, using colour and animation to create the illusions of firstly two people looking at one another and then secondly 2 men in sombrero's sitting on the floor of a building with a young lady coming out from under an arch. This sort of work links to artist Kurt Wenner who creates amazing 3D floor illusions. Some of his art work is for general enjoyment and is humorous however some of it is also very throughout provoking and the idea of escapism is captured throughout his work.

This piece of art is a picnic, visually it is very entertaining and has a lot of fun in it shown by the people surrounding the artwork.

This image is slightly less humorous and shows the plight of people. The way in which it seems to go into the ground is amazing and it is difficult for the eye to not notice the 3D aspect of this image.

Finding a way

From this influx of idea's, I am now researching further artists that may have some inspiration on my task and how combinations and alliances can be see through their work. I began looking at Rene Magritte and his surrealist paintings.

This image is slightly more conventional than the others of Magritte's images as it is quite a formal portrait however obviously with the element of the unknown as the blags/material is covering the faces of the subjects.

Further Expansion on Ideas

From my visit to Betty and Dave I have had many ideas that have provoked thoughts on where to go on my road to the exam.
Firstly I had the visit to get the portraits, expanding on this my next idea developed into thinking about how pictures in front of faces can be more effective, also pictures in mirrors.
The mirrors particularly interested me and from this I came up with the idea of; what you see is not what you get- how can a mirror change an image?
From this, if a mirror is only a reflection, then can there be any substance, is it just unreal/surreal?
A picture within a picture?
How does expression change perception and everyday workings- clothing, attitudes, accent, secrets of peoples lives?
How do the senses create feelings, possibly about images? sight, sound, touch, smell, taste.
Pictures- are they secrets? - background and stories, ageing- reflecting on experiences
The truth behind the secrets and how they form and how they change perception?
'All photography is about death-capturing moments that will be gone straight away'?
In a before and after, is there a real difference of is it created in the mind?
Relationships and combinations of people, how are they formed and how are they strengthened and sustained?

Looking at portraits

Portrait photography is my favourite style of photography and something I am very keen to focus on for my exam. I was browsing through some photographers when I came across Nigel Tomm. His work is really interesting and unique and I am considering creating something like his work for some sort of starting point.

Both these images are really fascinating as clearly they are portraits but the distortion makes the eye really work to see within the image. As well as this the use of black and white makes even harder for the viewer to depict the image properly.

I choose 3 images of my own to have a play around with and to see if I could create something like Nigel Tomm's work .

I think these images have worked out well. The second one is particularly distorted and this runs through out all of the features of the face. I like the way the whole face can change with just a couple of simple folds in the paper. Its extraordinary how this happens. Another photographer I have been researching still fitting with this theme of distortion are Thomas Couderc and Clement Vauchez.

These images are from the exhibition 'Beasts of Fashion' models were superimposed to look like beasts of the forest before being put onto display.

The visit

We went back to visit Betty and Dave at their shop and had arranged to revisit to take the portrait shots. the ideas had been bouncing around however I wanted something quirky and a bit different out of the portraits. I decided to try and work with everything they had in the shop, however I was particularly interested in the mirror, pictured in my last post, and how this can show the definition between the front of the shop where Betty works and the back of the shop where Dave works.

This is the image I got from my idea of the mirror shot. I am very happy with this image and it shows exactly what I wanted it to show. It shows the divide between the laces which the both of them work however it still shows their strong bond that has formed between them and this is brought out in the shop. I think the image could do with lighting up slightly as Betty's face is quite dark because I only used available light as I did not want any bounce back flash.

This image is also very quirky. I asked Betty and Dave to pick their favourite image out of all the images they had, which was loads! They both picked their favourite, Bettys being christchurch, near the priory and Daves being the street he used to live down. This image is much more humourous than the rest, however I think it is also very personal.

This image again is quirky, mainly created by the expressions on Betty and Dave's faces. I asked them to use the frames to frame one another, seeing as this was their profession. They both found this very amusing. With both of them looking at one another with the confused expression it adds again their bond into the image.

Finally this image again is very humorous. When first visiting the shop one of the first things I noticed was this mask. Dave had brought it from a rally and kept it in the workshop. Using it in the image added some extra colour and extremity to the image.