Just some nothingy filler

I am currently artistically barren, many due to working every day for the past few weeks and not being in the creative oasis of the studio...but I have taken a few photos. Nothing groundbreaking; nothing very good even, but it is something.

Ideas for MA work

I know that I definitely want to continue with the work I started towards the end of my degree, but the question is, well, how exactly? (This is of course dependent on me finding the money to do my Masters, which is another and extremely frustrating story). I need to brainstorm and just start SHOOTING, but it is apparantly harder than it seems when you are both model-less and brainless.  I found this website about a rather fabulous woman that has inspired me slightly, and now I'm playing with ideas of creating a complete fake persona and shooting their 'history'.  I particularly loved this photo:

the slight air of haughtiness intrigues me, but I'm worried the idea could be a little stale.

Hmmm, thinking cap on!

(and desperate pleas to uni to allow me to continue for free...might work?!)

Exhibition

I've finally got round to posting some images from my Degree show exhibition. It was an amazing show, and the art on show was truly great!

 

 

 

Further Edits

 

  

 

New Edits...finally!

It's taken a while due to lack of funds and illness, but I finally did what I imagine is my last ever photoshoot for my degree. Scary stuff! It was at my Grandma's lovely house again, and hair and make-up was a much better affair this time. After getting the films back I found I had a few shots to choose from, but I'm still waiting on my slide film. Ahhh what a labour of love slides are. Anyway, I got back into my pattern of editing in the usual way (see images below) but found it just wasn't hitting the right buttons. It was all beginning to look a little cliched and, well, amateurish (even more so than usual) so I tried something completely different. I was going for a more filmic quality. It's not spot on but it's getting there. I'm just not sure if it's right for the image, although I do feel it adds to the narrative. Apologies for the poor quality, it was a quick scan and a quick edit, I hope that the final image will be better quality in more ways than one.

Format09

So I went to Format 09 , a photocinema festival, in Derby today.  We didn't actually get to spend much time there, due to being in a bit of a rush, getting lost, and the horrible weather, but it was good nontheless.  And I got to see William Eggleston, Gregory Crewdson, et al.  Niiiiiice. I enjoyed seeing Wim Wenders' work 'Once', which was full of narrative, melancholy, and some pretty good images also. 
Known as a film maker, this work features a selection of images with a brief text alongside each set, which consists of Wenders' own experiences along the journeys he went on whilst taking the photographs.  I feel it is often hard to integrate text alongside photographs without it seeming like an explanation to an otherwise mediocre image, but this added to the enjoyment and depth of the images.  The cinematic aesthetic to many of the images included in the festival immediately encourages the viewer to explore the narrative of the piece.  This is something I need to within my own work, and has started to happen with my latest prints.

 

Jason Dee - We'll Revisit the Scenes of Our Youth.

I really liked this projection, which involved a static forground and a moving background.  The age of the scene seemed quite fitting when referring to my own work, but I also liked the use of the noises of the projector, even though it was a digital projection.  It was rhythmic and hypnotic, and a rather odd juxtaposition between still images and film that was intriguing and effective.

More editing

Some new edits on my photos, I'm just trying out some different techniques to show in my crit.  I'm unsure which they will prefer, but it's been interesting trying to achieve the different effects. I'm sure there must be a simpler way of doing the fading techique, but I had to rub out and dodge freehand, hence the non-uniformity of the shape.

Progression

hand colouring

One of my friends gave me the idea to try hand colouring one of the images after desaturating it, which I thought I'd attempt in Photoshop, and then possibly later use the original technique if it was successful.  This was my first attempt, and I was surprised with the outcome, as some parts were much easier than I'd imagined, but some things I hadn't considered became a problem.  I think after my crit on monday I may do some traditional hand colouring, depending what my tutors think is working well.  I'm unsure what they are going to say, but I'm hopeful I'll get some constructive criticism and will be able to move forward.

 

The first two edits I've done on this set.  They still need a lot more work, but I'm unsure which one is currently working best.  I think I need to try to find a similiar vintage image so I can recreate the finish as closely as possible.

New Shoot

I needed to do a new shoot for my project, deadlines are looming ominously. Trying to get the balance between an authentic look with subtle modern elements is still something I'm trying to work out but here's another try. The few I just scanned in are here, unedited, straight from the film. Some of them are looking alright, just need to edit them.  This time I also shot three rolls of slide film, which I'll get back tomorrow, so I can see which method of display works best for the piece. This is probably one of my favourites:

The room is gorgeous for this (aha it helps when your grandparents live on an old farm).  The hair took a while to do, and there were a few moans of looking ridiculous, but I think they actually worked fairly well.  I've got everything crossed that my other films are going to come back perfectly exposed, as I'm still working out what works when using my Ikon and Voigtlander (nothing pricey, unlike Danny's new baby, but full of sentimental value). Old cameras are pretty (and smell of musty leather mmm) but I'm not capable enough to not have to guess at apertures.  Oh well we shall see.  I took quite a few in the garden which was nice, and some more in the lounge at the table, which is surrounded by lovely old trinkets.  If only I could fill my house with nice little things...but that's another story.

40s in colour

 

Through the magic of stumble I came across these amazing photos from the library of congress photostream on flickr. They're all original slides from the late 30s and 40s.  The colours are so beautiful, and that ends my tutor's complaints that slides were only used in the 60s and 70s.  I may try to reproduce some of these photos next week in a new shoot, although I am unsure about copyright infringement. I will try a few just for my personal use and then I can produce my own versions of this style of image. I'm really excited to show my tutors, and definitely start doing the shoot.  If I can get anything that looks like the photo above I'll be extremely pleased.  It's funny how inspiration can come when you're not looking for it!

Inspiration

See this here

I've been looking at Gillian Wearing's work album and it's definitely given me a fresh view on my work. She reproduced six portraits from her family album, but they are in fact all her dressed up, using prosthetics and make up. I LOVE IT. They look really realistic, and it definitely took me a while to see that she was actually the model. I had a pretty successful tutorial with John, nothing really was said that was any different, but it cleared up a few things. I've decided explore two paths of inquiry to see what works out, and which method of display enhances my work and the meanings I want to portray. Firstly I'm going to do another shoot of vintage style images, but include some of the subtle nods to modernity and the falsity of the image. Sort of a cross between these two:

Things like shorter skirts, haristyles, slightly 'wrong' clothing, maybe some clues in the backgrounds. This will make the idea of unreliability of memory and historical retelling, and the blurred line between fact and fiction. Hopefully. Then I'll frame these in a normal gallery display similar to Wearing's possibly.
I'm also going to continue with my slide show. I like this due to the inherent history within slides themselves, and the hypnotic effect of the slide show. It also speaks of family albums immediately too. I'll either take more slide films, or get some of my new images put onto slides. Then fill the carousel, maybe on a timer? Then I can see which of the two methods will help enhance my work and make it most successful.

bah

Turns out the internet is useless. why can't every artist have their own website? i think it rather strange that they don't. with everything listed that they have ever produced. and images, or at least where to find them. i need to find some relevant artists, sometimes it feels like my tutors haven't got a clue...

Where to go?

I'm struggling at the minute to work out where to go with my work. The stress of third year is getting to me, as is my neurosis! Hopefully some sort of clarity will come, as all my ideas are buzzing round my head but none seem that great at the moment! I really need to simplify the work, waaay too much going on, but can't decide between making it into a more simple installation or pursuing the photographic / curatorial side of it. It's definitely a split personality at the moment. Weirdly all I want to do at the moment is go back to painting and taking photos. Oil paint seems so much more exciting than wallpaper and love letters! It's been a while since I felt like that...maybe uni has changed my work for the worse? Who knows but I've got to carry on with this now. Think I just need a tutorial, I love the little details in there, and it definitely has atmosphere, but the wide view is just awful at the moment. Obviously this was just a taster for my assessment, the real deal would be a proper little room. Quite glad I didn't do that now as I may have been even more despondant after my distinctly average assessment...

The new frontier.

I've decided to start a blog to try to keep all my thoughts and work in order, especially as I'm so useless at keeping up with sketchbooks. Hopefully I will update this a little more regularly! Plus it may help me to clear my head and look at things fresh!