Research: Narrative and Photography
Part 1 Group Critique

Had a group critique on Friday 21st February  a way of presenting our final single narratives to the class. we all shared a magnetic board  in studio and pinned picture up with magnets lining up each others work order for class to know who's column to feedback on. I felt a bit anxious on what people will say about my image and see if they have any negatives.  By lining up the work I could see what people's ideas were and how they created it. Thought it was good that tutor has given us each a sheet it was helpful to make us think deeply on what each student meaning was, is our story we coming up the same to the student and right at the end when we all filled up sheet detailed and able to get involved when chosen to speak our opinions that may help them to write about on their image on blogger with our seeings, meanings and what story their picture could show. Overall I thought the critique was successful as it was was helpful to get feedback from people on how I could have used, positions and backgrounds I could of done and how my own opinions can help other with their work.

The women with an apple all snow white themed was to show that everyday in life when you trust someone you always end up get a rotten mouth. The picture is like showing life always ends in death no matter what and the women looks dead and the black clothing on her could lead to end of her life she has reached and lived it well but shouldn't of trusted too easily.

Picture on the left is like showing that the child has grown up just ditching the toy and moving on to different things. Child letting go on what they were brought up with, caring for toy but now ready to let go and care for something bigger. 

Picture on the right showing youth culture which I think student is showing a negative impact, that its good for the youth to go out showing their attitude to music, being free, social life having a breaking free from stress and disappointments just letting go all in their own world for a couple of hours.

The picture on the bottom of other two on top shows a female squeezing her tummy to show insecure about her body wanting to have curves and be skinny like the magazines.  No matter what every female always grabs some skin on their body thinking oh my god look at that flab. 

Research: Photography and Narrative
Final Single image

Picture Above is the final finished single image which am quite happy with it by showing loads of clues on what my story could be.  The damaged door behind her is there for her to escape from him but she can't as she been in that house for too long that now shes under his control like a doll forever with him.  The girl with the black veil brides bracelet and guy with black veil brides shirt made them connected to each other got closer due to same liking and formed a bond and girl got deeper in the bond couldn't see what the guy was treating her. The decayed walls and carpet getting darker is showing that the girl is heading to a dark place there's no light in her anymore all because of the guy broke her hearts as the house used to homely to her being with the guy but guy broke her trust by giving her the whole world to her but became a servant and a doll as she has lost all her power to fight back and do as her please.  The girl is wearing a corset as that attracts men as it shows off their natural figure to please the guy and capture their eye to want the girl.  The face I have done on the girl was to draw cracks on side of face, her eyes all bruised from all the hurt the guy caused her from making her trust him and has no colour to her skin no more as her soul is disappearing and no longer human but a doll strung to a puppet prop. The face paint helped me to draw out emotion from her face as I could make her look like she is crying and model don't have to try and make herself cry by sniffing or peeling onion or thinking up a sad time. The guy looks all defined standing all oblivious on what he has become, he's too used to controlling the girl that it has become addicted to him and doesn't see her more than a puppet no more.  

In this image I had edited out the sofa, I should of just shifted it out the way when i was shooting at the time but did not think of it but by not shifting it, I was able to create the doors all damaged in my own way making parts of the glass dark and light. The light on the doors could show that there's a fresh start for the girl if she can escape through those doors. I had edited the floor using mask on parts of it, was looking like shadows but then I like the weird shapes I created looking like the floor is cracking.

Here is the original without editing where I positioned them into my lounge, the girl model slouched and synced frozen to what the guy model has positioned the puppet prop. Her slouching showing that shes a a play toy for him so she moves only in his command.

Research: Narrative and Photography
Robert Frank

His major artist influence, the photographer Walker Evans, by the time The Americans was published in the United States 1958 Frank moved from photography to film making, the film conveyed the quality  of having been thrown together or even improvised. Frank returned to still images creating his second photographic book , The lines of My Hand, in 1972 his work was described as a visual autobiography and consists personal photographs. His created narratives out of constructed images and collages, incorporating words and multiple frames of images that were scratched and distorted on the negatives.

His photographs seems to show what he cares for deeply such as memories of that place and wanting to create a story of why that place was special so he does a series. Obviously this man had a tough past of having to say goodbyes to people he loves or a place he cherishes and having a toy on a looking through window he may have a favourite landscape being making memories with a important person he deeply fonded and the toy may have been from that person.

Research: photography and narrative
Betrayed idea (puppet idea)


Tina Patni

Tina is an fashion, still life, editiorial photographer, i looked at this artist as it it looks modern and all the positions look very controlled and moving and they dressed to what males find attractive which i like to focus on with my puppet idea. She has used old rotting away props like tables and chairs to maybe show that the guy was cheap and not thought much of the women.  I like how the photographer has used a set on a stage to illustrate how the women felt to the guy being played with, taken for granted, so the photographer must of thought the curtains colour could show the trust and love the women had for the guy and the decayed walls and worn out floors showing the hurt the women had after the trust was broken, so the women feel like they are in a dark place not knowing if they can face love again.


This given me thoughts on how to make my puppet prop and how the guy should pose when controlling the women. This image will help on how the guy model should hold the puppet prop making the puppet model look as if she being controlled in a way the guy is shifting the prop frozen.

Girl Puppet Makeup

 

Here I have looked at different techniques on ways I could face paint on model to transform her into a puppet and how i could place the hurt on their faces such as cries, broken face look like their face made of pottery so their face gets cracks.  Making their face look quite evil ish as she's had enough of the betrayal so she think that having no feelings it could save her from sanity.


Puppet Master Makeup



Here I looked at the males role of being a puppet master if I want to make the guy look cruel, evil, marks on his face could show how many he had broke girls hearts.  By making the guy look evil it could show the guy is going to hell but he's not realising it as this betrayal maybe a hobby thing that he became obsessed.




Here i looked at how my model could dress like, facial expression and where to put ropes on model in a way the the guy model can control her. Most of the puppet outfit involves long patterned socks giving a fun look.

Research: Photography and Narrative
Painters

Harmen Steenwyck

The books symbolise human knowledge, the musical instruments like recorder, flute and violin gives a meaning of the pleasures of the senses. Certain objects in paintings are softly modelled by light which enhances sharp outlines. Parts of the objects are visible than other objects as the artist use wide range of shading to suggest spreading of light and shadow. Skull represents strong difference with the objects of everyday life. While some objects such as instruments are associated with pleasure and achievements of physical existence, the skull represents death. Light in the painting shows spiritual and directs at skull that intensifies the spiritual and the physical between life and death. 

Edward Manet

Edward was one of the first 19th century artists to paint modern life, figure in the transition from realism to impressionism. His rough painted style and his lighting works has been seen modern and to challenge to the Renaissance works and copied their sources of material. He was early modern painter due to black outlining of figures that draws attention of the main subject on picture. These paintings show the women are at piece and enjoying the surrounding they set place soothing themselves from situations, work, house work or drama.

Ophelia

 

The ophelia painting was painted by a British artist John Everett Millais, the painting ophelia shows a character from Shakespeare's play Hamlet, singing before she drowns in a river in Denmark. The painting is known for the detailed flora of the riverbank, stressing of growth and decay in a natural habitat. According to Shakespeare each flower carries a meaning. The red poppy that is not mentioned by shakespeare's description of the scene but it represents sleep and death.

Research: Photography and Narrative
Ryan Mcginley

Ryan has created a varied body of work by breaking down barriers of covering themes between public and private such as skateboarders, musicians, graffiti artists to make the sensational appear ordinary and drawing attention to the every day and does candid portraits. In his early works his subjects are performing in front of camera and exploring themselves with self awareness that is contemporary. They are understanding culture, aware of how identity can be not only communicated but created and subjects are willing.

Ryan's style evolved from documenting his friends in real life situations to creating situations where they can be predicted.

 

These images I have chosen from Ryan all seem to be feeling free, escaped from their tough situations. The first image with the fireworks shows that she's not self conscious of her body, she's happy to have it and think Ryan has used a smoked machine so parts of her body slightly vanishes into the smoke, deeper and deeper she goes.

Second image the model in blue dress i feel that shes received a miracle so the flower petals flying around in a way that the miracle she seeing is colourful, sweet and shes accepting it and a fog is appearing around her to show that she's going to that miracle feeling relaxed and blown away by the possibility coming to her.

Research: Photography and Narrative
Tom Hunter

Tom believes that photography can be a lie as soon as photographer picks up a camera the situation changes but the viewers believes in the truth of the photograph. He tries to create images for viewers to realise the construction to the image using historical postures.

I just like the dark tones in this image making the scene look daunting and haunted and light beams hitting the ground from the gaps of the secluded house all in bad condition and looks as if the women has come back to the house to get flash backs on certain left over objects that maybe in good condition or what is left in that house. The women may have gone back to the house to look back to get some happiness she did have and hopefully depress her a little longer. The light beams could mean to the photographer it is a way of saying to the women in image that there's light coming to her life and not give up there is hope don't let yourself feel down there's something good coming.

I like this image as the women lies slightly on the grass looking over slyly to the building as if she just escaped from there or wanting to go over their but cannot as she's not worthy to them or not accepted so she might be trying to sneek up to the building.

Tom's work on the left is a women reading a possession order. Image on the right painter Jan Vermeer a girl reading a letter at an open window.

Every time Tom sees a picture of a squatter or a traveller, he thought it was a start to go with a story about how antisocial they are and wanted to portray dignity of a squatter life.

Research: Photography and Narrative
Jeff Wall

Jeff is a photographer who created the concept of 'photographic objectivity' to define  the 'photo conceptualism'. Jeff was always interested in displaying racism, violence and poverty. He thinks that photography have a big influence from the history of art in paintings of the modern era like Manet and Delacroix. Some of Jeff's photographs are complicated productions involving  cast, sets, crews and digital post production. His photographs are usually staged like in a film the composition is well thought through and borrowed details from modern painters.  Jeff has the ability to capture reality and ambition to open his mind of conceptual art to get people to feel and whatever they discover. Jeff has well balanced composition of shapes, light and movement, the careful choice of objects and location and seeking a sharp view at people's everyday life.


Jeff wall: “My pictures are obviously related to my own life. Why would I be interested in them otherwise? I’m not a sociologist. I must identify with these figures, even though I often don’t like them, I don’t even feel that sympathetic to them sometimes. But I must identify with them in some way because they keep coming into pictures that I want to make.”

This picture I feel that the society is careless in the way they handle their food and drink as our generation people seem to not care that they spilling liquids on pavement leaving staines. The guy in the photo looks frustrated by his life or someone just talked to him by sitting by the wall beside him but he doesn't agree with her opinion so hes shaving the drink in anger not caring where it lands.

A sudden gust of wind 1993 picture on the left based on Yejiri station, province of Suruga 1832 on the right that is a woodprint by Katsushika Hokusia to create 19th century Japanese scene in contemporary British Collumbria, using actors and took over a year to achieve all in one montage that gives the illusion of capturing a real moment in time. 

Research: Photography and Narrative
Ways to give photographs a compelling narrative
http://photodoto.com/6-easy-ways-to-give-your-photographs-a-compelling-narrative/

Build a relationship with the content

Robert Bradley

The girl above is unsure about the box saying 'his way up' to me saying that the girl was in his control and the box being open meaning he's open to to her so the girl starts to trust and honour him like emotional manipulation but she doesn't find out until she says what she wants from him but he doesn't respect that so the shackle around her foot illustrating no way to run as the girl confused on to stay with him or leave but struggles as the manipulation too strong with his charming words. Using props to help tell story can be fun and intriguing but dont make image being too subjective as the story need to be clear and want the viewers to ask themselves questions.  The background showing poverty can also illustrate her being damaged feeling lost and not sure how to handle her situation so she just looks at the box hoping to see through him.

Incorporating basic colour theory

Robert Bradley

The green, purple, black and light pink set a scary, unsettling, beautiful mood tone. The shadows on this image from the person kind of like am feeling strong as the shadow from his legs go from small to huge. The shadows also helps to trigger eyes to view the silhouette person and see his posture, does it have a meaning, is he walking to a better place.

Add conflicting emotions 

Robert Bradley

Strong emotional feelings are powerful and makes image striking and clear to mind on what the atmosphere is around the subjects. Legs crossed showing not caring, am used to this, take it out on me and leave and him slouching like he's comfortable he knew this was coming. The womens left hand all clenched looking all in anger and her face in a screaming shape wanting him to listen to her but he isn't so she throws her drink to his face hoping he's ashamed.