Discussion / Illustrated Project Proposal -

Discussion - 

Exam Paper: Connected Images

What It Means To Me: A series of images that appear cohesive in their technique, aesthetic or theme.

My Exploration of the Exam Topic - 

I plan on creating a corpus of photographic series that work individually but the same technique and aesthetic can be seen throughout all individual explorations.

For instance, I am inspired by the idea of a photo book or scrapbook series where I capture images on a polaroid camera, digital camera and collect memorabilia such as ticket stubs from gigs or pressed flowers and compile them into a photographic installation.

Definitions - 

Connected: Associate or related in some respect.

Photoessay: An account of something told predominantly through photographs, with some accompanying text.

Composite: Made up of several parts or elements. Combination of two or more images to make a single picture.

Documentary: Using photography and pictures of people and events to provide a factual response to a particular subject.

Photographic Installations: Photography that is on display usually within an art gallery environment.

Definitions Examples - 

Connected:

(David Hockney)

This series is connected in that the photographs were all captured within the same temporal and spatial context using the same technique and were later physically compiled together to create an abstract and surreal photomontage of a subject. The subject in this case being David Hockney himself as this is a self portrait. 

Photoessay: 

(Herman Krieger)

This is an example of a photoessay in that each compilation is within a smaller series commenting about the subject; the subject of this series is 'Ivy Street Route 99'.  When exploring each mood board like composition there are small elements of accompanying text that is relayed to each image. The centre row far left is given the caption 'Mike...Is this guy going to buy a car?'. 

Composite:

(Alexis Unknown)

The above photograph is a composite in that it is formed by joining two images to create a double exposure. One image is an overexposed portrait whilst the other is an overexposed landscape, or more specifically in this case a cityscape, that are layered together to create a surreal fine art inspired final outcome. 

Documentary:

(Henri Cartier Bresson)

This photograph is a documentary photograph by the famous Cartier-Bresson who established many famous ideologies relating to capturing important real life events; the main one being 'The Decisive Moment'. 

Photographic Installations:

(Anette Messager)

The above image is a depiction of one photographic installation by the contemporary artist Messager who displays various works throughout the world in multiple art galleries. Her work is often 3D and is more interactive than a digital photo due to its physical qualities.

Illustrated Project Proposal - 

Gordon Parks:

This image is connected to the one below and many others within the 'Civil Rights' series due to their documentary nature, black and white camera and the themes of the work. This image is four years prior from the one beneath it but both address the similar ideologies of black rights as human rights. Contextually in 1963 Martin Luther King Jr was arrested in a protest and repercussions in a later protest saw the Commissioner of Public Safety Eugene Connor use fire hoses and police dogs on black protestors; the majority of this was televised and lead towards a gain in support of the black civil rights movement. 

This image is an example of a connected image as, much like the prior photograph, it fits within Park's series entitle 'Civil Rights'. Whilst the first image is from 1963 and this photograph is from 1967 they are connected through their theme, aesthetic and purpose. The purpose being to reinforce the SNCC's leader, Stokely Carmichael, coining the term 'Black Power' and its definition in relation to black pride. The reason that is the purpose of this particular photograph is as it was captured in a SNCC institute with various other references to the civil rights movement from the perspective of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee in the same series.

My Exploration:

I could use the style of documentary photography that is employed by Parks in respect of capturing elements of my life. The plan for my photoshoots is to document aspects of my life through polaroid, digital cameras and collected items such as ticket stubs to compile a scrapbook inspired final image at the end of each photoshoot. Therefore the documentary style is an important technique in my exploration of the connected images exam topic. 

Patrick Winfield:

This photograph is from Winfield's archive and is an example of a connected image in that it is a final outcome that is a composite of many within the same aesthetic field. The technique is also replicated throughout all of Winfield's 'Instant Film Composite' series which means that individual shoots work as a connected image final photographic outcome in themselves but that all of Winfield's final works are cohesive in their stylised interpretation of connections.



This image is once again an example of connected images in that it is a composite formed from multiple polaroid captured within the same temporal and spatial contexts that once compiled together create an abstract interpretation of portraiture.

My Exploration: 

My idea of utilising polaroids within my photographic series is reinforced by the work of Winfield as he too uses polaroid instant film to create composites that strongly resemble the work of David Hockney. 

Nobuhiro Nakanashi: 



This work is a demonstration of a connected image an a photographic installation in that the images within one display are all of the same or similar subject to experiment with the medium of photography and extend it into a 3D medium.



Moreover, this image conveys the enormity of each installation and how they are interactive in respect of the viewer having to manoeuvre between and around the connected images. Also, the connected image when composed in such as method appear almost to be film stills that if walked around could create a moving image which is capable due to the similar subject on each photograph.

My Exploration:

The element of Nobuhiro's work that I plan to extend within my own exploration of connected images is the physicality and 3D medium. I will exemplify this through the use of items such as tickets from concerts or pressed flowers from days out.