Artist Profile 5) Lee Friedlander

Lee Friedlander

Friedlaner is an American social landscape photographer who was born in 1934 who’s images on self-portraits which he explored from 1960-1999 are well known and celebrated.  His self-portraits break the convention has he very rarely shows a full facial profile, instead he uses is own shadow, reflections and small parts of his eyes to create his very own style of self portraiture and social street photography.

His work is all about mystery and only giving the audiences glimpses of  himself which entices the audiences and makes for a really strong body of exciting work. With witty and comedic themes running through most of his images, he shows the audience ways that self portraiture can be used  within photography and that other people can be used as tool to convey certain ideas or messages.

I think that his work really opens peoples eye into what can be preserved as self portraiture and this as inspired me to try and experiment with my style of image and methods used. Much like Freidlander I chose to simply take my camera out and let fate decide what images I will take and where, this then lead me to the location of my final image and I found the method really soothing and something will constantly surprise you.

“He enjoys visual puns and conundrums” –Erika Billeter (Icons of Photography 1999)

Shadow-New York City, 1968

Self portrait. Lee Friedlander 1969.

His influences have been Walker Evans, Robert Frank and Eugene Atget, this is very clear by the choice of composition, choice of location, framing, and concepts. He studied at Art Centre College of Design in California, then moved to New York city where everything was upbeat, new and things were fast paced. This was the perfect place to explore and create, I feel like this really shaped his later work as he became older and developed arthritis so couldn’t explore the city as much which then lead to self study and evaluation.

Friedlander wants to give the audience a different perspective and content of what self portraiture could be, within his images he only exposes a little piece of himself to the world, this is so each image unlocks more and more of the artist and creates a character. Friedlander can then chose what part of his personality he wants the audience to see, I think he represents himself as a charming and witty.

I want my images to unravel different traits of my personality so my body of work will eventually show my full personality, but this body of work is a great start visually and has enabled me to find a method that I enjoy and is quite therapeutic.  The tones and low lights have an immense amount of detail, he has a characteristic of reflecting his mood with the lighting so you know exactly what his thoughts and feelings are when taking the image, this all helps audience to unravel his personality and the mise en scene also is important to his detailed work. The outcome of this work is for the audience to grasp the different ways you can incorporate yourself within your art and how you can represent yourself to the world.

REFRENCING

Books:

Icons of Photography, published by Prestel, edited by Peter Stepan, written by many sources the main source being Erkia Billeter, 1999.

Lee Friedlander : self-portrait. 3rd ed., author: Friedlander, Lee, edition: 3., publisher: MOMA, 2005

Self portrait. 2nd ed., author: Friedlander, Lee,edition: 2, publisher: Distributed Art Publishers,  1998

Websites:

http://fraenkelgallery.com/portfolios/1960s-self-portraits

http://fraenkelgallery.com/artists/lee-friedlander

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jan/22/lee-friedlander-in-picture-review

Journals: 

Title: The View Master; A stunning new retrospective boasts hundreds of Lee Friedlander’s images. Here’s what just one can tell us, Author: Malcolm Jones, Is Part Of: Newsweek, June 6, 2005, p.59

Title: Friedlander, Lee. Family in the Picture, 1958-2013.(Brief article)(Book review), Author: Bial, Raymond, Is Part Of: Library Journal, Sept 1, 2014, Vol.139(14), p.102(1)

400 Word Work Statement

WORK STATEMENT

My Representation Part 2 project is a continuation of the idea of self discovery and finding the place where one can simply just be within self portraiture. I have been heavily inspired by Vivian Maier’s extremely intriguing angles and use of reflection, Francesca Woodman’s use of surrealism and dimensions, also Sam Taylor-Woods cinematic approach to photography and her use of simplistic yet affective composition.

The content of my work tells a story through reflection as a key tool to translate my concept. The images visually explain a conversation which is taking place between myself and myself on the other side of the glass/mirror. By using different props within the image I allow the audience to speculate what is happening and why.  In my final image you can see  the strong sense of relationship between the two reflections and by using the fore and background are able to understand.

The context within my project stems from my early teenage years where I had little self worth and my reflection was a big issue for me to the point where some days I wouldn’t go to school as I didn’t have the confidence. I have over come this over the years with help from friends and family, but it is something that will always be personal to me. So within this project I wanted to revisit my reflection to explore the relationship I have now and show conversation between myself now and the young me and the journey we’ve been on.

The concept of my project is about trying to find that place in the reflection where you are content and can just be. The series by Sam Taylor-Wood called Suspended has had a big effect on my work as the main concept of her work is to find a place where you can get away from all the stress of modern life to just float and be in a  hyper-reality world. My work suggests this but more with appearance and how you deal with yourself.

There have been many different outcomes of my work, one of them being it a way of self therapy as it allowed me to revisit this personal subject now I’ve over come it and exploring the reasons why it was such a big issue for me and photograph it. Also I wanted to audience, my online followers, too see that it’s a subject that you can over come and my images could help them understand.

Choosing My Final Print

Here are my 4 work prints, out of these 4 I will need to decide which one reflects my context and concept the best. I will be explaining how each image does this and why I could pick it as  my final.

1)

This image is very mysterious and conveys a strong narrative. The use of shape is very present within this image the circled mirror is in the middle of the image and is the predominantly in focus. The valentines card with hearts on it makes audience question about; Who it was sent by, Why it was sent, Why I have sun glasses on and if I’m hiding something. I like the way the audience will be drawn into the image because they will want to figure out whats going in within the image. The actual print has the perfect colour correction and border which makes it a strong contender. However I’m not sure if this image is strong enough to convey the message I want, there’s not enough layers and the idea of mutli-diemention isnt clear enough.

2)

This image I like because of the use of multi reflections and the angle is interesting. Also the use of the mirror is more of a border than an object which is a different way of using it. However the image was poorly focused and rather than my face its focused on the focus finder, which could be found as ironic and humorous, but my image is supposed to provoke questions rather than be funny so on this aspect alone I wont be using this image. The composition is also wrong as the mirror isn’t central and there’s objects on top of the wardrobe which could have been moved. It wasn’t until the image was printed on a 12×10 image that I found out all these factors.

3)

I like this image because of it composition and mirror use, I also like the way I look very disconnected from the camera and the audience. After printing out the previous image I was much more aware of the focusing and so put the camera on f11 and the shutter for 1sec in order to get more in focus and not have the same issues as last time. The real print as great colour correction and border, however much like the previous image it doesn’t convey my message and idea across well enough.

4)

This image is one of my favorites as the composition has very strong leading lines and use of rule of thirds which is something that is important when taking landscape style images. The use of colour is also strong and punchy,  colours like the reds make it stand out and the green in the shrubbery compliments it well.  The van being the background of only one side suggests that they are two different places but the same person, giving a Sam Taylor-Wood multi-diemention feel to the image. My body language also suggests that there’s a relationship between the two subjects and that there’s some sort of convostion taking place. The border of the image is also perfect. I think that I will be choosing this image to represent my series the best, I did submit an image like this for part 1 however that image only showed the reflection and has composition issues. This image a more refined, controlled and is printed better also.

Artist Profile 2) Sam Taylor-Wood

Sam Taylor Wood

Sam Taylor Wood is an English photographer and film maker and is known for her unconventional self portraiture and levitation work. She started in small short films, which then lead to bigger films like Nowhere Boy 2010,  she worked alongside different actors and visual artists and has won a number of awards with her films.  She has been nominated for annual Turner Prize in 1998 and as one of the most inflectional artists of the 21st century which you can see very clearly in her images the way her film maker past gives her an edge to her images.

Are approach to photography is always incredibly dramatic and have great lighting that give a immense atmosphere. I think that this is affected by her background in film making has she wants her images to say a thousand words and grab your attention, as in her previous projects she has 2 hours worth of context and content to give to the audience however in photography she only has a single frame. Her use of composition gives whatever subjects she showing in the image enough space for maximum impact on the viewer. She uses negative space to achieve this effect and works amazingly with her series called Suspended.

“Its about there being a physical limit but in an emotional space, its about being caught in an inbetween space, no mans land, a momentary space, neither up nor down, here nor there”- Sam Taylor Wood 2002

Self Portrait Suspended 2004, C-type print

Her series of work called Suspended is where the image shown is from, challenges the way reality is held up by fickle strings of society and how we have to find a way of release. She’s breaking the link between dream and reality, a place where your suspended from all worries and stress. The dream like elements are shown the large window symbolises freedom and opportunity, the brightly coloured walls and soft halo effect around her body and floor convey an angelic feel to the image, creating other-worldly

She experiments with dark humour, performance and characters. In her images she disregards and looses all sense of  place and time allowing it to exist in a hyper-reality world where the audience can escape to. Like Vivan Maier’s work, Taylor-Wood creates her own world where her characters, which are all different aspects of her personality, flourish and co-exist.

This is something that I really admire about her work and wish to translate over into my own work because it is important for the audience to understand that it is okay to escape from real life and this is my way of doing so. I wish to address her use of character within my work by showing myself looking at myself and also incorporate her ability of a hyper-reality  to convey the release and self preservation.

REFRENCES

Books:

Sam Taylor Wood- Still Lives, publisher Steidl BALTIC 2006

Sam Taylor Wood, publisher Steidl for the Haywood Gallery London, Essays’ by Micheal Bracewell and Jeremy Millar

Websites:

http://samtaylorjohnson.com/photography

http://whitecube.com/artists/sam_taylor-johnson/

Journals:

Title: Sam Taylor–Wood, Author: Tranberg, Dan, Is Part Of: ArtUS, Summer, 2008, Issue 23, p.31(1)

Title: Sam Taylor–Wood, Author: Birnbaum, Daniel, Is Part Of: Artforum International, Nov, 1996, Vol.35(3), p.88(2)

Title: Sam Taylor–Wood (exhibition), Author: Quinones, Paul, Is Part Of: Parachute: Contemporary Art Magazine, July-Sept, 1999, Issue 99, p.56-7 

Artist Profiles 1)- Vivian Maier

Vivan Maier

Maier is an American photographer who was born in 1926, she travelled around America to different cities such as New York, Chicago and LA to take images of their beautiful architecture experimenting with street photography, self portraiture and reflections.

In October 2009 a blogger called Maloof linked this work with that of Maier’s on the image sharing website called Flickr, after this exposure her work became viral. She got the rewards from the critics and her work has been exhibited all around the globe.

She used a variety of cameras including the Kodak Brownie and a  square format Rolleiflex. Has her work developed so did her approaches and methods, she became much more aware about composition and the message she wanted to convey within her images rather than taking simple city snap shots with her Brownie Box . She then started to use larger format cameras  that need a high level of precision, technical skills and clear visions of what you want to achieve with the image.  By studying the method of practice Vivian Maier used, I started purely going out and shooting snap shot style images of what I felt was right within the city, reflected upon the images I had taken to highlight my strengths and refine my weaknesses.  By working in this fashion I found what the best places were to shoot and discovered the  correct angles that would enhance my image for maximum context to be shown.

Her artistic influences have been Lisette Mode and Andre Kertsez, these artists style and use of the camera has been clearly translated into Maier’s work within the black and white tones, composition and their ability to be at the right time at the right place to take a snapshot image that was left to chance. Maier as used these artists ability of using chance to decide her images but with a much more controlled approach.

Her personality and opinions were very strong and she has been described as eccentric and unapologetic person who liked to dress unisex and wear men’s shoes. I feel like this is very important factor within her work,  as she herself if asking a bold question of identity in the society and culture of the 50’s.  Who she was allowed to be? In this time period photography was mainly an all male profession,  for a women dressed in unisex clothing taking a picture in the middle of the city was a very big public statement. However this is what drove her as she was asking questions such as, where is a women’s place?

A repetitive tool that she used within her image is reflection, I feel like she didn’t know herself which is why we was always travelling from city to city taking images where she is preserved within reflections as she hops from one world to another. She created her very own dimension where she could be anything or anyone she wanted to escape the pressures of social classification in the time period.

This sense of preservation is one that I connected with as in modern day we are constantly being told who and what we are by others, parents, friends and even now an even bigger source, social media. Within my images I wish to escape it all and like Maier, create my own space where I can just exist without anyone putting me into a box.  I will be using similar ideas like muilt-dimensions and layering which will link mine and Maiers work together, however I will be using colour rather than black and white to convey more ideas and theories.

References

Websites:

http://www.vivianmaier.com/about-vivian-maier/

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/jul/15/secret-selfies-in-the-1950s-photographer-vivian-maier-in-pictures

Books:

Carnal thoughts embodiment and moving image culture, Author: Sobchack, Vivian Carol, Statement of Responsibility: Vivian Sobchack., Publisher: University of California Press, Creation Date: 2004

Vivian Maier, Author: John Maloof, Publisher: Powerhouse Books, Creation Date: 2011

Exhibition 

Vivian Maier

Chris Beetles Fine Photographs, London , United Kingdom Mar. 11, 2013 – Apr. 03, 2013

Journals: 

Title: Camera Shy.(Culture)(Vivian Maier), Author: Chayka, Kyle, Is Part Of: Newsweek, Dec 13, 2013, Vol.161(45), p.1

Title: Vivian Maier: ‘Photographs from the Maloof Collection’.(Movies, Performing Arts/Weekend Desk)(ART IN REVIEW), Author: Smith, Roberta, Is Part Of: The New York Times, Jan 20, 2012, p.C29(L)

Title: Introduction: Vivian Maier, Author: Merriman, Ben ; Seeder, Andrew, Is Part Of: Chicago Review, Wntr, 2013, Vol.57(3-4), p.102(10

Recent Work Update

I have made 2 work prints from the recent shoots I shot late last week, I had a small selection of choice as many of the images were unusable due to camera faults.

*DISCLAIMER*- I took a photo of the image under heavy tungsten light in my room which is why theres a warm cast across the images. In natural light the colours are even and clear.

This image I had issues with as once printed larger I noitced that I shot the image at 2.3 aperture giving me a tiny focus range, this is why the focus finder is the only part of the image in full focus. I personally didn’t like this aspect of the image, however a fellow peer told me that they found it really conceptual as the focus finder is the part of the camera which allows you to focus, so by only having this in focus was an interesting and adding factor. They also added that as I am wearing sunglasses it gives distance between myself and the audience, so   by having the focus on the focus finder gave extra distance and mystery.

This image I liked because I feel like there’s a strong narrative which is being conveyed in the image, this is because of there an out of focus valentine card on the left hand side of the image. Giving the connotation of heart break and love, this also gives the audience more of a clue to why I am wearing sun glasses and staring off into the distance on the left hand side. I am showing how I am over the idea of love and blocking it as sunglasses give you and darker/difference look upon the world, this could suggest that I am upset or depressed. Also unlike the previous image you can see the back of my head in the foreground, making this image feel like your looking over my shoulder and are involved with the way I’m feeling and being a protective friend watching over me.

New work & Technical Issues

Over the past week I’ve shot 5 films, out of those 5 only 2 of them came out with minimum damage.

Shoot 1:

On my first shoot I shot 3 films with the same camera in the same day, the shoot went really well and I was able to explore more ideas and colours I had with ease.  I got the exposure and shutter speed perfect, I wasnt worried about the technical side of the shoot at all as I had control. It wasnt until I processed the film, when I saw what had happened.

 

The camera had a light leek that gave me the same mark in each one of my images apart from the end image, it was very inconvenient as the images that I particularally liked have got the marks on. Some of the images haven’t got any marks on so I would be able to use those for larger prints if I wanted. I reported this to the technicians and at the hatch. I made it very clear that the next time I took a camera out that it should work as normal.

The next day I went an got another camera out, I was reshooting the films that had light leeks when the bottom of the camera feel off, making the camera fall off the tripod smashing onto the floor opening the back and exposing the film. I was extremely angry. I then had to borrow another camera off my friend to finish the shoot.

There are STILL light leeks with this camera! I reported all the issues and was then told that next time I take equipment out I should check it first, I was very confused as I thought that was their job.  I will be asking for 3 replacement films so I can reshoot AGAIN and hopefully manage to create some great images.

Vivian Maier

Vivan Maier

Maier is an American photographer who was born in 1926 and worked as a nanny for 40 years as her main occupation and then experimenting with street photography, self portraiture and reflections in her spare time. She travelled around America to different cities such as New York, Chicago and LA to take images of their beautiful architecture and city-scapes. As she never developed many of her negatives her work was undiscovered to the general public until October 2009 when a blogger called Maloof linked this work with that of Maier’s on the image sharing website called Flickr, after this exposure her work became viral. She got the rewards from the critics and he work has been exhibited all around the globe.

Self Portrait 1961
Maier as a person was heavily opinionated, eccentric, very intellectual and unapologetic. She wore men’s shoes and was at her happiest when holding a camera, I feel like this is very important within her work as she herself if asking the question of identity and who she was allowed to be. In this time period of the 1950’s , photography was mostly a men’s profession so to see a women in men’s shoes stop in the middle of the street to take a picture was a statement in itself.  She was asking questions such as, where is a womens place? I feel like she is stuck between two worlds, which is why reflection is so important within her work as her identity is layered much like her images. This is exactly the message I want to convey within my work.     She used a variety of cameras including the Kodak Brownie and a  square format Rolleiflex. She went from taking city snap shots with her Brownie Box camera to then her images became carefully thought and planned which is why she then could move on to bigger more precise images as she new the direction her images needed to be in, her artistic influences have been Lisette Mode and Andre Kertsez.

References

Websites:

http://www.vivianmaier.com/about-vivian-maier/

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/jul/15/secret-selfies-in-the-1950s-photographer-vivian-maier-in-pictures

Books:

Carnal thoughts embodiment and moving image culture

Author: Sobchack, Vivian Carol

Statement of Responsibility: Vivian Sobchack.

Publisher: University of California Press

Creation Date: 2004

Vivian Maier

Author: John Maloof

Publisher: Powerhouse Books

Creation Date: 2011

Journals:

Title: Camera Shy.(Culture)(Vivian Maier)

Author: Chayka, Kyle

Is Part Of: Newsweek, Dec 13, 2013, Vol.161(45), p.1

Title: Eye to Eye: Photographs by Vivian Maier.(Brief article)(Book review)

Author: Seaman, Donna

Is Part Of: Booklist, July 1, 2014, Vol.110(21), p.14(1)

Duane Michals

Duane Michals

Michals is an American photographer who was born in 1932, he uses photo-sequences to show the characters development and narrative, he also uses text to accompany his images which enables him to project a strong and direct message to the audience. In his early years he enjoyed watercolour paintings however was then drafted into the army and so was unable to carry on his artistic practice, once out of the army he planed on studying graphic design and Parsons School of Design but never finished the course. Whilst on holiday he discovered the art of photography and self taught himself everything he needed to know, he then launched himself a commercial photographer and took location images of models which gave him an edge over the photographers like Richard Avedon and Irving Penn who use a studio.

 

He’s been commissioned by the Mexican Government to photograph the 1968 Summer Olympics and has also done a number of musicians art work such as Synchronicity by The Police in 1983, with this in mind he worked with the theme of power and politics and how he uses his images as a tool for people to look and understand, his other themes include homosexual rights, life and death, reality and illusion.  This sequence shown is called Dr. Heisenberg’s Magic Mirror of Uncertainty, 1998 and as you can see from the title Michals is exploring how humans observe themselves and the in-between world of uncertainty and acceptance, if were good enough for societies standards and dissecting ourselves apart.

He has been influenced by artists like Lewis Carroll, William Blake and Walt Whitman intern he has influenced Francesca Woodman and David Levinthal. His work appeals to me as his use of sequences tells the audience the characters process and narrative which makes is personal, also the themes he addresses are very close to mine, he uses medium format cameras and also uses heightened reality as a tool to get his messages across.

REFRENCES

Websites:

http://www.thebucketshop.com/lessonplans/duanemichals.html

http://chi-photo.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/research-in-artist-duane-michals.html

Books:

Real dreams : photo stories by Duane Michals.,

Author: Michals, Duane,

Publisher: Addison House

Creation Date: 1976

Album : the portraits of Duane Michals.

Author: Michals, Duane

Publisher: Twelvetrees press

Creation Date: 1989

Journals:

Title: Storyteller: the photographs of Duane Michals

Author: Lacayo, Richard

Is Part Of: Time International (Asia Edition), Sept 8, 2014, Vol.184(9-10), p.91(1)

Printing My Final Images.

I spend a few days printing my contact sheets and work prints to try and narrow down which images I felt represented my ideas and theme in the best possible way. I wanted to show my work with reflections and the outside world and how they affect the way I persevere myself in the good and bad. Here are my 2 final prints:

I image on the left is a reflection of me in the street, however with the leading lines, shapes and buildings its hard to get a sense of place and where I actually am in the images. This is something that is very important to understand as I am asking the question of where do I belong in the world, wheres my place and is it here? Lee Friedlander’s work has made me be aware of composition, location and shape within the image, as you can see I have carefully aliened myself  the red poles, the rule of thirds have been used also.  Francesca Woodman’s work has enabled me to think about placement and how I would look in the image, I chose not to have direct mode of address with the camera to give mystery and so it seems I am looking at something in the distance, these things give great mise en scene and allow the idea to be more predominant.

The image on the right has been taken by a large window with a handheld mirror that I have angled towards my face and the lens, the idea for this image has come from Sam Taylor Wood and Tracey Moffatt as I am looking at myself and my character, the idea with the double reflection and the window is that I have more than person/ character and I need to prioritize which is real and which is what I think I am and who society thinks I should be. Both artists experiment with this theme within their work and how they use symbolism heavily, like the window in my image represents reality.