FORCE
During this topic, I will develop ideas through preparatory studies in Force. Force can be described by intuitive concepts such as push and pull and using this knowledge I will attempt to apply this to my work throughout the topic.
MINDMAP OF FORCE
Here is a mindmap of me presenting my original ideas on force. This also is how I am going to relate my work during this topic back to this first idea I thought of.
ARTIST ANALYSIS:
KEVIN BAUMAN
Kevin Bauman is a Denver based photographer specializing in architectural, interior and industrial photography. He is better known for his personal documentry style, like his projects such as 100 Abandoned Houses, which is what I took a particular interest to. These photographs below, where taken in Detroit. Detroit is the most densely populated city in the US state of Michigan and also known as the world's automotive centre, "Detroit" is a metonym for the American automobile industry and this is truer than ever shown by the economic downfall leading to the many destruct abandoned houses which Bauman has managed to capture stylistically and truthfully.
The three photographs above are immediately striking, first and foremost for their simple composition. I chose these three out of the 100 because of their geometric lines and center focus, which make them all have a very simplistic and almost represent different situations within the same district. Many of the homes he photographed especially above have retained a faded grandeur even in their current destruct state, echoing a more prosperous age and allows you to witness the standard in which these homes would have been. The photograph on the far left strongly reflects the economical state of the area now and how the neglected care of the place has physically affected the appearance of the building by allowing the entire body and half its exterior to be destroyed and replaced by empty blackness due to, in what appears to be a fire for the cause of it. This domestic interior and new architectural defects allow the photo to become an effective form of elucidating power of socio-economic problems which occurred of the economical downfall of Detroit and thus presenting force in the sense of how it suffered due to the downfall which lead to its abandonment and how force has negatively impacted its physical appearance. The middle building is different firstly for the fact it is situated in a contrasting month, this is shown by the rich flourishing environment framing the house and almost taking control of the building, adding the element of man v nature. This image especially produces an emotional response due to the size as you can assume its a family home which had to sacrifice this, which as a viewer allows you to empathise as many people clearly have been affected by the economic downfall. I was strongly drawn to the right image due to the intricate pattern of cracks in the foreground of the picture which reflects the condition of the entire city and it's lack of nuture. I also was particularly drawn to the warm colours sweeping the background creating a collage against the foreground. As a whole, I believe Bauman has created a strong line of work by combining all the images. This then allows each individual to relate to the uniqueness of each singular photograph, emotionally or as a physical reminder, which presents force as having a emotional bond with the viewer and the image. This is a very important aspect as creating an emotion from an art form can have a big impact and form a connection between the artist and the congregation therefore presenting the reason i included Kevin Bauman's work as part of an inspiration and a strong example of how force can be shown.
This was my favourite image of Bauman's. Firstly, because of the different composition including two houses centre focus rather than the singular one thus immediately adding an element of contrast between the houses, showing opposing colours, destruction angles ect. I also particularly liked the environmental factor in which the scenery has become overgrown and almost taken control of the buildings which creates the sense of man v nature. The background and foreground grasped my attention due to the polar opposite colours and focus. The background presenting itself with a misty uncertain sky against the strong focus on the destruct, decayed road. This whole image is presenting force in many different aspects; physically and economically.
MY RESPONSE:
I wanted to imitate Bauman's work but found difficultly in doing so. This was due to the fact that i couldn't create a centre image of the destruct houses like in Baumans. So i decided to respond to his work in the aspect that I was photographing destruct houses which once again, have suffered an economically downfall which altered the appearance of these buildings. I decided to focus more on the exterior of the building showing more architectural defects and the effect weather has had.
BILL VIOLA
Bill Viola was born 1951, Queens, New York. Most of his work focuses on the ideas behind fundamental human experiences such as birth, death and aspects of consciousness. For 40 years he has created videotapes, architectural video installations, sound environments, electronic music performances, flat panel video pieces, and works currently for television broadcasts. Today, he is profoundly known as part of establishing video as a vital form of contemporary art, and in so doing has helped to greatly expand its scope in terms of technology, content, and historical reach. I am focusing mainly on his work on exhibition in St.Paul's Cathedral, where it is displayed in different, unique forms, however most famously like presented to the left.
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Above- My first thought when looking at this photograph was that the focus, being the man was acting as symbol for suicide, a very serious, difficult subject matter. Here, Viola is tacerling a very complicated mental issue, one that can be deeply significant and emotional to certain individuals. I believe it is being shown by the man hanging upside down mid air, his ankles tied up by rope thus presenting the idea of hanging. Viola hinting at such harsh topics such as death is very risky but allows people who are luckily naive to aspects that he focuses on to experience little moments of them, and appreciate how destructive they can be. The silhouette of the man creates a strong empowering effect especially with the rain surrounding him creating an almost glowing like effect around him, highlighting the deceased man. Viola very cleverly included rain to this image, using pathetic fallacy he shows his sheer talent but proves how he manages to relate the two elements together. This is presenting the concept of force by focusing on fundamental human experiences and how the force of these can impact ourselves and those we associate ourselves with.
Above- I chose to feature this as an example of Bill Viola's work because originally, this is how he presented his exhibition in St. Paul's Cathedral and in doing so he is presenting the first ever moving art work, a video piece that sets a Christian notion of martyrdom against the idea of the four elements. During the video you witness a small section of this with the water aspect, giving the viewer a glimpse of how the whole show/experience is like. This once again, hinting at another horrible episode which can occur to certain unfortunate individuals; drowning. The fact the video is quite slow pace mirrors the emotional side of this type of death and show how once after the immediate sheer panic, there is peacefulness. I feel this strongly related to force because, like before, its about death and impact it has on humans.
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Above- Here, are two models covered entirely with water and once again, revealing itself as something providing the viewer with an interesting and meaningful moral. By adding this effect of the two humans covered in water create an intriguing distorted effect to their faces, especially in the first model in which you completely cannot make out any distinct features. I believe the water is acting as a symbol as for something that could possibly consuming/ flooding their lifestyle. Therefore directly relating to the force of life and death and the major effects it has upon different individuals emotionally and physically.
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MY RESPONSE:
I decided to expand on the water element as it as part of most of Viola's work. So by doing this I experimented with different forms of presenting water whilst attempting to imitate his style.
EUGENE RICHARDS
Eugene Richards was born in 1944, in Dorchester, Massachusetts. He is distinguished as an American documentary photographer. Below are images from his piece called The Blue Room, interestingly this section out of all his current pieces is the only one in colour, which is another reason why I feel it particularly drew my attention as it stuck out amongst the others. I also chose this to analyse this section out of all his work because I feel the images have the best representation of force and shows the force of human neglect on urban aspects of life and the affect it has and in knowledge of this I felt it was a good piece of work for inspiration for my photography.
Left- This image is quite dark, both physically and metaphorically. I feel as though Richards is reminding the viewer of how without care or nurture, it can majorly affect the appearance and atmosphere of a place, this is particularly shown by the haunting reminder of what was a wall but has now been stripped down to its internal body(left side of the image). I feel as though Richards is really trying to portray a statement on the vulnerability of man in the face of the shifting economic opportunities and inevitability of change, reflecting the terrible economic fall in America during the 1930s. This is shown because of the condition of the place, as though it has literally been left in a hurry or with desperation to leave, I believe this due to the fact there still a night dress hung upon the wall and areas of occasional furnishing. Force is being applied here by the idea of what impact the economy can have, the major effect being directly to many people's lives.
Right- Here is a great example of one of Richards' beautiful and moving portrayals of the landscapes and abandoned houses of the American West. The area in which settlers came pursuing the promise of homesteads where they could successfully build communities, however, once the Great Depression and the dust storms of the 1930s struck, the farms and buildings in this isolated, bleak region were left for the land to be littered and forgotten. The Blue room photographs capture this very effectively and are essentially about specific aspects or places captured without the presence of people, only their remains and this is directly shown during this image. The bleak, over-run scenery has only a hint of humanity within it; the old fairy lights in the top of the picture and of what seems like a lone staircase. I particularly liked this picture of his, as most of Richards' photography was captured from within a place allowing the viewer to gain knowledge on the condition of the interior of the building whereas this shows you the exterior landscape from a different point of view, as though looking out the eyes of someone. Therefore, presenting the theme of force through the impact of the economic state of a country and the effect it can have on human lives.
Right- Here is a great example of one of Richards' beautiful and moving portrayals of the landscapes and abandoned houses of the American West. The area in which settlers came pursuing the promise of homesteads where they could successfully build communities, however, once the Great Depression and the dust storms of the 1930s struck, the farms and buildings in this isolated, bleak region were left for the land to be littered and forgotten. The Blue room photographs capture this very effectively and are essentially about specific aspects or places captured without the presence of people, only their remains and this is directly shown during this image. The bleak, over-run scenery has only a hint of humanity within it; the old fairy lights in the top of the picture and of what seems like a lone staircase. I particularly liked this picture of his, as most of Richards' photography was captured from within a place allowing the viewer to gain knowledge on the condition of the interior of the building whereas this shows you the exterior landscape from a different point of view, as though looking out the eyes of someone. Therefore, presenting the theme of force through the impact of the economic state of a country and the effect it can have on human lives.
Left- Eugene Richards style is commonly constructed within structures including an occasional glimpse of the exterior landscape. This photograph combines the element of Richards original style with an almost double exposure edit. Within this double exposure edit, it reveals what seems to be a kitchen combined with an exterior of a bleak typical American countryside. I was particularly drawn to this because it not only developed a variety of ideas such as the type of lifestyle but allowed me as a viewer to witness, i assume, the two main elements of these individuals life in which they would evolve around in order to survive and thrive. As an image, although it has an interesting effect metaphorically is a very cleverly constructed and I included this as part as my inspiration as I believe it presents force in a stylistic form whilst showing the effect of force within an environment.
Right- I chose to feature this image of Richards' because of the interesting angle and framing of the photograph. The angle allows you to view both the destruct stairwell and the rotting, neglected bedroom. It is clear Richards has purposely taken this photograph so that the thick wall remains centre stage of the whole composition, in doing this creates a contrast between the bedroom and the stairway. In securing this certain framing adds an element of contrast in many factors, literally so there is a physical divide between the two different types of rooms and in their appearance, such as the lighting and how this can be portrayed. I believe this presents force by showing the effect of the economic situation the area was in and what affect it had on the condition the abandoned building, thus shown by the destruct interior.
Right- I chose to feature this image of Richards' because of the interesting angle and framing of the photograph. The angle allows you to view both the destruct stairwell and the rotting, neglected bedroom. It is clear Richards has purposely taken this photograph so that the thick wall remains centre stage of the whole composition, in doing this creates a contrast between the bedroom and the stairway. In securing this certain framing adds an element of contrast in many factors, literally so there is a physical divide between the two different types of rooms and in their appearance, such as the lighting and how this can be portrayed. I believe this presents force by showing the effect of the economic situation the area was in and what affect it had on the condition the abandoned building, thus shown by the destruct interior.
MY RESPONSE:
I wanted to respond to Richards' work by imitating a place which experienced the same situation therefore presenting force in the same aspect. I did this by photographing deserted Finca's in Spain as they suffered an economically downfall and thus showing force by the condition of the place after it had been abandoned. For the composition of the photographs I took them from the interior and allowed the viewer to have a glimpse of the exterior, so the audience could view the whole surrounding environment, this being my attempt at trying to construct an image with structural elements and including a element of the exterior world, just as Richard's did.
THE FORCE OF NATURE
FIRST RESPONSE:
For this task, I went round school photographing places where there were elements of nature overtaking man made structures, presenting the theme of man v nature. This meant where there were places literally where plants, moss, mould was overtaking man made structures.
SELECTED IMAGES:
The ivy plant climbing the metal fence and the rubbish in the bottom right section of this photograph adds the idea of pollution and litter overtaking a man-made environment therefore sticking to the theme of man v nature.
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Here is a close up of moss which has formed at the bottom of a metal fence on a concrete ground. I focused particularly on the moss of this image as this was the most important part as it showed you the contrast between man and nature.
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I chose this as one of my selected images as i liked the way the plant is creeping up the wall, providing texture, colour and shape to the image. The wall against the background create layers in the image, making it a more complex image altogether.
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First-point perspective. This is the corner of a white bulding which is beginnging to be overtaken by mould/moss. My focal point being on the corner of the building making this image have a focus effect, almost blurring the background.
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SECOND RESPONSE:
I then did a second response in the South Wing swimming pool. This location was ideal as it has been neglected for many years and proved to show the effects of this neglecting with aspects such as mould, broken elements and wildlife almost taking over. Below are my contact sheets and selected images.
SELECTED IMAGES:
This image has an element of man v nature shown by the contrast between the background and foreground of the image. The foreground presents itself with a man made destruct structure whereas the background shows a clear distinction where wildlife has overcome the surroundings.
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This is a close up shot of the deeper area of the pool in which you can view a more drastic transition of where nature has completely overcome the surroundings. This is shown not only by the colour but by the cleanliness/condition of the water and how various organisms have now overtaken this area.
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This image is at a different angle to the rest of the images as it is focusing on the nature side of the concept. I have chosen to do this because i think this particular area has mostly been taken over by wildlife and nature so by focusing on that element allows the viewer to encompass a realistic glance of the atmosphere.
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This is a very simplistic photograph but still maintains the theme of man v nature. In response to this, I decided to leave the image unedited to maintain the simplistic element and due to the bright day and the right iOS left the image which complimenting colours which also give the viewer a real view of the area and how it actually looked in person.
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Similarly to the images above, the element of man v nature is being presented by the contrast between the littered pool and the overgrown wildlife surrounding it. I edited this image in photoshop using curves to create a strong contrast and added more texture to highlight the wildlife part of the picture.
NADAV KANDER- 'HALF LIFE'
Nadav Kander was born December 1961 and is a London-based photographer/artist and known for his effective style of portraiture and landscape photography. Below I have chosen to include his piece called "Half Life". This was when a Nuclear Power Station exploded in 1986 leaving the surrounding area uninhabitable for hundreds of years. Although tragic, Nadav Kander has managed to take advantage of this capturing empowing and emotive images, especially to those who experienced this
"Reactor No.4 at Chernobyl's Nuclear Power Station exploded in 1986 leaving the surrounding area uninhabitable for many hundreds of years. I visited Chernobyl to mark its 20th anniversary, photographing the deserted spaces in what was once a model Soviet City.
Home to more than 40,000 people, the apartments, schools and hospitals that were hastily left following the controversial evacuation are stark reminders of past lives, leaving a disturbing sense of quite. An uneasiness that I had never previously experienced." —Nadav Kander
"Reactor No.4 at Chernobyl's Nuclear Power Station exploded in 1986 leaving the surrounding area uninhabitable for many hundreds of years. I visited Chernobyl to mark its 20th anniversary, photographing the deserted spaces in what was once a model Soviet City.
Home to more than 40,000 people, the apartments, schools and hospitals that were hastily left following the controversial evacuation are stark reminders of past lives, leaving a disturbing sense of quite. An uneasiness that I had never previously experienced." —Nadav Kander
Left- I chose to include this as part of my inspiration for force as I thought it was not only a effective representation of the disater that occured in Chernobyl but showed Kander's abity to capture the sheer size and feel of what was left of the incident. I particularly thought that it was a very creative concept to photograph a diving pool as it is a place of joy, a place where everyone comes together to entertain themselves. So I think by photographing this knowing the memory of that, completely shatters the concept of a swimming/diving pool and the joy it supplies, providing an emotive response as it can no longer be used for such sport due to the nuclear incident. This is presenting force by allowing a physical push factor forcing inhabitants to move away and leaving everything behind therefore showing force of movement and the impact of a particular incident that affects emotionally on people who lived there, and what affect it had to their lives.
Right- I was firstly drawn to the colours in this image. The rich blur of the off-orange that runs throughout the whole scenery creates an effective representation of something that has been previously loved. I like the fact that Kander incorporated the structural play rocket at the foreground to play an emotive response on the congregation. I was also drawn to the stark silhouettes of the trees, that mirrors something that once was. I included this as part of my inspiration of how force can affect peoples lives and how Nadav Kander, as an inspiring photographer, manages to capture this, therefore in knowledge of this to give me inspiration on how to style my own photography.
Right- I was firstly drawn to the colours in this image. The rich blur of the off-orange that runs throughout the whole scenery creates an effective representation of something that has been previously loved. I like the fact that Kander incorporated the structural play rocket at the foreground to play an emotive response on the congregation. I was also drawn to the stark silhouettes of the trees, that mirrors something that once was. I included this as part of my inspiration of how force can affect peoples lives and how Nadav Kander, as an inspiring photographer, manages to capture this, therefore in knowledge of this to give me inspiration on how to style my own photography.
ARTIST AND ME:
I noticed that within Nadav Kander's work of Chernobyl, some of his images where taken from within buildings looking out of windows into the unfamiliar world that now lie there. I wanted to expand on this a little because I was particularly attracted to it due to its interesting framing which created shapes and different types of lighting and the fact that it was almost two images within one.
NADAV KANDER'S WORK:
MY RESPONSE:
PHYSICAL FORCE
FRANCOIS DELFOSSE
Francois Delfosse is a Belguim artist know most famously for his unique, ineresting piece named "Antarctica in a Bag". This abstract piece allows something with an intruguing concept to be done in a simplistic style. When presenting these images he cleverly mentioned that it was a "glacier cave just North of the South Pole" before adding that it was actually an imitation of the glaciers and that it was actually the view of the inside of a plastic bag. Below are my favourite images of his out of this particular topic, this being because of the shapes and lighting they all present.
FIRST RESPONSE:
For this task, I used a range of different materials and different experimenting styles to create this effect. I applied force in the presence of pressing, pulling, crushing and stretching. This resulted in many different outcomes, which are presented below.
SELECTED IMAGES:
Below are the best selected images out of all I took showing its best form of the material which has been physically applied with force.
EXPANDING ON PHOTOSHOP:
I decided to chose my favourite images and edit them further on photoshop to emphasis the impact of the force being applied to them.
Here is a close-up of bubble wrap, which you can clearly see from the crushed 'bubbles' which have been bursted to apply physical force. I chose to expand on this image as I liked the fact you could almost see the background of the field like atmosphere coming through. By expanding on this on photoshop I wanted to show the significance in this, so by adding curves to create contrast and adjusting the colour balance of the image I was able to do so.
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I chose to expand this distinct image due to the fact I liked the lighting and thought it was a good imitation of Francios Delfosse's work but with the presence of yellow. I wanted to emphasis on this so, on photoshop I edited this image with curves, increased the saturation to highlight the contrast and strengthen the deep yellow colour.
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Because of the bold gold colour of this material , I decided to expand on this even more by simply brightening and deepening the colour on photoshop by adjusting it with curves and a brightening tool. In doing so, I thought it would enable the viewer to see the crushing effect.
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For this image, I decided to do the opposite to the rest of the pictures. Instead of emphasising the crushing and lighting, I suppressed it by dimming the brightness, using curves to prevent contrast and add a greyish tone to the photograph. In doing so, I discovered that it added an icy blue tone to the image, this and the dull orange colour of the shopping bag together create an almost haunting-like feel throughout.
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ARTIST AND ME:
After editing and evaluating all my pieces of work, I wanted to show a direct contrast between me and the artist and how I have tried to manipulate it.
DEVELOPMENT:
I then decided to develop this concept of manipulating force by using humans and different materials to adjust their appearance by appiling different forces to their faces with different materials. These forces being pulling, stretching and more, this resulted in many effects shown below. I was first inspired with this idea by Wes Narman.
WES NAMAN
Wes Naman is a New Mexican-based photographer. Below are two images from his piece "Scotch Tape." This was developed when the artist immediately had an idea after messing around with cello tape when wrapping christmas gifts. I thought these photographs are particularly effective and are something i think that could create a unique response as part of my force unit. The act of applying cello tape on a human's mouldable structure represents force in a physical aspect but also the shows quite a horrific distorted outcome inflicting an emotional force on the congregation.
MY RESPONSE:
Above- Here I used the same Morrison's plastic bag from the images above and placed it on the models head. This presents many concepts, one being the force of danger, suffocation from the bag, especially in the first image where she is breathing in, the other being force of human emotion, this could be portrayed in the second image particularly due to the fact that her whole face has been distorted, which could hint at the idea of how different people are viewed in society and the pressure of maintaining this ideal appearance. However, as well as having an emotional form of force, force is also being portrayed physically by the plastic being pressed/stretched/ripped across her face giving her a distorted outcome.
Above- I manipulated this womens face by stretching cello tape over it at different angles and at different tightnesses. In doing this gave an interesting effect which I particularly liked. The focus of this image being her now, crooked nose which creates a unique and harsh shape, it also collaborates with the interesting effect this distortion has had on her right cheek thus presenting how the force of the cello tape has had an effect on her physical appearance. On the other hand, force has also changed how people will view this women, her face now is possibly presented to others as a disturbing and 'different' to normality and therefore shows the audience the effect of force.
Above- I chose to use cellotape the models face, once again, such as above, to distort his features thus applying an element of physical force manually. The distortion created an interesting and different effect in all of the three pictures presented on the left. The first being a smiley image of the boy, suggesting innocence but could also be viewed as quite creepy and unnerving, the second photograph of the model with his hands placed neatly against his face allows the viewer to assume he is attempting to be shocked but due to the physical block (cello tape) he cannot show the emotion and lastly the boy looking into the unknown, shows once again, a very disturbing manor, presenting the idea of the effects emotional and physical aspects of force have on humans.
ARTIST AND ME:
I think these images are similar. They both are deforming the facial features using the same material, cello tape. Also, they are both taken from a close angle to highlight the deforming.
IMPOSING ARCHITECTURE
KEITH RAMSDEN
Left- I chose to include this photograph as I thought it was a particularly effective representation of imposing architecture and the effect it has physically. My first thought when looking at this image was that it has a very strong architectural front, especially with the focus being on the large column creating an all together powerful, dominant impression. The structural element of this building really grasped my attention with it's shape and layered features and therefore presenting force in a physical empowering manner which is something i would like to imitate in my own work.
Right- I chose to feature this photograph due to its impressive nature. I was firstly drawn to the layered architectural element of the image and secondly to the materials used in the building part; glass, thus creating a very interesting effect once light is intertwined adding the shadowed shapes made on the floor of the bridge. The background of the image I particularly liked as the famous landmark, St Pauls can be seen, therefore immediately creating a likeable response due to its familiarity worldwide. I also like the fact that there is a giant column below where St Pauls is, creating an illusion that it continues on underground. I included this images as I thought many wouldn't typically assume it was imposing from the perspective that the congregation is viewing this photograph but I disagreed strongly, due to the fact that there was the complex architectural bridge, different layers and the popularity of the famous landmark centre stage all creating a rather intimidating front, meaning the imposing element to be presented in a different form.
Right- I chose to feature this photograph due to its impressive nature. I was firstly drawn to the layered architectural element of the image and secondly to the materials used in the building part; glass, thus creating a very interesting effect once light is intertwined adding the shadowed shapes made on the floor of the bridge. The background of the image I particularly liked as the famous landmark, St Pauls can be seen, therefore immediately creating a likeable response due to its familiarity worldwide. I also like the fact that there is a giant column below where St Pauls is, creating an illusion that it continues on underground. I included this images as I thought many wouldn't typically assume it was imposing from the perspective that the congregation is viewing this photograph but I disagreed strongly, due to the fact that there was the complex architectural bridge, different layers and the popularity of the famous landmark centre stage all creating a rather intimidating front, meaning the imposing element to be presented in a different form.
FIRST RESPONSE:
For this task, I explored North Wing to take some images to capture the concept of Imposing Architecture. This is presenting force in a physical aspect, which I have try to intensify but choosing larger buildings to capture to give the viewer a sense of its sheer overpowering element.
SELECTED IMAGES:
I have chosen these four images because I think they best represent Imposing Architecture. Also, I liked the affect of the different layers, shapes and shadows created by the light in these particular images. I edited these photographs on photoshop in which i have used curves, hue/saturation and the brightness/constrast to deepen the colours and create an over all more desirable image.
Improvements - To further my work, I will capture larger buildings in central London so that the viewer can really capture the sense of size. I will also take them from a more extreme lower angle so the audience can fully incorporate its immensity.
SECOND RESPONSE:
I chose to capture my images in central London because of the familiarity of some of the landmarks, such as the gherkin, the cheesegrater ect. By doing this creates an immediate response from its recognisably. To capture the sheer size of the buildings I took them from a low perspective and in doing so allows the congregation to notice its domination in the city. I also, to vary my images I captured them from different angles and took different types and sizes of buildings for variation within the images. I took these photographs around Monument tube station as i thought it was an appropriate area for this subject. Below are my contact sheets, my best edits and then the selected images out of all the ones I have taken.
SELECTED IMAGES:
I selected these photographs I took out of them all because I thought they were a particular empowering representation of imposing architecture.
ARTIST AND ME:
DECONSTRUCTING OBJECTS
TODD MCLELLAN
Canadian photographer Todd McLellan makes visible the inner workings of everyday products by dismantling and carefully arranging the components and then photographing them to create an interesting effective result. His influence being from his parents of which had particular jobs that conspired him to incorporate it into his own work ; dad was a carpenter, his mother a technician with Norther Telecom. His compulsion in choosing this style of photography has enabled his reputation to blossom.
This photography taken by Todd Mclellan is a very interesting concept. I particularly liked the fact that these two polar opposites were situated next to each other. The left image being a disordered dismantled antique clock presents itself with very interesting shapes and colours combined to create a grabbing effective photograph. Whereas the right image shows a very orderly concept in which all the dissembled clock pieces have been placed in a innovative structure showing its circular variations positioned neatly creating a harmonious composition. The fact that you can view the constituent parts of the antique clock adds a performative aspect to his work as he has managed to physically deconstruct this amongst many other objects to compose these photographs. This shows force in a physical aspect as he has physically removed each piece and like seen in the left part of the image above shows how each piece physically collides with one another.
Above is a video of Todd McLellan's demonstration of him dropping a piano which imitates some elements of his work in which he has captured shots when they are mid-air falling creating very effective images. This video set at different speeds to dramatize the video and it's affect.
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I included this video as I thought it was a good representation of the whole concept and the process involved in disassembling the object and how particular parts, angles and shapes are chosen once performing the composition.
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FIRST RESPONSE:
During class, we experimented using a video recorder that had been taken apart, in attempt to imitate Todd Mclellan's series called "Things come apart".
SELECTED IMAGES:
This are the chosen images i have selected to imitate todd mclellan's work in my own style. Although in mind of trying to style my work like his, I have tried to put my own aspect on the imitation by taking the photograph from different angles rather than making the image have the same orderly aspect as his.
Improvements- To further response to Mclellan's work I will respond again using a white background so that all the focus is one the deconstructed object.
SECOND RESPONSE:
For this homework response, i decided to use a white background so that the focus was on the objects and also was an overall more effective response to Todd Mclellan. I decided to deconstruction a few objects, below is my contact sheets and selected images.
SELECTED IMAGES:
STRAND DEVELOPMENT:
DESTRUCTION IN SOCIETY
LIST OF POSSIBLE IDEAS:
PHYSICAL:
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HUMAN:
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EXPANDING MY IDEAS:
CHOOSEN STRANDS:
STRAND ONE:
SOCIAL INFLUENCE: -GUNS AND CHILDREN -VIDEO GAMES -SUICIDE -DEPRESSION -OVERDOSE -PROSTITUTION |
STRAND TWO:
DECAY: -DESTRUCT BUILDINGS -MACRO LENS FOCUSING ON MOSS, RUST, ECT |
FIRST STRAND:
SOCIAL INFLUENCE -
GUNS AND CHILDREN
The media play a big part in society with them being all aspects of the entertainment industry- television, newspapers, magazines, films, video games ect. The wide avaliablity and easily accessed content has often, a negative impact on children.
ARTIST INFLUENCE-WILLIAM KLEIN
William Klein is an American-born French photographer and filmmaker noted for his ironic approach to both media and his extensive use of unusual photographic techniques in the context of photojournalism and fashion photography.
This image was particular sinister which is why I chose to include it as part of my inspirtation for the response. The fact that an unknown man is so casually aiming a dangerous weapon at such a young infant is terrifying. Especially, due to the fact that it is being done so publicly which can be indicated by the many walking past in the background, this then shows how the social development of this place has lead to such morally wrong outcomes. Also, the fact that all of the children are smiling at the camera almost is shows through their emotions that this is acceptable in society, when it shouldn't be, which is why i chose to include it.
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I really liked this image, first and foremost for its striking presence combined with it's controversial concept behind it created a very powerful result. The focus is on this young boy, particularly i am drawn to his eyes, presenting a strong connection with the camera and the audience, therefore directly connecting the two. This photograph is tragic in the sense that this young boy has chosen this form of lifestyle, yet as part of the congregation, you can witness, based on the background and the cleanliness of the boy, it almost reflect his economical situation. Therefore suggesting that this situation is the norm and that guns in his life and society are a casual form of entertainment although he is clearly unaware of the major affect it can have upon others and himself. This is ultimately why i chose to include this as part of my inspiration for my first strand and the force of social influence.
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FIRST RESPONSE:
I decided to take this picture of these children with toy guns to represent current important issue in society. Crime is inevitable, and it will always play an important aspect in society, especially in American with it being the country with the biggest influence in the entertainment industry. American culture is a "cops and robbers" and firearms play an important part in American history and continues to play a defining role in shaping American values. Similarly, the media implies guns influence crime and violence and in doing so advertise it as something that should be desired to own. When the media glamorize guns it immediately becomes a toy, just like Barbie and with partial knowledge on the major affect these firearms can actually physically and mentally have on people, makes it acceptable for these naive children to own and "play" with.
Improvements- I will expand by using different instruments and different age catorgories that are affected by the same issue. To improve the appearance of the image I will concentrate on the background and surroundings to maintain the topic/objective being the same throughout the photograph and in an environment that is suited to the subject.
SECOND RESPONSE:
ARTIST INFLUENCE-TERRY RICHARDSON
Terrence "Terry" Richardson was born August 14, 1965 and is most famously known for being an American fashion and portrait photographer, who has shot advertising campaigns for Marc Jacobs, Aldo, Supreme, Sisley, Tom Ford , Yves Saint Laurent and amongst others. He commonly takes photographs for high profile artists and actors, from which I have selected two, more controversial images of Lindsay Lohan. I chose to use her as part of an influence to base my work upon because of the fact she is a young adult who grew up in a developed and luxurious lifestyle, with it constantly being influence by the media, especially as she now works in that department. This not only impacts her beliefs and mannerisms but it becomes the norm for possessing a gun for protection, particularly as she grew up in America, a place in which firearms play an important role of their history and daily lifestyle. So to expand from my first response and sustain the same theme, "Guns and Children, from a social influence", I decided to expand on the age category of kids and develop it on young adults as I began to realise it has a more drastic impact on them.
These two images, both very similar, show a very dramatic serious demeanour. Both a classic Richardson's image in the sense that he typically uses a white backdrop to maintain a focus on the lone model, giving it a more natural and real feel. However, these two images are extremely different to the rest of his work in the form that his photographs are usually full of energy and vibrance, whereas these take the polar opposite structure; a dull, gritty interpretation of suicide and depression. I chose these two images as they deal with a important problematic issue in society and shows that violence and depression, doesn't just influence children but all age categories and all areas society. I also included these images as they link to my next response-depression and suicide- and thus creating a more direct link between the pressures in society and how media and people heavily influence your actions and emotions in different ways. I also chose to use Lindsay Lohan as part of my influence as in reality she abuses drugs and I thought it was then appropriate to include her as this is a genuine example of how society and her economical state has majorly influenced her life choices.
MY ATTEMPT:
In expanding my second response I wanted to concentrate on my improvements to achieve the image i desired, so in mind of this i chose a plain brick background as i thought it represented quite an urban depiction of a stereotypical "rough" young adults lifestyle. Below are my contact sheets from my response.
SELECTED IMAGES:
I began my expansion by using my brother(above), who is 20, so classed as a young adult who grew up in an industrialised world filled with media and technology influencing his life constantly. So using this information i decided to use this as part of my force section as this major influence acts a form of force in his life. In the image above, I decided to expand on the children and guns theme I began before and and use other forms of violence to show the domination of the media in society and the glamorisation of violence and what affect it has had on individuals. For the actual images, i took them both by focusing on the knife as this was the main issue/topic i was stressing, therefore allows the viewer to be drawn towards it and respond to the issue more drastically.
I then began using different angles and multiple people to create an almost story board of an events that could occur due to the media's glamification and acceptance of weapons and violence. I also experimented with different focuses; in the left image the focus was on the man in the foreground of the image, whereas the right image show a focus on the targeted boy's face in the background of the photograph.
For my last image(above), i decided to interwin two aspects of media influence, violence and video games. Violence being the use of the dangerous weapon placed near his throat, the video games aspect being the style/angle of the photograph- the way his hands and arms are place are almost imitating the angle you view when playing a video game. I chose to take it like this as commonly computer/video games are in this style of viewing so by imitating this created an interesting affect and more personal connection with the viewer.
REFINEMENT:
As my last response to this section, I looked back at my spider diagram to the same section in which I had developed my work from and decied to expand on the influence and affect of video games.
Here I took images of my brother, once again, totally mesmerised by this video game. I chose a Mafia game for him to play as it added the element of violence and the influence it has upon individuals. I chose for him to play on a Playstation 2, as I particularly liked the look of the graphics and the controller, which added an almost vintage twist to these photographs. I also made the model wear handcuffs because I thought it represented the utter control technology has upon people and the force of this has not only emotionally, but physically as he cannot stop playing this game.
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VISUAL BRAINSTORM:
I then expanded this response but something that commonly influences young adults to perform these violent acts.
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I responded to Terry Richardson's work using my brother and cousin but used knifes instead of guns and this is a more prominent issue in London.
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Next, i looked at Terry Richardson's work and expanded the "guns and children" concept in to a more mature age category.
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I will now go on to look at the consequences of these social pressures and the force of emotions within it. I will present this through two main sides; depression and drug related incidence.
SOCIAL INFLUENCE - SUICIDE
This is a particularly heavy and problematic issue that occurs within society. Something i wanted to tackle as this topic is often sensitive to most, due to the substantial impact it has, thus showing force in an emotional form. This is destruction within society as it literally destroys lives due to many factors, such as pressure or an idealistic form that the individual doesn't fit. Suicide is a common occurrance, especially amongst teenagers which is why I wanted to include it as part of my work as it is such an important issue and should be recognised and prevented as much as possible.
ARTIST INFLUENCE - GREGORY CREWDSON
Gregory Crewdson was born September 26th, 1962. He is an American photographer best known for creating atmospheric images of elaborately staged scenes of American homes and neighborhoods. He captures images of cinematic dramatic haunting style which is very effective and often features distrubing, surreal events which I feel are heavily related to force.
'I have always been fascinated by the poetic condition of twilight. By its transformative quality. Its power of turning the ordinary into something magical and otherworldly. My wish is for the narrative in the pictures to work within that circumstance. It is that sense of in-between-ness that interests me.' Gregory Crewdson
'I have always been fascinated by the poetic condition of twilight. By its transformative quality. Its power of turning the ordinary into something magical and otherworldly. My wish is for the narrative in the pictures to work within that circumstance. It is that sense of in-between-ness that interests me.' Gregory Crewdson
Left- This is an extremely interesting image with many different aspects which creates a complex photograph with multiple meanings. Situated at the bottom of the image is a puddle which covers most of the ground scene, almost as though it is swamping the surrounding area which possibly could be a reference to stress or something particular clouding their life. This could be the fact that they live in a caravan, suggesting struggles in the economical part of their life, or the condition of the women that stands stark naked mirroring the young boy, possibly suggesting at psycholological difficulties. The big gap between the women and young boy perhaps shows the connection between the two of them and what their relationship is really like. Thus relating to force by showing how the force of life and the major effects can impact our lives in various ways, in this case, economically and the relationships we share with our loved ones. I will try to imitate the film style stills by creating a story like element to my response.
Right- I chose to feature this image because I think it has a particularly dramatic feel throughout. This is partly due to the lighting being dull and misty which gives the image a very mysterious haunting vibe. The focus of this photograph being the man situated in the middle of the road which I believe this is Crewdson showing off his talent by expressing the man's feelings through the weather; the rain mirrors the man's emotion, which perhaps is guilty or lonliness. At first glance this image appears to be very intense and have a paranormal feel, but when looked at in depth you discover the man's hands are strangely palmed in front of himself which also adds mystery to this whole scene. All in all, I feel Crewdson produces film stills very effectively and this gives off a classical interpretation of American life. I chose to include this image as it strongly relates to force, and how the force of life can affect our emotions deeply and result in people ending up in strange places doing abnormal things, in this case it is portray by the bussiness man, the psyche feel from the darkness of the landscape and the emptiness of the streets besides the same lone man, which in my opinion is strange and makes me question what is actually happening to this man and why is he there?
Right- I chose to feature this image because I think it has a particularly dramatic feel throughout. This is partly due to the lighting being dull and misty which gives the image a very mysterious haunting vibe. The focus of this photograph being the man situated in the middle of the road which I believe this is Crewdson showing off his talent by expressing the man's feelings through the weather; the rain mirrors the man's emotion, which perhaps is guilty or lonliness. At first glance this image appears to be very intense and have a paranormal feel, but when looked at in depth you discover the man's hands are strangely palmed in front of himself which also adds mystery to this whole scene. All in all, I feel Crewdson produces film stills very effectively and this gives off a classical interpretation of American life. I chose to include this image as it strongly relates to force, and how the force of life can affect our emotions deeply and result in people ending up in strange places doing abnormal things, in this case it is portray by the bussiness man, the psyche feel from the darkness of the landscape and the emptiness of the streets besides the same lone man, which in my opinion is strange and makes me question what is actually happening to this man and why is he there?
MY RESPONSE: DRUG RELATED
Prostitution is a major fault in society which is why i chose to develop this topic. The act removes the individuals humanity and gives power to the person paying for the service, which in itself its extremely wrong, due to the amount of money they have. It also has a drastic impact on the women who supply the service, emotionally and physically. Resulting in mental disorders or depression from such a demoralizing job. Many women described it as "paid rape" or "voluntary slavery" as often, sexual violence and physical assault is normal for women in legal prostitution. Shockingly, in nine countries, 68 percent of women, men and trans-gendered people in prostitution had post-traumatic stress disorder, a prevalence that is comparable to that of battered or raped women seeking help, and survivers of state-sponsored torture. This is an issue that should be prevented from any aspect of society as the traumatic consequence of prostitution are similar whether it be legal, tolerated or illegal. Whilst sex work can be normalised, and even glamourised, the reality is that many women involved in prostitution use drugs or alcohol to cope with selling sex - and the violence and abuse in their lives - and sell sex to support their substance dependence. I chose to expand on this which is shown below by the girl who i have portrayed to be a prostitute who has overdosed.
I wanted to create a story board of the events this girl suffered before her death, I thought this was appropriate as it shows the extreme lengths a person will go to and also directly responds to Gregory Crewdson and his film-like photography. So to include this aspect, I created a story board of events and showed the different phases this girl went through when taking drugs.
I wanted to create a story board of the events this girl suffered before her death, I thought this was appropriate as it shows the extreme lengths a person will go to and also directly responds to Gregory Crewdson and his film-like photography. So to include this aspect, I created a story board of events and showed the different phases this girl went through when taking drugs.
Phase 1: Taking and needed the drug
Phase 2: The hallucinations and effects of taking drugs
Phase 3: Death
DEPRESSION
ARTIST INFLUENCE-LARRY CLARK
Lawrence Donald "Larry" Clark was born January 19th, 1943 and is an American film director, photographer, writer and film producer. His most common subject is youth who casually engage in illegal drug use, underage sex and violence, and who are part of a specific subculture, such as surfing, punk rock or skateboarding. He is best known for the film kids and his photography book Tulsa, which is where i have selected my chosen images from as i though they are particularly striking and wanted to base my work in influence of them. Tulsa is a black and white pictorial of the drug scene in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Below are my chosen images I began to expand on.
I chose to feature this contraversial image (above) as part of my inspiration for this section of my work because of its harsh, gritty nature. Clark is presenting a theme that can affect anyone and therefore appeals to many whilst forming a strong emotional bond between the artist, himself and the viewer. The fact he chose a young boy to model stirs a strong tragic empathy, and shows you how this issue within society does majorly affect younger people. I like that he has chosen to edit the photograph in a black and white style as it adds to the depressive theme and present ideas about a blank, dull lifestyle without colour, meaning without happiness or hope. I feel this problimatic issue in society strongly relates to force in an emotional form, and that many aspects can impact people and result in serious consquences such as suicide.
I chose to feature this image above, because i was very drawn to this man's expression. There is a unsteadiness to his demeanor with an undertone of pure fear. Here you can see, like many of Clark's other characters he photographs the raw grittiness and undercurrent of desperation read strongly across his face and his body language. His shoulders arched high and slightly forward show his sheer fright and venerability. I like the fact that the window to the left of him is completely misted and you are unable to see what the surroundings are like, which shows how Clark has used pathetic fallacy within his art to express and reflect the man's emotions throughout the image. I used this image as part of my inspiration as this relates to the depressive state i want to capture as its not only a serious problem in society that can have a destructive impact on not only the indiviudal but the people they surround themselves, but it shows the force of emotions in a interesting, powerful form.
MY RESPONSE:
For this response, I focused on emotions and how vulnerable and distressed a person can feel. In influence of Larry Clark and Gregory Crewdson again wanted to create a film like scene so i experimented with different angles and selected the most effective ones I believe could be scenes from a film. This then creates a sort of narrative from the image and thus making it more effective.
SELECTED IMAGES:
I wanted these images to strongly imitate the feeling of depression and how the individual feels; e.g. as though there is no escape. I chose to locate the image in a shower , which is shown especially in the centre image, to represent the entrapment feeling as she was physically enclosed in this space. I then used the shower, water element to cloud the glass of the shower to represent a misty, uncertainty. By doing this mirrors her emotions throughout the image.
I chose to use this image I had taken because i think it strongly represents one of the emotions of those who suffer depression; this being a venerable, lost emotion. With an early influence of Terry Richardson in this project, I located the model in a shower, alone, to capture just her essence of emotions. I edited the image using photoshop to intensify and dramatise her emotion.
REFINEMENT:
Throughout this strand, it isbased upon an emotional force, I have continuously used a story-board type form of expressing this type of force. I picked up on this and decided as my final section of this strand to expand upon that. So i made the choice to continue this and make the story board almost come alive, I did this by create a double exposure gif. This then presents the girls emotions in her head and how troubled she is yet her exterior remains unable to read. This is common within many individuals in society, which often lead to them becoming extremely down and depressed because they are afraid to speak out about how they are feeling. So, I decided to include this as this is another problematic issue which should be highlighted.
MY RESPONSE
SECOND STRAND:
DECAY
verb
1.(of organic matter) rot or decompose through the action of bacteria and fungi.
1.(of organic matter) rot or decompose through the action of bacteria and fungi.
ARTIST INFLUENCE - MATHEW MERRETT
Mathew Merrett was born and raised in Toronto, where he developed a love for photography, in particularly architectural photography. He has spent several years exploring, photographing and exposing urban decay within abandoned buildings and factories. His inspiration sprung when 9/11 occurred encouraging his love for architectural photography to blossom. His compositions often are from bird's eye view and include depth of field. Below is just two of his images with I thought were very effective.
Left- I have chosen this image as i liked the composition and structural element that has been clearly destroyed due to urban decay. The vast forest of decayed columns created an interesting perspective and show a good architectural representation of a industrial structure. I also liked the typical bland grey colour throughout the whole image with the splash of deteriorating chemical yellow. The fact that the broken structural parts of building are scattered in the centre of the image add a orderly formation to all the mess. I included this photo as i thought this was a good presentation of how physical force can impact and cause decay as a result of it.
Right- I included this image as the colours and lighting immediately grasped my attention. This destruct corridor has been left to ruin and as a result the only light can be seen from the broken windows above, which almost hints at a spiritual biblical element. The emptiness creates quite a creepy, entrapped vibe, as though there is no escape. I really liked the image, hence why I chose to include it as my inspiration.
Right- I included this image as the colours and lighting immediately grasped my attention. This destruct corridor has been left to ruin and as a result the only light can be seen from the broken windows above, which almost hints at a spiritual biblical element. The emptiness creates quite a creepy, entrapped vibe, as though there is no escape. I really liked the image, hence why I chose to include it as my inspiration.
RESPONSE:
For this response, I went to two destruct locations: Cherry Tree and photographed inside a derelict house and Highgate Woods and photographed beneath the bridge which is a site filled with litter and has a common theme of mistreatment.
ARTIST INFLUENCE- TIMM SUESS
Tim Suess was born in Basel, Switzerland and grew up with a passionate desire to capture images. His photography has enabled him to explore the world to expand and develop his work and in my opinion, has resulted in very striking images. Most of his work revolves around the slow battle between human structures and natures's decay processes. With this in mind and his fascination by the affects of time it has resulted in a powerful line of work.
I chose to feature this photograph of Timm Suess's because first and foremost it is visually interesting. The warm, autumnal colours present a form of decay in an intriguing way, not just between each individual image within the college but in each image, presented by the contrasting elements of decay.
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This image is very interesting in many different aspects. First for the fact that you can see the two opposing colours of a rusting brown and a pastel blue which at some points almost merge together into an off yellow colour. I like the fact that Suess has taken a picture of an area of decay in which the peeling paint has actually fallen off revealing the texture below adding a whole new dynamic to the image. I also included this image as an inspiration as the way he has formed the college allows you to view this intriguing circular shape against the orderly vertical wooden material which I took a strong interest to.
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MY RESPONSE:
Here are my responses using a macro-camera in order to focus on close up images of decay. This meant focusing on different materials of destruction, such as metal; rust and cement; moss. This shows destruction in society through a physical form via lack of nuture/care resulting in these affected areas. Below is my selected images, which i have edited using photoshop in order to intensitify the decay of the area.
I edited this image in response to Timm Suess's work. I created this on photoshop using my original image I experimented with different angles, sizes and came to a response in which i was particularly pleased with. In doing so, i noticed that the most attention-grabbing aspect of the photograph was the haunting dark gap in the middle of the original image and in knowledge of this decide to rotate it at different angles so it not only creates a whole new image but lets you witness the areas of decay around the focus of the "gap" in a whole different angle. |
I chose this pattern to imitate because i thought it was a very striking and interesting composition. This is not only due to it's orderly construction but the fact that each of the six squares above and below the the centre piece, focused on an area of the decayed object which allowed the viewer to have a more intriguing observation and to concentrate on different parts of the decay. I also, to make the whole image more eye-catching, rotated each of the six cropped squares into to different angles to allow you to notice the compelling patterns from a new perspective. I chose to expand upon this photograph because i was drawn to the contrasting colours and how the previous blue was being overcome from the new rusting vibrant red that was almost taking control of the object. I also noticed that the subject had these tiger-like scratches in which the decay was attempting to come through and take over the whole area which i was particularly inspired by. |
VISUAL MINDMAP
FINAL PIECE
For my final piece i have decided to expand upon the "decay" strand, as I believe this will have the most successful outcome. I have chosen to capture images like my first response with inspiration from Mathew Merrett in the style of Tim Suess, which I looked into with my second response to my "decay" section.
BEFORE
Below are my selected images I took at the site I visited in Totteridge. I used a combination of techniques including an occasional use of a macro lens to get the mixture of outcomes.
AFTER
GIFS
My inspiration from Timm Suess has enabled me to create these responses. I have edited the images on photoshop and created a still response like Timm Suess' on the left. However, on the right I have made a gif by changing the the rotation of each segment to create the response.
SATURATION
Below are the before and after images of which I have experimented with saturation. I then turned the change of saturation into a gif to show the transition, which can been seen in the first and second response. I have also decided to experiment in other factors such as collage like features which is apparent in the second and last images of this mini section.
FINAL OUTCOME
After experimenting with different techniques on photoshop inspired by artist Timm Suess, I decided to combine the two features I focused on to create my final outcome.