Analogue - David Hockney

I suppose an obvious place to look for inspiration and research for this project would be at David Hockey's photographic collage work. I do see great similarities between when Hockey has produced and the kind of piece I would be aiming to produce in the end. Here is a small extract from an interview conducted by John Tusa on BBC Radio 3, where Hockney talks about his photographic collages. (Full interview can be found here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/johntusainterview/hockney_transcript.shtml)

"And that was when you produced these large photo collages of a realistic scene, one I remember is the lunch at the British Ambassador's residence in Tokyo .

Well I started making collage photographs because I realised you could make a different space, you're putting in time, and they began to be different and you got a different space. I got fascinated by that, actually, and spent a good few months just using, making complex Polaroid photographs, which are far more complex to make than they look.

Oh, I've never thought they were anything other than very complicated.

And what was interesting was, I knew it was a bit like drawing and painting. When you began I didn't know where the edge would be, whereas most people looking through a camera it's the edge that defines everything, so they grew outwards, it was fascinating, and I realised we see that way, we see in bits. And I realised you could even alter perspective, er.

Because each image gives you rather a different perspective?

Yes, each one is a different one. And I began to be interested in perspective which is a fascinating subject, most people thought it was just in nature, practically, whereas it's not of course. But it seemed as though photography confirmed western perspective and so on. But actually that's where it came from, optics, or so I found out later. It wasn't confirming it, that's.."

 The part I relate to most for this project is where he speaks about being able to view the space from a different perspective. I had already established that using lots of photographs to depict just one scene allows the viewer to take as much information and detail from that scene as possible, but I hadn't thought about what Hockey says regarding how we view the world "in bits". You can never see the entirety of a room in one look, so combining several different viewpoints reflects photographically what we really do when taking in a scene.
Some examples of Hockney's collage work:

©David Hockney

©David Hockney

©David Hockney

Particularly in the last image, what strikes me is that Hockney hasn't made an effort to produce a perfectly slick panorama - there are large gaps where bits of the scene are missing. However, what is included is just enough to give us an impression of the scene. I find it interesting how he has included a line of images that is solely there to document the equivalent line of footprints. He has also added an image that was probably taken at the same time, but has different aesthetics to the others on the far right hand side, nearly falling out of the frame. This other image acts as something external being added to his memory of the scene. What is similar to my most recent piece is the use of lots of small, regular 6x4" prints to make up the larger scene. I need to consider whether it would be best to continue to use these small prints, so as to highlight the almost home made nature of it, or whether to print larger, maybe 8x10" so as to encompass the most detail possible.

http://www.hockneypictures.com/photos/photos_collages.php

I've just shot 72 frames worth of images of my room at home, which are currently being developed and printed for me. I'll then sticth them to make a prototype, and decide which size prints I will be going for.

Analogue - Andrew Bruce's The Photographers' Room

The majority of Bruce's work doesn't particularly link in with my themes of homeliness and personal nostalgia. However, The Photographers' Room does represent the same kind of intervention with photographs that I am experimenting with. For this analogue project I wanted to explore the different ways an image can be presented other than just a print, hence my research around mixed media artists. I have also decided to focus my attention on my bedrooms, both at home and at university, precisely the subject matter that Bruce explores in this installation.

©Andrew Bruce

©Andrew Bruce

©Andrew Bruce

©Andrew Bruce

Although this is clearly an installation piece and what I am working would still be traditionally hung on the wall, I do see connections. Bruce is exploring the power of snapshots when exhibited en-masse within the context of what appears to be his student bedroom. However, with this installation, the photographs of it will never do the amount of detail justice - literally every inch of the room has been captured. However, the audience would never be able to experience this in it's full glory without being within the room itself. This is where the similarities between our projects end. I want the amount of detail within my piece to be epic, but I also want it to be accessible, and not too overwhelming for the audience. For me, it is not only about the images themselves (exploring my bedroom/s and how I have made the space my own), but also the technique of stitching the images and taking digital techniques back to their analogue roots. However, what looking at Bruce's project has confirmed to me is that I can't make this piece of work on a small scale, it just wouldn't capture attention. It needs to be large and saturated with detail, but with some empty images as well to give the viewers a break from all the, let's face it, stuff, that features so heavily in my bedrooms.

Analogue - My room, stitched.

Here is the result of many hours worth of sewing the images of my bedroom together. Again, for me this was a bit of a mock up of what I would produce for my final piece, rather than an attempt to create a finished object.

Although I do feel like this is an improvement on the last piece, there are still some things that I want to change for my final images. I will definitely be shooting them on a relatively flat day - this will keep the tones neutral rather that the harsh yellowy orange that the ceiling light has cast. I also need to shoot in much more detail - it was suggested that this piece needs to be epic - both in size and the amount of detail. I will therefore be shooting hopefully around double or triple the amount of images, printing them larger (probably 8" square) and making sure that every inch of the room is documented. However, I do like the fact that my reflection can be seen in the window, it adds a hint of a traditional self portrait without it being too overt. I also feel that all the different lines, creating a kind of abstract grid is much more successful that just lots of parallel lines next to each other, as was used in the previous piece. To improve, I might need to put a bit more meaning into the thread that I use; I have been thinking about using an old jumper of mine unravelled to stitch the images together. This makes the intervention of stabbing through the images with a needle more personal and adds another dimension to the piece.

My next steps are:

- Photograph a few more films worth of images (neutral day, both at home and here).

- More research into photographers that create an intervention in their images.

- Search at home for something personal, but not with too much sentimental value, to stitch the photos together.

Analogue - Geoffrey Batchen's Photographic Artefacts

So for my dissertation I've been reading Geoffrey Batchen's Forget Me Not: Photography and Remembrance, and the post-it-notes have been out in full. Turns out quite a lot of the artefacts he writes about are pretty relevant to my analogue project as well.
Firstly, these heavily embroidered pieces of silk or wool, into which were sewn photographs of men on duty in the army and navy.

With these artefacts, the photograph inside almost becomes irrelevant, it is so much about the embroidery around the outside, especially given the image's size. They are described by Batchen as being "mementos of their service". The creators have used a classic art form, embroidery, and combined it with the relatively new medium of photography to create an artefact that "not only stimulates the eye but also invites our touch". They appear to have been designed to allow servicemen to look back on their experience with fond memories, perhaps presenting an idealised view of what it was actually like.
Next, a combination of homely textiles and photography.

Here we have an object that is such a reminder of home, but made up of images of the outside world. Again, like the previous artefacts, the pillow encourages people to touch and handle it, again, linking in to the tactile nature of photographs. The bringing together of all the different images within one item means that a wide range of subject matter can be combined and explored all at the same time. Almost like a patchwork quilt, no two of these pillows would ever be the same, with different people prioritising different memories to be made into something so comforting and tactile.
Although not exactly what I want to create for my project, looking at these artefacts does tell me that well before the invention of computers and photo editing software, people were making things out of photographs. They weren't just there for people to look at on the wall, they were meant to be touched and handled, the use of fabric and embroidery certainly suggests this.
For me, the act of sewing the images together creates a way for my images to become tactile again, as far as possible away from the slick, digital panoramic photographs that are possible now. To me, it doesn't matter if it is a bit haphazard - I am investing my time and imprinting myself onto the images through my embroidery, making them as home-made as possible.

Batchen, G., Forget Me Not: Photography and Remembrance (2004), Princeton Architectural Press.

Major Practical Project - Anna Fox

Fox's series entitled My Mother's Cupboards and My Father's Words from 1999 combines photographs of the interiors of her mother's cupboards with quotes from her father to form an invitingly pocket-sized photobook. She describes how the quotes and images represent "An unexpectedly wicked narrative exploring a claustrophobic relationship". Here are some examples of double page spreads from the book:

©Anna Fox

©Anna Fox

©Anna Fox

These images are another example of how Nigel Shafran describes his work - the photos that only she can make. No other artist of photographer could make this work because no-one else knows the ins and outs of Fox's family situation. The images are relatively simply shot and framed, with tight composition not allowing the viewer to see anything outside of the cupboards she is focussing on. A flash has clearly been used to highlight inside the cupboards, leaving harsh reflections and shadows. Although we are not shown anything of the rest of her house, the neatness of what is photographed leads us to make assumptions about her personality. This also rings true for her father - we only read aggressive, expletive comments which, although only highlights one side of his personality, doesn't make the reader particularly warm to him.
Although Fox appears to be highlighting the differences between her parents, the images and the words do draw similarities towards each other. Besides being offensive, her fathers words are actually quite simple, reflecting the simplicity of the photographs they accompany.
In terms of the images themselves, it seems Fox has tried to keep the colours and the composition very much as if we were there, rifling through her mother's cupboards ourselves. The images are far from deadpan - the warm tones coming from the reddish wood do make them feel much more personal. When we compare this work to that of John R J Taylor for example, it is clear to see which is a personal project and which has been shot commercially.
This is another project that thrives off the acknowledgement of little details - a style which I do see myself employing for my images. The next bridge I need to cross is how to get across to my viewers the intense knowledge I have of my home - how do I make them realise that I am photographing the wallpaper on my staircase because it always catches my nails when I brush my hand along it. How do I impart the things I feel and remember about my home with my audience without them being able to be there?

http://www.annafox.co.uk/work/my-mothers-cupboards/