Be clearer about describing your work and don’t assume knowledge of a situation but provide the information.
First start with what is in the images, the subjects and then the form. I found as I was re writing some of my assignment based on feedback from my tutor, other observations of what was in the images was being revealed and I expanded on these in the assignment.
I also didn’t explain the use of light, aperture, wide angle, cropped shots and how these were used as codes for different meanings within the images.
I also didn’t fully explain where my inspiration came from for this work. I mentioned one photographer but upon reflection there were several others that I researched as part of this unit that also provided inspiration which I noted down in my research blog.
Removing a rigid style of blog with standard headings for the research blog has helped focus on what is needed. I removed the copy of what the brief was from the blog and tried to make it more digestible with what the tutor wants to see, this is also based on tutor feedback.
The use of Padlet was suggested and this is a great way of illustrating my series of work – I need more practice with this and to see more examples to get to grips with the tool.My tutor advised this could be a good way to play around with sequencing and editing before making a final decision on what is included in the work.
I also added how I would want the final outcome of the work to be presented and in what format.
The blog for the assignment needs to read more like an artist’s statement which is what I have tried to do when amending the blog after tutor feedback was received.
Summarise your research findings – might be a sentence or two – as a reflective learning example. What this then does is show that you have trawled though your own research made notes and concisely summed up the main points then put the reference to the blog – in level two that should be in Harvard thus: • Stork, J., 2021. A3: Self Portraiture: Research and Ideas. [online] Jenny Stork: Photography 1: Context & Narrative. Available at: <https://
I am by nature not someone who thinks about myself and my identity and does not care about an image as such, I think this is why my immediate response to this brief was to choose empty locations and objects rather than focus on myself or another person to represent me. Usually I have several different ideas in response to an assignment but this time I was sure that there was only one way I would approach this piece of work
Planning
My photographs have been taken over a period of months with a plan to capture moments when I am in a particular state of mind, for example, I photographed parts of my home I could see when I was sitting, feeling helpless and trapped. My version of freedom was being outside and having access to my family and this is what I planned to capture for this assignment. The shoot list method where a list of images are planned before a shoot is not my preference, I feel this is too rigid and has potential to stifle creativity, however, I do see the advantage in this to keep to the brief.
Research /Inspiration
My series of images (body of work) The first x images are inspired by the work of Shafran with the absence of human figures and the mundane domestic nature of the work. See my research exercise on Shafran here
Richard Billingham’s work called Squalid Realism was also an inspiration for my disruptor image (no. 4) which shows packed boxes in my bedroom, this feels intimate and a peek into the personal life that one would not otherwise get to see unless it was a close friend or family member. see notes here
Elina Brotherus in her work Annonciation there is a blurred image which is a theme in her work in this series where hiding subjects within the frame ( and showing certain parts) is a theme. See research notes here
Idea
My ideas immediately were drawn to empty locations and everyday objects in the home, firstly around my African heritage which is a large part of my identity, but I settled on my immediate life experiences that were dramatic and life changing. a more powerful story. “B” represents the “Before” the break up and the “A” is After the event. The colour palette transforms from grey (before) to more colourful after. The images are tightly cropped before, representing a feeling of being trapped in a very small world, not being able to see beyond the four walls. After contains more colour, being outside beyond the prison like feel of four walls and people are included, but only in a shadow or a photo, a representation of a first step to “normality”
Conclusion
The recommended reading by my tutor about how to read a photograph and sequencing of work has really helped me in an area I find challenging, the editing/selection process. The “why” have I chosen what I have from a few hundred images has become less difficult. I have learned a great deal about self portraiture and how a life story can be expressed through images in so many different ways.
This series tells a story of a relationship break up that took place over several months in 2020 and the transition to a new happier life on my own where I am free to connect with my family again in an uninhibited way.
The work contains images of banal domestic objects within the confines of my home where I lived with my partner during the troubled relationship as well as images shot in my new home in a new happier world, which gives this work the title “Out of the Darkness”.
The first three images (during the troubled relationship) are shot from within the home looking outwards. The last four images contain more colourful objects, sunlight and people, these are images shot during and after the break up and in a new happier world.
During the troubled relationship:
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
Image 3 was shot when still living with my partner on a rainy, grey cloudy day shot from indoors through a window looking out. The subjects beyond the window are blurred by the glass barrier and the rain. The outside world is not visible in the first three images. The light is muted and contains shadows.
The series is disrupted by a fourth image in a snapshot style at a wider angle which also creates disruption and a juxtaposition to the formal tightly cropped images preceding this. Further disruption is in the contrasting colours to the first three images, bright blue and yellow. Image 4 contains a collection of boxes that appear rather chaotic and clutter the image, another contrast to the preceding images with only a few objects. The sunshine in the room in this disruptor image is also in contrast to the gloomy rain and grey tones contained in the first three images.
Moving Out
Image 4 Disruptor Shot
A New Life
Images 5 & 6 containing the kettle and the dressing table are taken looking inwards and focusing inside the home, a different approach to the first three images in the series that were shot facing away from the home and outwards through the window. The first three images are shot in a tightly cropped formal style with a grey tone and the first two images contain no shadows inside the house. The shadows in image 6 are positive, from direct sunlight in a sunny environment. The last three images are still within the confines of a domestic situation but the subjects are more colourful and contain people, in contrast to the first 3 images. The final image contains bright sunny weather and human activity shot beyond the confines of the house looking from beyond the window, outside in the garden.
Image 5
Image 6
Image 7
My body of work includes captions accompanying each image, these are selected snippets from my diary written over several months during 2020. This series represents a life changing event, a breakdown of a relationship
My series of images (body of work) Images are inspired by the work of Shafran with the absence of human figures and the mundane domestic nature of the work, focusing on everyday objects instead of people. I have used colour codes to reflect a mood where the first 3 images are grey and void of humans. I associate monotonous grey tones with little colour as a visual representation of my life at the time, of negative emotions such as sadness, being trapped and loneliness, I am portraying the feeling of being trapped and longing to be beyond the window and free outside. Composition is closely cropped to also capture the feeling of being stifled and trapped. Image 3 which shows a blurred outside world also reflects a feeling of not being able to connect with the outside world in a real way. Image 6 is an important final representation of life at that point in time. It shows how the outside world has become clearer, not clear to the point where the person is visible in the image, but it is progress compared to the images 1,2 & 3 that represented life before the break up.
Development of the work
Future work could include another series of images that include the confines of the domestic boundary but clearer images of people and relationships, these could contain sunny warm light at wide angles. The future series could also contain images beyond the boundary of the home, embracing the world in an uninhibited way.
Outcome
The work could be displayed on a wall in a gallery and would flow in a timeline sequence as in the layout below. I received some cards from friends and family when I moved to my new home, these could be displayed on a table at the exhibition to add another dimension to the work. The room where the images are displayed would be a celebratory theme with the opening night champagne and upbeat music to engender the feel of a happy free life.
Research, preparation and ideas for this assignment can be found here
Jenny Stork: Photography 1: Context & Narrative 