Edward Weston, born on March 24, 1886, and died on January 1, 1958, was a famous American photographer who was called “one of the most innovative and influential American photographers”. Over his 40-year career, he photographed a diverse set of subjects, including subjects like, still life, landscapes, nudes, genre scenes, portraits and so much more. He received a Guggenheim fellowship (he was the first ever photographer given a fellowship like that). With the fellowship, he used it to travel around the American west, photographing its beautiful landscapes and it also allowed him explore his fascination with still life and over the next two years; after receiving his fellowship, he created nearly 1,400 negatives, which he did so with his 8 x 10 view camera.
Weston was born in Chicago and moved to California when he was the age of 21. At an early age, Weston knew he wanted to be a photographer, and his work started off as a soft focus on pictorialism, which was popular at that time. After a few years, he ditched that style and progressed to be one of the biggest champions of detailed photographic images. He progressed to produce images that focused on the clean lines, sharp details and natural beauty seen in everyday forms.
Weston helped define modern photography in the 20th century and he was known for his zoomed in approach to organic forms like bell peppers, nudes and shells. These images that he produced were heavily rich in detail, textures and shapes. It was said that he believed that photography should show things as they are but have this clarity of something deeper within.
He stated, “The camera should be used for a recording of life, for rendering the very substance and quintessence of the thing itself.”
He spent time in Mexico in the 1920s, where he photographed and worked with Tina Modotti. This was a major turning point. This time spent in Mexico allowed him to gain more confidence and inspiration, especially in people and landscape. In 1932, he helped found the Group f/64 with other photographers like the famous Ansel Adams. This Change promoted photography, which was sharp, pure and honest. It was free from any illusion and manipulation.
Many of his works, followed certain movements like modernism and romanticism. A lot of his work had inspiration and traces of romanticism especially when he photographed nature and where he researched for a deeper form within. His close-up photographs of bell peppers, nudes and landscaped, provoked awe, a sense of sublime and intimacy which was what made his work so influential. Even though, Weston did not idealize nature and saw it in a romantic way, he simply made ordinary into extraordinary which often revealed hidden and overlooked beauty.
Sadly, Weston was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease in 1947 and stopped taking images but his influence never stopped and neither did his success. He spent the remaining 10 years of his life overseeing the printing of more than 1,000 of his popular images. Many of his works still inspire many, one of them being ‘the daybooks of Edward Weston’. His prints also inspire photographers and artists which itself proves how Edward was an influential man
Romanticism: A perspective characterised by works like literature painting, criticism, architecture, music, and historiography from the late 18th to the mid-19th century.
With the tendency of it being portrayed as a landscape with a “moody” atmosphere. Romanticism is more subjective especially the subjectivity of the artist feelings rather than an objective like concept which remains as a record for the observable world.
Examples: (referring to romanticism in other art forms)
Definition of sublime and picturesque
Sublime: the understanding of the quality of greatness that brings out wonder and awe. From the 17th century, the idea and the feelings it inspired have helped been a type of source of creativity for writers and artists especially in terms of natural landscape.
Picturesque: an aware influence of Nature which creates foregrounds, middle grounds, and backgrounds which can help highlight a number of provocative formal elements.
Who was involved in the movement:
1. Ivan Aivazovsky (1817–1900)
Contribution to Romanticism: He was a Russian Romantic artist, who was famous for his extraordinary and dramatic seascapes which captured the power that sublime holds and emotion that the ocean brings. His work, like The Ninth Wave, connected with the incredible force of nature, which is a key theme in Romanticism. His innovative use of colour, light, and movement in depicting storms, tranquil seas and shipwrecks, brought out nature’s uncertain power, provoking intense and emotional responses from viewers.
2. Albert Bierstadt (1830–1902)
Contribution to Romanticism: This artist was known for his unreal and expansive illustrations of the American West. His work mostly consisted of landscapes and one of his most famous works was, The Rocky Mountains, Lander’s Peak, influenced by the wilderness and spiritual power of the natural world, which is also a key feature of Romanticism.
3. William Blake (1757–1827)
Contribution to Romanticism: Blake, who was an incredible poet and artist, was a fundamental figure in the Romantic movement. His art and poetry was often personal, visionary and mystical. His pieces like Songs of Innocence and Experience allowed this combination of striking imagery alongside deep spiritual and philosophical themes.
4. Arnold Böcklin (1827–1901)
Contribution to Romanticism: This artist was known for his symbolist and mystical approach to art. His works regularly showed dreamlike and haunting like scenes, such as Isle of the Dead, where there was themes of death, supernatural and isolation explored. Böcklin’s work embodied the Romantic attraction with the mysterious and sublime.
5. Rosa Bonheur (1822–1899)
Contribution to Romanticism: Bonheur was French animal painter who seized the raw power and beauty of animals, especially horses. She was famous for her work The Horse Fair which portrayed an emotional and energetic scene which highlighted both the vitality of animals and the human connection to nature.
6. Antonio Canova (1757–1822)
Contribution to Romanticism: Although Canova’s work was classed as Neoclassicism, his highlight in emotion and the romanticised human form shaped the Romantic movement. His sculptures, like Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss, trigger deep emotions using sensual forms and narrative drama, which would in the future be absorbed by Romanticisms attention on emotion, beauty and individualism.
7. Frederic Edwin Church (1826–1900)
Contribution to Romanticism: Church was a member of the Hudson River School, and he produced landscapes, like The Heart of the Andes, which stressed the inspiring beauty of the natural world. He often captured large and sweeping views of untouched landscapes, promoting the sublime in nature and portraying the romantic fascination towards nature’s power.
8. Thomas Cole (1801–1848)
Contribution to Romanticism: Cole, founder of the Hudson River School, is considered to be one of the most meaningful, figures in American Romanticism. His paintings, like The Oxbow, regularly juxtapose the wild beauty of the American wilderness with the invading idea of civilization. Using his landscapes, Cole investigated themes like nature’s purity vs human development. His work celebrated the romantic celebration of nature’s beauty and power, but he also reflected the dangers of industrialization and urbanization. He was way ahead of his time.
I have decided to base some of my project on eyes. I feel as though eyes relates to the word “union” because of the different shapes, colour and expressions that eyes can have. I like the way that eyes can all be different but be classified as one type of thing and the way that eyes are viewed as a collective. I also feel that eyes relates because they come as a pair, in “union”.
For my project I would like to create different ways of expressing the different types of eyes and presenting them all on one frame or one image to create a sense of union. I will attempt to take pictures of different peoples eyes and use them to create a montage or a photoshopped image where they can be seen as the main subject of the photograph.
I am going to use surrealism when creating my project to express the different illusions and bizarre ways that eyes can be used in an image. I also feel as though eyes are a good way to view imagination and dream-like images to express certain emotions and feelings. I also feel as though surrealism can be viewed differently and have unique narratives seen through the eyes of people.
I have also decided to base my project on the idea of surrealism. This is because I feel as though it really relates to the title of union. Having surrealism images relates to creating dream-like and imaginative images by merging objects together that simply wouldn’t make sense in real life. When merging images together I feel as though creates a sense of union because of the way that images are coming together to create one.
The definition of union is the act of joining together or the fact of being joined together. However, my interpretation of union is the idea of people being united as a society. I have used my photos to express this idea and used different techniques and editing skills to show this. I have based my project on surrealism by creating images that could only come from the imagination or dreams that seem bizarre or out of place. I like the idea of using surrealism to present my images because I feel as though it correlates to the word “union” by merging things together. This could also link to different cultures or ethnicities of people in the world that come together to empower their beliefs and to be united.
There have been many unions through history that have led us where we are today. Labour unions have been a big part of the industrial revolution starting in the eighteenth century in Europe. Trade unions have played an important part in the role of independence. This links back to my project as it shows the different ways that unions can be interpreted, whether it is one person or a group of people coming together to support each other and to be there for one another.
When creating my union images, my idea is to take pictures and edit them in photoshop together. I want to do this because I feel as though this will correlate to the word union because of the idea that two things joining or coming together as one. I also like this idea because I like the way that I am able to use my imagination to create surreal images that could not physically be possible to see or do in real life. I am going to create images which look like they’re from dreams as I feel as though this will turn out well.
Surrealism is a movement of art that allows artists to use their imagination to create something unusual. Surreal photography represents ideas, emotions and dreams that people have which influences them. It is the idea of creating the impossible and blending reality with the imagination.
The surrealism movement first began in 1924, founded by a French poet, Andre Breton. He explored the irrational mind and soon this was expressed through visual art to explore dream-like and bizarre thoughts and imaginations. surrealism started as art until photographers were son inspired by the principles of the movement and started to create their own work based on painters such as Salvador Dali and Rene Magritte. In the 1920’s and the 1930’s, surrealist photographers started to experiment with different techniques to create these unusual images. Techniques such as:
Double exposure, where two or more images were used on the same frame which resulted in a blend of the two or more realities. The manipulation of a photograph was also used, where the photographer would play around with the final print of an image to create unusual effects and compositions. Montages were also an extremely popular technique where photographers would cut and stick different images in which had no correspondence together.#
In 1940’s to the 1960’s during world war 2, surrealism became more broad with different ways of it being viewed or portrayed. Artists also started using technology and different techniques to create their surrealism work which led to the movement being used in fashion and the production of commercials and films.
Helmut Newton was born on October 31st, 1920 and was a German-Australian photographer renowned for his provocative, highly stylised fashion photography that explored themes of eroticism, power and femininity. He passed away on the 23rd January 2004, yet is still one of the most influential photographer’s of women today. His work pushed the boundaries of visual culture, blending sensuality with stark and bold aesthetics. Newton’s influence continues to shape contemporary photography, fashion and visual art. Born in Berlin to a wealthy Jewish family, Newton began to develop an interest in photography early and then apprenticed with German photographer Eva. After World War II, Newton started his career in fashion photography, contributing to Australian publications. He began to grow popular when he moved to Paris in the 1950s, working for big fashion companies like Vogue Magazine. His distinctive style marked by elegance and stark compositions quickly gained him widespread recognition towards the 1970s, where his work had also appeared in major fashion publications such as Harper’s Bazaar and Elle.
Newtons common themes throughout his images are eroticism, voyeurism and power. His photographs often depict strong, sensual women in provocative poses, exploring tensions between desire, power and vulnerability. His work is described as “unapologetically erotic but also confronts the viewer with a sense of voyeurism, making them complicit in the act of looking”. He portrays women as powerful, dominant figures often dressed in sharp, tailored clothing or high heels reinforcing confidence and control, which was a new concept due to the traditional roles of women.
“I like photographing women who appear to know something of life.”
This quote from the photographer himself shows his preference for capturing women who can exhibit life experience and are well educated, which highlights his feminist way of thinking. This quote also aligns with his admiration for strong women with a sense of power and domination, which also ties into traditional gender roles and challenging them.
Helmut Newton also stated:
“I love women. I love strong women.”
This statement also tells us that Newton celebrates empowerment, which carries on from the quote above. From this, I can infer that Newton admires women who are self-reliant rather than dependant on a man. This is challenging traditional female roles as women are often undervalued and only seen as objects of male desire. Historically, strength and power is as trait that is only associated with masculinity or affirm a belief in gender equality. By Newton attempting to break these stereotypes, he is allowing himself to gain recognition from the public as this was an uncommon thing to do in the 1970s, due to society being completely male-dominated.
How does Newton link to the theme of union?
Helmut Newton successfully links to the theme of union for my project through many aspects. One of the main ways is through blending art with fashion. His images which are often provocative create a union between commercial photography and artistic expression. By doing this, Newton brought together the aesthetic beauty of women, with deeper cultural values about femininity and empowerment. As he depicts women who embody sensuality in all of his work, this creates a union between traditional stereotypes and dominance, where he combines them together to reflect tension in a patriarchal society.
In addition to this, Newton interplays with light and shadow in his images to create a stronger dynamic with lots of depth. In all of his images, his use of stark contrasts between light and dark shadows create a strong contrast, and a dramatic aesthetic. The contrast between the light and the shadows symbolises binary opposites and uniting them to give a striking visual impact.
Lastly, Helmut Newton also explores human connection within his works. Specifically, they portray themes of intimacy and desire, which also links to objectification of women. In this way, the photographer manages to create a sense of unity through contrasting elements that usually oppose each other, as well as highlighting his feminist way of thinking when photographing his subjects.
Why did I choose to study Newton for my project?
I chose to study Helmut Newton for my project as his work holds significant cultural and historical value. This is because he revolutionised fashion photography with fine art which is a unique approach and differs from other artists who usually focus on one main element. I believe he had a big impact on fashion photography due to his feminist beliefs and the way he photographed women – in a provocative way where they hold power, rather than portraying them as weak and vulnerable in comparison to men. Through incorporating Newton into my project I will be able to carry out a similar approach as I share similar values and beliefs with Newton on femininity and I aim to challenge the stereotypical way in which women are presented in photography.
Helmut Newton’s work also has cultural effects as it reflects on the climate of the late 20th century around sexuality, beauty and the societal norms based around women and femininity. His work effectively makes the viewer question the intersection of art and forces us to believe in gender empowerment and equality between them. He sparks debate which encouraged me to think about what specifically constitutes beauty and empowerment and the requirements to ‘meet them’. By challenging these standards through presenting women as strong and dominant, this adds a sense of value and purpose to his images.
I firmly believe Newton’s work has highly influenced me to focus on women empowerment and challenge gender norms and stereotypes through photographing them in an assertive manor showing an equal balance between genders. He has inspired me to base my project around historical value, and the ways in which we can push the boundaries of narratives based around traditional values.
All of Newton’s images have been photographed in black and white as it aligned with his artistic vision and the provocative aesthetic he aimed to convey to the viewer. The use of black and white imagery has a timeless effect which accurately demonstrates the time period in which Newton was photographing. This time period (1950s) also reflects when women were only seen as objects of male desire and existed purely to visually please men. The women he photographed were presented in a way that felt both classic and enduring which aligned with the high-fashion world he worked in. In addition, by removing colour from his images it allowed the lines, shapes and shadows to be emphasised without any distractions from colours. This effect heightened the sensuality and strength, as well as drawing the viewers attention primarily to the women and their clothing in the images.
Critiques of Newton and his work:
Although Newton is undoubtably a successful and celebrated photographer, he has also been criticised for his provocative aesthetic which includes many bold aspects of eroticism and power within women. This is due to the fact many of his images show women in a way that emphasises their bodies, or are wearing minimal clothing. Although the artist’s overall aim is to allow women to feel more powerful, some critics argue that his work objectifies them, reducing them to only figures for the male gaze rather than presenting them as autonomous subjects to create an equal balance between genders in the media. One of the main elements showcased throughout Newton’s work is his subjects dressed in high heels and wearing lots of leather. Some see this as an exploration of female empowerment as it allows them to appear confident, yet many argue that Newton is reinforcing and conforming to the traditional power imbalances between men and women, forcing men to view the subjects in his photos as submissive.
In other ways, Newton’s work has also been criticised. This is through the repetition he uses throughout his images, as they all reflect similar vibes to one another due to the high contrast, black and white and including females who have a similar body type. Whilst these themes are iconic and allowed him to stand out from other feminist photographers, yet they are formulaic and sometimes predictable as there isn’t a huge variety of exploration.
Despite these critiques, I believe the subjects in Newton’s models did present lots of power and were able to challenge the societal norms surrounding how women ‘should’ behave or appear, as it is clear throughout his images that the women do hold power to a strong extent. My ideas can also be seen through the settings of his shoots, many of which are outdoors and appear luxurious, showing these women have important roles, which makes the viewer believe they are intelligent and have a high status. This is a significant feature of this specific type of photography because traditionally women were only useful in their homes to either cook, clean or nurture families, and Newton effectively challenges these associations which tells me he worshipped women and shows his admiration through his work.
Image analysis:
This image by Helmut Newton perfectly portrays his interests and themes of power dynamics and sensuality. In this specific image, my eye is immediately draw to the two models in the foreground. They are both dressed in sleek, black gowns with thigh splits which enhances the elegancy of the overall image. Both subjects are wearing long gloves which allows them to appear more sophisticated, and they both have a focused facial expression which adds to the theme of power as this gives off the effect that they are important and perhaps educated. This is an effective presentation of the message Newton is suggesting about power roles and equality between genders, as historically women were not allowed an education. This ideology contrasts with the image above as I can infer that both women feel confident and dominant rather than weak and vulnerable, which is how they were usually portrayed in photography. Both models are handcuffed together, which suggests there is a close relationship or bond between them. The woman in front has an extended arm, implying that she wants to walk forward. The woman behind her looks as if she is firmly holding her arm which creates a sense of tension or resistance.
The background in the image is an open, outdoor space with fencing and architecture. The use of this is to contrast with the styling of both the subjects as they are dressed dramatically, and the background appears rugged. The wind is sweeping through both if the models hair which enhances the sense of motion throughout the image, which overall gives it a more natural effect.
This image uses sharp contrasts throughout, contributed by the black and white imagery added. The lighting in the image is very strong as they are outdoors, using natural sunlight. This helps to sculpt both of the figures, which allows them to stand out and appear more important in the image, which again reinforces Newton’s main objective of women empowerment. There is a slightly low camera angle, which adds to the sense of dominance as the women appear to be higher up in the frame, suggesting a high status.
Overall, this image by Helmut Newton successfully captures a moment of elegancy, where both subjects appear significant and sophisticated through their clothing and expression.
What?- My main focus for this shoot is details, specifically in the barn where most of the tractors an equipment is stored. On the previous shoot I covered a summary and Raoul at work but I didn’t look at the peacefulness or at least the quieter parts of the lifestyle. This also includes Raoul’s passion of fixing older tractors, a hobby essential to his farming technique, using older tractors in a more traditional manor. There is a particular brand of tractor Raoul uses, Massey Ferguson, using the red of these tractors will become a statement point in the book, pinning down a small unchanging fact in an ever-changing industry.
How?- Using a canon mark 5iv with a 70-200mm lens will give me range to capture smaller details like the parts of each tractor while still having enough wider angle to capture the overall picture. I won’t have any artificial lighting with me as I will be climbing ladders and ‘exploring’ the farm. Meaning it is important to get my settings right, I will also shoot on RAW to allow me more editing depth.
Why?- Having captured the tractors and Raoul at work I want to show the quieter part of farming, the essential but currently unused equipment. I also want to show Raoul’s hobby, fixing tractors, to add a further human element to the book. The way Raoul stores equipment reflects how he works, neatly, organised and I think it is important to capture this attention to detail as it shows a further connection between how Raoul works in union with the land, listening to its every need.
This shoot focused on the tractors themselves and some of the equipment. As there are nearly 50 good photos, while I will edit them all I won’t put all of them on this post. Instead I’ll pick significant shots, detailed editing or other photos I want to explain.
Edit One
This is an interesting photo, I struggled to take it with the barn being dark but having to take the photo from the outside left it open to being over exposed. I adjusted my settings till I got an image I knew I could edit. I liked this photo as it frames the tractor well, hinting at what is in the barn. To edit I reduced the exposure, increasing the depth by reducing the highlights. I also cropped and reangled the image as it was off centre. I like the intensity in the shot and the depth in the background while having the empty foreground.
Edit Two
This is the first one from inside the barn, there was a little natural lighting from the sky lights so I needed to compensate with my aperture. The lens I was using only reduced to f4 however it worked well. I chose to get wider angled shots to try and show how many tractors and parts there are. I used simple editing to enhance the image picking the reds to be the main part of the photo.
Edit Three
This detail shot adds to the story, most farmer will have a preferred tractor brand, this one being Massey Ferguson. While red in the Massey colour the rest of the photos in the barn clearly show the abundance of red so this one I wanted to focus on the writing by changing the photo to black and white. In the foreground there is another tractors steering wheel this then cuts off the rest of ‘Ferguson’ it adds to the photo as people have to guess the rest of the brand which is easy enough. Or if its not it shows how little people know about the industry that sustains them.
Edit Five
I then went outside to where more tractors are stored. This photo was composed to show the other tractors around it having the wheels in the foreground out of focus. I like the snippet of hedgerow in the background as it adds texture. I chose to keep this image in colour to show the rust. I made basic adjustments to the images to deepen colours adding more depth to the photo.
Edit Six
I like this photo, it reminded me of previous research I have done looking at KEITH DOTSON’s abandoned cars in a forest. While this tractor isn’t abandoned so much as run out of time to fix it, it has an interesting appearance, especially in black and white. I increased the contrast as it adds to the photo, enhancing the disappearing into nature of the tractor.
Edit Seven
This photo is a detail shot, I liked all the oil cans lined up next to each other all red, like the tractors as well. Once I’d increased the exposure to show more of the image I tried it in black and white, but I found I preferred the shot in colour. The background is busy, full of oils, tins and other bits all in brightly coloured packaging.
Edit Eight
I then went into one of the workshops, an essential part of keeping the old ways going is being able to fix using the old techniques. A skill many people do not have now. This is part of one of the metal lathes, machines used to carve metal into shafts for equipment. I increased the exposure and contrast to create a high contrast tonal image, fitting to the other black and white images I have.
Edit Nine
Following the metal workshop I went into the wood workshop, which used to be the dairy. This shot has many elements within it, I like that it has the old cow headcollar, hooked on the old milking partitions, while having the tools for other parts of farming. I chose to make the image black and white to show the detail, for example it highlights the calendar, with the date 1988 on it. This is another way to show the age of the farm and how things haven’t changed as much as some of the more modern farms have. It also reflects how busy farmers lives are, to have multiple full work shops with scraps of history remaining.
Final Images
This photoshoot went well, I have plenty good photos some hinting metaphors, some simply showing the age, and some to try and get the viewer to understand how farming isn’t just a job so much as a never ending lifestyle, essential for everyone. I like how there are a mixture of shots showing how things are fixed, unfinished projects, and how much time runs away with you. I do think I need to add additional images, like a product of the lathe and a wider shot of the dairy, these will enhance the narrative I’m telling. Similarly to my first photoshoot, I have a range of black and white photos, some worked better in colour, some in black and white, a couple of images it’s important for them to be in colour. Making fundamental points in the story.
Yayoi Kusama was born on March 22, 1929 and is a Japanese artist known for her distinctive use of repetition and large installations. Kusama’s work is contemporary, as she works across painting, sculpture and performance blending elements of minimalism, surrealism, feminist art and Pop Art. She explores themes of infinity, self-obliteration and mental health, in which she uses her key motifs, such as excessive use of polka dots, to reflect her personality throughout her art.
In an interview with Bomb Magazine, Kusama stated:
“Polka dots symbolise disease.”
This short statement from the artist shows how she reflects her personal struggles into the ways in which she carefully creates her art and portrays it to the world.
Yayoi Kusama explores a unique view, starting with artwork created during her childhood up to works made this year. Her personal expression was shaped by her childhood experiences, including hallucinations that overwhelmed her sense of self. These hallucinations included flowers that spoke to Kusama, and patterns in fabric that she stared at coming to life, a process which she has carried into her artistic career and which she calls “self-obliteration”. She has explained these visions as an obsessional neurosis that has driven her to create art for almost 9 decades. In between, her career is surveyed, from her experimental years in Japan to her contributions to New York’s avant-garde scene in the 1960s, through to her return in 1973 re-emergence as an internationally known artist.
“My art originates from hallucinations only I can see. I translate the hallucinations and obsessional images that plague me into sculptures and paintings.”
– Yayoi Kusama – Interview by Grady T. Turner – January 1, 1999
Today, Kusama is renowned globally for her use of pattern, colour and symbols to create immersive and and personal works of art that transcend language and borders. She has made significant contributions to key art movements of the 20th and 21st century, including minimalism, Pop Art and feminist art. Although Kusama has experimented with many media and forms of expression, her underlying motivation for making art has remained the same. She seeks to convey the beauty of the natural world, and to further explore her place within an expanding universe of art and photography.
How does Yayoi Kusama’s art link to the theme of union?
Kusama closely explores the theme of union in several ways throughout her pieces, where she emphasises harmony and personal boundaries. As I researched in the interview linked above, Kusama often speaks about self-obliteration, the idea of losing yourself within a larger whole. By covering herself, other subjects and even large rooms in polka dots, she visually represents the merging of the self with the universe. This is an important element for me personally because in this project I want to delve into the theme of identity as it allows for me to self-reflect as well as find relations to my artist inspirations.
Furthermore, Kusama’s infinity mirror rooms create a sense of boundlessness, where reflections discard the separation between herself as the artist, and the viewer. The installations in her work suggest unity, where everything is connected due to the repetition of elements such as patterns and symbols. These factors reinforce the theme of unity as the viewer actively engages with her work through becoming part of the infinite reflections.
Lastly, her anti-war protests that took place in the 1960s due to the Vietnam War promoted peace and collective experience. She painted peoples bodies with dots as a way to symbolise their connection to one another, in attempt to bring a sense of community to the societal troubles occurring at the time.
Why did I choose to study Kusama for my project?
Her work has had a heavy influence on feminism and fashion, where she has collaborated with several major fashion brands. A significant collaboration that stood out to me from viewing her art is her 2012 collaboration with Louis Vuitton. She had originally teamed up with Marc Jacobs, then the creative director of Louis Vuitton to create a collection featuring her signature polka dots on bags, clothing and accessories.
Kusama also intersects with feminism through the challenges she faced in the male-dominated art world. When she emerged in the 1960s New York art scene, it was largely controlled by male artists like Andy Warhol and Donald Judd. Despite being overlooked, she continued to push the boundaries proving that women can succeed in conceptual art. She also delves into the exportation of the body through her Happenings which featured nude performances. These pieces challenged traditional representations of women’s bodies, and highlight her passion towards rebelling against stereotypical norms. This stood out to me due to the extensive use of vibrancy and abstract backgrounds in all of her work. Historically, most classical art favoured muted tones and Kusama rejects these traditional ideals, which signals a break from the past and reinforces growth.
Image analysis:
The image above by Yayoi Kusama is a portrait displaying her interests in contemporary photography through using her iconic installations which she is celebrated for. This photo specifically captures many of Kusama’s significant themes such as obsession, identity and self-obliteration in many ways. The image is dominated by an intense red and white colour palette which immediately portrays Kusama’s style of her work using lots of vibrancy. She repeats polka dot patterns throughout the image in her clothing and accessories as well as the background. The use of this successfully blurs any distinction between the artist and the work itself, which is something she aimed to achieve. The main subject in the image is Kusama herself, as she is positioned in the centre of the frame, yet she is almost camouflaged by the intense background. This is due to the repetition of the same patterns, however we can see that Kusama is still the main focus point as there is lots of symmetry used in the image, which allows her to be emphasised against the background. The image as a whole appears to me as surreal, mainly due to the tentacle-like sculptures that dominate the background and surround the artist. The shapes of the tentacles almost introduce a sense of movement, which contrasts with Kusama as we can infer that she is standing still. The repetition of dots on these forms suggest Kusama merging natural life with her psychological state, which allows the viewer to feel more connected with the work by understanding the context and Kusama’s psychological struggles.
The lighting in the image is soft and diffused, allowing for minimal shadows and emphasising the vibrancy of the red colours. Moreover, the use of symmetry throughout the image amplifies the hypnotic quality and forces the viewer to focus on Kusama, as she is placed in the middle of an even background.
As Kusama’s work is deeply rooted from her personal issues and she incorporates these into her images, this shows her lifelong obsession with polka dots and infinite repetition due to her hallucinations. This informs her perspective on self-obliteration where she can discard the boundaries between the self and the world. As well as including herself in the image, she enacts this idea by becoming a part of the infinite visual field created in this image. Additionally, Kusama has included a handbag as an accessory, which directly links to her collaborations with fashion brands, and therefore highlighting the intersection of art with personal identity.
Overall, this image by Yayoi Kusama is a statement that embodies the psychological challenges into her work to reinforce the themes of identity and obsession. By placing herself in the centre of the frame surrounded by colourful polka dots in every aspect, Kusama is emphasising the importance of the nature of identity and the ways in which humans are shaped by the world around us.
For my project I will be focusing on the union between dreams and reality. My own interest in the subject and photographers/artists have inspired me to go with this theme, one of the people who inspired me was Carl Jung, a Swiss psychologist known for his theory about dreams and reality in association with the unconscious and conscious mind, unlike Sigmund Freud’s theory, Jung sees dreams as meaningful messages from the unconscious that could help people navigate both their inner world and reality. I was specifically inspired by his process called individuation which is the journey of uniting the conscious and unconscious mind to become the best version of oneself.
I was also very much inspired by Trevor Henderson, a surrealist digital artist who is well known for creating cryptid-like creatures in a vintage-style filter. His creatures and uncanny style really impacted and strengthened my ideas, I plan to also create my own creatures while including a vintage or ‘found footage’ style to try and include the nightmare side of dreams and reality.
In order to respond to this idea, I will create photoshoots that interpret the union of dreams and reality or the conscious and unconscious mind, I interpret this by using editing techniques such as blurring or creating a ‘found footage’ style to the photographs in order to resemble the transformation or fusing of the two worlds, this will act as the connection point. I will also focus on the aesthetic and technique of liminality as well as ‘found footage’, I believe these will help create uncanny worlds that combine elements of dreams and reality within my images.
For my photobook I want to take my viewers on a journey through images that represent the union of dreams and reality, Another reason I chose to focus on this subject is because of my interest in dreams and how our actual lives fuse with them to create bizarre stories and scenery that may represent certain events or emotions or just some random thoughts. Therefore I plan for the photobook to be random and not in a narrative structure as I believe this will give the affect of spontaneity and randomness that dreams have. I do want some of the images to link as if they are part of the same dream, I will do this by places images with similar characteristics or subjects next to each other on a page or two.
I have also decided to interpret elements of Pictorialism and the Baroque style, I want to include the soft hard focus (Mainly Pictorialism) and ethereality of both themes within my images in order to represent the delicate and enjoyable side of dreams, however I also want to use drama that the Baroque style uses, for example it’s intense colours, scenery and posing, I will do this in order to represent the conflict that people may experience in dreams or nightmares.
