• What you want to explore?
• Why it matters to you?
• How you wish to develop your project?
• Which form you wish to present your study (photobook, film, prints etc)
• When and where you intend to begin your study?

For my project on the theme of Union I have decided to focus the relationships and interactions between people, in particular within family. Union can be defined as the action or state of being joined together, and for this project, I’m interpreting it as the connections between individuals that unite them. I thought using relationships for this theme works well as a connection between people whether its a couple, siblings or parent and child can be seen as powerful examples of unions, where the bond between individuals creates something deeply meaningful and unique.

In my photos, I aim to capture both candid, natural moments between people and a few staged shots in the studio. The central focus of my work will be the relationship between my friend and her younger brother, and I intend to highlight the strength of the sibling bond and the importance of this particular family connection. By focusing on family, I can show how these connections help shape an individual into who they are. I believe that the ties between family members (siblings in particular) are significant, as they represent lifelong friendships and deep, meaningful connections.

The artist I am wanting to focus on for this project is Emma Hardy who’s photography is known for taking a contemporary approach. she tends to try and create stories within her images using her children as the main subjects. She aims to bring across strong emotions in her images by getting her subject to express a certain emotion in the image of by the use of lighting (eg darker weather or time of day would create a different feel to a sunny day with bright light. Her photos consist of a mix of staged photographs and naturally occurring ones which I am also aiming to do. Hardy takes images of her children and showing the relationships between them she captures happy moments in their lives liking playing together in fields or on family road trips. she also explores the union between the subject and their relation with the environment around them.

I decided to focus my photoshoots on my friend and her brother as I think creating images representing an older sister and younger brother would create warming images especially when in the correct setting such as parks or good lit natural environments. I think this relationship is special as the image will be able to represent how much care the older sibling has for the younger and how much the younger one loves and looks up to their older sister. I also want to try and get images in their natural environments such as their family home so that there is even more connection within the image as the environment around them, toys in the background or household items that that hold personal connections which would enhance the unity of the image will represent a stringer connection such as possibly images on the walls. I would do a variation of different shoots where id involve close up shots o the two to make the main point of the image their expressions and moods in the moments (eg laughing together) and also further away shoots to capture certain activities they may be engaging in and showing how their union represents its self in a larger environment. (eg pushing a swing at a park). I would alter the lighting of the images so that it resonates with the mood of the two. for example if their is a conflict between them like usual siblings them I could change the warm lighting and aim for it to be more cold. As well as this using warmer lighting like the natural light of a sunset while they are playing in a park or field I would be able to capture the happy moments and the viewer of the image will be able to see that much clearer when the lighting of the image.

When editing/ presenting my images, I am planning on taking inspiration from David Hockney. The artist’s style ranges from collaged photography and opera posters to Cubist-inspired abstractions and paintings of the English countryside. He is renowned for his own takes on perspective and use of colour which make his work noticeable and very obviously belonging to him. David Hockney uses the artist movement of Cubism in his artwork and photography. Cubism is a movement that was originated by artists such as Pablo Picasso. It presents photos in unique and abstract ways by breaking objects down into geometric shapes. Cubism is able to show multiple perspectives where it is able to give many viewpoints to the photo giving the viewer an opportunity to interpret the images in the way they think is correct for them. I wanted to use cubism in my work to make my photographs more interesting and abstract. I’m planning on doing both edits on photoshop and also to make the cubism effect with the camera by taking many different photos of the same scene and then putting them all together. when doing a shoot like that I will have to do more portraited images as it would be difficult to conduct if the subjects were moving around a lot. For this shoot I want to conduct it in a indoor and person space (like their home).

David Hockney was born on the 9th of July 1937 in Bradford, England. He is an English painter, draughtsman, printmaker, stage designer, and photographer who became well known for his involvement in the Pop-art artist movement. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. His early worked focusses on landscapes, portraiture and still life but as technology evolved so did his techniques where he was able to implement new methods and technologies to his artwork which moved him to also take in interest in photography and not just the artist side.

The artist’s style ranges from collaged photography and opera posters to Cubist-inspired abstractions and paintings of the English countryside. Hockney has many art pieces of swimming pools where he makes them abstract and more unique to his own artistic style. he is renowned for his own takes on perspective and use of colour which make his work noticeable and very obviously belonging to him. David Hockney uses the artist movement of Cubism in his artwork and photography. Cubism is a movement that was originated by artists such as Pablo Picasso. It presents photos in unique and abstract ways by breaking objects down into geometric shapes. Cubism is able to show multiple perspectives where it is able to give many viewpoints to the photo giving the viewer an opportunity to interpret the images in the way they think is correct for them. The movement steers away from realistic views and creates images you wouldn’t be able to capture without further disfigurement and so it mostly focusses on shape and structure. Though Hockney may not fully link all of his work to cubism he definitely manages to create artwork with the fragmented and abstract affects. he is able to deconstruct his photographs to make them more complex and interesting to the viewer. He created these fragmented images by taking many individual photographs and turning it into one piece.

Hockney has been inspired by many artists. Pablo Picasso has one of the biggest influences in Hockney’s life and oeuvre. This profound admiration is eloquently expressed in two significant works from this series: The Student and Artist And Model. These prints, produced during a time when Hockney resided in Paris following Picasso’s death, offer a visual dialogue that explores the depth of Hockney’s sense of indebtedness to one of the 20th century’s most revolutionary artists. Hockney found himself in a city with a rich artistic heritage that had been the subject of countless artworks. Hockney chose to honour the individuals who contributed to its vibrant art scene. Man Ray, an American who had made Paris his home for much of his life, became a natural subject for Hockney’s work. Richard Wagner, Known for his complex operas and innovative compositions, has been a lifelong influence on Hockney, influencing his professional endeavours such as the stage designs for Wagner’s Tristan Und Isolde in 1987 and inspiring his personal ‘Wagner drive’ initiative. 

Hockney is well known for his work that were labelled ‘Joiners’. This was his closest link with the cubism approach. The joiners series was created by Hockney using multiple snapshots from one picture and creating it into one image altogether. He took simple photos and turned them into disfigured art pieces which created the cubism affect and they became fragmented and unusual. Many people would describe his type of work like this as collages which is where pieces of the image can be seen to be set out in little pieces. this can be done in a usual art way where cut up paper is replaced onto another piece in the same layout but usually with some sort of overlapping affect. Hockney changed this norm and changed certain perspectives of his image where he might increase the size of a part of an and keep the rest at different sizes to create the collage affect but not in its usual way.

This image is an example of one of David Hockney’s joiners. In the image, it depicts a scene of an older woman asleep on a chair in where may be her own house. Hockney has taken this image in different sections as you can see some colour difference in certain fragments of the image. For example the fragment showing her arm looks more purple that the top of the woman’s clothing where her head is. Hockney has made the woman the focus of this image but hasn’t failed to represent the woman’s surroundings as has extended the image so that we can see out of the door behind her and get abetter understanding of her environment. Hockney’s joiners are usually seen as visual representation of time as a sequence of fragmented moments. the idea of fragmented time is prominent in this image as it could be representing the time the woman has left and how fragmented that time may be. as well as this is could be representing the woman’s age and possible fragments of her memory she has left as she could possibly slowly be losing it. the fragments of time could also represent being forgotten and how when the lady passes only fragments of her will be remembered as time passes on. The colour in this image isn’t focussed on the woman and only surrounds her. Hockney has made sure to add in the pop colours such as the blanket on the woman or the painting leaning against the wall. however the dark clothes of the woman and lack of colour that is actually on her could also represent how time is catching up to her and how it begins to fade away and all the colour is only just left behind.

Emma Hardy’s photography is known for taking a contemporary approach. she tends to try and create stories within her images using her children as the main subjects. Emma Hardy was raised by a family of actors so interest in a camera was bound to arise in her childhood. when she was young, taking photographs and making pictures was a strong interest she took apart in. She also realised that she was fascinated with appearance and how people organised and presented themselves to the world. twenty years later she focussed on her own family mostly of her children and was fascinated by the connection she felt with the images she created. She enjoys focussing on times of the day when the natural lighting is good to create an extra detail in her images. she said:

“I run towards beautiful light at any time of year, in any place in the world. It doesn’t always have to be sunlight; it can be a solemn cool light, a reflection, lamp light, dusty light filtering through a little window, green light under trees in a forest, firelight, snow light, moonlight even. It is some sort of painterly quality that pulls my attention, an emotional quality, something that jogs a memory deep inside me. I also believe I have an ability to ‘tune in’ to wherever I am, so that reflecting the nature of the people I meet, and capturing the tones of the local landscape or cityscape or internal “roomscape” becomes instinctive.”

She focusses on portraiture within her images but in environments the subject is exploring. her subjects a sometimes in unusual settings which creates a mix between reality and fantasy. She aims to bring across strong emotions in her images by getting her subject to express a certain emotion in the image of by the use of lighting (eg darker weather or time of day would create a different feel to a sunny day with bright light.

Hardy’s photograph series of her family also included their family struggles. Hardy had to sell her home, her marriage collapsed and her dad and dog had passed. Even though under the pressure of her life occurrences, Hardy still continued to produce photographs mostly of her family in the setting of nature, signifying the unpredictable nature of family life. This increased the power behind her project as it reflected deeply her life in that moment.

How does Emma Hardy link to the theme UNION?

Emma Hardy’s work relates to union in many different ways. One main way, which I am aiming to take inspiration from, is the use of exploring her family. The relationships between people would create a union between them. So each family is their own union, siblings are a union and partners are a union. Hardy takes images of her children and showing the relationships between them she captures happy moments in their lives liking playing together in fields or on family road trips. she also explores the union between the subject and their relation with the environment around them. She blends them with their surrounding where they seem like the fit in well with where they are. for example their expressions are matching to the golden hour in a field creating a warm and happy moment instead of them looking out of place and sad.

In this image, Hardy focuses on her three young children in the setting of a field. The closest girl subject start close to the image and take up most of the space and as you follow the line of girls you can see them getting smaller and less in view than the first girl. This could be signifying the age of the girls as it seems the girl in front if older than the others and Hardy could have done this to show how the oldest girl is drifting away quicker than the other too and she grows up. The girls take up the centre of the image showing that they are the main attraction to the photograph and the field just surrounds them. As mentioned before, Hardy’s intentions was to show the nature of family and in this image she has done that by using nature as the background/setting to the image showing the nature surrounding the family. The image doesn’t seem to have been taken with a tripod so it can be concluded that Hardy was taking snapshots while she walked behind the girls to capture the image in the moment rather than setting it up to be staged.

cubism

Cubism is a movement that was originated by artists such as Pablo Picasso. It presents photos in unique and abstract ways by breaking objects down into geometric shapes. Cubism is able to show multiple perspectives where it is able to give many viewpoints to the photo giving the viewer an opportunity to interpret the images in the way they think is correct for them. The movement steers away from realistic views and creates images you wouldn’t be able to capture without further disfigurement and so it mostly focusses on shape and structure. Cubism was mainly famous within art however it can also be used in photography in many ways. You can take a singular photo and edit in at a later time using apps such as photoshop or you can take your images in fragmented sections and put the images together in a printed form of multiple images. This would be a collage or montage idea where multiple images are placed down together in a way that isn’t exactly neat to create the effect of fragmentation. photographers such as David Hockney has taken on this cubism approach where he creating collages of multiple photographs that reflected a cubist approach. Within photography, using the camera to create this effect can be very helpful. For example, using multiple exposure can be used to overlap images to show different angles within a single frame to create the fragmented view. Using reflections can also be a key feature of cubism within photography by using mirrors windows or water to create images that show more than one view of the same object.

suprematism

Suprematism was a movement discovered by Kazimir Malevich. The focus is mainly on geometric shapes shown above. (Lines, circles, squares). Suprematism was not a movement that focussed on a traditional focusses of art and photography like objects or people they mostly focussed on abstract forms of photography. One obvious theme in this move,ent was the use of bold and primary colours which can be used to grab someone’s attention and draw the viewer the images. Suprematism is usually referred to the ‘Zero-point’ meaning: representing the void, a state of pure abstraction beyond visual representation. Like Cubism, suprematism is usually associated with art and not generally photography, however there are ways that you can like suprematism with photography. You can frame your images in ways that create compositions between certain shapes the image if framed correctly. The images need to be fairly simple and not overly confusing (eg too many shapes in one image) the use of blank spaces are important so that the images does not become too full or confusing. Using different colours within the photographs will link to the idea that suprematism using bold primary colours. The colours could work to repose the certain strong emotions through the photograph making the viewer feel more attached to the image as they may feel a certain way towards it. Ways to use suprematism through photography’s is to seek out geometric shapes in your usual day so that it becomes more of a natural occurrence and still links to suprematism.

Dadaism

Dadaism was a movement that originated in the early 20th century. Influence for the Dadaism movement was from World War I. Dadaism rejected the usual ideas of art forms where it enhanced ideas on Chas and non traditional art normalities. The movement focusses on random ideas of art where unusual pieces are made from different techniques. This movement had its own influence on photography as well, it was popular as it was a movement that drove away from traditional pieces of art and representations. Rearrangement and disfigurement of images to create the final images is important in Dadaism as it ultimately ends up creating surreal and absurd effects. Dadaism also uses a secondary approach where they take already existing photos from sources such as magazines or newspapers and experiments with them in ways that create unusual but interesting outcomes. Ways to incorporate Dadaism into photography’s is by taking a usual photo yourself or an already existing photograph and then creating a collage effect by cutting up the image into pieces and then rearranging them again. Of you wanted to take more of a digital approach, you can take the image and then edit it on apps such as photoshop where you can copy and paste parts of the images and rearrange it that way.

surrealism

surrealism focuses on dream like imagery where the photograph would show something that wouldn’t be an everyday occurrence. Surrealism was influenced by Sigmund Freud theories and understandings of the unconscious mind wher he explored the meanings of dreams and thoughts that are in people’s head and ultimately down to the unconscious are cannot be controlled. Surrealism works to challenge the boundaries between dreams and realities creating images that may come across as disturbing to the viewer and overall creating engagement and interest. Juxtaposition within this movement is importantly when artists link unexpected objects together which make an unsettling sense towards the image. Incorporating surrealism into photography can occur in many ways. For example, combining scenes with object that would be unusual. Photograph an ordinary object in an unusual setting to create a sense of confusion to the viewer. As shown in the mood board above, the images that link with surrealism don’t involve pop colours like a movement such as suprematism. Instead it focuses more on black and white or low light settings. If the images involved bright colours and objects that it wouldn’t provide the sense of unsettlement as well as it does with the dark and dull theme. Symbolism in surrealism is also important. For example, in the image above, there is an image of an eye. Using an eye in an image it’s important for creating different symbolisms and metaphors as it can suggest deeper or psychological meanings to the images. When creating your own images that link to surrealism, the setting is very important as some environments will work better than others. For example, something like an empty forest would create a more unsettling feel than a busy restaurant.

expressionism

Expressionism is an art movement that originated in the early 20th century. Its aim is to portray emotional experiences of the photographer or the subject rather than just taking images of the natural world. This meant that these photos were able to have deeper meanings and be more engaging. The movement of expressionism include moving away from straightforward photos of reality to a different approach where the viewer is able to have more of their own interpretation where the photographer’s feelings and thoughts played a crucial role.

Definition in dictionary:

UNION
noun: union; plural noun: unions; noun: the Union

1. the action of joining together or the fact of being joined together, especially in a political context.“he was opposed to closer political or economic union with Europe”
   Similar: unification uniting joining merging merger fusion fusing

Examples of some types of unions that could be used in photography:

Elaboration on points on the mind map:

Human relationships: This type of union would be examples of connections between other people. this could be holding hands, family moments and groups of friends. To involve this in a photoshoot you could take portrait images of certain subjects together or get in the moment shoots of people interacting together naturally.

Historical Unions: This type of union would be examples of historical buildings, objects or places. This can be used in a photoshoot by focussing on one historical movement and capturing photographs of everything that relates to this moment of time. For example taking photoshoots of the castles around jersey.

Unions between opposites: This type of union shows how opposites are united together and paired together. for examples light and dark are seen as a pair as they are the opposite of each other. This can be used in photography by creating juxtaposing images of both sides of the opposing words and showing how they are able to work together though being complete opposites.

Old and New: This type of union is similar to the opposites as old and new are opposite to each other. This shoot would focus on factors such as buildings where you can photograph old buildings compared to new buildings. This shoot could also be applied to people where you can photograph old photographs and compare them with the person being older in a newer photograph.

Natural Unions: This type of union is a relationship with nature such as plants of animals. This can also be applied to the relationship between human and nature and how the interact.