Ideas and Concepts

William Eggleston

Eggleston's contribution to photography changed the medium dramatically by being the one of the first to utilize colour in a   legitimate, non commerce way to document suburban life in his hometown of Memphis,  Tennessee.I find the simplicity and banality of his subject choice in a extraordinary way, innovative. His motives remind me of the vision Gary Winnogrand apdotped, Winnogrand was once quoted "I take photographs of things to see how they looked photographed" I can can connect with the quote because I've  also taken a similar  simplistic and  spontanous approach to this project by walking around the streets in attempt to capture images as they come to me.Ever since I've known of Eggleston's work, I've always been an admirer of how the colour is carefully constructed to transform the most mundane of everyday scenes into visual phenomenons.

One of the things I find remarkable about Eggleston is how he only takes one image of a single subject. He is also renowned for employing this elusive nature by clearly states that there is no real purpose behind his photography. In my opinion, I can understand this to be true, whereas some people may be critical of this, I find myself relating to it on a similar level seeing as my work does not conform to any specific ideologies neither does it enforce biased opinons. The viewing experience is a calming one, I find myself in a relxed state of mind being able to freely interpret the images as I wish, rather than being directed by the photographer.

Egglestons use of colour is extraordinary. Colour is obvisously one the the most powerful techniques underpinning his work and I fear that without colour his images would not only be far too  one-dimensional but would fail to hold the interest of the viewer. The vision of his work does not appear to be driven by the subject but by the palette of colours in a scene that is presented. His ability use colour to create mood and atmosphere allows you to almost enter another dimension. His ordinary subjects become extraordinary. The mundane, urban environments become a utopia heaven.  

What i've learnt from Eggleston, that that images can be simplistic with no need to over complicate as long as the use of colour has an impact. I also realised that images can be inspired by any subject or enviroment, whether it be natural or specifically designed. Colour produces endless oppotunities even to the untrained eye.
              

Stephen Shore

Stephen Shore is yet another photographer who is credited, like Eggleston as a pioneer for the usage of colour. His distinctive style documents his road-trips across America. I'm interested to in Shore's portrayal of the American way of life through images that you would not automatically associate with the country. The absence of the big cities and skyscrapers crowding the horizon is replaced with scenes of simple but natural beauty all of which are easily forgotten in this heavily industrialised nation. His images have very peaceful feel, there is even little motion where he has used human subjects, they are inactive, seeming to be a natural part of the landscape. It appears to me as if the colours have been synthetically enhanced as they are so bold and vibrant with the sky also being incredibly definded it creates a surreal reality. 
Shore's work reminds us of the the simplistic beauty of our natural environment, reinforcing the notion that we spend to much time thinking about the materialistic aspects of life, when we should be cherishing life its purest form. I suspect that the images carry a certain autobiographical value. They are personal to Shore a recollection of the experiences from his travels as seen through his eyes .

Relating this to my work which highlights how experiences are chanelled and lifestories are created by the decisions we make and travels we embark on Shore is highlighting a visual pastime rather than a literal one as its too beautiful to be put into words.

Rinko Kawauchi

The vision of Rinko Kawauchi has had an overwhelming effect on me. I'm really inspired by the way she views the world around her, as a child would, there's a hidden sense of naivety and innoncene running through her work, focusing on the minor details of everyday day life she gives recognition to natural occurences and discoveries which seem to be mostly ignored. When viewing her work one is tempted to reflect back to childhood memories, her use of subdued colours creates a dream-like atmosphere conjuring up hazy, nostaglic thoughts of scenes past. Her emphasis on over-exposing her images also creates a heavenly mirage provoking an almost out of body experience. This relates well to her snapshot aesthetic which possibly suggest a scenario of life flashing before one eyes. 
She uses the life cycle as a recurring them in her work. She seems to also celebrate every stage of life even death is portrayed positively. This is illustrated in her series titled "Alia", the turkish word for family. She captures the decisive  moment of a hatchling emerging from an egg and goes on to emphasis the end of its life with the image of slaughtered chickens, the heads subtly hanging over the butchers table, although a graphic sight, Rinko encompasses a poetic and serene beauty to this unpleasant scene.
I was also interested to discover her involvement with the 2010 Brighton Bieannal. From visiting Brighton, she become fascinated with murmuration of starlings and was drawn to  capture the authenic patterns formed during the birds flight. Following on to her second visit in the springtime, the absence of the starlings turned her focus to the murmuration within people hoping to capture scenes with lots of people in one place highlighting a similar behavioural pattern that is shared between human beings and animals. This is very sigficant to the concept that is highlited in my work as I'm also exlporing the murmuration of people and how they flock between one group to another following their own paths.

Bill Jacobson

I'm really intrigued by the approach of Bill Jacobson, seeing as he has gone against the nature of the camera to produce blurred, extremely out of focus images. Jacobson explains that his work "parallels an inner journey through a world we are constantly experiencing with the uncertainty of the mind's eye rather than the sharp clarity of the camera lens". To me he's challenging the purpose we all have for   taking photographs, the obvious reason being is to record an event that we want to remember, and the memories are revisited every time we look back at the image. In certain circumstances images can be applied as a form of evidence, possibly used as a tool to help aid ones memory. It also makes me think of how people find it hard to distinguish their earliest memories and even so, not everything about them is crisp clear, most of the time early childhood memories are often quite fragmented,familiar but vague. The obscurity of the images teases the viewer, I find myself intensively squinting in frustration. The subtle details triggers the mind and evokes a sense of seeing something similar before but being unable to recollect as to where and when, thus creating a deja vu sensation. The colours themselves appear washed out, faded like a memory. Its as if your viewing the scene from a window which is layered with condensation. The bleak, unsaturated palette helps to distort the image, enhancing a dreamy atmosphere. Reviewing how Jacobson considers his work as a parallel, compliments the concept that surrounds my work which deals with the flow of life, focusing on decisions that determines the path an individual takes. Consequently by making these choices, however minor they maybe, has a influential effect on the structure of a lifetime. Paths which are ignored are left to the imagination as people find themselves often wondering what would of become of them, if they had followed a different route. Therefore these images could also be interpreted as a way of being exposed to a parallel universe, presented with scenes that seem so familiar but are light years away from reality.

Philip Lorca Di Corcia

I find the work ethic of Philip Lorca Di Corcia genius. By producing groundbreaking cinematic images portrayed in a documentary context,  he has been rewarded  honorable recognition for introducing a new style to the photographic practice. The idea of merging fiction and fact, is something that truly inspires me as again its dealing with two complete parallels that seem to compliment each other which overall create something entirely unique. I believe that the combination also gives a certain kind of x factor to his images which makes them so spectacular, an amateur replicate would not live up to the standards that DiCorcia's has set, thus making them true to the original. 
I developed a keen interest in "Hustlers" series that was produced in the early nineties. The series focused on capturing portraits of male prostitutes working in Hollywood and is thought of as being the launch of Dicorcia's career. Dicorcia directed his subjects to act in a certain theatrical manner on a almost staged-like set, shooting in various urban locations such as gas stations, fast food diners and motel courtyards. As with a real staged setting his combination of artifical and natural lighting is key to his work. Most of the images are taken around the twilight hours which reflects not only the prostitues core hours of business but also conveys a vibrant and flamboyant snaphot of the Hollywood nightlife. I was struck by how all the models seemed to be extremely confident in their role of playing a character, very at ease in their own skin as its a reflection of their everyday lives. I noticed that some of the models are so adept at taking on the persona of Hollywoood legends, such as James Dean. The improvisation confuses the viewer to possibly mistake the image for a movie poster or glossy editorial magazine cover  rather an a reportage of a real backdrop that the male prositutes exist in. As a final polish to the images Dicorcia incorpates the documentary aspect by entitling each photograph with the bio data of the model, this includes their names, date and  place of birth and also states the fee charged for their time. The images convey a postive, glorified portrayal of prostitution. Its as if Dicorica has created a series of advertiments, acting almost as a pimp trying to solicte business for them. The male models become desirable objects for hire rather than representing distitue and desparate people, they become icons living lifestyles that we should all be envious of and not sympathise with.



In his lastest body of work, entitled "Heads", Dicorcia installed spotlights under scaffolding in times square and with the use of a powerful telephoto lens was able to catch people unawares in a moment of time. The resulting images highlighted the emotions on the subjects face allowing us to look into a millisecond of their life and ponder on their story. The use of ligthing separates the subjects from the crowd purposely directing a staged focus on them. The images do not have a spontaneous feel. The subjects are oblivious to presence of the camera and are unaware of the role their playing in Dicorcia theatre of street life. Again I've noticed Dicorcia's trademark postmodernist aesthetic running through this series. His work is a bi product of the traditonal street scenes that Henri Cartier Bresson and Walker Evans presented to us. The spontaneity of the images is so raw it hard to believe that they are real. In terms of relevancy, this particular series relates quite closely to my work in that I too, have taken to the streets in a voyeuristic manner. I have not applied any specilist equiment, as such  to alter the natural scene but this maybe something I might consider further when I reach the editing stage of my images.
Ellen Rogers

Ellen Rogers is an all analogue fashion photographer. Her refusal to conform to digital technology makes her work quite significant and so makes me appreciate her more. I,myself favour digital technology but I would be lying if I said that her aesthetic doesn't make me want to master and explore the traditonal analogue process that she incorporates in her images transforming them into vintage-style masterpieces. She predominatley uses females as her subject matter choosing to photograph them semi nude or scantily dressed in old fashion attire , she seemed to be inspired by paintings of a former era, adopting elements from pre-raphaelite times. On the other hand the models have a modern look about them, the obvious lack of curves and full bodiedness generates the time span of the different era's of fashion comparing what was once deemed beautiful then to what is considered beautiful now, from the past to the present and possibly looking towards future.

The use of a slight haze and blur overlaying the images strenghtens the link with the old painting style pioneered by the old masters. I'm interested to develop work that spans different era's of time, specifically the past,present and future and to demonstrate how the past directs the path one takes through life but how the modern environment makes you adapt ones presentation of it, thus hinting the direction it will take in the future.   

Impressionism
Continuing my interest in exploring the passage of time, I find the methods of Impressionist painters highly thought provoking. The emphaises on light and movement as well as the freedom to paint outside the lines of traditonal borders are all aspects I consider important to modern day photography. To me an image does not have to be caputured in a clear way to demonstate meaning, as I've learnt through inducting this research there are many contemporary photographers and artists alike, that utlise this Impressionistic style to their creations. I find the imperfections and distortion of an image just as appealing as perfect shots. The uncontrollable nature of the camera, intrigues me greatly, the opportunity to capture something that wasn't intended from the outset, can create an individulistic style to ones work.