Portfolio for Film & Video
Photography Analysis
Man Ray
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Man Ray was one of the most influential artists, film makers and photographers of the 20th century. His avant-garde style influenced the work of many other artist, and modernised the ideas of artwork in Europe and America. In his long career he worked in styles influenced by Cubism, Futurism, Dada and Surrealism. His work influenced that of Rene Magritte and Salvador Dali to paint the "undefined", relating to dreams and desires rather than physical objects and people.
Ray was also widely known for his invention of the Rayograph. This technique involved placing objects or body parts pressed up close the photography paper, where they were exposed to approximately six seconds of light, hen placed in dark room trays. This process (for this particular piece) is repeated three times, therefore creating the layering effect seen. This is all completed without the aid of a camera. One of his first pieces where he used this technique, was titled "The Kiss".
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A surrealist might say it exposes a reality more tangible than that of a photograph including a subject, as it opens the mind to something that is invisible. Man Ray fluctuated between the ideas of gender fluidity and gender roles. His art portray ideas rather than objects, and I feel in this particular piece, he tries to connote that sexuality is not "black and white" as one may think, creating an obscure realm between reality and subconscious. It carries depth and complications, hence the different levels of light and depth seen in this particular Rayograph. At first glance, it may seem that the hands are at the forefront of the image, however upon second look the darker slicing effect seems to come to the front. This untraceable subject in the piece makes the idea of the composition up for debate. Moreover, the lack of colour throughout means the viewer has the ability to add their own colour and bring it to life. The lack of colour in essence brings this particular photograph to life. Although there's no colour, there is different gradients, which in effect represents colour.
Wolfgang Tillmans
Wolfgang Tillsman, is a well known German photographer who uses a diverse array of landscape, abstract and portrait photography. He was the first photographer and non-British person to win the Tate Turner prize. This particular piece stood out to me more than his others, perhaps because it resembled British culture with the brown, murky sea and dulled colour pallet, it simply reminded me of summers spent at the pier in the windy cold conditions. Although the colour pallet is restricted to duller colours, to me when I look at it, so man y more colour jump out at me, beneath the blacks, blues and greys I somehow see red tones and vibrant greens. His ability to achieve such an enticing and Moreover, it's ratios and composition is aesthetically pleasing to the eye, with the golden circle being used with the man's scarf. This draws the viewers attention to the subject and then to the background as well. The use of portrait instead of landscape for this photograph adds to the sense that the viewer is standing right behind the subject, pulling you in and making the piece even more capturing.
Another piece by Tillsman I chose to analyse is entitled I Don't Want to Let You Go. I was particularly interested with the use of manipulation of the photography paper. Tillmans manipulated the photographic paper during the development process to achieve dimension, as well as create a mood to correspond with the theme of his image. From first glance it looks as though this manipulation is a green plant reaching up the piece, but this green abstract shape is in fact a clever technique he ahs used. On what would normally be a simple landscape shot of what seems to be a desert at early evening, has been turned into a far more ambiguous and interesting subject, with the vibrant green colour that has been achieved. The baron and un-vegetated desert has been changed to a more vibrant and full of life landscape, connoting his ability to change the mood of a piece so dramatically. I haven't seen any photography like this, where a photographer has not relied on the subject, but instead used post effects to create a dynamic and different piece. Much like the previous piece, he has used the golden circle rule of the green shapes to draw the viewer in, adding a two dimensional aspect to the piece with a foreground and background to look at and perceive. This is currently on display in the Tate Modern, and was previouslty at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Robert Mapplethorpe
For my last artist to look at, I decided to review a piece by the renowned and sometimes infamous photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, partially due to his work with lover, friend and muse Patti Smith, who I am a big fan of. Robert Michael Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, best known for his black-and-white photographs. His work featured an array of subjects, including celebrity portraits, male and female nudes, self-portraits, and still-life images. This piece was used for Smith's 1988 album Dream of Life. Mapplethorpe also took her album cover for previous works, but I chose this one, as I felt it had a softer and more transcending quality to it. Although Smith still has a piercing stare, she looks somewhat gentler, with the light fabric of her dress, the tree that cover the left side of her body and the doves that sit on each hand give the image a serene look. The black and white quality is impressive in its ability to convey such powerful and bright textures but not portray any colour. This piece conveys that not all art/photography needs colour to be impactful to the eye. If anything, if this piece was in colour, it would not have the same effect, and not bring out Smith's bird like eyes.
