Week 8
Before starting something new, I felt that I needed to do some additional experimentation to finish the project. To that aim, I played with a mirror and a single flower. I wanted to see whether part of the environment could be embedded within the image due to the reflection captured in the mirror. I intended to create an image abstract enough so that the viewer would have to think about what elements might be included in it. This is what Flusser (2000) labeled as scanning. This process of scanning might be particularly present when beholders are presented with ambiguous or visually indeterminant images as they need to make an additional effort to see what the work intends to represent (Gamboni, 2002). The lighting diagram can be found below:
For this image, I only used a single strobe as I did not want to create any patterns with light. I only wanted to freeze the motion of the mirror and the flower. The contact sheet of the images taken can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
The final image turned out quite differently from the previous ones. The mirror created an unexpected pattern similar to the threads. Only in the upper part of the image, we can see some of the environment but it is hard to tell whether the observed stripes are part of the environment or the pattern created by the mirror if the beholder does not have any knowledge about the context. Overall, the image reminded me of those close to visually indeterminacy as it is not easily identifiable (Pepperell, 2006).
References
Flusser, V. (2000). Towards a philosophy of photography. London: Reaktion Books.
Gamboni, D. (2002). Potential Images: Ambiguity and Indeterminacy in Modern Art. London: Reaktion Books.
Pepperell, R. (2006). Seeing without objects: visual indeterminacy and art. Leonardo 39, 394–400.
Week 9
To end the project, I decided to explore the possibility of creating a time-lapse (i.e., a sequence of single frames with multiple exposures). The time-lapse would give me the opportunity to continue experimenting with images and unexpected motion. The cot mobile is designed to be in motion; hence, the time-lapse would be a more accurate representation of this aspect of the cot mobile. With that idea in mind, I went back to the use of threads. Besides that, I also used a crystal ball to further experiment with other materials and the possible patterns and reflections. For this part of the project, I took inspiration from the graphic artist Zach Lieberman. Lieberman uses the computer to generate his work. He completed a series of digital images in 2016 looking at the reflection.
Lieberman’s work is produced with the computer so it follows a different approach (https://zachlieberman.medium.com/daily-sketches-2016-28586d8f008e). However, I thought that I could produce something similar with the threads and stroboscopic photography to represent the perceptual mismatch between the adult and the child in the cot mobile or between the photographer and the beholder. The lighting diagram can be found below:
As in the previous example, I only used a strobe to freeze the motion. I moved the sticks with threads and the glass ball to obtain different patterns. The contact sheet with some of the images can be found below:
In this case, I have only included an example of the images taken since I took 413 photographs in order to then produce the time-lapse so it was literally impossible to add them all here. Looking at the different images, I realized how different some of them looked depending on whether the ball or the threads were featured. In order to generate the time-lapse, I used the software Adobe Premier.
In Adobe Premiere, I imported the 413 images and then I doubled the time they were shown to slow down the speed. After that, I saved it in mp4, and the video can be seen below:
Producing the time-lapse turned out challenging due to the high number of images that the computer had to deal with. Despite this, I was happy with the result obtained as it had a similar mood to the digital sketches produced by Lieberman. Furthermore, it also represented the motion of the cot mobile from an abstract approach following the stance taken with the rest of the images.
Week 10
During this week I could not focus on the start of the project as I was given some commercial photography work to do. I was contacted by the brand Austin Austin which specializes in organic bath products. They wanted a photograph of their new range of products playing with shadow casts. My main aim was to make something that could be in line with my practice and that would be close to the images I was producing last and this year. In order to start working on it, I took inspiration from Jaromir Funke’s still life images which featured different shadow casts and planes by playing with light (Witkovsky, 2009). In addition, I also took inspiration from Jaroslav Rossler’s work in which shadow casts were dominant (Birgus, 1999).
To take the image, I worked with different cardboard to produce different shapes and provide a feeling of the existence of different perspectives. The lighting diagram can be found below:
I used three snoots to achieve shadow casts in different directions. I also used cardboards with different shapes to achieve different patterns.
The contact sheet of the different images can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
Overall, working on this project was quite hard until reaching an agreement on the final image. It made me think about the difference between commissioned practice and practice that one engages freely. I feel in the commission one’s own freedom is limited. Despite this, it is important to make clear what it’s relevant in one’s own practice as the final work produced should be something that represents both the brand and the artist.
References
Birgus, V. (1999). Jaroslav Rössler and the Czech Avant-Garde. History of Photography, 23(1), 82-87.
Witkovsky, M. S. (2005). Jaromír Funke’s Abstract Photo series of 1927–1929: History in the making. History of Photography, 29(3), 228-239.
Week 11
As part of this project, I wanted to explore whether the lighting could potentially shape how an object might be perceived. An important point of inspiration was once more the Czech avant-garde movement. This movement was interested in the detachment of the object and the context (Levinger, 1999). This detachment was attained by separating the object from their shadow casts or by photographing elements separated from their context so that their perception could be different. This latter case would be exemplified by the work by Emila Medková (Pohlad, 2003).
Although Medková did not play with light, a constructionist approach was prevalent in her images. Hence, I planned to follow the same approach but rely on lighting to change the perception of an object. To that aim, I decided to use an egg as it had an oval shape and I thought it would be interesting to see how this can be changed with lighting. The lighting diagram can be found below:
In order to achieve the different shapes, I used two snoots placed at each side of the egg. The contact sheet of the different images taken can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
The image turned out with interesting shadow casts. Despite this, I thought it was more like an exercise to continue developing this idea further rather than a final image as the shape of the egg did not change as much as I expected it.
References
Pohlad, M. (2003). Czech Photography. History of Photography, 27(2), 193-194.
Week 12
In this week, I continued developing the idea of the shadow casts, to change the perception but incorporated stroboscopic photography. The egg as an element to be photographed is something that Carlotta Corpron explored in many of her images. Some examples can be found below:
In the case of Corpron, she was interested in the use of different planes and shadow casts to alter the scene perception rather than changing how the eggs might be seen (Corpron, 1949). To fulfill my idea I used the following lighting diagram:
To light the egg I used the same lighting as in the previous image. For freezing the motion of the thread I used a third flash. The contact sheet can be found below:
The process can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
The obtained result with this image is in line with the initial idea. The use of stroboscopic photography helped to connect it with the images generated in the previous project. The use of the threads and the sticks showed again that even when using the same materials the images can result very differently depending on how these elements might be arranged. Despite this, I felt that my experimentation with the “unexpected” was a bit limited and felt a bit repetitive as it was similar to the previous images. Hence, I thought I should use other elements that I could not control such as water.
References
Corpron, C.M. (1949) Designing with Light, Design, 51, 10-25. https://doi.org/10.1080/00119253.1949.10742896
Week 13
What is intentional in art? Can all our practice be intentional? Can we have the control of everything? During these weeks, I read about intentionality in art and intentionality seems to convey aspects that we have full control and other aspects that may be accidental. The idea with this notion is that even if we cannot control these unexpected elements we are making some conscious decisions (Jacquette, 2014). For example, in this week, I decided I wanted to experiment with water. While I cannot control the patterns that water can make, I am selecting water over any other material. Hence, I decided to explore what possible outcomes I could achieve by decontextualising water and adding other objects into play. The lighting diagram can be found below:
To take the image, I used a black background so that the water could be visible. In one of the images I also experimented with a white background but it did not turn out well. I used a single light so that the profile of the water could feature well in the image. The contact sheet of the different tests can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
Playing with water was not simple as it is difficult to predict and control the obtained pattern. Following on the idea of intentionality, I could see how this evolved as suggested by Frank- Witt (2020). Initially, I only wanted to consider water but then I started playing with additional elements as water in itself did not work or help to convey a clear message. Although I was not entirely satisfied with the final results obtained, I thought that further experimenting with water is something I would like to do in more depth in the following project. To that aim, I will study a bit more about how to photograph water so that the results could be more in line with my initial ideas.
References
Frank-Witt, P. (2020). Intentionality in art: empirical exposure. Journal of Visual Art Practice, 19(4), 297-309. https://doi.org/10.1080/14702029.2020.1752514
Jacquette, D. (2014). Art, expression, perception and intentionality. Journal of Aesthetics and Phenomenology, 1(1), 63-90. https://doi.org/10.2752/20539339XX14005942183973
Week 14
Given that for my experiments with water I needed to read more, I decided to focus on lighting and shadow casts for the final week and leave the water tests for a whole project in the upcoming weeks. Hence, I decided to experiment with plastic sheets to see what possible effects could be obtained. Lotte Jacobi created abstractions using plastic sheets and lighting (Moore, 2004). Jacobi like many other photographers (e.g., Man Ray, Moholy-Nagy) used photosensitive paper to generate a cameraless images. In detail, she placed plastic sheets in photosensitive paper to obtain abstract shapes. I was not interested in following the same process but experimenting with the possibilities that plastic could provide when mixed with lighting, shadow casts, and objects.
The lighting diagram was as follows:
I use two snoots in order to produce different planes in the image through the lights and the shadow casts.
The contact sheet of the different tests can be found below:
The final image can be found below:
Playing with plastic was challenging to ensure that it could be completely decontextualised. Despite this, I was pleased with the final result obtained as with only two elements (i.e., a ball and a plastic sheet) I managed to obtained an interesting image. Once more, the lighting and the shadow casts played a pivotal role in creating an interesting composition to ensure that all the elements could work well together.
References
Moore, A. (2004). Focus on the soul: the photographs of Lotte Jacobi. Afterimage, 31(5), 15-16.
Overall evaluation of these weeks of work
Although I worked hard in these weeks, I felt that the body of work produced was a bit disconnected. This was the result of finishing up the previous project and starting something completely new while at the same time doing some editorial work. Despite this, I got quite interested in the possibilities that water could provide and this is something I plan to further explore in the subsequent project. Reading about intentionality has made me reflect on my own practice and has influenced some of the steps followed in this project.
Alberto Gonzalez 