Review writing

Writing a review doesn't sound like the hardest assignment in the world but until you think about it properly you don't realise how much goes into it.

I chose to write my gallery review on the exhibition a the Maureen Paley gallery. As stated in my previous blog post on the gallery visit, I found this exhibition the most enjoyable and had a lot to say about it so it seemed like the right thing to review.

The exhibition was one by Anne Hardy so the first thing I did was try and find reviews and articles on Hardy and her works.
I read some interesting journals and chapters about Hardy's latest and past shows that gave me an insight into how she worked and those artists she's similar too which all helped In getting to grips with what  to write In my review.

Charlotte Cotton - 'the photograph as contemporary art'

The hardest thing I found was trying to write In a manor that was unnatural to me. Being able to voice my opinion but without writing In the first person became a challenge throughout the review as I ended up more often than not having to reword my thoughts In order for them not to be In the first person.

In the end I managed to get my review together In a shorter period of time than I had expected and considering I had never attempted to write anything like this before I am pretty pleased with the results.

Photo taken from: Charlotte Cotton, 'the photograph as contemporary art'.

Analogue Vs Digital

"What role does post production play? Is there a difference between working with chemicals and working in a 'Digital' darkroom as far as the 'Legitimacy' of the final image?

So long as the image hasn't been manipulated in a ny way a good photo is a good photo, regardless of what sort of camera was used to take it. You have to be a lot more resourceful when shooting film. For one you shoot fewer photos, but in doing so I think you learn a lot more about composition, lighting etc. I often wonder how many more photos I would have if I could have shot digital when I first started out? Would i even have pursued photography? Possibly not..." - Ricky Adam

The argument of 'analogue vs digital' is a much debated topic amongst photography. It has been said that the age of analogue photography is/has disappeared. Since the ever evolving digital camera has come on the scene for many using analogue methods are now not necessary or desired. The college I  came from was fortunate enough to have the facilities to work with analogue photography whereas a lot of people I know didn't have this available to them. This is a prime example of how it is disappearing in this now very digital age. 

People argue that it is also a lot easier and cheaper to work in digital, but does this make digital a good thing? 

I enjoyed very much learning about the many different methods of photography, including analogue. It makes you more aware of how things have evolved and also of the technicalities behind much of photography, including digital cameras. 

A series I produced for my first assignment (35mm)

Test shoot from same series using digital.

I think the introduction of digital makes photography more available to the masses. This may not sit well with some as it leads people to think that they are automatically a 'photographer' just as they are able to snap a few photos with their camera. I think this argument is going to be a long an on going one as it seems to be hard for anyone to come to an agreement.

Personally I think it is less to do with the medium you are using to create your photos. Whether you are using digital or analogue methods, it is completely down to the photographer to make this choice due to preference and desired affects. 

East End Gallery Trips

Chuck Close

The last gallery we visited was the 'White Cube' gallery, Bermondsey. This gallery space is relatively new compared to the other galleries houses around London. It is also the largest of all the gallery spaces. The show we went to view was 'Chuck Close Prints: Process and Collaboration". The show presented a wide variety of Close's work including ones that used different methods such a Etching, Silkscreening and Tapestries amongst others.

Inside the exhibition room.

Close is known for making pictures of faces, these could originate from photos of his family, or even self portraits. He positions the sitter very close to the camera in order to create a reduced depth of field. 

Inside the exhibition room.

I personally didn't feel like there was enough time left in the day to be able to fully come to grips with some of the methods and ideas behind Close's works. I could of spent much longer looking at each individual image to put together a better understanding of what it was that he was doing. I did despite this however really enjoy this show. I think this is because it's different to anything else I have seen previously. I found it interesting to see the numbers of different methods Close used and the different effects that each produced. Even though I didn't know much about Chuck Close before I could tell just be viewing this show how much time and thought goes in to each singular piece that he puts together. I would be interested in revisiting this show and/or finding out more about the way in which Close works. 

Images and text:
whitecube.com/about/
whitecube.com/exhibitions/chuck_close_prints_process_and_collaboration_bermondsey_2013/

East End Gallery Trips

Maureen Paley Gallery

The second gallery we visited was the Maureen Paley gallery, a smaller, privately funded gallery in the East end of London.
Before this visit I hadn't visited, nor was I aware of the Maureen Paley gallery so I was interested in seeing how it compared to the other galleries we had visited on these trips:

Maureen Paley Gallery

From the outside I would of completely written it off as a gallery so I was shocked when we were lead inside. The gallery was relocated in September 1999 to this venue and the galleries aim is "to promote great and innovative artists in all media"

The work being shown at the gallery was the by Anne Hardy. Again, I was unaware of her work prior to finding out we would be seeing one of her shows on this trip so I did a bit of research into her practise before we went and found how she constructs her images very interesting. We watched a video during our introductory lecture on how Hardy makes her work and I found this very engaging, and thought it was a very clever way to go about creating her scenarios. 

Notations - Anne Hardy

I enjoyed this visit the most out of the 3 we saw on the trip, I think this was because it was the most appealing of topics to me. Although I found the work from the other galleries amazing I think Hardy's work is more my cup of tea. It was also very audience based in that you were about to engage with some of her pieces. I also enjoyed the intimacy of this gallery, Hardy chooses to hand her prints slightly lower than usual so that it feels as if you as the viewer are actually walking into the room that the print diptychs.

As of Yet Untitled - Anne Hardy

The photo above for example is just one of the 'rooms' created over the 2 floor exhibition space of the gallery. When you step inside these structures it is meant to feel personal, so we were asked to only go in two at a time, so that we could get a better sense of the space. Unlike Hardy's prints where you are meant to feel like you are stepping into the space as the prints are at such a scale where they feel almost life like, in these scenarios you are literally stepping into one of Hardy's creations. Part of the idea around the show is that you are able to see the boards and the way in which the rooms are constructed so you know that her work is constructed pieces even though in this case they feel even more life like as you are able to walk around them.

I think this is something that I really liked about this exhibition is that it was Audience friendly. Usually you have to keep your distance from the works, and although this is true in the sense of the hanging prints, the majority of the exhibition revolves around the engagement with the work itself.

Images: www.maureenpaley.com/exhibitions/current/anne-hardy/images
Content: www.maureenpaley.com/gallery
Video: www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/inside-the-artists-studio-anne-hardy-7462368.html

East End Gallery Trips

Today we had our second trip to London to look around galleries in order to be able to find an exhibition to review. This trip took us to the East end of London in comparison to the West end galleries we visited on the last trip.

National Maritime Museum

The first place we arrived at in London was the National Maritime Museum. The show we had gone to see was Ansel Adams, PHOTOGRAPHY from the MOUNTAINS to the SEA. Prior to this trip I was aware of Ansel Adams and his works but I was yet to see his work in person. I had been told by many people that going to see Adams' work was an experience but I wasn't sure as to what they meant by this.

The PHOTOGRAPHY from the MOUNTAINS to the SEA exhibition is on at the NMM from November 9th 2012 till April 28th 2013. The exhibition holds over 100 original prints with the only reproduction being "Diamond Cascade, 1920" as the original is in the possession of the Adams' family themselves. The exhibition shows the very small prints all the way to the 3 metre high print. For me, seeing the size and scale of Adams' work is what amazed me the most. The fact that he can produce such large prints at such a high quality. The detail within the prints was just amazing to see first hand.

Fern Spring, Dusk, Yosemite Valley

This print was one of my favourites from this exhibition. The detail, seeing the print in person was just outstanding. You could really feel the movement of the water within the print.

"A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed."

-Ansel Adams

From seeing Adams' prints in person I can now see now, what the F/64 group were trying to achieve in seeing the world 'as it is'. I feel that it captures a moment in time, one of true beauty. Although this point has been widely argued about how much of reality these photos actually show I personally feel that they do a very good job at trying to show what it is they were intended to show.

http://www.rmg.co.uk/visit/events/ansel-adams

Self Portraits on Social Media

This is a forum question that has been raised and argued over the past few weeks..

How do you think the role of photography in our culture is changing, when you think about how it is being used on social media like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr etc? I'm particularly interested to hear your opinions on how you think photography, particularly self portrait photography, is being used to define an individual's identity. How is our 'identity' constructed through the choice of photographs we post online?

(Clockwise) Celeb selfies … Kelly Brook, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Chrissy Teigen, Madonna, Ian Somerhalder and Tyra Banks. Photograph: Instagram

I think that there were many good points raised within the forum on this topic. It is of course something that is widely talked about. The use of portraits or 'selfies' on social media especially on those such as Facebook and Instagram is being more apparent. On my news feeds in particular I have noticed the constant new additions of these photos. I am even beginning to notice people changing their profile photos to these 'selfies' more than once a day every day.  This leads me to believe like raised many times in the forum that people are only posting these photos to gain likes or comments which compliment them on the way they look etc. 
Naomi raised a point which I agree with completely:
"We live in a society that social hierarchy is solely based upon the importance of how good you look as opposed to how good you are."
When looking at most media productions in this day everything is judged upon what you look like and what you're wearing. Celebrity based magazines for example I feel fuel this ideology. 
I don't think that any of us are blameless in this new phenomenon to hit our screens. In most cases we have all participated in this idea of the 'selfie' or this form of portraits. The new craze to hit social media at the moment is snap chat. 

SnapChat home page.

I think that this image sums up completely the idea behind SnapChat. You simply take photos of yourself and send them to your friends in an instant. I feel that this new app has been targeted at this new found love for portraiture. 

I would also agree with another point raised within the forum that these photos on our media are less about the photography and more about people portraying themselves in a desired way. Of course this is only true of some social medias and is dependant on the audience the pages are being targeted at for example. Businesses etc I don't think would be categorised under than same form of portraits. Personal pages however use these photos with the intention of gaining in most cases and encouraging the arguments of who looks better than who. 

Photo: www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2013/apr/02/rise-and-rise-of-the-selfie
http://www.snapchat.com/
Quote: Mycourse Forum - mycourse.solent.ac.uk/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=7991&parent=13700

Instagram

Instagram - good or bad for photography?

As a class we have many forums in which to discuss and convey our opinions on a certain topic and find out what other think about the topic in question. This one forum I found particularly interesting due to its relevance within today world.

The forum debate brought up many interesting points about the app that is Instagram. For me personally, Instagram is a quick and easy way of showing your friends what you get up to in your day to day life. It allows you to share photos with people via many social medias which in todays world is an every increasing trend.

I personally don't see why some people get annoyed at the use of Instagram as yes, there is the minority of people who feel that uploading photos to such apps allows them to label themselves as a photographer but the majority of people only use Instagram as a way to show the rest of the world things that they find interesting or to share things with their friends and family.

Instagram home page.

For me, the home page of the Instagram website says it all:

"It's a fast, beautiful and fun way to share your photos with friends and family."

The FAQ section of the website write about how you can take a photo and use a filter to change the image into something that can be seen as a memory you can keep forever. For many, this is the reason for taking photos, the memory of the things within them. 

"We imagine a world more connected through photos."

Photo: instagram.com