Assignment 5 - feedback

Like Assignment 4, I chose a subject that was particularly interesting to me – Irish migration to London.  However, I learnt from my mistakes from the previous assignment and this time focused on a narrower brief.  This enabled me to produce a stronger set of images and to convey a stronger message.

I chose to tell the story of migration to London by use of the constructed document.  This was a first for me and perhaps my inexperience was apparent in the ways in which I dealt with some subjects in this set of images.  For example, as my tutor pointed out my treatment of some subjects was a little blunt.  Looking back in hindsight perhaps it was.  However, I think I was trying to convey a very blunt, hard hitting message and I feel that this is why I adopted this approach.  I can see now that there are others ways that are equally effective at getting my hard-hitting message across.

I also introduced text to this assignment after some advice that my tutor gave me.  I feel that this element of the assignment was successful and it allowed me to use another form of communication (one which I am more familiar with) to convey my message.  I have found from exhibitions that I have been to that I get more out of them if they have accompanying text.  I like the clues the text can give. 

Moving forward I would like to continue to work on this theme by exploring more the use of landscape rather than the still life.  I think this is something I struggled a little with in this assignment.  I was unsure of just how far I could go which is why some rather dull still life images crept in.  When I ask myself now would the image of the potato on a plate be interesting to a viewer - the answer would have to be perhaps not.  However, the opening image of the Irish landscape scene is more interesting and evokes more feeling or sentiment.  This is what I want to explore further. 

In relation to my use of black and white over colour, I can see the argument for both.  I originally felt that black and white gave an historical context to the images, a theme, which at times was difficult to work with.  I can see the case my tutor presents for using colour and I feel that I would be foolish not to revisit and explore this.

From a technical perspective some of the images were a little dark, a fact, which I have now addressed.  It would seem that my technical skills have improved during the course which is something I feel positive about.  However, there are a few little areas where I feel that I can still improve on and I will continue to work on these. 

I feel that this project was a big risk for me.  It would have been easier to focus on something simpler and employed an easier way to visually tell this story.  I think that taking a risk and stepping out of my comfort zone has paid off.  Perhaps the fact that I chose a subject that I felt comfortable with and knowledgeable on helped a great deal.  The topic was well researched and I had read a lot about it over the years.   More importantly though was the fact that I was an Irish immigrant living in London.  I had made the journey I set out to communicate. 

Moving on, I would like to explore this theme more and take it to another level.  I see this set of images as the start of something that can grow into a major project.  

Home Truths: Photography, Motherhood and Identity The Photographer's Gallery

I'm sitting down to put my thoughts together on yesterday's OCA study visit to the Home Truths: Photography, Motherhood and Identity exhibitions in the Photographer's Gallery and The Foundling Museum.  These exhibitions feature the work of 12 artists who have questioned the sentimental and stereotyped views of motherhood.

The exhibition begins with a piece about the home truth and what it is.  "A home truth can be simply understood as a fact that is somehow discomforting to acknowledge or may cause embarrassment."  It continues: "The work in this show may do all of those things."  And that is does for a number of reasons.  

As you enter the rooms in the Photographer's Gallery there are signs stating that under 12s will not be admitted and those under 16 will if accompanied by parents.  This is due to the sexual nature of the exhibits.  I wouldn't call myself a prude but I did find some of the images uncomfortable viewing like Leigh Ledare for example.  Ledare's work, Pretend You're Actually Alive, explores the relationship between himself and his mother and destroys beyond doubt the sentimental view of motherhood.  It is posited as a collaboration between mother and son with the mother presented in a number of pornographic poses.  In the BJP article XXX the writer compares it to Richard Billingham's Ray's a Laugh where an 'ordinarily innocuous, familiar sounding subject [the snapshot] is turned into intimate, frank, uncomfortable content."  However, for me, I was able to associate with Billingham's family.  You couldn't help but feel some emotion for them or the photographer.  I didn't feel that with Ledare's work here.  

Perhaps this may be because I am female and I didn't have to make that awkward transition most males do in puberty when they realise their mother, the woman that has loved nurtured them was also the object of men's sexual attention.  The very fact that pornographic material is of interest to many young males and teenagers for very obvious reasons makes it difficult to reconcile these pictures of women and their image of mother as woman.  

The exhibition sets out to question the stereotypes of motherhood and the sentimental ways in which it has been treated to date.  It looks at being a mother in the work of Putz, Carucci, Antoni and Murray.  It looks at the child's relationship with the mother in the work of Ledare, Casas Broda and Fred Hunig.  It also looks at the loss of a mother in the work of Fessler and Ishiuchi.  

I would agree that it is enlightening to see the reality of having twins for Elinor Carucci. I felt the pain looking at the image My belly after birth to twins and C-section.  The scar looked dry and far from healing.  Her images also cover the moments we don't normally see like giving her naked child a cuddle while she herself is sitting naked on the toilet seat with the exception of her knickers which are around her knees.  As a mother I can safely say that I have had numerous moments with my son when he was a child which challenge the sentimental view of motherhood which I feel would convey more meaning that this. 

As a single mother, I remember very clearly the day I went home to tell my mother that I was pregnant and I did this quite effectively without having to take all my clothes off bar my knickers in the process.  I just don't know exactly what the artist is trying to do here.  The photograph is uncomfortable for her parents in the image as they look on and see their little girl has grown up into a woman.  It is equally uncomfortable for the viewer.  

I found Elina Brotherus' series illustrating the difficulties in conceiving using IVF very interesting not because of her difficulties conceiving but because of the ways she chose to tell her story.  The images consist of images of her injecting herself with hormones and the tears and disappointment when the latest IVF cycle fails in a way that is hard hitting but unsentimental.  It is very factual. Brotherus to me seems rather androgynous which also challenges the maternal desires of women and the way they have been portrayed historically. 

I particularly liked the work of Ana Casas Broda Kinderwunsch.   I could really identify with the unlocking of suppressed memories of her own childhood and difficult relationship with her mother.  I can't say that I have had a difficult relationship with my mother when I was a child but I did find that once I became a mother myself I found myself faced with a lot of memories from my childhood that had long been forgotten or buried.  

I really liked the images in her work, the dark backgrounds, the lighting and the richness of her subjects and matter.  The work was displayed in a way which I felt was to be seen as a whole with each picture in the series depicting a special memory.  

Hannah Putz photographed young mothers as they become mothers for the first time focusing on her friends. I felt that this was a little light on meaning for me.  I did think it was interesting though that the mother's faces were obscured by the baby in the shots.  The baby does become the most important thing once it comes along.  It tends to take over.  However, I feel that there was something missing from the images.  I felt that there was another way to get this message across. 

By far the most complex work was that of Janine Antoni.  She suspended herself for hours in a spider like position while a spider spun a web around her.  Her legs were in a dolls house and her web/legs gave the impression of her being pulled in all directions.  The accompanying shots were close ups from the doll's house or the real spider's webs and some of the scenes from childhood.  

Gazelle, a film by Katie Murray focused on her mission to lose 'baby-weight' after the birth of her second child.  In the film we see her on a cross trainer at home doing a video workout.  She is interrupted by her children which also want to workout.  She has one in a sling and one on her back when she finally gets to finish her workout.  The viewer is relieved from this sight by images of a gazelle with its young in the wild which cuts in every now and then.  This work is a spectacle and borders on the ridiculous as she strives to regain her former pre baby self.  

The Foundling Museum

The theme of loss is central to the work displayed in The Foundling Museum.  I felt that identified more with the work exhibited here than perhaps I did at the Photographer's Gallery.  That may be because I can identify with parental loss and the quest to find out more about a parent you know very little about or have very few memories of.  

I think the most interesting piece of work across bother exhibitions for me was Ann Fessler's film Along the Pale Blue River.  The film uses collage, video and archival footage of farms and rivers in the Midwest America to tell her story.  The story is told by voiceover - Fessler's own voice and her hypnotic tones recount the story of a young woman - her biological mother - who runs away from her small rural town when she discovers she's pregnant.  Forty years later the artist goes on a journey to find her mother's photograph in a high school yearbook.  It is on this journey that she discovers the river that was where she grew up had its source where her mother was from.  This river provided a link to them that she never knew about.  

I liked the way in which Fessler tackled a story that is traditionally made into a sentimental drama in a more informative way that is still intimate but not sentimental.  

Miyako Ishicuhi's Mother's series focuses on the loss of her own mother.  The images were taken after her unexpected death in 2000 from a blood transfusion.  Ishicuhi's relationship with her mother was conflicted and was just on the mend when she died.  This is her attempt to come to terms with her loss.  A loss most of us will have to face - the death of our mother.  

She photographs her mother's possessions - her lipstick, hair brush and clothes.  These are the only things she has to remind her of her mother.  A woman that has had such an impact of her life - and all that remains is a series of worthless items.  However, they have sentimental value for the artist.  So here, unlike in the other work in this exhibition, we have a deliberate move towards the sentimental.  These everyday items mean a great deal to the artist.  They have very special significance.  

This reminds me very much of a doll my dad bought me when I was in hospital with appendicitis.  He got it from the hospital shop so it was nothing special.  However, when he died shortly after that the doll meant a lot more to me.  It was the only thing I had he had actually bought for me himself.  My mother would always do the shopping in our house.  

My thoughts

I wanted to go on this study visit to see if Motherhood and Identity was something I would identify with.  When I did my English degree I never really enjoyed feminism.  I believe in equality, but I feel that men and women are different and can never be equal.  I accept the fact that there are things men can do better than women and vice versa.  I suppose fairness would be a better way of describing my version of equality.  

I feel that I have never identified with writers who seem to believe that being a woman and motherhood are what defines us.  I agree that our experience of the world is different to a man's.  I also agree that motherhood is a life changing event.  But is it what defines us?  When all is said and done and on judgement day is that what will be said about your life.  You were a mother!

I couldn't help but feel that there was something missing from this exhibition.  Where were all the real women? With the exception of Casas Broda and Murray where were all the women with stretch marks and sagging breasts.  Instead we were treated to lovely slim women who's bodies returned to normal after giving birth.  Where were the men?  Without them there would be no motherhood?  And isn't motherhood part of parenthood?  

I believe that motherhood should be explored but I couldn't help coming away from this exhibition feeling like some of the work was an extension of the modern world mother.  The woman who reads every book available to become the best mother, the woman who goes to sling club, breast feeds their child till they are 20 and looks down their nose on any other woman who has opted for pain relief during labour.  The type of woman who believes having a c-section means you are a failure.  

There is more to motherhood that naked intimacy.  There's unconditional love, responsibility, parenthood, education, security, fun, fights, anger, frustration, depression, suppression, isolation, sickness, disappointment and betrayal.  I just feel that in order to challenge the sentimental stereotypes some of these themes need to be addressed.  

The exhibition introduced me to some themes in motherhood but not ones which are totally familiar to me. I don't feel that they truly challenge the stereotype of motherhood either.  So perhaps for that reason I find it difficult to truly identify with although I do appreciate the work.  

On Being a Photographer by Bill Jay and David Hurn

This has to be one of the best photography books I have read over the last year or so.  I found it very informative and the practical advice it offered was of huge benefit to me.  I have found since reading the book that the way in which I approach a shoot has changed and the way I look at my projects and subjects will never be the same again. 

The book is a relatively easy read as it focuses on a series of interviews/discussions between Bill Jay and professional photographer and academic David Hurn.  In it they talk about various aspects of  photography by exploring definitions, shooting, subjects and narrative or the picture essay.  It also includes a section on working with contacts which is something my tutor has stressed the importance of. 

Definitions

When looking at definitions it was interesting to read David Hurn's view on these and what definition is chooses for his work.  Definitions cover a broad spectrum and arise commonly when discussing photography.  He says of photojournalism; "that the word itself implies the subject is a topical news event, published in mass media with the intent to right a social wrong."  Journalism is linked to tabloid sensationalism where it can become distorted and take on a level of entertainment.  He refers to papparazzi which is aggressive and lacks ethics and aesthetics.  There is a difference though in the work of McCullin and Ian Berry as they have taken the time to learn about and understand their subjects.  

When looking at the definition documentary Hurn believes that it is problematic too.  Documentary photography is objective and by its nature photography is subjective.  The photograph as document is expected to present factual evidence, a true representation and non-judgemental view of events.  

Photographs are subjective with two main controls at the photographer's disposal: where he stands and when he presses the shutter button.  According to Hurn the only factually correct aspect of photography is that is shows what something looked like under a very particular set of circumstances."

Hurn opts for the definition reportage. because it implies a personal account of an observed event with connotations of subjectivity and honesty.  it is eye-witness photography.  

Selecting a subject

Bill Jay looks at the role of a photographer and he says that the "destination of photography is to reveal what something or someone looked like under a particular set of conditions, at a particular moment in time, and to transmit the results to others." He goes on to ask Hurn what transforms an interesting picture into wonderful picture.  The photographer must have an intense interest in the his or her subject.  It is only then that the subject can be examined and researched.  

The subject matter is by far more important than the artistic means employed to take the photograph.  A successful photographer has a curiosity and fascination with the subject which they can the communicate to others through pictures.  

Hurn's advice

You should list all the things that interest you and then refine the list based on the following:

• Is it visual?
• Is it practical?  Can you access it?
• Is it a subject which I know enough about it?
• Is it interesting to others?

When you have refined your list accordingly you will have a subject or subjects that you will then be able to research and learn more about.  

This is how a successful professional photographer works and the results can be seen in their images.  

Shooting the image

When you have all your preparation work completed you can then go about shooting your subject.  The purpose of the picture is to reveal the chosen aspect of the subject matter.  

The two fundamental elements in all picture taking are 1, where to stand and 2, when to release the shutter.  Position and timing are the two controls the photogrpaher has at his disposal.  Everything else according to Hurn is periphery.  

Where you stand determines the visual clarity.  You may find that you move around to get the best position.  If you study the contact sheets of the best photographers you will find that this is exactly what they do.  They will have committed themselves to a position where they can see most clearly what's taking place.  Each frames develops and moves towards the picture.  

Creating contacts

All successful photographers study their contacts and every element in the frame.  This allows the photographer to learn from mistakes but also to examine every element in the frame.  I have found that when shooting sometimes you don't notice something in the background which you later discover is affecting the overall composition.  

According to Hurn you stand or fall by how critical you are with your own work.  By examining contacts you have the added bonus of looking at your work without the emotional involvement that is there at the time of shooting.  

This is something I have started to do more of.  I will now print off my contacts and study each one post shoot.  

What I have learnt from this book

• How to choose a subject
• How to study and research my chosen subject
• The two most important controls the photographer has is position and timing.  If you fail to get that right no amount of artistic creativity will produce a good shot.  
• Study your contacts and learn from them
• Photography can be a way to overcome shyness.  It gives you an excuse to be where you are and a reason for doing what you are doing.  

100 Ideas that Changed Photography

I first saw a review of this book on the OCA student website and it seemed like a book that I would find interesting.

The book essentially presents 100 ideas that changed photography.  The author, Mary Warner Marien,  is quick to point out that this is not a comprehensive list.  It is clear that there are probably hundreds more ideas that have had some influence on photography but this is a good starting point.

I see the book as a combination of a primer and reference book.  Although the ideas are presented in a chronological order it falls short of a history of photography book as it lacks the required depth in my opinion.

As a photography book it provides a more holistic view of the medium.  It includes the various inventions in photography from the first camera to the polaroid and the most recent addition - the camera phone.  It also looks at how other media influenced photography like the television.

What I liked about the book

• It is more visual that text heavy which was a welcome relief after some of the books I have been studying recently.  
• Introduces the reader to bite sized pieces of information about themes and developments in photography therefore acting as a good starting point should you wish to explore further. 
• Provides a good overview of photography
• Good quality images
• Easy to read and understand

What I learnt from the book

I learnt a lot more about the darkroom and printing processes which was an area that I would consider myself weak.  Although not particularly relevant to my workflow as I shoot digital I have found a better understanding of the print processes has helped a great deal when looking at the work of others and when visiting exhibitions.  

I also feel that I have given a lot more thought to the future of photography and where it may be heading after reading this book.  My reading for this course has included a lot about the history of photography and I feel that I haven't looked at photography today as much as I should do.

it reminded me of the various uses of photography and I especially enjoyed looking at the medium in relation to advertising and documentary.

I would recommend this book to anyone.  I feel that it is a good reference book that is easy to dip in and out of and in appeals to the student and the casual reader.  

Marcus Bleasdale's images of Democratic Republic of Congo

I have a special interest in the Great Lakes region of Africa especially in Rwanda and the DRC. Unfortunately, I have never been able to travel to either country through what I see as a combination of fear and lack of finances.  However, I would love to go one day.  However, with growing hostilities in the region that day seems to be getting further away with each passing day.

Marcus Bleasdale on the other hand has spent a lot of time photographing in DRC. In the latest issue of National Geographic which features a selection of his wonderful images he says;

"When I first went to the Congo, I realised that a hundred years after Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, nothing had changed.  People were still being exploited, only now it was multinational corporations sucking up all the resources,  A report in 2004 said that more than 4 million people had died in what is now called Africa's first world war, and I just couldn't believe that no one was talking about this horrific death toll.  That enraged me.  At one point I was spending eight months a year photographing this war, and yet only a couple of international reporters were covering it from Kinshasa.  So I keep bringing back these images because I want to make people as angry as I am.  I want them to know the minerals in our mobile phones or computers or cameras are funding violence.  How can we make the horror stop? It begins with a photograph."

This special issue of National Geographic celebrates 125 years of the magazine that has always had a strong photographic history.  In the section focusing on photography as 'witness' we find Bleasdale's work.

There is no doubt that Bleasdale has invested a great deal of time getting to know his subject often taking risks to achieve this.  The result is a series of intimate images that are beautiful even if the subject matter is not.  It opens with a black and white image of a child shovelling dirt in the militia run mine in Watsa.  The image has an almost surreal quality to it.  In the background we can see several other people busy at work however the focus is on the child.  We get to see the world through his eyes and the his world is not a very nice place.

Learning to understand your subject better is key to creating better images.  When you have researched and spent time with your subjects then you are able to do them justice and tell their story.  This is something I have been reading a lot about recently in David Hurn's book On being a photographer.

As we look further into the feature we are introduced to child soldiers.  It is very disturbing to see young children armed to the hilt and schooled in conflict.  It is even more disturbing to look at their faces. There is no sign of youth just weariness and pain.  These children have become both witness and participants in the most outrageous acts of violence.  All of this has a price.

Bleasdale has made great use of colour and black and white in these images.   This is very different to some of his earlier work based on the region that I have seen which was in black and white.  I wonder why he has opted for the use of colour.  It may because his images focus on the landscape that is the resources that are being exploited in DRC.   The colourful backgrounds provide a beautiful backdrop for many of his subjects.  Or maybe it is because it is something that is really current about the message he is portraying.  This is happening now and these images are not from the archives.  It is interesting that one of the most colourful images is that of a young baby's funeral.

He has also used a wide angle lens for many of the shots which really make you feel like you are in the frame. This I feel gives a sense of presence the viewer would not have felt otherwise.

In the short video The Price of Precious - Video Interview: Marcus Bleasdale on National Geographic's website, Bleasdale talks about the work he has done in the Congo and the reasons why.  He talks about putting the child soldier on people's kitchen table or computer screen.  He refers to the anger he feels when shooting these type of images and wanting to share that anger or evoke that anger in his viewers.  It is only through the photograph that this anger can be conveyed and then we can all demand change.

What can I bring from Bleasdale's work to my own work?  I think the main element would be learning more about my subject.  This is something I have already begun to do as can be seen in my last assignment.  However, to improve my work I need to work harder on this aspect.  I think I can also learn a lot from his use of colour.  I still find it hard to determine which medium I would or should use for my projects.  My leaning however is towards colour.  This is something I can continue to work on.

Bleasdale's photographs can be viewed on the National Geographic website  The Price of Precious - Photo Gallery

Enfield Island Village football and the start of an interesting project

Another shoot on Saturday for The Islander the newsletter/magazine of Enfield Island Village Trust. This time it was a more interesting affair than the Job Fair the previous day.  Well more interesting for me.

The charity has provided funding for the local kids to have a soccer club that meets weekly in the common area. In addition, it has provided funding for some of these kids to do coaching qualifications like Hussein. He now coaches the younger kids in the village.

Hussein has benefited from the charity a great deal.  In addition to completing the coaching qualifications he has also completed C&G electrician courses.

This series of shots were taken for an article in the magazine that focuses on his footballing achievements.

I am now looking at doing some work with the other children who are part of the football club with a view to creating a series of images for the Trust website and for display in their community centre.  I think that this will raise the profile of the charity's work and in turn help to increase funding for the kids.

There are a few areas like parental consent that will have to be sorted out but the kids themselves were really keen to be involved.

Unpaid work

Recently I got involved with the local charity, Enfield island Village Trust, that provides services to the Enfield Lock Ward.  By services I mean job clubs, over 50s, coffee mornings, youth training etc.  I have volunteered to help with their quarterly newsletter which will involve writing articles (my strong point) and taking photographs for the publication (my weaker point).

My first shoot was lat Friday when a Job Fair was held at the local community centre.  I would normally have avoided this kind of scenario due to the fact that it was an indoors shoot.  However, I have been gaining confidence in using flash lately and also with shooting more challenging situations.

The shoot presented me with a few problems.  There was three different types of light to deal with.  The building had large glass panels which let plenty of daylight in on one side of the room.  The other side was mainly fluorescent lighting.  Add my flash to that and I was beginning to find the going a little tough.  The ceilings were high and access to walls was limited so there was nowhere to bounce my flash off.  I had to use the diffuser and leave the flash on the camera.

I used both flash and higher ISO settings depending on where I was shooting in the room and I feel like it was a good combination for me to work with.

It's been a long time since I shot at any event like this - I think I would have to go back to my days at St Thomas' hospital in London when I worked in the Comms Office.  However, I feel that I managed to get some okay shots under the circumstances.  I think I learnt a lot from the experience and look forward to get involved in their next event.

I found the most challenging subjects the speakers.  It is extremely difficult shooting someone who is talking, to get their mouth in the right place and the hand gestures.  I shot most of my images of the speakers trying to get this right.

Some images from the day

I shot this from the mezzanine level.  Difficult to compose for due to unsightly beams in the way but I managed to get this shot.  The blank space in bottom right hand corner would be ideal for text.  

The importance for this shot was to get all the people in the frame and to make the milling about look natural.  

Using fill flash I shot into the bright light of the window here. 

The Mayor of Enfield

The Mayor of Enfield with Charity Trustee

The motivational speaker - Charles Kennedy

Photoparley

I am always on the lookout for interesting websites and I came across this one the other day.

Photoparley was set up in 2011 by OCA tutor Sharon Bothroyd.  The website discusses photographic art with a number of photographers both established and upcoming.  It is always interesting to discover work by contemporary artists/photographers.

The posts are in interview format which makes them more accessible and interesting to read.  It includes interviews with Tom Hunter, David Bate and Nicky Bird.

Many of the articles have been re-published on other webzines reaching a wider international audience.

I will definitely be adding this to my blog list.

Photoparley
https://photoparley.wordpress.com

Assignment 4: feedback and reflections

To try and push myself for this assignment I decided to pick a subject that was of real personal interest to me.  I felt that this would enable me to communicate my ideas more successfully whilst adding a personal touch to my work.  When we look to other photographers we see that their personal projects centre round something that they have a vested interest in.  For example, William Klein’s work in New York, Lewis Hine’s series on child labour or Don McCullin’s war images. 

Adding this subjective element to my work presented a few problems.  As the message I was trying to communicate had an emotional element or sentiment to it I found it harder to pin down.   In hindsight I think that the theme may have been to complex and it would have been better for me to have chosen another subject that was personal to me – perhaps something I had recently experienced.

As a result I lost my way a little and the message I was communicating wasn’t as clear as I had originally planned.  My tutor was quick to point this out and suggested that I could have looked at focussing on one of the themes I introduced in the assignment.  I think my dilemma was that I felt if I had done this my work would have been too restrictive.  Again in hindsight I believe he was right and if I were to redo this assignment I would focus on one of the aspects I introduced. 

Despite all this, I am really happy that I was brave enough to challenge myself to break with my norms and work on a more personally inspired project.   I believe I made some strong statements about life in Hackney by including the place where Agnes Sina-Inakoju was shot dead.  I also believe that I captured some of the essence of life in the borough in Hackney People. 

I think one area where I need to improve in my images is thinking more about my audience and what they will see when they look at my work.  It is clear here in this assignment that what I think is interesting isn’t always the case as my tutor pointed out in my first image for Inner City Living.  Focusing more on narrative will help me move forward.  Avoiding the obvious will help too.  However, I think having a clear message to communicate will provide the best foundation for future assignments. 

Note on colour management:

My tutor mentioned that my colours were slightly off in some of the images and that I should  think about calibrating my monitor.  I’ve been calibrated my monitor for over a year so I was a little confused by this.  I have since spoken to my tutor about this and resolved the issue.  

Lock to Lock Festival

I was at the Lock to Lock Festival on Saturday which was held locally in the Lea Valley Park.  It was a day full of activities that were being held along the canal route from Ponders End to Enfield Lock.

Unfortunately, it rained pretty much all day so the turnout was low.

Here are a few of my images from the day.

I waited for a little while to see some interesting kids turn up at the ice cream van.  And these two came along.  

Father, son and dog. 

The Beached Boys 

Bouncy Castle

Study visit: Photography and the representation of motherhood

The OCA has organised a study visit to the Photographer's Gallery and the Foundling Museum this autumn.  The galleries are showing two linked exhibitions curated by Susan Bright.

The Photographer's Gallery presents Home Truths: Photography, Motherhood and Identity which looks at the work of eight artists.  The Foundling exhibition looks at Home Truths: Motherhood and Loss.

I've recently been reading about ways in which I can determine subjects for my photographic projects and gender is one of them. I haven't got any further than identifying womanhood as an area of broad interest so I think this exhibition will be very relevant.

I have just had confirmation of my place.  I am looking forward to meeting up with fellow students again after missing the last study visit.

Martha Short's Context and Narraitve

I’ve been re-reading Maria Short’s book Context and Narrative and several questions have rose their head about where I need to take my photography.  How do I communicate my ideas visually? How do I do this more effectively? How do I bring a concept to life? How do I ensure audience engagement?  

According to Short to be a photographer…”you need to be passionate about communicating ‘something’, as this will inform every choice you make in relation to your work.” She continues, “you also need to to interested in the world around you; you need to be interested in things beyond photography. The substance of the work is in your commitment to your subject, as this will show in your photographs, this commitment will make your photographs breathe; this is how your personalise your work.  If you are clear about why you are photographing your subject then you can choose how to photograph your subject, and in turn this should help your audience interpret the photograph.”

I believe that somewhere along this course I lost direction and my work suffered as a result.  On occasions perhaps I had too much to say and on others not enough.  I do feel though that towards the latter part of this course I found that I lacked 'commitment' to my subject.  Or maybe my subject was too big to commit to and I became overwhelmed and confused about the message I was communicating.

So in order to address this I am going back to basics.

There’s a three-way relationship between photographer, subject and audience – a communication triangle if you like.  The treatment of the subject by the photographer and the visual language applied has a direct influence on how the audience interprets the picture in front of them or if they care to interpret it at all. 

Picture making is not divorced from the photographer’s life experiences and beliefs.  In many images the influence of the photographer is apparent.  They construct the image, it is a trace of what they see and how they want the audience to render meaning from it.

Due to a lot of personal issues in the last few months I feel that I have been temporarily separated from my work.  I was not able to fully engage.  I think this cane be seen in the work I was producing.

So here I am again turning to this book and asking myself:

What is a photograph?

It is an image of the past, a moment that was captured and frozen in time.  It is a document of what happened or what was present. 

Photographs can be simply records, like medical or forensic images, or they can be something more.  They can tell a story.

The key to a successful photograph is engaging with the subject. 

A photograph is a way of expressing an idea, of developing a concept and of storytelling.

What is narrative?

A narrative is basically a way of telling a story.  It usually has a beginning, middle and end.  In photography, a visual narrative works slightly differently.  It can have the basic structure of beginning, middle and end or it might simply imply what has happened in the past or is about to occur.  It may be a fictional interpretation of a given person, place, thing or moment. 

Linear narrative

In photography a narrative can take be communicated in a linear sense, but it can also be cyclical.  It can be a series or images or a single one.  It can be a collection of images that only make sense when brought together. 

Visual continuity

Images can be linked by using visual continuity whether that is weather, subject, location or another linking factor. 

Sequential narratives

Narratives can also be sequential stories or journeys like a pilgrimage that takes you from A to B. 

Visual punctuation

Visual punctuation includes the breaking of the sequence by including a black and white image or one of a different size – something that interrupts the flow.  It can be a one off. 

Juxtaposition can help raise an argument or present a question; the tension between hot and cold, light and dark for example.

The eye of the camera also plays a role.  Is the eye a fourth wall, the eye of the subject or the eye of the viewer/audience?

Symbols and signs

The study of signs is called semiotics. 

To familiarise use with the models and terminology we can look at the work of two philosophers.

Ferdinand de Saussure

Dyadic approach.  The signifier (form which the sign takes) and the signified (the idea/concept it represents).  

Charles Sanders Peirce

Three tiered approach

Representament – the form the sign takes

Interpretant – the sense made of the sign

Object – to which the sign refers. 

Barthes on a more basic level looked at the ‘studium’ which he described as the general interest in an image and the ‘punctum’ which arrests the attention. 

Symbol

Something that represents something else.  In this case the signifier does not represent the signified – this relationship must be learned like rules or language.

Icons

The signifier is perceived as resembling the signified or imitating the signified.  For example, in a portrait, cartoon, with gestures or sound effects etc.

Indexicality

Indexical signifier is physically or casually linked to the signified.  This link can be observed or inferred.  Natural signs like smoke = heat, footprints = footsteps. 

Indexicality is very important to photography because it is a literal ‘trace’ of the original subject according to Peirce.

 Visual Metaphor

Use of a subject as a visual metaphor for something the photographer wishes to express.  This can be seen in the work of Short herself in her collection Gall. In this body of work she uses a horse as a visual metaphor to “express how I felt about the challenges that faced young women in relation to their sense of identity and social placing.”

This enabled her to raise questions such as “when is protection suppression? When is freedom a cliché?”

By going back to basics I believe that I can overcome the problems I've been having and get back on track.  

Old family portraits and their meaning

On a recent visit to Ireland I spent some time going though some old family photographs.  I have never met any of the people in the images below.  They had died by the time I was born.  However, it is really interesting to have pictures of them and the see what they looked like.  When we look at the history of photography we see how the portrait developed and how the painted portrait was overtaken by the accessibility and cost of the photographic portrait.

All to often we find that we see old photographs in photography books but we don't know the subject's stories.  In this case I do know their stories which makes them even more special.

However, they don't give too much away about their personalities.  Most of them have adapted the serious looking pose with the exception of my grandmother who is holding her first born daughter in her arms.  There is an element of maternal love and pride in that shot.  I like the way the focus is also on the daughter.  Her mother is looking down on her so we don't see her face on.  She draws us, the viewers, to her daughter sitting on her knee.

The quality of these images is not great having used my iphone to shoot them.  They were all framed too and I didn't want to damage the images by taking the out of their frames.

My grandmother Kathleen Deane.  Kathleen had five children before she died aged 39 from an asthma attack.  My father was 3 when she died so he never got to know her.  I estimate that this image was taken circa 1923. 

My grandfather John Patrick Deane.  John died in his 90s after having 6 children from two marriages.  He was heavily involved in politics in Ireland.  He was involved in the War of Independence and received an Old IRA medal.

Dr Annie Teresa Deane, my Great Aunt who was GP in the town of Ballycastle for many years until her retirement.  She never married and died in 1961.  

May Deane sister of Annie.  May immigrated to America and ran a deli store in Cleveland Ohio.  She returned to Ireland in her later years.  

My Great Grandmother Elizabeth McAndrew nee Quinn

My Great Grandfather Martin McAndrew.  I love his beard.  

Brits Abroad: photographing expatriats in their new life

There are over 5 million British people living abroad from places like Australia to Spain.  We tend to know little about these people do, what they do, why they went there or indeed how long they've lived there.

Photographer Charlie Clift embarked on a project to photograph expats living on the Mediterranean coast for his series Brits Abroad.  All images can be viewed on his website.

Clift says of his work, "Immigrants are so often spoken about in terms of statistics or stereotypes.  I want people to understand the variety within a group showing how different each person can be."  Instead of looking at how the media stereotypically covers immigration is looking at those immigrants living in Britain Clift wanted to "focus on British people themselves who are immigrants themselves in other countries."

This is interesting especially when looking at the work I did myself on immigration for this course.  I wanted to explore the lives my ancestors lived in their destination country too.  However, we chose to do it in very different ways.

I like his images.  They are very colour as are the characters.  We are introduced to people who have retired to Spain, those working in the expat industry, fish and chip shop owners, cleaners, artists and writers.  This is a diverse group of people with one thing in common - being British.

I like the way in which he has used the subject's place of work for the portrait settings. It enhances their story and establishes an intimacy between the viewer and subject.  It makes you think about the life they left behind.  Was the grass actually greener on the other side? Have these people integrated into Spanish life?  Or are they simply living a British life abroad in the sun?

I like this work especially when thinking about in relation to place.  What does this place mean for the subjects of his pictures?  It seems to differ from person to person.  Is this home?  Or will Britain always be seen as home.

I would like to look at working on a project for the Irish that are moving to Britain today.  Apparently, about 400 arrive in Britain every week.  It would be interesting to tell their stories.

I'm not sure whether Clift is going to look at other countries where expats are living.  It would be interesting to see if the level of integration differs from place to place.

Charlie Clift is a editorial and commercial photographer in London.

My Auntie Annie

On a recent visit to Ireland I met my Auntie Annie for the first time in years.  I think it was about 15 years to be precise.

I always remember when she came from Dublin to visit she always had wonderful presents for me.  Things you wouldn't find in the shops near us.

She hasn't changed too much.  She's still glamorous and attractive and calls herself Auntie Annie.

I got a portrait of her.  A bit rushed but it captures her spirit perfectly.


I'm not sure which I prefer.  The black and white or colour.  They both are appealing in different ways.

Freezing Time: The Autobiography of Eadweard Muybridge

I have just finished reading Freezing Time: The Autobiography of Eadweard Muybridge by Keith Stern.  It wasn't necessarily a book I was dying to read.  I just came across a copy of it and thought I'd give it a go.  The book looks at the lives of four interesting characters that shaped the life and work of the early photographer Eadweard Muybridge.  We have Muybridge himself at the narrator of the story.  His wife Flora who was half his age.  Her lover the con man Larkyns and Senator Leland Stanford the benefactor of Muybridge's work.

It's an interesting read if somewhat strange at times but that in part is due the narrator himself.  I suppose Muybridge is most famous for his work on horses particularly Horse in Motion.  However, the book introduces us to his landscape work at Yosemite, his attempts at photojournalism and the work he did of Chinese workers on the railroads and of the native American people.  The book also introduces us to what became his most important work - the motion picture what was to eventually become the movie.

I think the most striking thing about his photography and his approach to his work is that it is a science and not an art.  This of course opens the old debate of whether photography is art at all.  At the time that he was working photography was very much in its infancy and had limitations, some which he was keen to explore.

I think the most I got out of this books was an insight into the work and commitment of early pioneers of photography.  I think that with modern technology the camera is something we take for granted and few know how it actually works.  I think this is an interesting concept - the idea that people take more pictures that ever before and most have even less control over how they are made.  It also shows the change in the meaning of a photograph.  Muybridge used his images to prove scientific facts and make discoveries.  Today images are used to such a mass extent that their meaning (if there was indeed any in the first place) has been lost.

Muybridge is portrayed as a disturbed genius who led a colourful life.  His legacy can be seen in the work of others like Thomas Eakins, Thomas Edison and Francis Bacon.

Assignment 5

Here are the images that I submitted for Assignment 5.  As I wrote about in my brief this assignment focuses on the Irish in London.

Departure

As we left Dun Laoghaire there was drunkenness. The younger men were drunk - not violently so but tragically so, as I was, to forget the dreadful loneliness of having to leave home... For us, as it was then, it was the brink of hell...

JB Keane Self-Portrait (1964)

Tools of the trade – 1

The first wave of immigrants to reach London worked in the services industry mainly as cobblers and tailors.  They were an essential part of the workforce but survived in hellish conditions. 

Tools of the trade – 2

The Irish are best known for their work in the construction industry.  Over the years, the pub was the place to organise ‘the start’ and a few simple tools either borrowed or begged was enough to secure employment.   

Navvies – Building the waterways

Irish workers were in demand from the late 18^th century during the canal boom.  Using spades and picks each cut or channel was dug by hand.  Today there are 2,200 navigable canals and rivers in the UK.  

 Navvies – The men who built the railway

Tramping from job to job, navvies and their families lived and worked in appalling conditions, often for years on end, in rough timber and turf huts alongside the bridges, tunnels and cuttings that they built. In the 1840s there was no compensation for death or injury, and railway engineers like Brunel resisted all efforts to provide their workers with adequate housing and sanitation, or safe working conditions.

Despite cruel exploitation and extreme deprivation the navvies achieved amazing feats of engineering, equipped with little more than gunpowder, picks and shovels.

An Gorta Mor (The Great Hunger)

During The Great Famine (1846-51) the Irish population fell by 25%.  One million people died.  One million people emigrated. 

“The famine was a defining event in the history of Ireland and Britain.  It has left deep scars.  That one million people should have died in what was then part of the richest and most powerful nation in the world is something that still causes pain as we reflect on it today.  Those who governed in London at the time failed their people.”

Tony Blair, British Prime Minister 1997

 Cead mile failte

"The Irish hate our order, our civilization, our enterprising industry, our pure religion. This wild, reckless, indolent, uncertain and superstitious race have no sympathy with the English character. Their ideal of human felicity is an alternation of clannish broils and coarse idolatry. Their history describes an unbroken circle of bigotry and blood.”

Benjamin Disraeli

 Living conditions

Due to London's high cost of living, many Irish families frequently shared a single room. In 1849 a  house in Saffron Hill was investigated by Thomas Beames where he found 88 men, women and children living in a single five room house.

Fancy a pint?

“Alcohol is the anaesthesia by which we endure the operation of life.”

George Bernard Shaw 

If music be the food of love, play on

“For you can't hear Irish tunes without knowing you're Irish, and wanting to pound that fact into the floor.” 

Jennifer Armstrong, Becoming Mary Mehan

Be fruitful and multiply

The Roman Catholic Church believes that contraception is “intrinsically evil” in itself.  Catholics are only permitted to use natural methods of birth control.  As a result the Irish migrant population continued to grow until the fear of God and the Church diminished.  

Ancestry.com

As part of my research for assignment 5 I have been looking at census records of Irish migrants.  I have to say I never thought that I would become interested in genealogy websites but I am addicted to ancestry.com now.

I find it fascinating that we have so much information about these people from 1841 onwards.  It is interesting to see what they did for a living, where they lived and the families they had.  Many of their occupations are obsolete today.

Although the census data gives you a good insight into the lives of these people it just doesn't go far enough so you find yourself trying to fill in the pieces.  You find yourself wondering what the people were like, what they looked like, did they marry for love or convenience.  Most of this we will never know.

I have enjoyed the research I have done for this assignment.  It has proved to be an eye-opener and also a refresher course for my Irish history.  Who knows I may even find some of my relations??

Alex Boyd - In the Irish Wilderness

I recently came across the work of photographer Alex Boyd when I saw one of his images of Dun Briste on the BBC website.  Dun Briste is a sea stack near where I lived in Ireland.  When I was young I would look at the sea stack every day from the windows at the back of the house so it was interesting to see how he photographed it.

Last summer I spent a few evenings on the edge of the cliff shooting the sea stack and cliffs around there.  I'm not very good with heights so I was keen to get a shot and get out of there as soon as possible.

Dun Briste

My image from last summer

The west of Ireland is a wild wilderness.  The sea is rough and the fog and mist ever present.  This is something that Boyd has captured in his work.  I have found his image of Dun Briste pretty fierce.  It shows the strength of the sea - it is a force to be reckoned with.

Boyd uses a plate camera complete with darkroom equipment and chemicals which he carries up hills and through bog to produce this series of work.  Very different to my shooting conditions.  However, the effects he achieves are quite different - in a good way.

I have found his work on an area that I am familiar with very interesting probably more to do with the familiarity.  It is strange how I have never seen Dun Briste the way he chose to shoot it but yet I know instinctively where and what it is.  I feel that he has very much captured the mood of the place.

For assignment 5 People and Place I am looking to include an image of the Irish coastline as my opening shot.  Boyd's work has given me some food for thought particularly in relation to the way I view the place I lived and what it means to me.  It has also made me think about how I want to show it to other people.

Lewis Hine and his images of child labour

I have come across Lewis Hine before but I found it interesting to see his work at the Print Room at the V&A on a recent study visit.

Hine has been called the father of documentary photography for his work that he did on child labour in the US.  He shamed the American public into action with his hard hitting images of children, some as young as 7 or 8, working in the mines and factories across the country.  The most striking thing about these images is the  size of the children operating the big machines and in relation to mining the sheer number of children working in terrible conditions.

Hine set out to assemble evidence of child labour and present to the public at a time when they had shied about from the fact that it existed in the first place.  His images show the truth o the reality of child labour in America.

Hine however also celebrated the life of the labourer in his series of images of workers on the Empire State building.  These people were to be celebrated for what they were achieving, for the risks they took to their own safety to complete their work.

I found his work on the immigrants at Ellis Island very interesting especially in relation to the work I am doing for my final assignment of this course.  Hine put a human face on the problem of immigration.  He also had a connection with the immigrants which we can see in his images.

I think what we see in Hine's work is factual photographs with a human touch.  We see the emotional alongside the photograph as a document.

Although Hine's work is very different from what I want to achieve with my assignment I have found it interesting to look at the way in which he has tackled the immigration issue.  He is looking at the problem at the time it was happening I am looking back at it which gives two very different viewing perspectives.

Assignment 5: my brief

My client is the London Irish Centre (LIC).  The centre is based in the heart of Camden Town and looks after the welfare needs of new immigrants to London.  Over the years its work has grown and it has become a ‘home from home’ for all things Irish in the capital.  In 2014 LIC will be celebrating its 60^th birthday and as part of those celebrations they have commissioned me to provide images for an exhibition at the centre.  These images will also be published in a 60^th birthday celebration book. 

The purpose of the assignment is primarily educational.  The exhibition needs to explore the Irish people’s contribution to London looking at how and why they came to the city, the work they did and their daily lives.  Is there a lasting legacy from the first migrants to the city? It should also examine how the immigrants became part of their new society and the challenges they often faced – prejudice, poverty and discrimination. 

In keeping with the celebration of LIC’s birthday this piece of work needs to be a celebration of Irishness and the complex history of immigration to London.  The migrant’s story needs to be told – the positives and the negatives.   The story has to be accurate and informative so both Irish and non-Irish will get something from the images. 

It is essential that the images take on a hint of nostalgia and capture some of the essence of what it is like to leave your home and become foreign.  This project is not looking at the state of immigration today but at the history of Irish migration to London. 

Next steps

After reading the brief I started planning the project in more detail and produced a more specific outline for this work.  I made a decision to use text alongside the images to further enhance the concepts I want to communicate to the public. 

These are the themes I set out to explore:

·         The New Departure.  Leaving home, the home that was left behind. 

·         Tools of the trade – tailors and construction workers

·         Building the country’s infrastructure – canals, railways and roads

·         Famine and the potato

·         Drinking culture

·         Music and the craic

·         Prejudice

·         Religion

In addition to the images I decided that text would accompany the images to enhance the narrative.  The text would come from a variety of sources including song lyrics/poetry to political quotations.

 

I chose not to include people themselves as subjects in my images preferring to focus on the aspects of their lives and their belongings.  I felt that this would enable me to build a better picture from an historical perspective.  Without people, there is a sense of timelessness to the images.  They are harder to date.  I also felt that I could focus the viewer’s attention would be distracted by people and modern settings. 

In line with this, I chose to produce a series of black and white images.  I felt that the historical setting I wanted to create would be better achieved in monochrome.  Our history books are full of black and white images and I wanted to copy that effect. 

By avoiding the use of colour I feel that the viewers will be better able to focus on the subjects.  I want to create a dark mood in the images and I feel that black and white will better equip me to do this.  Colour can evoke moods and I wanted the images and the subjects to be able to stand alone and be more hard hitting. 

Another point is that colour fades with time like our memories and when we reflect and look back on our lives we rarely see events clearly with every colourful detail. These images are presented in a form of flashback to the past, the viewer is shown a series of memories from the past.