Pinterest Board - Fragments
Anastasia Sarinova
Anastasia Sarinova creates beautiful collages of buildings that share differences and similarities between the locations. In her project she tries to identify differences and to find similarities between places of habitation. She does this by travelling around cities and countries taking pictures of buildings, looking into windows, going to local shops, flea markets and bars, watch everyday life helping to build the feeling of the Place. This feeling becomes a foundation or a series of large-scale collages.
My Response
Taking the idea of Anastasia Sarinova's work, I put together a collage of different houses around London and created a collage of them together using Photoshop. My initial idea was to use a white background, and using the Polygonal Tool, cut out the most important bits of each house and make a collage out of them. My images fit the them of Sarinova's work and gave my perspective on what houses I thought were best to make a collage out of.
Patrick Cornillet
Patrick Cornillet is a French architectural painter born in 1968 in France. Cornillet resides and works in Nantes.
His recent work features austere constructions in empty surroundings. Fragments of architecture left in the center of the painting, in suspense by its visitors. His works capture their spectators in an illusory space. Because of this the viewer struggles to give an interpretation to these concrete structures. Unclear is if these structures have ever served a purpose other than confusing its viewers.
His recent work features austere constructions in empty surroundings. Fragments of architecture left in the center of the painting, in suspense by its visitors. His works capture their spectators in an illusory space. Because of this the viewer struggles to give an interpretation to these concrete structures. Unclear is if these structures have ever served a purpose other than confusing its viewers.
My Response
In my attempts, what I like is that I managed to use my surroundings and turn them into a piece of Cornillet's work. I done this by using Photoshop and using the Polygonal Tool in Photoshop to single out the most important bit of the photo and whiten out the rest so we can get a focus on what's being shown. Some of my images did not fit the theme of Cornillet's work but I feel like the ones I chose to work on went well and were executed as close to how Cornillet envisioned it.
The Hayward Gallery
Exhibition Visit: Andreas Gursky
The exhibition I visited explores the work of Andreas Gursky through photographs he has made over the past four decades, ranging from pioneering early works to new pictures made in the past year. Depicting vast landscapes, teeming crowds and massive man-made structures being driven by his insight into forms of collective existence.
Southbank Fragments
In this task we were required to go around the southbank in London and try photograph my views on what fragments in London are. After the exhibition, we walked around South Bank and took more images in the environment that related to the theme of fragments. In some of my images I used other objects in the environment to fragment bits of the city, but in other images I found actual things in the city that were already fragmented, for example, the cracks in the pavement. Next time I should edit my pictures and put them into black and white which is preferable as you can also see the contrast within the image.
Fragmented Portrait
Erwin Blumenfeld
Erwin Blumenfeld was an American photographer of German origin. His personal photographic work showed the influence of dadaism and surrealism. His two main areas of interest were death and woman and was an expert in laboratory work, and experimented with photographic techniques such as distortion, multiple exposure, photo-montage and solarisation.
In this task I was required to take portraits of people and fragment them using different objects and materials given to me. In my examples, I portray my view on fragmented portraits using objects such as a tracing paper, plastic bag, and distorted glass. I try and change the materials given to me to make the portrait look fragmented, for example, ripping the plastic bag apart, or putting Vaseline on the glass.
My Response
In my attempts I created good responses to Blumenfeld's work by distorting and creating fragments of human portraits. What I liked is how I created fragments through my materials given by using different ways to to capture them. For example, putting the material up-close to the lense of the camera. I also wanted to make the portrait black and white as I wanted to get as close to Blumenfeld's work as possible. I also think it gives a stronger effect to it by using black and white.
Three Strands
STRAND 1 - Mauren brodbeck
For Mauren Brodbeck’s series “Urbanscape and Cityscape”, she photographed buildings in both Los Angeles (where she was living) and Geneva (where she grew up). Brodbeck looks at buildings as if they are sitting for a portrait. “The idea is to photograph building as though they are people. That way, they become portraits of the cities where they are located.
FIRST RESPONSE -
For my first response, I followed the same idea as Broadbeck's work and created "cityscape" as though the images of the buildings were sitting for a portrait. To further develop this strand, I will go to more "cityscape" locations to capture better portraits of buildings.
STRAND 2 - Ursus Wehrli
Ursus Wehrli (born 1969) is a Swiss comedian and artist. He makes books in which he "tidies up" works of art by using objects such as fruits or types of food in general. Or man made items like beach equipment.
FIRST RESPONSE -
For my first attempt, I portrayed my ideas of Wehrli's work by using utensils, fruits, cereal, and seeds. I created a comparison of the items all messy, then all tidied up to represent the work of Wehrli's. To further develop this strand, instead of using separate fruits, I would use grouped up fruits together to portray Wehrli's work in more detail.
STRAND 3 - Anna Kulachek
Anna Kulachek used printed out images of people, and cut out specific parts of them for example their body and holding the piece of paper in front of different backgrounds to create either a GIF or a single picture that relates tp the topic as the cut out piece of the paper is fragmented.
FIRST RESPONSE -
For my first response, I cut out a printed image of someone in my class and went to different destinations to use as a background. I portrayed Kulachek's work by using the same idea but changing it into a GIF. This relates to the topic fragments as as piece of the image is fragmented out of the original photo. To further develop this strand, I will use different printed cut outs and more widespread locations to get a variety of different images.
This slideshow shows the different stages done on photoshop to create this piece. Step one is to go on photoshop and click "file" then "scripts" then "load files into stack". Step two is to click "browse" and select all the images you want to use for the GIF and press "ok". Step three is to click "make frames from layers" and change each fram to o.1 seconds. Step four is to then make the image size smaller by clicking "image" then "image size". You then "save for Web & Devices" and make the percent of it 50%, then click save.
Developed Strand -
Following my initial response to Mauren Brodbeck’s series, I went into further depth in trying to find the right landscapes to capture to make sure I portray her work to the highest standard. For my first development I decided to visit the Tate Modern and reach a high vantage point that affords a wide or advantageous perspective/viewpoint allowing myself to capture the most famous buildings in London, for example the shard.
This slideshow shows the different stages done on photoshop to create this piece. Step one is to pick the polygonal lasso tool and select the building you want to colour in. Step two, when the outline of the building is selected, you then set the foreground colour to the colour you want to use. Step three is to select the brush tool and change the size of the brush to a larger size so its quicker to colour in, you do this by clicking the "brush preset picker", then clicking size. Step four is to then paint the whole building the colour you want.
Second Response -
I then decided to use an idea of removing important fragments of the original photo leaving only the outline of it to leave the viewer of the photo guessing as to what the buildings may have looked like. I did this to necessarily fit the brief of the topic fragments.
Third Response -
Following Mauren Brodbeck’s series, instead of looking at buildings as if they are sitting for a portrait, I portrayed my work to have the background sitting for a portrait. By using a close-up view of only one building and coloring the background, it removes all the tension and focus of the background and leaves the viewer focused on the fragment of the building.
This slideshow shows the different stages done on photoshop to create this piece. Step one is to select the polygonal lasso tool and outline the building you've taken. Step two, when the outline of the building is selected, you then set the foreground colour to the colour you want to use. Step three is to select the brush tool and change the size of the brush to a larger size so its quicker to colour in, you do this by clicking the "brush preset picker", then clicking size. Step four is to then paint the whole background the colour you want.
FINAL PIECE
For my first final piece I followed the steps of Drouhin and Rousse work. I wanted to experiment with shapes, colour and graphics. I did this by taking an image and reflecting the top half of it. I then started cutting out sharp triangle and circle shapes. I decided to repeat and manipulate the shape by rotating it and changing it's levels, contrast and positioning. I wanted to take it a step further by adding some colour using a gradient map and going with a vibrant colours like orange and yellow to stand out from the black and white tones plus the pale colours of the background. I like the gradient effect as you can still see the image through the bold colours but also the image is still carried through to the parts which are black and white. I then tested out making new circular shapes of different sizes and taking bits of the image away and adding different images into the corners of the piece. I later tried out selecting circular shapes and reflecting the same circle on the reflected half of the image. I also created my own gradient colours replacing the default colour blue and brown with red and green etc. The area of the photo from the southbank also gave me the chance to pack in a combination of buildings ranging in distance, shape, age and height across the scenery capturing landmarks such as sky gardens.
For my second final piece I also followed the steps of both Drouhin and Rousse but this time I focused less on the creative side of things but instead created a more sharp cleaner image. Due to this I wanted to portray a different side of london and captured a whole different part of the city of London. This would also bring a completely different scene to the picture and not just have similar buildings repeated over and over again.
I chose to also photograph from the south bank again to gain a straight, horizontal view of the city this time to only focus on one specific landmark, in this case its.... which represents the city. I used the same technique to capture and form the image and mirrored them over again to give a floating island of just buildings in the sky. Having less buildings in the photo meant thatI can focus on making the shapes as sharp as possible. Going on a day with no sunshine and mostly clouds meant that I was restricted to high levels of vibrancy and a diffusion of tones from the sun which is a negative as now the picture is not as energetic as it could've been. Other than that I think the images produced are very well crafted on photoshop and portray a strong invasion of fragments.
I chose to also photograph from the south bank again to gain a straight, horizontal view of the city this time to only focus on one specific landmark, in this case its.... which represents the city. I used the same technique to capture and form the image and mirrored them over again to give a floating island of just buildings in the sky. Having less buildings in the photo meant thatI can focus on making the shapes as sharp as possible. Going on a day with no sunshine and mostly clouds meant that I was restricted to high levels of vibrancy and a diffusion of tones from the sun which is a negative as now the picture is not as energetic as it could've been. Other than that I think the images produced are very well crafted on photoshop and portray a strong invasion of fragments.
This slideshow shows the different steps I had to go through on photoshop to create my two final pieces. Step one was to select the rectangular marquee tool and mark the top half of the image, copy and paste it, then select the copied image, select "image" then select "image rotation" and "flip canvas vertically". When the image is flipped, you then select the flipped image and place it below the original image so it reflects perfectly. Step two is to select the polygonal lasso tool and mark out specific shapes like circles and triangles. Step three, after you've selected the right part of the image you want to edit, you then need to click the " create new fill or adjustment layer" button, then click " gradient map". Step four is to then go to the colours options and click adjustments and chose what colour you want for the selected area. You then repeat each step for other areas you want to change.
Annotation
Introducing a task:
Subject matter
EBI:
Subject matter
What’s next
Analysis
What do you think the photographer’s intentions are? There may be more than one. ‘PEC’ each intention.
P (Photographer’s name) creates (what type of images? Fantastical, surreal, objective)
E He / she does this by… (describe something in the image)
C He/she wanted us to consider ….
What wider issues is the photographer addressing?
P (Photographer’s name) is considering (is the photographer talking about a bigger issue in photography, society, politics?)
E This is shown by … (describe something in the image)
C The (Photographer’s name) was interested in this issue because (they felt it was relevant to us now…)
How do the materials and techniques used support your photographer’s intentions?
P (Photographer’s name) has used (the darkroom / multiple exposure / film / digital manipulation techniques) in creating this work.
E This creates a ______ effect. (describe something in the image)
C This helps to support (Photographer’s name) point about (showing an identity / hiding a person’s identity / the media / anonymity)
Introducing a task:
- In this task I was required to…..
- This task links to the theme, (______) as it shows....
- My intention was to respond to_______ because I wanted to explore....
Subject matter
- The subject I chose to photograph suited the theme as it……
- My composition helped to support my response to the theme by….
- I managed the exposure very well. My ISO / shutter speed / aperture settings were…..
- I prioritised my shutter speed to… (capture movement / blur/ frozen moment)
- I prioritised aperture to manipulate depth of field.
- I used a tripod to avoid camera shake.
- My images express my intentions which were…
EBI:
Subject matter
- The subject I chose to photograph did not necessarily fit the brief as it was not interesting enough / appropriate / adequately lit…..
- Next time I should go to (a different location), photograph at a different time of day, organise people in advance, think more about my composition so that….. ect
- I did not create enough depth of field / sense of movement. The image is over exposed / underexposed / too blurred.
- Next time I should use a tripod / use a different type of lens (be specific) / experiment with film…
- My images do not show my intentions which were…
- The concept wasn’t clear in my images, I need to make it more explicit by…
What’s next
- Next time I will consider the work of (a photographer) to inspire a more accurate depiction of what I want to achieve.
- I will experiment further with… (blur / shutter speed / composition)
Analysis
What do you think the photographer’s intentions are? There may be more than one. ‘PEC’ each intention.
P (Photographer’s name) creates (what type of images? Fantastical, surreal, objective)
E He / she does this by… (describe something in the image)
C He/she wanted us to consider ….
What wider issues is the photographer addressing?
P (Photographer’s name) is considering (is the photographer talking about a bigger issue in photography, society, politics?)
E This is shown by … (describe something in the image)
C The (Photographer’s name) was interested in this issue because (they felt it was relevant to us now…)
How do the materials and techniques used support your photographer’s intentions?
P (Photographer’s name) has used (the darkroom / multiple exposure / film / digital manipulation techniques) in creating this work.
E This creates a ______ effect. (describe something in the image)
C This helps to support (Photographer’s name) point about (showing an identity / hiding a person’s identity / the media / anonymity)