Subject Research: the intricacy of handmade creations
Mankind have been utilising wood for centuries, making sheds, houses and fences. Craftsmanship is an intricate, poetical practice, requiring patience and skill. Although history has no evidence of when the first tree house was built, they can be traced back to the ancient civilization, more than 40000 years ago. Long before they were a thing of fun and pleasure, the tree house was a used permanent living accommodation, a home. They were built worldwide, wherever trees grow. Craftsmanship is described as the quality of design and work shown in something made by hand; artistry. My work explores the intricacy and small details that are involved in handmade creations.
Artist research:
Anne Golaz
Anne Golaz is a renowned photographer born in 1983 in Helsinki. She graduated from the Photography Master Program of Aalto University of Art and Design in 2013 and from there she wrote her master thesis “On Photobooks and Narratives” after spending 6 months in NYC at the School of Visual Arts in 2012.
Her work mainly focuses on rural elements such as farm life and nature. I am particularly drawn to her project ‘The Giant’ which was carried out in the Val d’Anniviers. This unique body of work was made in the Val d’Anniviers in Switzerland for the 2016 Valaisanne Photographic Survey. This work is metaphorical, with the Giant being a metaphor for the different rural aspects such as a mountain or valley.
Chien, de la série le Géant, 2016
This image is so interesting to me. Golaz has managed to capture the essence of rural life and create a dialogue between each object in the photo. We as the audience feel connected and familiarized to this scene as it is represented of any typical farm, yet it is so much more. Firstly, I love the harmonious chaos in the photo. The dog appears to be the main subject, juxtaposed against the still objects such as the ladder and straw. The photo is taken to allow the dog to be centre of the image, and there is a warm, rustic edit placed over the image to enhance that familiar, welcoming feeling of a rural scene. This image has character and life and demonstrates Golaz’s talent as a photographer.
Le raccard, de la série Le Géant,2016 Genévrier, de la série Le Géant, 2016 L’avalanche, de la série Le Géant, 2016
Furthermore, these images from the Giant project demonstrate how a photographer can take a simplistic and everyday scene and transform it into a work of art that tells a story. I find these images inspiring for my own project, as Golaz is utilising angles and tones to enhance each image. For example, the first image is taken at a slanted position; giving it character and interest opposed to if it was taken directly straight. Golaz demonstrates skill and knowledge in her approach, these images are poetical, unique and inspiring.
Jan McCullough
Jan McCullough is an Irish artist who works with photography, moving image, sculpture and installation. Her work explores how the photographic image can be used to construct and produce new individual and collective expressions of self.
She is currently Artist in Residence at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin and Lightwork in Syracuse, New York (2020-2021). Her work has been nominated for various awards such as the Deutsche Borse Photography Prize (2016); The International Centre for Photography New York Infinity Award (2016); and won the British Journal of Photography Breakthrough Award (2016). Furthermore, her book ‘Home Instruction Manual’, published by Verlag Kettler, was awarded the Kassel Fotobookfestival Dummy Award and shortlisted for the Recontres D’Arles Author Book Award (2016).
Her recent solo exhibitions include The Centre for Contemporary Art, Derry-Londonderry (2020-2021); Seen Fifteen Gallery, London (2016); Belfast Exposed Futures Gallery, Northern Ireland (2016); and The Gallery, University of Ulster, Northern Ireland (2015).
When reviewing Jan McCullough’s work, I became inspired and fascinated with her project, ‘Constructions’ (2019) which is a site specific installation located at the PS2 Gallery in Belfast. The images are clean and crisp yet have rawness to them; they tell a story of something unfinished. I find this idea really inspiring for my own work, as I am experimenting with the idea of things under construction. What is also interesting to note, is that she edits the series of images as black and white. This adds an element of clarity and professionalism. There is also a slight element of ambiguity and rawness, as we can see the sculptures in their raw, exposed form; Jan McCullough utilises natural lighting for these images, reinforcing the concept of something raw and unfinished as there are no elements of artificial lighting.
James Ravilious
James Ravilious is an English photographer who photographed in the 1970s in France as well as in Italy, Greece and Ireland, and other parts of the British Isles. He undertook many private commissions, such as the Arts and Environment Body Common Ground’s influential Save Our Orchards campaign, Somerset County Council’s Mendip Project, and recording work for Devon County Council.
Whist Drive refreshments, Beaford, Devon, England, 1973
James’s work has been exhibited in England, France and America; and can be seen in several collections. In addition to this, he published a number of books of his photographs, and contributed to many others. In 1997 he was given Honorary Membership of the Royal Photographic Society in recognition of his contribution to photography. His work focuses on rural life and his pictures reveal real life as it was being lived in late 20th century rural England when the country traditions that have been handed down for hundreds, if not thousands, of years were still part of everyday existence.
Walkers, Cheddar Gorge, Somerset, England, 1995
Farmhouse window with apple basket, Devon, England, 1985
This piece titled ‘Farmhouse window with apple basket’ was taken in Devon, England in 1985, There is gentleness about this image, and it tells a story. The black and white emphasises the character of the image, and the image portrays a busy rural lifestyle. Ravilious’ work is inspiring and heart-warming; each image portrays a fondness and love for the subject being photographed. He tells a story with his work and displays great talent and understanding of photography.
Robert Doisneau
Robert Doisneau was a French photographer who In the 1930s, made photographs on the streets of Paris. He initially became a camera assistant at André Vigneau’s studio in 1931, where he discovered artistic outlets that encouraged him to pursue photography. When he died in April 1994, he left behind 450,000 negatives that tell an entertaining story of his relentless free-thinking mind. Doisneau was known for his modest, playful, and ironic images of amusing juxtapositions, mingling social classes, and eccentrics in contemporary Paris streets and cafes.
Doisneau practiced photography until the outbreak of World War II, whereupon he was drafted into the French army as both a soldier and photographer. He was in the army until 1940 and from then until the end of the war in 1945 used his draughtsmanship, lettering artistry, and engraving skills to forge passports and identification papers for the French Resistance. Argualy, some of his most memorable photographs were taken after the war. He returned to freelance photography and sold photographs to international magazines such as Life. He was successful in pursing his passion, and won multiple awards such as Niépce Prize (1956), Balzac Prize, (1986) and Honorary Fellowship from the Royal Photographic Society, (1991).
This photo translated to Do not pick mushrooms, taken in 1958, contains so much character. The way he has focused on the sign whilst still including images of the livestock and surroundings is so fascinating and intriguing, and this image in particular has influenced me for my own project to focus on smaller details instead of trying to capture everything in one image. Moreover, the technique demonstrates precision but also enjoyment, his work displays his passion for photography, which is something I really want to portray in my own work.
Eric Rudd
Eric Rudd is a photographer based in Bloomington, Indiana. His first career was as a professional recording engineer however he now spends most of his time as a photographer, in particular as a wedding and venue photographer.
I was drawn to his work due to his eye for rustic detail. I relate to his approach of focusing on smaller details instead of trying to capture everything in one photo. There is a more personal touch to his work, there is thought behind each image and a sense of appreciation for hat he is photographing. I love the contrasting tones exhibited in his images, as that further emphasises the sense of fondness and endearment. There is an intimacy and softness coincided with the rustic character of the subjects he is photographing. I find his work inspiring, especially since my own photography project is based on capturing the intimate details and conveying a fondness and love for what I am photographing.
He utilises a range of techniques, changing the angle and focus of each image whilst still maintaining a soft appreciation for each subject. There is a quirky element to his photographs that I love, as he captures unique abstracts. Rudds photography heavily influences my own work, as he focuses on more rural themes and creates beauty from them.
Hito Steyerl
Hito Steyerl, born in 1966, is a German filmmaker, moving image artist, writer, and innovator of the essay documentary. Her principal topics of interest are media, technology, and the global circulation of images. She studied Documentary Film Directing at the Japan Institute of the Moving Image and at the University of Television and Film in Munich. She subsequently studied Philosophy at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and is currently a professor of New Media Art at the Berlin University of the Arts. She has had numerous solo exhibitions, such as; Chisenhale Gallery, London (2010), E-flux, New York (2012), Art Institute of Chicago, (2012) and more recently This is the Future, Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada (2020).
Her prolific filmmaking and writing occupies a highly discursive position between the fields of art, philosophy and politics, constituting a deep exploration of late capitalism’s social, cultural and financial constructs. Her films and lectures have increasingly addressed the presentational context of art, while her writing has circulated widely through publication in both academic and art journals, often online.
When researching Steyerl, I became fascinated with her installation work and how she displays her work. She projects her images on the walls of a singular room, allowing the audience to be enclosed within her work. This influenced me to consider how I would display my work. Although the essence of Steyerl’s photography differs to mine- she focuses on philosophy and politics whereas I am focusing on family and elements of construction- it is her action of projecting photography that I find so inspiring. Steyerl makes her work come alive, transfixing her audience with an innovative and interactive approach. This concept is so inspiring, and has led me to consider installation and exhibition work further. For my own photography, I would have each image periodically projected on the walls of the exhibition room, to create a more interesting and engaging exhibition. Steyerls work is capturing and her installation approach of using a projector to display her work is clever and inspirational.