Choose two photographers that you find interesting from the examples she cites. Find some images (2-3) from these photographers that are different to the ones shown by Cotton. Then, write a couple of paragraphs comparing & contrasting your two chosen photographers in terms of their strategies and approach to narrative/storytelling. Include the images in your blog post with the appropriate links and references to the images.
After reading through Chapter 2 of 'The Photograph as Contemporary Art" by Charlotte Cotton and searching through the many amazing photographers she mentioned I still can't seem to stray from Gregory Crewdson. Not only are his images just visually so powerful but I really enjoyed watching his thought process and hearing how he creates his photographs in the Gregory Crewdson documentary. Charlotte Cotton refers to influences in paintings and this element of developing images from life to create a fantasy.
Photographs are such a powerful medium and as the saying goes 'a photograph tells a thousand words' but the photographs Crewdson captures seem to tell a million yet at the same time often leave you extremely curious. Crewdson is fascinated by what's beneath the surface and in many of his images it almost appears as if there is something missing from the scene. Sometimes his subjects are gazing at something out of reach, of their is an absurd moment captured that you wonder how it came to be and what could of happened just before the scene was captured.
Crewdson seems a bit of a perfectionist and this is something that has really paid of in his photographs. Every detail is thought out carefully and critically. All of the decisions he makes such as camera angle, time of day, lights down to the small details especially notable in his inside photographs. Another aspect he captures excellently is emotions and expressions he often uses actors which allows him to have subjects that can portray the particular mood of the shoot but as seen in the documentary he also gives perfect directions to his subjects. He helps to explain and create the required mood for them to visually display and in turn gets the most appropriate and powerful gaze and emotions from the subject.
Crewdson’s images are not only aesthetically beautiful but he creates images that have a lot of depth. His images tell a story of something that has just passed, or is about to. His highly elaborate set ups are developed with a large team all working together to allow Crewdson’s visions to come to life. The complexity of his vision is what brings this team together. These set ups are often so extravagant that they can take days to set up.
The story behind the photograph often has a deep undercurrent of psychological themes and aspects of wonder and danger. He has an interest in the dark side and the uncanniness of a particular moment. His beautiful use of cinematic lighting helps to develop this sense and he often uses light to display the narrative.
This is a photograph that displays Crewdson’s fascination of what exists beneath the surface. There are themes of anxiety and a lonely experience of some event that has just passed that is commonly present in his work. This photograph allows the viewer to almost venture into another world and for every answer the viewer may gain from this scene another question seems to arise. His photographs have a cinematic feel to them which feel as though a movie is playing right before you.
Gregory Crewdson Image 1
http://www.skateboard.com.au/forum/forumgallery.cfm?thread=51943&forum=20
Gregory Crewdson 2
http://www.paranaiv.no/inspiration/2008/12/gregory-crewdson
Gregory Crewdson 3
http://www.paranaiv.no/inspiration/2008/12/gregory-crewdson
Gregory Crewdson 4
http://www.paranaiv.no/inspiration/2008/12/gregory-crewdson
I think I could probably spend hours looking through his photographs and talking about his work but I believe it is time to move onto another photographer whom also has strong use of story and narrative in their work but displays it in a very different way to Crewdson.
Wendy McMurdo is another photographer who has grabbed my attention. Her photographs are very unique with strong use of lighting in unusual circumstances. She photographs mostly children and looks at themes revolving around early exploration of self. She has a strong interest in the relationship and differences between film and the digital age.
Wendy McMurdo doesn’t create scenes that are as elaborate as Crewdson’s but they are full of symbolism and creativity with an original perspective on children and the way they view themselves and the world. I find that there is often a sort of sadness or longing present in her photographs. There is an element of the unknown and how children will have to one day be apart of the adult world.
She has developed many series of photographs that all work together and with the use of digital manipulation she has created interesting photographs that evoke questions and emotions. With the use of digital manipulation as well as reflections she explores themes of a double or a different self.
This photograph has been a standout image for me. She has captured an image that displays a highly intense emotion within the child showing a longing for something maybe a bit deeper than just the lack of an instrument. This image is from a series called ‘Young Musicians’ in which McMurdo photographed children playing there instruments. She has removed the violin, using digital manipulation. This is a main aspect that changes this image from just a view of a child playing an instrument to a photograph with a different depth, meaning and strangeness. The use of shadow and light assist to create a dark scene different to which the way children are often displayed in the light.
Wendy McMurdo Image 1
http://www.wendymcmurdo.com/
Wendy McMurdo Image 2
http://www.wendymcmurdo.com/
Wendy McMurdo Image 3
http://todayfavorite.blogspot.com/2010_05_01_archive.html
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