Been on a tumblr hiatus…The above photographs are from the continuation and expansion of the AHB project. I had gotten bored with straighforward shots and wanted to incorporate some manipulation in line with surrealist thinking. So the last part of the fall semester was dedicated to playing with borders and creating reproductions of single images to fit together.
I’m taking this amazing honors colloquia on the Avant-Garde, and I love it when we touch on photographers. A chapter of one of our books is entitled “Photographic Conditions of Surrealism” and some of the images are quite striking. Boiffard makes several appearances, which led me to do a little outside research. Couldn’t help but think of my own human body project when I saw this photo of his. It’s like a creepier, less abstract version of what I’ve been after- kinda freaky in a cool way.
Playing around in my free time, I sometimes go back to old negatives I’ve never printed and see how they turn out, or rework them if I have printed them (as with the superimposition).
A couple of photographs from the series I’ve been working on these past weeks. In my initial roll for the Abstract Human Body project, my goal was to emphasize body textures, and I thought using 3200 speed film would be interesting. What I got instead with these first photos were images that deal more with form and shape, and the high grain factor of the high speed film detracts from the texture of the actual skin, enhancing the abstraction. It doesn’t bother me that my intentions weren’t met as long as the images are still intriguing, and I’m quite pleased with the turnout. More photographs to come from 400, and maybe 100 speed films…
The Duane Michals photo carries a sense of lucidity, in terms of translucence and clarity/revelation. His ideas, once explained, are always lucid to me.
My own photo was sort of the unexpected jump-starter for the abstract human body project idea. Think this, but super divided up and zoomed-in, and minus the dress.
Duane Michals is an interesting character… Last week watched a brief video about him in class, and what struck me was how determined (but not in a forced sense) and unflinching he is in his work. He doesn’t seem to necessarily care how it translates to others, or whether it does, but he so simply expresses his ideas they become clear, even when dealing with less approachable concepts such as the absence of reality. I’d like to be this way in my photographic work. Also re-read an illuminating interview with Michals. Something I noticed this second go-round that had escaped me last time was his criticism of photography as an art form. He kept bringing up its limitations of expression (very important to him), especially in comparison to writing. Still, the interview only reiterated how sure he is of his art when he executes it. I’m jealous. I don’t agree with all of his beliefs about photography or even life, but I think Michals must be the coolest old man; I’d love to hang out with him, listen to all the crazy things he comes up with.
Been thinking about my own photographic endeavors over the long weekend, as well…My newest concept is an abstract study of the human body. I want to take this familiar, mortal thing and produce unfamiliar images of it so you can’t tell hand from foot from crook of the arm, etc. It’s all about second-guessing. One goal is to make simplicity and detail my best friends. Zoom in in in. I’ve also been really interested in textures lately which is working its way into the abstract human body idea. My biggest challenge in all this is probably working for a wide enough variety in the final prints. I’m eager to do it though.
feeling very much like this photo I took last year right now. delirium kicking in- only the mysticism of superimposition could so perfectly express it.
listening to the Shins’ “Sleeping Lessons”, fitting song for this current bizarre mood of mine.
I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, here it goes…
trying to orient myself with this new blog concept. running on exhaustion, feeling quite in a daze.
