Diane Arbus, "Woman with a Locket in Washington Square Park NYC," Vintage gelatin silver print. 1965
Sally Mann, "The Last Time Emmett Modeled Nude," Gelatin silver print, (no recorded date)
Brassai, "Couple d'amoureux dans un petit cafe, quartier Italie," Gelatin silver print, 1932
Annie Leibovitz, "It's a Twister," Digial Media, 2005
Robert Frank, "City Fathers (Hoboken)," Gelatin silver print, 1955Part 2: SYNTHESIZE
Explain what it is you like about these 5 artworks (elements/common threads).
1. The reason I picked these 5 photographs is because firstly, they share the common theme of black and white. Even though Annie Leibovitz' piece is the only photograph which has elements of color, the colors are low on saturation. The main subject in all 5 photographs are people. The first one by Diane Arbus is a closeup of a women, while Brassai's photograph steps back to look at the bigger picture (setting and atmosphere).I enjoy taking pictures of people, because they hold a lot of subject in themselves. People are able to be very expressive through through body language and faces, I can clearly see this quality expressed in all 5 photographs. The use of low tones and black and white help bring out this aspects because the attention goes to the subjects instead.
What is it that these elements are expressing?
2. The element that all these photographs are expressing is that they all hold a lot of mystery and portray a sense of "coldness" through their subjects and simple colors. They are eerie and scary sometimes, but that adds to the effect. I feel that these are very strong aspects in all the 5 pictures. This element ties well into the idea of black and white. Black in white photos hold a lot of grace and its important that the use of low saturated colors and subjects exude the same atmosphere and aura. In this case, all 5 photos do that.
How could you take some of these strategies and apply them to your own work -- either in terms of media, formal qualities, and/or theme?
3.The qualities and strategies that I would like to incorporate into my own concentration of black and white photography; faces, is that I would like to step back and take things into a larger perspective. I wanted to start off by taking close up of faces, but I really want to incorporate the ideas of surroundings, and atmospheres including the subject itself. I want to work with color too. It can be overwhelming working with only black and white. I may want to use two tons and low saturation, but definitely want to incorporate it into my concentration.
Part 3; ARTIST IN-DEPTH
Choose one artist and research what has influenced his or her work. If the artist is alive and has a website you should look at what they've written about their work. If the artist is not contemporary, then research what others have written about this artist.
The artist I have chosen to research in-depth is American photographer Annie Leibovitz. Unlike the other photographers I have researched, Leibovitz is more contemporary, modern, and is currently a working artist. Even though personally, I enjoy black and white photography more than colored, Leibovitz has helped me enter a new perspective with color. Traveling the world and continuing her passion for photography, she now has photographed for the Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, and New York Times magazines. Many people recognize Leibovitz with the famous Miley Cyrus scandal where she was photographed Cyrus in a bed sheet. Leibovitz continues to go strong; "The photograph is a simply, classic portrait, shot with very little makeup, I think it is very beautiful. The photograph I picked for my "Top 5" from Leibovitz is taken from December 2005 issue of Vogue with Keira Knightly. Overall, Leibovitz has a creative eye when it comes to photography. She admits that her partner, Susan Sontag, who passed away, has been one of her biggest influences, "It was as though Susan were behind me and had a say." Even though Leibovitz gets a lot of criticism from the media world today, she continues to go strong and capture the art around her.
URL for Pictures
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