Postcards from home
There are more photographers working from home now due to the current restrictions. There are a few more photographers that have always used their home as a base to start their projects. Some artists have used their family as a starting point, documenting their families through various circumstances and for an extended period of time. Others have used their homes as a studio space, setting up simple still lives to photograph, choosing everyday objects from the home as props. For the most part these photographers have used light and shadow as another element within their photographs, framing the light as part of their compositions. The following artists have used their homes in order to create a series of images. Each artist explores themes which are relevant to them in a personal way or choosing to compose images of simplicity. The themes may vary, relating to their cultural heritage, their emotional state or simply choosing to compose images that are simply aesthetically pleasing.
Larry Sultan
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The project about home was named after this book from Larry Sultan where he has photographed his family. We will be looking at home throughout this project and focusing on home. When we are asked to photograph our family we also understand that our families often take on various roles: Our family could be one person, a group of friends, siblings or even extended family.Watch this short video from Larry Sultan. In it he talks about his family and his beginnings of Postcards from home. He talks about his family. Looking at his family archive allows him to look at how photography works-how photography can distort the truth and how photography can also be linked to performance.
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THE HOUSE IS QUIET. THEY HAVE GONE TO BED, LEAVING ME ALONE, AND THE ELECTRIC TIMER HAS JUST SWITCHED OFF THE LIVING-ROOM LIGHTS. IT FEELS LIKE THE HOUSE HAS FINALLY TURNED ON ITS SIDE TO FALL ASLEEP. YEARS AGO I WOULD HAVE GONE THROUGH MY MOTHER’S PURSE FOR ONE OF HER CIGARETTES AND SMOKED IN THE DARK. IT WAS A MAGICAL TIME THAT THE HOUSE WAS MINE.
TONIGHT, HOWEVER, I AM RESTLESS. I SIT AT THE DINING-ROOM TABLE; RUMMAGE THROUGH THE REFRIGERATOR. WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR? ALL DAY LONG I’VE BEEN SCAVENGING, POKING AROUND IN ROOMS AND CLOSETS, PEERING AT THEIR THINGS, STUDYING THEM. I ARRANGE MY ROLLS OF EXPOSED FILM INTO LONG ROWS AND COUNT AND RECOUNT THEM AS IF THEY WERE LOST. THERE ARE TWENTY-EIGHT.
WHAT DRIVES ME TO CONTINUE THIS WORK IS DIFFICULT TO NAME. IT HAS MORE TO DO WITH LOVE THAN WITH SOCIOLOGY, WITH BEING A SUBJECT IN THE DRAMA RATHER THAN A WITNESS. AND IN THE ODD AND JUMBLED PROCESS OF WORKING EVERYTHING SHIFTS; THE BOUNDARIES BLUR, MY DISTANCE SLIPS, THE ARROGANCE AND ILLUSION OF IMMUNITY FALTERS. I WAKE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, STUNNED AND ANGUISHED. THESE ARE MY PARENTS. FROM THAT SIMPLE FACT, EVERYTHING FOLLOWS. I REALISE THAT BEYOND THE ROLLS OF FILM AND THE FEW GOOD PICTURES, THE DEMANDS OF MY PROJECT AND MY CONFUSION ABOUT ITS MEANING, IS THE WISH TO TAKE PHOTOGRAPHY LITERALLY. TO STOP TIME. I WANT MY PARENTS TO LIVE FOREVER.
-- LARRY SULTAN
TONIGHT, HOWEVER, I AM RESTLESS. I SIT AT THE DINING-ROOM TABLE; RUMMAGE THROUGH THE REFRIGERATOR. WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR? ALL DAY LONG I’VE BEEN SCAVENGING, POKING AROUND IN ROOMS AND CLOSETS, PEERING AT THEIR THINGS, STUDYING THEM. I ARRANGE MY ROLLS OF EXPOSED FILM INTO LONG ROWS AND COUNT AND RECOUNT THEM AS IF THEY WERE LOST. THERE ARE TWENTY-EIGHT.
WHAT DRIVES ME TO CONTINUE THIS WORK IS DIFFICULT TO NAME. IT HAS MORE TO DO WITH LOVE THAN WITH SOCIOLOGY, WITH BEING A SUBJECT IN THE DRAMA RATHER THAN A WITNESS. AND IN THE ODD AND JUMBLED PROCESS OF WORKING EVERYTHING SHIFTS; THE BOUNDARIES BLUR, MY DISTANCE SLIPS, THE ARROGANCE AND ILLUSION OF IMMUNITY FALTERS. I WAKE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, STUNNED AND ANGUISHED. THESE ARE MY PARENTS. FROM THAT SIMPLE FACT, EVERYTHING FOLLOWS. I REALISE THAT BEYOND THE ROLLS OF FILM AND THE FEW GOOD PICTURES, THE DEMANDS OF MY PROJECT AND MY CONFUSION ABOUT ITS MEANING, IS THE WISH TO TAKE PHOTOGRAPHY LITERALLY. TO STOP TIME. I WANT MY PARENTS TO LIVE FOREVER.
-- LARRY SULTAN
- Find out some facts about Larry Sultan and this series 'Pictures from home'. Why and how did the photographic series start?
- Why did he decide to photograph mainly from home?
- How did his parents feel about being photographed?
- How long did the project last?
- Did his parents mind being photographed within personal, quiet moments?
- Create a series of images where you photograph somebody from your home. You may choose a period of time to photograph them; a weekend, a 'day in the life of' ? a whole week of documenting this person?
Independent Learning
Show some of the details within your home: This could be a detail from the architecture within the home. Light and shadow on the wall, a close up of a unique door handle or light switch. A chair with a throw over it, the fire burning, a still life of a cupboard, mantlepiece, a corner where a single chair us with clothing draped over it. There could be several still life images. The aim is to capture home but without the presence of people. Take a minimum of 30 photographs.
'Raymond Meeks is renowned for his use of photography and the book form to poetically distill the liminal junctures of vision, consciousness and comprehension. In ciprian honey cathedral, he brings this scrutiny close to home, delicately probing at the legibility of our material surroundings and the people closest to us.
Meeks has long been fascinated by the way we construct the world around us; how we carry our possessions, these accumulated comforts, inheritances, markers of material success; how we adorn homes with trees and shrubs, a mantle clock to count the hours. Stumbling across an abandoned house or unkempt lawn becomes a search for common clues to tiny hidden transgressions.
This question of knowledge and understanding is perhaps most drastic in our solipsistic reality. Meeks also photographed his partner, Adrianna Ault, in the early mornings before she awoke, on the threshold at which daily domestic life converges with the deepest state of sleep. This plight of supine trance is a place of reprieve beneath the surface of consciousness, free from the chaos and uncertainty of the sentient world above, and alludes to the veiled threat that, ultimately, we are utterly unknowable to one another.
Mack Books
Meeks has long been fascinated by the way we construct the world around us; how we carry our possessions, these accumulated comforts, inheritances, markers of material success; how we adorn homes with trees and shrubs, a mantle clock to count the hours. Stumbling across an abandoned house or unkempt lawn becomes a search for common clues to tiny hidden transgressions.
This question of knowledge and understanding is perhaps most drastic in our solipsistic reality. Meeks also photographed his partner, Adrianna Ault, in the early mornings before she awoke, on the threshold at which daily domestic life converges with the deepest state of sleep. This plight of supine trance is a place of reprieve beneath the surface of consciousness, free from the chaos and uncertainty of the sentient world above, and alludes to the veiled threat that, ultimately, we are utterly unknowable to one another.
Mack Books
Delfine Carmona
“I live a love story with light and color. I look for beauty in everything that surrounds me”, explains Delfina Carmona, a photographer based in Buenos Aires. Poetic, sensual and sometimes absurd, the young woman’s pictures are sublimed by natural light. “I am able to imagine a photo with just a glimpse of a ray of light”, she tells us. Though the photographer loves to experiment, her tools remain minimal. “Equipment does not do the job alone. True wonders can be achieved with the bare minimum”, she specifies. Freely, she sets the stage for herself to tell stories of dreams and fragility. “I prefer making self-portraits so that I know exactly how to place myself, what to express and how to reflect my emotions”, the artist adds. Shadow games on the walls and deformed optical illusions, Delfina Carmona plays with bodies with skill. A splendid universe she creates according to the whim of her desires.
- Complete some research about Delphine Carmona. How did she start taking photographs?
- What can you find out about her personal style? What are her interests within photography?
- lick onto the link to choose images fro Delphine Carmona.
- Choose at least 3 objects from the list below to create a 'still life set'.
- A mirror
- A plant
- Some fruit
- an empty transparent glass
- A glass filled with water
- A lamp
- A piece of white fabric or white clothing
- A wooden surface
- Photograph this still life in as many ways from at least 6 different angles (light and shadow would be a bonus)
- When you have completed that task choose another 3 objects and photograph at least 6 different viewpoints.
- Continue to choose just 2 objects and repeat the same still life set up.
- Choose your favourite 6 images to present
Colin Grey 'The parents'
Heaven and Hull' shows Colin Grey's parents as dressed in costumes and playing roles. Why do you think that the photographer chose to show his parents in this way? What do you think of the image. With the way that the lighting has been used what do you think the photographer was trying to say? Why do you think that the lighting was so harsh? The colours look as though they might have been edited how do you think that this was achieved? Both parents are photographed quite tightly within the frame, why do you think that Colin Grey chose this composition?
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The title of this image is Helping Hand , 1985.Apart from the most obvious answer why do you think that the photographer chose that title? When you look at the image with the odd location, body language and positioning of the two people what do you think that the photographer was trying to depict? What do you think that the meaning behind the image is? Thinking about the relationship that the couple may have is the image suggestive of how that relationship may be? When you look at the lighting and the colours do they seem natural?
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Suggested Tasks
- Read this interview with Colin Grey and document your findings:
- Why did he start this series?
- Why did he choose to document his parents?
- Why did he take images that were staged?
- How long has he spent photographing his parents?
- What other photographic 'stories has he told through photography?
- Answer the questions within the two images above.
- Choose two more images from the series 'The parents' to analyse. (Click on the link)
- How would you plan to create such a series?
- What kind of props could you use?
- Where would you photograph these scenes?
- How many people would you photograph?
- Write a proposal for a photo series using people that you are close to. They could be friends, family,
This project was inspired by two books-both looking at lists and inviting the viewer to take photographs with an instruction in the form of a simple title. All of the objects within the lists are everyday objects, or or scenarios or actions that can be classes as 'Home'. The aim of the project is for students to take photographs on a regular basis, to think and act like a photographer- taking photographs regularly of all of the things which are around us. It invites the students to take photographs in their own way, using a camera from a mobile phone, using the standard phone camera or various apps so that you have quick, easy access, and non complicated way in which to photograph what is around you. It is also inspired by several photographers whose images are inspired by what is around them, everyday life seen in an interesting way, sometimes beauty can be found in the mundane. After the initial photographs have been taken you will then be able to select your favourite photographs and then develop these photographs into a series. There are several photographers whose work is based on photographing the everyday, some in a simple, uncluttered way and some using colour, light or objects as the main focus. Many photographers' edit their photographs so you may choose to edit them to enhance them or make them more abstract. Keep the unused, unselected photographs however as you may want to use them at a later date.
I like the fact that I can just use my phone to take photographs its it's handy and I can take photographs quickly without having to set anything up. I used an app called 'Hipstamatic' which I downloaded for free or for a small cost? I like the format of square images. I often use this as a photographic sketchbook when I want to 'see how things will look. I knew how I wanted the photographs to look, I was thinking too much about the visual side of it, I wasn't really having fun so I started to relax a little and just enjoy the project for what it was-a fun project which allowed me to take photographs everyday of ordinary, everyday objects. Some of the photographs I think are bad in terms of framing, some are out of focus, and some are quite simple, even boring to look at. Some, are really lovely, interesting and I surprised myself how I approached the task.
The following photographers have been chosen as they have also been involved in a project called Home. This project was in association with Magnum. There are lots of artists who were involved in the project but the artists below are the ones that I found the most accessible, the ones that perhaps we can relate to the most, for the purpose of this project. Both artists have approached the project in their own way, so we see their own interpretation of 'Home'. Feel free to view the series here
Inspired by the way in which each photographer talked about their work and their experiences I want to create another set of images more personal where I'm documenting what is in my home. At the moment I feel as though I have photographed a physical space, whilst I love my home and feel free and comfortable in the physical space home is about much more than a house to me. I'd like to document those special images that I see everyday.
Olivia Arthur
As we all looked forward to her arrival, there was also suspense in not knowing how it would change things in our family. I don’t normally photograph too intensely at home. As a photographer I am always going away for work and so coming home is the time when I take my photographer hat off and take pictures just for us. But a combination of the feeling of anticipation, and the belief that this would be the last time I would be pregnant, changed that for me. Suddenly, this period of waiting became the most important thing I could record.
Frank Frances
- Watch this short film interview with Frank Frances and document your findings:
- How does this series relate to the theme of 'Home'?
- How is the Home of Frank Frances incorporated into his photographic images?
- The photographs incorporate home for him in the form of memories, how have those memories being transferred?
- How has he incorporated his culture into this work?
- What has been photographed along with food and why?
- What other photographic 'stories' has he told through photography?
- Answer the questions
- Choose two more images from the above series to analyse.
- How would you plan to create such a series?
- What kind of props could you use?
- How could your home, memories and culture be incorporated into a series of photographic images.
- What would you use to represent memory, home when you photograph a similar scene?
- Write a proposal for a photo series using people that you are close to. What items do you think of when you think of them?
- They could be friends, and family.
- How could this series be photographed? With available light, studio lights?
Niall McDiarmid
London-based Scottish photographer Niall McDiarmid finds beauty in the simplicity of daily ritual in his recently published photo book, “Breakfast.”
Shot over the course of four years, the series took shape as a completed project during COVID lockdown. Drawn to the subtle shifts in light, texture, and colour each day, McDiarmid photographs the unintentional compositions of the breakfast table. “For me, breakfast is a thoughtful time, a time of reflection,” he explains. “It is also a time to contemplate the day ahead and to believe that better times are coming. As Ian Fleming wrote, ‘Hope makes a good breakfast. Eat Plenty of it.
Boooooom.com
Shot over the course of four years, the series took shape as a completed project during COVID lockdown. Drawn to the subtle shifts in light, texture, and colour each day, McDiarmid photographs the unintentional compositions of the breakfast table. “For me, breakfast is a thoughtful time, a time of reflection,” he explains. “It is also a time to contemplate the day ahead and to believe that better times are coming. As Ian Fleming wrote, ‘Hope makes a good breakfast. Eat Plenty of it.
Boooooom.com
- What do you find interesting about these photographs?
- What do you think of the concept, or the idea behind these photographs?
- Why do you think that the series took so long to photograph?
- Do you think that the images are natural or are they composed? Give reasons for your answer.
- Are the similarities within each frame?
- Can you see the subtle differences?
- What elements within the photographs tie them together as a sequence of images?
- If you could choose two visual elements within each image that the photographer has chosen to focus on what would they be?
- Which is your favourite photograph of this series? Why did you choose that photograph?
- What questions would you like to ask the photographer about this series?