Contemporary Practice

Both Karen Knorr and Olivier Richon were two photographers who met in the mid 70s at polytechnic. Britain at the time was going through significant change due to economics, politics and the class struggle. British youth felt they had been forgotten about in many ways. The Glam Rock explosion of the early 70s had ended with bands now gave huge concerts to thousands of fans in football stadiums. They also had orchestras and the bands were huge (ELO and YES). This was considered remote and left a lot of youth feeling neglected who couldn't afford the absorbent prices. Therefore punks wanted to see minimalism in every way. Most punk band would only consist of 4 members and gigs would appear anywhere. This made music more relevant again to the working class and gave the working class hope. After all, culture starts from the bottom and soaks up-punk, blues and rap are testament to this. Working class punk bands such as The Clash started to play in clubs set up specifically...

 The recent brief which involved creativity and risk incorporated into work has lead me to examine lightpainting and those who take part in this style of photography. I have researched a lot of photographers such as Jason Page on Lightpaintingbrushes. com who sell all manor of light painting equipment and give out tutorials online. With the tutorials, I gained a lot of knowledge. However, I could not justify the price of some of the equipment and Brushes. For example, a torch, gels and a brush are priced at $150 so, I improvised and made my own for about £6.  Lightpaintingbrushes. com below.  https://youtu.be/9H1FmRm108Y I added a plastic bottle to the torch and a red jellies plastic paper to a torch and I made lights that can create effects that resemble fire when used. Instead of buying the brush set for $80, I bought a fibre optic lamp for £6 on eBay- which works just as well.  I have gained insight and inspiration from other photographers whose work I wish to exp...

The Great Depression.  Going back to the beginnings of photography, photographers have used the camera or manipulated the image as a way of criticizing the government or financial institutions. Some photographers have worked for the very governments that they are critical of.  A good example was Dorothy Lang " There is a long tradition of documentary photographers working within public administrations. Doretha  Lange’s Migrant Mother (1936) – probably the best-known image of the Great Depression – was taken for the Historical Section of FDR’s (Roosevelts) Farm Security Administration. Like all bureaucrats, Lange faced institutional constraints and her fair share of frustrations. While she learned to navigate public institutions, others chafed against them"  Can Photographers Influence Politics? (e-ir.info) Yet, Lang's image called Migrant Mother would shock the world as her images would be printed in Time Magazine. The notable impact of ...

Post-truth  inspired. Politicians are viewed in a negative light by the electorate.   One thing has been consistent since I began photography in 2017 and that is my interest in political activism. The reason for me starting to learn about photography has been to be able to express my opinion and views through the medium of pictures. I can't draw so it was clear photography would be my avenue. Firstly, I needed to learn the technical aspects of the camera and then I could use this to express myself. My interest in politics started in my teens when I was a punk. I had ideas but I couldn't communicate them until I did a few Open University courses such as art history, social sciences and the humanities. Within the course content were lots of political discourse which interested me no end. After studying this, I could communicate ideas using language, philosophy and theories to others. However, this still wasn't enough.  I enrolled in 2020 on a photography...

  Cristina De Middel The Perfect Man De Middel is a photographer, writer and documentary maker who lives in Mexico. One particular set of images called "The Perfect Man" examines the supposed role of the male in  India. The name takes its title from a Hollywood film starring Charlie Chaplin in 1936.The film deals with the inherent struggle felt by the protagonist living in an industrial modernist society.  "Every April 16 since 1973, in the small town of Adipur in Gujarat, India, ayurvedic practitioner, Charlie Chaplin enthusiast and impersonator Dr. Ashok Aswani has marked the actor’s birthday. What started out as a small homage has turned into the world’s largest Chaplin impersonator convention with around 300 mimics converging on Adipur for the event. When Spanish photographer  Cristina de Middel  read about this incredible event in an in-flight magazine, she thought it would make a fabulous photographic study" The Perfect Man • Cristina d...