ANALYSIS- WILLIAM EGGLESTON- 'BLEED AMERICA'

I first saw William Eggleston’s photograph when actually looking at the album art for the Jimmy Eat World record, ‘Bleed American’. Only after reading the title of the album, it was then that I began to understand what the photograph connotes. William Eggleston was one of the first photographers to use color film, at the time of which was considered amateur. However, when beginning to produce his work, and even further enhancing the colors in post production/ the darkroom, Eggleston had began to make it possible for color film to be taken seriously alongside the classic and iconic black and white photography. The photograph displays trophies, a connotation of the obsession of rivalry the USA has to be the best, whether it is with their military, their politics or as a county made for the ‘free’. The image itself seems very haunting in the way in which the trophies loom over the jukebox, a connotation of the way in which these mass achievements over take other mediums, such as radio and media outlets. The photograph is meaningful in the way in which it documents the obsession of both power and success the USA has become. The record later was changed to ‘Jimmy Eat World’, as it was due for release at the same time 9/11 had taken place. 

RANKIN- VIDEOGRAPHER AND PHOTOGRAPHER

Rankin has become one of the most celebrated photographers and videographers within contemporary art. Having worked with the likes of The Rolling Stones and Queen Elizabeth II, Rankin has developed the standards for editorial photography. Having began work as a photographer when in university, Rankin would later develop this passion of imagery in to one of the most important journals in fashion, creating DAZED & CONFUSED magazine. The use of nature can be seen in most of Rankin’s fashion work, and it can either be to obscure the image, or whether it is to represent the natural side of things. For example Rankin used the colour white frequently throughout his campaign ‘Dove: Real Beauty’, where he photographed and also filmed women with different types of bodies, to encourage confidence. Rankin often uses a studio setup, whether it is in a studio or on location- something that can be an influence within my own work because of the way in which it will allow me to create editorial standard photographs no matter what type of photography I am working with. As well as being an editorial photographer, Rankin is also a videographer, having created music videos for the likes of Example and Marina & The Diamonds. In all of his videos he looks at the concept of fantasy and horror, of which he then still combines with the same styling as fashion photography. 

AUDREY HEPBURN- A WOMAN'S ICON

When looking at other representations of identity when it came to gender, I was drawn to the actress, Audrey Hepburn. Having been one of the most iconic actresses to emerge since Marilyn Monroe, Hepburn has been seen as a definition of the female icon during the golden age of cinema. In films such as Breakfast At Tiffany's and Sabrina, Hepburn represents a strong and independent woman, whilst still following stereotypes of the hopeless romantic. Hepburn was also seen as a fashion icon, reinventing the classy look of dresses whilst still upholding a casual look to it. Her work dominated Hollywood, by reinventing the female actress. In works such as ‘The Children’s Hour’, she would play the first lesbian role, an issue that at the time seemed taboo within media. This was however very controversial from her role in Breakfast At Tiffany’s, where she described herself as ‘playing a hooker’. The range of roles allowed female actresses to broaden their horizons within cinema, whilst still following the traditional roles of women in cinema. Hepburn was also a huge part of UNICEF, and her charitable work allowed her to gain more recognition for fighting for those less fortunate. Overall, Hepburn was one of the first female icons to not only receive mass recognition due to a successful career, but at the same time reinvent the female image in cinema.

ANALYSIS: SHEPARD FAIREY- PROPAGANDA GIANT

I was first exposed to the work of Shepard Fairey when my older brother began working in graphics. Fairy’s work is mostly known for OBEY Clothing, however most of his work he reiterates is propaganda, whether it is looking at the ideology he was raised on via punk bands such as The Sex Pistols, or whether it is working on campaign work for Obama, the president of the United States. Similar to the work of Banksy, Fairy’s work has a lot of political influence, and often concentrates on contemporary social and political issues. For example in the below campaign against NRA, Fairey talks about how people need to speak out against the freedom to carry weapons and arms within the USA without a background check first. The use of the word devil is really important, especially with the USA having such a large background in Christianity, something that is a foundation for most of the politics of the country. His work itself often uses a pallet of a few colours, of which one will be used for the outline, then the rest will be used for shading and adding in finer detail, almost similar to tattoo flash. Overall, the work of Shepard Fairey is both interesting in the way in which is has a very certain style often seen in modernism, and yet at the same time consults contemporary issues.

ANALYSIS- OLLY MOSS

The main reason as to why I was drawn towards the work of Olly Moss is because of his medium. Throughout his career he has been commissioned by major film companies to create screen prints for films, but similar to the work of a lot of contemporary art, Moss finds a way in which he is able to tell the narrative through an almost simple design. For example in the below Star Wars trilogy, he has not necessarily looked at following the traditional route of creating a design showing space, but instead has used a silhouette of one of the most significant characters from each of the films, before filling the silhouette with a vast amount of detail that tells the narrative of each film. This has been extremely successful because of the way in which it helps tell the narrative of the film without having to storyboard each and every scene. He also uses bold colours, throughout his work, it is dominantly blue or red, both colours remaining mutual within his work, and yet at the same time red can be used in horror film posters, whilst greens, like seen below, are used to represent the forestry, the setting and scenery of that film. 

ANALYSIS: BANKSY

Banksy has become one of the most iconic graffiti and street artists in contemporary art. Although we do not know who he actually is, Banksy’s works has become iconic and even a household name over the years. His work will use the surroundings of the city of London, where he will then convey a political image, or connote ideas about modern day society. For example in the below image, two men are carrying away a TV through a painted window, Banksy has used the actual window to mirror the one he created, to almost add a sense of realism to it. The piece was created shortly after the London riots last summer, and similar to the riots, Banksy tells the narrative of the looting that took place. His work is normally placed in places where it can get attention, and with its bold lettering and also the use of police (often comical), rats (often representing the public), and televisions (often broken), Banksy’s work documents his views on society and current political affairs. What makes his work that of a genius, and what also interests me the most, is wanting to know how he has managed to create these pieces of art without ever being caught. His work can be seen all over the country, and influences many street artists today to speak out against the current government and society.

  

ANALYSIS: BRUNO MUNARI

When choosing who’s work to document, I was drawn to the work of Bruno Munari because of the way in which he will take inanimate objects and give them almost a personality. For example his project based around fingers and the human figure, was documented and created across many different artistic platforms, whether it were photographing the bent forks, or then screen printing designs which showed the forks as hands. A lot of his work has a very social approach, in the way in which it connotes and documents the interaction between two objects in the same way two people would. His work also concentrated on a lot of different surrealism ideas and theories, in the way in which we are challenged to look at different perspectives that are warped, whether this was sculptures built by him, or whether he would photograph the reflections on spoons and other warped surfaces. His graphics have become distinctive in the way in which like many post modernism artists, he used block colours and shapes to build his designs. For example, his designs of the flamingos are basic, and yet accompanied by a specific text, they suddenly have an a lot more in depth meaning. 

ANALYSIS: JOY DIVISION- UNKNOWN PLEASURES ARTWORK

It is one of the most successful pieces of album art ever to be produced. The New Romantics saw artists and bands such as Gary Newman, and Joy Division emerge, music that romanticized the idea of death, pain and also the beauty of life. It was the first time music had an image that was both clean and dark, and this would later be the influence behind the art of musicians such as Marilyn Manson. The artwork for ‘Unknown Pleasures’ was taken from the Cambridge book of astronomy, and represents the first pulses and movements found in space. However, Joy Division used this to connote the concepts of the record, and so this became the representation of a heart beat, and showing it’s many different speeds, dependent on the excitement of what was going on. It has since become of the most iconic pieces of artwork, and I would find this relevant to my own work in the way in which I want one simple image to tell a narrative, whilst at the same time give itself it’s own sense of identity. The artwork has not only become the identity of Joy Division, but the depressing yet very dark image, and identity of the New Romantics. 

ANALYSIS OF A PORTRAIT- JJ PETERS BY TOM BARNES

I decided when looking at the work of photographers who were relevant to my degree, that one portrait stood out to me the most, and this was Tom Barnes’ portrait of JJ Peters.  The main reason however, as to why I chose this specific photograph is because of the way in which he adds a sense of identity to the image. Within the work, you can begin to see the subject’s face in full detail, and as you begin to look at the portrait, you see the cymbals tattooed to his face, as well as the numbering. The numbering is often something seen in gangs, but asides this, JJ Peters has this tattoo as a cymbal of a crew he belongs to- had Barnes photographed him facing on towards the camera, we would have not have seen these tattoos that are a huge part of his identity. The portrait is haunting in the way in which he is also looking to the camera, and because of this, it’s almost as if his expression connotes his serious personality, and in many ways begins to make for a more intimidating photograph.  Tom Barnes also used medium format film, a medium that enables the photographer to capture vasts amount of detail, an important aspect when shooting portraits. 

GENDER IDENTITY- VOGUE

As an editorial photographer, I always find it is important to add a sense of identity to my work, and it is also something that remains extremely important within editorial photography. I decided to look at one of the strongest examples of identity within the female gender when it comes to editorial, and this is the classic fashion magazine, VOGUE. As you can see from the Vogue cover (below, left) they have always highlighted the main features of a woman’s face and body, whether it is the curves, or the lips and eyes- parts of the female body that are considered to be seductive, and connotes female dominance, and also beauty. The covers always concentrate on the face, allowing us to look more in depth at the more feminine features such as the eyes, mouth and cheek bones- in many ways defining these women as goddesses. The fonts and colours used are always light and bright, something found in women’s fashion, but also many of the classic covers pre-color printing, have very high contrasts adding a glamour look to the cover. VOGUE has become defined as being part of the female gender because of it’s importance it plays in fashion- a large part of the female identity.

MODERNISM- 'THE MACHINE'- V&A MUSEUM

When looking at modernism, I was drawn to the way it documented almost a desire for a new Utopia following the destruction caused by the First World War. One of the ways in which the people looked for a development in the quality of life, was through 'The Machine'. For modernism, I decided I would look at various exhibitions at the Victoria & Albert museum in London. I found that the exhibition, showed modernist designers seeing mechanization and rationalism as a way of improving society. The concept of technology, was not only to advance in to something that man did not think was possible before, but to create functional yet beautiful designs, that would set the standards for modern design, both in the likes of furniture and architecture, as well as the mass idea of production to create art, rather than just creating one artistic piece. This technology allowed us to create further forms of art with the development of photographic technology. The wireless radio, was seen as almost an icon in modernism design, because it now allowed the use of radio technology to be broadcast-ed within the home, whilst still being designed as a form of art, often seen in the wooden framing, most of which the imagery depicted a peaceful life- something that seemed in more demand than ever following the war.

SEMIOTICS- TWITTER

Social Networking has become a massive part of both communication and marketing. It has become extremely important for these companies to make sure that their brand not only stands out and is eye catching, but also connotes the right message and ideology. The Twitter emblem can be seen as a strong representation of not only this company, but the use of the bird being a connotation for the way in which messages are sent back and forth. Throughout history birds have been used as messengers, not only as messengers, but important ones. This gives the viewer the impression that their messages can be sent directly to the person they want, and yet at the same time, there is also the message of freedom of speech. Birds are not only seen as messengers, but seen as a sign of peace and with this comes, freedom of speech. The semiotics then connote that the users are not restricted by what they can say and have the freedom of speech. However, the logo also follows a pattern seen in most social network symbols these days, and this is the dominant use of the colour blue. The same colour scheme of black, white and blue can be seen on different social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Tumblr- connoting the connection between these sites furthering the concept of communication.