Visual Exploration: WK2: NARRATIVE

ANALYSIS

Moving on, in the afternoon our discussion on our assigned text was very interesting. The group was a split into pairs, and each was set ten pages of Cotton's second chapter, mine being p.55-65. From the basic gist and glance over of the chapter, it was indicated that NARRATIVE plays a giant part of contemporary photography. Charlotte Cotton highlights the devices used to create a story behind an image, such as references to novels, plays and paintings, mixing the dreamlike and surreal with reality, awkward and sinister twists, also giving as little visual information as possible. The following images are some examples that were included in my allocation:

Tom Hunter, The Way Home, 2000

Yinka Shonibare, Diary of a Victorian Dandy 19:00 Hours, 1998

Sarah Dobai, Red Room, 2001

Sharon Lockhart, Group 4 Ayako Sano, 1997

Frances Kearney, Five People Thinking the Same Thing III, 1998

Hannah Starkey, March 2002, 2002

Justine Kurland, Buses on the Farm, 2003

Sarah Jones, The Guest Room (bed) I, 2003

Wendy McMurdo, Helen, Backstage, Merlin Theatre (the glance), 1996

Anna Gaskell, Untitled 59 (by proxy), 1999

SO,

To begin with, I absolutely fell in love with Tom Hunter's 'The Way Home' as it instantly brought me to John Everett Millais' 'Ophelia'. This was orginally based on the fictional heroine from William Shakespear's 'Hamlet', who was driven to insanity through love and heartbreak which lead to her suicide. Knowing this made me very interested in this image, which encouraged me to pick it apart and realise the symbolism and historical motifs behind it. Whats engaging is how the piece reflects the cultural fluctuations in history, as well as adding a modern twist onto a classic piece, by dragging the situations forward into the 21st century. The image suggests a death caused by perhaps a night out or overdose in a busy town by a rail way, noticing little indications of the location is key to causing the viewers to propose questions.

Another example of book referencing and suggestions of fictional characters, is Anna Gaskell's work. Her work involves children relating to stories such as Rudolf Raspe's literary sources as well as foundations of Geneva Jones, however she alters the concepts with obscured haunting faces combined with idea of fetishism and seduction which creates a sinister feel to the photograph.

Yinka Shonibare uses similar devices, imagery that triggers a 'DeJa Vu' of previous historical art works. Sarah Dobai creates a psychological drama with dreamlike qualities, as the scene presented can be nostalgic and instantly build awkwardness and tension. The hidden faces and amateurish poses work well in constructing a ambiance to an image and have become a trend in modern art. This can also be seen in Frances Kearney's work in how his disfigurement tactics cause viewers to feel uneasy with what they are presented with. His work gives us very little information, which causes us to feel frustrated in not fully understanding the concepts behind the photograph. This results in questions to be raised and unanswered, which add levels of surrealism and mystery. Also, this can present an opportunity created by the photographer for the viewer to position themselves into the image itself.

Overall the images covering the ten pages, all focus on producing work of two trends:

1. Historical & Nostalgic Themes

(triggering recognition and deja vu)

2. Apprehension

(situations building an atmosphere and tension)

The other two groups, who were assigned the beginning and end of the chapter, also explained and described their knowledge and understanding of what they had come across, beginning with the first third.

Jeff Wall, Passerby, 1996

Jeff Wall, Insomia, 1994

Jeff Wall was mentioned many times, for his constructed tableaus on unbelievable scales in a snapshot style. His images are never made for a book, as they are usually displayed on walls several feet high and wide on light boxes, creating a experience in viewing the art itself in full effect rather than just seeing the photograph printed. To achieve tremendous detail, he shoots on 10x8 and prints life-size enforcing a staged reality that is heard to be quite intimidating. His narrative are usually devised through his life experiences, such as memories, places and scenarios, all having some reality based foundation from where his creativity comes into play. He tends to challenge the historical idea of photograph being a evidence or a truth, by photographing dangerous and genuine situations which have been precisely crafted to every angle of aesthetics, subverting the real from the hype-real.

The final section of the chapter doesn't illustrate any people, however the environments presented suggest human existence.