Born in 1938 Boskovice ( former Czechoslovakia) Josef Koudelka is a photographer who's work I greatly admire. This is mainly due to the photographs he took of Romany people throughout Eastern Europe. His first book titled 'Gypsies' was published in 1975 and is my favourite to date. In it hes shows the journey he took through gypsy communities, exploring the customs and traditions of the Roma people, a people that were and still are greatly outcast from modern society.
Documenting them through all of life occasions such as weddings, funerals, some hard times and some good. He manages to capture their true emotions so that they for the first time can be understood as people, rather than judged as outlaws. Above I have placed two of my favoutire phtogoraphs one of which was taken at a funeral and higlights a tragic moment for a famiily. Yet is heart capturing becuase of the beautifully white light shining down on the body that etchines out the faces and emotions of the people standing by.
Also I have included another of Koudelkas photographs that was taken at a wedding were by the gypsies took to the streets to play their instruments; something they were know greatly for and took pride in.
Man Rays' work could be labeled a modernist approach to photography because of his attentive detail to form, structure, composition and lighting. He looks at the subject as shapes and lines; as a visual structure.
Man Ray took the photograph above called 'Larmes' in Paris 1930. This was at the time of the break up with his then Lover Lee Miller. It can be said the false tears maybe in some what in relation to his emotions and situation at the time.
As you can see this photograph is a film still and visualises a new style of photographic genre that is not concerned with what is real and factual, but more about the conceptual idea behind the image.
Figure 1 AIDS – Davis Kirby 1992. Photo: Courtesy of the United Colors of Benetton website
The United Colors of Benetton are a hugely successfully Italian based clothing company that always aim to make a statement and raise awareness in their advertisement campaigns. In 1992 they used this photograph of David Kirby dying of HIV AIDS(see figure 1). Its aim: to raise awareness of AIDS worldwide, and to get people talking about a topic that still today remains a taboo matter in many countries.
Though what is wrong with this image? Well German Appeal courts got the advertisement banned all together in Germany, having claimed that,
“Benetton is trying, through its depiction of the intense suffering of living things, to evoke a feeling of compassion on the part of the consumer, and to suggest that it is sympathetic," the court wrote. "In this way, Benetton tries to enhance its name and its business in the mind of the consumer."
Also adding that the advertisement, “strips HIV-positive people of their dignity.”
It is difficult determine whether or not the company is sincere about their reasons behind the campaign, or if they are in fact exploiting someone else’s pain for the benefit of company profit. Though the answer is impossible to know. What is definite though is that some moments are too sensitive to expose, such as this one. To think if you knew someone that was dying or had died of AIDS would you really want advertisements like this posted all over the world? Showing an image of a weak and frail person who has some what lost their dignity and the ability to live. I am sure that is not how people want to remember their loved ones, nor be remembered. Rather figure_ can be viewed as a form of shock tactic,an advertisement that digs deep for cheap emotional manipulation, rather than a source of truth and new awareness.
Diane Arbus was a Jewish - American fashion photographer turned documentary photographer, born in 1923 New York City. I have to say I love her work its truely depressing and gritty. She chose to photograph people that where anything but ordinary, so called 'freaks' of society. Anything from dwarfs, transvestites and circus performers to the mentally ill.
She would follow these people day and night and catch them when they were off guard and most vulnerable, because they had begun to trust her.
She has been criticized by art critiques such as Susan Sontag. One being for her choice of lighting when photographing her subjects such as the one in the portrait above. Arbus did anything but beautify the person in the image.
"These photographs show the world only as a meaningless place of ugliness, horror and misery." Smith, C. Zoe. "Audience Reception of Diane Arbus' Photographs." Journal of American Culture, volume 8, issue 1, pages 13-28, Spring 1985.
She used a harsh flash creating a dark carved shadow around the person; further enhancing any unflattering features. So forth not giving a fair representation of them and the 'people' they represent within society.
Above I have also chosen a photograph Arbus took in a Psychiatric hospital of a few of the patients. She truly makes them look like a bunch of freaks; photographing them with paper bags on their heads. You can question the ethical stand point on this as she is photographing people that aren't of sound mind. She is coming in to their seemingly 'safe' and 'protected' environment and photographing them at their worst.
Though Arbus cannot be criticised to full extent as she to suffered from mental health problems. She was Bi - Polar and suffered from severe mood swings and bouts of depression. Leading to her death at the age of 48; suicide by ingesting barbiturates and slitting her wrists.
When I think of feminism I think of bra burning and hairy hippies, though the truth is feminism is far from that. Its more about equality for women and the end to primitive views and laws that belittle women universally.
A group of woman calling themselves 'The Guerrilla Girls,' were a group of radical feminist artists who established themselves in 1985 New York. Disguised as guerrillas they managed to remain anonymous. These women weren't stupid they where lawyers, accountants, business woman. They targeted the prejudices women faced in the art world regarding the lack of female artists work present in galleries in New York and America. They did this by designing catchy posters covered with facts and statistics regarding the matter such as,
'Less than 5% of the artists in the Met's modern art sections were women, but 85% of the nudes were female.'
These posters where spread all across New York, on buses, on billboards and even in galleries. The Guerrilla girls wanted to provoke thought in people and inevitably create change. They did this is in a clever manner using sharp and tact full facts that would be recognised in a male dominant world.
Below I have posted a video that I once saw of the 'Ali G,' (Sacha Baron Cohen) conducting an interview with a feminist, this cracked up. It also put forth some off the chauvinistic (in this case exaggerated) views that men can have too and about women.
On the 14th of April Britney Spears did something no other celebrity seems to have done before, by releasing the untouched original photographs for her Candies (the American fashion firm) Advertisments. Apparentley
'The 29 - year old singer made the extraordinary move in order to higlight the pressure exerted on women to look perfect.' -
We all know images are used through out the media to sell an idea of perfection that people can then buy in to, in hope that they to can be just as perfect as the person in the photograph. Though to me the images Britney released don't seem to expose to much of a flaw on the woman. I would say the statement she was trying to make was one of ' look at me I don't need to be airbrushed I'm a fine figure of a female without all this retouching,' in response to the negative press coverage on her image over the few years. Rather than it being a way to highlight the pressue put on woman to look perfect. The original photographs although with some flaws inact such as brusing to Britneys legs and a sligher wider waste line, still show a figure that is admirable and a very unrealistic representation of the average females figure. The images she has released don't address the point of a how manipulative the media can be through the use of technology; to a satistifcatory enough extent. Her photographs in now way show the extreme and vast way a image can be altered in order to achieve the unreachable perfection, that people are being sold.
Now when I heard about what she had done I expected something quite drastic in the case of re touching before and after. So I've done a little expermentating of my own and produced a different version of the images using Photoshop that I would have thought to have had much more of an impact if the idea really was to 'highlight the pressure put on women to look perfect.'
Now this would have been a real 'statement.' She still looks good, still has a slim yet curvy figure but just with a little more meat on her bones. A much more realistic image of a womans body for females to 'aspire towards,' or see the next time they open a magazine or on a lingerie or bathing suite ad. Becuase after all Britney's only 8st stone, so really how bad could she possibly look before airbrushing...?
Nan Goldin is a photographer whose work has been of much contoversy due to its context and credibility. Born in Washington D.C to a Jewish family and growing up in Boston, most of her work is documentary work based around the gay and transexuals communities. A self proclaimed drug addict and alcoholic, Nan once didn't go outside for 15 years. Having mental health problms herself her life was spent in out of psychiatric wards. Her photographs are a some what self portrait of her own view of life. Being graphic, raw and at times unpredictable no wonder they where a shock to the mainstream photographical industry of her time. Like the photograph above, many of her images where taken of transgender males in and out of clubs but mostly in their homes. Goldin's friends were mainly gay or transsexual; drug users and alcoholics. But at that time drugs and alcohol such as cocaine and crack were blindly used for recreational purposes. Goldin knew her subjects very well so her photographs are both a documentation of her life and experiences with the people around her. They are not planned and rarely contrived, being sometimes blurry and out of focus her photographical skills are made to be questioned by critiques. As to why these simple images deserve any technical credibility or recognition. Though her photographs target the issues that other photographers were too scared to address such as gays and transsexuals and the HIV AIDS virus that was plaguing their community. Therefore being an eye opener to the hidden world of her time; painting a page in history that would have otherwise gone un noticed.
Ok. So seriously how healthy can packaged mass produced food be?
Hmmmm... my guess is not very.
If it's bought in 2010 and goes out of date in 2011 I doubt it is as 'fresh' and 'nourishing' as its producers would like us the 'consumer' believe.
Though the latest advert from McCain oven chips would beg to differ, and fair play to them as one of their recent adverts is a supreme piece of marketing work.
When I first saw the advert I thought "wow, this is amazing, nothing like any other major food company advert I've seen before; very imaginative." They've narrated the advert as though it is a short film, telling the story of how a variety of McCain potatoe products are 'created.' With the key message being ' it's all good.' As in the ingredients are simple, natural and good for you.
Semiotics 'the study of signs and symbols, what they mean and how they are used.' - Cambridge dictionary.
Semantics 'Relation between signs and the things to which they refer; their denotata.' - wikipedia
This advert speaks through images. Set in and old picturesque country barn, the scene couldn't be any more perfect. By choosing this setting the manufacturers are trying to imply that their goods are organic, and produced by local farmers in the surrounding country side. This is instinctively British, it rules out any questions people might have about where McCains ingredients are sourced. It's British, British and proud, something that would be very appealing to potential consumers. Automatically boosting the credibility of McCain foods, they now represent quality rather than quantity, dismissing rival brands and their comparatively inadequate massed produced products.
The machine used to make the potato goods is more like an old exquisite invention rather than giant metal structure, we would have perceived to be used in production. It's sweet and clever. Appealing to kids it draws upon a fairy tale like feeling where by every detail adds a little bit of magic to the food, from the way the potato wedges are seasoned to the soft blow of herbs on top. Making their chips special and a must have for children watching. Its target audience are both children and adults. Enticing kids with the thought of the fun and excitement that is implied in their products, and persuading adults with a charismatic, smart and defyingly healthy food advert.
This advert for the campaign which I found in a magazine, is equally charming. It uses a human touch, one that is more approachable and therefore sympathetically appealing to the viewer.It does this by use of an illustrative narrative, rather than the use of standard photo-graphical images that are repetitively see throughout the media in advertisment. Making McCain unique, and more importantly remeberable for the next time your down at the supermarket choosing what to buy.
'The Worlds Most Dangerous Place for Women,' Broadcasted on BBC3 Tuesday 30th March 2010
A while ago I was looking at some photographs by Italian photographer Daniele Tamagni of present day Sapeurs in the Congo. These men where so well dressed and presented and gave a great insight into a particular society and culture that is upheld within the Republic of Congo. I saw the BBC where doing a set of documentary films dubbed 'Women, Weddings War and Me.' Whereby people visited their country of birth after a lifetime away in England. To discover customs, tradtitions and a culture that they were now alien too. One of the documetaries was to be set in The Congo. Where Judith Wanga a 23year old woman who was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo but grew up in London returns to her place of birth, visiting the parents who sent her away to England as a baby for reasons that she is yet to truely understand. The documentary is not for the faint hearted. It tells of the way women are treated within a war torn country. Whereby rape and sexual abuse is a weapon commonly used on women and children of all ages; to brutal affect. The Congo is a country enriched with natural resources and as soldiers and rebel groups fight over diamond and mineral mines, there is no limit to the torture being induced upon Congo's women. This pays great comparision to the world you see in the images of Tamagni's Sapeurs 'Gentlemen of Bocongo. ' Revealing the faces and lives behing the women of Congo.
Within this poverty, he says, there is a strong desire to assert and prove that Africans can be stylish. "This is not what we usually see in the media. Plus, they are true gentlemen: they are gentle and polite.” The Sapeurs, in his view, have transformed clothing into an art form.
Daniele Tamagni, an Italian photographer first published his book 'Gentlemen of Bancongo,' in late 2009. The London and Naples based photographer travelled to the African republic of Congo to photograph the Sapeurs. The Sapeurs are men and even on occasion women that choose to follow by the culture of La SAPE, 'La Société des Ambianceurs et des Personnes Élégantes.' AKA, 'The Society of Ambianceurs and Elegant People.' Whereby they dress in a very stylish, rich and elegant manner even in surroundings of extreme poverty. This dress code first came about when the French where in power over Congo, and the European flair and style started to influence some of the natives sense of fashion. In a way the men 'sapeurs,' like the ones pictured above would have been initially been trying to state the point that they are equal and just as dignified; through the clothes they wear and therefore the status they possess, as their predescessing European rulers. It's a form or regaining power and respect at a time when you have least control. What is interesting about these photographs is the way the men act as a human oxymoron to their surrounding environment. Around them you can see poverty in everything, through the basic clothes people are wearing, to the dirt tarnished streets. Yet the Sapuers or shall I say 'Dandies,' still find it appropriate to constantly dress in such a manner. Even it means going without food or sleeping on the streets. This seems to be not just a dress code, but a moral one. As one sapuer says in Tamagni's book
2. “We respect other people, we don’t like war, we like peace, and we have a moral code that is very Christian.”
Well, whatever they are trying to do they sure do leave a touch of curiosity lingering in the air. So much so that they are invited to appear at weddings, birthdays and funerals. As they have become somewhat the local celebrities.
But this style isn't just present in Africa and Europe, its already headed into the mainstream with many 'real celebrities,' adorning the dandy dress code.
Take for instance P diddy's ex personal assistant Fonzworth bentley, who now runs his own MTV show called, ' From G's to Gent's.' Where he teaches so called 'thugs' and 'gangstas' how to dress and act like true gentlemen. With their style of dress being heavily influenced by Sapeurs and 19th century British Dandy men.
Thankyou Tesco! Finally an advert that actually advertises the product and not some idealistic world we can buy into.
I was so happily suprised when I first saw this Tesco advert. At the begining I was thinking hmm, another one of those over extravagent ridiculously deep and meaningfull adverts that is going to sell me something like a phone or a loaf of bread. So I thought to myself let me wait and see what it will be (becuase as usual the advert barely relates to the product, so only time will tell). But no, Tesco surpassed expectations when they gave their advert a twist and let simple and basic fact speak for itself.
Now lets look at the clover advert
Ok I'm not trying to take the piss but since when was butter this impotant in any of our lives that it could reduce a person to tears?! Come on talk about manipulative advertising bullshit! So lets see, the adverts all about family, about being with your loved ones, about warm tender memories... hmm wait for it, wait for it o yeah and BUTTER!!
Let me just get this straight maybe my family will be as happy as the mother and son in the advert, and I will be as touched as the woman eating the sandwich on the train. All I have to do is buy this butter and my life will change.
It must be one of those shock tactics, I tell you! You know like marmite ' you either love it or hate it.' Becuase Georgia May Jagger is the new face of Rimmel at the moment.
Uhh hmm.. (hate!)
The first time I turned the page of a magazine and saw her mug staring back at me I thought this must be some kind of joke. How could Rimmel be using such a distinctively striking model, and I mean distinctive for all the wrong reasons. It wasn't until after, I found out who she is. The daughter of the renowned lead vocalist of The Rolling stones, Mick Jagger himself. Georgia is some what of an it girl, a rich socialite that young girls aspire to be. Sort of the British version of Paris Hilton. So now it came as no suprise to me, as to why Rimmel would want to use her face, along with her trade mark 'gap tooth,' to sell their brand to the masses.
I mean if she's wearing Rimmel colour show off lipstick, then shouldn't every other aspiring young city girl be wearing it too..? Won't wearing their brand make you more popular, glamourous and successfull just like Jagger herself? Not to forget, indvidual...
...hmm yeah.
Well, thats what Rimmel would like us to believe and buy into. From looking at the world around us seems like its works.
People say an act of infidelity by a partner is enough to make anyone commit murder. For one of my briefs I was given the task of shooting a set of images in the style of a specific film genre; my chosen one being Film Noir.
It can bring out a side in you, you never knew exsited. When the reflection looking back at you is one you no longer recognise.
So this is my first post. Finally after years of following peoples blogs, and reading in admiration at how they have visually and literally documented their lives, views and opinions; I have finally succumb to this ever growing trend in writing my own blog.
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