Lens Based Media

In Lens Based Media, we explored a variety of activities surrounding the subject. During photography research at the start of the week I learnt the importance of light and angles in relation to taking a successful photo. Through a series of exercises we focused on symmetry/line/pattern and texture in order to create an image that would have a long lasting effect with the audience. These tasks made me look at my surroundings more closely, to notice things that I usually would not have taken into consideration when taking a photo.

 The light is not overpowering in this image, the mannequins mimic each others actions which emphasizes a strong symmetrical element in the photo. At the same time the focal point becomes the arms as they showcase the asymmetrical aspect of the image. Symmetry in photos can help create an overall balanced feel, While an asymmetrical component would become centre focus.













Line and angle is being explored in this image. The presence of the yellow structure becomes the focus, the thinner rods grouped to the right parallel the left. This leads the viewer upwards while the diagonal wires bring back the attention to the lower half of the image.

Playing with material and light, the plastic cup helped create an abstract image. Featuring different patterns , the water droplets lead the viewer up while the horizontal lines create an opposing effect. The lower half is darker and heavy with pattern while the upper half features less pattern and more light, The two sides balance each other out, emphasizing the use of geometric shapes and light can help create an abstract effect.  

The image is very horizontal in the way the harsh texture on the bark is depicted. I chose a square profile when taking the photo, this allows the cracks to become centre point. In addition the over exposure of light enhances the dry feel of the rough texture. 

Using these techniques we brought in images of our own that helped portray particular emotions. The feedback I received from others was that I could have used more lighting in my photo that depicted Happy, as the darker tones may have created the opposite effect. My intention for an image could have come across clearer in terms of Happy and Sad. However since they are subjective emotions,that also needs to be taken into consideration. 

Happy

Fall

Crush

Jump

Echo

Sad

During a lecture we looked into the power of narrative. The basic formula being a problem arising and there being a resolution by the end. The characters' journey in solving the issue becomes the main foundation of a story. We looked at how film can emotionally effect an audience and ways to create this effect. The most important components to consider is character/location/action. As a team my group created a suspenseful short story meant to cause confusion and intrigue with the audience. We did this through a dark location which was designed to amplify the suspense and use of camera lighting. Something I found quite challenging was coming up with solid narrative and finding a good location within an hour, this task helped improve on my time managing skills. As we were losing light we had to improvise by using flash lights, this later became a key element in the story development. The story begins with a girl running from an unknown source, it is revealed that she may have been under the influence of drugs which would explain her anxious behaviour.  There is an over all ambiguity and suggestiveness to the story as the girls eyes are glowing (this was an effect from the flash lights that we incorporated into the resolution of the narrative). After she drops her phone there seems to be a light blocking the view which was a technique used to break up the scenes of the one take clip. The story ends with the girl lying in her own paranoia, there remains an air of mystery with an open ending to the narrative. The audience are faced with two possibilities, she was actually under the influence of drugs or there might have been something chasing her. It was definitely challenging to take into consideration location,lighting,camera angles, character and story plot in a short amount of time.

Through photography and use of camera angles we were asked to create a narrative that ended with some kind of reveal. 1st frame revealed an abstract image of some kind of organic form, the photo was zoomed in and cropped to invoke intrigue. The 2nd frame reveals a form with black and white fur, the monochromatic tones may suggest something of a sinister nature (the lack of light adds to this). The ambiguity of the same form continues over to the 3rd frame, the viewer is not given any additional information therefore tension is built. By the 4th frame the audience is confronted with a zoom up profile of a cat staring back. The previous frames feel voyeuristic as it showed the audience were looking at close up images of the cat , its appears as if the cat has caught them in on it. The 5th frame is a little larger than the others to emphasize the importance of the interaction between human and animal. The gentle nature of the cat is showcased, alternatively the hand could represents the viewer reconciling with the cat, showing a resolution has been found. The last frame was kept simple, a plant stands beside her to suggest her small size and to reinforce the fact that the object was an ordinary house cat. These still frames were designed to play with the viewers imagination through use of lighting, delayed reveals and zoom.

1st Frame

2nd Frame 

3rd Frame

4th Frame

5th Frame

6th Frame

 In our Friday talk we reviewed what made a good animation. I found forms that took on human characteristics were able to leave a stronger response as an audience could relate to it easier. In moving picture the standard is 25 frames per second, our task was to create a stop motion animation in response to what we learnt. In pairs we created 10 frame scenes, my stop motion depicted a planet inhabited by a gardener. I incorporated  narrative structure we learnt previously in the week, metamorphosis was included as the planet changed and the flowers grew. Condensation was used with the suggestiveness that the rocks gradually created a small world. The rocks and build up of a growing planet represented the effect of time and growth, symbolic association was used. To improve the stop motion I would have added more colour and sound to create a more realistic effect of a structure morphing. 

Tate Modern Exhibtion

The room which stood out to me the most was the Jane Alexander:African Adventure 1992-2002. It focuses on the relationship between Europe and Africa. After the apartheid in South Africa, there was an increase in demand for tours around Cape Town. These were named 'African Adventure' , Alexander uses the title in a similar fashion and takes the audience for a tour of Europe's darker history with Africa. The floor of the piece is what stood out to me the most because it juxtaposed with the grey anamorphic figures. The red soil was meant to visually link to the infertile land of the (Khoisan people) in South Africa, the vibrancy of the colour I found to be very dominate and almost overpowering to the eye. Overall the work includes various themes of colonialism to religious rites, Alexander stated the piece didn't particularly have a political or moral message. The installation piece could be seen as three dimensional collage with the grey figures adding to the ambiguity of the art.

Utopia

Through artist research of Hieronymus Bosch and the exhibitions I visited, led me to create an object that protects my idea of Utopia. Inside the clear bottle I used, the strips of plastic cup represents water. The broken leaves stuck between, shows the element air, while the acorns show the potential for growth. Later on I added yellow wool to sit on the upper half of the bottle to symbolize the sun, while the silver flower in the centre of the bottle juxtaposed with the wool to represent earth. I chose a clear bottle so that it would be visually reminiscent of a message bottle.








Amongst the final placements, the bottle was placed in front of a large wheel covered with its own ideas of Utopia. Visually my final object was small in comparison to the others work, this was to emphasise that amongst the 'city' the idea of balance between mankind and nature was lost. The objects placed together is almost like a Bosch painting, showing the chaos of man made creations.

State of Mind Exhibition

The exhibit focused on the brain, it looked into cognitive functions such as memory or decision making. One of the key aspects the exhibit questioned, was how conscious were humans.Under anaesthetic, patients were able to still be concious but become numbed in a specific location. This stood out to me as it made me question what other parts of the brain could we numb, such as the part that deals with emotions. 

Another section which looked into the mind was of this woman who awoke from a coma to be left with a severe case of amnesia. She described her memory like a tree with broken branches, they just stopped. This could also be seen as a metaphor for modern mankind and their connection with the earth, the increase of feeling disconnected to our environment. Like that woman she felt a loss of self, in turn she did not have the same bonds with the people she knew before the accident. This made me think of the modern age and a loss of community spirit that used to be more obvious, before technology rose. 

Engineering the World: Ove Arup and the Philosophy of Total Design

Ove Arup (1895-1988), used his past interests of philosophy and engineering to help inform his works. He reinforced the importance of there being a balance between the beauty of design while keeping in mind the function of the structure. The idea of 'Total design' was Arup connecting architectural ways of working with engineering, which allowed him to create some of the most ambitious structures of the 20th century. I  found that the most intriguing part of the exhibition was the 'doodles' Arup made over his project briefs. It revealed he must have had a wandering mind and a vivid imagination. The figures created were almost abstract but drawn showing organic forms in fluid shapes. This fluidity of shapes and natural forms can be seen in Arups larger works such as the Royal Opera house with the shell like roof structure. What informed my own ideas was his ability to take inspiration from nature, like the wooden exhibition roof structures he called 'leaves' and create new works of engineering. Arups goal was to use his philosophy of Total Design to help benefit modern society, in his own way he was striving to make his image of Utopia a reality.