Contextual Study Essay

Thursday 25th March 2021

Today the contextual study essay was due, therefore I decided that I should post it here too. I don't remember how much I talked about it before so I will just start afresh.

The brief: This Contextual Studies Assignment is designed to help you demonstrate connections between your studio work and the wider contexts of historic and contemporary art and design. Substantial research is therefore key to success in this unit. We want you to draw parallel between your current & establish research techniques and those required during the FMP.

The task in three sentences is: Write between 500-750 words that reflect the work you have created in stage 1 & 2 of the course. The task is to select an image or series of images of your own work and analyse this work in context of the history of the subject using historical or technical references. Your essay must include a written investigation of an artist that has influenced your work which relates directly or indirectly to a subject, process, or technique.

And that is basically it. I will put my contextual study essay below.

Section 1: Introduce your own work

I think most of my work appears to be a reflection of myself, I try to add something personal to them. A lot of my work has been film because I am trying to portray different stories but the images I have chosen of my work are some of my self-portraits. A self-portrait is a representation of an artist and it can be drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by the artist. The self-portraits were photographed with projected images in the background, using digital projection, as part of a task set for Stage 2. I chose, every time, what I wanted the background to be, the colour and intensity of the lighting, what prop I wanted to incorporate to represent myself, and what the camera settings were. The history of this technique of photography dates to the 1960s. “In the 1960’s John French photographed models with floral and 60s style patterns projected onto their bodies instead of clothes. These black and white prints represent the versatile and exciting possibilities that projections can offer artists and photographers. “ [2]

In the first image (figure 1), it seems like I am looking directly at the camera, but I am not, the picture tells the story of someone who is already used to life and is numb to the changes, but really, that image isn’t me; it doesn’t really mean anything; it is there for the viewer to find their own meaning which is true for image 2 (figure 2) and image 3 (figure 3). They each seem to have a story and are set in different scenes, not exactly like film stills but still with something to tell. I would say that what inspired me with my self-portraits was partly artists like Cindy Sherman and Martin Parr. Having seen their own self-portraits, I think I was inspired by the idea of creating your own world and story through your photographs. When you think about telling a story though media, it is usually a film, but their work breaks that stereotype.

Image 1: Images of your own work (add a title and small description)

Title: Projection Self Portrait #1

Media: Photography Date created: Tuesday 10th November 2020.

Figure 1. First self-portrait image taken with the digital projector.

Title: Projection Self Portrait #2

Media: Photography Date created: Tuesday 10th November 2020.

Figure 2. Second self-portrait image taken with the digital projector.

Title: Projection Self Portrait #3

Media: Photography Date created: Tuesday 10th November 2020.

Figure 3. Self-portrait image taken with an acetate projector.

Section 2: Description and analysis

Cindy Sherman is an artist that I would say closely relates to the Projection Self Portraits in particular, with her ‘Untitled Film Stills’ series she used costumes, make up and lights to create these seemingly recognisable images that “parodies stereotypes of women.”[5] Although my work never really has anything to do with stereotypes, I often experiment with lights and props, testing different things for themes (Figure 4, 5, 6). Out of all her work I think the one that inspired me the most was ‘Untitled Film Still #21’ (Figure 7) which is a gelatine silver print photograph, where “she is the pert young career girl in a trim new suit on her first day in the big city.” [1] Some of her work for the ‘Untitled Film Stills’ series draws from what was popular at the time in culture, movies and soap operas as she showed the stereotypical view of what it was to be a woman in that time, and I think a lot of that still rings true today. The message that “identity lies in appearance and not reality”[5]is still accurate now, meaning that what we show as ourselves often becomes more of who we are more than what we may actually be and make you think about whether so much of life is nothing more than a portrayal, or at least in media. “I remember, as a child, being drawn to shows like I Love Lucy,” she recalls, “but, even then, realising the artifice in them, the goofy sentiment of all those perfect mums with the perfect homes and perfect men. Growing up in the actual suburbs made me look at what was being portrayed and realise that it was fake. So, I was both attracted and repulsed by those films and shows. I think that paradox somehow found its way into the work.” [3]Looking at the work now, I think the meaning then is the same now. There is the theme of feminism, the theme of identity but also, we can have our own idea of what it means to us.

Figure 4. Still from Evening Shadows film based on a painting.

Figure 5. Black and white self-portrait photograph

Figure 6. Self-portrait photograph with coloured lights and projection

Figure 7. Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Still #21 (1978)

Section 3: Summary

The work of Cindy Sherman, particularly ‘Untitled Film Stills’, has inspired a lot of my work. She opened my eyes to a creating photographic scenes and not just capturing the perceived reality. Some parallels I see in our work is our use of props and light to tell a story that isn’t there, whereas I mostly did this with film, I was able to see a way of doing this through photography after seeing Sherman’s work. Both Sherman and I put a bit of ourselves into our works, but the meaning of the work is up to whoever is looking at it, I think.

What I have taken away from this is that I often use film as a way of expressing myself and telling stories but perhaps I should diversify and focus more time into doing this thorough photography like Cindy Sherman. "She showed that even photography allows people to be something they’re not." [4] Photography is usually perceived as containing and showing what is true and real, but I don’t think it has to.

Bibliography

Book

1. The Museum of Modern Art (1999), ‘MoMA Highlights’, New York: The Museum of Modern Art, revised 2004, p. 295, Excerpt available at: https://www.moma.org/collection/works/56618

Online Article

1. Hoppen B.(unknown), ‘The History of Projection Mapping in Fashion Photography’, Available at: https://www.megabooth.com/projection-mapping/

2. O'Hagan S. (2019), ‘Cindy Sherman: I enjoy doing the really difficult things that people can’t buy’, The Guardian, Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/jun/08/cindy-sherman-interview-exhibition-national-portrait-gallery

3. Unknown, ‘Untitled Film Still #21’, 100 Photos, Available at: http://100photos.time.com/photos/cindy-sherman-untitled-film-still-21

Videos

1. Art History 101 (2018), 'Cindy Sherman Untitled Film Still #21' Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaNMgDtopS4