Watch this famous scene from Goodfellas directed by Martin Scorsese in 1990: www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJEEVtqXdK8 [accessed 24/02/14] Don’t read on until you’ve answered the following questions. • What does this scene tell you about the main character? • How does it do this? List the ‘clues’. Make some notes in your learning log.
What does this scene tell you about the main character?
The main character is a man, who appears to have a lot of cash to splash around, he is confident and people are providing him with exactly what he wants. He is trying to impress the lady he is with by demonstrating his power. He doesn’t appear to be everything he appears to be. The people around him are trying to keep in his good books.
How does it do this? List the ‘clues’
The camera follows the main character,
shots of cash
people getting out of his way
low light, high contrast
smartly dressed
follows the action, rather than sits back and watches.
Brief: Write an essay of 1,000 words on an image of your choice. The image can be anything you like, from a famous art photograph to a family snapshot, but please make sure that your chosen image has scope for you to make a rigorous and critical analysis.
If you choose a well-known photograph, take time to research its context – the intentions of the photographer, why it was taken, whether it’s part of a series, etc. Add all this information into your essay to enable you to draw a conclusion from your own interpretation of the facts.
If you choose to use a found photograph, a picture from your own collection, or perhaps one from an old family archive, use it as an opportunity to find out something new. Avoid telling us about that particular holiday or memory – look directly to the photograph for the information. It may be interesting to compare and contrast your memory with the information you’re now seeing anew from ‘reading’ the picture so intensely.
It’s not enough to write an entirely descriptive or historical account of your chosen image. You must use the facts as a means to draw your own conclusions about what the picture means to you. You may wish to apply what you’ve learned in Part Four regarding translation, interpretation, connotation, signs, punctum, etc., but be sure you get the definitions correct.
There are many good examples of writing about single images (e.g. Sophie Howarth’s Singular Images), which you may find helpful to read before attempting your own. Take note of the level of critical analysis and aim for a similar approach in your own writing. You may write about personal connections but ensure you express yourself in a formally analytical and reflective manner.
Follow thought associations and other images that relate to the discussion, directly or indirectly. Look at the broader context of the image and its background and specific narrative as well as your personal interpretation of it and what thoughts it triggers for you. Follow these associations in a thoughtful and formal way. Allow yourself to enjoy the process!
Send your essay to your tutor, together with the relevant pages of your learning log or blog url.
Reflection
Don’t forget to check your work against the assessment criteria listed in the introduction to this course guide. Include your evaluation in your assignment submission.
Assignment
I decided to write my essay about the image ‘pieces of me’ by Meg Bitton. Having emailed the photographer for permission to publish her image on this blog, and not having had a full response, I have chosen to created a passworded page to display the essay.
I started researching for this assignment by reading the recommended reading and also reading essays by other students to get a feel for the style and details required. read my research notes here
Whilst reading the feedback to one student’s essay, I came across a comment by his tutor that suggested he use the ‘PEEL’ method to organise his paragraphs.
I have organised the essay around the theoretical tools for reading photographs described by Derrida and Barthes
Once I had decided on the image I wanted to review, I did some research on the photographer, in order to be able to add some background and context to the essay.
As the photographer and this work is current, I emailed the photographer for her permission to publish the image in this blog. As I am still awaiting a response, I decided to go ahead with the essay, but have passworded the page so it is not publicly visible.
Pre-tutor feedback Reflections
When I first read that I had to write an essay, I have to admit, I thought it might be a bit boring. However, I have really enjoyed the process. Spending the time to really look at an image in detail was really interesting and it’s amazing how many extra things you see, when you actually spend time looking. I also found researching the photographer very helpful. Although I have been following her work for a while, researching her history and other work, really helped put the image in context and added to the level of understanding and possible meaning she was trying to convey.
Using the PEEL method to organise the paragraphs, really helped me focus on the points I wanted to make and stopped me going off at a tangent. Something that was really useful when you only have a limited number of words.
Assessment criteria points
Demonstration of technical and visual skills – Materials, techniques, observational skills, visual awareness, design and compositional skills. (40%)
Visual skills were needed in this assignment in order to study the image and identify the signifiers and signs that help you read the image. Knowledge of composition skills also helped to give insight into the photographers intentions.
Quality of outcome – Content, application of knowledge, presentation of work in a coherent manner, discernment, conceptualisation of thoughts, communication of ideas. (20%)
In this assignment, I have displayed quality of outcome, by producing a coherent essay, where I have presented my analysis in a logical and reasoned manner. Drawing conclusions using the theoretical ways of seeing presented in the course.
Demonstration of creativity – Imagination, experimentation, invention. (20%)
For Assignment 4, the demonstration of creativity has been demonstrated in the reading of the image. Starting with imagining the meaning of the image, but then evidencing those thoughts in an rational and systematic way.
In order to complete this assignment, critical thinking, research and reflection have been really important to interpret the ideas that the image has connoted and being able to present them in a formally analytical and reflective manner. I have used a recognised writing tool; PEEL, to focus the essay and reflected on the result.
MB: Ah, well NYC has a lot more important things to worry about than me taking pictures. I was born and raised in NYC. It is where I am most comfortable.
Robert Frank Dies; Pivotal Documentary Photographer Was 94
Mr. Frank, who was best known for his groundbreaking book, “The Americans,” had a visually raw and personally expressive style that made him one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century.
This was interesting article, might try and find out a bit more about Robert Frank
References:
McDonald, W. (2019). Robert Frank Dies; Pivotal Documentary Photographer Was 94. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/10/arts/robert-frank-dead-americans-photography.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&fbclid=IwAR041RJEBc1scFGrtW3tiVYHm0-p5mqhY3qVt8znjp3jcQfG7jRvdhYPgNs [Accessed 10 Sep. 2019].
Muse boards are something writers use to help them focus on what’s important in their story. They can keep looking at it to help them keep on track.
I think this would be a great idea for my assignments, a way of bringing together my ideas in a more visual way than a mindmap for notes spread throughout my notebook.
In this blog , Sharon Boothroyd uses some photographic theory to deconstruct Jeff Wall’s Insomnia and deciphers some of the levels of understanding that can be applied to one single image. [accessed 30.08.2019]
This is an example of how to write a critical essay in a formal manner.
She has drawn on the tools described by Derrida and Barthes, but expands to link in her own research into the artist and others in order to support her theories and points.
I can see examples of PEEL writing in this piece . . . for example: ” I see a kitchen, denoted by the cooker, fridge freezer and table and chairs. That much is communicated clearly by the use of props. However what we miss in the denotation is the connotation of the type of kitchen that it is. The cold colours of the cupboards and the starkness of the scene, the harsh lighting and the hotspots, give a kind of eerie feel. It connotes a place of discomfort; of coldness and unease which we can sense even though we cannot actually be in that kitchen”.
David Campany’s video about the book he wrote about Jeff Wall’s Picture for Women, is a picture he has tried to understand for many years and gives him a feeling of unease.
CAN Student Niamh Farrell’ assignment 4 is another demonstration of writing an essay about reading a picture.
Whilst researching Naimh’s blog, I came across a link to the work of Noemie Goudal, whose work ‘Haven her Body Was‘ really struck a cord with me and with the image I have chosen to write about for Assignment 4. In this set she has make large photocopies of beautiful places and hung them in old and derelict places.
Promenade, Noemie Goudal.
Goudal’s work in Fictional Spaces reminds me a bit of my first assignment where I merged images to make a new reality.
References
Boothroyd, S. (2019). Beneath the surface. [online] The Open College of the Arts. Available at: https://www.oca.ac.uk/weareoca/photography/beneath-the-surface/?cn-reloaded=1 [Accessed 7 Sep. 2019].
Farrell, N. (2019). Assignment 4. [online] Nearfarphotopart3.files.wordpress.com. Available at: https://nearfarphotopart3.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/assignment-4-context-and-narrative-for-assesment.pdf [Accessed 7 Sep. 2019].
Campany, D. (2019). Jeff Wall: Picture for Women • One Work • Afterall. [online] Afterall.org. Available at: https://www.afterall.org/books/one.work/jeff-wall-picture-for-women [Accessed 7 Sep. 2019].
Goudal, N. (2019). Noémie Goudal. [online] Noémie Goudal. Available at: http://noemiegoudal.com/ [Accessed 7 Sep. 2019].
Goudal, N. (2019). Noémie Goudal. [online] Noémie Goudal. Available at: http://noemiegoudal.com/fictional-space/ [Accessed 8 Sep. 2019].
Wood, B. (2019). Fictional spaces by artist Noémie Goudal. [online] The Spaces. Available at: https://thespaces.com/fictional-spaces-artist-noemie-goudal-builds-a-whole-new-world/4/ [Accessed 8 Sep. 2019].
Deconstructions – Derrida – to fully understand how something has been made, you have to take it apart before you can put it back together. don’t take things at face value be prepared to delve deeper and be opening to alternative meaning.
Semiotics – Barthes – the study of signs and language
SIGN = SIGNIFIER + SIGNIFIED
The signifier is the element in the photograph that signified what we think we are seeing or feeling in an image. Together they are the sign that contributes to the overall effect of the photograph
Denotation – states the facts, the literal translation of an object, the accepted version of what something is. ie there is bucket in the picture, it holds water.
Connotation – interpretation of the facts, (open to our experiences, knowledge and preconceptions of what that object could mean on an practical or metaphorical level). ie. the bucket holding water could be interpreted as life giving drink, or a means to clean yourself. This is a more personal take on the element.
Studium – another term coined by Barthes in his book ‘Camera Lucida: Reflections on Photography’. to describe the general status quo of an image. The studium is the photograph’s cultural, political and social meaning. By this he means the overall feel of the image that places it in a comfortable, understandable space for us as the viewer.
Punctum – as opposed to Studium, punctum is an element in an image that ‘punctures’ the meaning. It the thing that doesn’t fit or draws our attention to it. It’s the element we are viewers are drawn to that makes the image more interesting and creates a connection.
Intertextuality – the individual background, education and experiences that you bring to your interpretation of an image that you view. Each person will read a photograph and bring it to life in a different way. Barthes says that sharing these readings with others will also enrich the experience and the understanding of the meaning.
This set presented me with quite a challenge and having made a conscious decision to try and get away from the ‘stock’ type of images I created in Assignment 2, I was actually worried, Les would thing they were a bit boring. (or maybe that was just because they were about me!)
I was pleased that he thought they work as a set and were held together by the concept as well as the colour tones and light. This is something I had thought about so was glad it was noticed. I must remember to include these decisions in my write up of the assignments.
One thing that intrigued me, was that Les said that my photos actually gave viewers more of an insight into my spaces than they would ordinarily see. However, by placing the legs in the image it formed a barrier to them seeing it all. I found this a very interesting point of view and I had seen them as a lead into my life. So the fact that he saw them as a barrier gave me pause for thought around how much I allow people into my life.
The other point that made me think was the point that I had obviously set up and posed the images in order to take them of myself. However, as a viewer we accept them as a ‘real’ captures of my life. I think that’s what his comment about smartphone images refers to in his feedback. I had wanted to create a more ‘real’ type of image in this set as opposed to the last assignment, so I am satisfied that I achieved this.
Les suggested I look up a photographer call Leah Schrager, as he felt that the image with me looking at the screen reminded him of her work.
In her series 'Infinity Selfie'; Schrager is places a picture within a picture which is reminiscent of my picture on the screen of the computer. In my case this was a happy accident, as I had been checking my first attempt at the image when I took that image. I didn't notice the screen until after I'd taken the picture. This is a learning point for me for Assignment 4 & 5 and remembering that everything in an image can have a meaning and impact for the viewer.
We discussed the image with the red boots and agreed that it didn’t need to text, so I have removed it and uploaded it to my Instagram feed. This has changed the order of the images, so I wondered if this will change the impact of the set? Actually I think it works better with the placement of the boots as the first picture and the blue shoes in the last image it looks like bookends for the set.
orignal post
updated post
we discussed assignments 4 & 5. He suggested that I pick an image for A4 that might link to something I’m interested in that will lead into A5. Therefore, I have read both assignments to get a sense of what I might need to do next.
All in all I am relatively pleased with the outcome of this assignment.
Rip out an advertising image from a newspaper supplement and circle and write on as many parts of the image as you can. Comment on what it is, what it says about the product and why you think it’s there. You could use this as the basis for your assignment if you feel it’s taking you somewhere interesting. Or you could adopt this method for your assignment preparation. Come back to this exercise when you’ve reached the end of Part Four and see if you can add anything to your analysis.
this image is actually advertising a TV, but it’s not immediately obvious when you look at the picture. This advert is displayed in the Caravan and Motorhome Club magazine and therefore, the image is definitely targeting the kind of people who would be reading this magazine.
The leading lines taking your eyes to the motorhome in the centre of the image, also carry on to take your eyes to the DVD on the right hand side.
I think the message is that even out in the wilds, you have great ‘tech’, it’s kind of the marriage of countryside and the modern world.
