-Artist Work/Gallery-
Shawn Mortensen (1966-2009)"As a youth I was always fascinated by the idea of Los Angeles. It represented Dogtown, Hollywood nights, hardcore punk rock, chicano culture and emerging gangster rap. It was a place that held a deep mystery for me and somewheres I always wanted to explore. You could say it was destined to be my 2nd home."Over the last fifteen years, Shawn Mortensen has photographed cutting-edge culture-makers while also revealing the gritty reality of urban street life and the world’s political climate. Truly with his finger on the pulse, Mortensen took photographs of the "in crowd" before they were the "in crowd". His subjects range from celebrities such as De La Soul, Marcello Mastroianni, and Tupac Shakur to contemporary artists like Raymond Pettibon, Brice Marden, and Francesco Clemente. Yet these portraits are juxtaposed with haunting photo essays on the Zapatista movement in Chiapas,Mexico; the ghettoes of Jamaica; and the landscape of Mongolia—often with startling results.
Interview with Shawn Mortensen about his views on his own work and what it felt like to photograph some of the leading musicians of his time |
-Portraiture Word Theme-
"Personality" |
In these sets i tried to include factors from Shawn Mortison and Lewis Baltz to describe and show how someones personality is presented in a photograph. I tried to play on how someones personality is defined in a photo, by the things they wear and where they are. The subjects i took photos of chose where to go and what they wear that they felt described them best.
I used Shawn Mortison high contrasting colours, fashion and his use of objects in his work to give a picture of someone or a group of people. In my photos i have tried to use these things to bring across peoples personality how i see them and how they see themselves. I used Lewis Baltz landscape photographs to express a persons personality by there surroundings. I used his style of having a shallow depth field, this makes the landscape and shapes flat . I found this good as it drew attention to the subject in the photo, but at the same time giving a bit of information at the same time. |
Evaluation
I think this project was largely successful, as i was able to introduce other artists aspects in my work to create a outcome that was my own, with factors from other pictures. To develop further i could follow the one person throughout the day capturing a wider range of emotions and use a wider group of people, with the same ideology of "personality". This would involve showing people coming across social barriers and different moods through there a day, this would allow me to capture perspectives and restraints in their lives.
Terry Richardson
Terry Richardson is renowned for putting high-profile celebrities in mundane situations and photographing them using traditionally pedestrian methods, such as the use of an instant camera. He is also well known for posing with his subjects, often trading his trademark glasses with them so they may "pretend to be him".
Tom Gould
I took these photos in response to Terry Richardson's work and Tom Gould's unsuspected portraiture collection. I tried to play on the act of unsuspecting and surprise in order to capture someone in a state where they are not focusing on having there photo taken and merely on either something happening in the background or there name being called. This, i feel, puts a twist on my portraiture because instead of it being completely set up these sets are spontaneous and allow you to see people in a different light.