Mentor Project

Assignment #13:

Richard Avedon

A Different View

By: Kaitlyn Smit

                To describe Richard Avedon is a terribly difficult feat.  Born in New York in 1923, he grew up with his parents and his identical twin brother, Frank.  He started as a photographer for the merchant marines in 1942, and eventually was discovered by Alexey Brodovitch.  By 1946, Avedon began providing photos for Vogue and Life magazine and in 1962 he became the chief photographer for Vogue.  Later on he began to branch out to photograph mental patients, the Civil Rights Movement, and the fall of the Berlin Wall.  In 1992, he became the first staff photographer for The New Yorker, and eventually dying of a brain hemorrhage on October 1, 2004.[1]  Avedon's photographs are quite out of the ordinary.  Though they seem to be just normal portraits, they are not even close.  Avedon speaks through his photography and through his subjects to send the viewer a deep, interpersonal message that connects personality, with the negotiation of identity.  His photographs are so phenomenal because they show a side of the subject that only he sees, reveal the subjects true personality, and are non-traditional and non-conventional.

 

                The main aspect of Avedon's photos is that of personality.  Throughout all his photos he captures the essence and the deep personality of the person that is his subject.  Even with his fashion photography, in which the main idea is to showcase the clothes, he captured what no one else did.  He also captured the story of the person through their movements, their actions, and their facial features.  He captures "raw" emotion and personality in his photographs, not afraid to bring light to the inner workings of his subjects.[2]

                "Avedon was always interested in how portraiture captures the personality and soul of its subject."  [3]

                In this photo, we can clearly see the two sides to this person.  One side is the strict, serious, protective way of this person, and the other is the more comedic, perfectionist side that wants to make people smile.   After looking at this photo for a while, one can begin to picture this person smiling and happy.   Avedon captured both sides and it was as if the camera was peering into the soul of the subjects.  He was able to connect to the subjects in such a way, that it is possible to see his own personality through the photographs also.  The photos are able to reveal so much that one can guess what was happening behind the camera and in the minds of not only the subject, but the photographer as well.  He would connect to these people through talking to them and bonding with them throughout the photo shoot.  Through this technique he would get photographs that no one else would and reveal the world through his own eyes. 

                Through many of Avedon's photographs, we see a side of the person that may not be what everyone else perceives them to be, but a deeper, maybe even darker part of them.  This is because of the way he involves himself in the photo and reveals things that only he would see.   He captures the character of each person, flaws and all and these pictures have been compared to mug shots in their untouched honesty.  These famous black and white photos were able to reveal something about the character of well-known, famous public figures that no one knew before.  One of the main ways that Avedon drew out these non-conventional emotions in these people was through asking personal and probing questions that psychologically changed the person's emotions.[4]  In this photo, which is arguably one of the most famous of Avedon's photos, we have Marilyn Monroe.  Everyone knows Marilyn as a sexy, peppy, flirtatious person that has instant charm, but this photo doesn't show that.     

“For hours she danced and sang and flirted and did this thing that’s—she did Marilyn Monroe,” Avedon said later, adding that the white wine helped things along. “Then there was the inevitable drop … she sat in the corner like a child, with everything gone.” And he clicked his shutter once more. “I wouldn’t photograph her without her knowledge of it. And as I came with the camera, I saw that she was not saying no.”[5] 

It was then that Avedon captured the famous photo. Though the happy-go-lucky side of Marilyn Monroe is definitely not a bad thing, and this photo reveals her personality outside of Marilyn. This is evident throughout most of Avedon's photographs.

 This otherworldly, deep, serene, dark portion of people that just sends shivers through the spine and opens up that side of the person to the whole world. Avedon also did this with his documentary photography. He captured the dark side of the world, even when people didn't want to see it. Through his photos of mental patients, he reveals the silent torture that some people go through. He shows things that people might not be comfortable viewing, because it reveals something that is outside 

of their personal comfort bubble. This is what Avedon does. He reveals true character and brings light to things in a way that no one else would. 

Along with revealing of true character, his photos are very non-traditional and non-conventional. Avedon took everything to a different level, but his fashion photography was of a style that no one had seen before. Using his amazing creative mind,

Avedon worked with his models and created photos that were revealing, inspiring, and unusual. This photo is one of my favourites as it is a decisive moment that is fashionable, innovative, and beautiful. 

"He did not conform to standard techniques of fashion photographers."[6]    

He allowed the models to move freely throughout the studio 

and Avedon watched for the perfect opportunity to snap the perfect photo.  Unlike most fashion photographers of that time who created compositions of static, boring, emotionless models, Avedon forced emotional reactions out of his models and rarely captured them standing still.  The most famous of his fashion photography was the photo of Dovima stroking the 

elephants enlightened the fashion world to a new concept of photography.  He took everything to a new level and began to opens people's eyes to the idea of emotion through photography. 

                In conclusion, I have figured 2 things out. 

1.  The photos taken by Richard Avedon are unquestionably deep, personal, non-conventional, and personality-capturing.  His amazing eye and outstanding creativity have captured moments in time that are utterly irreplaceable and magnificently beautiful.

2.  Richard Avedon is nearly impossible to emulate.   

My photograph emulates the style of Avedon because it is different.  Sure it emulates the idea of the subject who looks straight into the camera sitting in front of a white background, but it had a different effect on me than any of my other photos.  This photo is of my family friend, Jan.  I kind of roped him into this impromptu photo shoot, of which he almost happily obliged.  Of course, he had to bring his beer.  With my dad behind the camera, talking to him, and the overall setting really natural, it didn't take long until I got the shot I was hoping for;  a shot with the beer.  Of course, I didn't tell him I wanted a shot with the beer, because as soon as he knew my intentions, the movements would become unnatural.  So my dad and I talked to him, just as Avedon would, and I snapped along as we talked.  My inspiration for this photo was definitely the photo of the old man with the top hat at the top of my essay.  He has such a way about him, and the top hat is what inspired me to include small, unintentional props in my photos that would increase the display of personality.  Just like Avedon. 

---

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Avedon

[2] http://blog.salonbuzz.com/?p=1289

[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Avedon

[4] http://seabastian.hubpages.com/hub/Legendary-Photographer-Richard-Avedon

[5] http://nymag.com/news/features/31523/

[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Avedon

Alternative Processes: Acrylic Gel

Assignment #12:

This was actually my second attempt at an acrylic gel print, but I lost my first one.  I was afraid that this one wouldn't work out because of the colour ink and the type of printer, but thankfully it did.   This picture is important to me because it was one of the first pictures I ever took with my old camera (which was new at the time).  I was at a farm and this dog just ran up to me and was so happy and excited, so I looked down and took a picture of her.  The shininess in the eyes reflect just the pure happiness that dogs feel when meeting a new person.  I love being able to mold and shape the acrylic gel is fun and functional, making the photo really come to life.  

Alternative Processes: Silk Screen

Assignment #11:

Silk screen was a really fun, yet really stressful process to do.  From the painful staple gun, to the messy emulsion, to the light table and finally to the scrubbing of the screen; the whole process is a long and trepedatious one.  At first I had many ideas for what I wanted to make my t-shirts look like, and deciding on one was a hard decision.  I knew I wanted to do something about music as soon as I heard what this process was all about.  I decided to use two pictures of my main instruments I play, a symbol of music notes to put on the back of the t-shirt, and a quote that I love.  I wanted to be able to make as many combinations of t-shirts that I could, so I had many parts and endless possibilities onto what I could make.  I love t-shirts that represent the wearer, so I wanted to create something that truly represented me.  The symbol on the back of the t-shirt really adds to the uniqueness of these shirts, and I am very happy that I thought of the idea and that it worked out.  I made 3 t-shirts with different designs, but with a sincerity and deep feeling on each.  

This t-shirt has to be my favourite because of the simplicity and beauty that makes me drawn towards it.  I've worn it once, and have gotten many compliments, questions and surprise when I told them that I made it.

I like this shirt because of the humour it gives and how much it represents myself.  This is a true representation of the "story of my life".  

This is my least favourite t-shirt only because it shifted slightly while I was applying the ink, so it is not as nice as I would have hoped, but the idea is there all the same.  I used my whole silk screen for this one (except for the "Weapon of Choice" saying) so it is kind of an important t-shirt.  

Alternative Processes: Multiple Exposure

Assignment #10:

This photo was off something I saw online for examples of multiple exposures with negatives.  It involved sandwiching 2 negatives together and exposing the photo paper through those two.  Though it was hard to predict what the photo was going to look like when exposed, I was interested to see how it would turn out.  

This photo has deep meaning in that it expresses the inside emotions of a tortured soul.  Though the person remains stoic and without emotion in one part of the photo you have a glimpse into the deep melancholy that this person is feeling.  Maybe the world is getting too much for this person and her inner feelings are starting to seep out of her, beginning to crack the thick outer façade of emotions.    

Breaking the Rules

Assignment #9:

The first time I saw this photo, I fell in love with it and I didn't know why.  I started showing it to all my friends, trying to find an explanation to why I was attracted to it.  My friends were saying, "It looks like the subject is looking in the mirror, but they're really not."  The pure emotion that this photo secretes makes this photo so attractive and compelling.  This photo tells the story of a family with a dog and kids, eating a simple dinner at home.  This photo breaks the rules because it is not centered, and shows the story of a family through slightly distorted eyes.  It is not balanced correctly, as the dog on the left contrasts the the empty space on the right, but not quite asymmetrically.  There is no emphasis on any one thing, as the subject could either be the back of my mom, or the face of my dad.  The subject is half-framed, but not quite enough to draw your eye one way or another.  There is no prominent lines that draw the viewer's eye anywhere around the photo, so it creates a sense of unease and uncertainness.  I love it.

 

This photo is another great one.  Though it doesn't have as great a story as the last photo, it is still a good composition.  It tells the story of a dark forest and a pathway that leads to the creepy, dark section of the forest.  It breaks the rule of line, as line is supposed to lead to a certain part of the photo, where the line in this photo leads just to the right of the large, creepy tree that is supposed to be the subject.  The balance is also off because the white sign post is not balanced by anything on the right.  There is no 'real' framing, so there is no real focus point for the viewer's eye.

This photo breaks the rules because half if it is in focus, and half of it isn't.  Usually that isn't a problem, but in this photo, the blurred part of the photo is in the foreground and the background, with only the middle ground in focus.  The foreground is slightly overlapping the middle ground, creating a sense of depth and framing.  This photo tells the story of a basic green house that has dead flowers because it is the winter.  The in focus part of the photo is halfway framed by blurred part, but not enough to have a clear focal point.  There is definitely no definite symmetry, and no clear lines leading to anything specific, creating a photo that is slightly uncomfortable and without point.  

Multiple Types of Light

Assignment #8: 

I seem to be finding myself coming back to taking pictures of relating to music, which I suppose is my inspiration.  Sorry, I couldn't pick just one.  For both these photos the aperture was 7.1, the shutter speed was 1/200, and the ISO was 400.  The two types of light were natural sunlight (it was a cloudy day) and the flash firing from my camera.  I had to adjust my settings a lot to get the effect I wanted.  I love these photos because of the mix between the outside and the coolness of a trumpet.  Instruments are usually not portrayed in this type of setting, and the cool lighting, combined with the unique scenery make these photo special.  These photos mean so much to me because of the obvious reasons (the trumpet), but also because of the deeper meaning.  A connection between nature and music represents how true and simple music is, but also how complicated and beautiful it can be.  Just simple shots of parts of the trumpet may not make it obvious to the viewer of exactly what is the subject of the photo from first glance, but all they know is that it is beautiful.  This is relatable to music as most people see the outer shell and beauty of music, but don't understand how deep and complicated it can be.

The Renaissance

Assignment #7:

The Renaissance began in Italy in the 14^th Century.  By the 16^th Century it spread to the North, including England, and ended in the mid-17^th Century.  The Renaissance affected literature, philosophy, music, politics, science, religion, art, and other aspects in culture.  Renaissance artists searched for realism and human emotion in their art through the development of perspective, light, shadow, and human anatomy.   The artists desired to depict the beauty of nature by developing a manner of painting that was unpredictably naturalistic, 3-D, life-like, and classicising.   Artists incorporated a greater sense of light and colour through new mediums.  Some techniques that they used were:  Humanism and Perspective - Where the idea of perspective it to create a three-dimensional appearance on a two-dimensional object.   Sfumato - The idea was to blend one shade into another to create the appearance of depth, form and volume.  Chiaroscuro - Using the contrast of light and dark to create dimension.  There are many more techniques, and these techniques are still known and used in modern day.  Giiotto was one of the first to paint in this new style.  Giotto's paintings began to show real emotion, perspective and solidity.  Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo are also famous artist of this time, with their work still famous around the world.  The ideas and techniques of these artists were copied and improved upon by other artist ad inventors.  This really improved and expanded the sense of artistry and the overall affect of art in the world at that time. It turned art into more than just a craft.  It turned art into what it is today. A lifestyle.  It changed the spectator's view of art from just a show of skills to a telling of a story. 

                The original painting Ginevra de'Benei by Leonardo Da Vinci.  Givevra de'Benei was an aristocrat from 15^th-century Florence, and the portrait was painted to commemorate her marriage.   "This portrait of Ginevra shows the female with a marble-like skin and hair styled in ringlets framing a face portraying a sulky and proud facial expression."   She was 17 and her fiancé was twice her age.   It is a significant painting for Leonardo Da Vinci because his paintings were so rare.   The alabaster smoothness of her face was an effect that Leonardo accomplished by smoothing the surface of the paint with his own hands.  Leonardo was the first painter to have the perfect control over his medium to achieve the look of light and shade to merge them imperceptibly.   A juniper bush can be seen in the background of the portrait, which makes sense as 'Ginevra' in Italian means juniper.  On the back of the painting is a 'heraldic motif' that includes a sprig of juniper encircled by a wreath of laurel and palm.  This painting is the first psychological portrait ever painted and one of the first three-quarter or frontal view of the sitter.  Leonardo's innovation was developed during his painting of 4 women, where each woman expresses different moods.   In this painting, Leonardo shows us the 'enigmatic melancholy' of Ginevra de 'Benei.  Sadness had rarely been represented in portraiture before the 17^th century, and even then, the tragic view of life was usually conveyed through portraits of men, not women.   

                Leonardo da Vinci was (and still is) one of the most famous Renaissance painters.  He was born in 1452 in the village of Vinci, and began his career working for a master painter in Florence.  As Leonardo's fame grew, he was recognized as truly a "Renaissance Man", being skilled in many fields; he as a scientist, an inventor, as well as an artist.  He had major influences in the design of hydraulics, mechanical engineering, structural engineering, and advanced weaponry all used during this time period.  He also influenced science and mathematics in his use of geometry and his diagrams of the human anatomy (which were illegal at the time), bringing knowledge in medical science which were used then, as well into modern times.  As an artist, he rejected using the medium of tempera paints, and chose oil instead.  Contrary to the beliefs previous artists, Leonardo discovered that objects were not comprised of outlines, but were 3-D, defined by light and shadow.  He also used perspective, and saw that an object's detail and colour changed as it receded into the distance.  As a perfectionist, he sought out the 'ideal; human figure through studies of the physical proportions of men, women, and children.  Today, Leonardo's paintings are displayed and admired all over the world, inspiring aspiring artists to break the rules a little, and open their minds to infinite possibilities.   

Original Painting: