Concealment.
At the start of this project we was given many options on what we would like to do for this project.
the option that stood out to me the most was concealment. The reason why I had chosen this option is because after looking at artists such as Rosanna Jones , Wallace Juma, Jose Romussi and Pablo Thecuadro I began to have great inspiration from all of the artists which enabled me to have more ideas and more techniques to tryout. I also liked the style used by all of the artists and intend to use a bit of the styles from all of them in my responses and outcomes. Another reason why I had chosen this option is because when researching concealment photography on Pinterest I liked the style and ideas other photographers and artists on the website and it helped me with inspiration which will help me be more confident in my experimentations. And i will continue to look on these website such as pintrest or tumblr to find inspiration and continue to experiment as component 2 continues.
the option that stood out to me the most was concealment. The reason why I had chosen this option is because after looking at artists such as Rosanna Jones , Wallace Juma, Jose Romussi and Pablo Thecuadro I began to have great inspiration from all of the artists which enabled me to have more ideas and more techniques to tryout. I also liked the style used by all of the artists and intend to use a bit of the styles from all of them in my responses and outcomes. Another reason why I had chosen this option is because when researching concealment photography on Pinterest I liked the style and ideas other photographers and artists on the website and it helped me with inspiration which will help me be more confident in my experimentations. And i will continue to look on these website such as pintrest or tumblr to find inspiration and continue to experiment as component 2 continues.
Mindmap:
Researching artists
Wallace Juma
Wallace Juma is one of the artists who did an art piece with concealment.
he exhibited his work in many art shows in many locations globally.
His artworks are very unique and interesting as he uses a range of materials and implies his own technique to express and visualise his views and thoughts via his artwork. In these artworks, you can see faces made of lines but they are very distorted and abstract but you will still be able to recognise a face in some of the pieces.
This is very interesting as it could be said that the images are very abnormal and expresses dystopian vibe but its a very interesting style of artwork. It conceals the face but not to the point it is completely gone but just enough to the point where you are able to figure out where the physical attributes of the facial features would be if it wasn't concealed.
Rosanna Jones
Rosanna Jones is another artist who did the project concealment.
however, she used a very different technique compared to the other artists, for example, some of her art pieces are painted over as a form of concealment and some are burned or cut up. I would like to do some of her techniques she used when she completed her pieces of art and I would like to do a response using the techniques and experiment with them and see how it turns out. I like the painting and burning aspects as I feel like it standout more.
I also like how the most of her pictures are very up close to the face and she only conceals a certain part for example sometimes only the background is concealed or it half the face or her eyes.
however, she used a very different technique compared to the other artists, for example, some of her art pieces are painted over as a form of concealment and some are burned or cut up. I would like to do some of her techniques she used when she completed her pieces of art and I would like to do a response using the techniques and experiment with them and see how it turns out. I like the painting and burning aspects as I feel like it standout more.
I also like how the most of her pictures are very up close to the face and she only conceals a certain part for example sometimes only the background is concealed or it half the face or her eyes.
Jose Romussi
The technique Jose Romussi uses is very different compared to the other artists, for example, Jose Romussi is one of the only artists who used stitching and sewing to show concealment. I find this interesting as I feel like it would stand out very well. However, I feel like this would be very challenging
to do but I would be willing to try because if it is sewed and stitched very well the outcome can be very good but at the same time there is a risk of it not looking as good as I would want it to be. I could also stitch only certain parts of a persons face just like Jose has done and I would do a response like this. However, I am also aware of the risks of stitching and sewing an art piece as well. This could be a risk of injuring myself attempting to sew or how time consuming it would be as you would have to have enough accuracy to sew precisely and neatly.
to do but I would be willing to try because if it is sewed and stitched very well the outcome can be very good but at the same time there is a risk of it not looking as good as I would want it to be. I could also stitch only certain parts of a persons face just like Jose has done and I would do a response like this. However, I am also aware of the risks of stitching and sewing an art piece as well. This could be a risk of injuring myself attempting to sew or how time consuming it would be as you would have to have enough accuracy to sew precisely and neatly.
Pablo Thecuadro
Pablo Thecuadro artwork pieces are very different from others as he uses the power of concealment via collages.
Pablo uses collages and overlays and places them in precise places on the face and body. some of the parts Pablo cut out are very chaotic and I think its purposely because the images end up looking very abstract. I feel like on one of my responses I would try to do collages as Pablo did and take inspiration from his work and implement it to my work when experimenting with using collages and cutting it out. I will also try and go with the abstract vibe as I feel like it would make my work more interesting. Her artwork also stands out to me due to the way she conceals some of her artworks. For example, she doesn't fully cover the full face, in most of her artwork, the face is never fully concealed as we can still see the physical attributes of the persons face and sometimes it is half-concealed with another person face combined.
Pablo uses collages and overlays and places them in precise places on the face and body. some of the parts Pablo cut out are very chaotic and I think its purposely because the images end up looking very abstract. I feel like on one of my responses I would try to do collages as Pablo did and take inspiration from his work and implement it to my work when experimenting with using collages and cutting it out. I will also try and go with the abstract vibe as I feel like it would make my work more interesting. Her artwork also stands out to me due to the way she conceals some of her artworks. For example, she doesn't fully cover the full face, in most of her artwork, the face is never fully concealed as we can still see the physical attributes of the persons face and sometimes it is half-concealed with another person face combined.
Tate Modern Dora Maar
Other pieces
Out of school concealment photoshoot.
My ideas when carrying out this photoshoot was I would use the effect of concealment but using various object from Ikea. I liked using very unusual objects as I felt that it gave a very abstract vibe. The most unusual object i used was the goggles, I felt that the goggles would be interesting as it was very unusual and weird as as it didn't really fit the background but it stood out. i mainly focused on concealment of the face as I felt that most of the artists i researched focused on the face as well and I felt it was the best option to conceal seeing as it had worked really well with other artists. The objects I felt I liked to use the most to conceal was most likely be the plants from Ikea, the reason being is because the plants come in many different shapes or sizes. The different shapes or sizes always gave a different effect of concealment but its keeping the same theme of a plant. However, another method of concealment I used was concealing a face by using the Ikea objects all around me. This gave me very mixed results as some of them would turn out better than others.
6 Images that worked well.
The reason why i chose these images was because all of them worked really well but they can still be improved. For example, some they could be angled a little bit better but some only need to be improved due to a busy background or someone who is not meant to be in the photo is present in the background.
Overall, all of these images work really well but they can all be improved one way or another.
Also these images successfully conceal a persons face wether it being half or fully concealed and it is shown successfully by the use of interesting objects in my local Ikea.
Overall, all of these images work really well but they can all be improved one way or another.
Also these images successfully conceal a persons face wether it being half or fully concealed and it is shown successfully by the use of interesting objects in my local Ikea.
I had the idea of concealment using this method from a picture in the Tate Modern.
I liked the concept and it was the only image that caught my eye in the gallery space.
Because of this i took inspiration to use in my own work as i feel like this worked really well for the artist i saw in the Tate Modern so it could work really well for me. One thing i noticed when experimenting was that even though i used the the same person to model and the paper is held at the same angle each time naturally and gradually the blank piece of paper in the middle rotates ever so slightly each time.
However, I understand that there can be some improvements made to this such as the lighting. I had a bit of difficulty with the lighting as in some images the lighting was more brighter and whiter than others even though i kept the photographic lighting device at the same position when taking these images. It could be due to the natural lighting of the room but I can't really control that but it could be improved. What I personally think went well was the effect this method gave off. I liked how it turned out exactly like how it was exhibited at the Tate Modern.
I liked the concept and it was the only image that caught my eye in the gallery space.
Because of this i took inspiration to use in my own work as i feel like this worked really well for the artist i saw in the Tate Modern so it could work really well for me. One thing i noticed when experimenting was that even though i used the the same person to model and the paper is held at the same angle each time naturally and gradually the blank piece of paper in the middle rotates ever so slightly each time.
However, I understand that there can be some improvements made to this such as the lighting. I had a bit of difficulty with the lighting as in some images the lighting was more brighter and whiter than others even though i kept the photographic lighting device at the same position when taking these images. It could be due to the natural lighting of the room but I can't really control that but it could be improved. What I personally think went well was the effect this method gave off. I liked how it turned out exactly like how it was exhibited at the Tate Modern.
People I used
During this experiment, I went for a more scary and abstract vibe. I played with the idea of removing or replacing a face or body part of someone with someone or something else. I got this inspiration from one of Dora Maar's pictures in the installation in the Tate Modern and used some of the concepts I saw in the images and use it as inspiration for my edit on photoshop. it is very surreal and unusual which is a very natural feeling when looking at these edits and want to give that effect when looking at these images. I want to make my images in some way make you feel a little uncomfortable and yet eye-catching. Its a very strange experiment but it works. That is why I find these abnormal edits very interesting to observe.
What I think went well the images I produced with the use of photoshop managed to capture the scary and abstract vibe I was going for. It manages to catch your attention but also keep your interest and expresses a very abnormal effect on your emotions. What I could have improved would be how neatly I photoshopped some of the faces. If I had flattened the edges of some of the faces I cut out it would look less rough but smoother.
For this experiment, I made the background a very neutral and simplistic colour so the merge of the two faces is the main focus of the image. Because of this, I feel like it would make it more eye-catching to see. I believe that these edits still expresses a very strange vibe which was the purpose of making these images. What I think went well was the fact that I managed to still conceal their faces but because I used two faces it becomes one. And the face I produce using the two faces is very abnormal and conceals successfully. However, what I think I could improve on is making the outlines of the split of the two faces or the outline of the face as a whole smoother. For example, the image in the middle is less smooth and the outlines are very rough compared to the image with the pink background where the outlines are much smoother and the impact of the image gives a lot stronger sense of an abnormal vibe. If the image in the middle was a lot smoother it would give off the same abnormal vibe as the other images.
For this experiment, I made the background a very neutral and simplistic colour so the merge of the two faces is the main focus of the image. Because of this, I feel like it would make it more eye-catching to see. I believe that these edits still expresses a very strange vibe which was the purpose of making these images. What I think went well was the fact that I managed to still conceal their faces but because I used two faces it becomes one. And the face I produce using the two faces is very abnormal and conceals successfully. However, what I think I could improve on is making the outlines of the split of the two faces or the outline of the face as a whole smoother. For example, the image in the middle is less smooth and the outlines are very rough compared to the image with the pink background where the outlines are much smoother and the impact of the image gives a lot stronger sense of an abnormal vibe. If the image in the middle was a lot smoother it would give off the same abnormal vibe as the other images.
Half term photoshoot 1 & 2 with research
John Baldessari
For my half term homework i decided to take inspiration from John Baldessari was born on 17 June 1931 and died 2nd January 2020. Most of his artwork is very abstract but in some way natural and simplistic. Everyone in these images are concealed and covered with circle spots. The tones of the circles are very bright but there is some black spots which contrast against the grey background and other bright spots. The reason why i decided to base my work over the half term on his work was because i liked how the artist turned very natural and normal images but just by adding spots it had turned very abstarct. when doing the photoshoots i will experiment not just circle but with other shapes to show its my response with my own twist.
photoshoot 1
The Images I used some are new taken this half term and some are old but have not been used but fit perfectly. What I think went well was concealing the identity of the people and the number of images taken. I edited all of these images on photoshop and I feel like it would be even better if in some images the lighting was brighter.
I feel like the coloured shapes catch your interest the most and these images give you a strange vibe yet a sense of curiosity type of vibe.
What I think went well was that I managed to keep the same concept of covering someones face with a colourful shape successfully, however, it could be improved if I edited the images black and white just like John Baldessari but because it in colour it shows that it is my attempt and adaptation of his artwork which was used for inspiration.
I feel like the coloured shapes catch your interest the most and these images give you a strange vibe yet a sense of curiosity type of vibe.
What I think went well was that I managed to keep the same concept of covering someones face with a colourful shape successfully, however, it could be improved if I edited the images black and white just like John Baldessari but because it in colour it shows that it is my attempt and adaptation of his artwork which was used for inspiration.
The reason why i chose to evaluate this image in detail was because i liked how abstract and strange this image turned out.
what went well was that i personally think i captured the abstract perspective and managed to conceal the face successfully and it would be even better if the snake was not blurred or there is too much contrast between the white and black walls, This image was created in a Ikea showroom and was done so on purpose to add to the strange and abstract vibe when looking at this image. The main focus of this photograph was to make the viewer feel somewhat confused and curious making them want to understand the image. |
photoshoot 2
What went well was as soon as I added a black and white filter in the background I feel like it made it even more abstract from before. I feel like bright colours draw your attention more to the image rather than the background. The image makes you feel more uncomfortable and yet it is very eye-catching for a person to look at. It still has a very strange vibe and I used many formal elements such as colour and shape. the use of bright colours makes it eye-catching. It would have been even better if sometimes the background was too dark making the images look too negative.
What I also think went well was that now that the images are black and white just like John Baldessari I managed to keep the originality of the images but still made a modern-day adaptation to his work.
Even better if, I used brighter shades of colour to make the shape stand out more and draw more attention just like John Baldessari work, as I believe that the shade of the shape draws attention the work and it shines through the negative background.
Ripped concealment
In this experiment, I decided to get more hands-on with the project. I decided to rip a section of the images to conceal the persons face using tape. What I think went well was the positioning of the rips. I ripped some images at certain points to ensure the only that section gets ripped off and not the whole image gets ripped away. I covered sections such as the eyes and mouth or half of a persons face. What I did find difficult was attempting to rip off pieces of the paper. It is evident in some images that it took some attempts to rip off some of the images and it did not take off as much as I wanted it to have. What could improve the images is if I used stronger tape such as duct tape the rip would be a lot smoother as I used masking tape which was weaker and took more attempts.