'CREATIVE HISTORIES & INDUSTRIES' - Research Project:Initial Ideas

 

1. Which areas of Creative Practices particularly interest you (these may include areas outside of your immediate subject specialism)?

PHOTOGRAPHY – PHOTOJOURNALISM; I’M INTERESTED IN DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY MAINLY LANDSCAPE.

2. Are there any questions that you have identified in your responses to the readings and lectures that have formed part of the module to date? What about any questions that you have posted on your blog?

WHY IS SOME ART CONSIDERED CONTROVERSIAL? AND WHAT IS CONTROVERSIAL ART? THE COST OF ART CAN BE EXTORTIONATE, WHY IS THIS?

3. Which aspects of the readings and lectures from the module have you agreed with?

SEMIOTICS AND THE SCIENCE OF SIGN SYSTEMS. THE WAY SIGNS ARE USED IN MOVING IMAGE AND ADVERTISEMENTS, MOSTLY CONCERNING CONSUMERISM.

4. Which aspects of the reading and lectures from the module have you found to be particularly interesting?

ETHICAL ISSUES IN ALL FORMS OF CREATIVE PRACTICE, WHATS SEEN AS RIGHT AND WRONG AND HOW FAR I’D GO PERSONALLY AS A PHOTOGRAPHER.

5. Which aspects of the reading or the lectures and discussions from the module to date have you disagreed with?

I PARTICULARILY FOUND THE LECTURE ON ETHICS WHERE THE EDITING AND RE SHAPING OF PHOTOGRAPHY WAS DISCUSSED, HOW ‘FAMOUS’ IMAGES HAD INFACT BEEN EDITED DRAMATICALLY. I DISSAGREE WITH HOW SOMETHING SO NATURAL LIKE A PHOTOGRAPH CAN BE MISLEADING.

6. Are there any specific issues that you feel strongly about? (Art, Design & Media related or not?)

AFTER ANSWERING THE QUESTION ‘DO ARTISTS/CREATIVE PRACTITIONERS HAVE MORE RESPONSIBILITY THAN OTHER MEMBERS OF SOCIETY FOR ADDRESSING SOCIAL ISSUES’ I FELT QUITE STRONGLY ABOUT THE MATTER AND AFTER THINKING ABOUT IT IN DEPTH I REALISED THAT ACTUALLY, AS A CREATIVE PRACTITIONER YOU PROBABLY HAVE MORE FREEDOM TO ADDRESS SOCIAL ISSSUES THAN SAY A WRITER DOES.

7. Which exhibitions/events/screenings have you been to see since beginning the programme? Are there any specific aspects of these that have particularly interested you?

I WENT TO THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY TO SEE THE TAYLOR WESSING PRIZE EXHIBITION. FOUND PHOTOGRAPHERS WHO HAD CAPTURED OBESITIY IN ITS MOST NATURAL FORM REALLY INTERESTING, ESPECIALLY THE WAY THE ILLNESS IS VIEWED IN TEENAGERS AND HOW THEIR PORTRAITS CHALLENGED THESE VIEWS.

8. What do you know about contemporary employment practices in your chosen area of specialism?

I UNDERSTAND THAT LIKE IN ANY CREATIVE PRACTICES IT IS A DIFFICULT INDUSTRY AND THAT POSSIBLY WORKING FREE LANCE, DEADLING WITH COMMISIONS FOR MAGAZINES OR NEWSPAPERS IS A ‘GOOD’ OPTION. I THINK COMPARED TO OTHER FORMS OF CREATIVE PRACTICE PHOTOGRAPHY HAS MANY PATHWAYS FROM FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY TO PORTRAITATURE TO PHOTOJOURNALISM.

9. Are you specifically interested in any aspect of commercial practices?

I’VE NEVER REALLY BEEN INTERESTED IN STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHY, BUT HAVE ALSO NEVER ACTUALLY EXPERIEMENTED WITH IT. I’M QUITE INTERESTED IN CHALLENGING MYSELF TO CAPTURE THE SAME SORT OF FEEL IN A STUDIO COMPARED TO A NATURAL LANDSCAPE. I AM HOWEVER INTERESTED IN THE DEMOLISHION AND REBUILDING OF BUILDINGS, ESCPECIALLY THE URBAN ENVIROMENT.

10. What do you intend to do at the end of the Foundation Degree? Do you know how you are going to go about this? What do you need to know to pursue your ambitions?

I’D LIKE TO CONTINUE ONTO THE HONOURS YEAR AT BOWER ASHTON AND LOOK FORWARD TO GAINING WORK EXPERIENCE, PUTTING MY PRACTICE INTO THE INDUSTRY. I ALSO NEED TO PREPARE MYSELF FOR HOW COMPETITIVE THE INDUSTY IS AND HOW DRIVE AND ENTHUSIASM IN MYSELF AND IN MY WORK WILL HELP THIS.

'CREATIVE HISTORIES & INDUSTRIES' - Intertextual/Fetish

Intertextuality is the shapes and the meaning by other terms. It revolves around the idea that a given text is a response to what had already been written; it can be explained as the reference to another seperate and distinct text within a text.

A 'Fetish' can be described as a form of sexual desire in which gratification is linked to an abnormal degree to a particular object/object of clothing/part of the body. It could also be an excessive and irrational devotion or commitment to a particular thing.
When thinking of things that have been 'fetised' I focused more on image and style, things like apps on iPhones, or UGG boots could be said to have been fetised. Their original use (communication/ footwear) has been overrided by the obsessive 'need' of the customer.
Another example could be something like Starbucks, the way in which it has been branded and celebritised could make it a fetish for some people. Although it serves customers in the same way any other coffee shop would, its branding and the way in which celebrities are 'spotted' with its cups has made the general public 'need' starbucks. These needs aren't a must, the products have just been over gratified.

'CREATIVE HISTORIES & INDUSTRIES' - Postmodernism: Space and Time

- We live in a 'postmodern society'.
- 'Postmodernity' is a key concept within contemporary art & design circles.
- 'Postmodernism' can't be understood in isolation from 'modernism'.
- Some theorists argue that postmodernism is merely an extension of modernism.
- Modernism is an extension of enlightenment.
- Enlightenment thought is that the universe is rational and can be understood through reason; education   can improve a person.
- Modernism was concerned with evidencing progression.
- Nationalism was a source of conflict to Modernism.

Fine art became increasingly apolitical, avant-guarde and abstract. In 1942 utility wear was introduced due to clothing and footwear rations from 1941. Laws were introduced to make it illegal and unpatriotic to use excess cloth or embellishment on items of clothing. The phrase "make do and mend" was prominent in encouraging people to appreciate what they already had. Modernism struggled to survive World War 2. It was seen as inhumane and restrictive. These utilitarian principles didn't allow for personal opinions or influences.


POSTMODERNISM
- Postmodernism originally described an architectural style.
- Concerned with decoration and playfulness. It was "style over content."
- Frequent references to the past.
- Postmodernist theorists included Baudrillard, Derrida, Foucault, Heidegger and Lyotard.
- Postmodern identity is influenced through lifestyle choices and the selection or consumption of commodities.
- Identity is not fixed or stable. It can be rewritten.


TASTE
- Taste is an ideological construct.
- Changes in what is considered fashionable determined what is considered good and bad taste.
- 'Conspicuous Consumption' and 'Conspicuous Leisure', not about function but about status.


ADVERTISING AND COMMERCIALISATION
Symbolic value of association, ie. Busta Ryhmes advertising Crovoisier. Commercialising street style, eg. people wearing combs in their hair which then appeared on a catwalk. Run DMC and Kanye West write music that isn't 'just protest songs.' Always write about the power of the individual. Identities are performed.
Advertising was developed as a by-product of the industrial revolution. It marked the start of the modern world, beginning in the late 1700s.

'CREATIVE HISTORIES & INDUSTRIES' - Semiotics: Dolce And Gabanna 'Light Blue'

The Dolce & Gabanna 'Light Blue' purfume advert was filmed in Capri, Italy. After anaylsing it and its use of semiotics I found that most purfumes go for the same sort of selling point. The advert is based around a very handsome topless mediterranean looking male on a boat who is later joined by a beautiful female in a a white bikini. The use of the white swimwear immediately gives the sense of purity (maybe the purfume 'Light Blue' will purify its buyer?). The use of location indicates that you'd possibly feel as though you're on the great blue sea when wearing the purfume, which obviously isn't true. As is the case in many purfume adverts, the use of body and image are used to benefit the brand, as if it could possibly improve your look. Finally I started thinking about the actual use of purfume, its main selling point is fragrance; 'we wear it to attract the opposite sex', and the advert simply illustrates this. It indicates that if you were to buy and wear 'Light Blue' you'd end up on a boat in Capri with the most beautiful person. Dolce & Gabanna and its advert (like many purfume adverts) romantisice its product.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLrUJY4D5Bc

'CREATIVE HISTORIES & INDUSTRIES' - Semiotics

The science of sign systems. The way we understand communication. Semiotics and structuralism suggests you can look at anything and view it as a text, which can be structurally analysed. A semaphore is something like flags that symbolise the alphabet.
Iconic signs look like what they signify, e.g photo's.
Indexical signs refer to other knowledge, e.g clouds hold rain.
Symbolic signs refer to where the meaning is only due to convention, e.g flags.

After watching Pink's 'stupid girls' music video, I started to notice the types of semiotics in the media. Throughout the video there are references to gender types and what is classed as 'good and bad'; these are referenced through sign systems and language. The difference in cultures are shown through the use of 'mocking' popular culture. Without even referencing Paris Hilton, the use of coffee, pet dogs wearing clothes and reckless driving allows the audience to probably unknowingly make a connection to her. The use of locations such a as tanning salon and gym are places people aim to improve their appearence which again reinforces the culture.

Structualism - the signifier and signified, breaking down and analysing things.

Poststructuralism - you have to involve and rely on other knowledge to understand. For example the painting by Marcus Harvey called Myra (1995).

BLOG ENTRY FOR CP1

I went on a little trip to London to see some exhibitions yesterday and after traipsing around the Barbican with my 'fashion student' friend we walked for over an hour trying to find The Magnum Print Room. I found a website with info on photography exhibitions and found they were apparently opening the print room to the public. Finally found it, but it literally just looked like an office.
After being buzzed in by some ignorant women we found ourselves in a private viewing room for perspective buyers. We took the price list and wondered around pretending we were interested in buying some £4000 print that had the artists writing nearly covering the whole photograph. After deciding the prints 'just weren't what we were looking for' we left. Probably should do some more research when trying to find 'alternative' exhibitions to go to!