Over the last six blogs I have been testing out different methods of researching and seeing what works for me. I feel that the best method I can use for researching is finding a source, reading it, then recording my findings. I am not sure that it is helpful to me to watch really long videos in a lecture room about something I am not interested in, however as I am entering the graphic design world I do know I need to get used to doing this. I feel that I need to be better at watching a video and taking facts from that and recording as I get too distracted by what is going on, on the screens rather than in the video and finding facts.

I have learnt how to summarise a method and research piece at the end rather than leaving it on a whim and not explaining myself fully so that I do not need to go back to it and try to catch up. Using references was new to me but I found this part a little helpful as I could go back to my sources and double check my information I had retrieved was correct.

Overall, I found the past 7 weeks interesting and helpful with my skills in researching and communicating information and feel it would be interesting to take it further and push myself so that I was able to improve these skills.

This postmodern photograph shows a surreal image of goldfish in a room with a boy. This is showing an image which is clearly not real. By deconstructing different elements from different walks of life and merging them together you are able to reveal a new image. The gold fish are in a way in their own environment because the blue tones in the photograph have connotations and are revealing a presence of water in there. However there is a boy in the photograph too. He is also feeling like he is in his own environment because in the blue tones there is the first bedroom which obviously belongs to him. This shows that together both focuses of the photograph are showing they are in their own environments but its made to be surreal and merged together.

This postmodern image is an illustration in the style of a pop art image. This is a contemporary image and shows it is living in the present. The colours are not so vibrant in this image, the only part of the image is the yellow that is standing out and drawing your eyes in. The background is quite boring and not revealing much about the image.

This postmodern image is a mismatch of photography, collage, and editing. I think this image is quite a conversation starter, rather an odd piece if I am honest but a complete contrast to my previous images. This image is very contemporary and modern in society these days as mismatch art is quite on trend. I think the colours in this image do not show it in its best light because they do not complement each other. The picture has quite an ugly outlook to be honest.

To summarise I do not feel a connection with these images and I do not feel that they tell an amazing story. I feel if you are trying to make a contemporary image they are a little odd and out there. The feelings and messages these images send me are a little muddled, the only image I feel tells a story and connects with me is the first one.

References: https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=zPSscIUm&id=F53F5700EB269ECFABF9DE8D06603E929661FAD6&thid=OIP.zPSscIUmpVgaEsNHWZRuKgEsDt&q=postmodern+photography&simid=608008117942749220&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=5Zpwrzgz&id=5EABA75DDC2ECAB564154E59880DC845DCF25643&thid=OIP.5ZpwrzgzuvuxGPqsSsRtowEsDH&q=Postmodern+Art&simid=608054967434742708&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=8xeIsr7h&id=2A1AB1389231A11C7A3DA3A88CA39C73238B72DF&thid=OIP.8xeIsr7hlQPeUU-ACqq-tAEsC7&q=postmodern+photography&simid=607996697641878044&selectedIndex=2&ajaxhist=0z

Sensibility, spirit, and meaning

This image from the 1960’s is a photography based image that shows and has captures the spirit from that time. You are able to see the sensibility in this photo from the expressions on their faces. They are showing their emotion through their smiles, showing their sensitive sides. The meaning of the photograph is a group of people having fun, and it has been captured as a memory. This image is not in colour, however it is still able to capture the spirit that was happenings and going on at the time.

This image is from the 1960’s also and is an illustration culture based image. This image shows the same spirit as the previous image but through different ways. The spirit before was captures through the sensibility on the subjects faces, however it differs in this image. The sensibility comes from the colours in this image. The colours are so bright and vibrant it shows the meanings of the 1960’s, which is happy, bright, and spiritual. This particular illustration is for a Pepsi Cola advert so it needs to be bright to capture the audiences attention, personally I think it for fills its purpose.

This image is a 1970’s culture poster which is from a series called “Black Light Posters”. This poster has an ultra violet theme to it. Only using pink, black, violet, and black in the poster, it is simple with the four colour use. Even though it is simple you still can understand the meaning, spirit, and sensibility behind the poster. This poster is different to the previous two because it is the most computer generate poster. The previous image was drawn then computer generated, then the first image is a photograph. The slickness of this poster allows the sensibility to be captured in a sense that it is slick, and professional allowing the audience to take the poster more serious.

“Paula Scher” is an artist who did work similar to the second image. Her work is very colourful and the features stand out due to the colour. I am looking at the picture of the state map that she illustrated.

References: https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=BEFCFJfO&id=5E473076FF9613134A40F75448609DD1A5BB9626&thid=OIP.BEFCFJfOBwcfqle0rY6wJAEsDI&q=1960+culture+photography&simid=608035365217307975&selectedIndex=5&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=%2f3TA6qpS&id=DAC1EAC72E1F31A44E152F1D66AC8AFAE7195C47&thid=OIP._3TA6qpSHI08elyXWhjYCAEAEs&q=1960+culture+illustration&simid=608027526894846056&selectedIndex=2&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=83%2f6KzAG&id=091CD56124874694978A3E2317EA4317C5F8F926&thid=OIP.83_6KzAGtZebkgZ0ht2xyAHaKO&q=70s+Black+Light+Posters&simid=608031353734956270&selectedIndex=4&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=d7lnUXUE&id=62D66770A567787A5E28584CC5431E4A41F6A635&thid=OIP.d7lnUXUEMvDWTgVNt-i53wEsDO&q=Paula+Scher+state+map&simid=608043512782195110&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0

Is it possible to be truly authentic?

Do the principles of modernism hold value in contemporary practices?

Artists these days have huge access to different sources and inspiration via online sources, newspapers, magazines, galleries, and so many more places. Is being influenced by someone the same as copying or is it different? I feel like copying is different to taking inspiration. Copying something exactly is forgery and not fair on the artist who has made the work initially. However if you take inspiration and the piece blows up and becomes large would you be annoyed if you were the initial artist where the inspiration had been taken from? Inspiration can trigger work that is not your own initial idea and that can cause some controversy.

Being able to create your own eye catching photograph is this day and age is difficult as anyone can construct a photograph using a smartphone as the camera qualities have become so good, along with using some editing software it can become great. DSLR’s are so easily accessible that this can also be the case too.

By looking at a photograph are you able to understand how authentic is really is or how much is has been digitally processed using editing software? Does editing software make a photograph non authentic? This could be an argument that yes it does alter the authenticity of a photograph as you are seeing something in the photograph that is not really there, whether it be the colours that have been altered or even an actual object that has been put in which is not there.

Reference website: http://www.theimageflow.com/photography-classes/authenticity-in-photography/

“Technology Is The Mortal Enemy Of Art”

Is technology having a massive impact on art and pushing the boundaries too much or too little? Do we need to experiment more with technology and art or should it be left alone to a human process rather than a digital process?

Photography was developed over 175 years ago, when it was first developed it was not involved with art a huge amount. However as time has gone on we can really see that the two interlink a lot now. Between art and technology there has become a huge bond, we can see this and there is no way of going back to undo this, therefore I feel we have to accept this and embrace it. You can see the effect photography has had on art through apps and websites such as “Instagram” and “Facebook”. Now days it is so easy to snap a decent photograph on your phone, upload it for an audience to view and call this a published piece of art.

But does this take away the authenticity of a photographers work by making it so easy to access things like this? Photographers work so hard to get that special shot whereas technology has made it so easy to manipulate this with filters and effects to make easy work seem more technical and skilled. Traditionally before technology was about artists or photographers would take a portfolio to galleries and be judged on if their work was really good enough to display to the public, however now it is easy and non judgemental to publish a piece of work to an audience.

I think this can have a positive impact as it is now easy to discover new talent and make it known.

Referencing website: https://www.uncmirror.com/arts/2017/08/20/artem-ex-machina-technologys-impact-on-the-changing-world-of-art/

In graphic arts you can find multiple styles of different work. I am focusing on a photography based album cover vs a illustration based album cover. I find the comparison of the two interesting because the versatility of the two is huge however they both deliver the same sort of message and both for fill a purpose.

http://www.elle.co.za-justin-bieber-artwork-banned/

This image is a photography based album cover which is from a Justin Bieber album. Here we can see that there is a portrait of himself showing that the style could be a little formal. However, the editing of the image then allows us to relax a little as it has been converted into black and white and then his body has been made a little see through by changing the opacity of the photograph. Over the top of this image there is then some sketching which relaxes the tone of the image and the style even more, this then leaves us with quite a relaxed feel allowing the audiences to connect with the album allowing more sales for him.

http://site.laboca.co.uk/Bombay-Bicycle-Club-1

This image in an illustration based album cover which is from the band Bombay Bicycle Club. In their album cover they demonstrate a series of illustrations which show human figures walking round in a circle through the moon and sun. This already appeals to their target audience and sets the whole tone of the image as relaxed, this is the same as the previous album. this illustration has then been digitally process which also is the same as the previous image. It is quite simple yet effective, less fussy than the previous image. I feel like I prefer this image even though the image before has more detail, this is because there is more thought behind this image and you can tell in the final piece.

In the first session of RCS we watched a movie called Terminal Bar, a film about a bar located in Times Square. This film was a documentary on a bar that is now been renovated into a video store. During the movie we were talked through characters that used to visit the bar and some history of the bar itself.

The film was made up of still photographs with some narration from a man overlaying the stills. There was text from newspaper articles and magazines so that we were able to read along with the words that were being spoken. The words that were being spoken, along with the still photographs, seemed to mimic the beat of the music in the background. We were able to read into the backstory of the characters and find a little more out about their personalities and lifestyles.

The sound quality on the movie was very very poor therefore we had to use subtitles with the movie which took away our full attention from the movie. The subtitles did not always match the words being said either therefore this was a little odd and harder to understand what was going on at that point in the movie.

Transitions were made up of still images being moved around in a kaleidoscopic effect, with no words, just moving along with the beat of the music. The stills were arranged in chronological order as if we were following along with the people from the past, to the present, then onto the future so we saw the progression.