1) This is 100% a picture of the ceiling of Sodalicious at The Village, and a big part of the thing I was trying to capture was the incongruous feeling between the trendy, yuppie soda shop and this cold, industrial latticework of exposed pipes and architectural framework. Also, in the middle of all the straight lines and the symmetry of the hard black beams there are these shiny, space-y discoid things that throw off the equipoise and regularity of the layout. I hoped to capture a some of that subtle off-ness, that little bit of good kinesis and chaos up there on the ceiling at Sodalicious.
2) I'm interested in functional objects that are kind of in the off-season of being put to use. This is my shower drain after the shower hadn't been used for 24 hours; instead of being, I don't know, wet and soapy, it's dry, it serves no purpose unless there's water to go down it. All of that said, I didn't know how to take a photo that would convey that exact thing that I just described. I tried getting close enough that the dryness is evident, that this looks like a thing that's out of commission, at least for now. I still don't know if I got it.
3) My friend Matt got some after-market fireworks and we went off to some secret snowy place to shoot them off illegally. It was pitch black but the fireworks were so bright, making my friend look like some kind of hellbeast as he shot them off. I wanted to capture the good, lawless, fiery feeling of being something bright in the darkness. I wanted to get a shot that showed how violent and fierce it felt to be surrounded by sparks and smoke. I think I got something "cool" here, but not necessarily as incendiary and zoetic as the thing I was feeling in the moment, or the thing I wanted someone to feel when they looked at the photograph.
4) I was trying to somehow be even more of a so-called documentarian with this photo (even though I don't really understand my own logic here; every one of the photos I took this week was documenting something). I was trying to get an expansive look at a life (in this case: my life) by picking through the detritus of that life. In hindsight, I think this half-empty bathroom trashcan can only ever paint a narrow picture of someone's life. Here we maybe see that the person living here is female (shout out: Tampax) and blonde, and otherwise fairly indiscernible. I feel like this is a start or even just an idea that needs to be broader and more specific, but as is, it really isn't reaching enough to convey anything solid.
5) I don't remember what this is. Like, some kind of gas tank behind a restaurant or something. But that's a good part of the photo that I was trying to get. When I saw this weird, complex, metal thing, I thought: What is that? I wanted to get into the core of this random piece of machinery and show that I don't understand it. I wanted to show some unlabeled valves and switches, a mysterious tag that says "PRESSURE BUILDING," etc. I wanted to share both my interest and my bewilderment at this thing with whoever would see this picture. Like, we're all confused, but isn't it fun to look at?
1/9/16, 11:54 PM
Avery, I really did enjoy the documentarian feel to your photos this week. They felt more "real-world" than the ones I had taken. The photo of the ceiling at Sodalicious seemed incredibly industrial and learning where it belonged was surprising. And the drain certainly captured disuse. The dryness and soap stains made it seem the drain had not been used in a long time. As for the firework, I really liked the circle of light on the ground created around the sparks. It captured, for me, a stark defiance of the darkness around it. And I don't necessarily seek out looking at other people's trash, but being forced to look at it really does say a lot about how similar and dissimilar people are to each other. And for the last photo, not incorporating the entirety of the large metal device does imbue a sense of mysteriousness to it. Sweet stuff. :)
ReplyDeleteAvery, I really did enjoy the documentarian feel to your photos this week. They felt more "real-world" than the ones I had taken. The photo of the ceiling at Sodalicious seemed incredibly industrial and learning where it belonged was surprising. And the drain certainly captured disuse. The dryness and soap stains made it seem the drain had not been used in a long time. As for the firework, I really liked the circle of light on the ground created around the sparks. It captured, for me, a stark defiance of the darkness around it. And I don't necessarily seek out looking at other people's trash, but being forced to look at it really does say a lot about how similar and dissimilar people are to each other. And for the last photo, not incorporating the entirety of the large metal device does imbue a sense of mysteriousness to it. Sweet stuff. :)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete1. This photo is really cool looking, especially since it clashes with the bubbly locale. I like the lines and the industrial feel to it.
ReplyDelete2. This one didn't do a lot for me. It kind of looks like the surface of a planet or something, though.
3. I like how the stream of fire almost seems to be dissected into separate lines. All of the sparks from the firework come together, and it looks as though there are individual threads of fire that have somehow been woven together. It's cool.
4. Gross. But I like what it says about people. A common theme that I've noticed in some of your work is inviting others to observe and ponder the nastier, less pleasant things in life. Interesting.
5. This photo does confuse me, and I want to see the rest of it so I can know what the heck it is. So mission accomplished.
1. I think you did capture the “subtle off-ness” I loved the minimal colors and contrast of shapes and material
ReplyDelete2. Your framing here is unusual, the drain is really close to the bottom of the frame which to me gives it an eeriness. I like that you didn’t go for the usual. I just keep picturing the water starting to run and then the scene from Psycho play out.
3. I like the contrast here and the fact that the sparks are only on one side of the frame. Even though you explained what the picture was, there is still some mystery to it which I like.
4. I never would have thought to take a picture of my trash so I like that you went there! I really like the randomness of the placement of objects and the pop of contrasting colors on either side of the frame.
5. Machinery is always interesting to look at. There are so many parts to it I really want to just reach into the picture and touch it all to see what it does
The Sodalicous photo spoke out to me. The low key lighting I love, especially with the factory look of it. The shapes and lines make the picture very dynamic. I feel industrious when I look at it.
ReplyDelete