'Roid Week 2012

I haven't had much time to do creative things on the side, but this is a special occasion, and I really have to share.

It's (POLA) 'ROID WEEK!!!  It's like a party with all of my old friends! This year I have decided to shoot most-if not all-of my contributions in my new apartment. Bella has been away on a vacation so I haven't had a chance to conspire with my little partner for some self portraiture yet-but I am so lucky-she is coming home just in time to partake in the festivities.

Polaroid SX-70, Impossible PX-70 Color Shade film

Polaroid Spectra, Impossible PZ 680 Color Shade film

These first two shots are tests, really, to see if I have enough light. It looks like I will be needing a tripod. I do have decent light in my apartment, but unfortunately, no direct sunlight anywhere, at any time of the day. It's okay, though, with a tripod I think I can manage. See you all over on Flickr, and on Twitter, and on Facebook, too. Yay!

*Looking back: My ROID WEEK 2011*

Instant Mood

I am most inspired by photographers who are able to balance the melodrama of black and white film with another aspect of interest, such as grace, femininity, or emotional sensitivity. Some of my favorite imagery comes from Francesca Woodman, Diane Arbus, and the more contemporary (and living) Joel-Peter Witkin, whose work imparts incredible depth of mood and atmosphere with a dark psychological edge. 

George and Betty Woodman

Francesca Woodman: House #3, Providence, Rhode Island, 1976

There is something really special about The Impossible Project's Silver Shade films. Film noir and Alfred Hitchcock come to mind. I love how I can go out on a bright sunshiny spring day and get shots like these with instant film. Good times.

I didn't think this image was going to turn out-it was totally underexposed-
but after a week the contrast and tone surprised me.
No Photoshop lightening at all here. (Shot in bright sunlight.)

SX-70, PX100 Silver Shade film.

When I draw, paint, or work in any other medium besides photography, I am more attracted to color application, so it is really satisfying to see my style expressed in monochrome without much effort. I did some printmaking last fall in black and white, though. When I'm forced into it, it seems to turn out okay. I still need to photograph those prints...I will one of these days.  

Sunday Inspiration

Film stills from Breathless, Jean-Luc Godard (1960), Starring Jean Seberg & Jean-Paul Belmondo.  One of the best and most charming, enjoyable films in history.

(I apologize about the quality, I used my dslr, handheld.)

Our City Dreams

     Last night I took the time watch the 2008 documentary film, Our City Dreams.  It's directed by Chiara Clemente, daughter of renouned artist Francesco Clemente.  Clemente's experience growing up in the art world inspired her to become a filmmaker.  She creates documentaries which allow the public a semi-private view into the lives of artists. 

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     This film follows the working lives of five female artists within a two-year time span. (Official Website)  The artists included are Swoon, Ghada Amer, Marina Abramovic, Kiki Smith, and Nancy Spero.  

     Although each of these women approach their work differently, they are all concerned with issues that are relevant in the lives of women with diverse backgrounds around the world today.  In an article by Giovanna Masselli, she describes Clemente's vision, and how her personal experience influenced her view on art. 

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     What interests me most about the film is that it takes an intimate look into each artist’s process and their feelings behind what inspires and motivates them in the studio and in their lives.  Clemente was able to piece interviews together in a way that allows viewers to feel a personal level of engagement with the artists.  I was happy to find that this film is currently streaming on Netflix.

     Here is a little background information on the five artists included in this film, in the order of their appearance.  

1. Swoon, (birth name Caledonia Dance Curry) born 1977, Daytona Beach, Florida, USA.

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     Swoon works mostly with large paper prints and cut-outs in public urban spaces.  She also makes good use of installation in a gallery space, and has also worked on community projects.  Her art is characterized by a sensitivity to the personalities of the people in her representations.  She is mostly concerned with the dynamics of human connection. 

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2.  Ghada Amer, born 1963, Cairo, Egypt.

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     Gender and sexuality are central thematic elements in Amer's work.  She first received international recognition for her embroidered pieces.  She is currently working as a multimedia artist and includes drawing, painting, sculpture, performance, and installation in her repertoire.  She addresses contemporary issues of women living in a modern society.

And the Beast, 2004. Acrylic, embroidery, and gel medium on canvas.
Collection of the artist, courtesy of Gagosian Gallery 
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3.  Marina Abramovic, born 1946, FPR Yugoslavia.

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     Amer is a performance-based artist dealing with gender, ego, identity, and the dynamics of relationships and behavior between people.  She tests the boundaries of human nature and the body itself in her performances.  She works both on location and within the walls of a gallery space.  

Marina Abramovic and Ulay, Imponderabilia, 1977 
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4.  Kiki Smith, born 1954, Nuremberg, Germany. 

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     Smith works within the broad parameters of gender, identity, and social issues.  She uses a wide variety of media and techniques in her art, which includes print, sculpture, and installation.  She is featured on the PBS Art21 series, which highlights the work of contemporary American artists.

Hanging Woman
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5.  Nancy Spero, born 1926 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, died in 2009 in New York City.

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     Spero had a prolific career, and was one of the first notable female artists involved in the women's movement of the 20th century.  Her work deals with cultural issues, politics, and gender, with a focus on the female experience in society.  She is also featured on the PBS Art21 Series.

Israeli Women Soldiers, 1966-70 
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     I know you'll enjoy Our City Dreams as much as I did, whether you're an artist, or someone who enjoys art.  It's an inspiring, interesting look into the lives of five artists who are successfully communicating their ideas.  I enjoyed the rare opportunity of being able to share the experience of these women from their inner world.

Featured Artist: Liliana Porter

     I recently compiled a set of 50 links to artists who influence me personally in this blog's sidebar.  While it would be fun to let you go through them all by yourself, it's much better to talk about them a little, to share with you what it is about these particular artist's work that appeals to me.

     Liliana Porter is an artist who works in a multitude of mediums including printmaking, painting, photography, installations, film and video.  She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1941, and has lived and worked in New York since 1964.  Porter was a 
professor at Queens College, City University of New York, from 1991 to 2007.

Levitating Rabbit (2003)
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Nail (1972)
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Dialogue with It (1997)
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Candle (2005)
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Situations with Them (2007)
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Triptych (1986)
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     I enjoy Porter's work for its charm and appeal to my sense of nostalgia. I also respond to the emotional quality and irony that seem to permeate the bulk of her work. Her quirky drawings of small objects are carefully juxtaposed within the starkness of a smooth sheet of paper, suspended in a singular moment, giving the viewer time to consider and question its relevance.  Human nature persuades an attachment to objects beginning from childhood, and Porter takes what is deemed sentimental to create a message, even if it may be one that gravitates towards the absurd.


Liliana Porter's Current Artist 
Statement:
     In the last years, parallel to photography and video, I have been making works on canvas, prints, drawings, collages, and small installations. Many of these pieces depict a cast of characters that are inanimate objects, toys and figurines that I find in flea markets, antique stores, and other odd places. The objects have a double existence. On the one hand they are mere appearance, insubstantial ornaments, but, at the same time, have a gaze that can be animated by the viewer, who, through it, can project the inclination to endow things with an interiority and identity. These theatrical vignettes are constructed as visual comments that speak of the human condition. I am interested in the simultaneity of humor and distress, banality and the possibility of meaning.
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