Photograms : archivAL AXIS
Artist Statement
What is your GOAL? I’m aware that this is your first assignment in a new medium and you aren’t necessarily creating a meaningful body of work YET. However, you SHOULD start to think about how your work impacts your viewer. What are your choices communicating? Are your choices intentional or accidental? That said – answer these questions before you embark:
What are the objects you’ve brought in to use? Why?
Are the objects in your composition going to be literal or metaphorical?
Will you be telling a story? What is it? Who are the characters? What is the setting?
If you’re working with objects that are purely random, how do you think these objects/materials could/will be “read” by your viewer(s)?
How will your composition contribute to the overall message of your work?
At the conclusion of this unit, you will be asked to write a short artist statement about your work– this will include some elements from the above reflections as well as anything else that’s important to understand where you’re coming from. Here is an example by the artist we’ve been looking at:
WENDY SMALL
"When I started making photograms the propelling thought was to organize, or maybe even substantiate the chaos in my life. I brought into the darkroom objects that cluttered my rooms, drawers, and floors. It grew into an activity of searching for and collecting objects specifically for my work. Occasionally the chosen objects expose private narratives, specific landscapes or traces of time. The process of surrounding the pieces with light laces together things that are either necessary or disposable. The magic of making photograms, the way the light transforms and records these disparate parts into a beautiful form continues to surprise me. At times I can identify each part and its function; at other times I see only the fluid lines of their connections."
What is your GOAL? I’m aware that this is your first assignment in a new medium and you aren’t necessarily creating a meaningful body of work YET. However, you SHOULD start to think about how your work impacts your viewer. What are your choices communicating? Are your choices intentional or accidental? That said – answer these questions before you embark:
What are the objects you’ve brought in to use? Why?
Are the objects in your composition going to be literal or metaphorical?
Will you be telling a story? What is it? Who are the characters? What is the setting?
If you’re working with objects that are purely random, how do you think these objects/materials could/will be “read” by your viewer(s)?
How will your composition contribute to the overall message of your work?
At the conclusion of this unit, you will be asked to write a short artist statement about your work– this will include some elements from the above reflections as well as anything else that’s important to understand where you’re coming from. Here is an example by the artist we’ve been looking at:
WENDY SMALL
"When I started making photograms the propelling thought was to organize, or maybe even substantiate the chaos in my life. I brought into the darkroom objects that cluttered my rooms, drawers, and floors. It grew into an activity of searching for and collecting objects specifically for my work. Occasionally the chosen objects expose private narratives, specific landscapes or traces of time. The process of surrounding the pieces with light laces together things that are either necessary or disposable. The magic of making photograms, the way the light transforms and records these disparate parts into a beautiful form continues to surprise me. At times I can identify each part and its function; at other times I see only the fluid lines of their connections."