The Dusseldorf School of Photography

The Dusseldorf School of photography was a school for Fine Art Paintings and arts.  The school holds works of great artistic excellence and innovations.  This school of Husband and wife team Bernd and Hilla Becher was when they first gave art photography institutional support and a home. All of the new movements made in Art happened just before the World War II, so now there are lot and lots of Museums around the area of Dusseldorf.  There is a book filled of the works by the pupils of the school who have changed the face of art photography.

The Bechers were influenced by August Sander, August Sander had a new objective approach to Portraiture and Otto Steinert, subjectively was influenced by Man Ray.

The Dusseldorf Book is filled with superb reproductions of three generations of the Participating artists best known photographers.  The works produced from the pupils who studied at this school now dominates the sale rooms and museums and probably will do for generations to come.  They each changed the way we all look at art in photography, gave more meaning and gave the viewer reasons to think.

Here are a list of Artists and Photographers who attended the school and more possible photographers who have used similar work to what my ideas are of:

• Bernd & Hilla Becher (shown on a previous post)
• Laurenz Berges
• Elger Esser
• Andreas Gursky
• Candida Hofer
• Axel Hutte
• Simone Nieweg
• Thomas Ruff
• Jorg Sasse
• Thomas Struth 
• Petra Wunderlich

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Having Not even heard of some of these photographers, I was so pleased I was shown such a ray of different photographers.  I am actually surprised that I was never shown some of these images before this module.  I haven't even know they existed.  I feel as if many of the works from the photographers on the list above can fit into my subjects and topic idea.  I would like to try out something different for this module, I want to have a theme throughout.  I will go through and show what is relevant to my ideas from the works of these great photographers - there are more than one group and series of work that are very inspirational to me now. 

My Own Topographical Images

My Own Photography

I thought I would do an Old search through some photographs of mine from ventures out into the places I have been.  I was looking for any photographs that would fit in with the New Topographics works of the "Man Altered Landscape".  I wanted to aim to find Images of mine that did not include any People within the shot, this is because I also wanted to show the kind of Deadpan aesthetic within the imagery.

I wanted to show street photography that I have taken whilst walking around the areas that I live in.  The top two images are in Margate which is close to my University.  They both show graffiti on the walls and garage doors but I do think as a documentary Image regarding the place 'Margate' I do think they are good images.  They are very English I'd say, You can tell the kinds of buildings that it could possible be on even from the small walls that are in the images.  You can imagine both of these to be a block of flats. I do think these top two work very well in New Topographics as it shows a Deadpan Aesthetic as no body it about and it almost looks as if its a derelict and no-body lives or goes there.

My Own Photography

The two images below this piece of text show the stairs down at the beachfront in Broadstairs and one of the signs along the front street of Margate Beach.  Both very old seaside towns that used to hold such great beach memories for millions, whereas now, there is a emptiness about the place.  I think that these two images also show similarities to the New Topographics Exhibition as again, the Images have no life going on and show just a straight forward image.  I would say that they could have a resemblance to the work of Lewis Baltz in the fact that he does take shots of the front of buildings with doors.  The beach font with the stairs on the left would be like some of Lewis Baltz's big doors on the walls.

My Own Photography

This image that I have included below is an image of mine taken on a Long Walk along the seaside front in Thanet. These two cranes were just straight in the middle of this big open flat ground.  I think it is where the hover port used to be, which is why there is a big flat ground right next to the sea. I think this image actually makes the crane stand out really well.  I like how the crane wheels are facing towards the way I am shooting a bit more so you can see them properly. 

I wouldn't compare this work to any of the photographer's that i have looked at on my blog so far but I do think it reminds me off something that could be considered Industrial. 

I really like all of the five image of mine that I have tried to link to the New Topographics lecture. 

My Own Photography

John Schott

John Schott was also in the New topographics exhibition.  He too produced a project on the lines of the way I want to go with my Subject.  He quite famously took a series of images a long the Route 66 in Los Angeles.  All of Motels and all different angles but of the front of the motel.

I love looking at all of these images next each other as it make me wonder where all the people are.  It made all of these look like ghost towns with not a single living thing around.  This is also what I think is very interesting about the project but they all just look so empty.  Definitely a good one for my project though.  The amount of dead pan in this is about as deadpan as you can get with man altered landscapes. I think certain images in this series look like they could be owned by completely different people to be designed in different ways. 

 I like the fact that within these images I like to think that the owners of the properties are completely different types of people, each Motel along Route 66 looks different from another but are the same thing.  This is where the documenting comes into it,  whatever I choose to do for my final 6 images will be documenting, and definitely within my context of the same difference.  I would like to find a particular building or shape to work with and use that through my project.

 Below I have two larger images, I have shown these two larger because I feel they are the only two images out of the whole series that actually look similar.  If you were in London England, and focused on say, The Best Western hotels, everywhere you go they are exactly the same, and near enough the same layout.  Yes every building is unique but the buildings of todays companies are all the same, obviously each of these motels are each individual motels, therefore have no need to look the same.  It might even be the fact that it most of the motels looked the same then people would want to find a different one, I know I probably would.  Some people take into consideration that the way a layout is of a building or placings of furniture inside could tell what a person is like, personalities show in a living place and you'd think these two below would be similar kinds of people.

I think what I would take from John Schott's work is that whatever my actual subject matter may become, each image, if of a property might be able to tell a personality of whoever lives there.

Frank Gohlke

Frank Gohlke was another of the photographers that fits into the subject matter that I am aiming for but on only a few of his images.  The two images below are the only two images of his that I feel have the same look.  He subjects and topic's are the same and similar through all being the Landscape, but with these two images i get the feel that a vertical line through the image is what he wanted to pick up.

I feel as if the vertical lines make the images fit together and show a sense of openness as the lines draw down to the open empty road space.  I think these two would definitely count in the matter of the same but different, as the differences are quite big.  Some of his work is completely different compositions and angles but with these two I think if he had shot more of spaces like this then there would have all been a 'same' series like I am aiming for.

Bernd and Hilla Becher

Bernd and Hilla Becher, are used one hell of a lot in this type of photography.  But are perfect for my research into the same but different.  These two travelled around to different countries to make sure they got a photograph of each 'same thing'.  For example, the water towers which are probably their most famous. They almost look like it is the same image because it is of the 'same' thing.  What I like about this work is that, because they are different you only notice from tiny little things like a darker shade or a different fence to tell, but it does make you check that each one is different and then you look at what is different in each image. 

This form of photography moves away from the subjective and sentimental and devise a form of honesty in them.  You know that because every one is a different look but the same subject, it then makes you know that they are in different places and therefore know that it is a honest document. The way that these are so very much similar and the way that each group of images are used together as grid makes me wonder than any subject that I use for my images could work to a degree.  I would have to make sure the subject in all of my images are the same and only have slight differences.  

The document as imagery is something that will always be around in todays world and is how everything started out.  I know that by taking the same subject matter and re shooting the in the exact same way but of different versions of the subject matter will document each as a complete unique thing.  So even if the images do look exactly the same, that particular image is technically a unique document. 

The bechers, shot all of these images on a large format camera and made sure they were all shot in Autumn or spring to get the best and brightest natural exposure for the images. A very light grey but very bright, so that every detail was shown.  I do really like this work and the more and more I think about subject for 'the same but different' it makes me wonder about all the things that are the same.  I want to find a subject that most people have but keep in a completely different way.

Lewis Baltz

Whilst looking through the New Topographics work I was shown at the start of this module, The first one that stood out to me as for my idea of 'the same but different' is the work of Lewis Baltz.
His series of Industrial Parks are so very simple yet, it leaves you thinking about what is actually inside.
He was the first photographer so far that has used a similar idea to one of mine which is the same but different, Each one of these industrial parks are technically the same thing, but in each photo they are completley different.  

I like how the images are so simple and Deadpan - also sticking to my other theme.  The are flat images showing the front of buildings and door ways.  I could use this as ideas and will consider using a certain type of building for my works. 

"Deadpan"

Deadpan Photography is the style and theme for my written Essay, I know that a deadpan image could potentially be in every genre of photography.  The Deadpan shot could range from landscape to portraits.  It is neutral photography without bias and it is and insightful focusing, often revealing life and recording changing times. I have looked up The Deadpan image for my essay and have realised that I can literally go down every route with this as my main idea.  I've decided to stick with deadpan to be my main topic area and to research and find the works around this topic for my journal and final project theme.

Because Deadpan is an image taken with honesty, credibility and without prejudice, anything taken with them three quality classes as deadpan.  It could be so open, I could work with portraits and the body or landscapes and switch up my ideas as long as I stick to the general theme of Deadpan.  I have found a general list of the types of deadpan and ideas that I shall look up throughout my Blog Journal.

• Historical Sites,
• Landscapes,
• Industrial Spaces,
• Portraits, 
• Urban Spaces, 
• Architecture, 
• Life on the Street/Society,
• Transitional Spaces / a Changing World. 

This leaves me with so many different options to go from, but there are plenty of photographers to discuss and look at.  Examples of deadpan photographers that I want to include are Candida Hofer, Simone Nieweg, Edward Burtynsky, Thomas Ruff, Gabriele Basilico, Taksahi Homma, Eugene Atget.  

The Same but Different

I have decided that which ever project idea that I decide to stick with I am going to make sure I have the same theme throughout each of the images.  I want to explore more into different subject, something that I do not usually do.  I would also like to stay with a similar idea to the body and the deadpan portrait, whilst I also look into Landscapes too.

Most of the work I have seen so far in the lecture have been landscapes, I would like to work with something similar.  Some of the projects I have been shown are of the same thing throughout for example, Gasoline Stations in America, this is a project done so many times not, but the interesting thins is - the subject and topic area of gasoline stations stays the same, but each of the images are completely different because all the stations are different - this is the idea that I am going to stick with which ever project I decide on.

Idea's I've always Wanted to do

After the first lecture and looking into the works in new Topographics, it has got me thinking even more at Ideas that I have always wanted to do.  I personally like working with a documentary side to projects, showing what is 'the real' or leaving the viewer wondering.  But there are some Ideas that I would like to list just as possibles for this short smaller project.

Twins

Twins is a project that i have wanted to work on for a while now and I think i could try to fit it in to this module.  I think that I could use the traditional deadpan aesthetic for the images and creatively produce a series of 6 twins images.  I would seriously consider this, as I have links to quite a few twins, both Identical and un-identical.  My boyfriend is an Identical twin so this could be a lead into the project.  I will write up this idea a bit later on in the project.  

Fur

Fur is a project that I've wanted to explore because I wanted to show that the fashion industry bring in this theme quite often, as big flurry russian hats and the big fur coats come in and out of trend, My nan is a seamstress and over the years has a huge room filled with dresses and clothes galore, and she has these beautiful real fur coats that would be perfect for a theme - i am not quite sure how I would fit this into this module but probably through a deadpan portrait. 

The Old

For this idea I would try to find the oldest people I know around me, or aim for a specific age and theme and ask people I know to ask their great Nan's or great Grandads.  The images would be close in on just their faces to show the lines and how the face changes.  I also considered asking them to find a photo from when they were young, and hold it in front of them.  

Traditional English Sweet Shops

I almost used this as a project last year for an assignment.  I looked round the whole of the Thanet areas, broadstairs, canterbury, margate etc, to find the oldest sweet shops that still hold everything in big jars. When I looked into this idea last year, I had mapped out all of the closest sweet shops, all the locations and was going to travel to each one, i chose against the idea because I ran out of time, which might happen for this project, It may have to be an ongoing piece. 

Landscapes - 'The Same so Different'

This idea is different from my usual themes for project as it is a landscape project.  I used to shoot landscapes a lot more in college but have over the last few years been narrowing my style down to what seems just portraiture.  I would like to try out a landscape assignments again.  This project would be photographing the same 'thing', 'place', 'subject' but in different places and showing what the differences are and whether it makes a difference to that particular place.  This could fit well into this assignment if I decide to shoot landscape. 

Each of these ideas are completely different from one another, I just wanted to include them to show how I can range between ideas and not jus have one similar idea. 

New Topographics Intro

Exhibition at the George Eastman House - 1975
New Topographics - 'Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape'

In 1975 at the George Eastman House an exhibition was curated by William Jenkins, it was assisted by Joe Deal who was also a participating photographer in the exhibition but also exhibition manager.  The show was on what was then evolving and emerging as the new (urban) landscape photograph, titled New Topographics; Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape.

The 1975 exhibition was in Rochester, NY.  Thirty-five years ago, fine art photography was a much different place, with very few venues for exhibitions, and just a few schools which taught fine art photography.  The world of fine art photography was a much smaller place.  This book that was created  from the exhibition includes two essays, one By Britt Salvesen on a content of historical perspective to this exhibition, and the second By Alison Nordstorm on a context to today's present urban landscape photographic practice.

This New Topographics book also includes all of the photographs that were exhibited and a reproduction of the original 1975 catalog and photographic credits for the exhibited photographs.  The exhibition was not well attended, as some of the photographers did not even go.  It seemed to not really get a lot of attention at the time but made a big impact to the photographic world afterwards.

The photographers who exhibited;

• * Robert Adams, * Lewis Baltz, * Bernd and Hilla Becher, * Joe deal, * Frank Gohlke, * Nicholas Nixon, * John Schott, * Stephen Shore, * Henry Wessel. 

Out of all of these photographers only;
- One exhibited in colour which was Stephen Shore.
- Two used 35mm film which was Lewis Baltz & Henry Wessel.
- Three utilised medium format cameras which was Robert Adams, Joe Deal and Frank Gohlke.
- and Five utilised large format cameras which was Nicholas Nixon, John Schott, Stephen Shore and Bernd and Hilla Becher.

All the photographers worked independently but still knew of each other.  The photographs were made throughout the United States and Western United States.  Artistic Influences for the New Topographics photographers varied, but were mostly Walker Evans, Ed Ruscha and also Robert Smithson.
Walker Evans and Eugene Atget are well know for their "documentary style" and were back then as well.  Ed Ruscha was influential for his conceptualism, personal ironic vision and the seriality found in his many photo-books. Robert Smithson was influential for his satire and melancholy, pointing up tragicomic aspects while investigating the idea of monumentality, attempting to duplicate the individual experience.

Many of the exhibiting photographers had concerns with the main title, New Topographics, but found appealing the exhibitions subtitle, Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape, which at the time, the use of the term Man-Altered was still politically correct.

The Original Published Catalog with the exhibition is now rare and expensive, but it is included within this book.  It is 48 pages and has illustrated three photographers per photographer, a total of 27 photographs.  Most of the prints were created on 8x10 paper, so most of the images inside the book are at actual exhibition scale.

Most of the supporters of this documentary style are historically traced to Bernd and Hilla Becher at Dusseldorf School of Photographers and the students of the school, Thomas Ruff, Candida Hofer. Thomas Struth and Andreas Gursky who I will mention in a later blog post.

Here above are just some of the pages from the book of the Exhibition.  Some of the images are bigger on the pages than others but like I mentioned earlier, the most of the images are the actual 8x10 exhibition size image. I would love to get hold of this book so that I could see the images and the original catalog from the exhibition, but I also love that I have learnt so much about this exhibition.

There was actually a new version of this exhibition organised and held at the Brackett Clark Gallery with the Centre for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona.  It re-examined more than 100 works from the 1975 show, as well as some 30 prints and books by other relevant artists to provide additional historical and contemporary context.  This newer exhibition showed both historical significance of these pictures and their continued relevance today.  After its Eastman House display, New Topographics will travel to eight international venues.
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So, the reason for looking into the New Topographics exhibition is to shoe what the exhibition was all about and the kind of imagery that was involved.  I personally really like the work of A man Altered Landscape, I used to shoot landscapes in college and somehow swayed against it whilst I carried on through photography - I ended up staying with Portraiture for most of my work up until today.  I would like to look into the man altered landscape in more depth and see what I could consider as my options for this project.

Initial Ideas

Although I've only had one lecture so far for this module, within the first lecture I was shown a lot of work by lots of different photographers.  This has got me thinking about what my first ideas were for this assignment, and how I'm going to come up with an essay and 6 final prints.

For each of my other assignments I am researching about the 'body' and 'body movements' and my tutor knows this.  For each photographer mentioned about the body,  I would be advised to look further into them.  And I have no objection to carrying on this module about 'the body' either as, it would actually make it a bit easier and would carry on with my particular style that I am trying to stick with.

My initial ideas for my journal research and my final outcomes are to stay working with people, portraits, and the human body.  A lot of what was shown in my first lecture was landscape based, and as much as I find the work fascinating, I would like to stick with a particular style of portraiture.
One Idea that had ran thought my head from the beginning is to work with the process of 'deadpan photography'.  This is something I will look further into and decide if I want to or not.

My initial ideas for my Essay are very much similar to my journal ideas.  I would like to write my essay about the changes of deadpan photography through the years.  My next blog is about the Dusseldorf School of Photography and New Topographics, with this being the beginning of photography but a change on deadpan photography, I want to explore the changes through the years and see why deadpan is so popular today.

Although most of the New Topographics that I have learnt about and will show include Landscape photography, I am still interested in this genre.  My ideas could possible change at any point and I could find myself photographing landscapes.  But for the mean time I will focus on my ideas written above.

I like my ideas for both and think I could potentially have some very interesting subjects to research about and find a creative idea to finalise with.  A lot of artists and photographers I have looked at today and will show, have some sort of relevance to my ideas.

About the Module

So just like for the rest of my assignments, I like to have a list of everything that needs to be done within the module so that I can look back and see exactly what to do to stay on track. I am going to write out the objectives, context, aims and journal to make sure I can see clearly each stage to do.

All Assessment:

1. Written work Essay to the Value of 2500 words. (50%) The title and scope of the essay, which must fall within the context provided by the module, will be chosen by myself, and approved by my tutor with tutorial support.  The module essay will be used to assess learning outcomes 1, 2, 3. 
2. Independent and Art Photography Portfolio (of approx. 6 prints) with accompanying Critical Journal (50%).  The scope of the portfolio, which must fall within the context provided by the module, will be chosen my myself and approved by my tutor with tutorial support.  The portfolio and critical journal will be used to asses learning outcomes 1, 2, 3. 

Assignment Context OPEN BRIEF:

• Submit a portfolio of normally 6 Prints, related to the set theme,
• Have a copy of all images on a DVD/CD, photographed and processed by me,
• Images demonstrating acquired skills relating to my advanced photographic practice, 
• Portfolio is an Open Brief with a Critical Journal as a Blog (this blog),
• Propose a theme / project and, with tutor guidance, manage and produce the project, 
• Brief is down to me, explore other photographers that have examined similar themes,
• Acknowledge other photographers work in my Critical Journal Blog.  

Assignment Context ESSAY:

• Required to construct my own title for this essay,
• When constructing the title, consider how, for example, the essay might examine a photographer or photographers work, a key photographic movement / process of genre,
• The title and scope of the essay must fall within the context provided by the module,
• The essay proforma attached must be submitted by 6th February, 2013. 

Critical Journal & Essay:

• Approximately 6 images relating to the set theme,
• A written Statement of Intent (200-400words max),
• Supporting Materials,
• Writings / Jottings / Influences,
• Test Strips / Contact Sheets, 
• Any rejected work, 
• A critical Evaluation of Portfolio (one or two sentences per image),
• Any risk assessment paperwork.

Plus

• 1x 2500 approx. word referenced essay. 

Learning Outcomes:

• Make critically informed connections between independent and art photography and other forms, both historically and within contemporary culture,
• Critically evaluate the relationship between the theoretical and practical bases of photography and independent and art photography, 
• Critically engage with issues of expression, representation, meaning and affect as they apply to independent and art photography. 

Module Aims OPEN BRIEF:

• To place independent and art photography within a critical context in relation to the avant-garde in other art forms and contemporary cultural discourse. 
• To situate independent and art photography within the context of contemporary visual culture,
• To provide me with a critical understanding of the historical, theoretical and practical bases of avant-garde and independent production, and engages critically with questions of expression, representation, meaning and affect,
• Module will provide a critical framework in which I will be able to make informed connections between photography and contemporary cultural discourse and my own photographic practice. 

Other Module Content:

The module will examine the history of independent and art photography in Europe, Asia and North America and how this relates to both commercial and independent production throughout the world today.  The module will consider issues such as:

• Questions of Modernism and Post Modernism,
• The relationship between form and content and issues of formalism and materialism,
• The different perspectives offered, for example, by European, Asian and North American work,
• Photographic practice, and how the work studied on the module relates to student practice. 

Individual photographers, movements and images studied serve to provide a broad historical overview of art and independent photography.  The module also aims to draw distinctions between European, Asian and North American trends in art photography.  The areas studied serve as the focus for the discussion of particular issue, some of which are listed above. 

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With all of these bullet points to look through and tick off for this module, I have quite a lot of theoretical research to be looking at.  I need to conduct my critical journal on here as a blog and find ideas for my final 6 prints, also conduct my essay.  I would like to link the essay and my critical journal together to make it a little easier for me.