joseph mallord william turner plays minecraft
The homework set by our photography tutor this week was 'abstract'. Such a lovely word, it derives from the Latin which translates to, 'pulled away, detached'.
I began my research by revisiting the work of JMW Turner, now regarded by many as England's finest painter and the father of modern art. The critics of his time, however, held a markedly different opinion. Throughout his long and distinguished career Turner was viewed by the establishment as both insane and heretical. Despite such misguided opposition he succeeded in opening the doors of perception through which we may still follow.
Turner's passion lay not in surface beauty; he wanted to dig deeper, to extract spirit and meaning. Turner found it in bold washes of mesmerising colour from which emerged the essence of his subject matter - whether a hell-fired seascape or a speeding steam-engine cutting through the rain. And the older he got the more abstract his work became until eventually all form dissolved into glorious washes of liquid light.
Which brings us to the thorny question of whether photography is truly art. Perhaps the difference is best summed up by the 'decisive moment', a phrase most associated with French photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson. A poetic moment perhaps, but not a spirit.
Nowadays we're awash in images. Smart phones and digital cameras turn everyone into a photographer. The pictures flash before our eyes in an endless, unrelenting stream in search of yet another social media 'like'. They pass from our consciousness as quickly as they arrive. The homework this week provided an opportunity to stop, step out of the flow and reflect.
What better place to start than with an abstract of one of Turner's light-filled masterpieces. The picture above is but a very, very small extract which I blew up on my Mac then photographed. It revealed a pixelated, distorted image which simultaneously looked back to the luminescent essence of the original painting and looked forward to the 'blocky' quality associated with the computer game, 'Minecraft'.
What better place to start than with an abstract of one of Turner's light-filled masterpieces. The picture above is but a very, very small extract which I blew up on my Mac then photographed. It revealed a pixelated, distorted image which simultaneously looked back to the luminescent essence of the original painting and looked forward to the 'blocky' quality associated with the computer game, 'Minecraft'.
a cage of dreams
This photo was taken early one morning looking out of the landing window of our cottage. Our home is next to a church graveyard, a place for quiet, contemplative reflection.
I wanted to create an image to reflect the peace I find in this place. I used a slow shutter speed, a narrow aperture, exposure compensation and some deliberate motion-blur to produce a dream-like quality.
Perhaps this abstract questions which side of the cage we are on.
crossing place
One of the many qualities I admire in Turner's work is his ability to draw the viewer in with a sense of underlying movement. The light in his paintings is multi-layered and complex. It feels alive.
This stands in stark contrast to the work of Turner's contemporary, John Constable who sought to recreate the rural idyllic of his native Dedham Vale in Suffolk. Perhaps the most famous of Constable's paintings is 'The Hay Wain'. Whilst not detracting from the technical genius and great detail to be found in this piece to my eyes it looks still and lifeless.
My second abstract seeks to explore shifting patterns of light. The subject matter is a quilt made by wife. What do you see in this image? How does it make you feel?
the man whose head exploded
Wikipedia describes 'pareidolia' as ...
'the tendency for incorrect perception of a stimulus as an object,
pattern or meaning known to the observer, such as seeing shapes in
clouds, seeing faces in inanimate objects or abstract patterns, or
hearing hidden messages in music.'
In the 1920s the Swiss psychologist, Hermann Rorschach invented a psychometric testing system for the diagnosis of schizophrenia. He based it on the concept of pareidolia. Rorschach asked three hundred mental patients and one hundred control subjects for their response to a set of ten ink-blots printed on white card. He then presented his analysis in a little-read book called, 'Psychodiagnostik', published shortly before his death.
For lovers of trivia, the Rorschach nomenclature lives on in both the ink-blot diagnostic tool and the name of a fictional anti-hero created by writer, Alan Moore for his fantastic graphic novel, 'Watchmen'.
My third abstract explores pareidolia. Can you guess the subject matter?
my dream flew out the window
The final abstract in this series is a photograph of a photograph I took a few years ago. The subject matter is a feather, distorted again through the use of motion-blur and exposure compensation.
It's my favourite. The abstract unlocks in me the child-like imagination I treasure so dearly. Life is and can be so very serious. Sometimes it's just great to be lost in the moment and to dream.
With the ephemeral flutter of a bird in flight my dreams transport me to a different and a kinder place.
