staged vs spontaneous images- Jeff Wall

Jeff Wall, Passerby. Taken from googleimages.com

                           Jeff Wall, Vampires Picnic. Taken from googleimages.com

Jeff Wall, A Sudden Gust of wind. Taken from googleimages.com

Artist Summary - Jeff Wall

Jeff Wall was a prominent tableau vivant contemporary photographic artist; meaning his images were staged or choreographed to create a solidly recognisable narrative. The word tableau vivant means ‘living picture’. Wall discusses two styles of living pictures which he uses; the one being the ornate artifice is obvious in that the images narrative is fantastical such as Insomnia. And the other style which is much more subtle and the images staging is less obvious such as in Passerby, where it is a glance, something more naturally staged than Walls other style. Since the 1980's Wall began using digital manipulation to create his desired effect. Wall also appropriates Renaissance style artifices such as angles that lead the eye to another section of the image. The use of light boxes to display his work gives a balance between photograph and painting that niether would achieve alone. The light box gives the images a greater presence and gives the sense of advertisements on billboards, yet because his work is viewed in gallery spaces rather than on buildings, one gives greater time and thought to his work.



Jeff Wall, Insomnia. Taken from googleimages.com

Jeff Wall, Passerby. Taken from googleimages.com

The Photograph as Contemporary Art. Precis- Once Apon a Time

This chapter deals with images that tell stories. Whether related to myths or fables, or even stories which we apply to open ended images. This type of image making is described as tableau or tableau-vivant as it involves single images which stand alone and are narrative. In the mid 20th century images were mostly displayed as image essays, or in sequence. The images in this chapter are often parts of sequences, although each image is narrative filled. Pre-photographic art was also narrative filled, but one must not see contemporary photography then as a revival of this, but rather as a mutual understanding of a how a scene can be organised so that the viewer is able to recognise the story. A prominent user of the staged tableau style is Jeff Wall who became well known in the late 1980’s. This ‘staging’ style of photography poses a new role for the photographer; not as the sole image producer, but as the conductor or orchestrator of the people involved( actors, scene setters etc) In this the photographer is more like a film director in that the people involved are used to create the directors desired final effect. Philip-Lorca diCorcia’s work also sets a strong narrative for contemporary photography. The lighting used by tableau photographers is described as cinematic; often dramatic in sharp contrasts of dark and light. This does not however mean that tableau photography is a still from a film, they are not screen shots. Theresa Hubbard and Alexander Birchler both create purposefully ambiguous images that are no less narrative. Their collaborative work ‘Untitled’ shows that with this style time is compressed into a single frame thus creating the narrative. Tableau photography also often re-discusses periods in art and uses current events to support similar ideas. Often with tableau photography the characters face away from the viewer; this creates a sense of anxiety and makes the viewer uncertain of the meaning as the character is unexplained. Deborah Mesa-Pelly’s work uses recognisable stories to create a different narrative altogether; the stories become distorted into something far more sinister. Although this chapter discusses images that mostly involve human staging, there is mention of images that are architectural in character. Katherina Bosse and Miriam Backstrom both use space as a narrative rather than people.

The final work...

Face rendered out and edited in PS and saved as jpeg. To be cut out and stuck on a wall on campus.

Changes as of today.... Slight changes to nose and eyes are closer together ... No more fish eyes.... Softer look i think? More feminine?

The progress so far.... HMMMMM

Some images...

Monsieur Qui, a Parisian wheat paste artist... Taken from puppiesandflowers.com

Artist unknown. Taken from williamyan.com/blog

Leo and Pipo, Parisian wheat pasters. Taken from rathausartprojects.com

As above.

Pedro Biz, Brazilian wheat paster. Taken from gradient magazine.com.
 Ahh the dreaded penis... pixelated! Every time i draw a blue penis on the CVA drawing wall, someone scrubs it off. And i mean scrubs. Like its offensive?? Who would have thought.... :D

Artist unknown. Angsty.... taken from globalgraphica.com/streetartists

As above. The pixels are individual lego pegs.... Wow.. Effort.