Myopia 2008
Domestic Dispatch 2008
Water Harvest 2009
I have submitted work from three projects.
Myopia (2008) is a series of photographs produced in response to an interest in the connection between the virtual and physical worlds. In particular I wished to explore the point at which these places meet. Software such as Google Maps encouraged me to make a set of images that blended from one world to the other. The television screen becomes our window into that world that almost seamlessly continues from the physical into the virtual.
Domestic Dispatch (2008) is a series of photographs produced in response to the constant feed, via the news, of humanitarian injustices. Using the Action Man figures as models, I intended the famous ‘child hero’ to re-enact a selection of ‘darker sides’ of modern warfare. The domestic setting re-enforces how powerful the news is as it penetrates into our ‘safe’ homes via our modern connections.
Water Harvest (2009) is a study of our relationship with water and how increased global use of this vital resource is causing strain on our expansion. Correct management of water will become critical as climate change alters our annual rainfall. I produced a series of photographs of various vessels in which we store water, and whilst out on location, collected samples of the water itself. In order to exhibit the images with greater connection to the element, I decided to combine the images with the physical qualities of this clear liquid. By producing an installation and projecting the image through the water onto a screen, the light from the images interacted with the physicality of the subject.
I am a deep thinker and strive to understand how we have got to where we are in the world today. I am fascinated by society’s connection with nature and how we are creating a virtual world in which we can co-exist in parallel to our own physical world. I currently work in a projection booth where big changes from anologue to digital are happening and this change has further stimulated my interest in the virtual and physical.
I am interested in the MA Photography course at MMU because of the opportunity to work in an environment nurturing the changing parameters of our media landscape. In particular I believe working in an environment where photography, filmmaking and new media collide, will nourish my work’s development allowing me to explore cutting edge fields in the visual format.
In particular I am interested in being able to work alongside new media artists and learn from their work, as this is an area that I find my work has crossed into and anticipate I will return to in some form or another. I intend to stick with the idea of the still image being key to my work as it is this cross section of time that i feel is important with connecting photography of the past to that produced now.
I would like to achieve a body of work and a better philosophical understanding of how landscape photography is evolving with the virtual and the physical merging. Our perception of the world around us has changed dramatically as technology is advancing so how does this effect the way in which we respond to our environment?
As well as using photography and digital imaging, I intend to experiment with 3D design and Augmented Reality software in an effort to better understand where the physical and virtual worlds are meeting. It is this crossover that I am particularly interested in and how this changes our perception. I hope to gain more insight into new media areas and perhaps form a collaboration with a new media artist.
The equipment/resources I need will mostly be computer software based, as well as using my own digital imaging equipment. Although I have a good technical grasp of digital imaging software such as Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, areas of software I will need to research more and learn to use are those of the 3D aspect and AR software such as Layar. I intend to explore how these may come into play in my work so access to computer and software facilities will be crucial.
In 5 years time I hope to be working as a photographer and artist in the realms of advertising or some kind of cutting edge conceptual work in the industry. I would like to continue contributing to my own projects too. I feel that this particular course will broaden my understanding of where technology and media art is heading and its relationship to our perception of the world, therefore giving me the opportunity to push myself and my ideas further.
