Panos Kokkinias - Gas Station (From the series ''Here We Are'') 2003
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| Panos Kokkinias 2003 |
This photograph comes from a series of images called Here We Are, the 4th installment of images Kokkinias created from 1994 - 2007. All four segments are said to be linked by a common theme: Kokkinias’ personal, ongoing obsession with existential subject matter (PowerHouse Books).
Similar to Gregory Crowdson, Kokkinias photographs are staged. In this image, a desolate Gas station at night, with only a woman filling her car and the station attendant in view.
The station is encapsulated by darkness and combined with the bright lights looming from within the station, I feel this enhances the feeling of solitude. The woman is wearing a lavish red dress, quite a contrast to the vehicle she is stood next to. In the background you can make out the dimly lit vehicles in the distance, maybe this was to show although the station looks isolated, there is life around it. As a contrast, the image could suggest that these two people are the last two on earth. Both people in the image are engrossed in their own thoughts, the woman with her back to us and arms crossed gives me the impression she feels uneasy or worried about something. The man is absorbed in his own work, neither show any signs of wanting to interact with each other. Both exist in the same world, but are lost in their own.
Image 2
Meredith Frampton
Portrait of a Young Woman, 1935
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| Meredith Frampton 1935 |
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| Meredith Frampton 1935 |
When viewing this painting I feel a sense of wealth. A charming woman, dressed elegantly surrounded by attractive objects, even the flooring stands out as being beautiful. The woman could be a teacher or musician. She is looking into the distance with one arm across her body, maybe she is worried or concerned about something.
The great depression ended in 1932. Although it was over, there was still much poverty around Britain right though the 1930's. While it wasn't Frampton's intention, I feel his painting is a contrast of that time, portraying riches and wealth though objects. Is this a woman concerned about finances? Maybe she is unable to afford these objects for much longer.
Frampton painted this picture as 'a relaxation from commissions, and to celebrate an assembly of objects beautiful in their own right'. Are beautiful objects associated with wealth? We are taught in life not to love material objects, this painting suggests we should celebrate them and admire their beauty. The sitter in the painting was a 23 year old called Margaret Austin-Jones.
Image 3
Ladj Ly (Date unknown)
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| JR |
At first glance of this photograph you would think that a gang member is stood in front of his peers holding a gun at the camera. At closer inspection you realise he is in fact holding a camera. The kids in the background are posing in such a way it looks like they are mocking, showing off. The man holding the camera looks heated, his eyes locked in with the camera. With all these factors combined it creates the feeling of threat, it takes your attention away from what he is holding and you make automatically make the presumption he is holding a gun.
Ladj Ly is a French documentarian that films events and happenings associated with gangs and run down areas of the world. He has created numerous projects that highlight these areas. According to an interview by The Creators Project Ly explains that his camera is ''my weapon of mass destruction, with which I’ve done many holdups. A lot of people would like to see it destroyed''.
According to The Guardian, this photograph sold at auction for £26,250 in 2009.
Bibliography
Durand, R & Moschovi, A. (2008). Here We Are. Available: http://www.powerhousebooks.com/?p=7399. Last accessed 11th March 2014.
Tate. (2004). Portrait of a Young Woman. Available: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/frampton-portrait-of-a-young-woman-n04820. Last accessed 15th March 2014.
British Library . (2014). Timelines: Sources through History. Available: http://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item107595.html. Last accessed 15th March 2014.
Kincaid, T. (2010). My Latest Crush. Available: http://willowmanor.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/my-latest-crush.html. Last accessed 15th March 2014.
Day, E. (2010). The Street Art of JR. Available:
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2010/mar/07/street-art-jr-photography. Last accessed 15th March 2014
The Creators Project. (2014). LADJ LY. Available: http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/show/ladj-ly. Last accessed 15th March 2014.
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